20. Zeth
Zeth
Millie came home that afternoon smiling from ear to ear, teasing me endlessly about my Chapel blunders and rushed escape with Amby.
We created quite a stir for the gossip mill.
Most of the folks thought I succumbed to a fear of commitment, and according to my dear sister, Anna laughed them off with a simple “Boys will be boys” before gracefully leading her off to have tea.
But not before Emiline invited them to go swimming the next day.
Millie was making friends hand over fist.
She might have been in a good mood, but with each reminder of my public mistakes, my mood soured. I didn’t want the townsfolk talking about me. It felt too much like losing my reputation all over again. And what were they saying about Amby?
By the next day, I wasn’t good company. No wonder Millie seemed anxious to escape as she knelt on the floor in preparation for her swim, rolling up her blanket into a tight log.
I crossed my arms and grumbled, “It’s far too cold to go swimming. It’s still spring.”
She ignored me, reaching for an old ribbon sitting on the bed. It sat too far away, so she used a toe to keep her roll from unraveling as she stood and stretched, wiggling her fingers just shy of the target. I watched her struggle, as a big brother does.
Eventually, she straightened, foot on the blanket, and shot me a glare. “A little help?”
“Of course.” I squatted to replace her toe with my hand. “And why do you need a blanket to go swimming?”
My question was nagging, and Millie proved it with an eye roll.
“Because it’s cold, as you kindly stated,” she sassed back. “Besides, it gives me something to sit on.”
Sitting around on blankets with only-she-knew-who sounded even worse than swimming, especially if young men were involved. Emiline invited her to what might be a river party, and I didn’t like the idea at all.
Millie didn’t care how hard I frowned at her. She tied the ribbon and moved to the bed to start putting on her shoes, completely ignoring me. Then she pulled on her white bonnet and stuffed her curls into it. Her split skirt, blouse, and long, brown coat completed the ensemble.
Still, something bothered me about her adventure. There was more going on than my grumpy mood. “Who else is going to be there?”
“Emiline. She invited me. Anna had prior plans she couldn’t get out of. Emiline’s so nice and responsible. Surely you don’t mind if we become friends?”
My nose itched to call out her obvious ploy to get me to agree. “Who else will be there, Mils?”
“I don’t know. How will I know until I get there?”
“And where’s there , exactly?”
She stood with a huff and grabbed the blanket roll. “There’s a public garden by the river. We’ll be safe. Emiline says she goes once a month with Arthur and that it’s fun, so I want to go. I’m an adult and I’m going.”
Five years ago, that statement would have ended with a foot stomp.
Now, she was twenty and ready to spread her wings.
That didn’t stop me from wanting to protect my little sister from harm.
She was so innocent about so many things.
What if there was an undercurrent in the river?
Or she got frostbite? Or some man tried to lure her away from her friends?
Millie didn’t care about any of that. She only gave me an exasperated stare from under her lashes and headed for the stairs, ignoring my disapproval and not asking me to join.
Ugh, maybe that last part was the problem. Millie never went anywhere without me until we returned to Everdeen. Now she was working, running errands around town, going swimming, and making new connections with people like Emiline and Anna, people who were not me.
I thought about that as I followed her down the stairs, feeling my spirits lower with each step. This must be how parents feel when their children leave them behind.
“When can I expect you to return?”
“You mean, when can you start a search party?” Millie saw right through me. We both reached the front door at the same time, and I claimed the knob first to stop her from leaving. She eyed it and patted my shoulder. “You don’t have to protect me, you know. I have a mean upper punch.”
Chuckling, I let go, and she opened the door. When did I age from twenty-five to fifty? Or maybe I always smothered Millie and she was only now gaining the strength to stand up to me. If that was the case, I felt bad for holding her back, but also proud of her new step forward.
Just then, Emiline and Hattie, and also Arthur and Amby, headed toward the laundry.
Was Amby going to the swim party too? Great, now I really did feel lonely. I know we agreed to take this new step in our relationship slowly, but I hoped we could spend some time together.
I rubbed my shirt sleeves while Millie waved to the group. When they returned her wave, Millie turned back to me, practically hopping on her heels.
