Summer of Joy (17 page)
Later Jocie finished writing in her notebook.
I’m glad some things change. I’m glad we have more people around our Christmas tree. I’m glad Dad and Leigh look so happy. I’m glad Wes is still telling me Jupiter stories. I’m glad Tabitha and Stephen Lee are here. I’m glad Aunt Love’s smiling more. I’m glad Zeb curls up on my feet to keep me warm when I sleep out on the back porch.
But I’m glad some things don’t change. Like the Lord. Like people loving other people a little extra at Christmastime. Like Dad and Wes loving me a little extra all the time. Like the Lord blessing people even when they don’t know what blessings they need.
Happy birthday, Jesus!
L
eigh couldn’t remember ever being so happy. It could be she had never been this happy. Even coughing her head off until she had to sit up to try to sleep, she was happy. Nothing could make her unhappy tonight. Barring tragedy, and she certainly wasn’t going to think about tragedy tonight.
She was going to lie or rather sit there propped up in her bed on four pillows and let the good things that had happened in the last two days play over and over in her head. Maybe this was why she’d never gotten those wished-for gifts from Santa Claus when she was a little girl, so that she could save all her wishes come true for this one wonderful Christmas.
She was floating on a cloud of happiness. She’d stayed at David’s house all day. Had helped Aunt Love and Tabitha and Jocie put their midafternoon dinner on the table. Really had mostly just watched, since it seemed wise to stay away from everybody’s forks and spoons the way she had to be leaking cold germs. But it had been good to be in the kitchen with them. To see how Tabitha and even Jocie protected Aunt Love from her fading memory. To see the peace among them.
She’d sat at the table and peeked around at them while David was saying grace. Such an odd assortment. Every one of them so different and yet they all belonged. Even Wes. They were family. And now she was part of that family. She belonged with them. Nothing could spoil that. Nothing.
Not even her mother telling her she was an ungrateful child that morning when Leigh had called to tell her she was too sick to come go to Aunt Wilma’s house for Christmas dinner. She’d tried to sound as sick and pitiful as she could, but her mother hadn’t bought it.
“I’ll bet you’re not too sick to go to that preacher’s house.”
“Really I shouldn’t,” Leigh had said and coughed to prove it. She hadn’t said she wasn’t going. Just that she shouldn’t. She hadn’t told her mother about the ring either. She’d sworn Zella to secrecy for a day at least and hoped Zella was keeping her promise because if Mrs. Simpson heard the news, Leigh’s mother would know in minutes. And it would be better if Leigh could break the news in person.
Break the news? That was a funny way to think about it. Leigh pulled one of the pillows higher behind her head. You’d think somebody had died or something. And maybe for her mother, it would be like that. Her idea of Leigh would have to die and be reborn. Surely her mother would be able to see how happy Leigh was. Surely she could see that nothing but good for all of them could come from Leigh being in love and getting married.
That morning her mother had sounded near tears. “It’s a daughter’s place to come home and be with her parents on Christmas.”
“I’ll come Sunday. I’ll be less contagious by then. David and I will come after church.” She hadn’t been able to keep the tinkle of joy out of her voice as she said David’s name.
“I didn’t buy him a present,” her mother said. “I didn’t think he’d be here when we opened up our gifts.”
“He won’t care. He just wants to meet you. I want him to meet you. I want you to meet him.”
“It’s supposed to snow Sunday,” her mother said.
“They’re only calling for flurries, and I’m really sorry I can’t be there today.”
“No, you’re not.” Her mother sounded cross. “You want to be with that preacher’s family. You act like you don’t even have family of your own anymore. I never thought I’d have such an ungrateful daughter.”
Leigh’s hand tightened on the telephone receiver as she pulled in a long breath. She shut her eyes and reminded herself it was Christmas morning, that in a half hour she would be at David’s house, that her mother did love her, and that she loved her mother. Then she said, “I don’t think you do, Mother, and I’ll see you Sunday after church.”
“You could come early and go to church with me here. You know your father won’t.” Her mother didn’t give up easily.
