Tessa McDermid - Family Stories (30 page)
Read Tessa McDermid - Family Stories Online
Authors: Tessa McDermid
She blinked. His thumbs were stroking her lips and she opened them.
"But what can we do?" Her teaching contract wasn't up until June.
"I've asked to be assigned to the office in Des Moines. It's not the best solution but we can see each other on weekends."
Des Moines. "You have an office in Des Moines?"
"The original branch." He feathered kisses over her cheeks and onto her lips. "I want to make this relationship more permanent, Kate. And if that means I have to move, I'll move."
Her hands slid around his neck. He hadn't mentioned marriage but what could be more permanent?
"My contract is up in June," she said. "That should give us some more options."
His tongue licked around the corners of her mouth. "Right now, let's make up for lost time."
"You look beautiful." Nancy adjusted the veil, then stepped back, smoothing the white train.
Kate clutched her bouquet and stared at the vision in the mirror. "I can't believe this is happening."
"Me, neither." Marcia grinned. She held up a soft blue hand- kerchief. The material was almost paper-thin, the lace at the edges delicate and fragile. "From Grandma, for your 'something blue.' She said Grandpa Frank's sisters gave it to her at her wedding. I told her you already had a penny in your shoe."
"I do, thank you." She tucked the handkerchief into her sleeve. "Aunt Margaret gave me one she brought back from England."
"What about 'something old, something new'? And 'something borrowed'?" Nancy asked. She and Marcia were the bridesmaids, their gowns a deep gold that suited their coloring. "Or is the handkerchief going to double as the old?"
Kate nodded, then lifted her right hand. A bracelet set with sapphires glittered in the sunlight shining through the church windows. "This is for the borrowed. Dad gave it to Mom when I was born." He had given Anne a bracelet for each of their three children, set with their birthstones.
"Oh, Kate!" Tears sparkled in Marcia's eyes.
She blinked rapidly, peering in the mirror at her makeup. "Don't cry, please. I won't make it if you do."
Her emotions had been close to the surface al morning. She'd always dreamed her father would walk her down the aisle. Uncle Alex was doing the honors, and she appreciated having him at her side. Wearing the bracelet her father had presented Anne at her birth brought her dad into the church with her.
"So, what's new, then?"
"What are you, the tradition police?" Kate asked her cousin.
"Just making sure you have everything in place for good luck."
"She's marrying my brother," Nancy reminded them. "That should count."
"I do have something new." Kate gently lifted her hair off her shoulders, showing them the diamond earrings she wore.
"Whoa!" Marcia reverently touched one of the drops. "Where did these come from?"
"I know, I know." Nancy jumped around as much as she could in a long gown and high heels." Ed gave them to you, didn't he?"
"Look at that blush!"
Kate's color intensified at Marcia's teasing. "A gift in celebration of our wedding—and him being made partner."
Marcia's blond head leaned toward Nancy's. "Should we ask for details about this celebrating?"
Kate was saved by the door opening. "The music's starting," her mother said. "Oh, Kate, darling, you look lovely!"
The girls stepped aside, al owing mother and daughter privacy. "I'm so happy for you," Anne said, adjusting the veil, pinching off a leaf from the bouquet, straightening the col ar. "He's a good man."
"He reminds me of Daddy," Kate whispered.
"Oh, honey." Tears shimmered on Anne's lashes. "I wasn't going to cry, at least not until the reception."
Kate kissed her mother's cheek. "Cry al you want. Just as long as they're tears of joy. Because I'm sure I couldn't possibly be happier."
Her mother led her to the door. "Just wait until you have children," she promised. "Then the world won't be big enough for al your joy."
*****
G.G. was alone in the sunroom, a magazine upside-down on her lap. Hannah approached slowly and dropped to one knee in front of the wheelchair. "G.G.," she said in a quiet voice.
"Oh, Hannah." G.G. tugged at the lap rug covering her legs. "How nice to see you." She sounded more agitated than pleased.
"I don't want to upset you again," Hannah said quickly. "But could I talk to you about your marriage? Not the party. About you and Grandpa Frank."
"Hannah—" G.G.'s fingers plucked at the pattern on the blanket.
"Shh." Hannah covered the worn fingers with one hand. "Give me a minute. Please?"
She waited and when G.G. didn't pul away or show any other signs of wanting her gone, she started talking.
"You and Grandpa Frank had problems off and on. You even separated once or twice."
She patted her great-grandmother's hand, calming the fluttering fingers. "It's okay. Everybody has problems.
Mom and Dad argue, and I've seen Aunt Margaret get mad at Uncle Alex. Preston and I are always fighting."
But this vacation had brought her closer to her brother. She'd been willing to overlook some of his idiosyncrasies and she had a feeling he'd done the same thing with her.
