Della: Bride of Texas (American Mail-Order Bride 28) (8 page)

Chapter 9

Mornings at the General Store were always Della’s favorite time of the day. The air wasn’t too hot or humid and the streets were bustling with activity, which meant plenty of people stopping by for supplies. Every time she made a new acquaintance, Della felt more rooted in the community—something she’d always dreamed of experiencing. Even her home in Florida hadn’t been as welcoming and friendly as Fort Worth. It was if everyone was one big family—and even if you
did
have a few members of society you weren’t too fond of, it was no different from a real family where you had a sibling or uncle you wanted to distance yourself from.

Della had started making some very deep ties to several people. Roy and Mary had, of course, become like family to her. Millie and Annabelle were fast becoming two of Della’s closest friends. Even Mabel and Pastor Littlejohn acted like grandparents of the entire congregation.

But still, the one thing Della would have to have before this journey seemed complete was a husband who felt the same deep desire for a strong bond as she did. She wasn’t sure Milton wanted—or was even capable of understanding—something that precious.

Just as Della readied herself for the rush of customers coming from the depot soon, the door opened—a flood of light reminded her that she needed to sweep the floor. “Hello,” said the woman walking in. “Are you Della?”

“Yes, I’m Della,” she said. “And you are?”

“Hannah Radcliff,” she said. “I’m sorry I haven’t been around to introduce myself yet.”  Della had seen Hannah at church before but she was always busy tending to her little ones.

“Well, it’s nice to finally meet you,” Della said. “What can I get you today?”

“Oh, nothing,” Hannah said. “I’m not here to shop. I came to deliver an invitation to the Picnic for Pairs event being held at the new Trinity River Park. Annabelle mentioned you might be inclined to participate.”

“What is Picnic for Pairs?” Della asked.

“Surely you’ve noticed these wretched, uneven wooden sidewalks we ladies constantly trip over when we walk into any of the stores here on Main Street,” Hannah said, motioning toward the door. “And the way these streets are almost unbearable to be on after a heavy rain—ruts so deep it’ll break a wagon wheel plum in two and I won’t even mention dodging the Longhorn and horse droppings.”

Della nodded in agreement. She hated the drive to and from the store with Roy days after a rain had occurred and the mud dried in deep grooves that made it almost impassable. It was worse on Main Street, because there were so many wagons, and when one broke down, it caused quite a backup. The sidewalks were overdue for a replacement. She’d already fallen once, and every time she stepped up, she had to be extra careful not to let the bottom of her dress snag on the wood and rip it at the seams.

“Some of us ladies got together and thought we would raise money for these much-needed repairs,” Hannah continued. “Anyone and everyone can come and bring their own picnics, but the single women of the community will each create a picnic basket full of goodies in individual hampers that the single men, or the beaus, bid on. Whoever wins her basket gets to take her on a picnic right then!”

“That sounds delightful,” Della said. “Count me in! I’m certain Milton will contribute handsomely to this cause.”

“Perfect,” Hannah said, handing Della a paper. “Here are the details for the event. We thought it might be fun to have the ladies wear beautiful dresses instead of simple picnic attire. Not formal, but a step above what we wear on a day-to-day basis.”

Della noticed that Hannah was dressed in a plain manner like her. Since Beatrice hadn’t yet finished the dresses Hank had ordered for her, she was stuck with the work dresses she had brought with her. She did have the chartreuse dress Milton had bought and the lovely blue dress that Hank had bought her off the rack at Beatrice’s. She’d definitely wear the chartreuse dress to please Milton, but she loved the blue dress and when she brought it home she’d held it up to her and twirled in the mirror, much to the delight of Mary, who could barely drag herself away from the feel of the soft cotton and lace that adorned the dress.

“Thank you for thinking of me,” Della said.

“See you then!” Hannah waved cheerfully as she exited the store.

Della had gotten to spend precious little time with Milton since she arrived, and he didn’t seem intent to arrange it. The Picnic for Pairs event would be a time that they could be alone and she could impress him with her cooking and get to know the real Milton Tidwell. There had to be more to him than she’d seen so far.

