23. Dulcie
DULCIE
T he next few days unfolded so happily that it was all Dulcie could do to stop herself from singing and dancing through the house.
Tag and Charlotte had brought over a twin bed from their place and put it in the guest room so that Dulcie and Delphine could stay together. West had offered her the other spare bedroom upstairs, but Dulcie just wanted her sister close, at least for the first few days while she got settled.
Having Delphine back was like a dream come true. They had spent the last few nights catching up, laughing and talking for hours about everything that had happened so far and all their plans.
And when Dulcie told her sister, heart in her mouth, that she and West were going to be seeing each other, Delphine had been so happy.
“He’s super cute for an old guy,” she said. “And he obviously loves you.”
“Obviously?” Dulcie asked .
“He fought for me to come here,” Delphine said. “Even though he knew it meant that he’d have to share you now.”
She never would have said it, but Dulcie had thought the same thing in the days after West’s declaration.
She also appreciated that he had brought her sister home to her before confessing his feelings.
It meant that there was no way for him to think that she was only returning his affections as a way to get her sister back.
“The more I get to know him, the more I realize how lucky I am,” Dulcie said happily. “But having you here is great for Elizabeth, too. She’s been having so much fun.”
It wasn’t an exaggeration. If Dulcie had brought the little girl out of her shell, Delphine was running with her into the ocean.
The two of them played around the farm all day, visited the library together when the family went to town, and spread board games across the dining room table in the evenings.
Delphine was even encouraging Elizabeth to play soccer with the other kids her age at the community recreation group in the springtime.
West kept telling Dulcie privately how impressed he was by Delphine’s patience with Elizabeth.
But Dulcie understood completely why Delphine loved taking Elizabeth under her wing and seeing the world through the younger girl’s eyes.
It was just how Dulcie had always felt about her little sister.
And it was nice to see her catching up on some of the childhood fun she’d missed.
Meanwhile, Dulcie and West tried to find a few quiet moments here and there to spend together. They had gone for a morning walk on the farm each day, and last night, they’d had a cup of tea together while the girls were playing a guessing game.
Dulcie found it both frustrating and a relief that they never had real privacy.
The kiss they shared the night West told her he loved her still made her heart pound whenever she thought of it.
But at the end of the day, she didn’t want to be tempted to do anything she wouldn’t be proud of.
After all, she was a role model for both Delphine and Elizabeth now.
But growing closer with West and seeing his handsome face, even in her dreams, was killing her.
On Christmas Eve morning, he suggested that they go on a real date. His mom would be coming over to make one last batch of Christmas cookies, so the girls would have supervision and plenty to do.
“But it’s Christmas Eve,” she reminded him. “Nothing will be open.”
“Something will be,” he’d said with a mysterious half-smile.
She had happily agreed, wondering what in the world he had up his sleeve, but trusting him to surprise her in a good way.
Now that the time had come, she felt excited and a little nervous.
“What about this ?” Elizabeth asked excitedly, tugging a fluffy Christmas sweater covered in little Santa Claus faces out of the closet Dulcie and Delphine shared. “I think it’s the nicest one you have.”
It was all Dulcie could do not to laugh—at the funny sweater, but also at the pure joy on Elizabeth’ s sweet face. She definitely felt good about her dad going on a date with Dulcie.
“That’s impressive,” Delphine said, winking at Dulcie. “But I might like this one even better.”
She held up a pale blue sweater, knit in the softest, prettiest material.
“Oh, Elizabeth picked that one out for me,” Dulcie said. “I love it. It’s perfect.”
She watched the little girl’s chest puff up with pride. Elizabeth had also picked out the funny Santa Claus sweater during their shopping trip to Second Hand Rose, but that probably went without saying.
With the help of her two favorite girls, Dulcie chose a nice skirt, and Delphine even lent her a pretty pair of drop earrings.
“You look beautiful,” Delphine decided when she was ready. “The blue brings out your eyes. What do you think, Lilibet?”
“Just like a princess,” Elizabeth said approvingly.
“I feel like a princess,” Dulcie said, laughing, but also sort of meaning it.
A few minutes later, the princess headed out to the living room with her two ladies-in-waiting trailing behind her.
Maggie sat on the sofa looking through her recipe book. She glanced up and smiled at Dulcie, nodding as if to say she looked very nice.
