Love Finds You on Christmas Morning (11 page)

“We appreciate the gift basket you brought,” Mrs. Pickard had said. “Don’t think you have to continue bringing us food.”

“That was something my family wanted to do,” he said. “Mom and Nelda, the woman who helps Mom around the house, enjoyed making the baskets. I think it was more fun for them than anything.”

Mrs. Pickard forced a smile and nodded. “It is always fun to give to others if you have something to offer.”

Lillian’s father was sitting in a chair in the corner of the room, bundled up in blankets and reading a book beneath a dim light. He glanced up when William walked in.

William started talking about the weather, which led to farming. When William brought up the fact that his father was expanding some of his crops and livestock holdings, Lillian’s father’s eyes lit up. He’d finally hit on something they could discuss without the conversation being so one-sided.

It didn’t take long to figure out that Mr. Pickard was actually very good with numbers and seemed to have a pretty good head for business. As they discussed specifics about the farm, Mr. Pickard had some excellent suggestions on ordering seed.

“Too bad I didn’t invest in some land when I was younger,” Mr. Pickard said. “If I had, I wouldn’t be sitting here right now, and my daughter wouldn’t be out there in the cold, hard-working world.”

“She’s good at what she does,” William said. “And I think Mr. Joachim treats her well.”

A rattle of the front doorknob caught their attention. He turned his head just in time to meet Lillian’s gaze as she stepped inside.

“Close the door, Lillian,” Mrs. Pickard ordered. “You’re letting all the cold air in.”

Lillian did as she was told. The warmth of seeing her superseded the chill in the tiny house.

William watched as she shrugged out of her scarf and coat. Her hands were red and chapped from the bitter cold. She should be wearing gloves, but he suspected she didn’t have any. If he didn’t think it would injure her pride, he would bring her some. His mom certainly had enough to spare.

“How was your day at work?” he asked. “Is business picking up?”

“It always does right after Thanksgiving.” She crossed the room and stood next to her dad. His heart melted as she placed her hand on the man’s shoulder, leaned over, and asked, “How’s your leg feeling?”

Mr. Pickard shrugged. “It hurt earlier, but ever since Mr. Tronnier and I started talking, I’ve forgotten about it.”

Lillian looked up and met William’s gaze. “I s’pose I owe you my gratitude for whatever you’re saying to take Daddy’s mind off his pain.”

“It’s not me so much as the subject,” William said. “Your father has an excellent mind for business.”

Mr. Pickard straightened in the chair and pushed one of the blankets to the side. “I’ve always had an interest in business, but the opportunity to do anything about it has never come up.”

“Perhaps one day it will,” William offered.

Mr. Pickard chuckled good-naturedly. “I’m afraid it might be too late for me, but I can at least talk about it.”

Lillian cast a curious glance between her father and William. He wanted to ask what she was thinking, but Mr. Pickard spoke before he had a chance.

“Did you find someone to help out in the store?” he asked.

“I think so. She’s coming in on Monday, and Mr. Joachim has given me permission to offer her the job.” Her lips spread into a slight grin as she added, “I’m even going to have some supervisory responsibilities.”

William delighted in her obvious joy. It didn’t appear to take much to make Lillian happy—unlike some women he’d known.

“You’ll be very good at it too, I’m sure,” he said.

Even in the dim lighting he could see her blush. She tucked a stray strand of hair behind her ear in a nervous gesture and glanced over at her father. William turned toward Mr. Pickard and saw that he was thoughtfully watching them.

“Would you like to go for a ride in my automobile?” William asked.

Lillian started to shake her head, but her father spoke up. “That sounds like an excellent idea. Your mama is cooking supper, though, so don’t stay gone too long.”

“But…” Lillian glanced at her father then looked back into William’s eyes. “Yes, that would be very nice, if you can have me back home soon. I’d better talk to Mama first, though.”

“No, I’ll tell her,” Mr. Pickard said as he slowly stood from the chair. William started to reach out to help him but thought better of it. “Go on, you two. Get out of here before I change my mind.”

William extended his elbow. “Shall we?”