"That's what happens when two people care about each other. Mom always says you can't have the highs without the lows." She settled back on her heels, keeping her gaze on G.G.'s face. "The thing is, you and Grandpa Frank didn't cal it quits. You didn't let the lows overshadow the highs. You kept working out your differences, you came back together instead of staying apart. You lived your wedding vows. And because of that, I'm sitting here today."
She rubbed the back of G.G.'s hand, feeling the veins, the wrinkles, the evidence of a life lived long. History was in those hands. A history she shared.
"If it upsets you that much, we won't have a party. But you're a hero to us, G.G. Look what you gave to your daughters. Grandma Anne's love of family. Aunt Margaret's way with words. Aunt Alice's determination. That's al from you, G.G."
G.G. was watching her, and Hannah knew she had her attention. She took a deep breath. This would be her last chance to make her point.
"You and Grandpa Frank stayed together for seventy-five years. You created a family and that deserves a celebration. I know you had a big party for your sixtieth anniversary. But now there's a whole new generation to celebrate. Nothing fancy this time. Just dinner, maybe, with the people who owe their existence to you."
G.G. let out a long sigh and then reached over, tapping Hannah on the chin. "You're as stubborn as your mother."
"That came from you, too, G.G. And Grandpa Frank. You stayed together, for richer or poorer, for better or worse." She paused.
"I notice you didn't add 'until death do us part’ G.G.'s voice was dry, the words said in her matter-of-fact tone.
Hannah relaxed a fraction. "This is a time to celebrate the living." She didn't want to think about the future. It would come soon enough.
G.G. wrapped her fingers around Hannah's hand. "When you get to my age, Hannah, you stop counting birthdays and anniversaries. It's enough to get up every day and see the sun shining."
Her hand curled more tightly around Hannah's and she relished the feel of G.G.'s warm fingers. "We'll have a smal party," G.G. said, her voice resigned. "Just the family." She tilted her neck and fixed Hannah with the firm gaze that had stopped little girls in their naughty tracks.
Hannah didn't flinch. She had tough blood in her veins. "Dinner for the family," she agreed. A burst of happiness flared to life. She had succeeded.
*****
"I convinced her that she and Grandpa Frank had lived their wedding vows. That they were an inspiration to the rest of us."
"Wel , I'm very impressed. I thought she'd given up celebrating any day that reminded her of her age."
Hannah stared at her grandmother. "You knew that was why she didn't want a party?"
Grandma Anne raised one shoulder in a ladylike shrug. "I wondered. It's not easy to think about them being gone."
Hannah nodded. She missed Grandpa Richard and she only had stories to bring him alive for her. Grandpa Frank and G.G. had been part of her whole life.
And they were here now, quietly celebrating a marriage that had impacted al of them.
She grabbed an hors d'oeuvre from the plate her brother carried. He frowned and she popped the stuffed mushroom into her mouth with a big grin.
She waved a hand around the crowded room. The guest list had been restricted to the three sisters and their families, but that stil constituted a large group.
"We're al here because Grandpa Frank decided to stop at a smal -town minister's house one day and try for a sale. Just think what would've happened if he hadn't gone to Winston." She bit her lip. "Or what wouldn't have?"
Anne kissed the top of Hannah's head. "You're a very smart young lady."
Hannah glanced at her great-grandparents. Grandpa Frank had wheeled G.G. away from the group, into a quiet corner. Sunlight gilded her white hair, the curls that had been styled especial y for the evening. He bent down, his lips lightly touching her cheek. G.G. lifted her hand and cupped his jaw, her wedding band sparkling in the light.
In that moment, Hannah grasped completely why they were stil together. When Frank looked at Marian, al the years fel away, taking with them the troubles, the fights, the disappointments. To him, she was forever eighteen, standing in the sunlight, her hair golden, her blue eyes alight with laughter and mischief.
Hannah leaned against the back of the couch. Someday, she thought, if I'm very lucky, someone will look at me that way. And I'll tel him the story of Frank and Marian and the love they shared for seventy-five years.
The Present
Hannah loaded the dishwasher, turning it on before going into the living room of her apartment. She picked up a framed photograph from the end table and sat down on the couch.
"So, G.G., Grandpa Frank, what do you think?" she asked out loud. "He's a great guy, isn't he? He hasn't asked me yet but I'm pretty sure we're getting married."
She smiled at the young couple in the picture. Their clothing placed them in the early 1930s, decades before the frame had been created. She couldn't recal when she'd started talking to them about her dates. Somehow, it was important to have their opinion and this was the best she could do now that they were both gone.
"You'd like him, Grandpa. He's smart. Works with computers. He helps businesses like yours, keeping them up-to-date with their technology."
She nestled into the cushions, a grin on her face. "He's very handsome, G.G. His kisses..." She sighed. "We're going to be very happy."
She placed the photo back on the table and tapped the glass. "Seventy-five years, G.G. That's my goal.
Nothing less. It'll be hard work but we can do it. You showed me how."
