Chapter 18
The sun was half an orange ball on the western horizon when Joe Clay lit the wood for the bonfire. Lawn chairs lined the wide concrete apron all the way around the brick firepit, and three long tables full of food were set off to the side in a U shape. Noah, Remy, Jake, and Shane had helped Joe Clay set up the food tables as well as several others for folks to sit at to eat that evening.
Now, the wood crackled, and the fire seemed to beg the folks to come on over closer and let it roast their hot dogs and marshmallows. Tertia was standing off to one side, mesmerized by the way that the slightest shift in the wind had an effect on the blaze, when she felt Noah’s presence beside her.
“Y’all can sure put on an impromptu party,” he said.
“We had lots of help.” A flash of heat that had nothing to do with the warmth of the fire made her take off her jacket and hang it over the back of a nearby chair.
“I’d forgotten how the folks here in Spanish Fort all work together when storms happen,” he said.
“Not just storms,” Tertia told him. “You should have seen the turnout for Ursula and Remy’s wedding reception. There’s definitely good points to living in a near ghost town.”
“Yep,” Noah agreed. “I’m hoping that means they’ll all support our café.”
“They will, and so will the folks in Nocona and Saint Jo, and before long they’ll be driving up here from even farther away.”
Noah turned up a red plastic cup of sweet tea and took a long drink. “I hope you are right.”
“Look!” She pointed up at a falling star.
“You saw it first,” Noah said, “so you get the wish.”
“It’s my second one in less than twenty-four hours, so I’m going to give it to you,” she said. “What are you going to wish for?”
“Can’t tell you, or it won’t come true. Has your wish come true?” he asked.
“Yes.”
“Did you tell anyone what it was?”
She shook her head. “I didn’t.”
“Point proven,” Noah said.
Joe Clay rang a cowbell and the whole area went quiet. “To friends, both old and new, past and future,” he said. “The fire is hot. The food is ready. Y’all get a skewer and roast your hot dogs anyway you like them. Mary Jane says they aren’t done if the outside isn’t nearly black.”
“That’s right,” she called out from behind one of the tables. “But that doesn’t mean y’all have to eat them well done. This is a help-yourself affair, so don’t be shy.”
Lester led the way to the table. “Ain’t no bashful bones in my body, and I love a good roasted hot dog.”
“Shall we get in line?” Noah asked. “And you look amazing tonight. I should have told you earlier, but I was stunned right out of my manners when I looked up and saw you with the sun setting behind you.”
“Thank you, and better a minute late than never,” she said. No man had ever said that she was so pretty that they were stunned by her. Was that a little seed planted in the ground of like?
Jake stood up from the lawn chair where he had been sitting beside Ophelia and extended a hand toward her.
She put her hand in his and grimaced when she stood up. Her little toe was dark purple, and the bruise extended all the way to her ankle. Thank goodness the weather was good enough she could wear flip-flops. There was no way she could ever get her swollen foot into a pair of boots, or even enclosed shoes.
“Holy smoke!” Jake gasped. “The whole top of your foot is bruised. You said you stumped your toe, but you didn’t say anything about breaking bones.”
“Like I told you before, my middle name isn’t Grace.”
“You should sit as much as possible tomorrow at the winery.” Jake kept her hand in his and slowed his stride to match hers as they crossed the yard. “Or do you need to take the day off?”
“I’m fine,” Ophelia answered. “I’ve done far worse than this and didn’t take time off from my job. And thank you for bringing your crew over to help. Monday is their day off.”
“Being invited to this party makes it all worthwhile to them,” Jake told her and then waved at a newcomer who was just getting out of his vehicle. “That’s the new minister here in town. He came out to thank us, bring us out bottles of water, and help yesterday afternoon while we finished up at the church, so Joe Clay invited him to the party.”
“I thought Pastor Tommy wasn’t leaving for another month,” Ophelia said.
“His father fell and broke his hip, so he was going to have to take a few weeks off anyway, so he just turned the keys to the parsonage over to the new guy a couple of days ago. I’ll introduce you,” Jake slowed down and let the new fellow catch up to them. “Hey, Parker, come on over here and meet Ophelia Simmons, one of the seven sisters of Paradise. Ophelia, this is Parker Martin. He moved here from Louisiana this past week, and he’s going to be working with Henry Davis as a finish carpenter when he’s not preaching.”