“We might be going in your automobile, but I’ll still need my coat. It’s not like you can have a roaring fire in there.”

William chuckled. “You’re right. I wouldn’t want you to freeze to death. There’s also a blanket on the seat; Mom insists I take it with me at all times.”

Lillian was so happy that she was downright giddy. She couldn’t remember ever having such a wonderful time. All her exhaustion seemed to fade the moment she stepped foot inside her house and saw William.

No matter how much she tried to deny it, she liked him way more than she knew was good for her in the long run. But right now, sitting beside him in the automobile, riding through the streets of Cary, she felt as though she didn’t have a thing to worry about. The future would take care of itself.

Finally, after covering most of downtown and crossing back over the railroad tracks, William pulled up in front of her house. He didn’t waste any time getting out and coming around to help her to the ground.

“Thank you for obliging me,” he said as they walked toward the house. “I’ll see you to your door; then I’d best be getting home.”

“I enjoyed it,” she said, doing everything she could to keep her voice from sounding as breathless as she felt.

Lillian had barely opened the door when her mother came toward her, shaking her head. “You are playing with fire, young lady. When your father told me where you went, I told him that was a huge mistake.”

“Maybe so, Mama, but it’s mine to make. I like William. I tried not to, but I can’t help it. He’s so nice.”

Mama placed her hands on Lillian’s shoulders and looked her in the eyes, her face inches from Lillian’s. “That’s what boys like William Tronnier do. They cross the railroad tracks to this side of town to have a little fun, but then when it comes time to settle down with one woman, they go back to their own side and find someone more suited to their station in life.”

Lillian knew Mama was right about most cases, but maybe not this time. William had to be different. He certainly seemed to be.

“Go wash your hands and come to the kitchen for supper. Your daddy has already sat down at the table.”

Washing her hands gave her an opportunity to mentally prepare for any questions her parents might ask. By the time she got to the table, Mama had calmed down considerably, and Daddy had a pleased look on his face.

“So how was the ride?” Daddy asked, a twinkle in his eyes.

“Very nice.” Lillian glanced down at her empty plate before allowing herself to look back up at Mama.

“Like I said when you first got home, this is a dangerous situation. Don’t get used to having all this attention from a man you have no business seeing.”

Daddy reached for Mama’s hand. “Let Lillian enjoy her moment, Helen. It’s not like she’s wanting to run off with the boy.”

Mama opened her mouth but closed it before anything came out. Lillian let out a sigh of relief as she reached for the bowl of beans.

The next morning, Lillian and her parents arrived at church at the regular time. She kept watching the door, hoping to see William. Mama occasionally gave her a look of disapproval.

“Don’t get your hopes up, Lillian,” she whispered. “Remember what I said, or you’ll get hurt.”

Lillian didn’t respond. Instead, she forced herself to turn her attention to the message in the sermon.

Lillian wanted to throw herself across her bed and sob after they got home from church. She didn’t have a good reason, but the disappointment of not seeing William clouded everything around her. Daddy kept winking at her, and that only made it worse.

She helped Mama put together their big meal of the day in the early afternoon. Afterward, she took advantage of a brief warming spell and went for a walk. She heard the occasional sound of an automobile, but each time she looked, she was disappointed to see that it wasn’t William. This was one day she was glad to be finished with.

On Monday morning, she popped out of bed before her alarm clock went off. Mama hadn’t gotten up yet, and since there was no reason to wake her, Lillian went about her business of getting ready in the silence of the sleeping household.

She managed to get all the way to the door to leave when she heard Mama calling after her. “Why are you leaving so early? The store doesn’t open for another hour yet.”

“I want to get ready for our new employee,” Lillian replied. “If you don’t have to be up, why don’t you go back to bed?”

Mama looked at her with sleepy eyes. “Good idea. I didn’t sleep well last night because your daddy was snoring so loud.”

“I’ll be home a little later every evening until after Christmas, so don’t hold supper for me. I can eat whatever is left when I get home.”

She walked out the door and pulled it shut behind her. The store was already unlocked when she arrived.

