by Bree Cariad
The back door opening drew both of their attention and when Leyton walked in, he paused, looking between the two of them. “What happened?”
“Celie was alone with Marcus Hotham,” her grandmother said quietly.
He turned toward her and Celie explained what happened.
“You both have a point,” he said calmly, taking a seat in one of the armchairs. “Jude, Celia’s right that Marcus Hotham is a good man and if he asks for a dinner, I’ll accept. Celie, your grandmother is right that you need to watch everything you do while here. Marcus doesn’t understand all the nuances yet as he has only been here a few weeks and you’ve spent most of your life away from Hyacinth. But spending time with an unattached male while you, yourself, are unattached is a bad idea. I will have a word with him so he understands the issue.”
Stretching his legs, he said, “So, what’s for lunch?”
“Leftovers,” Celia said, shrugging. “Oh, and Jaylee’s in the hospital.”
He raised an eyebrow. “Are we finally going to find out if our great-grandchild is a boy or a girl?”
“Maybe,” she said, “if they still don’t hide it from you.”
He grunted in amusement even as her grandmother said, “Oh, don’t say that. It’s driving me nuts that the two of them won’t tell anyone if she’s having a boy or a girl.”
As they sat down to eat, she brought up volunteering. “Since I can’t really work here, I was thinking of volunteering.”
“Oh, that’s a great idea,” Nana said, her eyes lighting up. “Any idea where?”
“I’m thinking the animal shelter. I love animals.” Celie had never had a pet, except for warm memories of Mrs. Wigglesworth. She looked forward to spending time with the puppies and kittens.
“That’s a good place,” Pappa said, nodding. “Though I’ll insist we drive you to or from. It isn’t in the best part of town and there are some rough types down there.”
“You could also volunteer for the ladies’ auxiliary,” her grandmother suggested. “They are always looking for good volunteers.”
“That’s because they won’t cough up the money to pay someone to do the work,” Pappa grunted. “They lost Dora because of their stupidity and if they don’t come up with the money, it’s going to keep happening.”
Her grandparents discussed the different places she could volunteer. While Nana seemed fully in the corner of ‘anywhere except the animal shelter’ or, Celie thought more likely it was ‘anywhere except a place Marcus Hotham suggested’, Pappa thought wherever she wanted to volunteer was perfect.
“And I have my driver’s license,” she said as they finished and took the dishes into the kitchen. “If you let me use one of your cars, I could drive myself.”
“Not a bad idea,” Pappa agreed before his wife could say no and by her expression, she really wanted to. “In fact, might be a good idea to let you use the Bug.”
“Oh, no,” Jude said, shaking her head. “That car hasn’t been driven in years.”
“We can get it serviced. It’s still in good shape. Needs new tires, probably, but Reg kept it in perfect order.”
“Bug?” Celie asked when there was a pause.
“1962 VW Bug,” her grandfather supplied. “Your dad found it in a junk heap and rebuilt it when he was a teenager and even though it hasn’t been driven since he died, I’m sure after a good once-over from a mechanic it will be the perfect car for you while you’re here.”
“Cool.” She liked the idea of driving her father’s car.
Celie had no idea how long it would take to get the little car in to a mechanic so was delighted when a few days later, her grandfather took her out to the driveway where a shiny, bright blue Volkswagen Beetle sat idling. “Mark said except for needing the fluids cleaned out and new tires, it was in great shape. So, here you are.” He handed her a set of keys. “It requires regular gas, so every time you fill up, you’ll have to put in a container of lead additive. But otherwise, you should be good to go.”
“Thanks, Pappa!” She hugged him and ran back inside to grab her purse. “I’m off to drive my car!” she hollered as she ran back outside.
“Celie!” Nana called but her grandfather laughed as she hopped into the driver’s seat.
It took a few minutes to fiddle with the clutch as while she had driven a stick before, it had been a newer one, but finally she was able to back the cute little beast out of the driveway and head out in the direction of the animal shelter. The problem was now that she had a little freedom, she wasn’t quite ready to give it up by stopping.
