Amy's Story

Chapter 6:

Christmas season at the Whitman house was also very busy. All their children and grandchildren would be visiting their parents and their aunt. The house would be full with all the adults and the children, including the very youngest , three-month-old Lily. She was the daughter, and first child of the Whitman's youngest son, Horace, and his young wife Abigail. Lily was a beautiful, rollie- pollie baby with big blue eyes and the beginnings of blonde hair. She was a happy infant and liked staring at all the adults cooing around her while she enjoyed sucking on her fist. Amy was thrilled to be her big Aunt. The family didn't explain that in actuality she was the baby's great-Aunt because it was unnecessary. Why go into such a detailed discussion when it didn't make the least difference?

Amy delighted in rocking the baby and carrying her around when she was upset. Lily, for her part, seemed to fall in love with her aunt immediately. She would calm down almost instantaneously when her aunt picked her up and even though the weather was cold and bitter, Amy would bundle her up every afternoon once she came home from Gull Cottage, put Lilly in her carriage and take her for a short walk into town. After several days, Amy began to fantasize that Lily was her own baby- hers and Red's. They would make such a lovely little family. At night Amy dreamt about living with Red in a little cottage with Lilly in her crib by their fireplace. She didn't tell anyone about these dreams of hers. She knew that they would laugh at her. Hadn't her mother told her many, many years ago that she would always be the baby of the family and in need of someone to care for her? Her mother had told her that there was no point in thinking about marrying and having a family of her own, and her sister Barbara had been equally blunt in telling her that she wasn't smart enough to care for her own home, much less a baby. It had been a cruel thing to say to her and it had always hurt Amy to think that she was a burden on others. Now that she had proven that she could hold a job and be important to others, she wondered why couldn't she lead the life of a typical adult? Maybe, if Red would ever start thinking of her as more than just a friend, the two of them might be able to make their way together, living in their own home and maybe even have their own baby. But it was a secret wish that Amy couldn't share with anyone else . In the mean-time she spent as much time as she could with little Lily.

Christmas Day, of course was busy with church services but afterwards Reverend and Mrs. Whitman returned the favor and invited Mrs. Muir, Martha and all the men of the Home for Christmas dinner in the Parsonage. It was very crowded with all the adults and children, but that only seemed to make it a more enjoyable and fun afternoon. Amy was quite proud to show off her little niece and she made it a special point to ask Red if he wanted to hold the baby. Red, for his part was afraid to touch the little infant. He backed away, holding his hands in front of him. "No, no! I might drop her!"

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That night as Carolyn was sitting at her desk rubbing her belly filled with holiday goodies as Captain Gregg appeared behind her. "Merry Christmas, my dear! I see you had an excellent dinner at the good Reverend's house."

"Yes, it was lovely, and the men enjoyed themselves very much. I was also glad that Martha didn't have to cook for once. The only thing that would have made it better," she said as she turned to stand in front of Daniel , "would have been if you were able to be by my side."

The captain looked at her with some surprise on his face. "Dear lady," he began softly, "Are you sure that you really mean that?" Carolyn merely nodded. "I could think of nothing that I would wish for more, but alas, we both know that it can never happen." Carolyn looked down sadly, her eyes filling with tears. She had never known anyone like Daniel Gregg. He was, or had been, a strong, passionate man but with a kind and gentle soul who touched her heart in so many ways that it had never been touched before.

Seeing that their conversation with winding its way back into painful territories, the Captain straightened and rubbed the lobe of his left ear as he shifted the topic.

"I did wish to speak to you, this evening, about something else."

"Oh?" said Carolyn, her tears drying quickly before the spirit in front of her could see. "What is that" she asked.

" I think our dear Amy has developed an even stronger infatuation with Red than anyone had realized. And now with the little baby in the Whitman's house for the holidays, Amy is thinking about a future with our Seaman. Of course no one knows this , especially Red. I do think it needs to be taken in hand before hearts are broken."

"Yes, absolutely. Thank you for telling me this Daniel."

Once she had settled herself comfortably under the warm covers, Carolyn began to ponder all the painful ways of the heart. She and Daniel could never be together, much as they both wished it. And Amy and Red…what would happen if Red decided that he had feelings for Amy? And just as importantly, what if he never did?

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The Whitman's extended family returned to their various homes over the next week and the only thing that kept Amy from despair over missing Lilly, was her excitement at the impending New Year's Eve celebration. The whole town was going to gather in Schooner Bay's grammar school for a dance and Agnes Whitman had remade a dress into a ballgown for her. It was a light, shimmery pink thing with ruffles and lace and more ruffles. When she tried it on, Amy thought it was the most exquisite thing she'd ever seen.

At Gull Cottage, the seamen were shining the buttons on their best suits and polishing their boots. No matter how old they were, the opportunity to join the town and enjoy a dance or two with a woman made them feel young and giddy, at least all except Red. He complained to Sam and Sock that most likely Amy would pester him all night to dance with her.

"And what if she does?" asked Sam. "She's a nice girl. And she clearly likes you."

"She likes you a lot!" added Sock.

"Yeah, I know, I know," replied Red. "It's just that she so young! I'm almost 45 and she said she'll be 32 in May. That's…that's…" Red began to count on his fingers. By now his friends in the Home knew enough to let him figure it out for himself. "That's 13 years!" he eventually calculated. "At least I think it is".

"Yes," replied Sock. "So what? If you like each other, don't worry about the age difference."

"You think I really should?" asked the younger man.

