Chapter 15
Hettie had always said that the good Lord would forgive her for not attending church on Wednesday night.
Ranchers and farmers had to keep up with chores and crops late in the evening, so they didn’t often have the time to get cleaned up and drive into town on Wednesday evening.
But it rained all day that Wednesday and hadn’t let up one bit when it was time to go to Bible study.
“We’ll be attending church this evening,” she announced at supper.
“I thought that God knows that ranchers and farmers—” Audrey started.
“He does!” Hettie butted in before she could finish.
“But he also sends the rain on the just and the unjust. That tells me I need to be there, and besides, after we get done with the study tonight we’re having a meeting to decide which of the missionaries get the money we made from the quilt raffle.
We’ll also be voting on the next quilt. I want it to be a double wedding ring, but you can bet pennies to cow patties that Bernie won’t agree with a thing I suggest.”
“What will do you about that?” Audrey asked.
“We’ll have a vote, and if she wins this one, I’m never setting foot in that church again. She can have the whole lot of it,” Hettie said.
“You’re going to let her win?”
“Yep, right after I mop up the church with her red hair,” Hettie declared. “Now, you get ready to go. I’ve never been late to anything in my life, and I’m not about to start now. You probably ain’t even read the study for tonight, but you might have time to glance through it. Matthew 5, it is.”
“Isn’t that about the meek inheriting the earth?” Audrey asked on her way out of the kitchen.
“It is, but I’m ninety years old. What would I do with the whole earth?” Hettie called after her.
Audrey took a quick shower, brushed her hair, and got dressed even though the last place she wanted to be that evening was church—for any reason.
Just knowing that Bernie and Hettie would be in the same room made Audrey feel like she was sitting on a stick of dynamite with a short fuse.
No, that wasn’t right. Tonight was more like a whole barrel plumb full of C-4.
Why would I be so stressed about all this? The voice in her head asked.
“I have no idea,” she whispered as she checked her reflection in the mirror. “I just feel like something is about to explode.”
***
“This has been an amazing Bible study,” Parker said when the service ended.
“And now, there will be a committee meeting of the quilting ladies right here in the sanctuary. The men will all meet in the fellowship hall to discuss the new parsonage. I’ll hope to see you all on Sunday, and if any of you have a few hours to spare, the Callahan brothers could use your help with remodeling the old barn.
I’ll turn this over to my wife, Endora, now. ”
A dozen men followed Parker down the center aisle and disappeared through a side door.
Endora left the front pew and went up to stand behind the lectern.
“We made a thousand dollars on the quilt raffle, and now it’s time to decide which of the three missionaries we plan to send the money to this time. I’ll take suggestions.”
Hettie raised her hand, then stood and turned to face the women sitting behind her. “I vote that from now on, we divide whatever money we raise with our quilting projects between the three. I personally like our little family in Peru, but it wouldn’t be fair to always vote for them.”
“That’s a wonderful idea, Miz Hettie,” Endora said. “That plan would also be fair since we never know how much money each of our quilts might generate.”
Bo stood up from the pew right behind Hettie. “When y’all get the next one done, you can display it for a week in the foyer of my and Maverick’s bar.”
“And for a week in our winery,” Ophelia offered.
“And in our store for as long as you need to,” Luna added.
“That would get us a lot more bids,” Endora said with a nod. “All in favor of going with Miz Hettie’s suggestion to share our money with all three of our missionary families, raise your hand.”
All hands but Bernie’s went up.
“All in favor of letting our next quilt travel for more bids, raise your hands,” Endora said.
All hands went up except Hettie’s.
“It don’t seem right to put a church quilt that’s being sold in a silent auction in a bar,” Hettie, who was still standing, protested.
“Why not?” Bernie popped up on her feet and glared at Hettie. “You carry around an alcoholic drink most of the time.”
“What I do in the privacy of my home is different than owning or going to a beer joint or putting our church quilt in one of those evil places,” Hettie barked right back at her.
“Nevertheless,” Endora said with a loud sigh, “both ideas have been voted on and approved. This meeting is adjourned. We’ll see you all at the next quilting bee.
Y’all have a good night, now. Gladys has already made a log cabin quilt for us to work on next.
We’ll have it in the frame and ready to start on when we meet again. ”
“Let’s get out of here,” Hettie stepped out into the center aisle. “I don’t want to even look at Bernie anymore.”
