When Flowers Bloom
"Look who's awake, my beautiful princess, the loveliest girl in all Rock Creek," Lou cooed her daughter as she picked her up from the crib. It had been three months since she gave birth to little Virginia, and the baby was growing up bigger and bigger with each passing day. Louise already missed the time when Virginia had been just a little newborn baby and the special bond that joined a child and its mother almost in a sacred way. And a week ago she had started having problems with her breasts, and the doctor had advised her to stop nursing her baby. So much to her chagrin she had to cut another element in that bond. Unfortunately, time went by too fast, and like her other children, Virginia would stop being a baby before she or anybody would realize it.
Out of the corner of her eye, Lou noticed Jane, who was looking at her with a serious expression. Louise smiled and as she approached her eldest child, she said, "Janey, you aren't jealous, are you? You know you're also my very special girl."
"Ma…" Janey protested. "I'm not jealous." She came closer to her mother, and caressed her sister's soft face with the back of her index finger. "Ginnie and I are already good friends. I was a bit tired of so many men around."
Louise smiled, and turned to the stove where milk was boiling. "You hungry, my love?" she asked as she removed the pot from the hob with her free hand.
"Ma, can I give Ginnie her bottle?" the young girl asked.
"All right," agreed Lou, as she passed the baby to her eldest daughter's arms. "Hold her head as I told you to," she instructed. "Go and sit on the chair in the corner and away from the draft." Louise paused, and then added, "I wonder when on earth your father is going to repair the kitchen door." Ten days ago Kid had removed the door from its hinges because it did not close properly, and since then it rested untouched in his shed.
Jane obeyed her mother, and Lou prepared the milk for her baby, two parts of water and one of milk. Once the girl was feeding her sister, Lou started to clean the fish Kid and the boys had caught yesterday and they would have for lunch today. She was so intent on the task that she never heard steps behind her, and when a couple of hands wrapped around her waist, she gasped, startled. "Good morning," Kid whispered in her ear, and his lips automatically found hers as he kissed her. Lou was fully aware of Jane's presence in the room, and pushed her husband away. "Kid!"
"Honey, you know I can't start the day without a proper good-morning kiss from my wife," he said softly. Since it was foaling time, he and Buck took turns seeing to the mares in labor, and he had left his bed very early this morning to relieve his friend. Kid tried to kiss her again, but she stopped him once again by pressing her hand against his chest.
"Kid, please, we ain't alone!" Lou hissed.
Before he could say anything, Jane's voice sounded from the other end of the kitchen. "Morning, Pa."
Kid turned round, blushing hotly as soon as he saw his daughter, who he had not noticed when he had first stepped into the kitchen. "Uh… hello, honey," he greeted her, and smiled sweetly on beholding the sweet image of his eldest child feeding his youngest. "And how are my girls today?"
"We're fine… is everything all right at the stables?" Jane asked. "We have a beautiful new filly," Kid explained, smiling proudly as if he was talking about a child of his own. "I've told the boys they can come and see it. Would you like to tag along?"
"No, thanks, Pa. Maybe later."
Kid smiled sadly, sharing a look with Lou, which only she could understand. His little girl was really growing up in all senses, and she was changing too quickly, something that saddened him. As a child, Janey was always eager to see the colts and fillies born in the season, but apparently, she had other interests now. "Well, my ladies, time to go back to work. See you later." He gave a peck to his wife on the cheek, and walked out of the kitchen.
Louise approached her daughters, and picked up Virginia, who she rested against her shoulder and patted on her young back to help her burp. "Your father sometimes acts as if he were still a teenager," Lou said.
Jane giggled. "I think it's very romantic. You and Pa look so good together even after so many years." Louise smiled as she placed the baby back in the crib. "Ma, can I ask you something?"
Louise turned around to her daughter. "Sure. What is it?"
Janey sat at the table in the middle of the kitchen, and, taking a cookie out of a china jar, she started to nibble at it. "Ma, how old were you when Pa started courting you?"
"Around seventeen… why?"
