Wedding Belles (25 page)

“Because, I…” He raked his fingers through his hair and paced the room. “I can’t imagine Parker Lodge without you in it.” Now he fought back tears. “You bring life to the place, Lottie. The guests love you. The locals love you. I…”

She leaned in close, but he couldn’t get the words out. “Anyway, I—I don’t know what would happen if you went away,” he finally managed. He found himself completely tongue-tied as he stared into Lottie’s beautiful face. Why, oh, why couldn’t he just sweep her into his arms and tell her how he felt? Judging from her expression, she would probably smack him if he tried. Oh, but how he wanted to try. And so he leaned in, determined to replay that mesmerizing moment when he’d kissed her before.

Just as he leaned in to prove his feelings, she stepped back. “Gil, I—I don’t know what to think.” Turning on her heel, she ran from the room.

NINETEEN

J
ILTED IN THE
J
ITNEY

As opening night draws near, we at Parker Lodge feel it only fair to warn our audience members that our melodrama’s story continues to intensify. When a script is carefully crafted, it will always contain one scene, one inevitable moment, where the hero appears to falter, where it looks as if he won’t come through. Do not be alarmed! This is only a ploy on the part of the scriptwriter. Any writer worth his salt knows that he must tease his audience with the “How can this possibly work out?” scene. Why torment the audience members in such a fashion, you ask? So that they get their money’s worth. And we at Parker Lodge are keen on you getting your money’s worth. Get your tickets before they sell out! Special rates for members of all local civic organizations, including the Women’s League. —
Your friends at Parker Lodge

G
ILBERT WALKED OUT OF THE KITCHEN
, his heart heavy. A walk by the river would do him good right about now. Unfortunately, he discovered that Lottie had already beat him there. Oh well. He’d take a jaunt into town. Meeting up with the men was key to figuring out a plan of action. No doubt when they heard that the ladies knew of their plot—albeit mostly innocent—to marry them, they would react unpleasantly.

He stopped off at Phineas’s house and found his friend seated in his parlor in low spirits.

Gilbert entered the room and took a seat across from him. “I know you had a fight with Flossie. Heard all about it.”

“Yep. I figger the cat’s out of the bag now.” Phineas sighed. “Sorry about that, Gilbert. My temper got the best of me and I said some things, well, that I shouldn’t have.”

“Understandable.”

“So I’m guessing Flossie told the others?” Phineas’s brow wrinkled.

“Mm-hmm.” Gilbert didn’t add any of the particulars.

“I see. Figgered as much.” Phineas sighed. “Well, what do we do now?”

“Now we go to town and meet with the other men. We’re the ones who started all this. We’ve got to be the ones to end it.”

“You don’t think it’s too late for that?”

“Nope.” Gilbert rose. “Not as long as I’m alive and well. I still believe very much in what Flossie said last night—God can turn things around. Trust me when I say that I quoted a few of those Scriptures from Flossie’s list on the way over here. No matter how bad things get— lawsuits, petitions, angry women—I still think God will have His way in the end.”

“Well, amen.” Phineas rose also. “When you put it like that, I have no choice but to go to town with you.”

“Thanks.”

Moments later they set off, bound for Augie’s office. Along the way they stopped at Jeb’s house. Poor Jeb. Until they clued him in, he had no idea the ladies were even mad. The same was true with Chauncy, who got the news when the men stopped off at his woodworking shop in town. Both men seemed devastated to learn that the women they’d grown so attached to were now angry at them. The only one who seemed to take the news in stride was Augie, who sat at his desk at the
Mountaineer
nodding as the story unfolded.

“I figure we’ve got to pay the piper,” he said at last. “Did we or did we not cook up a scheme to bring those ladies to Estes Park in the hopes that they would marry us? And did we or did we not invest in the show, hoping those ladies would end up in our arms?”

All the men sighed in collective unity.

“Yeah.” Phineas kicked a wad of paper with the toe of his boot. “Guess yer right.”

“But it ain’t like we advertised for brides, exactly,” Jeb said. “And we didn’t exactly pay to bring them here. No one twisted their arms or nuthin’.”

“They came in good faith, thinking we only needed—or wanted— them to act in a melodrama.” Gilbert leaned against the wall, grateful for something to hold him up.

