by Arlene James
Lily sent a helpless look to Tate. He whacked his cap against his thigh and enlightened her. “Hamster shopping.”
“Ah.” Lily caught Sherie’s eye. “Can you handle things here?”
“Absolutely,” Sherie told her. “You go on. Just don’t forget that Gracie Wilson and Mrs. Morgan will be in to discuss wedding flowers at two.”
“Can we have pizza for lunch first, Daddy?” Isabella asked.
Caught, Tate forced a smile and capitulated. “Sure.”
“Best invitation I’ve had all day,” Lily said, rising and reaching behind her to untie the strings of the dark green apron that she wore over her gauzy skirt, white, and a simple short-sleeved pink T-shirt. “Can I bring you anything, Sherie?”
“No, thanks. I carried my lunch from home today. Happy hamster shopping.”
“You are a treasure,” Lily said, hurrying around the table to join Tate and Isabella, who practically hopped up and down in her eagerness.
They went out with Sherie merrily calling behind them, “Takes one to know one!”
“I have to admit,” Tate said, pulling the door closed behind them, “Kenneth wouldn’t have worked out half so well as Sherie.”
Lily shot him a grateful glance. “Things have a way of working out, don’t you think? When you put your trust in the right place.”
He knew she wasn’t talking about him putting his trust in her, though he could certainly do that. No, she was letting him know that she’d prayed sincerely about the situation, and it had worked out for the best, just as Coraline and the others had prayed about the town’s situation and along had come an anonymous benefactor willing to help them attract new businesses to town. He was going to have to think seriously about that trust soon, but not just now, not yet.
They stepped out onto the sidewalk, and Isabella took Lily’s hand. She reached back for his, too, but Tate hesitated, stubbornly thinking of Eve, of the look of joy on her face as a squalling, infant Isabella had been laid in her arms and then of the way she had jerked and her eyes had rolled before she’d grabbed her head and started to gag. A nurse had thrust Isabella into his arms and shoved the pair of them out of the way. It had been just the two of them ever since. Eve had “gone to Glory.”
He had missed her so much. He wondered when he had stopped missing her and why he couldn’t make himself miss her anymore.
Mama must like it in Heaven a whole lot.
He knew it was true. Taking his daughter’s plump, warm hand in his, he knew it was true.
Because of the busyness of Main Street, he’d had to park around the corner on Bronson Avenue. It would have been foolish to climb into the truck just to turn around and drive half a block to The Everything, so they walked, crossing the alley behind the Main Street stores, then School Drive. They entered the building through the convenience store. Elwood greeted them, as usual, from behind the counter.
“We’re going hamster shopping after lunch, Mr. Dill,” Isabella announced.
Elwood shook his head, stroking his chin whiskers. “Now, don’t that beat all? I wouldn’t have figured that pet shop would work for nothing. Shows what I know.”
They wound their way through the shelves of small products and past the drinks cooler into the uneven hallway that connected the convenience store part to the grill part of the business, coming out between the order counter and another drinks cooler. Four mismatched tables, each with four chrome-and-hard-blue-vinyl chairs, occupied what space was not taken up by the tiny kitchen area. Velma Dill sat atop a stool behind the order counter reading, of all things, a fashion magazine. She quickly tossed it aside.
“What can I get for you?”
They ordered a full pepperoni pizza and went to choose bottled drinks from the cooler, which they carried to a table and opened to enjoy while the microwave ticked down the minutes. Velma cut the pizza, returned it to its box, added paper plates and napkins and bagged the whole lot. Tate paid, and they left to eat beneath the trees in the park behind the building.
The pizza tasted surprisingly good until it cooled and became too tough to chew. Even then, the ducks were happy to have the crusts, much to Isabella’s delight. The breeze blew steadily enough to make sitting in the shade at midday quite pleasant even in mid-July. Sitting across from him, Lily tucked their refuse into the plastic bag and tied it up tightly before turning on the attached bench of the picnic table to lean back, hanging her elbows on the tabletop and stretching out her slender legs. She crossed her ankles, the delicate ruffled hem of her skirt at satisfying odds with the practical canvas of her slip-on shoes.
