Blowing on Dandelions (29 page)

Her mind flew backward in time to scant minutes ago when she had gazed up the stairs into those eyes so like her own and as much as called her daughter a harlot. She hadn’t given her a chance—hadn’t asked what had happened, just like Mr. Jacobs had stated. She jumped to the worst possible conclusion and been none too shy about speaking her thoughts.

She had always believed the truth needed to be spoken, and let the chips fall where they may. A tremor passed through her as she realized this attitude was exactly what the two women were discussing. They always said that a listener never heard good of herself, and she saw that clearly now.

Micah Jacobs alleged that Mandy had almost drowned and his son had saved her, and she’d blasted him for being in Katherine’s room. Why, she’d even gone so far as to command him to pack up and leave. She would not have allowed him to carry her to her room if she had not still been weak and shaky from her fall. As it was, she had been embarrassed that he swooped in and plucked her off the floor.

She had seen the intense pain that flashed across her daughter’s face at her words, at least before Katherine carefully cloaked it and dropped her gaze. And Lucy’s angry words still rang in her ears. Not only had she hurt and disappointed her daughter, she somehow managed to do the same to her beloved granddaughter.

Frances wanted to moan and cover her face with the quilt, but that would only let them know she’d heard every word.

If only they would leave her alone so she could think. Grieve. Plan.

No. Planning had gotten her into too many pickles in the past that often ended in disaster. She hated to admit that, even to herself, but her behavior since arriving in Katherine’s home was a shining example. She had planned from the beginning to get rid of Micah Jacobs and his son, and look what happened. That boy saved her sweet Mandy’s life, and his father stood up to her in defense of the woman he apparently had come to care for deeply. That was worthy of respect, and more.

“If you don’t mind, Mrs. Roberts, I shall take you up on that offer to stay with Mama while I go check on Mandy and Lucy.”

“Not at all, Mrs. Galloway. I will be here when you get back. Never worry.”

Oh, Katherine would not worry, Frances knew that as a certainty, but
she
would. The last thing she needed or wanted was Wilma Roberts staying in her room watching her with those eagle eyes. And her sharp tongue all set to unleash its vitriol on her head.

Frances bristled and bunched up her muscles, waiting until she heard the door close behind Katherine. Then she would give Wilma Roberts the razor edge of her tongue if she so much as tried to put her in her place.

The door clicked and she lay rigid, trying to form a response before Wilma Roberts had another chance to speak. Of course, there would be no reason for her to do so, as she assumed her patient to be unconscious.

Frances sagged against the mattress and replayed everything she had heard. Mrs. Roberts hadn’t said a thing about putting her in her place. No, her last words were something about attaining peace by discovering what drove Frances to behave the way she did and turning it over to her Father.

She wasn’t sure she could do that, but something about the suggestion held a mighty strong appeal. Maybe she would lie here quietly and study on the idea. Mrs. Roberts might not be so far off the mark this time after all.

Chapter Thirty-Four

Lucy slipped outside, intent on getting as far away from the house and her grandmother as possible and praying no one would see her. All she wanted was to run away and never return. That would fix them all. Grandma would feel bad she’d been so unpleasant to Ma, and Ma would finally understand she needed to stand up for herself.

She reached the end of the walkway and glanced in both directions. Going to the river didn’t appeal, not after what happened to Mandy. Town wasn’t a good idea either, since people there knew Ma and someone might tell.

“Lucy, wait up!” Zachary’s voice almost made her jump into a nearby bush, he’d scared her so badly. She swung around and placed her finger against her lips. “Shh. Not so loud.”

He halted. “What’s wrong with you?”

She beckoned frantically for him to come forward but didn’t reply. The window of the parlor was open, and someone could hear.

Zachary cast a look over his shoulder, then back at her. He pointed a finger at his chest. “Me?”

“Who else, silly?” She hissed the words between clenched teeth. “Don’t just stand there. Hurry up.”

He pushed his hands in his trouser pockets and sauntered forward.

As soon as he reached her side, she grabbed his wrist and dragged him along behind her. The barn would have to do for now. “Keep quiet till we get inside.” At least he was able to obey orders and not squawk like a girl. That was one of the things she appreciated about Zachary.

“What did you grab me for?” Zachary shook his arm free and scowled. “Are you playing some kind of game?”

“It’s no game, Zac. I don’t want Ma or anyone else to know I’m out here.”

“Why not? Did they tell you not to go to the barn?” He peered around suspiciously.

She rolled her eyes and sighed. Boys could be so dense. “No. I’m running away.”