The old gal’s cane made a clicking noise as it hit the floor all the way to the foyer and out into the parking lot. Evidently anger fueled speed because Audrey had no idea her aunt could move so fast.
When she reached the truck, Brodie stepped out of the shadows and opened Audrey’s truck door for her.
“Miz Hettie,” he said.
“Go away,” she hissed. “I don’t need your help.”
“My mama would haunt me if I wasn’t a gentleman,” Brodie said.
“I’ll haunt you if you don’t leave me and mine alone,” she snarled.
“Yes, ma’am,” Brodie said with a smile. “You have a wonderful rest of the evening.”
Hettie plopped down in the passenger seat. “I’ll have whatever kind of evening I want, young man, and it won’t have a thing to do with you.”
Just seeing Brodie had set Audrey’s hormones into overdrive. She wanted to reach out and lace her fingers with his or maybe even throw her arms around him and kiss him right there in public.
“Miz Audrey.” He tipped his hat toward her and turned to walk away.
“Wait a minute,” she said.
He glanced over his shoulder. “Yes?”
“Meet me in the orchard tonight?” she whispered.
“I’ll be there in a few minutes.” He tipped his hat toward her and blew her a kiss.
“What did you say to that man?” Hettie asked as soon as Audrey was behind the steering wheel. “I saw him blow you a kiss. What does that mean?”
“I told him to please tell Knox that I couldn’t meet him tonight and that he could take his brother’s turn to court me,” Audrey answered.
Hettie crossed her arms over her chest. “Am I going to have to get out my funeral hat?”
“Please don’t wear that tacky thing to my funeral,” Audrey said with half a giggle.
“That’s enough out of you,” Hettie growled. “You are spoiling my wonderful night. We should be celebrating my win over Bernie!”
“You won half of the argument. Bernie gets a star too,” Audrey reminded her.
“For what?” Hettie asked. “For being a smart-ass about the little bit that I drink? I bet she put away a lot more whiskey than I do when she owned that bar.”
“You fussed about putting the quilt in a bar, and she more or less advocated for it, so she wins that round,” Audrey told her.
“But I won the big round,” Hettie said with a big smile. “We’re going to distribute the missionary funds the way I wanted—the fair way.”
You are about to find out what fair is all about, Audrey thought as she drove back to the farm.
***
“What was going on out there?” Knox asked when Brodie finally got into the truck.
“Just a little argument with Hettie,” Brodie answered.
“Who won?” Joe Clay asked.
“It was a draw,” Brodie chuckled.
“That’s better than a loss,” Tripp said. “When are you going to stop thinking about what two old women think and ask Audrey out? I could feel the vibes between y’all all the way over here.”
“When the time is right,” Brodie answered as he made a right turn.
“Never will be,” Joe Clay said, “if you’re waiting on a truce between Hettie and Bernie.”
“Or a good old-fashioned cat fight between them?” Brodie grinned and turned right into the lane. “I’m going out to the farm to let Pansy get out of the pen. See y’all later, and I’ll be spraying the fruit trees tomorrow, so I won’t be at the barn.”
“See you at breakfast?” Knox asked.
“Of course,” Brodie answered. “There’s nothing at the trailer but pickles.”
“And a couple of cans of warm beer,” Knox said, and was the last one out of the vehicle.
How can a grown man be as nervous as he was on his first date and as excited as he was to come home from the last mission at the same time? Brodie asked himself as he drove to the farm.
He parked in front of the pigpen, got out of the truck, and shook the legs of his jeans down over his boots.
Not sure where he might find Audrey, or even if he would find her; he wasn’t sure where to even start looking for her.
After all, she might have just been teasing him when she told him to meet her in the orchard.
The fruit trees covered acres and acres of land, but on a whim, he started walking down the path toward the place where they’d sat across the fence from each other.
He hadn’t gone far when he heard someone behind him and turned quickly to find the moon lighting up Audrey not six feet from him.
“Hey,” she said.
“You came,” he said.
“I did,” she took a couple of steps toward him.
“And?” He couldn’t take his eyes off her.
“I’m sick and tired of all this worryin’ about what two bitter old women think of us.” She took two more steps.
“Me, too,” he said.
“So, you can either ask me out to dinner on Friday night, or I will ask you,” she said.
