A Bride for Tom (5 page)

Instinctively, he did as she requested. “You
have a nice voice. Do you sing?”

“Mostly to myself.”

“Let me hear you sing.”

She smiled but didn’t look at him. “I
can’t.”

“Why not?”

“I don’t know.”

Because she was too shy about it. That was
something he understood all too well, but he wanted to hear her so
he nudged the small of her back and grinned. “Come on. Just a
line.”

She looked like she was considering it.

“I’ll tell you what. I’ll sing first.” Now
when it came to singing, he didn’t have to pretend to be bad. It
came naturally to him. When he hit a high note, his voice cracked
and she momentarily winced. He stopped singing. “Sorry.”

He paused and listened for anyone laughing
but no one was. Peter and Margaret were pretty good at hiding
themselves. If he didn’t know better, he’d really believe that it
was just him and Jessica in the vicinity.

Jessica took a deep breath and then quietly
sang a tune, taking his mind off the window and wondering if Peter
and Margaret were listening from outside the house. He stared at
her in awe. She could do more than hold a tune. She made shivers
run up and down his spine. When she glanced up at him, she stopped,
seeming self-conscious.

“You have a beautiful voice,” he whispered,
not intending for anyone but her to hear that.

“Thank you.”

It suddenly occurred to him that had this
been a sincere offer from her to teach him how to dance, it might
be the right moment to tell her how pretty she was. But this was
all a ruse, and because of that, he couldn’t adequately enjoy the
moment. He didn’t have the heart to physically toss her around to
show her just how badly he could dance. Not after the nice moment
they’d just shared...or rather the nice moment he’d shared with
her.

He released her and finally said, “I know
what’s going on. I’m not stupid.”

She furrowed her eyebrows. “What are you
talking about?”

Just how long was she going to let this game
continue? “You know, I may have my bad moments but at least I don’t
make fun of other people.”

“I don’t understand.”

She was a good actress, but he wasn’t falling
for it. He stomped over to the window, moved back the curtains and
leaned out. Hmm... No one was hiding in the bushes.

“What are you doing?” she asked, sounding
bewildered.

He turned to the room and peered behind a
chair that was in the corner. Nope. Not there either.

“Tom, are you feeling alright?”

He ignored her and went to the hallway and
yanked the closet door open. No one was in there. It was just a
bunch of coats and shoes. Where else could Peter and Margaret
be?

Jessica ran over to him. “What are you
looking for?”

“Where are they?” he demanded, no longer
amused.

“Who?”

“You know who.”

“If I knew, I wouldn’t ask.”

Fine. So she was going to see how far he’d
take this. Well, he’d do something that was guaranteed to get Peter
running out of his hiding place. Tom pulled Jessica into his arms
and kissed her. It was a bold move, one he’d never take under any
other circumstance, but drastic times called for drastic measures.
He expected her to fight against him or slap him or...something to
protest. But she didn’t. Instead, she melted in his arms and kissed
him back. Her lips were soft and warm, and he was way too excited
about it.

But he couldn’t thoroughly enjoy it. Not when
he kept expecting Peter or Margaret to stop him. Why were they
letting him kiss Jessica like this?

He ended the kiss...something that
intrinsically pained him to do...and yelled out, “Come out, come
out wherever you are!”

Jessica shook her head, as if breaking out
from a trance and asked, “Who are you talking to?”

“Did someone call for me?” her mother called
out from up the stairs.

He turned his head in the direction of the
woman who peered around the banister at the top of the
staircase.

“No, Ma. At least, I don’t think so.” Jessica
looked at him. “Did you mean her?”

“You mean to tell me that Peter James and
Margaret Williams aren’t here?” he called out to her mother.

“Peter is out shopping with his mother for
the tablecloths for the reception,” her mother said. “Margaret
isn’t due by until this evening for supper.”

“What reception?” he tested.

“The wedding reception of course. What other
reception would a fiancé be planning for?”

He glanced around the house. It did seem
awfully quiet, and he didn’t think the mother would lie about
something like this. He gave Jessica a wary look. “You’re
engaged?”

