Be My Guest

by Caroline Clemmons

  Lori Beth stepped toward Aurora. "From what Will said, you had a terrible time. I hope it doesn't turn you against Garza County."

  "Actually, I think this is a beautiful area. I'd like it more with a little less water, though."

  Tommy placed his hand on his wife's arm. "I hate to run when we've just met, Aurora, but I'm really anxious to get home and see how much damage we have from the storm at our place."

  Lori Beth took Aurora's hand in both of hers and squeezed. "We'll see you again soon. You'll like Aunt Rose, she's a real dear. She'll get you organized in no time if you're not careful, though. Please don't be intimidated by her--she really is a sweetheart."

  Will shook his head and smiled. "I think Aunt Rose has met her match this time, Sis.”

  When Lori Beth and Tommy Joe left, Kelly came over to Aurora. "Do you think you'll find your car? Daddy said it thought it was a boat and sailed away."

  Aurora sighed and shook her head. "I don't know, Kelly. I'm afraid it'll be ruined even if I do find it. I'll just have to get another one, I guess, and try to replace the things that were in it."

  "What was in it?" the curious little girl asked.

  "Well, there were some clothes and shoes that I wear when I'm working. There were also things like books, an iron, hair dryer--you know--those things women just can't live without."

  Kelly giggled. "Now you'll have to go shopping, won't you?"

  Aurora returned her smile and put her arm around Kelly's shoulders. "I guess I will, eventually. For now, though, why don't you show us your new clothes?"

  Eager to comply, Kelly gathered her packages and asked Aurora and Will to follow her to her room. Aurora had loved Kelly's room when Will showed it to her on their tour of the house. Walls of pale seafoam green and woodwork painted white harmonized with carpet in a slightly darker shade of the same seafoam green. Wide hunter green ribbon with a pink ribbon rose at the knot tied back white eyelet curtains at the window. A country quilt in pink, white, seafoam and hunter green served as bedspread on the white iron bedframe with a hunter green bedskirt. It made a room any little girl--and most big girls, too--would love.

  With great ceremony, Kelly produced one item at a time to tell Aurora and Will about each purchase in great detail. When she finished, Aurora helped her put them away in the closet and antique cherry dresser.

  Will glanced at his watch. "We'd better get started for Aunt Rose's. She doesn't tolerate tardiness, does she, Kelly?"

  Kelly laughed and explained to Aurora that her father made a little joke, "She's a school teacher, see, and doesn't like tardiness. Well...she used to be a teacher, now she's my school principal.”

  "Is that awkward--your great-aunt as your principal?" Aurora asked.

  Kelly thought a few seconds before she answered. "No...well, I guess it would be if I ever had to go to the principal's office for something bad. Aunt Rose told me if I got in trouble she would punish me once as the principal and once as my aunt"--she peered at her father, who in turn looked at Aurora and winked--"and then Daddy would punish me, too, when she told him."

  Aurora laughed. "I guess that's enough incentive to be good at school, isn't it? Both my parents are teachers, so I sympathize with you. Do you like school?"

  "Oh, yeah." Kelly saw the frown on her father's face and corrected, "Yes, ma'am. I'm on the honor roll, too. I'm ready for summer now, though. I want to have more time to ride Misty. Misty's my pony. Would you like to go see her?"

  "Another time, Kelly," Will cut in. "Right now, we have to go see your Aunt Rose or suffer the consequences later."

  * * *

  Aurora expected Aunt Rose to be the stereotypical sweet, plump, gray-haired, little old maid. What a surprise to be greeted by a tall, elegant woman. In her late fifties, Rose's soft brown eyes gleamed with lively intelligence. Her rich brown hair showed only slight touches of gray at the sides.

  Aurora found herself very glad to be on this woman's good side. She imagined Rose would make a formidable opponent. As principal for the middle and elementary schools, Rose Webster brooked nonsense from no one. Well, almost no one. Clearly, both Will and Kelly received special treatment in this household.

  Rose's gracious smile greeted her. "Welcome, Aurora. The spare bedrooms are upstairs. I hope you can manage stairs all right. We could make a bedroom of the sun room if you find climbing stairs difficult."

  "That's kind of you. I'm sure I can manage the stairs very well."