“So, I think the swimming ends at sunset,” Millie said in a rush. “But they have some sort of dinner too, and Arthur said he’d buy me a plate for my good work this week. I promise to return safely.”
I narrowed my eyes at her, not sure if I should point out her earlier lie about not knowing who was attending. Deciding to prove my maturity, I refrained. Instead, I pushed her off the step. Like a bird from the nest.
She caught her footing just fine, and I grumbled, “Alright, have fun without me.”
“I will!” she assured quickly with a playful expression that stopped me from taking offense. Still, I glared at her, which caused her to stick out her tongue.
The group reached us, and we all said our hellos.
When Millie entered their midst, they left with their blanket rolls and good humor.
Then Amby stepped free of everyone to stand with me in front of the laundry, and my mood lifted as he waved them goodbye.
He was dressed much more casually than usual, with his shirtsleeves rolled up to his elbows and his brown vest looking soft and cozy.
His brown pants matched his cap, and his collar was unbuttoned to reveal his glowing skin.
I still couldn’t believe Amby agreed to start courting. I was courting Ambrose Somerset of Everdeen.
When he turned to me, I beamed like a fool and asked, “Not going swimming, handsome?”
Amby gave a timid smile and shook his head. “No, I wanted to see if you’d like to go out somewhere else, just you and me. Unless you want to swim. Then we can join them.”
“I don’t see the appeal of freezing my ass off. Have you ever gone?”
“A few times.” He shrugged and watched as our sisters walked arm in arm. “The Rios family opened the place a few years back. It’s popular with younger folks on the weekends now. The Covenant Hall has tried to shut it down many times, with no success.”
I raised an eyebrow as I opened the door for him to come inside. “Covenant Hall?”
Amby shrugged as he stepped over the threshold. “A newer church. They’ve been here for the past fifteen years, but their numbers are growing. Very… odd, always trying to spoil the fun. Same god, just much different beliefs from the Shepherd’s Chapel where we attend.”
“I’m good with attending neither,” I muttered, closing the door. When I caught Amby’s dimpled cheek, I backpedaled. “Unless you want to attend your church. I’ll sit in your family’s pew every day for the rest of my life if you want me to.”
“Mm, such devotion. I love it.” Amby came close and caressed the back of my neck before kissing me on the lips. A quick peck, then another, before I finally grabbed him to keep him there.
He giggled against me. “We should probably get lost somewhere before we end up against the wall like last time.”
“Where do you suggest, darling?”
“Perhaps… a walk through the garden?” he asked.
I grabbed his hips and moved in to kiss his neck to distract him as he named other places, “Mm, maybe… an eatery? Or… out for drinks? God, you’re good at kissing me…
We could always follow the girls and Arthur to the distillery.
We don’t have to swim, just eat and talk. ”
My hands stiffened on him, and I moved away from his neck to look at him sharply, my trust in Millie quickly evaporating. “Distillery? As in hard liquor, and they’ll be swimming too? I knew Millie was leaving something out.”
“She didn’t tell you there would be drinking?”
“No, she deviously left that part out. I was worried about her going off on her own, but if she’s drinking too, I want to be there in case she needs me. She’s never even had a sip. She’s bound to get sloshed.” I sighed. “Do you mind if we follow them?”
“Oh.” Amby nodded in approval instead of pointing out my over-protectiveness. “Yes, we can go if it makes you feel better. Maybe watch from a distance?”
“Bless you, what an excellent plan. She won’t even know we’re there.
I’ll grab my blanket, so we can pretend we decided to swim.
Be right back.” I kissed him quickly on the lips and sprinted up the steps in a blur to swiftly roll up my blanket.
Then I finished dressing in a worn-out jacket and cap to rejoin Amby downstairs. We locked up and headed for the river.
Our companionship felt nice in the silence of our steps as we made our way out of town.
It didn’t take us long to reach a spot in the woodsy treeline by the river where Amby pointed out a worn path for us to take next.
Across the river, new houses lined the way with even more buildings in various stages of construction.
My, how Everdeen had grown since I left.
“Hey,” Amby started from my side as we walked. “You look good. How was your day?”
His sweet question was unexpected. No one ever asked me about my day. I liked that Amby did. We barely separated twenty-four hours ago, and here he was wondering about me. How was my day?