Melinda and the Wild West (19 page)

“Melinda, it’s beyond me what children have in
their minds when they bring such things to school. Why don’t their
parents know what they’re doing, anyway?”

“Henry, when you think about it, it’s really
quite funny. We ran outside faster than a dog chasing a cat.” She
giggled at the memory of everyone holding their noses and escaping
outside, almost stumbling over one another.

“Remember, Melinda, I’ll be picking you up
at 6:45 tonight. The dance starts at 7:00. Don’t be late, all
right?”

She smiled. “I’ll be ready.”

Melinda decided that having a day off was
not so bad after all. She needed it desperately. Climbing into the
carriage, she took off down the road to the Paris Tabernacle. She
had been planning to give a spring recital in April and the
Tabernacle had the best acoustics.

Melinda climbed from her carriage and began
walking around the outside of this magnificent edifice and stood in
awe of the hard work it had taken for the pioneers to build it.

“Beautiful, isn’t it, Melinda?”

Melinda recognized that warm deep voice and
her spirits soared. She whipped around quickly with a broad
smile.

“Gilbert.”

Seeing her beautiful smile accelerated
Gilbert’s heartbeat. He had thought about the things Melinda had
told him and he realized she was right. He also realized that he
must go on with life. He could not remain in the past. He knew that
their differences could complement their relationship. Her
determined attitude helped him to realize that a person should not
give up his dreams. Dreams were important in life, and she was his
dream. He knew he was in love with Melinda and he realized that he
might lose her to Henry if he did not act quickly. He needed to
start courting her right away.

“Melinda, I thought you were at school.”

“I was until an accident permeated the room.
A young boy brought skunk oil to class and you can guess the
rest.”

“Oh, no.” Gilbert cringed. “So you have now
been exposed to that despicable odor.” He chuckled. It was a low,
pleasant sounding chuckle, the kind that would warm a person’s
soul. “I can’t believe it. I’m so sorry for you. How did you
fare?”

Melinda noticed how amused he was at her
predicament and that made her smile. “My stomach turned over a few
times before I realized what was happening.”

Gilbert chuckled again. “So, what punishment
do you have planned for the little culprit?”

“It was an accident. He didn’t have it planned
to sabotage the school. I could see in his eyes that he felt bad.
So, I just dismissed school for the day until Henry could clean up
the mess.”

“You’re such an understanding teacher,
Melinda,” he said, and then grinned devilishly. “And that’s a good
job for Henry to do, too. It fits him perfectly.”

Melinda looked at Gilbert questioningly as
he grinned.

“I heard that you’re giving a recital here
next month.”

Melinda nodded.

“I’ll be there for sure.” He paused. “I
thought I would come by to visit you tonight. Is that all
right?”

“Henry’s taking me to the dance tonight,
Gilbert.”

“Oh.” A twinge of jealousy shot through him
and he tried to ignore it. “How about tomorrow night?”

“I’ve got a pile of tests that need to be
corrected. I planned on correcting them tomorrow night because I
had other plans tonight. I’m swamped right now. I’m really sorry,
Gilbert.”

“How about Saturday, then?”

“Henry is taking me to dinner in
Montpelier.”

Gilbert through up his hands in frustration.
“Melinda, how far in advance do I need to ask to see you?”

Melinda laughed. “Well, next week I’m
practicing with my pianist every night so we can perfect the songs.
But you’re invited over for Sunday dinner, I’m sure of it. Aunt
Martha loves having you over.”

“Okay, I’ll plan on it,” he said with
disappointment.

Gilbert felt frustrated. He had been so worried
about their differences that he had ignored the fact that Melinda
was desirable to men other than himself. He had been doing a lot of
thinking about her and now he was done thinking. Now it was time
for action.

Sunday afternoon came around and Melinda was
elated. She reflected upon a visit from Mark’s mother earlier that
week. Melinda had been surprised to see her when she showed up at
the school.

“Miss Gamble, I want to thank you for not
punishing my son for the skunk oil incident. He had gotten into
trouble many times with his former teacher just because he doesn’t
think first. He doesn’t mean any harm to others. You’re the first
teacher who seems to understand him. Thank you. This means a lot to
me.”