Mr. Joachim had pulled out another dozen or so boxes and strewn them across the floor, blocking the way to the cash register. He glanced up from the wires he was trying to untangle. “Oh, good. I’m glad you came in early. Here, give me a hand with this. I want to finish getting all these decorations up before we open for customers.”

Instead of preparing what to say to Rose, Lillian spent the next hour decorating the store. They managed to finish everything on time, though, and that gave her some relief. Mr. Joachim took a step back, surveyed everything as he brushed his hands together, and nodded. “Looks very festive, doesn’t it?”

“Yes,” she agreed. “Very festive.”

The bell on the door jingled. She glanced over her shoulder and saw Rose come in. “You said to come back on Monday morning, so here I am. I hope you have some good news for me.”

Mr. Joachim held his hand toward Lillian, gesturing for her to speak. She nodded, walked toward Rose, and extended her hand. “Yes, we have some very good news. We’d like to hire you to work during the Christmas season.”

Rose broke into a smile. “That is such a relief. I need this job.”

“You do realize it’s temporary, right?” Mr. Joachim said. “We’re doing a booming business now, but it will slow way down after Christmas.”

“Yes, sir,” Rose said with a sweet smile.

“Can you start today?” Lillian asked.

“Absolutely, yes!”

Mr. Joachim beamed. “Good. Now why don’t you ladies discuss the job while I go do some paperwork?”

Lillian watched him as he headed back to his office. She’d noticed that he spent less and less time on the sales floor, and she often wondered if he didn’t enjoy waiting on customers. But he’d inherited the store from his father and grandfather, so perhaps he would have rather done something else.

After he was out of listening range, Rose turned to Lillian. “Okay, now why don’t I help the customers while you ring them up?” She scanned the floor. “We must get those boxes out of here. They look absolutely ghastly. While you’re doing that, I’ll tidy up around the cash register and make it look a little nicer.”

Lillian was stunned and started to do what she was told, but then she stopped. Rose had barely been hired, and here she was bossing Lillian around as though she owned the place.

“No, Rose. I don’t know how you did things at your last job back in Raleigh, but you need to learn how we do things here.”

Rose’s forehead scrunched, and she folded her arms. “I just wanted to help make this place look nice.”

“After you learn your job, you can share your ideas. But in the meantime, you’ll need to do what’s needed around here.”

“Just tell me what to do,” Rose said in a tone of exasperation. “Even if it doesn’t make any sense, I’ll do it just to keep you from getting mad.”

“I’m not mad,” Lillian said. “Let’s get through the day, and we can discuss everything after we close the store.”

“Oh, I can’t stay after we close.” Rose thought for a few seconds. “By the way, I might need to leave early today. Mother doesn’t know where I am, so I’ll have to come up with a reason why I won’t be home every day.”

“You didn’t tell your mother you applied for this job?” Lillian asked incredulously.

Rose shook her head. “She’d be appalled at the very thought of her only daughter working at a five and dime.” She lifted her hand and giggled behind it. “And if she knew I was taking the train to work, she’d probably put a padlock on my bedroom door to keep me there.”

“Where does she think you are when you’re not home all day?”

“Oh, just gallivanting around, doing the things girls my age do.”

Lillian was about to comment when someone came into the store. As she helped the customer, she wished she’d had more time to talk to Rose before hiring her. Fortunately, Rose didn’t hold onto her notion of being the boss after Lillian had set her straight.

Mr. Joachim seemed to be pleased with Rose. He came out of his office at various times throughout the day and observed. Rose didn’t disappoint him, either. When she saw him watching, she turned on the charm and made the customers feel as though they were in an exclusive boutique rather than the Five and Dime.

He cornered Lillian when she went to the back to get stock to replenish the shelves. “Maybe we’ll consider keeping her on after Christmas,” he said. “She’s really livened up the place.”

Lillian didn’t let on that Rose’s parents wouldn’t have approved of the job. She wished she knew why Rose was there.

Toward the end of the afternoon, William stopped by. Lillian didn’t even try to hide her joy at seeing him.

“What can I do for you?” Rose said from behind Lillian. “Would you like to see a nice shave set?”

“He’s a friend,” Lillian said.