The guy barely came up to Ophelia’s shoulder. His hair was somewhere between blond and brown. Broad shoulders—probably more from carpenter work than preaching—filled out his green and black plaid shirt. Thick lashes rimmed his hazel eyes.
“Pleased to meet you,” Parker said. “And thanks for the invitation to the party tonight. It’s a wonderful way to get to know some of the folks here in Spanish Fort.”
With that deep Louisiana accent, his words sounded like they were dripping honey laced with just a little of Bernie’s whiskey.
“Welcome to town, and to the Paradise,” Ophelia said, and waved Endora over. “This is my baby sister, Endora. She has an identical twin, Luna, so don’t think you are seeing double all evening. Endora, this is Parker Martin, our new pastor.”
“Pleased to meet you, Parker,” Endora said. “Come with me, and I’ll introduce you to more of the folks.”
“Is the whole town here?” Parker asked.
“Quite a few of them,” Endora answered as they walked toward the food tables together.
“They are kind of cute together,” Jake whispered.
Ophelia shook her head. “Never happen.”
“Why?”
Ophelia’s mouth twitched as she fought the grin. “A preacher and an old brothel. Sounds like a country song, doesn’t it?”
“I see your point, but these are modern times,” Jake argued.
Ophelia tugged at his hand to get him moving. “Still never happen. Let’s go get some food.”
“Quit looking at Noah like one little push and you’d fall into bed and pull him down with you,” Bernie whispered in Tertia’s ear.
“You need to curb your imagination,” Tertia said. “Don’t go judging me by your half bushel.”
Bernie shook her finger so hard that it was a blur. “Don’t you talk to me in that tone. Have you met Parker? With that accent, he could make a holy woman’s underpants crawl down to her ankles. I bet he’s hell on wheels in bed.”
Heat crawled around from Tertia’s neck to burn her cheeks. Only Bernie could make her blush like that. “You are talking about a preacher!” she gasped.
“I’m talking about a good-lookin’ man with a sexy accent. I understand he’s a finish carpenter when he’s not preachin’,” Bernie told her. “So, he knows how to use those big hands of his, and did you even notice the way his muscles were stretching his shirt?”
Tertia put two hot dogs on a skewer. “Ask your Universe to set him up with Bo. She’s got a lovely voice and could be the music director at the church. They could fall in love at first sight when and if she comes home this summer.”
“Do you realize how difficult you are?” Bernie snapped as she stabbed two hot dogs onto a skewer.
Tertia flashed a smile toward her aunt and nodded. “I’m the third child. It’s in my DNA to be difficult, and besides I’m related to you!”
“I can’t talk sense into you, so go on and flirt with Noah.” Bernie groaned. “But when you get your heart broken, I will say, ‘I told you so.’”
“Noah and I are friends, and possibly later we might work together. That part is something I’m still thinking about. You don’t see me picking out wedding dresses or a cake, do you?” Tertia argued.
“It’s just a matter of time.” Bernie whipped around so fast that one of her hot dogs fell on the ground. Pepper ran over to get it, but Sassy beat him to it and ran over to where the kittens were hiding under the rosebush to share it with them.
“See what you made me do,” Bernie growled, “and Pepper didn’t even get to have it.”
“There’s plenty more,” Tertia told her.
Bernie cut her eyes around at Tertia. “We were taught not to waste good food, or good men that look like Parker.” She stuck two more on the long metal skewer and headed toward the bonfire.
Mary Jane nudged Tertia on the arm. “Don’t pay any attention to her. Like I told you before, she’s probably using reverse psychology on you.”
Joe Clay stepped up to her other side. “Just enjoy the evening and don’t second-guess yourself. Pay attention to what your heart tells you.”
“Thank you both,” Tertia said and looked up to see Noah on the far side of the firepit, staring right at her. “My heart tells me to go talk to Noah. My stomach tells me it’s hungry, so I’m off to kill two birds with one stone.”
“Listen to both,” Mary Jane told her.
Bernie was talking to Dolly Devlin on one side of the pit, so Tertia circled around the other way to stand beside Noah. More times than she could remember, her mother had told her and her sisters that anything worth having was worth fighting for. Too bad she didn’t warn them that one of the biggest battles they would have to work around would be with their aunt Bernie.
