Chapter 16 – Mrs. Stone

It only took one trip on Friday to collect my personal belongings from Uncle Ben's and take them back to Dora . . . our house. I chuckled when Doralice started fussin' over how few clothes I had; it had been a while since I'd bought anything besides the clothes I got before Cristian and Maude got married – the first time. I hadn't been travelin', and there were just some things that seemed more important than dressing like a gamblin' man. And I heard it from Doralice.

"We are buyin' you some new clothes in Claytonville," she announced as I unloaded my belongings from the wagon we'd borrowed. "What you look like out on the floor of that saloon is just as important as Maude and me or the saloon girls."

"Yes, ma'am. You gonna get on me about wearin' black the way Bret does?"

She shook her head and laughed. "No, sir. You wear whatever you wanna wear."

Saturday in Claytonville was an experience not to be forgotten. I dropped Doralice off at the dress shop; she didn't want me to see her dress until the wedding. I went to the Claytonville Saloon and had a cup of coffee, then investigated their General Store, where they kept some decent looking shirts and pants. I was still happier with a pin-tucked shirt than anything else and picked up several, along with three new pairs of pants. I'd go back to Sam Humphries in Little Bend to have coats and vests tailored for me – they never fit right if they weren't made specifically for the way I was built. I was just about to head back to the saloon for more coffee when Doralice turned up. "Done already?" I asked.

"I sure am. How about you?"

I showed her what I bought, and she seemed pleased but confused. "Don't you need coats too?"

"I'll get those from Sam in town. He does a great job, better than anything I could buy here."

"Oh. Makes perfect sense. How about some lunch before we go ring shopping?"

Sounded good to me, and I told her so. "How about the Juliet Café? I haven't been there for a long time."

"Lead the way." She took my arm and snuggled against me, and it felt good. We found a table and sat down, and were just about ready to order when I heard a voice from the past.

"Bart? Bart Maverick?" I looked up, startled to hear my name spoken by somebody in Claytonville, and couldn't believe my eyes. It was Lolly McGee, or rather an older, grayer Lolly McGee, the first girl . . . well, let's just say, my first girl. I hadn't seen her since the day she left Little Bend, too long ago to remember anything other than the fact that I was seventeen years old at the time.

"Lolly McGee? Is that really you?"

She laughed, and I stood as she hugged me. Doralice remained seated, with an amused look on her face.

"Oh my, it hasn't been McGee for years and years. It's Stone, Lolly Stone. My husband runs the City Saloon, and I own a little piece of the café here. What are you doin' in Claytonville? And who's the lucky lady with you?"

"We're shopping, believe it or not, for rings. Doralice Donovan, this is Lolly Mc . . . Stone. Lolly, Doralice and me are gettin' married."

Lolly looked like she was liable to choke or spit, and I wasn't sure which. "You? Married? What happened to the boy that was gonna travel the country and play poker with his brother?"

That's when Doralice spoke up. She had the sweetest smile on her face, and butter wouldn't melt in her mouth. "Oh, he did that for years, Mrs. Stone. But we're settled down now in Little Bend. Bart and me own Maude's – I assume you've heard of it? The biggest saloon in the county?"

"Oh my, sure I've heard of it. Mr. Stone would love for the City Saloon to be as successful and well-known as Maude's. Well, Bart, you've done right well for yourself. It was good to see you after all this time. I'll send your waitress right over." She looked right at Doralice. "It was a pleasure to meet you, Miss Donovan. You got yourself a right fine gentleman there." Lolly kissed me on the cheek and headed for the kitchen.

Doralice had a sheepish look on her face. "Sorry. I got a little carried away."

"You think?" I asked as our waitress finally appeared and took our order. "We own Maude's? Isn't that stretchin' things a bit?"

"Just a little," she giggled. "But it's sort of true. And you already DO own ten percent of the place. It'll be half someday."

"I met Lolly when I was seventeen. I haven't seen her since she left Little Bend, before I turned eighteen. That's all there ever was, and all there was ever gonna be."

Doralice was quiet for a minute; I could hear the wheels turnin' in her head. "She . . . she was the girl, wasn't she?"

"Yes, she was."

"Did you love her?"

That was an easy question to answer. "No."

"Not even a little bit?"

I shook my head. "No. That's why she left Little Bend. It was never gonna happen, no matter how long she stayed there, and she knew it."

When the waitress brought our food we ate in silence for the first few minutes. Finally, it was time to put an end to this. "I've known a lot of women in my life, Doralice. I won't pretend that's not true. Some of 'em I've loved, some I haven't. But there's never been anybody like you in my life, and there never will be. And you know that."

She looked like a puppy that's just been scolded. My old look, Bret would have insisted if he'd been there. "I . . . I do know. I'm sorry I was rude to her, but the way she looked at you . . . like she had some claim on you that I could never have . . . and I know better than that. I promise no more jealousy on my part. Am I forgiven?"

I reached across the table and took her hand. "Ain't nothin' to forgive. It's you I'm marryin', not anybody else on this earth. Now, what kind of a ring do you want? Anything special?"

She shook her head. "Somethin' plain, and elegant. What about you? Somethin' to go with your pinkie ring?"

I'd never explained the pinkie ring to Doralice; she'd never asked. This was my moment of truth, so to speak. "Nope, I'm gonna put the pinkie ring away. It belongs in the past. So I'm willin' to look at most anything."

She looked at me and smiled, this beautiful woman that had consented to be my wife. She didn't know what significance the ring had played in my life, but she knew it was important, somehow. And that I had just told her my wedding ring was gonna be a lot more important.