"Just curious," Janey said, and asked again, "And did you like him straightaway?"
"I guess," Lou replied without much enthusiasm, but noticing her daughter's eyes on her, she added, "Yes... he caught my eye quite soon."
"And when did he first kiss you… I mean, for the very first time?"
Louise frowned, staring at her daughter and wondering where this sudden interest came from. "Young lady, I think that's none of your business," Lou said in a light tone.
"Please, Ma!" the girl begged, looking with an expression that made Louise relent.
Louise sighed, as she sat down on a chair across from her daughter, and said, "Well, I kind of prompted him to kiss me."
The girl's curiosity was instantly perked up by the comment. "How come?"
Lou smiled as she remembered the scene as if it had happened just yesterday. "You know back in the old days when your father and I met, I had to make everybody believe I was a boy."
"So that you could work for the Pony Express…" Janey filled in for her mother. She knew the whole story about how her mother had become a brave Pony Express rider, competing with men skillfully. Jane had always been so proud of her mother, who was the most courageous and special woman she knew.
"Your father accidentally found out, and when he promised he wouldn't tell, I wanted to thank him. I timidly gave him a peck on his cheek, but well… I kind of lingered there too long. I guess he took it as a sign. And then he turned his face, and kissed me. It was strange and unexpected but I … I liked it."
"It's romantic," Janey said. "So you were a couple from then on?"
"No… well… kind of… but not completely," Lou stammered her answer in such a confused way that Janey stared at her in confusion. It was difficult to explain. She and Kid had not been a real couple then. However, there was a certain understanding among their friends about their close relationship, as if Kid had staked his claim, and she kind of 'belonged' to him. "It's complicated, honey. These things are often confusing. Not everything in love is beautiful and perfect as books say," Lou added, and after a pause, she continued, "And… young lady, I think you're still too young to worry about these things."
Jane frowned unhappily. She hated it when her mother cut off their friendly conversation, and reversed to her strict role as a mother. Janey felt she was too old to be treated like a child, and her ma should start seeing her like an equal. Pretty soon she would become a woman for real, and it was high time her ma and also her father realized her life was different now.
"Honey, could you keep an eye on Ginnie for me?" Lou asked. "I need to check and make sure your brothers aren't giving your father a hard time at the stables. You know they can be a handful."
Jane nodded, morosely thinking that for her mother she was too young to have an interest in certain things, but she was old enough to look after a baby. Her family definitely did not understand her, and maybe she needed to show them she was not a baby anymore.
There were dozens of people in town when the two wagons bringing in the Cross's and the Mcclouds arrived in town. Like every year in September, Rock Creek celebrated its particular Founders' Day. The atmosphere was clearly jovial and light in the streets, and everybody was eager to stop their responsibilities for just a few hours, and enjoy the day with their families.
When the two families left the wagons, they started to stroll leisurely, admiring the beautiful decorations that had been placed on the buildings. Since this was Virginia's first visit to town, their stroll was interrupted every few steps as their neighbors and acquaintances stopped them to meet the new addition to the family. Janey and Billy exchanged looks of total boredom, as they heard the same conversations and comments from everybody. When the girl saw her friend Daisy appear, she saw her as a chance to escape. "Pa, can I go with Daisy?"
"All right, but be careful."
"Of course," Janey replied, irritated by the unnecessary remark coming from her father.
"I'll go with you girls, too. I'm going to meet the boys in a while," Billy offered as he flashed his smile to the girls.
"Of course, Billy," Daisy promptly replied, her big mouth grinning happily and her eyes sparkling behind her spectacles. Jane did not say anything, and simply hooked her arm around her friends, and both girls started walking away with Billy following at a safe distance. "Every time I see your cousin, he looks more handsome," Daisy whispered.
"Billy?" Jane asked unenthusiastically, but secretly not liking the way Daisy always acted around the boy or talked about him. When Daisy nodded, Janey added, "I told you many times before. He's not my cousin. We don't share any blood."
Daisy gave her a strange look. "You seem very worried to make it clear that he's not really related to you. Do you like him?"