Melinda needed that little boost. She had been
wondering if she had made a difference in anyone’s life yet. But as
she thought about it, she finally realized that it was the people
here who had made a difference in
her
life. The Wild West
and its inhabitants had changed her and she was a much stronger
person than she had been since the first day she arrived. She felt
more alive. The people were genuine and accepted her without
question. Melinda knew she was a part of this beautiful country now
and she could never leave.

As she contemplated the past week, she
decided it had been a rewarding week after all. The songs for the
recital were coming along quite well and she was feeling satisfied
with her accomplishments.

When Melinda heard Aunt Martha call her down
for Sunday dinner, she quickly descended the stairs, knowing that
Gilbert was going to be their guest.

Everyone was seated at the table when Aunt
Martha said, “Our guests have arrived, Melinda. It seems that
Sunday is the only time we get to spend time with you nowadays.
Between teaching school and practicing in the evenings, you’ve been
like a stranger here.”

“I’m sorry, Aunt Martha, but it comes to an
end this week. Thank goodness.”

Melinda cordially greeted Gilbert and Jenny and sat
down across from him. Both Gilbert and Melinda knew that even
though this was Gilbert’s third week in a row at Sunday dinner,
they hadn’t spent a moment of private time together. Everyone would
sit in the living room and talk together and if Gilbert took
Melinda for a walk, then Jenny was always tagging along.

Gilbert was the first to speak after the
prayer was said and everyone settled down. “Melinda, I saw you a
couple times in town during the past week, but you were so busy and
intent upon what you were doing that you didn’t even notice me.
Usually you were headed out of town.”

“I’m sorry, Gilbert. My mind seems to be
elsewhere nowadays with this recital and all.”

Gilbert smiled. “Your recital is coming up
this weekend. What songs are you singing?”

Melinda passed him the potatoes as she
answered, “I’m doing a variety of songs. Some Italian, Spanish, and
Irish. I can’t leave out my heritage, you know.”

Gilbert grinned and said teasingly, “That’s
right. How could I ever forget you’re Irish?” Then he chuckled
warmly.

Everyone looked at Gilbert and then turned
to Melinda. When she noticed everyone was staring at her, she felt
warmth creep into her cheeks. Aunt Martha had been teasing her
lately about Gilbert and that comment brought about more
curiosity.

Gilbert noticed her rosy glow and said, “It’s
sort of a private joke.” Then he quickly changed the subject.
“Melinda, want to go for a walk after dinner? It’s such a beautiful
day.”

Jenny spoke up excitedly, “Yeah. Let’s
go.”

“That sounds wonderful,” said Martha. “You
two go along and we’ll do the dishes later.”

Melinda gave him a grateful smile for
changing the subject.

As the three of them strolled in the meadow,
Gilbert walked next to Melinda and slipped his hand in hers. She
did not seem to mind one bit, and her hand was so warm and soft to
the touch.

He stopped, bent down and picked a wild
flower, then turned to Melinda and tucked it behind her ear. She
laughed and he thought she looked so lovely in her lavender dress.
It fit snug to the bodice and hung gracefully about her figure. She
had the most delightful laugh and she intrigued him to no end. He
noticed how comfortable he felt around her and he just wanted to
take her in his arms and hold her, but Jenny was trailing after
them and they had no privacy whatsoever. So, he just took her hand
in his once again and led her to a stream of water.

Gilbert chuckled and teased her by inviting
her to take off her shoes and go wading as she had the first time
he met her.

“What did you say, Gilbert?” she asked.

“Do you want to go wading?” He chuckled
merrily.

Melinda narrowed her eyes at him. She knew
he was daring her in a teasing manner and she was not sure how to
respond. When she saw Jenny sitting at the bank and pulling her
shoes and socks off, she thought a while and then decided to take
the dare after all.

Melinda pulled her hand away from his grasp,
headed for the stream, and sat down on the bank, slipping off her
shoes.

When Gilbert saw what she was doing, he
asked, “Are you really going to do it?”

“What do you think, Gilbert?”

“Yeah, Pa,” Jenny chimed in with her two
cents worth.

