Page 36 of Pregnant by the Texan
He glanced at her in the rearview mirror. “Yes, ma’am?”
“Just call me Stella. Everyone does in my hometown of Royal. I just can’t be that formal—we’ll be together off and on all day.”
She could see him grin in the rearview mirror. “Yes, ma’am. Whatever you say.”
When Sid turned out of the gated area where Aaron lived, Stella looked behind them and saw Aaron turning the opposite way.
She met her mother in a coffee shop near the high school where her mother was principal. As Stella approached the booth where her mother sat looking at papers on the table, she realized where she got her plain way of dressing and living. Her mother’s hair was in a roll, fastened on the back of her head. She wore a brown blouse and skirt, practical low-heel shoes and no makeup. Stella hadn’t told her mother about the pregnancy yet and intended to today, but as she looked at her mother bent over her papers, she decided to wait a bit longer, until she had made more definite plans for raising the child. Her mother would probably want to step in and take charge, although she was deeply wrapped up in her job and, in the past few years, had interacted very little with either Stella or her sister.
Stella greeted her mother, gave her a slight hug and a light kiss on the cheek and slid into the booth across from her. “How are you?” Stella asked.
“So busy with the end of the semester coming. I can only stay an hour because I have a stack of papers on my desk I have to deal with and three appointments with parents this afternoon. How are things in Royal?”
“Slowly improving.”
“I’ve seen you in television clips. It looks as if you’re busy. When will the mayor take over again so you won’t have to do his job for him?”
“Mom, he was hurt badly and was on the critical list for a long time. The deputy mayor was killed.”
“I’m glad I moved out of Royal. You should give it thought.”
“I’ll do that,” she said, reminded again of why she was so much closer to her sister than her mother.
They talked over salads and then her mother gathered up papers and said she had to get back to her office. Stella kissed her goodbye and waited a few minutes before calling Sid for the limo—something she did not want to have to explain to her mother.
Sid drove her to the television station. Everyone she dealt with welcomed her and was so friendly that she was at ease immediately. A smiling receptionist let the host know Stella had arrived and in minutes a smiling blonde appeared and extended her hand.
“Welcome. I’m Natalia Higgens and we’re delighted to have you on the show.”
“Thank you,” Stella said, shaking the woman’s hand and relaxing. “I hope this does some good for my hometown.”
“We’re happy to have you and sorry about Royal. The tornado was dreadful. I think our viewers will be interested and I think you’ll get some support. We’ll show a short video one of our reporters made after the storm. I’ll have some questions for you. People are responsive when someone has been hurt and you have a town filled with people who have been hurt.”
“I really appreciate this opportunity to try to get help for Royal.”
“We’re glad to air your story. If you’ll come with me.”
Fifteen minutes later, Natalia Higgens made her brief introduction, looking at the camera. “The F4 tornado struck at 4:14 p.m. on October 6th, a Monday.” The camera cut to the video the studio had taken after the storm. As soon as the video ended, Natalia turned to ask Stella about Royal.
From the beginning of the interview, Natalia’s friendliness put Stella at ease. She answered questions about the storm and the people in Royal, listing places that were badly damaged, giving facts and figures of families hit, the people who died in the storm and the enormous cost of the cleanup.
“If people would like to help, do you have an address?” Natalia asked.
“Yes,” Stella replied, giving the address of the bank in Royal where the account had been set up for donations. “Also, the Texas Cattleman’s Club of Royal will have a Christmas festival and we hope to be able to provide toys for all the children of families who were so badly hurt by the storm. Some families lost everything—their homes, their livestock, their livelihoods—and we want to help them have a happy holiday,” Stella said, smiling into the camera before turning to Natalia.
Before Stella knew it, her fifteen-minute segment was finished.
When the show ended, Natalia turned to Stella. “Thank you. You gave a wonderful presentation today that should get a big response.”
“I enjoyed having a chance to do the show and to tell about our Christmas festival. I’m very excited about that and the joy it will bring.”
“Maybe we can have someone from the Royal and the Dallas TCC be on our show soon to mention it again.”
“That would be wonderful,” Stella said.
Natalia got a text, which she scanned quickly. “We’re getting donations. Your bank will be able to total them up and let you know. Congratulations on getting more help for Royal.”
Stella smiled broadly, happy that the interview went well, hoping they did get a big response.
