Starting Over

Jeremy Bolt was standing on the dock in Seattle watching the Shamus O'Flynn set sail for New Bedford. Candy Pruitt was going home for good. She and Jeremy had reached the mutual decision to call off their engagement permanently.

There were no hard feelings between them. They came to realize that each of them was making excuses to postpone their wedding because they didn't want to admit that they were not in love anymore.

Jeremy stood on the pier and waved at Candy on the ship's deck until they were out of view of each other. Candy waved back.

Jeremy and his brothers went up to their old family cabin. After a few days of drinking and crying, the youngest Bolt was okay.

On their first night back in town, the Bolt brothers ate supper at Lottie's. Aaron Stempel came in and stopped by their table.

Being his usual tactful self, he commented that it was ashamed that Miss Pruitt hadn't left two years ago so he could win Bridal Veil Mountain. Jeremy didn't flinch. He didn't sigh or shed a tear.

"However, when Stempel walked away from their table, Jeremy brayed like a jackass. Jason and Joshua roared with laughter as did Lottie and many of the other loggers.

Stempel glanced over his shoulder giving Jeremy a scathing look. That boy gets more like Jason everyday he thought.

The three brothers worked and fished and camped their way through the summer. Jeremy was happy. Jason and Joshua had many private conversations about how their brother actually seemed happier now that Candy was gone.

One evening during supper at home, Jason mentioned that to Jeremy.

"You're right, Jason. I am happier. I think it's because Candy and I tried to hang on too long after our love had died. We were just mistaken when we thought we were meant to be forever." Jeremy told him.

"You are really okay? You are not pretending for our sakes?" Joshua asked.

"No, Josh, I'm not pretending. I am really okay. I promise." Jeremy assured his brothers.

A few weeks later, a new young schoolteacher, Bethany Brownfield moved to town. Jeremy met her one morning at Ben's Store.

"Good morning, ma'am." Young Bolt said as Miss Brownfield came up to him at the counter.

She smiled. "Hello, Mr. Bolt. Lottie pointed out you and your brothers to me one day at lunchtime. I'm afraid I have forgotten your first name." She blushed at the admission.

"That's quite alright, Miss Brownfield. My name is Jeremy." He smiled brushing his hair back with his hand. "My oldest brother is Jason, and the blond Bolt is Joshua."

"Thank you, Jeremy. I will try to remember all of your names. Please tell Jason and Joshua that I said hello." Bethany replied nervously.

"Yes, I sure will, Miss Brownfield. Is something wrong? You seem upset." Young Bolt was concerned.

"No, I'm not upset. Please call me Bethany." She smiled.

"Alright, thank you, Bethany. And I'm Jeremy not Mr. Bolt. I'm glad you're okay. Excuse me, please. I have to get back to the camp." Jeremy smiled as he left.

"Hello, Miss Brownfield. What can I get for you today?" Ben asked from behind the counter.

Bethany was still looking at the door even though Jeremy was out of sight. She turned to face Ben Perkins.

"Gorgeous blue eyes." She spoke.

Ben chuckled, "I'm afraid I'm out of gorgeous blue eyes at the moment. I can try to order some." He teased

"What?" Bethany was puzzled. Her mind was still on Jeremy and his eyes.

"You said you wanted some eyes, and I was teasing you. I'm sorry, Miss Brownfield. I couldn't resist." Ben apologized.

"Oh, that's okay. Mr. Perkins, is Jeremy married or spoken for?" She whispered even though there were no other people in the store.

"No, he's not married or engaged. He and his fiancée broke up for good several months ago. I heard that it was a mutual decision. She returned to her home in Massachusetts." Ben answered. "Jeremy Bolt is a fine young man."

"Yes, he seems to be an outstanding young man. Thank you, Mr. Perkins. I have a short list of items, please." Bethany replied.

When the new teacher was about to leave the store, she had one more question. "You won't mention to anyone that I was asking about Jeremy, will you, Mr. Perkins?"

"No, ma'am! Your secret is safe with me!" Ben smiled.

The following Wednesday at lunchtime, Bethany ran from the school to the saloon shouting for help. The Bolt brothers came rushing out of Lottie's.

"What's wrong, Bethany?" Jeremy inquired.

"Homer Radford is beating Timothy Johnson! I tried to stop him, but nothing worked. Homer is going to hurt Timothy badly!" Bethany cried.