Her long blond hair pooled upon the tabletop in glossy waves. Tate felt a surprising urge to comb his hands through it. He might have done so if his daughter hadn’t been there. Tate held out the bag of trash to her. “Take care of this so we can go.”
Isabella ran off to do as instructed. Lily half turned on the bench seat.
“I’ve eaten better pizza,” she said through a smile, “but never enjoyed one more.”
He knew exactly how she felt. Watching Isabella on the way back to the table, he couldn’t remember when he’d felt such simple joy, not since… He couldn’t actually think of a time when he’d felt this comfortable, easy happiness.
Moments of ecstatic delight came to him: the moment Eve had agreed to be his steady girl, their wedding day, the night Eve had told him she was pregnant, Isabella’s birth. In between had been lots of ups and downs, some fun, some worry, plenty of hard work. It seemed to him now that it had all gone so fast that they’d hardly had time to enjoy the important moments. Maybe that had been his fault. Everyone had been concerned that he and Eve had married too young, so he’d felt that he had to prove them wrong. Well, he had nothing to prove now.
As Isabella drew near, he and Lily rose. They began to stroll across the block-long park. When they reached the sidewalk on Granary Road, they turned left and walked on past School Drive, the alley and the end of the tan-painted brick building that housed the shops. Another left and a simple matter of a few steps took them to the door of the pet store, with its dark red trim.
It was an interesting shop with a lot to see, and as eager as Isabella had been to buy her hamster, she took her time getting to that section of the store where she could take her pick. She talked to the parrot and tried to pet the cagey old cat that slinked about the place. Once she got to the hamsters, however, she required only a moment to choose a dark orange bit of fur almost as red as her own head.
“That’s a pumpkin Russian,” Chase Rollins, owner of Fluff & Stuff, informed them. “He’s a bit larger than most dwarfs and a spunky one. He can make that hamster wheel fly.”
“Spunky,” Isabella crooned, cuddling the little fellow close. “That’s a good name.” The critter promptly crawled inside her shirt, sending her into gales of laughter. Lily fished the hamster out again.
They set about choosing a habitat, which consisted of a pair of chambers and the requisite connecting pipe, all translucent. Next came bedding, food and various other items deemed immediately necessary. Nearly an hour passed before they went out again, arms filled, to walk up Main Street to Lily’s shop. Isabella carried Spunky in a cardboard carton folded to resemble a house, while Tate and Lily carried the supplies.
“Maybe I should’ve brought the truck, after all,” Tate muttered, toting bags.
“You know, I’ve been thinking,” Lily said conversationally. “I’m going to have to buy a delivery van. Eversleigh has been sending over a car for flowers, but with the Wilson wedding coming up, I have to think ahead.”
“New or used?” he asked.
“Definitely used, and nothing too big or flashy. All I really care about is dependability.”
“In that case, Kenneth’s had a minivan for sale for some time now.”
“Really? That’s…fortuitous.”
“I’ll ask him if he’s still interested in selling and, if so, set up a meeting.”
“Yes, do that.”
“What about a delivery person?”
“I hadn’t really thought about that. I do drive, but there might be times when I can’t get away from the shop or need an extra pair of hands.”
“Danny is a nice, dependable young man.”
Lily slanted a smile in his direction. They entered the flower shop a moment later.
At least fifteen minutes remained before the hour of two o’clock, but Mrs. Morgan’s supercilious voice could be heard complaining all the same.
“…biggest wedding of the year,” she was saying. “You’d think the proprietor would have the courtesy to be available.”
Tate frowned at the woman, disliking the look of dismay on Lily’s face. Gracie came forward at the sound of the bell to greet Lily. “We’re early. I hope it’s not inconvenient.”
“Not at all,” Lily said, ever gracious.
“Ah, you have returned,” Mrs. Morgan announced flatly. “We need more flowers.” She essentially waved Gracie out of the way as if she was of no consequence and addressed Lily directly. “What Grace has chosen so far is not adequate.”