Brodie’s heart thumped around in his chest so hard that he thought it might jump out of his chest. He had been asked out by a woman more than once, and for some reason the dates had not gone well.
“Well, which is it going to be?” Audrey’s tone was definitely impatient.
“Audrey Tucker, will you go to dinner with me on Friday night? I can pick you up at six if that works with your schedule,” he said.
“Yes, I will, and can we please go to Bo and Maverick’s bar in Nocona after we eat? I haven’t been dancing in way too long.”
“Yes, ma’am, but I have to warn you, I have two left feet,” he teased.
Audrey reached out and took his hand in hers. “I don’t believe that, but if it’s the truth, I guess we better practice.”
“Right here?” Brodie asked.
Audrey pulled her phone from her hip pocket and tapped the screen to start her playlist for two-stepping songs. She let go of his hand and wrapped her arms around his neck to one of Alan Jackson’s older songs, “Livin’ on Love.”
When the song ended, she took a step back and frowned. “Don’t you ever lie to me again, Brodie Callahan.”
“What’d I say?” he asked.
“You said you had two left feet. I’ve never danced with anyone as smooth as you are. I can’t wait to go to Bo’s place now.”
He laid a hand on his heart. “I promise to never lie to you again. Mama made all of us boys know our way around the kitchen and the dance floor, but Knox and Tripp are really better at the two steppin’ and waltzin’ than I am.”
She tiptoed and kissed him on the cheek. “I do like a man with a little humility and who isn’t all full of himself. Let’s take a walk through the orchards. Did I tell you that I used to sneak away and sit by the back fence just so I could take in the sweet scent?”
She slipped her hand in his, and just that much contact warmed his whole body. “I don’t remember if you did, but I’ve got a question.”
“Shoot!” she said.
“Why did we wait so long to quit caring what Bernie and Hettie thought about us dating? And did you feel a connection between us from the beginning?”
“Mistakes are part of life,” she said. “But it’s what we do after we mess up that is important. And yes, I did, but I thought it was anger, not chemistry.”
“Are we ready to face the consequences, then?” he asked.
“We are going to go out Friday night and see if this attraction we both feel is a hot flash in the pan that will die after one date or if it’s something worth pursuing,” she answered. “You do feel something, right?”
“Yes, Audrey, I do,” he answered.
She dropped his hand and sat down under an apple tree.
Clouds covered the moon, putting the two of them in darkness, but Brodie didn’t need to see her.
All he had to do was close his eyes and a picture of her with the gentle breeze blowing her dark hair flooded his imagination.
Now that they were this close and not arguing over land, he wasn’t sure how to begin a conversation.
“Want to put your feelings in words?” she finally asked.
“Ladies first,” he said.
Was this really happening, or was it another of his dreams? he wondered.
“I asked the question,” she said, “so you go first.”
“I’ve never liked wimpy women who need every minute of my time. One lady that I dated—only once—asked me to set the phone on the nightstand and aim it toward myself like a selfie—”
Audrey didn’t let him finish. “What’s wrong with a selfie?”
“Of me sleeping all night?” he asked.
“Holy crap!” Audrey said. “No wonder it was a one-night stand.”
“It wasn’t even that much. There wasn’t even a good-night kiss,” he said.
Audrey scooted over close enough that their shoulders touched. “I am not a wimpy or a clingy woman.”
Brodie chuckled and draped an arm around her shoulders. “Amen.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?” she whispered.
The clouds moved, and the moon gave enough light to see her expression. Her eyes twinkled, and her smile was bright and beautiful.
“Think about…” he started.
“Linda Massey?” With a giggle, she finished the sentence for him.
“I really didn’t want her for a neighbor, but when I kissed you I felt something I had never felt before.
I thought the rush was brought on by nothing more than pure old fury.
But even after the anger was gone, something still drew me back here. ”
“Guys don’t usually talk about feelings, but I felt it, too,” he said.
Audrey locked eyes with him. “We’re about to cause a big problem in both our houses. Are you ready for that?”
Brodie looked down at her lips and then cupped her face in his hands and kissed her—passionately.
“Does that answer your question?” he panted when the kiss ended.
“Oh, yeah,” she smiled. “And on that note, I should be going. Many more kisses like that and we’ll set the trees on fire.”
“Friday night at six, then?” he said.
“I’ll hide Aunt Hettie’s sawed-off shotgun,” she said as she walked away.