The Bolts and the teacher ran to the school. Jason and Joshua got Homer off of Timothy. While Jason was giving Homer a tongue lashing, Jeremy and Bethany took Timothy aside.

Timothy was crying. He was seven years old, and he walked with a limp. Homer was a twelve-year-old bully. He was almost as tall as Jason.

Bethany made a quick assessment of the boy's injuries. He had a black eye, a bruised cheek minor cuts on his face, and possibly broken ribs.

"I'll help you take him to Doctor Wright's office." Jeremy picked him up carefully. "Josh! Watch the class while we take Timothy to the clinic, please."

"Okay, brother!" Joshua called.

Doctor Wright examined Timothy. Bethany's assessment was correct, the doctor wrapped the child's ribs tightly. She cleansed the cuts and the bruises on his face.

Doctor Wright tried to talk to Timothy about how he got the injuries. The boy was shy. He hid behind Jeremy refusing to talk.

"Doctor, let me try. Come on buddy." Jeremy took the child's hand and they went outside.

Bethany followed them but she stayed just inside the clinic door.

Jeremy crouched beside Timothy. "Hey, buddy." He said softly. 'Do you want to talk about what happened?"

Timothy hung his head as if he was ashamed to admit what had occurred. Jeremy waited rubbing circles on the boy's back. When the child remained silent for a few minutes, Jeremy spoke.

"When I was your age, I stuttered very bad. Some of the other kids laughed at me and hurt my feelings. Some of them even beat me up." Jeremy looked at Timothy.

The boy looked at young Bolt and said in a shocked tone, "Really? They really beat you up, Jeremy?"

"Yeah, they sure did, Tim. Is that what happened with Homer? Did he beat you because you have a limp?" Jeremy pressed his lips together.

"Yes, that's what happened. Why are some guys so mean, Jeremy?" The boy asked earnestly.

Jeremy stood up and stretched. "I will tell you a secret Timothy. Since it's a secret, you can only tell your dad and your best buddy, okay? You can't tell any ladies. They are too delicate for this secret."

Timothy's eyes were wide. His tears had been replaced by a big grin. He was excited to be included in knowing a man's secret.

"I won't tell anybody, Jeremy. I promise." Tim spoke solemnly.

Jeremy studied Timothy's face with feigned seriousness. "I suppose you are ready to know the secret."

"Yes, I am!" Timothy was bursting with excitement.

Jeremy crouched by the boy again and whispered in his ear, "Some guys are mean because they are sonsabitches."

Timothy's eyes grew wide as his jaw dropped. "Wow! That's the secret, Jeremy?"

Jeremy grinned. "Yep, buddy that's it. My dad told me when I was six years old after some guys at school laughed at my stuttering."

"Thanks for telling me, Jeremy." Timothy was happy.

"You're welcome, Timothy." Jeremy replied looking around for Bethany. He saw her at the clinic door. He waved for her to join them. She smiled and came over quickly. Jeremy rose to his feet.

"Timothy said that Homer beat him up because of his limp." Jeremy told the teacher.

"We will have to do something about Homer." Bethany said making a mental note to talk to the school board. "Thank you for talking to Jeremy, Timothy."

"You're welcome, Miss Brownfield." He was glad he had pleased her.

Jeremy and Bethany took the boy home in the Bolt's buckboard. They explained what had happened to his mother. Bethany advised the concerned mother that she would be notified of the date and time for the school board meeting. Mrs. Johnson said she and her husband would be there.

When Bethany and Jeremy returned to the school, Homer apologized to her and to the class. Homer was suspended from school for three days. Jason and Joshua offered to take him home. Homer asked if they could stop by Timothy" # house on the way so he could apologize to him. The two brothers agreed.

After his brothers left with Homer, Jeremy asked Bethany to step outside a minute. She told the children to read their English assignment while she spoke to Mr. Bolt.

Jeremy took Bethany's hand as they went down the steps. They walked a few yards and stopped.

"Bethany, I was wondering if you would like to have dinner with me tonight at Lottie's." He smiled gazing into her eyes.

"Why, yes, I would, Jeremy. Thank you." Bethany said hoping her voice did not betray how thrilled she was at his invitation.

