“What about Babette?”
“June left me the first time several years before Babette was born. About a year later she appeared at the door and begged my forgiveness and I took her back. The next few months were like a second honeymoon—until the doctor told her she was pregnant again. She was determined to have an abortion but I told her if she did, it was all over between the two of us. From that day on, it was like I was her enemy. She couldn’t say a civil word to me and she turned her back on Delana and Tony.”
“But surely when she saw Babette’s sweet little face and held her in her arms she—”
“No, she barely paid any attention to Babette, and she was gone all the time. We went through babysitter after babysitter because she would never come home at the time she said she would. I tried to reason with her but she wouldn’t listen.”
Tassie reached out to him. “Oh, Mitch, how awful that must have been for all of you.”
He sat down beside her and cradled her hand in his. “It was an awful time. It sounds mean-spirited for me to say it, but after finding out she’d been cheating behind my back with her lover again, I was almost glad when she left us that second time. I’m sorry to say it, but I’d had about all I could take—we all had; and after what she had done, I’d never have been able to trust her again.”
“Mitch, I’m so sorry. I know it has been hard for you—telling me all of this—but knowing what you and the children have gone through gives me a better understanding of so many things. Not only of you, but of Tony’s and Delana’s attitudes, especially Delana’s. Being the oldest she probably remembers more of what happened than the other children do.”
“I’m sure she does, but sweetheart, we can’t let her keep us apart. Delana is almost sixteen. In a few years, even if she doesn’t go to college, she probably won’t be living at home. Once most girls graduate from high school all they can think about is getting out on their own. I doubt Delana will be an exception.”
“You’re probably right. I love my parents dearly, and have always gotten along with them fabulously well, but I, too, wanted to get out on my own. Moving out of your parents’ house is like announcing to the world you have arrived, that you are now an adult.”
“And it seems to me the best thing I can do for her while she is still with me is to keep her under the influence of a positive, cheerful, godly woman. You, my love.”
“She doesn’t want my influence. She can barely stand the sight of me.”
“I know. She doesn’t want my influence, either. I won’t try to deceive you by telling you it will be easy—I’m sure it won’t. And I can’t say she won’t break your heart with her hateful words and her uncalled-for actions—because I’m sure that will happen.” His shoulders rose and fell in a shrug. “I’m selfish for even asking you to share your life with my dysfunctional family.”
“But I want to share my life with your family. I not only want to share it, I want to be an active and accepted part of it. I love your children, Mitch, and while I hate what she does and the way she behaves toward others—especially you and me—I love Delana because she is a part of you and because God loves her.”
“Then you might say yes?”
“I want to say yes, but first I have something I must tell you, something that has been weighing on my mind for nearly ten years. Something I have to tell you before I accept your proposal.”
Mitch raised a brow. “Uh-oh. That sounds ominous.”
Tassie blinked hard. “I—I’m not the unblemished, squeaky clean person you think I am.”
A frown clouded his face. “What do you mean?”
“It’ll be easier to tell you if I start at the beginning.” She pulled away from the shelter of his arms and began to pace about the room. “When I was a sophomore in high school one of the senior boys, the star quarterback on our football team, asked me for a date. I was afraid, since he was older than me, my parents wouldn’t let me go, so I never told them. Rather than letting him pick me up at my house I asked him to meet me at the mall. I thought we were going to a movie, but instead, he took me to his friend’s house where there was a party and a lot of drinking going on. I had never even tasted liquor before that night. But everyone was drinking. So, even though I knew it was wrong, trying to be like them, I drank, too. I really didn’t like the stuff, but my date kept filling my glass, so I kept chugging it down. Next thing I knew, we were in his car and—”
“He raped you?”
Her heart thundered in her ears. She had never voiced her experience to another living soul, not even her mother and especially not her dad.
“I know it sounds crazy, but I’m really not sure. I was so drunk by that time I was totally out of it, but he said I went along willingly. And he told me to keep my mouth shut or he’d tell everyone in school what we did. After that night he never looked my way again, acted as if he didn’t even know me.”
Mitch gazed at her as if spellbound, as if he couldn’t believe what he was hearing. “That’s terrible. What did you do?”
Tassie had tried so hard to put that fateful night out of her mind and here she was reliving it again. Voicing that horrid experience was making her sick to her stomach and she wanted to throw up.
“What could I do?” she asked with a shrug. “Nothing, absolutely nothing. I wanted to tell my mother but I couldn’t. She thought I was her perfect little girl. The knowledge of what I had done would destroy her. And I was so naive. I thought every time someone had intimate relations with a person they automatically became pregnant. For the next five months I lived in dread and fear. My grades went down. I was queasy all the time. I thought sure I was having a baby. Until I checked some books out of the library and read about a home pregnancy test and found out I wasn’t. But I’ll tell you one thing. I did a lot of praying. What I had done was sin and I knew it. Even though I didn’t deserve forgiveness, I asked God to forgive me and dedicated my life to serving Him. I’ve been walking with Him ever since.”
“Oh, Tassie, I wish I’d been there to protect you.”