  "Good. I've given you the bedroom at the front of the house. Kelly, please take Aurora's things up." Rose dismissed Kelly and turned to Aurora. "Aurora, perhaps you'll help me get dinner on the table. Will, you stay out of the way. Go into the living room and prop that leg up while you read the Sunday paper."

  Rose stopped in mid-step as if she had just had a thought. "Oh, since you'll be staying here, maybe you want to know some things about the house. Rose extended her arm as if to indicated the whole house. "The red brick for this house came from a plant in Bennett near Fort Worth." Rose indicated an old portrait on the wall. The portrait was of a young couple very stiffly posed for the camera. "My grandparents built this house in 1923--it's prairie revival style, you know. Except for the time I was away at college, this is the only house in which I've ever lived."

  "I really like this place, Rose. It has such a warm, welcoming feeling."

  Rose almost beamed. "I've traveled almost every summer of my adult life and I seem to have filled the house with souvenirs of those travels." She picked up a delicately carved jade figure of Quan Yin on an ebony base. "Since I retain the original family furnishings, these rooms overflow with the furniture and memorabilia of three generations." Lovingly, she returned the figure to its place. "To me, the effect is cluttered, but pleasing."

  Each flat surface Aurora could see contained at least one museum quality item. "I agree that it's very pleasing. I think it must be similar to living in a museum, though. All of this must be time-consuming to clean."

  With good humor Rose admitted, "I confess a cleaning woman comes every Thursday. She probably finds my treasures less pleasing than I do."

  Aurora stood surrounded by the comfortable smells of furniture polish and delicate lavender mingled with the tempting aromas of dinner. She guessed roast beef and broccoli were on the menu and recognized the cinnamon and apple aroma of warm apple pie.

  Furniture shone like that in a furniture wax commercial and wood floors gleamed around the edges of well-cared for carpets. A small oriental carpet in the foyer matched the large carpet of the living room and a dark blue camel-back sofa sat at one edge of the carpet. Matching tie-backs pulled heavy burgundy velvet draperies away from the window to reveal softer sheer panels.

  Bookshelves were on one side of a small fireplace that appeared to contain artificial gas logs. Aurora walked to the table near a tall burgundy chair in the corner. "Is this a Tiffany lamp?" She gently touched the glass with the tip of her forefinger.

  "Yes, my father bought that for mother many years ago. It's lovely, but it isn't as good for reading as some of the others."

  For a few moments Aurora stood and savored the new smells and sights before she noticed Will's smile.

  "I guess I'm relegated to the living room while you and Aunt Rose slave away in the kitchen." Will hobbled across the living room to sit in the large blue rolled-arm chair. He adjusted the ottoman just perfectly in front of the chair and raised his cast onto the ottoman.

  Aurora stood with arms akimbo. "You’re not exactly heartbroken, Will. I think you're used to Rose spoiling you."

  Will settled himself in the chair and picked up the front section of the newspaper from the nearby table. His eyes twinkled and he flashed one of his dazzling smiles. "I didn't intend to imply I'm in any way complaining."

  The remodeled kitchen included a dishwasher and several other modern conveniences without destroying the atmosphere of the original room. Counters of white ceramic tile trimmed in black gleamed as if recently replaced, but in the small o
ctagonal tiles common in the 1920's.

  Multi-faceted glass pulls gleamed on white cabinet doors. Cheerful red print chintz covered benches of the breakfast nook and matched curtains at the windows. It was an efficient, comfortable, and pleasant room.

  Rose nodded to indicate a door at the back of the kitchen. "There's a small utility room and half bath through there. That's the only addition built to the house, but we did remodel when I was a girl to include a bathroom upstairs. We also took in some of the attic space to enlarge the closets. These old houses didn't have much storage."

  Aurora walked over to the utility room door and peered at the small area. "This is very nice, Rose. And your room is downstairs also?"

  "Yes, down the hall that opens off the foyer. It was my parents' room when they were alive, and my grandparents' before them. When my parents were alive, I used the room you'll be using."