"Oh, Daisy, don't be ridiculous."
"I'm not. He's quite a catch," Daisy simply said as they kept going.
At her friend's comment, Jane could not resist to look behind her. Billy met her curious stare, and grinned, tipping his hat to her in an exaggerated fashion. The gesture made her blush, and she looked away quickly.
Billy beamed as his eyes stared at the girls walking before him, or rather at one particular girl. His mind was full of fantasies about that girl when he realized that he was framed by two little figures. "What are you two doing here?" he asked in obvious annoyance.
"We're going with you," Ike informed his brother. "Ma let us."
Billy made an unhappy face. "Why don't you two go with people your own age and leave us alone?" Billy exclaimed, and as he noticed Matt staring at him with a strange expression, he added, "And what are you looking at?
Mattie grinned slowly, and pointing a finger to him, he said, "You're sweet on my sister!"
"What?" Billy exclaimed, blushing at being caught by his small friend, and irritated by the whole notion, he said, "Shut up!"
"You're sweet on her! You're sweet on her!" Matt continued in a sing-song tone, jumping in some kind of particular dance of his, which soon was joined by Ike. Billy was angry, and scared that the girls could get wind of what the children were saying, so his hands reached to grab the two jokers and show them nobody messed with him. Yet, the children were faster and ran away from him. "If I catch you, you're going to be sorry! Go and get lost, and leave me alone!" Billy cried angrily.
Matt and Ike simply laughed, so hard that they almost stumbled in their hurry to escape a very furious Billy. Hearing the ruckus behind her, the girls glanced back with curiosity and when Jane noticed the fight between Billy and the two boys, she said, "Can't you see it, Daisy? He's nothing but a child."
"Why do we always end up being the nanny of these two? This one ain't even your brother," whined Roger, Billy's best friend. He was a lanky, young man, just a year older than Billy, and always ready for a good laugh. He had left school last summer, and now worked on his father's farm. He and Billy enjoyed each other's company in their free time, and because of their long friendship they practically knew each other's secrets without either of them opening their mouths to speak.
The two younger boys looked at Roger in clear disagreement, and Mattie said, "My name's Matt, and I don't like you."
Roger scoffed. "Why, boy, you broke my heart just now," he replied, pressing his hand against his chest in an exaggerated fashion.
"Leave them alone," Billy said. Roger was right; it was a bit of a pain to put up with this usual unwanted company. They had been doing so for a couple of hours already, but deep down having Ike and Matt along did not bother Billy so much. Actually, they could sometimes be fun even though he sometimes complained about them, but to be fair, they had not bothered them too much today.
A bit further ahead there was a group of people gathered around a juggler who was doing some kind of performance with a bear. The animal spun a couple of rings around his front legs while the man was tossing balls around. Billy spotted Jane and her friend Daisy among the spectators.
"Let's go watch that!" Billy suggested, pointing at the group with his finger.
"Yes!" Ike and Matt exclaimed and without waiting for any indication, both boys shot towards the people.
"Oh Bill, I'm not in the mood of standing and watching some idiot fooling around with a poor animal," Roger protested.
"Oh please, Roger… it'll be fun."
Roger soon realized why his friend was so eager to join the crowd of spectators. "Oh look who's there… I can now understand your interest."
Billy felt uncomfortable at his friend's comment, but tried to cover his own awkwardness. "And Daisy…"
"Bah…" Roger replied in an indifferent tone.
"You told me you liked her."
"No… I told you she was passable… she has a good landscape when you look at her from behind… that's all."
Billy laughed. "Roger… I shouldn't laugh, because that's almost rude."
"All right, my friend, you win. Let's go to see that nonsense…but I don't understand that interest in being closer to her when you almost live under the same roof," Roger said as they headed for the group.
'That's the problem,' Billy thought. It was too complicated. He did not know when he had started to think of Janey like something more than a cousin. He had even tried to ignore the very loud voice in his mind, but in the end he had to admit his fondness of Jane was very deep and real. What he wanted to do with these feelings now, he was not so sure. He could not even imagine what his parents would say, what her parents would say, or what Jane herself would say. And living so close was the worst problem. How could he talk to a girl about love when he had known her all his life and when they were always surrounded by family?