When Melinda pulled her stocking off her
leg, Gilbert quickly turned around to give her some privacy. He was
surprised that she had taken his dare and he burst into laughter.
He was learning more and more about this woman and decided that
each thing he learned was absolutely charming.

When she noticed his jovial attitude, she
asked, “What are you laughing at?”

Gilbert’s back was to her as he answered,
“You took my dare.”

After a few seconds, Melinda called out to
him, “Ready.”

He turned around and she was already
stepping into the water alongside Jenny.

“Come in the water, Gilbert. It feels
refreshing.”

“Yeah, Pa. Come in.”

Gilbert shook his head vigorously as he sat
down on the bank to relax and watched her intently. He picked a few
blades of grass and twirled them between his fingers and stuck
another one between his lips. As he watched the two of them walking
and talking side by side in the bubbling stream, it brought a smile
to Gilbert’s lips. Melinda was a child at heart, free and
unfettered from the world. He had never met anyone quite like
her.

“Hey, Melinda! Do you have plans this week?
Can I drop by to see you?”

She turned around and looked at Gilbert sitting
peacefully on the bank. He had pulled his knees up and was resting
his arms against them, watching her with great interest.

She smiled and said, “Every evening this week is
taken. I’ll be checking homework or practicing but after the
recital I’ll be free, no more commitments.”

Gilbert nodded, but inside himself he
groaned. He had finally made up his mind to court Melinda and now
she was constantly busy. Had she cooled off towards him? Was she
making up excuses? Had Henry finally won her heart after all before
Gilbert had a chance to win it? Had he dragged his feet too long,
simply because of his concerns?

For the past week, Gilbert had heard gossip
in town about Henry and Melinda from Henry’s friends and family.
Henry’s brother said, “Henry told me that he’s going to ask Melinda
to marry him right after her recital, that very night. They’ve been
dating for four months now. He’s ready to settle down.”

Gilbert remembered how his face had reddened
with a mixture of jealousy and disgust that stirred within him.
Without saying a word, he had walked out of the barbershop and
headed for home. He was beside himself with worry. Why had he
waited so long to realize that he wanted to have Melinda in his
life? Was it too late? Would she accept Henry’s proposal on
Saturday?

Gilbert had not taken the time to court her and he
did not count Sunday dinners and walks—with Jenny tagging along—as
a courtship. To him, when a man went courting, he would take her to
someplace special and then end the evening with a romantic kiss.
The only time he had kissed Melinda was at the terminal and that
did not constitute a legal goodnight kiss, even though it was one
of the most romantic kisses he had ever felt in his life. That kiss
had stirred feelings within him that he thought were dormant and it
made him begin to think about his future.

After Jenny and Melinda hopped out of the
stream, they sat down on the bank. Melinda dried their feet with
her petticoats before slipping on their stockings and shoes. Then
Jenny hopped up and ran toward the house to tell Aunt Martha about
the fun they had had. As Gilbert watched her run off, he breathed a
sigh of relief. Maybe he could now have a little private time with
Melinda after all. He stood and held his hand out to Melinda and
helped her to her feet.

Holding her hand in his and caressing it
lovingly, he asked, “Why did you take my dare?”

Melinda smiled. “I don’t know.”

Gilbert grinned at her. “Come on. Why did
you?”

“Well, I love wading, as you well know.”

“No, why did you take my dare? I saw you
hesitating when I asked if you wanted to go wading. And you knew I
was teasing you.”

She looked down at the ground. “As I think
about it, I believe it was because of Jenny. When I saw her taking
off her shoes, I guess I wanted to be close to her. I guess that I
wanted to do something fun with her.” She looked up into his eyes.
“You know, I’d like a relationship beyond the classroom, where I
didn’t represent her teacher. I don’t know if I make any sense or
not.”

Gilbert nodded. “Why was that important to
you?”

Melinda looked surprised. As she looked into
his piercing dark eyes, she smiled. “Because I love her.”

This answer warmed his soul. No other teacher
had ever shown this kind of love for Jenny before. He brought her
hand to his lips and gave it a tender, but lingering kiss. Then he
asked, “Why do you love her, Melinda?”