“Huh?” He scratched his head. “But it’s almost supper time, and I’m hungry. Then it’s going to be dark. Why’d you want to do something like that for, anyway?”

Her stomach growled, reminding her of the time, and she clamped her hand over it. “Guess I
am
a little hungry.”

“Can’t you wait to run away until tomorrow? I figured you’d want to take care of Mandy tonight.”

The air went out of her lungs. “How could I forget Mandy?” Lucy almost wailed the words and slapped her hand over her mouth. She dropped her voice to a loud whisper. “I’m mad at Grandma and Ma for fighting all the time. I guess I should say at Grandma for fighting and at Ma for not fighting back.”

“Huh?” Zachary plopped down on a pile of loose straw in the corner and stuck a piece between his teeth. “Say that again slower this time. I don’t get it.”

“Never mind. It sounded pretty stupid the first time.”

“Well, maybe not
totally
stupid, but …” His eyes twinkled, and he dodged to avoid her swinging hand. “Ha. You missed.” He leaned back on the straw. “So what good would running away do, other than getting hungry, and cold, and not having a warm bed to sleep in tonight?”

“Mercy me, you ask a lot of questions.”

He grinned. “That’s what friends do.”

She grabbed a handful of straw and shredded it, letting the tiny bits drift over her skirt. “I guess I hoped it would get their attention. Maybe if they both worried about me, they’d quit being mad at each other all the time.”

“That kind of makes sense, I guess. So did you leave your ma a note so she’d know why you ran away?” He scratched his head. “Hey, Pa did a first-rate job tonight when he lit into your grandma, don’t you think?”

Her shoulders sagged. “I can’t believe I didn’t think about a note either.” Her fingers stilled, and she cocked her head as Zachary’s words settled in. “Your pa did a wonderful thing the way he talked to Grandma. In fact, I think he’s one of the finest men I’ve ever met. Except for my pa, of course.”

Zachary nodded. “’Course. That’s the way it ought to be. Your own pa always comes first.”

Lucy smirked. “Even if your father ends up becoming my father? Do you think it would be all right for my pa to still come first in my heart?”

“Huh?” Zachary turned a stunned gaze her way. “My pa be your pa? I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“Now who’s being stupid?” She tossed the straw at his face and ducked when he tossed some back. “I can’t believe you haven’t noticed.”

“You mean that my pa is sweet on your ma? Yeah, I’ve noticed.” He growled the words and hung his head.

“I was upset at first too. But after the way he stood up for Ma tonight, I could tell he really cares about her. Is that so bad, Zac?” Lucy’s heart beat faster, and she almost held her breath. She didn’t understand why she’d changed her mind concerning Mr. Jacobs, but the look on her mother’s face made her realize how much Ma needed someone in her life who would stand up for her, no matter what. It appeared that might be Mr. Jacobs. Now it seemed her best friend in the whole world wasn’t happy about it. If he didn’t approve, then they couldn’t become a family.

“I don’t know if it’s bad or not. I guess I’m not used to the idea, is all.”

“So don’t you like my ma?”

“I like her a lot. She’s a whole site better of a cook than Pa, that’s for certain.”

Lucy gave a laugh, then clamped her lips together. “Forgot again.” She motioned toward the door. “But I doubt anyone’s looking for us after Grandma pretended to faint.”

“You think she pretended?” Zachary struggled to sit up in the deep pile of straw. “What makes you say that?”

“I don’t know. I could be wrong, since she did hit her head when she fell. But Grandma tends to be a bit … dramatic at times. When she wants her own way, that is. I figured when your pa lit into her, then she heard about Mandy, she might have realized how wrong she’d been and didn’t want to admit it. So fainting was an easy way to get out of it without having to apologize.”

“I used to wish I had a grandma, but if that’s what they do, I’m kind of glad I don’t.”

“Oh, they’re not all that way.” Lucy curled her lip. “Only the selfish ones.”

Zachary pondered that for a moment. “So you were talking about your ma and my pa. Maybe it wouldn’t be too awful if they got hitched. You think your ma loves him? I know he’s been awful lonely since Ma died. I’ve worried about him lots of times. He’d get all moody and grumpy and wouldn’t talk for days. Since we moved here, he’s been different. ’Specially since he met your ma.”

“Don’t you remember when he had his arms around her? I saw the look on her face.” Lucy nodded. “Yep. She loves him. For sure.”

“So how come they haven’t said anything to us? Don’t we deserve to know first?”

“I dunno. Maybe they think we’d be upset. We
were
the other night, you know.”

“Oh. Yeah. Guess so.” Zachary wallowed the straw from one cheek to the other, then spit it to the side and clambered out of the pile. “Then we need to set things to rights.”

