A Chance at Love (10 page)

“Nope. She won't even let us get dirty. Will you let us get dirty, Loreli?”

A chuckling Loreli looked down and said, “Dirty as you want, just as long as you take a bath before you climb into bed.”

Loreli squeezed the twin small hands affectionately, and the girls smiled contentedly in response.

Their next stop was Green's General Store. Loreli wanted to see the fabrics he had for sale. If Mildred Tate didn't want the job of making dresses for the girls, Loreli
would buy the fabric and find someone else who would, even if she had to postpone the wedding.

The store was filled with customers looking at this and buying that. When Loreli and the girls entered, many of the customers nodded her way and smiled at the twins. Loreli wondered if they'd be so friendly once word of her upcoming nuptials made the rounds.

Bert Green was waiting on a lady at the counter. When he looked up and saw Loreli, his face immediately filled with panic, but upon noticing the girls, he appeared to relax. Loreli reminded herself to never play cards with him again.

Ignoring him for now, she and the girls found the fabrics over in the dry-goods section of the store. There wasn't much to choose from unless you wanted denim, calico, or stiff, serviceable cottons. None of which were right for wedding dresses.

Bebe picked up a catalog and began to look at the pictures inside. “What about these dresses, Loreli?”

Loreli took a look over Bebe's shoulder. “Let me see the front of the book, Be.”

Loreli smiled at the familiar picture on the cover. It was a Bloomingdale Brothers catalog. The New York City–based establishment carried everything from bridal gowns to roller skates. She was sure to find dresses for them now. Of course it would take a while to get the dresses shipped. She wondered if Reed would mind putting off the wedding for a few weeks. Delaying the ceremony might also give her time to change his mind about marrying her, but then again, the girls had their hearts set on being members of the wedding party. Loreli knew she
wouldn't be able to bear the sadness on their faces if the plans were changed, so she was stuck whether she liked it or not.

Catalog in hand, Loreli went to the counter. Behind it Bert Green was stacking cans of Mr. Campbell's Pork and Beans.

“Mr. Green?”

When he looked up and saw it was her, he glanced around nervously before responding, “Uh, yes.”

“May I take this and return it later?”

He nodded hastily. “Sure, sure.”

“Thanks. Come on girls. How about some lunch? Hungry?”

They grinned.

After eating a small lunch in the dining room of Mrs. Boyd's boardinghouse, Loreli and the girls went up to her room to change her clothing. It was far too warm for the dress she had on. She stood behind the screen and put on a simple blue blouse and a darker blue skirt. Then, after slipping her feet into a comfortable pair of small-heeled boots, and using the hook to do up the buttons, she and the girls took their catalog and headed behind the boarding house to a bench that sat beneath a large tree.

They spent over an hour going through the catalog. After borrowing a measuring tape from Mrs. Boyd, Loreli measured the girls in accordance with the catalog instructions and wrote down the numbers on a piece of paper. She listed the ordering number for dresses, underwear, and shoes, then added nightgowns, Nottingham lace curtains and the poles needed to hang them. Thinking about the winter to come, she picked out a few small carpets for the floors; and to keep the carpets clean, she ordered a
Grand Rapids carpet sweeper that rolled on four wheels. The girls were speechless as the list grew longer and longer. Because of Loreli's generosity, they would now have Sunday hats, gloves, and velvet slippers, and everything else little girls needed.

The fascinated girls skimmed through more pages and Loreli wrote down the numbers of a few additional items she thought they and the household would need. She even added a few items for their uncle, then said, “All right, our last order of business is to find the page with the roller skates.”

“Roller skates!” Bebe repeated with wide eyes. She shared a happy smile with her sister, then began to tear through the pages. They found them on page 145. The skates were made from japanned iron and polished beech-wood with oak-tanned, black grain leather straps and patent buckles. Loreli ordered one pair of skates for each of the girls and a pair for herself.

It was now late afternoon and the sky was darkening as if a storm were on the horizon. “I should get you girls home before it rains.”