Milton would have a chance to show his charitable side to the townspeople, too—by bidding a good sum for his fiancé’s picnic hamper. Della sometimes thought that Milton might be perceived by some of the townspeople as a cheapskate and a bore. Maybe this event would put him more in their—and her—good graces.

…

A little over a week later, it was time for the event. When Della had mentioned it to Milton the day Hannah stopped by, he hadn’t reacted at all like she’d hoped. “Why should I have to pay for the repairs?” Milton complained. “And certainly you should have known better than to commit to something like this and pledge my money before speaking to me about it.”

Della’s cheeks burned with embarrassment. Not only was she humiliated and angry at the fact that he saw it as an imposition, but he was speaking loudly in the parlor where Roy, Mary and Helen could hear in the kitchen of the home. “I haven’t pledged your money,” Della argued in a whisper. “I just thought…”

“You just
thought
,” Milton mocked. “I’ll attend the event, since you’ve put me on the spot, but in the future, please obey my wishes and decline any invitations that I haven’t yet approved on our behalf.”

Della had avoided Milton all week. She needed time to cool off—to figure out how she was going to keep her commitment to the plan she’d made to marry Milton, and somehow live with the fact that her marriage would never have the strong bond she’d always desired. After a lot of thought and plenty of prayer, Della talked herself into trying even harder. She wasn’t a quitter, and she was sure that after they were married, she and Milton would be closer than they were now—especially if they raised children together. He just wasn’t used to being in a relationship, and it sounded as if he was never in a close knit family as a child. He just needed a little prodding and lots of patience.

Milton was arriving shortly to escort her to the Picnic for Pairs event. Della stood in front of the mirror looking at the dress she wore—the one Milton had purchased for her that she’d worn to the Stockyards. Although it was made from cheap fabric that scratched Della’s skin, it was still a better design than the plain dresses she’d brought to town. It felt odd, though—out of place—kind of like Milton himself, whenever Della had seen him trying to talk to people in town. It certainly wasn’t the right kind of dress fit for a daytime picnic. The days were getting warm and she knew she’d be miserable in this material.

Della heard a knock at the door.
He’s here
, she thought, a bit panicked at the thought of not being ready in time for him. She knew he would complain about her tardiness.

“Della?” Roy hollered as he knocked gently on the door. “You have company.”

“I’ll be right out,” Della said. She quickly peeled off the chartreuse dress and threw it on the chair sitting in the corner. “What am I going to wear?” she said, talking to herself. Della flipped through her selection of simple dresses, scolding herself now for being so rigid with her insistence on dressing down. “Ugly! All of it!” she griped. As the last dress came into view on the long peg fastened to the wall for holding clothes, Della spotted one that made her gasp in relief. But, did she dare?

It was the dress Hank Hensley had held up to her that day in Beatrice Reynolds’ store. She touched the velvety soft material and immediately began to struggle with her thoughts of
should she or shouldn’t she.
On one hand, she didn’t want to give Hank the satisfaction of seeing her in the dress he chose—but she did enjoy the thought of perhaps making Milton jealous and letting him see what a bit more money and much better taste in fashion could buy.

She slid the delicate frock over her corset and called Mary in to fasten the tiny pewter buttons in back. “Oh, Della,” Mary said admiringly, “I can almost imagine how beautiful you look in this dress. Milton isn’t going to be able to take his eyes off you.”

“That’s what I’m betting on,” Della replied. She took one last look in the mirror, grabbed her reticule and headed to the kitchen to grab the picnic hamper she’d so carefully planned and painstakingly prepared.

There was no comment from Milton Tidwell about how beautiful Della looked when she emerged from her room. He didn’t smile or compliment her in any way. He simply took out his pocket watch and glanced at it, raising his eyebrow to silently inform her that she had broken one of his many demands—to always be on time. Della refused to address his boorish behavior and marched straight out the door without attempting to explain herself.