Her eyes grew wide. “Didn’t you know
that?”

He didn’t like the sudden turn of events. It
didn’t go exactly the way he planned. He had no idea how to get out
of this except to play along...and then get the heck out of there
as soon as possible to avoid any further embarrassment! He threw
back his head and laughed. “Of course, I did. I mean, who doesn’t?
It’s all over town.”

“That’s what I thought,” she said, seeming
uncertain.

“Well, my little brother didn’t know, but he
doesn’t pay attention to what goes on.” He glanced at his watch.
“Wow. Is it that late already? I forgot that I have to be back at
the farm in an hour. I better get home before I...” Okay. There was
no way he was going to say ‘get in trouble’ because that would
imply he was a kid. He cleared his throat. “I need to repair a
fence. I can’t have the cattle running all over the place, you
know.”

“But what about learning to dance? And
lunch?” Jessica pressed as he ran to grab his hat.

He plopped it on his head. “You taught me to
dance.”

“Well...” She glanced at the parlor. “Not
really.”

“Sure you did. You did great. Really.” He
clapped his hands together. “Good luck on the wedding. I’m sure
it’ll be a great time.”

She grabbed his arm before he could leave the
house. “Tom, won’t you at least get a quick bite to eat before you
leave? You can’t repair a fence on an empty stomach.”

He had to get out of there. He didn’t know if
she was going to catch on to what he’d been doing, but he didn’t
want to find out. “I can’t. Really, I got to go.” He turned to
leave.

“But—”

“Thank you for everything, Jessica. And thank
you, Mrs. Reynolds.”

He tipped his hat and hurried out of there.
It wasn’t until he made it to his horse that he allowed himself to
take a deep breath and exhale. If there was anything more
humiliating that he could do, he didn’t know what it could be. He
quickly hopped on the steed and rode out of town.

Chapter Seven

Jessica sat across from Peter the next
evening at supper. His mother had invited her over to discuss the
wedding, but Jessica had a hard time concentrating on anything that
Connie James was saying. All she could think about was Tom’s kiss.
Her cheeks still warmed at the memory. It all seemed like a dream,
and yet, she could still feel his lips against hers.

“I think an assortment of white and pink
napkins will do well, too,” Peter agreed with his mother.

Jessica blinked and forced her attention to
the two people chatting in the dining room. “Pink and white?”

Peter smiled and nodded. “Mother decided that
those colors would suit for the wedding.”

“They are so pretty when they’re together,”
Connie added.

“But I thought we agreed on red and pink,”
Jessica told Peter.

Peter shrugged. “We’ll still have pink. What
does it matter what the other color is?”

“You’re having a winter wedding,” Connie
inserted as she lifted a glass of wine to her lips. “White goes
much better with the season. And if it snows, it’ll be especially
appropriate.”

Jessica glanced at Peter who bit into his
steak as if nothing was wrong. She then turned back to his mother
who sipped the wine. “I already told Margaret and Wendy to weave
red roses into their pink dresses.”

She set the glass down and patted her hand.
“That’s not a problem, dear. I explained the change, and they took
the red roses out. They’ll be putting in white roses instead. So
you see, everything is in order.”

“I like red.” She looked at Peter who didn’t
even seem to notice the conversation going on in front of him. She
nudged him under the table with her foot.

He jerked his head in her direction.

“Peter, don’t you agree with me about the red
color?” Jessica sweetly asked.

He sighed. “It’s just one color.”

“Yes, and it’s my wedding.”

Connie cleared her throat. “But your mother
can’t afford to pay for it. Remember, I’m the one with the bill.
Since that is the case, I believe I’m owed a few allowances.”

“You wouldn’t have to pay for anything if
you’d let me have a simple ceremony,” Jessica argued.

“Please, let’s not fight,” Peter interjected.
“It’s unbecoming. The point is that we’re going to be a family, and
since that is the case, we need to get along.”

