Soul Dancing with the Brass Band (The Brass Band Series) (6 page)

Nametags would be nice, I thought, as I struggled to remember everyone. As I looked from face to face, it dawned on me that the girls were very similar to the girls in the dorm bathroom back at school. There definitely was not a farmer in the group.

RUTH BEGAN to walk away and grabbed my hand with a gentle tug. “We don’t want to spend our night around that group of girls,” she whispered. “They’re the biggest gossips in town. Let me introduce you to my friends.”

We skirted the edge of the room until we got to a table full of significantly less uptight people.

“Ruth, come on over here and give me a hug. I haven’t seen you in months!” A big bear of a guy grabbed Ruth as she rounded the end of the banquet table and I watched her curl into his embrace. “How the hell are you?”

“Wait a minute, I thought you were my girl?” the next guy waiting in line bellowed at Ruth.

“I’ve missed you too, Clint. How’s your Dad?” Ruth replied, turning into his arms.

As I took a step to follow her, I felt a hand on my arm and turned to see a tuxedo clad young man, who probably stopped traffic on a regular basis.

“Hello, my name is Bennett.” He was tall, muscular and heart stopping. He had a look about him that made me think he was always the first male to reach the new girl in the room, but I was flattered anyway.

“Hi, I’m Hillary a friend of….”

“Ruth’s,” he finished for me. “I saw you come in and run the gauntlet through the greeting line of girls.”

“Yes, that was a lot of fun. Do you know them?”

“All of them, all of my life,” he replied, “some better than others.”

I gave him my flirtiest smile and began to answer the usual questions. All in all, I liked the guy. He was nice, attentive and he seemed willing to entertain me all evening. I noticed Ruth was enjoying herself too as she began to regale her friends with stories from college. It wasn’t long before I heard the group roaring with laughter.

This time I remembered to ask questions. I didn’t want to go home again without knowing about the guy I had spent the evening with. Bennett came from money, very, very old money and lots of it. His family fought for the North during the Civil War and retained property, position and wealth.

“We’ve been military men for centuries,” quickly followed by, “but not me. I’m attending law school first. I’m at Yale, and then I’ll see if the military holds any interest for me. My family historically has done it the other way around… service before law.” He put his arm out for me to take. “Would you like to dance, Hillary?”

Finally, something I felt comfortable doing! I flashed to my years of dancing with my Father and then realized, for someone to dance like Dad was too much to hope for.

“I’d love to dance, Bennett.”

As we walked to the dance floor I could feel everyone in the room watching us. When we finally melted into the crowd, Bennett placed his other hand on the skin exposed by my backless dress and I struggled to keep my composure.

The song was a waltz and he danced wonderfully. My Dad would have been impressed. We moved like we had taken dance lessons together.

“You’re different than the other women here,” Bennett said, and it sounded like it might be a compliment.

You can say that again
, I said to myself while saying to Bennett, “What makes you think that?”

“You seem comfortable in your skin. Tonight isn’t a competition to you.” The song ended and we stood, waiting for the next song to begin.

I smiled and thanked him as I glanced around the dance floor. I noticed for the first time that many girls were looking over their date’s shoulders to peer at Bennett and me.

“Wow, this group has me scared. If I make one wrong move, these girls might attack,” I told Bennett, making him laugh.

When the evening came to a close, Bennett asked if we could see each other again and I said, “I’d like to.”

I spotted Ruth walking toward the exit surrounded by a group of adoring friends, so when Bennett wrapped his arm through mine and escorted me out of the ballroom, I knew she was just ahead of us. He slowed as we approached the hotel’s front entry and directed me off to the side.

“I really had a good time tonight,” he said and bent to kiss me softly. I could feel my heart beating so hard that I was glad my dress was open in the back and not the front. He would surely be able to see my chest pulsing as my heart prepared to explode in my chest. It didn’t help that I could feel the warmth of his hand pressing on the center of my naked back.

“Come on girl!” Ruth suddenly said, tugging at my arm. “You’ll see him again.” She whispered, “Our limo awaits.” I gave Bennett a smile over my shoulder and let myself be pulled away.

“Thanks for saving me. I think I was speechless. I couldn’t think of anything to say to him.”

“What I saw didn’t look like
talking
,” she said as we got into the limo.

I collapsed into the soft leather seats and felt the magic of my princess evening disappearing as I started to drift back into my farmer’s daughter body. “Wow,” I said, “that was like living a different life!”

“Not for me,” Ruth said. “That’s why it was fun to take you. That group gets too self absorbed without a little outside influence to keep them in check.”

It felt like my head hit the pillow just a moment before the alarm clock buzzed. I had the same smile on my face as when I fell asleep. Ruth was snoring about three feet away from me and as usual, we had fallen asleep gabbing, this time about the party. “Come on Ruth, wake up and tell me if you’re holding anything else back. You could have told me you were stinkin’ rich sometime before I pulled up in front of your house.”