“Hey,” Noah said with a smile. “I was hoping you’d come over my way. This is some party.”
“It’s small compared to the Christmas party we throw,” she answered, “Maybe you can close the café early this next year and attend it.”
“I would like that, which brings me to a question. Do we close up the café at say, three o’clock on Sunday, and take Monday off?”
Tertia stuck her skewer out into the fire and turned it slowly as she thought about his idea. “I like that idea. Since we’ll be open Sunday morning, we won’t be able to attend church services, but that would leave us free to go to evening church. Monday could be our day to get other things done.”
He nodded. “Then that’s what we’ll do. Speaking of church. Did you meet the new preacher?”
“Oh, yes!” Tertia rolled her eyes. “Aunt Bernie wanted to fix me up with him.”
“And?” Noah raised an eyebrow.
“And I told her that Bo would be a better choice. She’s a singer and plays the piano and fiddle. She could fall right into a position as music direction,” Tertia answered.
Noah nodded across the firepit to where Endora was talking to Parker. “He and Endora make a really cute couple.”
Tertia shook her head. “Never happen. Endora isn’t nearly ready for a relationship. Looks like most of the folks are getting through the buffet line. Let’s go fix our plates. I want you to try my baked beans for sure and see if you think they’re good enough to serve at the café.”
“That would be good to serve on the days we have ham for a special, but tonight I don’t want to talk about the café,” Noah said. “I want to talk about us.”
“Us?” Tertia asked.
“We are friends. You checked yes and even held my hand, so let’s get to know the adult Tertia Simmons and Noah Wilson,” he answered. “The young versions of us didn’t do so well, but maybe the older ones will do better.”
“That would make this kind of like a date,” Tertia whispered.
“Yes, it would.”
She started walking toward the food tables. “Okay, then you can ask the first question.”
“Why would I ask a question?”
“Isn’t that what a date is all about? Getting to know someone to figure out if there’s going to be a second date?” she asked.
“I guess I’m a little rusty,” he said with a grin. “No, erase that. I’m a whole lot rusty. I only dated Wanette all through high school and college, and then we got married.”
“Really?” Tertia asked.
“Really,” he answered. “After that horrible breakup, I just backed away from women. But if asking questions is what we do, then I’ll start with, why did you go into coaching when you like to cook?”
“Because I was good at softball, and I got a full-ride scholarship.” She talked while she made herself two hot dogs with chili and cheese.
Noah scooped a spoonful of baked beans onto his plate and took a bite. “These are amazing, so yes, let’s put them on the menu for the days when our special is ham. We’ll serve it with your baked beans, and hot rolls, and my potato salad. And maybe apple pie.”
“I thought we weren’t going to discuss café stuff.”
“We won’t after this, but these beans are really good,” Noah said. “Next question. Are you going to regret leaving coaching behind?”
“Not for one minute,” Tertia answered. “I’ve been ready to hang up the catcher’s mitt and come back to this area for a couple of years.”
“Why didn’t you?” He finished making his plate and looked around for an empty spot at a table.
“I’m not sure, but then Ursula paved the way,” she answered and nodded toward an empty table.
Noah followed her across the yard. “I thought Endora and Luna moved back before Ursula.”
“They did, but that was because Endora’s fiancé cheated on her. She took it hard, and getting over the whole thing has been tough on her. There were two positions open at Prairie Valley School, so Mama talked them into coming back here. Both Endora’s ex and her best friend that he cheated with worked at the same school she did,” Tertia explained. “Ursula came home with no job to give herself a year to write. That’s going out on a pretty shaky limb. So, anyway…” She set her plate on the table and sat down. “That kind of gave me the courage to do the same. My turn to ask you a question. Why didn’t you go to chef school since you love food so much?”
“Guys in my family don’t even mention doing something like that.” He sat down beside her.
“Why?” she asked. “Most of the greatest chefs in the world are male.”
“It is what it is.” He shrugged. “Coaches or bank presidents or heavy equipment operators are what all my cousins are. I loved to spend time in the kitchen with my grandmother. She was an awesome country cook. My mama can put a meal on the table, but it usually comes from cans or boxes.”
“How about Wanette? Or is that too personal?” Tertia asked.
“We’re getting to know each other, so ask anything you want,” Noah answered. “Like I told you, Wanette was a picky eater—always afraid that she would gain an ounce. She made salads, but she did not cook at all, period. Her main objective in life was being beautiful. Mama tolerated her. Granny didn’t even do that.”