She drove up and down all of the streets in town, taking note of the different shops to check out later. Then, when she had exhausted all of the streets within Hyacinth, she travelled north, surprised to see a large sign that read Hyacinth Inn. “I’ll have to ask Nana about that,” she murmured as she drove by. The inn was where Jaylee’s husband worked and so far the entire family had nothing but great things to say about the food served there. Maybe, once Jaylee had bounced back from giving birth to her nine-pound baby boy, they could go have lunch there.
Since the road north quickly became a highway heading into the mountains, she found a small area to turn around and headed back, making her way to the shelter. Thankfully they were thrilled she wanted to volunteer and before she was even ready, she had two-hour shifts three times a week to play with the puppies and kittens.
“Now that will be fun.” As she slid back behind the driver’s wheel, she also admitted to herself it would get her away from the house. She loved her grandparents, but found her grandmother to be a bit too judgmental and rather controlling at times. Pappa was great, but she could do without her Nana for two hours. It would help her rejuvenate.
Chapter 4
Over the weekend, she had two new suitors and they were definitely better than the previous ones. One of them, Nathan Davies, was cute, funny, and he made a living doing something she considered interesting. “Technically, I’m a server admin for two different companies,” he said as they ate. “But the fun side is making sure they run at top notch, getting the new technical toys to play with, and otherwise having fun while furthering my career at the same time.”
“Must keep you busy,” she commented.
“Mostly. The companies are relatively small and as it always seems to happen, they will both go along swimmingly and then wham! They have emergencies at the same time. That’s when I’m up for forty-eight hours straight getting everything in gear before crashing for a day.”
“So you work from home?”
“Yep. I’m all software side, so I can run everything remotely. I also have my emails transferred to my phone so during the day if I want to go hiking, I can go hiking. I just have to stay near cell towers.”
It was apparent to Celie that Jude was pleased with their conversation and while she liked Nathan, her grandmother’s smug expression annoyed her. Why couldn’t she look that happy around Marcus? Not, Celia reminded herself, that Marcus was any kind of suitor, or anything. No, he wasn’t anything at the moment. There was a part of her that wished he was, though. So far, their interactions had left her wanting more.
By Tuesday, she was back at the shelter, happy to be back.
“Hey, Celie,” Cheryl, her supervisor, called as she walked inside. “You’ve got a friend today.”
“A friend?” Celia asked confused.
“Marcus Hotham comes once a month to spay and neuter and his little girl plays with the animals while he’s here. She’s quiet and probably won’t say much, but she’s a real sweetie.”
“Thanks, Cheryl. Any dogs that need special care today?”
“East wing. We found two litters of Chihuahuas abandoned by the side of the road,” she hissed. “Only one of them died which is a miracle. Anyway, there are now five puppies around nine weeks that really need loving if you could.”
“I’m on it!” Celie walked into the east wing and instantly heard a little giggle. Looking around one corner she spo
tted little Vanna Hotham seated on the floor with five little Chihuahuas crawling all over her. “Well, looks like they’ve found a friend,” she said in a soft voice, walking closer, but keeping her distance. She didn’t want to scare the little girl.
Giggling, Vanna nodded, as one of the puppies licked her face.
Sitting down nearby, Celie held a hand out and two of the puppies cautiously made their way over to her. When they realized she just wanted to pet and hold them, they squirmed onto her lap, one turning onto his back for a belly rub.
“They’re so cute,” she commented, smiling at the cute little noises they made.
“Uh-huh,” Vanna said in a tiny voice. “Daddy says once we get our own house we can get a puppy.”
“Well, that’s nice of your daddy. Do you know what kind of puppy you want?”
The little girl shook her head, giggling as another puppy tried to climb up her chest. “Daddy says maybe a golden retriever.”