"Good. Thank you. I will pick you up at 7 pm. Where are you staying?" Jeremy inquired. He was still gazing into her beautiful green eyes.

Bethany laughed. "Lottie's." She was thinking that she was falling in love with Jeremy Bolt.

Jeremy laughed too. "Well, that's convenient, isn't it?"

"Yes." She replied.

Jeremy reached for her hand, and she gave it to him. As he gently clasped her hand, Bethany gasped as a tiny chill ran up her spine.

"Oh, did I hurt you? I'm sorry." He started to release her hand.

"No, you didn't hurt me, Jeremy." She replied covering his hand with her free hand before he could turn loose completely.

Jeremy smiled at her." I'll see you tonight at seven."

"Seven, yes. I'll look forward to it." Bethany said softly.

They unclasped hands slowly. The giddy teacher watched as the handsome logger ran toward his camp. When he was no longer in sight, Bethany went inside the school.

Promptly at 7pm, Jeremy knocked on the door of Bethany's room at Lottie's. He looked sharp in his dress pants and shirt with his suede jacket.

He smiled and almost whistled when Miss Brownfield opened the door. She was beautiful in a green velvet dress. Her long brunette hair was down and swept back behind her shoulders. Her eyes sparkled as she looked at her handsome date.

"Hello, Bethany. Thank you for giving me the pleasure of taking you out this evening. I was thinking that you might like to take a walk ro the lake after dinner." He told her.

"Is that near Lover's Logoon?" The young woman teased.

Young Mr. Bolt blushed. "Why yes, it is. May I ask how you heard about Seattle's make out spot?"

"Well, if you must know, I heard about it in the Ladies' Quilting Circle at church." Bethany bit her lip.

"Uh huh," Jeremy said taking her arm to lead her down the hall. "I thought you ladies prayed while you made those quilts."

By the time they reached the top of the stairs, they were laughing as if they had known each other for years.

Lottie gave them a table that was somewhat isolated so they would not be in the thick of things. They enjoyed their steak dinners and sipped wine. It was Friday so Bethany did not have school the next day.

After dinner, the couple enjoyed a lovely moonlit walk to the lake. Jeremy had stopped by the cabin briefly to get a blanket. He spread the blanket so they could sit down.

Bethany and Jeremy talked so easily to each other. When she asked him about his family, he told her about Jason and Joshua and his parents. Jeremy told Bethany about his stuttering. She gasped.

Jeremy's heart sank. "I guess you don't want to see me anymore because I stutter." He felt tears stinging his eyes.

"No, Jeremy, you don't understand. I stutter too." Bethany explained.

"Really? I have never met another person who stutters before. I never had anything so personal in common with someone else before. Gosh, I don't know what to think." Jeremy was shocked.

Bethany reached out to touch his cheek. "You truly thought I wouldn't see you anymore because you stutter?"

"Yes, I did. I'm sorry, it's no reflection on you but on the girls who rejected me in the past." Jeremy caressed her cheek.

"How many girls?" The young teacher asked softly as she and Jeremy inched closer to each other.

"Two, I believe. I don't remember their names." Jeremy whispered leaning in to kiss her.

"What a shame for them." Bethany sighed as her lips touched his.

The sweet tender kiss was ecstasy to the young woman. When the kiss ended, Bethany held him close inhaling his scent. To her he smelled of Christmas trees and chocolate cookies.

When they returned to her door at Lottie's, they shared another kiss.

"I had a wonderful time, Jeremy. Thank you for a great evening." Bethany smiled.

"You're welcome, Bethany. I had a great time too. Thank you for accepting my invitation. May I see you again tomorrow night?" He inquired.

"Yes, that will be very nice." She answered. "At seven?"

"Seven, yes" Jeremy smiled.

After they said good night. Jeremy almost ran down the stairs. The last of the saloon customers had left. Lottie was about to lock the door.

Jeremy rushed over to Lottie. Taking her in his arms, he danced around the room humming as they went.

"Jeremy, I love you, but I'm too old to dance this late. Did you have a good time tonight? He was smiling from ear to ear, so she knew the answer or rather she thought she had the answer.

"Lottie, not only did I have a fantastic time tonight, I believe I am falling in love!" Jeremy kissed her cheek before he left.

Lottie stood in the doorway watching the youngest Bolt practically run down the street toward his home. At one point, Jeremy kicked up his heels.

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