Carolyn Muir was at her desk as the afternoon was ending. She was supposed to be writing her day's notes and preparing the Year-End Report that she had promised the Home's Trustees she would deliver to them by the end of the first week in January. All in all, it had been a successful start to the Schooner Bay Home for Invalid and Indigent Seamen, despite the death of one of the original occupants. Unfortunately, however, she could not concentrate on writing anything at the moment. She too was looking forward to the New Year's Eve party. This time, she had made sure that she would be properly dressed for the dance, but whenever she thought about it, she desperately hoped that Colonel Porter would not visit. It was bad enough that he would be in Schooner Bay for Phyllida Grover's wedding in February, but if he were at the dance, she didn't know how she would prevent her cheeks from turning cherry red. If Captain Gregg were to "borrow" him again (assuming that the Colonel were there), everyone would assume that there was a serious relationship developing. How would she deal with that? And the Captain's own thoughts were not far from this topic. Could he find another way to spend the night dancing with Carolyn?

When at last New Year's Eve arrived, Gull Cottage and all the other houses in Schooner Bay were frantically busy as the town's women did their best to be the most beautiful and most fashionable female at the party. All the seamen of the Home declared that they could not choose between Mrs. Muir and Martha Grant as they gallantly escorted the two women to their waiting carriages. Even Clover and Sunshine were specially turned out, with the leather of the harnesses oiled to a high shine and paper flowers wrapped around the bright-work of their gear.

The school hall was aglow with hundreds of candles and musicians were already playing when they arrived. Dr. and Mrs. Everly were the first to greet them, followed by Mr. and Mrs. Grover. Phyllida was off in a corner chatting with some of her friends and throwing glances at Amy, her brother and sister-in-law. For her part, Amy was trying not to stare at Phyllida and the gorgeous deep blue and silver gown she was wearing. It was in the latest Parisian mode, as interpreted in Boston, and had a good-sized bustle, rusching on the bodice and the midnight-blue overskirt gathered up into multiple flounces revealing the silver and medium blue underskirt.

Carolyn was relieved to see that Colonel Porter was not in attendance as Nate asked her to dance the first dance with him. She thought to herself, that for someone with a peg-leg, Nate was an excellent dancer. Hannibal was holding his hands out to Martha as others made their way to the dance floor. If Carolyn had any worries about filling her dance card, she needn't have; with just the men of the Home, it was nearly full, and she was on the dance floor most of the night. She still hoped that Daniel Gregg would make an appearance in one way or another, but the only surprise that evening was Red approaching Amy and asking her to dance. While they weren't quite waltzing, they seemed to enjoy themselves, didn't step on any toes or dance into another couple. Afterwards, they went to the refreshments table hand in hand. Carolyn smiled to herself. Amy looked like she was walking on air and Red seemed quite happy as well.

At the same time that Red and Amy were dancing, Phyllida and the younger A.A. Cooper moved to the dance floor. While their movements were precise and well-rehearsed, it was clear that they were smitten with each other. More than one matron commented that Phyllida would make an extraordinarily beautiful bride, while others speculated on how long it would be before the young couple started their family.

At quarter-to-midnight, the music stopped as champagne was handed out in anticipation of year's change. Josiah Turner, the Justice of the Peace, and head of the Town Council strode up to the bandstand to address the crowd. Carolyn had been dancing with Captain Samuel Biggs and was still standing next to him as Turner began to speak. Turner had been just as instrumental as the others in organizing the Seamen's Home, but he was a terribly boring speaker. Biggs leaned over to whisper in her ear, "I just hope that he stops before midnight strikes. It would be a shame to miss it just because he doesn't know when to stop!" Carolyn laughed into her ivory fan but was at a loss at how to reply politely. Fortunately, Turner managed to complete his remarks just as the school's clock struck the hour. Kisses and handshakes were shared around the room while champagne glasses clinked with all sorts of toasts. There were happy faces all around the room and there was no likely reason that the coming year wouldn't be as good as the previous one.

It was early morning before everyone was back in Gull Cottage and climbing into their beds. Martha left out a pot of hot tea for Peter and Charlie who were caring for the horses before coming back into the house, and then said goodnight to Mrs. Muir. Carolyn waited in the parlor until she heard the last two men come in the back door. They took their mugs of tea up to their room with them, after they wished her once more a Happy New Year, and suddenly the house was silent. She had been disappointed that Captain Gregg hadn't made an appearance all night. If truth be told, she had dressed in a beautiful deep green velvet dress with him in mind. The material barely covered her shoulders and emphasized the beauty of her skin, her arms, and her décolletage. She closed the parlor's door and turned to look at the Captain's portrait. It seemed to glow in the light of the moon and stars glinting off the snow outside, but the room was cold, and it was time to go to bed.

"Madame," the deep, masculine voice breathed, "you are a sight to behold!"

Startled, Carolyn whirled around. "Captain!"

"I'm sorry to surprise you, my dear. It was just that I didn't want anyone to hear." A waltz began to play from some unseen orchestra. Daniel approached her softly, wearing his dress naval uniform, his sword hanging from his waist and glinting in the moonlight. He held his arms up in an invitation to her and she advanced to stand in front of him. "May I have this dance?"

"You may," Carolyn replied formally.

Time seemed to blur as they danced one, two and many more dances. Carolyn should have been exhausted after the long night, but being encircled by Daniel's arms, she felt like she was floating, and dancing with him was no effort at all.

"I waited all evening for you at the party," she told him.

"I know. I couldn't join you there. I didn't dare take over someone again because I would have monopolized you once more and there would be even more talk. Your reputation would have been ruined, my dear."

"This is better, much better. Just the two of us, no interruptions, nothing else to think about than this moment."

"Aye, my darling," Daniel glanced at the window, beginning to brighten with the pink of dawn. "however, it is time for you to sleep, dearest."

"No, not yet" she protested pulling him closer and placing her head upon his chest. Time and space seemed to shift again, because the next moment her head was pressed upon her pillow. She sighed deeply, missing the feel of him already, when she felt the brush of his lips upon her cheek. And then she was asleep.