For Keeps (Aggie's Inheritance) (5 page)

“
Aw, Cari. You’re a pest all right, but a nice pest,
”
Tavish reassured her, unaware that his compliment was quite backhanded.

Eager to diffuse the situation before it became one, Aggie said,
“
Vannie, I can’t wait to see what you and Tina found today. You’ll have to show me right after dinner. I know what good taste Tina has. Whenever I need something new, I always ask her what she suggests.
”

“
We only found one shirt and a pair of saddle shoes. The shirt will go with anything, but I’m not sure about the shoes. I just loved them, and since we hadn’t found anything else, I decided to get them.
”
Dejection, exhaustion, and irritation laced Vannie’s voice.

Aggie glanced at Tina, confused.
“
It was ridiculous, Aggie. Everything in the stores that fit was either too mature for her or too indecent for anyone. I took her to eve
ry store in the Eastbrook Mall and
half a dozen down by Boutique Row, and the only one down there that had anything was Boho Chic, but you have to order from them. Since I wasn’t sure, I didn’t buy anything there, but I did write down the styles and sizes we liked in case you decide to go for it.
”
With a look of utter disgust, she added,
“
Don’t even get me started on the jeans. I thought the low-slung, squeeze your rear into an odd shape fad was grotesque. Skinny jeans are a million times worse.
”

Aggie frowned.
“
Tina, you own about a million pairs of them!
”

“
Well, they’re going in the garbage. It’s amazing how you see things in a new light when you see them on other people.
”

Shrugging, Aggie turned to Vannie.
“
Where did Allie buy your clothes? Didn’t those stores have anything?
”

Vannie shook her head.
“
Mom usually just bought fabric and made them or had Mrs. Gansky make them when she couldn’t do it herself.
”
A new look brightened Vannie’s eyes.
“
Last summer, I made a couple of skirts at Mrs. Gansky’s house. Those were fun.
”

“
I didn’t know Allie knew how to sew,
”
Aggie mused thoughtfully. It wasn’t the first time she’d learned something about her sister and wondered how she hadn’t known. She’d spoken to or instant messaged Allie every day for years. How had she missed so much of her sister’s life?
“
I guess we should call Boho. Did they say how long the clothes take?
”

“
They have a six week backlog right now…
”

Tina’s news wasn’t what Aggie needed to hear.
“
Great, now what do I do?
”

Luke grinned.
“
It seems to me, you have one solution. You’ll have to learn to sew.
”
A roguish twist to his grin gave him a taunting look as he added,
“
Or, should I say
seams
? S-e-a
--”

“
Ha, ha. Very funny,
”
Aggie retorted.
“
If you’re so clever, you make the girl’s wardrobe.
”

Aggie’s threat was lost amid Tina’s titters and Laird’s guffaw, and even Vannie cracked a smile that seemed to draw her out of her clothing misery. Seeing that Aggie wasn’t amused, Tina tried to mollify her friend a bit.
“
We did manage to find her underthings and a pair of athletic shoes. She said hers were too small, and she’d need them for gym.
”

“
I just need clothes, Aunt Aggie. Everything is too short, too tight, and what Mom called ‘seedy.’
”

Shoulders slumped, Aggie turned to Vannie and asked,
“
Did we bring the sewing machine, Vannie? Do you know how to run it?
”

“
Wha
--”
Tina looked stunned and then shook her head.

The transformation in Vannie
amazed
the three adults at the table. It was evident that the child not only knew something about sewing, but she actually enjoyed it.
“
The sewing machine and serger are in my closet. I also have a few of the pieces of fabric Mom was going to make up for me before…
”
For the first time in weeks, when Vannie mentioned something her mother would never do again, the child didn’t dissolve into a fit of weeping. Instead, through unshed tears, her eyes shone with budding excitement.

“
Ok, do you know enough about sewing to prevent me from ruining your clothes? Can you operate that thing? Show me how?
”

Vannie nodded as Luke interjected,
“
You know, if you need help, Mom sews nearly everything for her, the girls, and their girls.
”

“
She does?
”
Aggie tried to remember what she’d seen Libby wear. Whatever it was, it hadn’t screamed
“
homemade,
”
so that had to be a good sign
--
she hoped.

