Page 67 of Always to Remember
“Lucian is family. It’s just that he didn’t want his brothers butting in while he was courting.”
“He’s really and truly courting her?”
“Reckon so.”
“Is he gonna marry her?”
Clay shrugged.
Joe stuck his pole into the mud, scooted back, and rolled onto his stomach, his elbows perched so he could rest his chin in his hands. “You ever gonna marry?”
Clay pointed to a bank of clouds. “Look, there’s a buffalo.”
Joe twisted his head and squinted against the sunlight. “I don’t see it.”
“Just to the left of that cloud that’s a little darker.”
“You reckon Pa’s up there carving them clouds?”
“I wouldn’t be a bit surprised. Seems like a good thing to do. Reckon I might do that when the time comes.”
“I bet you’ll carve out some fancy clouds.”
Clay smiled. “Yeah, I imagine I will.”
Joe dropped his elbows, pressed his palms flat on the earth, and rested his cheek on his hands. “So are you?”
“What?”
“Gonna get married sometime.”
The emptiness engulfed Clay. He respected honesty and was trying to teach the twins to be honest in their dealings with people. He just wished he hadn’t taught them to speak quite so much of what was on their minds. “No, I don’t reckon I will.”
“On account of you not fightin’ in the war?”
“That’s got something to do with it.”
Joe scooted over until his arm knocked against Clay’s shoulder. He lifted up on his elbows and looked down on Clay’s face, locking his brown eyes onto Clay’s. “If you had it to do over, would you fight?”
“No.”
Joe grinned. “I’m glad.” He flopped to his back and looked at the sky.
Clay rolled over to his side and rose up on an elbow. “Why are you glad?”
“On account if you’d do it different now, it’d mean you made the wrong choice the first time. And you didn’t.”
Shaking his head. Clay gave his brother a rueful smile. “I think you and Josh think things too old for your age.”
They heard a commotion behind them and glanced over their shoulders.
“I found somethin’ better than pecans!” Josh yelled as he thrashed through the trees. “Miz Warner was lookin’ for a place to have a picnic. Told her she could share our spot. And guess what? She said we could call her Miz Meg.”
Clay scrambled to his feet as Meg emerged from the trees. Sweet Lord, but her blue dress did deepen the hue of her eyes. She’d caught her hair in some sort of lacy thing that made her hair look thick and heavy, and he wondered why it didn’t break free and tumble down her back.
She gave Joe one of those rare smiles that needed to be carved for posterity. “Do you mind if I have my picnic here?”
“No, ma’am,” Joe said, with an answering smile that could have blinded her if the sun reflected off it.