Jessica resisted the urge to kick him in the
shin...but just barely. She’d already consented to the elaborate
wedding and reception because his mother knew a lot of “important”
people who were particular about formal ceremonies and how things
should or should not be done. Jessica had met a few of those people
and realized that life would go much easier for Connie if she was
able to present an elaborate wedding. But there was a time when
enough was enough. Or at least, there should be.

“I’m sure we can reach a compromise,” Peter
said, wiping his mouth with a napkin before he set it back on his
lap.

Jessica wasn’t sure where he was going with
this, so she twirled the fork in her hand and waited for him to
continue.

“Mother, Jessica has conceded to your desire
for a nice wedding. Jessica, my mother has agreed to pay for such a
wedding. So this is what I propose. One of you will decide the
colors for the ceremony and the other will decide the colors for
the reception. That way, you both get what you want.”

His mother sighed and gave a slight nod.
“That sounds fair. Jessica?”

Jessica still didn’t like it, but what could
she say? The wedding wasn’t really even hers at this point. Sure,
she was the one getting married, but this was apparently about
Connie James impressing her friends—and that made it Connie’s
special day. Besides, it was just colors. What did it matter if
something was red or white? “Alright,” she finally relented.

Connie beamed at her and squeezed her arm.
“My son is lucky to have you.”

Jessica returned her smile but didn’t feel
the enthusiasm behind it. Is this what life was going to be like
with Peter? She looked at her plate of half-eaten steak and
potatoes and beans. Connie wasn’t mean to her, but there was
something confining about being in the woman’s presence. It wasn’t
something she noticed right away. But the more time she spent with
them, the clearer it was becoming that something seemed off.

Could it be Tom’s kiss? She quickly looked up
at Peter who was laughing at one of his mother’s jokes. Peter had
never kissed her like that. Her face flushed and her heart beat
faster as she recalled the warmth of Tom’s lips on hers. He was
strong, too. She felt safe and protected in his embrace.

Maybe marrying Peter was a mistake. She
looked at Peter and his mother. He pulled out Connie’s chair before
he walked over to her and pulled out her chair. Why hadn’t she
noticed that before? Did he always do things for his mother
first?

Jessica managed through helping Connie with
the dishes, acting as pleasant as she could despite the growing
sense of doom that hovered in the air around her. Then she sat with
Peter and his mother for a mind-numbing hour, not even sure what
they were talking about. She wanted to see Tom again. But would
that be a good idea? She wasn’t even sure what yesterday had been
about. He seemed upset with her for something. He thought she’d
brought Peter and Margaret over and hid them in her house. That
much was obvious. But why would he think that?

She had no idea what Tom had been thinking,
or why he made up all that talk about his parents feeding him or
him having a condition called the shakes. At first, she actually
believed him. But after his inquiry into Peter and Margaret, it
dawned on her that he’d made up those lies. But why? And how was
she going to find out? She would have to talk to him. That was the
only way she was going to get an answer to her questions.

When it came time for Peter to walk Jessica
home, she breathed a sigh of relief and let Peter help her put her
shawl around her shoulders.

“I’ll see you next week, my dear,” Connie
told her and hugged her. “We’ll take a look at what decorations
we’ll have for the tables at the reception.”

Jessica forced another smile. “Sounds
fun.”

After Connie gave Peter a hug, Peter took
Jessica by the arm and led her down the porch steps. “This is a
lovely night, is it not?”

They reached the sidewalk, and she noticed
that Connie was inside the house. “Kiss me.”

He chuckled. “What?”

“I want you to kiss me, and not one of those
polite kisses either. Show me how you feel about me in the
kiss.”

“But we’re out...in public.”

“It’s dark and no one is outside.”

“It doesn’t seem appropriate.”

“So?”

“Aren’t you concerned about your reputation?”
he asked.

“What is one kiss?”

Was it really because he was concerned about
someone seeing them kiss or was it because he didn’t wish to kiss
her? What was wrong with him? Shouldn’t he be eager to kiss her?
Tom hadn’t held back from it...even if his motives might not have
been because he actually wanted to kiss her. What were his motives
anyway? She sighed. There was no doubt about it. She’d have to see
Tom tomorrow.