“No I couldn’t,” Ruth answered with feigned defiance. “You might not have liked me and you’d never have agreed to come up for a party like that, if I’d told you beforehand.”

“Give me some credit! I would have liked you rich or poor, but you’re right about the party. I’d have been afraid to meet a guy like Bennett. He’s a little above my financial bracket. I don’t know people that come from old money. Where I come from, inheritance means the farm.”

“Okay Hillary, I just couldn’t pass up the chance to see you dressed like that. I knew you’d get some well-deserved attention last night. And the girls are going to have something new to gossip about today,” Ruth laughed as she sat up in bed. “It looked like you and Bennett had a pretty good time, from what I saw!”

“Yeah, I had a great time, but how rich is rich in your group of friends? I can’t imagine how some of these people were raised, in fact how you were raised. I never saw the country club girl in you,” I said as I shook my head trying to make sense of it all.

“I wasn’t here most of the time, only summers. Remember I told you I went to a prep school? I just didn’t say it was a private boarding school on the east coast. Even so, it was a far cry from this life and it kept me a little more grounded than the other folks in this neighborhood.”

“Come on girls, breakfast is ready,” we heard Ruth’s mom call from down the hallway.

“You heard her, Hillary. Just put on one of my robes. It’s just us and Mom today.”

She tossed me a white chenille robe and kicked a pair of slippers out from under the bed in my direction. I threw the robe on as I hurried out the door to keep up with her. I wasn’t about to get lost in Ruth’s house. That would be too embarrassing!

Ruth’s mom reminded me of mine in some ways. She asked if I slept well, if we’d had a good time at the party, but when she gave my breakfast order to the kitchen staff, the similarities ended.

We gossiped about the party through most of breakfast. Ruth described all of the dresses, new relationships and breakups. Then she told her mom about me meeting Bennett.

“Well, is he just as good looking as ever? I don’t think I’ve seen him this summer. How’s he doing at school?” Ruth’s mom asked without taking a breath and would have continued on her roll if Ruth hadn’t interrupted her.

“From what I was able to gather from Clint, because Bennett was
occupied
,” Ruth said with a smirk in my direction, “Bennett's a power house at Yale, top of his class and will probably join his father’s firm after graduation, probably junior partner. But last night he only had eyes for Hillary. You should have seen the girls. They were beside themselves with envy. It was great!”

We barely finished breakfast when the phone rang and Mrs. Witherspoon hurried off to answer it. “Hillary dear, it’s for you,” she said handing me the phone. “He said to get Ruth on the line, too.”

“Okay, Mom,” Ruth said while going to pick up the other extension.

“Hello, this is Hillary,” I said and heard Bennett’s voice in reply.

“Good morning ladies. I’m calling to ask Hillary out to dinner tonight. First, I need to know if that’s all right with you, Hillary and secondly if it is all right with you, Ruth,” Bennett asked very diplomatically.

I saw Ruth giving me an exaggerated motion for “Say Yes.”

“I’d love to, Bennett, if it’s okay with you, Ruth,” I said with a shrug back.

“Pick her up at eight. I guess you can have her for a couple hours, but you’ll owe me, Bennett.” Ruth hit the off button.

“Are you still there, Hillary?”

“Yes, I’m still here.”

“Tell Ruth we’ll be going to the Rozzelle Court Restaurant. I’ll see you this evening then?”

“Yes, I’ll be ready by eight.” Ruth was already hovering over me and I was afraid she was going to make me laugh.

“See you then,” Bennett said and hung up.

“I’m supposed to say we’re going to the Rozzelle Court Restaurant. Is that so you can dress me accordingly?”

“I imagine so, but lucky for you he’s picked a casual place. It’s more comfortable there. No country club onlookers. It’s still early, Hillary; how about a Jacuzzi to relax the old bones?”

A Jacuzzi sounded like heaven. Being in heels the evening before made my feet and my lower back hurt. I thought the jets on my feet would be just the ticket, so we soaked away the afternoon.

Eight o’clock couldn’t have come soon enough. I had begun to feel like
Barbie
the way Ruth had me switching outfits right up until Bennett came. I was trying to hang up the clothes and Ruth kept saying, “Don’t bother.” The pile was getting higher and higher and I wondered who was going to clean up my mess. But in the end, Ruth once again had me looking perfect. I only hoped my feet could take another night in heels.

July 24, 35 AD

My name is Marcus Flavius, a General in the greatest army Caesar has ever sent forth. Rome did not expect the Britons to be such fierce fighters, but that is not my battle. My destiny lay far to the west. I am to assure no Druid survives to see the dawning of another sun.

We have all heard of Hilsbeth, the leader of the Druid warriors, for the Roman soldiers know the names of the ones they fear most. The stories of the strange aberrations that occur while locked in battle with the Druids are whispered around campfires. It is said that soldier’s minds conjure images of mystical foes that become nothing more than smoke and take with it a person’s sanity. I’ve heard the stories myself from sources I trust, which cause me not to doubt them.