“
Yep. She’s pretty handy with a machine. Whenever she wants to go somewhere or buy something special, she takes in a little sewing
--
usually around school formal times. Those girls always want something unique. I guess it’s social suicide to arrive at a prom wearing a dress that some other girl at the prom is wearing.
”

“
Well, duh!
”
Tina insisted.
“
That’s a cardinal rule of surviving the American educational system. Be individual or die.
”

“
Just make sure you’re individually exactly the same as everyone else,
”
Aggie added.

Laird’s voice, laced with disgust, interrupted the social commentary around him.
“
I’m so glad I am not a girl.
”

“
Why is that, Laird?
”
Luke was sure the boy would comment on the pressures of modern society on young women, the expectations regarding beauty, or something equally lofty.

He laughed with the rest of them, mostly at his own folly in expecting so much out of an eleven-year-old boy, when Laird said,
“
Because we just go to a store, buy jeans, a few shirts, and we’re done. Girls have to get all fussy with their clothes.
”

“
Spoken like a man,
”
Aggie said, disgustedly.

Luke punched a fist in Laird’s direction, and nodded.
“
Welcome to manhood, son.
”

~*~*~*~

As Tina soaked in the tub, resting her aching feet, Vannie and Aggie flipped through boxes of patterns that Vannie carried down from her closet. The boxes were full of everything from basic tops, skirts, and dresses, to vintage classics and more recent trendy options. At one time, they seemed to have been sorted by size, but now several odd sizes were tucked into groups, requiring a resorting of the lot. As they sorted, Aggie watched Vannie pull a few favorites out of the stacks.

By the time Tina joined them, the living and dining room seemed carpeted in patterns. Aggie stacked patterns by age and then by degree of perceived difficulty. Her mind was engrossed in trying to plan wardrobes for her five girls. So focused was she on her task that the idea of being able to purchase something appropriate for the younger girls didn’t even occur to her. Instead, she plowed through her ideas, making lists as she went.

“
So, do I keep the Boho information, or…
”

“
Can you call tomorrow and order four outfits? I’m not confident that this will all look ok. Knowing that something is coming would help keep me from freaking out when I sew a sleeve to a skirt or something.
”

“
Remember your half inside-out pillow with the seams on the outside?
”

“
Don’t remind me. Ms. Slade hung it in her class all week as a ‘testimony to the futility of some people trying to learn anything of practical use.’
”

When Tina’s cell phone rang, she waved goodnight and closed herself into the library, talking to her father about plans and developments at the Milliken-Stuart household. Vannie yawned and said goodnight as well, but Aggie returned to her stacks of patterns and tried to find reasonably cute options that looked the least work
-
intensive. Lost in her own world of fabric, notion, and trim requirements, she jumped when hands closed over her eyes, and a voice said,
“
Working hard?
”

“
Aaak! William! You scared me!
”

A glance over the back of the couch proved that he wasn’t in the least bit contrite.
“
What are you doing now, Naggie Aggie?
”

“
Learning to sew. Want to teach me?
”
She whacked him with a pattern for emphasis.

“
I think I’ll pass.
”
He moved a stack of patterns from one section of the couch and sank into the cushions.
“
Um, Aggie, on second thought, do you think it’s safe?
”

“
Do I think what is safe?
”
Confusion made her nose wrinkle.

“
You and a sewing machine.
”

“
Very funny
,
Mr. Markenson. If you’re not nice to me, I’ll sic a nice social worker I know on you.
”

William widened his eyes in mock despair.
“
Oh, save me from the evil neighbor who, by the way, is having a very difficult time living down your nickname for her.
”

“
She earned it,
”
Aggie retorted dryly.
“
Anyway, I bet she could teach you some manners.
”

He didn’t respond other than to smile at her silliness. Aggie watched as he leaned back against the back of the couch, ankle resting on his knee, and his hands laced together behind his head. As each second passed, she saw him visibly relax until he looked as at home and comfortable as any man could desire, and she wondered how long it would be before he no longer had to work to feel comfortable in her home without painful memories of his past intruding into his present.