  "It must be wonderful to have so many family treasures about you. I have such a large family on both sides. We're fortunate even to have one or two items handed down through the family." "Will tells me you had quite an ordeal this weekend"--Rose carved slices of the roast and placed each slice onto a serving platter as she carved--"so I thought you might need a few days to recuperate before you start work. Is that all right?"

  "Will's friend Nick Harris said to take things easy for a couple of days until the headaches decrease. I should think that by Wednesday or Thursday I'll be able to work. Do you have something lined up already?"

  "I have something in mind. Perhaps I should see if you'd be interested before I pursue it." Rose finished carving the roast and cleaned the carving knife. She slid the knife into the proper slot of the wooden holder on the counter. "Frankly, I'm worried about my friend Peggy's health. Your visit really seems like a Godsend." Rose handed the meat platter to Aurora, "Take the meat through, please, and I'll bring the vegetables. What is keeping Kelly?"

  Aurora found talking to Rose like keeping up with a whirlwind. Kelly came into the kitchen as Aurora exited to the dining room. Rose issued staccato instructions to Kelly, then followed Aurora into the dining room. When food and table settings met her satisfaction, Rose called to Will to join them for dinner.

  During the meal, Rose revealed her plan for Aurora to take over the shop of a friend. "Peggy needs surgery badly. Her health is really failing rapidly, but she's afraid she'll lose her shop if she's not there every day. Her business has declined the past few years, you see. In her mind the shop will fold completely without her."

  Will’s eyes held a speculative light. "You mean Raphael's Cards and Gifts?"

  "Of course I mean Raphael's, Will. How many shop-owner friends named Peggy do I know?" Having chastised her nephew to her satisfaction, Rose turned back to Aurora. "Will says you have a marketing degree and are a very good business woman. Peggy's shop is a card and gift shop on the main street of Post. Would you be willing to manage Peggy's shop while she has surgery and recuperates?"

  Momentary panic hit Aurora at being put on the spot by this no-nonsense woman regarding an unseen shop. Her professional confidence soon resurfaced and she admitted the appeal of the idea. "It sounds like the very thing that I've been thinking of for myself. Will may have told you, though, that I'm on my way to Colorado. What sort of time frame do you have in mind?"

  Rose tapped the tip of a finger on her chin as she sat in thought for a minute. "Well, if you start on Wednesday or Thursday, Peggy can spend the three or four days of this week showing you how she wants things done. Possibly she could have her surgery Monday or Tuesday of next week. She'll be able to return to work in only four weeks time."

  Rose leaned forward and placed her hand on the table. "Aurora, if you can convince Peggy you can handle the shop, you'll be doing her a great service. It will also ease my mind and that of her other friends. She's postponed this surgery for over a year and suffered terribly for it."

  Kelly asked, "What's wrong with her, Aunt Rose?" Aurora wondered the same thing and appreciated Kelly's frank question.

  "It's not something to talk about at the dinner table, Kelly. She has what we used to call `female problems' but she wouldn't appreciate me going into details about her personal life."

  Aurora thought aloud, "Hmm, I think this must be a very busy time for her with Mothers's Day next Sunday and graduations and weddings coming before Father's Day next month. Don't you think she'll hesitate to be away at this time of year?"

  Rose heaved a great sigh. "She thinks she's indispensable to that store at any time. Meanwhile, she gets weaker and weaker and less able to take care of the store or herself. Leave Peggy Hopkins to me! This is a good chance for her. If you agree to help, I won't let her miss such a good opportunity."

  Excitement rose within Aurora. This seemed too good to be true, like kismet, or fate provided an opportunity. "To be perfectly frank, I'd love the opportunity to see if I enjoy that type shop as much as I think I will. If you can convince your friend to let me try, I'd love to tackle it for a month."

  "Good." Rose appeared satisfied....but not nearly as satisfied as Will.

  Aurora chewed on her lip. "Doesn't your friend have someone working at the shop who could take over for her?"

  Rose leaned back in her chair and put her hand at her throat. "No. Oh, my goodness, no. Mattie Evans works for Peggy full time but, frankly, Mattie can just barely stock and ring up sales. At that, I suspect she makes a lot of mistakes. Susan Stevens is a nice young woman, but can only work part time. Susan has small children and just wants a little extra money for the family. No, neither Mattie nor Susan is qualified to keep things going without supervision."