“Now we’ve created a little melodrama of our own,” Augie said. “Only, we don’t have a script, so it’s unclear what’s coming next.” He paused. “But one thing’s for sure—what Flossie said last night is truer than ever. We do need to band together and pray.”

“Fer what, exactly?” Phineas asked. “Pray that Flossie doesn’t shoot me at tonight’s rehearsal?”

“She won’t,” Augie said. “She’s a consummate pro. A theater buff. She’ll be all business at that rehearsal tonight. What we need, fellas, is a way to prove to the ladies that we’ve made fools of ourselves.” A smirk followed as he added, “Shouldn’t be too hard.”

“They’re already convinced, sounds like.” Jeb sighed.

“Yes, but they also need to know that we have their best interest at heart,” Gilbert explained. “That, they don’t know. And they also don’t know how sorry we are, or the logic behind why we came up with the idea in the first place.” He paused. “Not trying to whitewash what we’ve done. Just saying our motivation wasn’t bad. They need to know that. The whole town needs to know it.”

Phineas still looked downcast. “How do we prove it to ’em?”

“Not sure.” Gil shifted his position. “I just know that we need to start by praying. That’s why I wanted to meet with you fellas before the rehearsal. Seems like prayer is probably our only answer. And boy-howdy, do we need it. That lawyer showed up today.”

“I know all about it,” Augie said. “He stopped by here on his way to your place. Something about a petition that the local businessmen are supposed to sign to boycott Parker Lodge.”

“Are we gonna keep on yammerin’, or are we gonna pray?” Jeb pulled off his hat. “ ’Cause we could stand here all day talkin’ and not put a dent in the problem.”

“True, true.” Gilbert glanced around the room at his good friends and bowed his head. Surely, with God’s help, this mess they’d made could all be turned around.

* * * * *

L
OTTIE PULLED OFF HER BOOTS
and socks and stepped into the shallow waters of Fall River, overcome with emotion. First the scene with the ladies. Then the visit from the attorney. Now this? Had she and Gil really just turned on each other?

Common sense kicked in. He’d never really cared about her at all. That much she now understood. That kiss—that unexpected moment of bliss—was all a ruse. All to appease Phineas, Jeb, Chauncy, and Augie. To keep her on his team.

Would she stay on his team, or would she run?

Lottie kicked the water, splashing it high into the air. “That’s what I think about what you’ve done to me, Gil.” She kicked the water again. This felt good. Several more kicks got her anger out.

Afterward, she sat on the bank of the river, watching the water as it rushed by. Seemed like she always ended up here when life’s frustrations got the best of her—at the water. Here, in this place, she felt free. She gazed at the water as it ran downstream at a rapid pace, headed to the vast unknown. Nothing stopped it. And when she stood in it, the current tugged at her and gave her courage.

Oh, how she needed courage! And peace. Lottie began to pray with great passion, her heart overflowing—with anger, at first, and then genuine compassion.

By the time she calmed down, her decision had been made. As much as she wanted to run for the hills, the only decision that made sense was to stay put. After all, they still had a rehearsal in a few hours, and their little melodrama would forge ahead, no matter the obstacles.

She put her boots back on, praying all the while. She quoted a couple of the Scriptures Flossie had given them as she made her way back to the dining hall. When she arrived, she found Flossie seated with Fanny at one of the tables. The other ladies were nowhere to be seen. Flossie glanced up at Lottie with tearstained eyes and gestured for her to come closer.

“Lottie, I—I spoke in haste. I…” Flossie’s voice cracked and she swallowed hard. “I didn’t mean what I said—that you weren’t meant to be a director.” She looked up and brushed tears from her eyes. “In so many ways you’ve been a better director than I could’ve been. You’ve held your temper in check when others would’ve lost theirs. You’ve been nothing but kind to everyone and patient to those who’ve struggled with their lines.”

“In short, you’re the real deal, Lottie.” Fanny stood and wrapped Lottie in her arms.

In that moment, the dam broke and Lottie began to weep. “I—I—I did—didn’t want the fellas to make assumptions. I told them so from the beginning. Trust me, I did.”

“Oh, you poor dear girl.” Flossie rose and rushed her way, joining the circle. “I know you’re not behind all of this. It’s those…those men. They need to be strung up for what they’ve done.” She squared her shoulders. “But we have no choice.”

“O–oh?” Lottie’s tears came in force now.

“Yes.” Flossie smiled and whispered, “We must finish what we started.”

