Dollie
tells Rachel the news. She tells them about Big Earl's time in the
War, and the fact that she'd had a baby who died before Will was
born.
The
Henrys' cabin was spacious compared to most. It had a large front
room that was kitchen and family room combined. There was a bedroom
for the parents, another for the three girls and a third that Lucius
shared with his younger brothers, Sam and Jacob.
Dollie
puttered around the kitchen and made a pot of coffee. Rachel's one
luxury was a pump at the sink. They might have an outhouse, but they
did have water in the kitchen. It was far more than most had. They
either made do with a pump in the yard or toted water from the creek.
Lucius
sat at the table on a split bottom chair. Head on his hands, elbows
on his knees, he was the most miserable looking human being on earth.
Dollie put her hands on his shoulders, rubbing gently. Wiping his
face with his palms, Lucius straightened up.
"I'm
so sorry about your pa, Lucius. Despite everything, he was a good
man."
"Hell,
I don't know if he was or not, Dollie. All I saw of my father was a
drunken sot who got to be a mean drunk. He never hit my mama, or the
girls, but he smacked us boys a fair bit. He worked this land, but
less each year. I done what I could to help out. Now I gotta figure
how I'm gonna work my job, and this land. One man can't do it all."
"Something
will work out. You do have brothers, you know." She patted him
on the back. "You mustn't fret over it right now. It'll work
out."
Lucius
took her hand, kissing the palm. "One thing I love most 'bout
you, Miss Dollie, is that bright outlook. You always see the sunny
side."
"Someone's
got to." She sat next to him. Taking both his hands, she held
them in her lap. "Too many people look only at the bad. I refuse
to be one of them."
"I
love you, Dollie," he whispered huskily.
Unable
to stop himself, he kissed her. It didn't matter to him that he was
in his mother's house, nor that his father lay dead in the creek
below. All he cared about was showing Dollie how much she meant to
him. A lot would change now that Earl was dead. He couldn't even
begin to imagine how much.
Sitting
on two chairs was awkward. Instead of stopping, Lucius lifted Dollie
onto his lap, kissing her harder and faster. He wanted her with a
burning passion. Part of it, he knew, was his own sorrow. It hurt in
his chest, like an empty, cold void. Earl might not have been much of
a father to him lately, but he had a few good memories. Despite his
faults, he was still his father.
Lucius'
hands got overly familiar, burning through Dollie's clothing. She
suddenly understood what Patty said about loving a man so much,
decorum didn't matter. She wanted something from him that she
couldn't even describe. His hands on her body made her feel giddy,
breathless. Filled with an indescribable need, she let him do
whatever he wanted. When his mouth moved from hers, down her neck to
the top of her dress, she stiffened. Up until then, he hadn't touched
her bare flesh.
It
took Lucius a moment to realize that she wasn't responding as she had
moments before. Instead, she pushed at him. Opening his eyes, he met
her steely gaze.
"What
do you think you're doing?" she demanded.
"Kissing
you, Dollie."
His
mouth was a mere half inch from her chest. His breath tickled and
warmed her, making her melt inside. She shivered and he held her
close, wanting to bury his face between her breasts.
"Not
like this," she gasped. "Not now." She clutched his
head to her, inadvertently placing his face in her cleavage.
Lucius
groaned as she pressed his face to her bare skin. Unable to stop
himself, he licked between her breasts wanting desperately to take
one soft, enticing mound in his mouth. Dollie moaned softly, knowing
she should stop him, but unable to do so. She couldn't describe how
he made her feel. The unfamiliar desire burned hotter.
A
small sound across the room startled them. The door to the girls'
room opened slowly and Sally came out carrying a lamp. She stopped,
surprised to see Lucius and Dollie in the front room. She scratched
and yawned, blinking slowly.
"I
need to pee," she explained.
Dollie
took the little girl to the outhouse. When she was finished, Dollie
brought her back inside. Lucius waited for them a few feet away. He
carried Sally back to bed, tucking her in with a kiss.
"Miss
Dollie," he began as he closed the door.
"Lucius
Henry," Dollie said with a giggle. "After tonight, you got
no call to be so formal."
He
chuckled, dropping his head. "Reckon I'll do it the rest of my
life."
"Even
when we're an old married couple with a passel of young'uns?
Grandbabies and great-grands running around the yard?"
"Reckon
so, Miss Dollie." He smiled, running his hand through his hair.
"I should apologize 'bout how I been behavin'."
"May
be, but I won't let you. Did I act like I minded?"
His
lips twitched as he thought about what they'd been doing. Shaking his
head, he laughed quietly.
"Maybe
I should marry you same time Patty and Will get married," he
teased. "Cause I don't think neither of us is gonna be able to
behave like civilized folks for too long."
©
2019 Dellani Oakes
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