  Rose smiled and picked up her fork. "I think this will be the perfect solution. We'll consider the matter settled, then. I'll go over and talk to Peggy after school tomorrow. Now, Kelly, tell me about your shopping trip."

  * * *

  Will called Aurora about midmorning Monday to see if she languished alone. Aurora soon set him straight. "Rose is such an efficient person, she left a list of instructions for me for three days of convalescence. The list includes names of people to call if I feel ill, as well as her number at school. There are directions to various businesses in town, and suggestions for lunch for each day."

  "That sounds like Aunt Rose. Is my number on there?"

  Aurora laughed and teased. "No, sorry. I guess you don't rate as high with Rose as you thought."

  "Hm. Likely she knew I'd call you before the day was out. She knows me pretty well."

  "Do you have a lot of damage from the storm? Did you lose many cattle?"

  "We've lost cattle, but I don't know how many yet. All the horses are accounted for, but there's some damage at one of the oil wells. So far, though, there's not as much havoc as I feared. There's no sight of your car."

  "Rose had me take her to school this morning so I can have her car to run errands. I hope the insurance company is reasonable about the loss of my little car. I'm afraid it might never be found."

  After the phone call, Aurora leaned back in the rocker and sighed. Will's call brightened her day more than she cared to admit.

  The room Rose had assigned her was pale, pale blue with white organdy priscilla curtains at the windows. Floral rugs of cabbage roses on a dark blue background dotted wood floors. In one dormer space sat a small oak writing desk beneath the window with a dark blue velvet cushion on the seat of the desk chair. Draped across a high-backed rocker with its own blue velvet seat cushion lay a lovely patterned throw. A double wedding ring patterned quilt was used as a spread over a blue dust ruffle. On the walls were Monet and Renoir prints matted in blue and framed in white and gold.

  Last night Rose explained that her parents had installed central heating in the house, but no central air-conditioning. An air-conditioning unit in the second window hummed in the background as Aurora reviewed her accomplishments of the day. She sat in the rocking chair with her open briefcase on her lap.

  When the phone on the table between the chair and the bed rang
, the sound startled Aurora. Kelly called the minute she got in from school and the bus ride home. Kelly’s comfort in calling sent a wave of warm pleasure through Aurora.

  "Were your new pink jeans a success with the other fifth grade girls?"

  Kelly bubbled, "All my friends loved them. Marcie's going to ask her stepmother to get her jeans like mine. Then we can be twins. Won't that be great?"

  With a wistful smile, Aurora remembered herself at Kelly's age. "So, you had a good day at school."

  "Yeah, it was really neat. That snobby Felicia was positively green with envy. She likes to be the best at everything."

  Aurora thought of Kelly alone on the ranch with Will working. She wondered if Lily stayed at the house until Will came in for the day. What a change a child made in one's life. "Now that you're home, what will you do?"

  "I'm going to ride Misty. Catrina is coming with me. Her pony is Twilight. The ponies are sisters."

  Aurora smiled again. She thought she knew the answer to her question, but asked anyway. "Oh, my. Misty and Twilight. Who chose those names?"

  Kelly laughed as if it were a great joke. "Catrina and I did. Dad and Raul thought they were dumb names, but Catrina and I like them. Misty and Twilight like them too."

  Kelly chatted on as if the two had been friends for Kelly's entire lifetime. When Kelly's talking streak ran its course and the phone call ended, Aurora's ear felt ready to fall off.

  On her explorations of the downtown area earlier in the day, Aurora drove by Peggy's shop several times. Though tempted to go inside, she decided to wait for Rose to accompany her. Once Rose returned home, she kept Aurora entertained with talk of the family and her many travels.

  The first half of the week progressed quickly to Wednesday afternoon. Rose asked Aurora if she could manage a visit to Raphael's Cards and Gifts and meet Peggy Hopkins. Eager to see this shop, the very type shop she thought she might enjoy owning, Aurora insisted she could handle the visit.

  Rose attempted to prepare Aurora. "Peggy's business has declined in almost direct proportion to her health over the past few years. Please keep in mind that it's a good location in the old downtown area with red brick-paved streets. Actually, it's only a few blocks from my house."