“You—you really mean that?” Lottie could hardly believe it. “You’re going to stay?”

“Well, of course,” Fanny said. “What they’ve done is terrible, but it doesn’t change the fact that we came here to do a show to save Parker Lodge. If we ever needed to prove that, once and for all, it’s now. We
must
plow forward, for the sake of every woman who’s in it. We have to prove to this community that we are women of our word, women who mean what they say and say what they mean.”

“Just one thing, Lottie.” Flossie put up her hand. “I think it’s only right that we limit our time with the men to the hours of rehearsal. They need to know that what they’ve done is wrong, and that there’s a need to come clean and make apologies to all involved. I won’t waver on this.”

“None of the ladies will,” Fanny said. “Though they’ve all promised to be civil to the men, for the sake of the show.”

“For the sake of the show.” Lottie sighed and swiped her eyes with the back of her hand. “I’m very grateful, and I know that, ultimately, Mrs. Parker and Gil will be too.” She offered a weak smile. “I’m sure, when all is said and done, we’ll look back on this and laugh.”

“Hmm. Hard to picture.” Fanny shrugged. “But if you say so.”

Lottie headed off to find the other ladies and, after a few tears and some lengthy conversation, assured them that no one expected any of them to get married or to stay in Estes Park beyond the length of the show.

After convincing them of that fact, she made her way down to the pie parlor, where she filled Mrs. Parker in on the situation.

Mrs. Parker gave her a hug. “Oh, Lottie. I knew trouble was brewing. I could sense it. I’ll be praying for all involved.”

“Thank you. We need those prayers.”

Lottie went through the motions of doing her daily chores, only pausing for a moment when Jeb arrived to start cooking dinner for the ladies. He took her hand and gave it a squeeze and promised to keep his distance from the others. When the dinner hour arrived, he stayed in the kitchen. None of the other fellas showed up, including Gil. Thank goodness, they all came just in time for rehearsal. Not a word was spoken about the morning’s events. Everyone had a “let’s get down to business” attitude.

Lottie somehow made it through the rehearsal, though the tension in the room was so thick, she could’ve cut through it with her pa’s bowie knife. The only time the ladies spoke to the men was onstage, in character.

Other things kept her distracted, as well—the visit from Thad Baker, for one thing. Would the local merchants really sign that petition? Why, oh, why wouldn’t Mama and Althea Baker just give up and send their lawyer back to Loveland where he belonged?

Of course, the situation that burdened her the most was the one with Gil. Many times she caught him glancing her way. Still, she kept her distance. After what he’d put her through, she’d rather just keep to herself, thank you very much.

The rehearsal ran smoothly and Lottie caught a ride home from Phineas to avoid having to be alone with Gil. By the time she crawled into bed, her head ached. The nighttime hours were spent tossing and turning, with intermittent prayers being offered up. Still, she didn’t feel a sense of peace. In fact, she felt so ill upon awakening that she decided to stay home until the evening rehearsal.

Downstairs, she heard her parents quarreling, and she sighed. Couldn’t she escape the drama even at home? She’d hoped to talk to her father about the money he’d invested, to thank him for his kindness. Guess that would have to wait.

A rap sounded at the door, and Winnie opened it and stuck her head inside. “Sounds like there’s trouble brewing downstairs.”

“There’s trouble brewing everywhere.” Lottie sighed again.

Winnie took a few steps into the room and sat on the edge of the bed, a pained expression on her face. She gripped Lottie’s hand and gazed into her eyes. “There’s something I need to say to you.”

“Oh?”

“Yes.” She took a deep breath. “I haven’t been a very good big sister, and I want to apologize for that. Being away put things in perspective. Then, when I came back, everything was topsy-turvy.”

“What happened to us, Winnie?” Lottie asked. “We used to be so close when we were little.”

A tear trickled down Winnie’s cheek. “Lottie-Lou, do you have any idea just how jealous I’ve been of you?”

“Jealous…of me?” Lottie could hardly believe it.

“Well, of course, you little runt. You’ve always had Pa’s heart. You’ve been his favorite from the very beginning. That meant Mama focused more on me.”

“I think she deliberately avoided me because she was ashamed of me,” Lottie said. “And maybe…” She paused to think through the words. “Maybe that’s partly why I dressed the way I did. Maybe I figured if I dressed my own way she wouldn’t pressure me to be like her.”