*Author's Note*
Thank you for the reviews.
Here's the second part of the barn dance. Oh boy Tolbert's well he's Tolbert…can't bring him anywhere nice….LOL
Barn Dance Pt.2
Novella POV:
"You and Tolbert's movin' mighty fast. If you ask me I think it took too long for ya'll to get to this point." Nancy bluntly remarked to me in her rough sing-song voice as soon as we were a few feet away from the hay bales, from Tolbert.
I looked at her with a raised brow while askin', "What? Why'd you say that for?"
As we passed by a few people my cousin pointedly explained, "Cause with the way he's been lookin' at ya for the past couple years ya'll should've been married with a baby by now."
"Tolbert hasn't been lookin' at me doe-eyed for two years." I denied, causin' Nancy to just scoff and roll her eyes at me. "He's with me now cause he needs a wife and doin' me a favor in preventin' me from becomin' an old maid." I reasoned with my raven-haired cousin as we weaved in and out crowds, searchin' for her brother.
"Novella, dear cousin, he's handsome and could snag anybody he wants. He picked you cause he's half in love wit'cha." Nancy smirked at me, a knowin' spark in her eyes, as her voice held a course, but sugary tone as she told me why she believed Tolbert decided on courtin' with me.
"Really? But-" I began to rebuff her only to be cut off by Nancy roughly with, "Don't ask, just watch how he acts 'round you."
"Okay." I sighed in defeat, knowin' full well that I wasn't gonna win over Nancy with anythin' I tried to say on the matter of me and Tolbert. She was too cemented on the notion of him bein' in love with me or somethin'.
"Damnit, shit, where's Jefferson?" She cursed, her head wildly lookin' left and right. "Don't see him anywhere."
"I dunno." I shrugged, before suggestin', "He must've walked off drunk somewhere."
"Great, just what I don't need. A lost drunken brother." Nancy huffed, clearly not in the mood to be dealin' with the situation she was in.
"Oh, look, there he is." I told Nancy while pointin' out Jefferson, who was drunkenly arguin' with some lanky guy with striped waistcoat.
"I'll go get him, break up a brewin' fight. You get back to Tolbert 'fore he strokes out from ya bein' gone for so long." She told me, shaking her head before shooin' me off.
I was almost to Tolbert, I could see him perched on the hay bale in the distance, whenever I felt a heavy arm drape over my shoulders accompanied by a strong likkery smell breathin' down my neck. I tilted my head to see that none other than Johnse Hatfield was hangin' on me. "You need'a leave me alone." I sternly told him while tryin' to push his arm off of me.
"Miss Novella Landon, if I might be honest you're the most beautiful site I've ever seen." The handsome devil told me in a charmin'ly honied voice. A voice that made me want to gag cause it was too nice, too sweet, too delightful. It was so unlike the velvet gruffness of Tolbert's voice. A voice that I've considered to be smooth, calmin', but also gratin' and rough at the same time. A voice that I'd rather be hearin' right now, instead of the one pesterin' me.
"Save the bullshit for a silly girl who'll buy it. I'm with somebody, Hatfield." I snapped, tryin' to get Johnse to leave me alone.
"Yes, Tolbert McCoy." Johnse scoffed, spattin' out Tolbert's name like it was a curse."Honestly, you could do better then that rowdy horse's ass." He kept his arm slung over my shoulder, makin' it impossible for me to walk away from him.
I saw out of the corner of my eye Tolbert tossin' off his hat and slingin' off his jacket after hoppin' off of his hay bale. Oh, all hell was gonna break loose. Whenever Tolbert did that he was goin' into fightin' mode. "Johnse, if you have any brains in that pretty blonde head of yours you'll leave me be and get the hell outta here 'fore Tolbert beats ya to a bloody pulp."
"I'm not scared of Tolbert. A girl as beautiful as you should be spendin' some time with me." Well he should be. I doubt Tolbert's gonna let him go without a good whack in the face.
"Go away and stop pesterin' me. I don't want to be 'round you." I hissed, tryin' one more to get away from the blonde Hatfield, as Tolbert came right up to us.
"Get yer filthy hands off her, Hatfield!" Tolbert demanded in a shout as he shoved Johnse's arm off of me.
"Cool down, Tolbert. I was just talkin' to Novella. Nothin' else." Johnse dumbly told Tolbert as I quickly went to stand by my hot-headed man's side.
"She ain't yers to be talkin' to, Hatfield." Tolbert sneered, gettin' into Johnse's face while puffin' up his chest like a peacock.
"Stop gettin' all worked up over nothin', Tolbert. Geez, I didn't mean no harm." Johnse told Tolbert while a crowd of on lookers began to form 'round us. "I don't see why she can't be talkin' to me. She's not even a real McCoy." Johnse said, causin' gasps to sound out of the on lookers watchin' the brewin' clash between the charmin' blonde and the ginger hot-head.
I can't believe Johnse just said that to Tolbert, of all people. Does he have a death wish? He's gotta know 'bout his temper. Hell, EVERYONE knows about Tolbert's ill-tempered, hot-headed nature.
In a flash Tolbert raised his fist and punched Johnse right in the jaw, causing his head to turn with a sickenin' crack before he fell on his ass. Before I could grab Tolbert's arm to stop him he lunged at Johnse and just started to wail on him while cursin', "You fuckin' prick, don't talk 'bout my woman like that!"
"Tolbert, stop! Stop it!" I shouted as I ran up behind him. "Tolbert, stop, he's not worth it." I grabbed Tolbert's arm, trying to get him to stop his beatin' on Johnse.