“We could stay here with you,” Bebe offered with a sly little smile.

Loreli laughed, “Oh, no. I don't want your uncle mad at me.”

Dede asked, “Are you and uncle going to kiss?”

For a moment, a confused Loreli tried to figure out what Dede meant. “Kiss? When?”

“Once you get married. Aggie says her papa and her new mama kiss all the time when they think nobody's looking.”

Loreli chuckled. “I don't know. How about you ask
your uncle when we get back?” Loreli couldn't wait to see his face.

Dede nodded as if that were a good idea, and with the question settled for the moment, they returned the catalog to the store. Since the undertaker's place served as both the post office and the telegraph office, they stopped there to send their order back East, then headed to the Reed place in Loreli's rented buggy.

 

When they drove up to the house, the air outside was fragrant with the smells of chicken frying. Loreli's mouth began to water.

“Uncle Jake's got supper ready,” De announced.

Surprised by that, Loreli asked, “Your uncle cooks?”

Bebe glanced Loreli's way as if the question was a silly one. “Sure. He cooks dinner, breakfast, and lunch for us, everyday.”

Dede added, “He cooks good too.”

“Oh, really?” An intriguing bit of information. She had no idea he was domesticated. Interesting.

The girls jumped down from the buggy and an eager Bebe told her sister, “Come on. We have to tell Uncle Jake about all the things Loreli got us.” And off they ran, leaving Loreli to escort herself in.

Inside the house, she found the apron-clad Jake Reed in the kitchen taking the last pieces of chicken out of the skillet on the stove. The girls were excitedly relating the details of their trip into town. Loreli was certain he couldn't understand a word they were saying because they were both talking so fast, and trying to talk over each other.

“Hold on,” he said laughing. “You're going too fast.” Only then did he see Loreli standing in the doorway. He paused, then nodded. “Miss Winters.”

“Reed.”

“Sounds like you three had quite the time?”

“We did,” she replied.

“Girls, show Miss Winters where to wash up. Supper's ready. You can finish telling me about the trip while we eat.”

Loreli met his eyes. Was this an invitation for her to stay?

Dede must have read the expression on Loreli's face. “You are going to stay and eat with us, aren't you, Loreli?”

Loreli couldn't say no to such a face, and besides, she'd had a grand time with the twins today and didn't want it to end, at least not yet. “Yes, I'm staying. That chicken smells so good an army couldn't drag me out of here.”

Dede giggled as she and Bebe led Loreli out the kitchen door to the pump near the back porch. Loreli felt Reed's eyes on her back every step of the way.

When they got to the table, the fat golden pieces of steaming bird were piled on a chipped blue platter. Accompanying the chicken were green beans with cut up potatoes, corn, and cornbread. As everyone took their places, Loreli looked out over the scene and felt a contentment so ideal it scared her; she could learn to like this family living, but she reminded herself that her role here would only be a temporary one. Soon as Reed found a woman he deemed more suitable, she'd be out on her ear. This was just pretend.

Reed's voice broke into her thoughts. “Let's bow our heads.”

After everyone quieted, he recited a short grace, thanking the Lord for the food. Then plates were filled with the supper's samplings and the girls launched into an exuberant retelling of the day's big shopping trip.

Bebe told her uncle, “We bought hats and shoes…”

Dede added, “And dresses, and a carpet for our floor.”

He stared at Loreli. “Carpets?”

She shrugged. “Floors get cold in the winter.”

His face tightened a bit. “What else did you buy?”

Loreli got the impression he wasn't as enthusiastic about the purchases as the girls.

Bebe said, “We got capes and hairbrushes. Hair curlers, gloves…”

Dede gushed, “We even got to move some money.”

Jake found that confusing, but before he could ask what she meant, Dede said, “But do you know what was the best, uncle?”

“No, De,” he said smiling in spite of himself. “What was the best?”

“The roller skates. We got roller skates!”

He looked across the table at Loreli as if she were responsible for buying the girls liquor. “That's real nice, De. Real nice.”

He then asked Loreli, “No elephants?”