But Dulcie forgot all about herself when she caught sight of West.
He stood by the front door, wearing a white button down with a tie, his wide shoulders and handsome face making him look like a magazine model.
Dulcie swallowed hard.
“You look beautiful, Dulcinea,” West said immediately.
Dulcinea.
She felt herself blush instantly, all the way to her hairline.
“Whoa,” Delphine said. “Lookin’ sharp, Superman.”
That made Dulcie laugh and suddenly her feet were back on the ground again. He might be dressed up, but he was still just her sweet West, chuckling at her sister and sweeping Elizabeth up in a big hug.
“Be good for Grandma,” he told Elizabeth. “No monkey business.”
“No monkey business,” she agreed solemnly, while Maggie shook her head and chuckled.
“What about me?” Delphine asked. “Can I do monkey business? What about penguin business?”
She began tottering around the living room clucking in a truly terrible imitation of a penguin, and Elizabeth laughed so hard that she almost fell over.
“We’ll be fine,” Maggie said as they headed to the door. “Just go, and have lots of fun.”
The cold air outside felt good on Dulcie’s heated cheeks. West opened the door for her, and she hopped into the truck.
It was funny to be going somewhere just the two of them.
But the moment West got in, they immediately fell into conversation about the girls, his work, the stocking donation project, how Elizabeth’s usual babysitter Mrs. Webster and her daughter were doing just fine, how Mrs. Harris was taking her meds and enjoying her candy, and everything else that had been filling their days.
Before she knew it, West was pulling onto a bumpy little road that was hung with lanterns, and Dulcie realized they were in a part of Sugarville Grove she had never seen before.
Snow-covered pines lined the way, and she got the sense that she was entering a fairytale.
“Where are we?” she asked him.
“I’m told that this is the best restaurant in town,” West said. “It’s small, and very private.”
“You have connections, Dr. Lawrence,” she teased.
“Believe it or not, I do,” he told her. “But not from my practice. We’re here because of the farm.”
“Really?” she asked, as he parked the car.
“The owner buys all her fresh dairy supplies from Lawrence Farm,” he said. “My dad negotiated a special price for her when she opened up. He was tickled at the idea of fine dining in Sugarville Grove.”
“Fine dining?” Dulcie asked, impressed and maybe just a little intimidated.
“The owner is supposed to be a pretty serious chef. She came up here in a hurry a couple of years ago from New York,” West said.
“Tripp thinks it was because of some sort of scandal—though how he would know I have no idea. Anyway, when I reached out to her to see if there was any chance she could make me a reservation over the holidays, she insisted on opening the place up tonight just for the two of us.”
“Just for us?” Dulcie echoed .
“I hope you don’t mind,” West said. “I have to admit, I’m kind of looking forward to a night out without anyone trying to show me their rash or ask if they have a disease they read about online.”
Dulcie laughed.
“Honestly though,” he said, his voice deepening. “We haven’t had much time to just be us. That’s what I’m looking forward to the most.”
She smiled at that, and he hopped out of the truck and handed her down.
“Where is it?” she asked, looking around at the snowy trees that surrounded them.
“This place likes to set the mood before you even step inside,” West said.
The sound of bells approaching caught Dulcie’s attention. She looked up to see a beautiful sleigh, pulled by a pair of inky black horses headed their way.
“No way,” she breathed.
“Welcome,” a man called out from the sleigh as it pulled up in front of them.
The horses tossed their silky manes and pawed at the snow, their breath pluming in the cold night air.
West led her to the sleigh, and the man inside introduced himself as Samuel, then helped her in.
When West was seated beside her, Samuel laid warm blankets on their laps and made sure they were comfortable.
Once they were settled, Samuel clucked to the horses and the sleigh leapt forward.
“What do you think?” West asked her.
“This is incredible,” she told him. “I’m glad we’re on a date, but I feel a little bad that Elizabeth and Delphine aren’t here. They would have loved this.”
“I was thinking the same thing,” he admitted, shaking his head. “But we’ve got horses on the farm. We’ll take them out soon.”
She smiled at the thought.
His hand found hers under the blanket and they relaxed into each other, watching the beautiful scenery, hand-in-hand, as the horses carried them deeper into the woods.