Tolbert froze his motion only to turn his head over his shoulder to lock eyes with me. "But yer worth it. Yer honor's worth it." Tolbert voiced his conviction in a deep velvet timbre, his eyes shinin' with so much certainty.
"Let's just go. Please." I pleaded as Johnse backed away in a crawl, wipin' his bloody nose with the back of his hand.
Tolbert's chest rose and fell quickly as he bit his lip, trying to calm his wild temper down. He just nodded at me before rising up on his feet, bringin' me up with him since I was kneelin' by his side holdin' onto his arm. I let go of his arm, which only caused him to wrap an arm around my waist and pull me into his side. Tolbert just glared at Johnse and spit at him before makin' us walk over to the hay bales to retrieve his coat and hat.
After placin' his hat on his head and puttin' on his jacket Tolbert grabbed my hand and drug us towards the barn door in a stormin' pace. People gossiped, stared, and got out of our way. Surely this incident would befall my uncle's ears tomorrow, that much I was certain. And we said we'd be good.
We were currently ridin' down the dark road at nearly midnight as we traveled to Pikeville, so that I could get dropped off at my uncle's house. The silence between us was full of so much tension that it could be cut with a butter knife. The fight at the barn dance was heavily weighin' on both our minds, that much was certain by the silence loomin' in the crisp, midnight air.
"Did ya have a good time?" Tolbert's velvety tone broke the tension filled silence loomin' between us as he snapped the reigns, makin' his horse trot a bit faster along the wooded road.
"I did til you got into that fight with Johnse, or should I say beat the shit outta him?" I honestly remarked, my disappointment 'bout us leavin' over the fight clearly evident in my voice.
"Darlin', never thought I'd hear the word shit come outta yer mouth. Not with all them manners yer uncle made ya learn." Tolbert remarked in an attempt to lighten the mood, lookin' at me with a small smirk.
"Stop teasin' me, Tolbert." I lightly smacked him on the arm, earnin' me a chuckle from him. "Hell, we both know I learned most of my cursin' from you as we grew up." I told him matter-o-factly, a smile on my face as I shot him an easy-to-read look.
"That you did." He chuckled proudly, findin' no shame in that fact that cause of him I knew nearly every dirty word by time I was 9 or 10.
I shook my head and sighed deeply before chastisin' him softly with, "But really, Tolbert, you gotta calm down the fightin'."
Tolbert's straight posture wavered slightly and his shoulder's slumped as a hiss tumbled from his lips, causin' the harvest night air to create a silver sliver of a waft out of his warm breath. He looked over at me, his grey-blue eyes softin', as he confessed, "I'll try for ya, but I ain't gonna let some Hatfield or any man dishonor ya. Hear me, darlin'?"
"Yea, Tolbert, I hear ya. Tryin'g good 'nough." It'd have to be good enough. Just the fact that he conceded to me, admitted that he'd try to calm his temper and not jump into fightin' so quick meant that he really wasn't so bad, so cruel, so mean. That he actually cared 'bout me in a way to let me advise him.
Perhaps Nancy was right on me and Tolbert. Even though she's roughly 'round the same age as me and Roseanna she's wise, due to her hard upbringin' she had after her pap got murder by Jim Vance up in his still when she was little. Nancy had a bitterness in her, but she also had an insight to life that most our age don't.
I silently looked over Tolbert, givin' him a thin smile, before turnin' my attention to look straight ahead at the path of road we were travelin' down. We fell back into a silence, but this time it wasn't full of tension. This time it was filled with resolve, understandin', and clarity from our short talk.
After pullin' up to my house Tolbert got down from the wagon and quickly went over to my side. Wordlessly he offered me his hand, which I took instinctively, and helped me down. Once my feet were on the ground he led us up the walkway toward the porch, which was brightly lit by the oil lanterns my uncle left on. The glowin' flames encased in glass made the whitewashed porch and the taupe panelin' of the house glow and shine against the midnight darkness.
He stopped us a few feet from the door, but his boots scuffled against the wooden floorboards of the porch as he turned parallel to the door. Instinctively I turned to face Tolbert, my heeled boots clankin' as I did so. His slate eyes held a softness in them as they intensely gazed and locked onto mine. A thin smile spread over my face as I felt my heart thumpin' while I locked my eyes with Tolbert's. I don't know why I felt my chest poundin', why I was anxiously awaitin' somethin', but I did know that Tolbert's softened stare had me stuck in my place and stuck on him.
Swiftly, but with a sense of tender grace, Tolbert placed one of his calloused hands into my coppery tangles. In an instant he had lips pressin' up against my mine in a tender, but bruisin', motion. Without thinkin' I instinctively grabbed his shoulder, using him as an anchor as I moved my lips against his in motions that matched his.
Suddenly, without warnin', Tolbert pulled away and ended our kiss. He rested his forehead 'gainst mine for a quick moment before lookin' at me with a mix of tenderness and yearnin'. Nobody's ever looked at me like that before, like I was something precious to them. I must admit that I'm surprised that Tolbert's got more to him then cruelty and moodiness, that he shows me glimpses of kind-heartedness and dare I say a potential to love. His kisses were somethin' else, something intoxicatin' that I seemed to be drawn to like a moth to a flame.
"Nite, Ella, I'll see ya t'morrow at church." He told me with his velvet voice soundin' a tone softer then usual.
"Nite, Tolbert. Get home safe." I told him genuinely, lightly smilin'.
Tolbert tipped his hat and smirked at me, his eyes twinklin', before he walked away and down the porch steps. While he was makin' his way to his wagon I turned around and walked over to the door. As I walked into the house I heard the wagon take off, indicatin' that Tolbert was now gone.
At least I'd see him 'gain at church, but I bet the gossipin' church bitties will be makin' us their topic of the day.