Peaches in Winter (10 page)

“It’s your old boyfriend,” he whispered conspiratorially. “He’s looking for you—won’t believe you’re not here. If you want to wait around the corner, I’ll send him away.”

At first, Betty looked alarmed, but that expression turned into resolution. “No, if he doesn’t believe me, I’ve got to tell him again.”

Jake looked into her eyes. “You’re certain?”

She nodded, and though she looked a little bit nervous and unhappy about it, he saw the strength in her gaze, that she meant to do this, even if it was difficult. He stepped aside to let her in and promised to stay with her.

Betty marched into the house, taking off her gloves and coat. Jake took them, hung them up, and then shut the front door and hurried after her. He didn’t want to miss this—and besides, she might need his support after all.

“Jimmy.” She stopped in front of the boy and took a deep breath.

He’d been looking inside a closet—an unlikely hiding place at best. Now he straightened, almost jumping, and whirled to face them. “Betty! There you are!” He glimpsed Jake and scowled again. “Where was he hiding you? Never mind.” He moved forward and took her hands—or tried to.

Betty pulled them away. “No, Jimmy. I told you—”

“But baby, if you’ll just give me another chance!”

“We’re through,” finished Betty. Her voice wobbled only a little. “I-I’m sorry, Jimmy, but I don’t want you coming around anymore. I told you how I feel. Please, respect that. I’m sure you have a good future, but it’s just not with me.”

“But Betty!” He drew himself up to his lanky farm boy height. “You don’t…you can’t like being his secretary better than my wife!” He gestured to Jake dismissively. “And I want to marry you, not just make you type and cook for me! I’ll take good care of you, Betty. And I know you miss the country. Ride on back with me today. We’ll talk on the way, and we can get married as soon as the divorce papers come through. Or we can wait and be married in a few months, in the spring. I know you always wanted a spring wedding, didn’t you? Yeah, we’ll do that.” He seemed more and more pleased with himself as he spoke, as though he hadn’t heard a word Betty said.

Jake, standing behind her, scowled. The guy had no manners. But something made him wait, instead of kicking the boy out. What if the question of marriage was enough? What if—

“No, I’m sorry, Jimmy,” said Betty. “I know…I know you mean well, but it really hurts when you k-keep coming around like this. Please, go. Don’t come back. I-I have a new life now, and I’m-I’m happy.” Her voice was tremulous, but she sounded as though she really meant it.

Jake relaxed subtly and stepped forward. “Okay, kid, it’s time for you to go. You heard the lady. Now scat.” He put his hands firmly on the boy’s shoulders, spun him around, and walked him toward the door.

“But Betty!” the boy said, yet again. Jake opened the door, pushed him through, and slammed it shut. Through the window, Jake watched the boy gaping on the doorstep. He looked as though he could hardly believe it but was beginning to realize he would have to.

Jake turned around and walked back to Betty. She looked close to tears. He took her hand. “You did well, Betty. You had to tell him so he understood. I think he’s finally starting to believe it now.”

“I thought he did before.” She melted into his arms and leaned against him. Jake stroked the back of her soft hair for comfort.

She leaned her face against his chest. “Oh, Jake, I wonder how long he’ll be able to upset me? Remembering…remembering how he—”

“What, honey? What did he do?” asked Jake gently. He braced himself for something awful. At the same time, he couldn’t imagine that boy doing something really rotten. Thoughtless and hurtful, perhaps, but not downright cruel. He didn’t seem like the type.

“He…uh—” She took a shuddering breath. “He said he loved me, and-and he got engaged to me, and then he broke it off and married somebody else. Now he says he loves me, and he left her, but how can I trust him ever again? Besides, if it’s just a fight, then-then they should make up. They got married. Even if they are getting divorced, they obviously liked each other once, and-and I don’t think…I couldn’t live with myself if—”

Jake’s heart sank. “You still love him.”

“No!” She drew back, gaping up at him, shocked. Tears clung to her lower eyelashes, and he was once again startled by how beautiful she was. She looked so innocent and pretty—and somehow she was that way inside, as well. So many
people weren’t the same inside and out, but Betty seemed to be, both beautiful in body and beautiful in soul. It continually amazed him about her.

“I-I love
you
, Jake.” She blushed. “I hope it’s okay to say that.”

“Nonsense. Of course it is.” He laughed. “Because I love you more.” What silly things people in love said to one another, but it didn’t sound silly now.

Surely a writer could do better. But—just now—the writer didn’t care. He bent and kissed his own true love and felt her relax against him, felt her sorrow, and doubt, and embarrassment turning into contentment and happiness.

They belonged together now. Heaven help him, Jake didn’t deserve her, but they needed each other. And, now, they had each other.

“Betty,” he drew back. “Will you marry me?”

“Huh?” she said, blushing up to her cheekbones.

He smiled to see her so flustered and went on quickly. “I’ll never cheat on you or change my mind about you. I earn a decent living, though I’ll never be rich. I’m grumpy in the winter and sometimes practically housebound, though you’ve been helping me with that, and I think I’ll do better next year. I do love you, you know, and not just for your cooking, or your help with writing.”

“M-my help with
wr-writing?” She blinked at him, looking confused.

“Sure! Didn’t you know? I can’t write when you’re not here. But when you are—” He pulled her close again and smiled down at her before kissing her once again, lightly, on one side of her lips and then the other. “When you are here, the world opens up for me.” There, now that was the way a writer should talk to the girl he loved! Another light kiss, this time on her lips.

“Oh.” Her mouth opened in a round O. She drew back after a moment. “So…I am a good secretary?”

“Yes.” He leaned in for another kiss, but she pushed him away slightly, smiling.

“So…you don’t want to lose the secretary, and you’re marrying her so she won’t leave?” Something danced in her eyes.

