Page 79 of Christmas at Black Cherry Retreat
‘Wipe that sad look off your face.’ He wagged his finger at her. ‘My sweet Mama thought the sun shone out of Tom and she loved you already. She was happy as a clam that you’d found each other and told me so on the phone…’
‘When?’ Tom asked.
‘Right after you left her. She wanted to make sure I was going to stop by later for a hunk of angel food cake.’ Hankstruggled not to break down.
‘Thanks for telling us that.’ Tom slipped an arm around his father’s shoulder. ‘It means a lot. And you’re right, we do need to get busy. I don’t want Mee Maw to torment me because I left a weed in her precious flower beds.’ His gruffness betrayed the emotions shimmering under the surface of his weak smile.
They all returned to their assigned jobs andFee was handed a clean yellow duster and told to go into the living room and help Rayna.
‘Do you mind dusting Mee Maw’s thimble collection while I do the glasses?’
‘Good grief. How many are there?’ She stared in horror at the glass-fronted display cabinets dotted around the walls.
‘At last count I think she had around five hundred.’ Rayna grinned. ‘Tom built the cabinetsfor her. He’s good with his hands.’
‘He certainly is,’ Fee agreed. ‘Have you seen the incredible dolls’ house he’s making for Lulu?’
Rayna shook her head. ‘I’m sure it’ll be amazing.’
‘It is. Makes me wish I was a little girl.’
‘Me too. My all-time favourite present was the roller skates I got when I was six. I managed to skin my knees before Christmas dinner andrip my new dress. Mama sure was mad.’ She laughed. ‘What was your best present?’
‘Um, nothing really stands out.’ She remembered the disappointing Christmases of her childhood. Holidays always took a back seat to the latest man in her mother’s life or the plight of whatever endangered species Maddy was passionate about that particular week. She often overheard her school friends discussingwhat they wanted for Christmas but avoided joining in because the chances were the day would be just like any other for her. The first and only “normal” Christmas dinner they had was at Will’s house in Cornwall one year when he cooked roast turkey with all the trimmings. It had amazed her on Christmas morning to wake up and find a stocking stuffed with presents at the foot of her bed.
‘Tom says y’all are going to visit your mother next week and then travel around Europe.’
Fee began to take the thimbles out onto the table one shelf at a time ready to be dusted so she could put them back in the right order. ‘Yes.’
‘Does your mom live in London?’
‘No.’ Fee hoped Rayna would get the hint it wasn’t something she wanted to discuss.
‘You’ll be goin’back again for Christmas I guess?’
‘I shouldn’t think so. She’s used to my work taking me away.’ That sounded better than admitting the truth.
‘But you’re not working at the moment.’
Fee’s head throbbed. Would Rayna never give up? ‘Why did your grandmother collect thimbles?’ She tried to change the subject.
‘Mee Maw never travelled much but thimbles are small andrelatively inexpensive so she’d ask anyone who went somewhere interesting to bring her one back,’ Rayna explained. ‘I suppose you think I’m being nosy but we’d all like to know more about you.’
She sighed and laid the duster down. ‘So you got stuck with the job.’
I don’t blame you or the rest of the family but it still hurts. The Chambers family were close and Tom falling headover heels for a woman they knew almost nothing about was bound to make them curious.
‘What do you want to know?’ Fee pulled out a chair and sat down, picking the duster back up to work while she talked. ‘Three guesses. Everything?’
‘Heck, Fee, do you blame us?’
‘No. But don’t you trust Tom’s judgment?’ Fee brushed off Rayna’s attempt to apologise. Struggling to keep hervoice steady she rattled through a condensed version of her life story. More than anything she hated the idea of the Chambers family feeling sorry for her. She’d had an unsettled childhood but other kids had a hell of a lot worse. ‘That’s it. You can tell everyone I’m an emotionally stunted nomad who’s never lived in one place for more than a few months or sustained a relationship with a man longenough to send out Christmas cards together. I can’t cook and I never wear make-up or high heels.’ Fee blinked back tears. She’d been stupid enough to believe they’d accepted her as she was. ‘Now you know everything Tom does.’
‘Fee. I never meant…’
She calmly laid the duster back on the table and walked out of the room. Fee ignored Rayna’s shouts for her to come back and racedout of the front door. She hurried off down the street with no plan in mind other than to get away. Halfway down the street she stumbled on a crack in the pavement and fell down on her bad knee.
‘Going somewhere?’ Tom appeared out of nowhere and helped her to stand back up. ‘We’re going home.’
She leaned into him and savoured Tom’s solid, warm strength. Fee imprinted it on herbrain for when they were apart. Soon enough she’d have to say things neither of them wanted to hear.