“Aunt Wilma will come by and get you. I’m coming with David after church,” Leigh said patiently. She held out her hand and looked at the ring glittering on her finger and wondered about David’s mother who had once worn the diamond on her hand. Would she have liked Leigh? Would she have been happy for her son? “Merry Christmas, Mother. I’ll see you and Dad Sunday.”
Her mother hadn’t said Merry Christmas back. She’d just hung up. Leigh had felt sorry for a few minutes, but then the wonder of her happiness had swept her up on cloud nine again. Cloud nine wasn’t a bad place to be and one nobody at Brooke Central Station, as Wes sometimes called David’s house, begrudged. They were all glad she was there. All glad David had given her his mother’s diamond set in a new ring. It had been a nearly perfect day except for not getting to hold Stephen Lee.
She’d come home before dark. She was exhausted since, even if she hadn’t been coughing and sneezing all night Christmas Eve, she’d been too excited to sleep. She kept reaching over to touch the other side of the bed and thinking that next Christmas Eve, she’d be able to reach over and touch David lying there beside her.
She must have finally drifted off to sleep when the telephone rang and jerked her back awake. Her heart jumped up in her throat as she spilled out of bed and ran to the kitchen to stop its shrill ringing. She took a quick look at the clock when she turned on the light. It wasn’t really that late. Only eleven. Just because she’d already gone to sleep didn’t mean somebody was calling with bad news. Maybe it was her mother wanting to say Merry Christmas before the day was gone so they wouldn’t end Christmas Day at outs. Or David. That was more likely. David calling to say good night.
She was smiling as she picked up the receiver. “Hello.”
“Oh, did I wake you?”
It wasn’t David. Leigh didn’t recognize the voice. “I’m sorry. I think you must have the wrong number,” she said.
“This is Leigh, isn’t it? Leigh with eyes as blue as a clear summer sky.”
“Who is this?” Leigh was suddenly very awake. There was something about the voice that made her uneasy. Something that made her glance at the dark window over the sink as if she might see eyes staring in at her. There was no curtain over the window. No need for one since she was on the second floor and there was no neighboring house with matching windows. Her reflection stared back at her, pale and distorted by the window.
The man on the other end of the line laughed softly. “Don’t you recognize the voice of your secret admirer?”
“No, I don’t.” It wasn’t much of a lie. She hadn’t recognized his voice until he’d given her that clue. It was Edwin Hammond. Of course. Calling to claim credit for the roses. “And it’s too late at night to be playing games on the telephone.”
“I’m not playing games. I never play games. Life is much too serious for that, my dear.”
“If you don’t say who you are, I’m going to hang up.” She shouldn’t have warned him. She should have simply hung up. She didn’t have to stand there talking to him just because his fingers had dialed her number. Just because he’d spent money sending her roses she didn’t want.
“You know who I am. Ed.”
“Ed?” She didn’t want to admit she knew who he was.
“Edwin Hammond.” He sounded irritated to have to say his whole name.
“Oh, Edwin,” Leigh said as if she’d just realized who he was.
“Your secret admirer.”
“How sweet of you to say such a thing. And the roses were lovely. But really you shouldn’t have. As it turns out, I’m already taken.”
“Taken?” Edwin laughed. “What an odd word to use. Taken. Taken by that over-the-hill editor-slash-preacher? I doubt very much he’s taken you anywhere of note. Certainly not to the places I could take you. The heights of ecstasy. The depths of love.”
“Goodbye, Edwin. Don’t call again.” She kept her voice even and calm, the way she did when one of their customers showed up at the clerk’s office to shout about having to pay taxes on this or that car they’d bought.
“Why? Are you afraid to talk to me? Afraid I will awaken some feeling inside of you that will transform your little world? Transform you into the woman you can be.”
She took the receiver away from her ear while he was still talking and hung it up. She couldn’t remember ever hanging up on anyone before. She stared at the phone for a few seconds until, just as she’d feared, it started ringing again. She counted the rings. When it got to eleven she thought of Mrs. Simpson and picked up the receiver, but she didn’t put it to her ear. She simply popped the plunger to disconnect the line and then laid the phone receiver down on the table. No one would call her before morning. And if her mother did need her for any kind of emergency, she’d call Mrs. Simpson first thing if Leigh didn’t answer the phone.