“Uh—” said Jake, once again reduced to wordlessness by this woman he’d fallen so madly in love with. “I want to marry her because I love her,” he finally settled on.

“Well,” said Betty. “I want to marry you because I love you, too. But you’ll need to meet my parents first, and probably I shouldn’t be here alone with you until after we’re married, and—”

Jake kissed her again, shutting off the flow of words. After a moment, she melted against him and seemed to forget exactly what she’d been meaning to say.

~*~

They had more to talk about, and Jake was certainly distracted by her, but Betty managed to tell him what she thought they ought to do, and he reluctantly agreed. She couldn’t work for him; it would be too much of a temptation. She’d love to be married in her hometown. Until then, she would stay at her boarding house and contact her family to let them know.

“Do you think we’re moving too fast?” she asked him, her brow wrinkled with concern. “I mean, we’ve only known each other a few months…”

“I think we’re not moving fast enough,” said Jake.

Betty blushed.

But, he reminded himself sternly, he would respect her choices. Even if he didn’t get a word written until after they’d returned from their honeymoon, he’d respect her choices.

~*~

Beneath them, the train wheels clacked and clattered at a steady pace. Betty looked out the window, watching the countryside pass them by. It felt so exciting being on the train. It always felt like something important was happening, like you were going on a great adventure or a journey that held great meaning.

She turned to look at Jake and smiled. He looked so nice in a suit. He looked even nicer wearing his new smile that never seemed to leave. Betty was so proud to be taking him home to meet her parents and siblings. She hoped they’d like him. She certainly did.

Betty drew swirls in the mist on the window. Her diamond engagement ring winked on her finger, beautiful, an unexpected weight.

“They’re probably going to want us to wait. After all, we haven’t had much of an engagement, and we’ve only known each other a few months.” She glanced at him.

Jake’s mouth tilted up at the edges. He shrugged. “Perhaps that would be the smart thing to do. But they can’t blame me for wanting to marry the most wonderful girl I’ve ever met before she changes her mind, can they?” He gave her a wink.

He looked so handsome when he winked. She found herself blushing. She couldn’t think of what to say, which was unusual for her; she usually ran on and on. “I’m not going to change my mind,” she finally settled on.

“Good. Hey. I have a surprise for you at the next stop.” He waggled his eyebrows and grinned at her.

“Really? What is it?” She sat up straighter, leaning forward and smiling.

“I’m not going to tell you, but you’ll like it.”

She already liked the engagement ring he’d bought her. She remembered grinning so hard her mouth hurt, and twisting the ring around on her finger, and looking up to say, “You shouldn’t have spent so much!” and “I love it!”

Jake was such a dream come true. No. Better than that. Better than she could’ve dreamed. How could she ever deserve him? A girl from a peach farm, marrying the most wonderful man in the world…

They talked, and she stared out the windows daydreaming, and sometimes they kissed. When they reached the next stop, Jake rose with a secret, mysterious smile only for her and led the way from the train.

Betty tried to guess the secret, eventually guessing silly things like “an elephant!” just to try to make him laugh. Sometimes it worked, sometimes he held his face almost impassive, but he never gave in and told her what it was.

“I think you’ll like it,” was all he said in reply and gave her hand a squeeze.

“I know I will,” she admitted. “But you’re fun to tease.”

His eyebrows rose, and he gave her such a look, but they didn’t have time to kiss right then. Jake hailed a cab, and before she knew it, they had arrived at a big, glass building full of plants.

“Oh!” said Betty. “A-a what-do-you-call it? Greenhouse?”

“Arboretum,” said Jake, smiling. “It’s like a greenhouse, but it’s larger. And I want to show you something inside.”

He led the way into the cool, green, wet building that smelled of spring and summer and growing things. Betty found herself breathing deeply, smiling a huge smile she couldn’t have wiped off her face even if she’d wanted to. Which she didn’t. She held tight to Jake’s hand, so she wouldn’t lose him as she kept turning to look at the different plants.

“Oh!” she said at the sight of a set of huge, pink orchids. “They’re the prettiest plants I’ve ever seen!”

They stopped to look at them, and Jake gazed up just as happily as Betty. She glanced at him, and felt secretly glad all over again at how happy he looked these days. She could’ve hugged herself. She could’ve hugged him.

“Thank you, Jake. This is the most wonderful present—”

“Oh, this isn’t the present. Come on. I’ll show you.”

And he led the way, almost running. Betty picked up her skirts and ran with him, glancing over to smile at him. Something about this moment felt perfect. Jake beside her, so happy and alive. The smell in the air, somehow heartbreakingly familiar and comforting all at once.

“There!” He sounded immensely satisfied when he stopped, and crossed his arms proudly, and smiled toward the center of the room.

Betty looked…

A large tree with green leaves and pink blossoms stood in the center of the room.

“A peach tree!” She gasped in delight. “It’s-it’s in bloom!” The pink blossoms made her think of home and family…and Jake, so familiar and new and dear, family now as well. Such an amazing man, to think of this, to realize how much it would mean to her to see a peach tree in bloom, even in the winter.

Betty’s eyes filled with tears.

He looked at her in alarm. “What’s the matter? Don’t you like it?” He took her arms and drew her nearer.

She shook her head ‘no’ and then ‘yes.’ “Nothing’s the matter. Yes, I love it. Hic.” She swallowed, trying to keep back the undignified hiccups that sometimes came with her tears. “It’s— Oh, Jake, it’s so lovely!” She flung her arms around his neck and held onto him. His arms moved warm and sturdy around her, holding her so safe and comfortable. Like they belonged together.

“Betty.” He drew back and kissed her, something special shining in his eyes. Love, she realized. It was pure love, sweeter than even the scent of new peach blossoms.