Roger and Billy approached the standing crowd, and placed themselves behind the girls with just a couple of people separating them. The girls had not noticed their presence, and kept watching the show. After a few moments Daisy tilted her head to her friend and whispered in her ear, "Have you seen the handsome man opposite us?"
Jane frowned, and instantly shifted her eyes from the bear, and noticed the person Daisy was referring to. She was right. He was very handsome: quite tall, and slender, with fine brown hair, very deep black eyes and olive complexion. Janey looked away when she noticed his eyes were on her. "Who is he? I'd never seen him before," she said.
"No idea," Daisy whispered back. "But he's been eyeing you the entire time we've been here."
"Really?" asked Jane as a smile danced in her lips and her heart strangely started thumping in her chest. She timidly lifted her eyes to find his gaze on her again, just like Daisy had said, a gaze so intense that she could even feel it on her skin. The idea that a handsome stranger was eyeing him fascinated her, and after a few shy, discreet looks, Janey gradually became bolder and met his eyes decisively. They stared at each other in the distance, the show of the bear and the juggler long forgotten. After a few minutes of indiscreet staring, Jane dared to smile without averting her eyes from his, and her gesture was responded by an impish grin, and a wink. And then to her utter surprise he walked away.
Jane and Daisy exchanged a look, and without stopping to think, Janey took hold of her friend's hand, and said, "Let's follow him." Daisy did not even reply and just let herself be pulled from the crowd. They could see the young man walking ahead of them, leaving the swarming part of the city, and moving to deserted streets. "I'm just curious to know who he is," Janey whispered, almost justifying her actions to herself rather than her friend.
As they crossed an alley and came out onto a wider street, they looked up and down, but could not see anybody. They had lost him, and strangely, Jane felt a deep sense of disappointment. Then all of a sudden, she gasped startled as she noticed a hand on her shoulder and a voice resounded behind her. "Did you ladies want something from me?"
As she turned round, she saw the young man they had been following. He smiled, tilted his head politely to them as he said, "Forgive me if I startled you. It wasn't my intention."
Jane smiled to cover her shyness because she did not know what else she could say. There was no excuse for her behavior, and now she was feeling totally awkward. So after a few seconds that felt like long minutes, she finally managed to say the first thing that came to her mind. "My… my name's Jane McCloud, and this is Daisy."
The man took a step closer to Jane, and taking her hand, he brought it to his lips. As he planted a kiss on her hand, he locked eyes with the girl, and said, "Like the French say, enchanté, Miss." Jane blushed, clearly pleased by his courteous display, and when he let go of her, she hid both her hands in her dress pockets shyly. "And I'm Mike."
"My name's Daisy," the other girl stepped in, realizing she was blatantly ignored in the introduction.
Without shifting his eyes from Jane, he said, "Could you do me a favor, Daisy?" He slid his hand into his pocket and took a few coins out of it. "Go to the store, and get me some tobacco."
"What?" Daisy exclaimed in a tone that clearly expressed that she would not heed him.
"Or get lost wherever you want to. Be a dear and let Jane and me have a few minutes in private. There's something very important I need to discuss with her."
Daisy looked at the man as if he had lost his head. She did not intend to be ordered around by some stranger. However, to her utter surprise Janey turned her head to her, and said, "Daisy, do it. Please leave us alone."
The girl gave her friend a look that showed her discontent and disagreement, but did not say anything. So turning onto her heel, she walked away, grunting between gritted teeth.
"Damn…"
The curse came from a few feet further up the street, a voice that neither Jane nor Mike heard. Unbeknown to the girls, Billy and Roger had followed them, and of course the two eight-year-olds have also joined them. Billy was fuming as he witnessed the weird play taking place between Janey and this stranger. And now that Daisy was leaving her alone with the man, he was overcome by sheer fear.