Lucy stared at him. Had he lost his senses? “Whatever are you talking about?”

He held out his hand. “We’ve got to tell them to quit draggin’ their feet and get married. My pa is lonely, your ma cares about him, my pa stands up for your ma, and she’s a good cook. Sounds like the right decision to me.” He tucked her hand under his arm and pulled her to her feet. “We’ll do it together.” He winked. “Remember, that’s what friends are for.”

Katherine worked to focus on what Lucy and Zachary were saying. “Would you please repeat that?” She carefully set her cup on the saucer, no longer interested in the fragrant mint tea. A swift glance at Micah showed he had a similar reaction—disbelief.

Zachary looked at Lucy, who gave a slight nod. He squared his shoulders and lifted his chin. “We think you two ought to get married. We know you care for each other—that’s obvious as anything. I’m tired of eating Pa’s cooking, and Lucy likes that Pa stuck up for her ma. It’s as simple as that.” He snapped his fingers and grinned, resembling a magician who’d pulled a rabbit out of a hat and expected a round of applause.

Lucy edged a bit closer to Zachary’s side. “It’s not just the cooking or Mr. Jacobs standing up to Grandma—although I’m grateful he did, and it makes me like him a lot.” She aimed an admiring gaze at Micah, and Katherine’s heart swelled. “Both of you have been so lonely since you were widowed, and we hate seeing you alone when you have each other. Of course, you have Zachary, Mandy, and me, too.” She tossed them a saucy smile. “But somehow I don’t think that’s quite the same.”

Micah cleared his throat. “But what about the two of you?”

Zachary scrunched his brows. “What about us?”

Micah didn’t reply but sent an imploring look Katherine’s way.

She knew exactly where he’d been headed. “We’ve thought for some time now that you two are sweet on one another, even though Zachary did seem interested in Beth. If that’s the case, we’re not sure it would be wise for us to, er, court … or anything.” She stumbled over the last words. After all, it wasn’t like Micah had ever asked her to marry him. They’d only talked twice about a possible future together. Besides, even with the children’s approval, there was still her mother to consider. And Mama had made it more than clear that she wanted nothing to do with Micah.

Lucy burst out laughing, causing Katherine to jump. “How many times do I have to tell you, Ma? We’re friends. We aren’t interested in courting.”

Katherine turned her attention to Zachary. “Is that how you feel too?”

“Yes, ma’am. Sure do. Lucy and I even talked about it earlier. I made her mad ’cause I said there wasn’t any way I wanted to court her. I didn’t mean it in a bad way. But she’s my best friend, and I don’t want to lose that. Truly, she’s more like my sister, but we get along, if that makes sense.”

Katherine nodded slowly and glanced at Micah. “Yes, I think it does. I appreciate you explaining it so clearly.”

Lucy’s face brightened. “Good. So are you going to marry Mr. Jacobs, Ma?”

Once again she wanted to sink through the floor—or better yet, go crawl into bed for a week. This was all too much.

Micah thumped his son on the back. “We appreciate your concern, but there’s another person to consider.” He caught Katherine’s eye, and her heart started to pound. Was it possible he meant her mother? If so, nothing would ever happen between them.

He continued in a firm tone. “I don’t think either of you have eaten yet, and there’s a pot of stew on the stove keeping warm. I’m going to walk Mrs. Galloway to her room. She’s exhausted and needs to rest. The two of you clean the kitchen when you finish, all right?”

“Golly, Pa. Here we came in to help the two of you, and we get put to work. That’s not fair!”

Lucy slugged him in the side with her elbow and hissed, “Shush. Your pa wants to talk to Ma. We’ll clean the kitchen.”

Katherine smiled. “Thank you, Lucy.” She stepped over to Zachary’s side. “And, young man, I have yet to thank you properly for what you did today. I imagine you’re too old to hug, and it doesn’t quite feel right to shake your hand, so I’m not sure how to convey what I feel. But when you saved my Mandy, you did me a service I can never repay.”

“It wasn’t nothing, ma’am.” He dipped his head an instant, then raised it. “But a hug sounds nice. I haven’t had one since Ma died.”

Joy thrilled through Katherine as the boy gave her a quick squeeze. “Good night, then. And thank you for helping in the kitchen.”

She walked from the room with Micah by her side, truly hopeful for the first time. Until she remembered Micah’s words. He hoped to court her and thought he needed Mama’s consent as well as the children’s. Her heart plummeted, and she wanted to groan. Never in a million years would that happen, but from the determined set of Micah’s jaw he intended to try.