Paper thin, artificially tanned and sleekly styled, this attractive wife of a successful surgeon never failed to let everyone know that she routinely traveled to Manhattan, Kansas, where her husband practiced, to shop and have her hair done. Now she meant to see that her son, Trent, had the wedding of the year even if it meant paying for it herself. Tate watched Gracie duck her head in embarrassment and knew he had to do something. Reaching for the bags that Lily still held, he murmured that he needed to speak with her for a moment.
“Excuse me, please,” she said, stepping away from Mrs. Morgan and Gracie.
Tate bent his head to whisper in her ear. “Gracie’s family can’t afford a big splashy wedding, and Gracie isn’t a big splashy kind of girl, but that’s what the Morgans want, so Mrs. Morgan is paying. That leaves the bride with no say in her own wedding.”
“I see,” Lily said quietly. “I’ll do what I can. Now, why don’t you put those things in the truck while Isabella and Spunky wait here?”
Tate glanced around at a roomful of curious feminine eyes and did as he was bade. As he left, he heard Lily say, “You know, just before I came to Bygones, my sister married into one of the most prominent families in Boston. I happen to have some of her wedding photos, if you’re interested.”
Remembering that Lily had delayed her arrival until after her sister’s wedding, he hurried to deposit Isabella’s birthday haul in the backseat of his truck cab. When he returned to the shop, he found Mrs. Morgan poring over Lily’s photos.
“It’s the style that all the upper echelon are using now,” Lily was saying, “and it’s the simplicity that makes it so very elegant.”
“Well, of course it is,” Mrs. Morgan said with a delicate sniff.
“Orchids are very expensive, though, aren’t they?” Gracie asked.
Lily answered with a noncommittal “Um,” then added, “Laurel chose orchids because she’s allergic to other flowers. The daisies you chose would work just as well.”
“I think we’ll have roses,” Mrs. Morgan decided, “yellow and red, as those are the truest colors.”
“Pale yellow would be stunning with the crystal ribbon that you like,” Lily pointed out gently, addressing Gracie, “and it so happens that I have it on hand.” She turned to Mrs. Morgan then, saying, “It’s a sparkling white so fine that it’s translucent. I bought all of it I could find for my sister’s wedding, so we couldn’t be copied, you know. This far from Boston, however, I’m sure my sister won’t object if I allow you to benefit from her exclusivity.”
Mrs. Morgan preened, obviously mollified. Tate watched as Gracie and Lily surreptitiously traded conspiratorial looks. It didn’t take a genius to figure out that Gracie had already picked out the crystal ribbon and Lily had just guaranteed that she would get at least that. Meanwhile, Lily would do all she could to rein in Mrs. Morgan’s pretentious taste. Tate’s admiration for the town’s florist grew.
He signaled to Isabella, who was playing with her hamster on the counter, teasing him with a fern frond that had fallen from one of the plants. Lily excused herself from rescuing as much of Gracie’s wedding as she could long enough to speak to them before their departure.
“Thank you for lunch and including me in the hamster expedition.”
Isabella hugged her, Spunky’s carton clutched tightly in one hand. “See you on Saturday.”
“Absolutely.”
“I’ll let you know what I find out about the van,” Tate told her.
“I look forward to hearing from you.”
He winked, surreptitiously jerked a thumb at the table where Gracie and Mrs. Morgan waited and mouthed the words good work.
Lily just smiled and rocked up onto her toes. He couldn’t help himself. He bent forward and kissed her cheek. The pleased, hopeful look on his daughter’s face was enough to make him regret the gesture at once, but that didn’t knock the smile off his face or keep him from looking forward to seeing Lily again.
He was getting in deeper and deeper, and he just couldn’t seem to help himself.
Chapter Ten
Lily hugged that second kiss to her in a way that she had not dared do with the first. It had just been a peck on the cheek, but the warmth and affection of it simply could not be disputed. She could have done without the speculation in Gracie’s and Sherie’s eyes afterward, but the shock and deference that the kiss brought to Mrs. Morgan were both welcome. The Bronsons were still the “first family” of Bygones, but while status seemed to mean little to them, it obviously meant much to Mrs. Morgan. In addition to the wedding flowers, she placed a standing order for a monthly floral arrangement to grace her dining table.