“I’m so ashamed of what I did, Mitch. I know God forgave me for my stupidity but He never promised I’d forget. That awful time in my life haunts me every day.”
“What happened to the guy?”
She shrugged her shoulders sadly. “I have no idea, and I hope I never see him again. What happened to me is in the past. I want to keep it that way. God forgave me. That’s the important thing.” Her eyes filled with tears of shame. “If you’ve changed your mind and don’t want to marry me, I’ll understand.”
Mitch leaped to his feet and gathered her up in his arms, holding her close. “Change my mind? Why would I want to do such a thing? You must have been about Delana’s age. You thought you could trust the guy. He knew what he was doing when he plied you with alcohol.”
“But I—”
He put a finger to her lips to silence her. “My dearest, like God’s Word says, we’ve all sinned, every one of us, certainly me included. No one is less deserving of His forgiveness than I am, but He has promised to forgive us our sins if we but ask. You asked Him and He’s forgiven you. How could I even begin to hold anything against you for being naive and becoming that man’s victim?”
“You’re not upset with me about it?”
“Of course not, sweetheart. I’m just thankful you came out of it as well as you did. Things could have been a lot worse. But, my dear Tassie, you need to forgive yourself.”
“I know, and I’m going to. I can’t believe I’ve been stupid enough to carry this burden for so long.”
“Let’s you and me forget about the whole thing and never speak of it again.”
Tassie stood on tiptoe and kissed Mitch on the cheek. “I love you.”
He gave her a shy grin. “I love you more, my darling. Just think, if you say yes, you’ll be Mrs. Mitchell Drummond.”
“Then, knowing this about me, you still want me to marry you?”
“Of course I do. I love you!”
> Tassie gazed into the eyes of the only man she’d ever loved then threw her arms about his neck. “Then, yes, Mitch, my darling. Yes, yes, yes! I’ll marry you!”
“Really? When?”
“Whenever you say. I want so much to be your wife. Oh, Mitch, this is so exciting. I love you. I love you. I love you!”
“What do you think about having the wedding at your church but having our friend, Dale Lewis, perform the ceremony instead of your pastor?”
“I think it’s a wonderful idea.”
“I’ve got to tell the kids!”
“You know they’re going to be upset.”
“But Dale said we should be honest with them. Besides, we can’t wait too long, sweetheart. The college fall semester will be starting in a few weeks. I’d like for us to be married before then. How about two weeks from today?”
“Two weeks from today for what?” Delana asked as she entered the kitchen, her eyes narrowing suspiciously. “You hugging our servant because she saved your son, or is something else going on?”
Scowling, Mitch let go of Tassie and hurried toward his daughter. “How many times do I have to remind you? Tassie is not our servant; she is our nanny. Tassie and I had decided we would tell you three children at the same time but since you’re here and questioning our relationship, I guess you should be the first to know. I’ve asked her to marry me and she said yes.”
Her eyes blazing, Delana glared at her father. “You’re going to marry our maid? You’ve got to be kidding.”
“Look, Delana, I love Tassie and I hope you will learn to love her, too. She’s—”
“Love her? The way she treats me? Forget it, Dad! And don’t count on me being at your wedding, ’cause I won’t be there!” With that she turned and bolted out of the room. Moments later, she slammed her bedroom door hard enough to knock it off its hinges.
With a look of defeat, Mitch turned back to Tassie. “Now she’s really upset.”
“Don’t beat yourself up. No matter when you told her it wouldn’t have made any difference. She’s determined to hate me.”
He reached for her hands then gripped them tightly in his. “Her tirade hasn’t made you change your mind, has it?”
“No, I still want to be your wife. Hopefully, with much prayer on our part, eventually she’ll come around like Dale Lewis said she would and realize I want only the best for her.”
He kissed her on the forehead then let his kisses slowly drift down her cheek to her lips. “So what do you think about having our wedding in two weeks?”
“It’s a little fast, but I love the idea. Like you said, we probably know each other better than many couples do who have been dating for a long time. But I think a small wedding of just friends and family, and maybe those you have worked with over the years, would be best. Maybe if we keep it limited to just a few people, Delana will decide to come. A small wedding shouldn’t take too much planning.”
“But you will wear a white gown, won’t you?”
“Oh, yes. This may be your second wedding, but it’s my first.”
They parted quickly as Tony and Babette came into the room. “Hey, what’s going on with Delana? It felt like an earthquake when she slammed her door. She mad or somethin’?”
Mitch shot a quick glance at Tassie. “I guess now is as good a time as any to tell you. I’ve asked Tassie to marry me and she said yes!”
Tony grinned. “Now I know why Delana slammed her door.”
Mitch did a double take. “You’re not upset about it?”
“Naw, I knew you guys were getting along pretty well.”
“Daddy, what does married mean?”
Mitch bent quickly and lifted Babette in his arms. “Oh, honey, I’m sorry. I should have done a better job of telling you kids. Married means Tassie won’t be our nanny anymore, she—”
“But I want her to be my nanny. I love Tassie!” Babette began to cry.
Tassie quickly pulled the girl from Mitch’s arms and held her close. “Oh, honey, I’m not leaving. I’ll still be living here and taking care of you. Things will just be a little bit different.”