From where he and the other three boys were positioned, they could not see what Jane was doing, especially as she and the man moved towards the alley. Billy needed to know, and had a sudden idea, so he turned to his surrogate cousin, whose small size made him perfect for his plan. "Matt, go closer to them and find out what they're saying."
"No, I'm not doing any of that!" Matt protested. "What if that oaf licks me?"
"He won't even know you're there," Billy insisted.
It took Billy more than a few words to convince Mattie, but finally the eight-year-old relented and stealthily came to stand just behind a corner closer where his sister and the man were.
"Bill, my friend, this is daft; I can't waste my time watching a silly girl flirting with a fella," Roger grumbled. This stupid game his friend was playing felt too childish, and Roger had better things to do than spying on a daft girl, especially one who apparently did not care about Billy at all.
"Go then," Billy mumbled without shifting his eyes from the end of the street even though he could not see very much at all. Roger silently went away, but Billy remained there, glued to the place, more afraid of what his own imagination told him was happening than what was really taking place.
"So what's the something so important you have to discuss with me?" Jane asked as she leaned her back against the wooden wall in the alley. The sun shone brightly above them, and she had moved to the alley to find some relief in the shade the narrow street offered.
Mike drew closer to her, his own shadow falling over her body. "Has anybody told you how beautiful you are?" he blurted out.
Janey blushed pleased. "Well, it's not the first time… at least today," she replied in a playful way. Her parents were continuously saying she was pretty, so that was not a total lie after all.
Mike smiled. "Oh what a disappointment! Here poor me thinking I was the only one," he added, playing along. "And tell me, how old are you, sweet Jane?"
The girl stopped. She was aware that he was older… much older, and she could not bring herself to tell him that just a couple of weeks ago she had just turned fourteen. Her young age could spook him away, thinking she was just a little girl. "How old do you think I am?"
"Hmmm, let me think," he said, coming even closer to her. "Sixteen?"
Janey smiled. "Very clever… Mike."
"Lovely age. Sweet sixteen. Just the way I like girls… young and sweet."
"How about you? Let me guess. Eighteen? Nineteen?"
Mike shook his head. "Twenty-one." He paused to study her reaction, and added, "Disappointed? Too old for you?"
Jane felt a tug in her heart at his comment. 'Too old for me?' she repeated mentally. A nice-looking, young man had said he liked her, and was laying his heart to her like in the novels she read. Jane was totally charmed, bewitched by this handsome, sweet-talking stranger. "You're perfect," she blurted out without thinking, and when she realized what she had said, she blushed hotly. "I mean your age is perfect."
"Sweet Jane," Mike cut her off, taking another step closer, almost his bigger build hovering over hers. "Would you do this poor man a favor?"
"Get you some tobacco?" she said with a grin, teasingly repeating his previous words to Daisy.
Mike smiled, shaking his head. "What would you say to you and me getting to know each other a bit better?"
"What?"
"Meet me tomorrow for a picnic… do you know the Holm Oak?" Mike asked, and Jane nodded. "Will you meet me then?" Jane hesitated. Her parents would not let her go alone with a stranger that was years older than her. Almost as if guessing her thoughts, Mike added, "I guess you won't be one of those girls who expect men to ask for pa and ma's permission? It's silly to involve parents for just an innocent picnic, don't you think?"
"Uh… yeah," Jane replied awkwardly.
"So will you meet me tomorrow, Sweet Jane?"
Janey finally nodded. "Yes."
As soon as she accepted her invitation, she heard her name being called in a loud voice. As she looked up the street, she noticed Billy waving at her, and just a few feet behind him, she saw her family coming down the street. Jane got alarmed, and turned to Mike, "I have to go now."
"See you tomorrow? At six… in front of the hotel."
"I'll be there," she said quickly, and ran out of the place. In panic she did not even see her own brother who had been listening to the conversation, as she dashed up the street. She reached Billy and as they started towards their parents together, he asked, "What were you doing there with that fella?"
The stern tone in his voice and his evident curiosity did not sit well with her, and turning her annoyed eyes to him, she said, "That's none of your business."