Ready to Wed (13 page)

“But, Jane,” said Alice gently. “With God, all things are possible.”

Thursday night, Jane lay in bed thinking about her conversation with Alice. Could Justin really be thinking about reconciling? Jane’s memories of the last months of their marriage were not happy ones. But as she stared at the ceiling, she allowed her mind to go back once again to the happy times.

Soon after Jane had said an enthusiastic, “Yes, yes,” to Justin’s proposal, they began to discuss wedding plans. Jane naturally thought that they would return to Acorn Hill for a ceremony with her family, perhaps even with her father officiating, but Justin reminded her of their busy schedules and
lack of funds, convincing her that a simple local wedding made more sense. And so she reluctantly agreed. The restaurant was scheduled to be closed for renovations, and Justin felt this unexpected “vacation” provided a perfect opportunity for their wedding. Unfortunately, it wasn’t a perfect opportunity for her family. None of them was able to drop everything and make the cross-country trip to see her wed.

Jane and Justin said their vows in a lovely garden with mutual friends. She wore a gauzy white dress with a circlet of fragrant jasmine blooms in her hair, and Justin wore a charcoal blazer and pale gray pants. The staff from the restaurant where they worked catered a small reception. While all this was nice, sweet and simple, it was nothing like Jane had dreamed of as a girl.

She had always imagined herself walking down the aisle of Grace Chapel on the arm of her father, her sisters in attendance. For years she had made sketches of wedding dresses, of bridesmaids’ gowns that would suit her sisters, and intricate descriptions of floral arrangements. She felt sad about her family not attending, and about the informality of her wedding but reminded herself that the marriage was the most important, not the extras that surrounded it. And Justin promised that they’d visit Acorn Hill as soon as they had enough time and money to make the trip.

They moved from their single apartments to the top
floor of a three-family home. Jane loved it. It had a little enclosed porch on the front of the house, and they were entitled to use the spacious backyard. They had great fun combining their sparse collections of furniture and buying simple accessories to tie everything together. Justin was in awe of Jane’s ability to make the apartment homey and distinctive. He loved her artwork and carefully hung her paintings throughout the four rooms. There were windows on all sides, and the golden oak floors glowed with warmth. The combination of modern furnishings, colorful area rugs, and Jane’s artwork was charming. On days off, they enjoyed entertaining or experimenting with recipes in their tiny but efficient kitchen.

Looking back on those days, Jane recalled how small problems grew increasingly larger. Justin could be impatient and somewhat selfish, and she often deferred to him, thinking that’s what a wife should do. But over time he took unfair advantage of that deference and eventually became quite controlling. If a culinary experiment at home was successful, Justin would rush to the restaurant and try it there, never giving Jane credit for her input. He might have been generous with his praise of Jane’s art and decorating, but he was stingy with compliments when it came to cooking.

He also began treating her as a sous-chef rather than his equal at the restaurant. And because he took credit for
all their innovations, he received their boss’s praise and eventually a substantial increase in salary. Friction between them increased, and before long he suggested she leave the restaurant and pursue painting instead. He was not pleased when she told him that cooking, not art, was her main passion. Shortly after that, a friend told Jane that the Blue Fish Grille needed a new chef. Jane hoped that switching to another restaurant might smooth things over with Justin. Not only that, but it would give both of them a much-needed break from being together day in and day out. And for a while, her move to the Blue Fish appeared to resolve their marital problems. At least on the surface.

Chapter Ten

J
ane took advantage of the continued sunshine on Friday, working happily in her garden for several hours after breakfast. She almost felt like her old self again as she puttered away. It was truly amazing how such a small amount of fair weather had perked up all her plants and flowers, as if they’d simply been waiting for the right moment to pop out and put on a cheerful springtime show.

“Your garden looks lovely, Jane,” said Belle as she came over to where Jane was brushing off a metal table and chair set that she planned to place near the flower garden.

“Thank you,” said Jane, standing up straight. “Don’t you look pretty, Belle.” Today Belle had on a lavender warm-up suit. It looked far too nice for actual athletic activity, and her sneakers, also lavender, did not appear to be designed for running.

“I thought I’d be more casual today,” said Belle. “I think sometimes I can intimidate folks, but I’m just one of those girls who like to dress up.” She chuckled. “Even when
I was itty-bitty, my mama said that I would throw a fit if my clothes weren’t coordinated. If I had on a pink dress, my socks and everything else had to be pink too. Isn’t that silly?”

Jane smiled. “I guess it’s just the way God makes us. We’re all wired differently.”

“And you must be wired to create beauty,” said Belle. “Goodness gracious, Jane, it seems that everything you touch turns out to be pretty. I had no idea that you were the one who did most of the interior decorating for the inn. Louise just informed me. I’m hoping that when I get married and settle down in Acorn Hill, you’ll bring some of your expertise my way and help me to set up a beautiful home too.”