Tertia could feel the chill from Bernie’s staring at her even before she shifted her eyes from Noah to the table next to them. She smiled and waved, and Bernie gave her a big dose of stink eye.
“Daddy told me that he’s coming over tomorrow for y’all to put your porch back together,” she said and then bit into her hot dog.
“That’s right, and Parker is coming to help. He says it’s payback for us doing so much at the church,” Noah answered. “I guess we’ll have to wait to start cooking until…”
“Until the next day.” She finished the sentence for him. “But I could bring over some party leftovers about noon for y’all to snack on at lunchtime.”
“That sounds great,” Noah said.
“Hey, are y’all saving these seats for us?” Luna asked from a few feet away.
“Of course, we are,” Noah answered. “How’s the store coming along?”
“We’re planning to have a grand opening in the middle of June,” Shane set his plate down, then pulled out a chair for Luna. “That way we can get any kinks ironed out before the wedding.”
“How about the café?” Luna asked.
“Slower than I’d like, but then when it opens, I hope we stay busy,” Noah answered. “Tertia and I decided that we wouldn’t talk business tonight.”
Luna tucked a strand of blond hair behind her ear. “Rotten wind plays havoc with my hair, but I shouldn’t complain. It could have rained and ruined our plans.”
“Or came another tornado,” Noah said.
Tertia shivered.
“Need my jacket?” Noah asked.
“No, thank you. I’m good. Thinking about how close we were to that storm still gives me the hives.” If she was honest with herself, she would have to admit that there was more to that little shiver than what happened two nights ago. Noah’s knee grazing hers under the table started it, and then the night breeze sent the scent of his cologne her way. Like Aunt Bernie said about the new preacher, that was enough to make a holy woman’s underpants crawl down around her ankles. Forget Parker; that’s the effect Noah seemed to have on Tertia.
“I forgot to tell you that I got in touch with the café in Henrietta where that bull came from. They said that they didn’t want it back because the café was totally destroyed and they weren’t going to rebuild it,” Noah said.
Shane chuckled. “Does that mean you’re going into the cattle business?”
“Only the kind that doesn’t require feeding,” Noah replied. “Actually, I thought maybe I would set the old boy out in front of the new café. After all, this was part of the cattle drive trail back in the day. I’d still like to turn the old store into a museum someday.”
“Do you own it?” Shane asked.
“I inherited it along with my grandpa’s property.” Noah picked up his second hot dog and took a bite. “My original plan was to put the café in that building, but it wouldn’t pass inspection and it wasn’t big enough.”
“Between all of us in this generation, we’re going to put Spanish Fort back on the map,” Luna declared.
There they were talking shop, Tertia thought. Maybe friendship was as far as her relationship with Noah was destined to go. That idea disappointed her, but it would suit Bernie just fine and dandy.
“Mind if I join y’all?” Parker asked.
“Not at all,” Luna replied and motioned for him to sit down.
“I’ve sure met a lot of folks tonight,” he said. “I just hope I can put half their names with their faces when they come to church. Endora told me there are seven of you sisters. Are you all here tonight?”
“Just five of us,” Tertia answered. “Bo is in Nashville, and Rae is in the panhandle of Oklahoma, but we’re hoping they will be back around these parts by the end of the year.”
Ursula and Remy came over and joined them, and then Ophelia and Jake.
“How long has it been since all seven of you sisters were back in Spanish Fort?” Parker asked.
“We were here for Ursula and Remy’s wedding reception and Mother’s Day, but only for a short while,” Ophelia answered.
“It’s been about fifteen years since we all lived here at the same time,” Ursula added.
“I only have one sister, and she lives in Canada on a wheat farm,” Parker said. “I can’t imagine having six siblings living around me. That would be wonderful.”
“Sometimes it was,” Luna said. “And sometimes not so much.”
The conversation among all of them skipped from one story to another as they entertained Parker with tales of having so many sisters in one house. Tertia caught a few words here and there. But mostly she got lost in her own roller coaster of thoughts. Noah fit in very well with the family—except with Aunt Bernie. Even Pepper liked him. Would Rae and Bo really come home? And if they did, would Bernie meet them at the door with a marriage license in one hand and dragging Parker along by the arm with the other one?