The busy signal started beeping, but it would stop. Even if it didn’t, she didn’t care. She wasn’t going to talk to Edwin Hammond again this night.
She caught her reflection in the window over the sink again and a shiver shook through her. It wasn’t cold. She’d turned the thermostat up a few degrees as a Christmas present to herself. Even the floor didn’t feel cold under her bare feet. This chill came from inside—from the echo of Edwin Hammond’s voice in her ear. She didn’t know what bothered her about the man. She hardly knew him. Had only talked to him that one time in the Grill. Twice now, counting the phone call. Two times too many.
She flicked the light off and felt better standing in the dark. Hidden from any eyes. She shivered again.
“Don’t be stupid.” Her voice sounded loud in the darkness. “No one can see you. You’re in your kitchen. In your apartment. You’re perfectly safe.”
But before she went back to her bed, she checked to see if her door was locked. She couldn’t remember the last time she’d been worried about whether her door was locked or not. She was in Hollyhill. Lots of people left their doors unlocked all the time. Probably didn’t even know where the keys to their doors were. Leigh turned the lock on her door. And then she propped a chair under the knob.
S
now flurries whipped across in front of the car as David and Leigh set out for Grundy to her parents’ house on Sunday afternoon. Mt. Pleasant had dismissed evening services so David had the afternoon free. Nobody expected or even wanted a visit from the pastor two days after Christmas.
Besides, they knew he had other things on his mind on this day. The church had practically cheered when he told them he’d asked Leigh to marry him. A couple of women had actually said amen. Not a whisper under their breath, but right out loud. David had never heard a woman say amen from the pews before. Miss Sally hadn’t said amen out loud, but from the look on her face, she’d surely been shouting it in her heart.
He was glad he hadn’t made the announcement before the sermon or nothing he’d said about living for the Lord would have made the first impression. Nothing much had anyway, because most of them had already seen the ring, already knew the news before church started.
He’d asked Leigh to come up front with him after the invitation was sung and before the final prayer. She blushed, but she looked happy. She looked beautiful. After the benediction, every person in the church came up to hug them. Even Ogden and Lela Martin. And Miss Sally hugged him and laughed and hugged him again.
Now they were headed for Grundy so David could meet Leigh’s parents. It was the first time they’d been alone since he’d proposed on Christmas Eve.
As they drove out of Hollyhill, David reached over to take Leigh’s hand. “Still want to marry me now that you’ve gotten a glimpse of life as a preacher’s wife?”
“You mean standing up front with you to let everybody in on the news? I’m sure I turned redder than a beet. I blush easy as anything, but really I didn’t mind at all. Who in the world could complain about hugs? They were all wonderful. So happy for you. And for me.”
“They’re good people, but as you said the other night, they’ll want to be in on everything about the wedding,” David warned.
“That’s fine by me. I’ve always wanted a big family. Of course I already felt like part of your church family. They’ve been so sweet to me ever since the first Sunday I showed up out there.” Leigh squeezed his hand, then laughed. “Do you remember the day I caught my dress in my car door? I felt like such a klutz.”
“And I felt like such a lucky man to have a girl like you making eyes at me. Wanting to come be part of my church.”
“I love the church now,” Leigh said. “But I’m afraid my reason for coming wasn’t entirely due to spiritual devotion. I was trying anything I could think of to get you to notice me, and I knew you’d have to shake my hand on the way out the door after the services.”
“And what a beautiful hand.” David raised her hand up and kissed her fingers.
The snow started coming down thicker with fat snowflakes plopping against the windshield. David had to let go of Leigh’s hand to turn on the wipers to sweep them away. Leigh sounded a little worried as she said, “Do you think the roads will get slick?”
“They weren’t calling for much snow. Just flurries.”
“Some flurry. The ground’s already white.”
“But it’s not sticking to the road.”
“It might start,” Leigh said. “Maybe we should go back.”
“It’s not that bad yet. And we wouldn’t want to disappoint your mother.”
“It might be too late for that,” Leigh said.
David looked over at Leigh. She was frowning. “What do you mean?”
“Oh, I don’t know. I guess I shouldn’t have said that.” She looked away from him, then down at her hands in her lap.