“I guess that means you’ll be our mom,” Tony said matter-of-factly.
She whirled around to face him. “No, Tony! No one can ever take your mother’s place, but I would like to be like a second mom to you. I love you kids.”
“So when is the wedding?”
“Two weeks,” Mitch said proudly. “In two weeks Tassie will be Mrs. Mitchell Drummond.”
❧
“Since it’s a warm day, I thought we’d pick up some chocolate chip ice cream,” Tassie told Babette the next afternoon after they had visited the library and she pulled the car into the grocery store’s parking lot. “Would you like that?”
Babette’s eyes sparkled. “Yummy. I love ice cream.”
“Me, too.”
“I like going to the store with you, Tassie.”
“And I like going to the store with you!”
They purchased their ice cream then headed for home, only to be surprised when they saw Dale Lewis coming out their front door with Delana a few steps behind him. Oh, please, God, don’t let Delana be in any trouble, Tassie breathed in prayer as she pulled in beside them. But Dale was smiling. That had to be good sign.
“Hi,” he told her with a friendly wave. “I saw Delana walking home from the mall, so I stopped to give her a ride.”
When Tassie turned to smile at Delana she found the girl’s mascara smeared, as if she had been crying. “You could have called me, Delana. I would have been happy to pick you up.”
Dale grinned. “Naw, it worked out better this way. It gave me and Delana a chance to have a chat. Gotta go. See you all later.”
Tassie watched until his car disappeared down the street. When she turned around, Delana had already gone back into the house.
“Did either of them say what they chatted about?” Mitch asked her after he got home. “Did she seem mad at him or upset?”
“If she would have been mad at him, I doubt she would have walked him to his car, but she did sort of look like she had been crying. Maybe you should ask him.”
He shrugged. “I know it sounds silly, but I’m not real sure he’d tell me. He’s pretty tight-lipped when it comes to counseling someone.”
Her eyes widened. “You think that’s what he was doing? Counseling her?”
Again he shrugged. “Who knows? Maybe. I doubt Delana will tell us and if I ask her she’ll probably get mad and tell me it’s none of my business. I guess if he did counsel her, we’ll have to pray she pays attention to him. I know it won’t be easy, but let’s try to put all this out of our minds for now and think of something pleasant. We have a wedding to plan.”
Tassie gazed lovingly into his eyes. “I need to talk to you about something.”
“Oh no. Don’t tell me you’ve changed your mind about marrying me.”
“Oh, no, nothing like that, but I’ve been thinking. Now that we’re engaged and I’m no longer simply an employee in your house, it seems improper for us to be living under the same roof.”
“But I need you with the kids.”
“I know, and I have a plan. I was thinking I could move back to my parents’ home and come to work every morning at six to prepare breakfast and be here with the kids all day. Then I’d leave as soon as Babette goes to bed and—”
“But what if I get home late or am called out during the night?”
“I haven’t asked Mom yet, but I think she would be willing to come and spend the nights at your house until we’re married.”
Mitch wrinkled up his face. “That seems kinda silly.”
“Maybe, but I think it would set a good example for the children.”
“I’m sure you’re right. As Christians we don’t want any appearance of impropriety.”
“Good, I was hoping you’d agree with me. I’ll call Mom in the morning.”
❧
Although the next few days were filled wi
th a flurry of activity and more happiness than Tassie had ever before experienced, there was still a constant strain between Tassie and Delana. It wasn’t that the girl was rude or said or did anything out of the ordinary; instead it was as if a heavy gray cloud hung between them.
“Delana, dear, I wish you wouldn’t treat Tassie the way you do,” Tassie overheard her mother saying in a sweet voice. “Tassie loves you.”
Tassie’s mother had stayed at the house this morning to help with some final details, and Tassie—just coming out of the kitchen—stopped short, not wanting to interrupt.
The girl responded with a loud huff. “Loves me? If she loves me why is she so mean to me?”
“Come on now, sweetheart. What has my daughter ever done to you that was mean?”
“She’s always messing in my stuff and spying on me.”
“It may seem that way to you but all she’s doing is trying to help you.”
“I don’t need her help. I just want to be left alone.”
“Please, Delana,” Mrs. Springer pleaded with her, “this isn’t just Tassie’s wedding; it’s your father’s, too. He loves you, and despite what you may believe, we all love you. Nothing would make him any happier than to have you attend their wedding. Promise you’ll think long and hard before doing something foolish enough to break his heart.”
Delana huffed. “His heart is already broken. My mom took care of that a long time ago.”
“Believe me, Tassie isn’t going to run out on you, sweetie. She isn’t just marrying your father, she’s marrying his family. She wants so much to be a second mother to you kids. And. . .”
When she paused, Tassie backed away a bit.
“And she wants so much for you to be her maid of honor.”
“Her maid of honor? No way!”
Tassie listened as a noise sounded, like a plastic bag tearing or a box being pulled open.
“Look, I’ve brought her prom dress,” her mother said kindly. “It’s your size. I know it will fit you.”
“Since I’m not going to the wedding, I won’t be needing it.”
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