“I’m happy to give you decorating tips,” said Jane cautiously. “But I find that couples need to be in agreement about things like color and style, or decisions can get tricky, especially with newlyweds. Speaking of which, any idea who the lucky guy is yet?”

“No, not really,” Belle looked embarrassed as she waved her hand, almost as if the groom were inconsequential. “Although I must admit I do have my favorites.”

Jane was tempted to ask who, but figured she could probably guess. At least it appeared that Lloyd Tynan was not on the short list. Belle had entertained Jane and her sisters during breakfast, telling them about bingo and how everyone
there seemed quite curious as to her relationship with Lloyd, as well as the whereabouts of Ethel. “Why you’d have thought I’d murdered the poor woman and buried her out back in the garden,” Belle had told them. Fortunately, for Ethel, it sounded as if everything was clarified before the evening ended. Lloyd made it perfectly clear to everyone, including Belle, that his loyalties remained with Ethel. And Alice even made a special point to go over to the carriage house and share this happy news with their aunt following breakfast.

“Are those tulips?” asked Belle, pointing to the rainbeaten blooms that were trying to resurrect themselves.

“Yes. Sadly, they haven’t enjoyed the weather much. Usually, they would be over by now, but it’s been a cold spring.”

“That reminds me,” said Belle. “I got to thinking that maybe I could hire you to help with my wedding. I know you’re friends with Craig and all, and you have such a knack for decorating. Would you be interested, Jane?”

Jane didn’t know how to respond. It seemed ridiculous to plan for a wedding that might not even happen. Still, she didn’t want to hurt Belle’s feelings. “I suppose I could help,” she said weakly.

“Oh, that would be splendid!” Belle clapped her hands. “Now, the main thing is there must be lots of pink.”

Jane nodded as if this were a new concept with Belle. “Pink.”

“Yes. As long as it’s pink and pretty, I know I will love it.”

“Well, that’s simple enough. However, I think you should know that Craig will need to order your flowers at least a week in advance. And considering that next weekend is Memorial Day weekend, that might be cutting it close, Belle. Are you sure you want to take the risk of ordering expensive flowers before you even know who the groom is going to be?”

“Oh, Jane, it’s not a risk, not when God is doing the planning. I simply need to walk in faith. God will provide when the time is right.”

“Okay then.” Jane turned her attention back to the table, giving it a halfhearted scrub with the brush.

“Well, I know you have things to do, and I wanted to take a little walk through town, so I’ll leave you to it.”

“Enjoy,” called Jane. She couldn’t help but shake her head as she returned to her task.

Finally, it was past noon, and Jane knew she should make her way back inside, clean herself up and get busy with other household tasks. She had a lot to do to get ready for the full house that Louise expected for the weekend. Shopping, baking, some flower arrangements—all things she loved to do. Besides, being busy was a relief to her. It gave her less time to obsess over Justin and why he was coming to see her, a concern that was becoming more and more difficult to push into the recesses of her mind.

“Jane,” Louise’s voice called from the front hall later that afternoon.

“In the kitchen,” called Jane.

“Oh, I’m glad you’re back,” said Louise.

“Everything okay?” asked Jane as she put a package of butter in the fridge.

“Well, I, uh …”

Jane closed the door and turned to look at her sister. She was not accustomed to hearing Louise flustered like this. “What is it, Louise?”

“Well,” Louise actually wrung her hands. “I don’t know how to say this.”

“Please,” commanded Jane, “just say it.”

“Well, Justin called.”

“Oh.” Jane felt a strange mixture of relief, curiosity and irritation. She tried to imagine what she thought Louise had been about to say—probably something terrible, like Alice had been in a car wreck. Somehow the news that Justin had called didn’t seem quite as catastrophic as Louise’s expression suggested.

“You were out, so I asked if I could take a message. When he identified himself, I was quite taken aback.”

“Understandably.” Jane returned to unloading groceries, a good way to avoid Louise’s penetrating gaze.

“He said he’d sent you a letter and wondered if you’d received it.”

“I did.”

“Indeed. Well, I was unable to confirm that information because you didn’t mention it to me.”

“I was going to, Louise.” Jane heard the trace of irritation in her own voice and regretted it.

“Nonetheless,” Louise sighed, “Justin asked if I could reserve a room for him for Memorial Day weekend.”

Jane spun around and looked at her sister. “You didn’t, did you?”

“Well, I was so surprised, Jane. I really didn’t know what to say. Perhaps if you had given me some warning I might have reacted better.”

“You gave him a reservation?” asked Jane. “To stay here? In the inn? To sleep under the same roof that I do? To invade my personal—”

“I’m so sorry, Jane. As soon as I hung up the phone I knew it was a mistake.”

“Did he leave you a number, so you could call him back?”

“No.” Louise sadly shook her head. “He said he was on the road.”

“Just great.” Jane ran her fingers through her hair in frustration.