“Those are wonderful. I had one when I was a little girl.”
“Really?” Large hazel eyes gazed up at her in awe.
“Yep. Mrs. Wigglesworth. She followed me everywhere.”
“Wow. That would be fun. Daddy says the doggie can even sleep in my room.”
“Are you getting a house soon?”
“Yeah. Daddy says we can move in two weeks. I wish that was now.”
“I bet. Is it in Hyacinth?”
“No.” Her face scrunched up in concentration. “Hind Crick.”
“Hins Creek?” Celie suggested and the girl nodded.
“Yeah. It’s got two stories and my room’s so big and Daddy says I can decorate it any way I want.”
A small tug in the area of Celia’s heart made her smile as she looked down at the Chihuahuas in her lap. Marcus obviously adored his little girl. “Do you know how you want to decorate it?”
“Yep!” Vanna’s voice went up an octave, and she crawled over next to Celie, seeming to forget she was a stranger. Reaching into her pocket, after a few seconds she pulled out a folded up piece of paper. “I told Daddy I wanted a princess room and he brought up all sorts of websites with princess beds. I liked this one.” Vanna held out the image of a little girl’s room done in pastel lavender and the bed was darling. The four posts came from each corner but instead of standing tall, they curved in on themselves and met at a circle over the top of the bed. A soft netting flowed over them.
“Oh, how pretty. You’ll feel like a princess in this bed.”
“Uh-huh. Daddy ordered the bed and it’s suppos’d to be here before we move in.”
“What color will your walls be?
“Pink and there’s gonna be a rug with a tiara on it,” she said beaming. With her smile that wide, she kind of looked like her father.
“Very pretty. My room growing up was pink. My bed had pink ruffles and my father used to find me unicorns.”
“I love unicorns!” she squealed, sitting up on her knees. “I have a big stuffed one that’s in a box.” She wrinkled her little nose as she grinned. “Gwen will be in my room as well.”
“Gwen’s your unicorn?” Vanna nodded. “Well, it sounds like you’re gonna have a fantastic room.”
“Yeah. Wanna see a picture?” Vanna pulled out a photograph from her other pocket and turned it around. A pretty woman in her mid-twenties with curly red hair and hazel eyes smiled into the camera. “That’s Mommy,” she said, picking up one of the puppies who tried to chew on the photo. “She’s an angel now.”
The simple way Vanna stated it made Celie think her father had said it enough times that it was just a fact to his little girl.
“Does she watch over you?” she asked quietly, sitting next to her.
“Uh-huh. And she works to get me what I want.”
“I’m sure she does. She must love you so much.”
Nodding, Vanna leaned against her. “Daddy says there was nobody in the world Mommy loved more than me. That she didn’t want to leave me, but that she had a choice. She could stay on earth without me or she could become an angel and watch over me. He says she chose the ladder because then she could be with me always.”
Celia felt tears prick her eyes even as her lips quirked at the incorrect form of ladder rather than latter. “Sounds like she made a good choice.”
“Uh-huh. But I asked Mommy if my next mommy could stick around. I only need one angel.”
“Is your Daddy getting married again?” Celia asked in surprise. She hadn’t realized the man was involved with someone.
“Not yet. I asked Mommy for one though and I know she’ll make one just for me.”
“I’m sure she will.”
“Vanna?” Marcus’s voice rang through the space before he appeared around the corner, looking startled.
“Daddy!” Vanna cried, placing the puppy she was holding gently on the ground before leaping to her feet and into his arms. “I made a friend.”
His startled expression changed to joy. “Well, that’s wonderful, pumpkin. Celia’s your new friend?” he asked, looking between his beaming daughter and Celie.
“Uh-huh. She had a princess room as a little girl, too.”
“All little girls are princesses,” he said, dropping a kiss on top of her head. “I see you’ve been Chihuahua’d,” he said in amusement, looking down at Celia who had four puppies crawling all over her. The fifth was gnawing at the bottom of his jeans.