Not liking the dig, she shook her head, “No. Maybe next time.”

As they continued the meal, the girls kept up a steady chatter about the day and their plans for their booty when it arrived. The adults viewed each other with an increasing
coolness. For the life of her, Loreli couldn't figure out why he was acting so put out, but since she knew he'd inform her soon enough, she did her best to ignore him and his mood.

When the meal was done, the girls cleared the table and started washing the dishes out by the pump near the back porch. Loreli and Reed stepped out onto the front porch to talk.

Loreli decided not to allow him the first shot. “So, what sin have I committed this time?”

“Did you have to buy so much?”

“I didn't buy frivolously, Reed. Everything I purchased the girls needed.”

“Curtains?”

“The house needs those.”

“We have curtains.”

“I know, that's why I ordered new ones. Not sure they'll fit, though. I didn't have the window measurements.”

He ran his hand across his hair. “And what is this about moving money?”

“I'm having some of my money transferred to the bank here. I just talked the girls through what I was doing. They need to know about such things.”

“That's what husbands are for.”

She folded her arms across her chest and asked challengingly, “Oh, really?”

“Yes, really,” he responded.

“And suppose they have no husband? Should they find some random man on the street and ask him to handle their finances?”

He looked real uncomfortable in response to that. Loreli had him, and they both knew it.

He came back with, “But did you have to buy so much? Once you're gone I don't want them thinking I'm going to continue spoiling them this way.”

She sighed. “Reed, look. I purchased necessities only. There were no silk sheets or crystal goblets, just basic little-girl needs. Underwear, stockings, shoes.”

“Expensive, I'll bet.”

“No, not really.”

The wind picked up all of a sudden and a boom of thunder shook the surroundings. They both looked up at the darkening sky. “Storm's coming,” Reed said. “We'll have to finish this later.”

“There's nothing to finish. The things are bought, they'll be here early next month.”

His expression made her think he wanted to argue further, but all that he said was, “I have to put the animals in the barn. You may as well stay the night. You might not make it trying to beat this storm back to town.”

Loreli wondered if he were really concerned for her safety or the safety of the marriage agreement they'd made. “You know, Reed, something happens to me and you're free to find that real wife.”

He groused back, “I can't afford the one I'm getting.”

As fat rain drops began to fall from the sky, he took off at a run for the barns. Smiling and shaking her head, Loreli stood and watched the storm roll in, then headed in to find the twins.

He came back into the house a short while later soaked to the skin. It was now pouring. The heavy rain continued for the next two hours. Eventually Loreli took out a deck of cards and taught the girls to play solitaire. Their uncle sat
by one of the lamps reading an animal-husbandry journal, and keeping an eye on the interactions between the twins and Loreli Winters.

It was then that Dede looked up at him and asked, “Uncle Jake, are you and Loreli going to kiss?”

He looked so dumbstruck, Loreli had to drop her head so he wouldn't see her grin. When she'd composed herself, she looked up into his dark eyes and said, “She asked me the same question. Since I couldn't rightfully answer, I told her she should ask you.”

The sharp look he shot Loreli's way made her chuckle inside. Her expression revealed no clue to her thoughts.

Gently, he told his niece, “De, that's not something girls your age should be concerned about. Okay?”

She dropped her eyes, and nodded. “I'm sorry, Uncle Jake.”

“No sorry needed. It's adult business, is all.”

Loreli wanted to yell “Coward!” but she didn't. Instead she smiled at Dede and was quite amazed when De flashed a devilish little smile right back.
Well, I'll be. Maybe Deirdre Case isn't such a wallflower after all
.

An hour or so later, it was time for the girls to go to bed. After they put on their thin flannel nightgowns, they gave Loreli a hug and a kiss good-night. They repeated the ritual with their uncle, who then said, “I'll be in in a moment to hear your prayers.”

As the twins headed into their room, Loreli thought about the unfurnished space the girls shared, and a question she'd been brooding on all day. “If it's none of my business just say so, but why is there so little furniture here?”