The news quickly spread around town. Lily didn’t think anyone had gossiped, exactly—well, not Sherie or Gracie, anyway. Still, Coraline Connally was well informed when she picked up Lily for the midweek service on Wednesday evening.
“I knew that boy was taken with you a week ago.”
“It was a kiss on the cheek,” Lily pointed out dismissively, but she couldn’t hide her smile, so she stared out the rear passenger seat window of the sedan.
“In public,” Miss Mars added with great portent from the front.
Lily rolled her eyes, but that smile stubbornly stayed put.
“You will continue to invite him to church, won’t you?” Coraline asked, eyeing Lily via the rearview mirror.
“I’m not sure that’s a good idea,” Lily told her. “Why don’t you invite him?”
“I have invited him,” Coraline said. “I’ve reasoned with him, cajoled him. I’ve pleaded with that boy, if you must know, and he had no trouble telling me to mind my own business.”
Lily leaned forward, frowning. “How long ago was that?”
“Oh…two, three years, at least, if not longer.”
Sitting back, Lily shook her head. “I see. Well, if he won’t go to church for his daughter’s birthday, then I think it’s safe to say that he won’t go to church, period.”
“Hmm,” Coraline said, only that, until they pulled into the parking space in front of the church. “We will continue to pray about it and see what God is doing. Yes?”
“But of course,” Miss Mars agreed.
“Yes.” Lily added her soft voice to those of her friends.
She would definitely pray that Isabella’s birthday wish would be granted. As for her and Tate, she didn’t know what to think. Was he reconsidering his decision not to remarry? Was he open to the possibility? And what of children? If Tate could find his way back to church, then perhaps he could find enough faith to risk having a second child. Or was she once again spinning castles in the air around a man who could never be hers because, as dear as Isabella was, Lily didn’t think she could be content without having a child with Tate?
The absurdity of that made her want to laugh—or weep. For years she’d despaired of ever even being noticed by a man, and now that some
one seemed to have noticed her, she knew in her heart of hearts that it wouldn’t be enough just to have a man want her or even marry her. For Lily marriage had to include a family and babies. Plural. A single kiss and a peck on the cheek didn’t seem like much by comparison, at least not to her, but it was enough to cause talk.
Either Tate hadn’t heard the talk by Thursday morning or he wasn’t bothered by it, for he called to say that they could go over to look at Kenneth’s minivan at any time convenient to her. Lily arranged for Tate to pick her up after the shop closed that evening, expecting that he would have Isabella with him. Tate arrived alone, however, having left Isabella with her grandparents.
Lily had taken a few minutes before Sherie left for the day to run upstairs and freshen up, exchanging jeans and a cotton blouse for white knit capris and a bold silky gold-and-white print, knee-length top. Gold flip-flops and a narrow gold headband completed the outfit. She almost changed her mind about it when Sherie whistled after she came back downstairs.
“Get a load of you! Wow. That’s pretty classy for small-town Kansas.”
“Too much?” Lily asked, looking down at herself and wrinkling her nose.
Sherie waved away her concern. “You look great. Tate won’t know what hit him.”
Lily’s face flamed. “Uh, Tate’s not… That is, I’m seeing about buying a van. I—I just want to make a good impression.”
Grabbing up her purse, Sherie just grinned and headed for the door. “Uh-huh. I’d say you’ve got that covered. Hope the van thing goes well, too.”
Lily gulped, nodded and managed a farewell wave as her employee went out, chortling. She passed Tate on his way in.
“Am I late? Got held up by a septic hog. Beats everything I’ve ever seen. One day it’s fine, the next it’s—” He broke off, shoved back the brim of the faded cap that he wore and looked her over before glancing down at his own muddy boots and dusty jeans. “Can you hold on for a minute? Uh, just close up while I…uh…” With that he spun and went right back out the door.