“They’re adorable,” Celie admitted. “Hard to believe someone just dumped them on the side of the road.”
“Some people are cruel,” he said. “At least this shelter gives the animals a chance.”
“Are we going to dinner now?” Vanna asked, looking up at him.
“First we need to run home so I can shower and then, yes, we’re headed to dinner.”
Vanna turned to her. “Wanna come?”
Both Celia and Marcus physically startled at the question. “Wish I could,” Celie said, recovering first. “But Nana expects me home for dinner tonight.”
“Oh. Who’s Nana?”
“My grandmother.”
That seemed to end the conversation as Vanna leaned against her father, her eyes closing.
“Here, let me grab him,” Celie said, dislodging the puppy from Marcus’s pants so he could move.
“Thank you, Celia,” he said and something in his tone told her he was thanking her for more than just removing a puppy from his jeans.
“You’re welcome.”
He offered her a warm smile that made butterflies erupt in her abdomen—a sensation she was getting used to whenever he was near—before turning and leaving the shelter.
Celie wanted to go over that whole conversation again but five puppies decided they needed her undivided attention and she quickly gave it to them.
Chapter 5
“So, you seemed taken with Nathan,” Jude said a couple days later while she leaned against a counter, trying not to help. Celie appreciated her forbearance. She loved her grandmother, but she wanted to make this herself.
A lifelong fan of cinnamon rolls, she had decided to make some and if they turned out, to take them to the shelter to share. She was at the final stage of cutting them and placing them in the baking dish. Celia was nervous enough without Nana watching, afraid that in forty minutes when she opened up the oven that it would be to a bunch of charred, gross, lumps of burnt cinnamon.
“Yes, he was nice and had a good sense of humor,” she agreed, lining up the rolls and sending up a little prayer that they would turn out perfect. Opening the oven door, she slid in the pan and closed it, quickly setting the timer.
“All right, while you wait, why don’t we go into the living room?” her grandmother suggested. That sounded fairly ominous but as Celia couldn’t think of anything else to do, she nodded and followed.
“Since your grandfather gave you keys to the Beetle, I have barely even seen you,” Jude teased. “Besides Nathan, how did you feel about the other men?”
“Collin was ok
ay. Kind of shy, but okay. The others I wasn’t impressed with.”
“Well, Collin McRay is a fine man,” she said in delight, clasping her hands together. “He owns his own farm, raises his own food, and still manages to help his father run the local grocery. You would be set for life with that one.”
Grinning in spite of herself, Celie shook her head. “Nana, it takes more than a good job to make a good life.”
“Of course it does. But having a head of household who fulfills his duties is important, too. There are some ne’er do wells around here who couldn’t support a wife ever. Of course, Leyton wouldn’t accept dinner requests from them, so you’re safe. But still, both Nathan and Collin would be wonderful men to end up with. Do you have a preference?” she asked a little too eagerly.
“Uh, no. I mean, they’re nice guys, Nana, but neither of them made me go…” Celia paused and tried to figure out how to word her statement. She couldn’t say “they don’t make the butterflies go crazy like Marcus does” because her grandmother would not be happy about it.
“Sometimes physical attraction comes later,” Jude insisted as if it was the least important part of the whole courting process. “Strength, the ability to support, and someone who has a good head on their shoulders. That’s what’s important.”
“Attraction’s important too,” Leyton said, walking into the room, his cigar hanging from his teeth. Celie inhaled the wonderful vanilla scent and leaned back in her chair.
“Well, yes, you don’t want to be repulsed by the man courting you, but it isn’t the number one thing,” Jude protested.
He snorted as he sat down. “It is to the guy so why shouldn’t it be to our little Celia? And what is that divine smell?”
“Cinnamon rolls. They should be ready soon.”
“Oh, come now,” Nana argued as Celie stood up to go check on the rolls. “Are you telling me looks are more important than how a woman keeps a home?”