…

The Trinity River Park was beautiful this time of year. Bluebonnets mixed with the emerald green hillside, and red, yellow and pink flowers dotted the spaces in between. It was a beautiful day and a welcome break from the rain they’d had just the week before. Milton and Della approached the event together, but he always managed to walk just a step or two ahead of her.

A table had been set up for the picnic hampers and Della gently placed hers alongside the others. When she turned around, Milton had walked off—joining a group of men standing near the bank of the river, talking.  Della was scanning the crowd looking for Millie or Annabelle when Hannah approached. “Della, you look stunning!” she gushed.

Della bowed her head shyly. “Thank you,” she said. She’d never liked drawing attention to herself with things like clothing and make-up, although she did wear a light amount here and there.

“The ladies are all over here,” Hannah said. “We’re going to start the event now—good luck with your bid!”

Della stood with the other single women off to the side of the table. Each hamper would be auctioned off one at a time, with bids being called out from the audience. Della’s heart was racing. She worried that Milton would try to bid too much just to make a showing in the community. She didn’t want to have all that attention on her.
Or what if no one bids on my picnic at all?
She thought. She really wouldn’t put it past Milton to do just that, being the cheapskate that he was.

“Ladies and gentlemen,” the announcer called. “We’re going to start the bidding at $5 for Miss Jean Davey’s picnic. Who will bid $5 for this lovely picnic, which includes biscuits and ham and some of her own peach preserves?” Della watched as Jean’s hamper received bids from three different gentlemen, settling in at $8. There were cheers and clapping all around.

The announcer went through several other bids before Della’s hamper came up. Ruth’s sold for $10, Ethel’s only got the beginning bid of $5, and Edna’s brought in the most so far at $12. Della’s hands trembled as she took her picnic hamper from the announcer and stood beside him for the auction.

“Tell us about the picnic you have planned, Della,” he said.

“Well, I’ve prepared fried chicken, biscuits, deviled eggs and peach cobbler,” she said. A round of applause went up as Della blushed. A few hollers were heard from the crowd, voicing their approval of the delicious and substantial feast she had prepared. She noticed a couple of men standing beside Milton patting him on the back.

“Let’s start this picnic off at $5, but you all know it’s worth a lot more than that,” the announcer said. “Who will bid $5 for Miss Della’s picnic and the chance to spend the afternoon with a lovely young lady?”

“Five dollars!” Milton voiced from the crowd. Della smiled, relieved that a bid had been placed at all—even thought it was a cheap bid from her fiancé. She immediately assumed that her picnic would go for that low price, since Milton would be the only one bidding.

“Very nice,” the announcer said. “Now surely, someone will bid more for this incredible picnic lunch. Remember, this is a fundraiser for the betterment of the town! Can we have a bid for $6?”

“Ten dollars!” roared a voice from the back. Everyone turned their heads and gasped as they watched Hank Hensley walk through the crowd and stand beside Milton Tidwell. Della held her breath in shock. Everyone knew she was betrothed to Milton. Hank was making a mockery of their relationship. She forced a smile on her face, but felt the heat rising up to her cheeks.

After hesitating a moment that was too long for Della, Milton nervously squeaked out, “$10.50.” Milton was smiling a bit too widely—a smile that didn’t quite reach his eyes—and beads of sweat were prominently popping out on his forehead.

Hank didn’t hesitate at all after Milton’s bid. “Fifty dollars for Miss Owens’ picnic!” he yelled. Turning to Milton, Hank slapped him on the back. “For the good of the town, of course,” Hank said to him.

Milton shrugged and conceded defeat as Della stood by the jubilant auctioneer. “Sold to Mr. Hank Hensley for $50! Hank, come on up and fetch your prize,” the man said.

Comments were flying within the audience as Hank approached the auctioneer and Della. Some were shocked at Hank’s audacity at outbidding the fiancé and others were laughing and congratulating Hank on getting one up on Milton Tidwell.