At breakfast the next morning, everyone was tense. Jack ate his breakfast in fuming silence. Ruby smiled quietly, her eyes glimpsing her mother's objects around the house—which Jo kept out, despite Jack's warning. But Ruby quickly snapped her eyes back to the table when she caught her father watching her. Even Tommy, who spoke almost continuously from dawn to dusk, only said a few words.
When Jack left to ready the horses and wagon for their journey to the picnic that day, he took the heavy tension with him, and everyone in the house lightened.
"Why is Daddy angry?" Tommy asked.
"Because Jo took out Momma's things," Ruby said, her finger rubbing the base of one of the candlesticks.
"But why does that make him angry? Aren't her things pretty? They look pretty. And look! There's a portrait of Momma." Tommy gently pulled a small framed portrait of his mother from the wall. "Can I keep this in my room? Just for a little while."
Jo looked to Ruby.
"Put it on the nightstand between our beds. Then we can both see it," Ruby said.
Tommy skipped to the back of the house, clutching the frame to his chest.
"How did it go at James's yesterday?" Jo asked, gathering the dishes from the table.
"Awful."
Gone was the newly transformed Ruby. She'd braided her hair on either side of her head and put on a plain dress, back to her old self.
"But you looked so beautiful."
Ruby muttered something.
"I can't hear you, Ruby."
"He laughed at me. Okay?"
"Why in the world would he do that?" Jo pressed her hand to her chest, surprised by this revelation. It made no sense. Ruby had been the picture of beauty. The dress had accentuated her small waist and full hips, and even exposed a touch of cleavage.
"He told me I shouldn't play dress up. I looked like a clown."
"Then he's a fool," Jo said, disgusted at James. "You're beautiful."
Ruby shrugged and walked out of the room, leaving Jo to finish the dishes and wonder why James would be so unkind to Ruby. It's how a brother would treat a sister, not a beau his girl.
After the morning chores, Jo changed into a delicate blue floral dress and dressed Tommy in his Sunday best. Ruby refused to wear anything but her dingy brown dress, and kept her hair in those ridiculous braids. James may not appreciate Ruby, but there might be other young men in the town who would. Still, Ruby refused any help from Jo.
Jack pulled the wagon around and hoisted Tommy into the back next to Ruby. Jo waited for Jack to help her into the front, but he climbed on, leaving Jo to hoist herself onto the seat.
With a flick of his wrist, Jack beckoned the horses forward, and they were off to the town church where the picnic was held. On the ride, Tommy talked continuously about the event. The townsfolk would plan for the upcoming harvest and share their resources. Merchants and traders sold their wares. Mrs. Willis—who ran the general store—would sell her horrible applesauce. Kids would run around and make a mess of the picnic blankets. There’d be a small stage and a band and singing and dancing. Everyone brought a basket of food to eat, but Lucy always had the best desserts.
“Usually we starve at the picnics.” Tommy took a breath from his ramblings. “But Ruby didn’t cook, so I think I’ll be able to stomach the food.”
“Well, thank you, Tommy,” Jo laughed. “But that wasn’t very nice to say about your sister.”
“She doesn’t care. She knows her cooking stinks.”
Ruby stared out at the passing landscape, not commenting.
“And uh . . .” Tommy squished his forehead, thinking. “I think that’s it.” He collapsed against the side of the wagon and let out a deep sigh, exhausted. Jo laughed at his dramatics.
In the silence that followed, Jo was keenly aware of the tension emanating from the man sitting beside her. Jack snapped the reins and Jo flinched. They'd avoided each other all morning and hadn't spoken a word about what had occurred in the late hours of the prior evening. It felt like a magnetic curtain rested over Jo, which buzzed to life every time Jack moved, sighed, or did anything.
"What's the matter with you, stink face?" Tommy poked his sister. It was a long ride into town, and Tommy was never good at sitting still.
"Shut up, Tommy."
Jo turned in her seat as they bumped along the dirt road. "Don't bother your sister."
"Why? What's wrong?" Jack turned around to look at his daughter sitting in the back with her knees to her chest. In the process, Jack’s thigh pressed against Jo’s leg, and her every nerve whirred to life.
"It's nothing," Jo said, surprised her voice was steady with all the fireworks bouncing back and forth inside her.
"It's not nothing." Ruby hugged her knees. "I don't think James wants to be my beau anymore."
Jack turned to Jo and looked her in the eyes for the first time that day. A deep blush crept up her neck, and she popped her parasol open to cover her body’s reaction. "I'm guessing this has to do with you."
"I let Ruby borrow one of my dresses when she called on James yesterday. She looked lovely. He was a fool to not notice." Jo crossed one arm over her belly, protecting the anxiety that churned inside when Jack gave her a black look.
"Maybe now you'll learn to mind your own business."
"Don't you put this on me," Jo snapped.
"Well, if you'd stop trying to change everyone, no one would get hurt."
"James is an idiot if he didn't fall to the ground and worship Ruby the minute she walked in the door. If she wants to be taken seriously as a lady, she needs to dress like one."
Jack snorted. "We're simple people, Jo. We don't live in a sophisticated”—he snarled the word—"city like your Manhattan. The women here are hard workers and have no reason to get dressed up."
"She wasn't going to James's house to plow his fields. She went for a social visit. The dress was appropriate."
"It was awful! I looked like a fool!" Ruby cried out. Her head fell in her hands, and she began to cry softly.
Quietly, so only Jo heard, Jack said, "I told you I know what's best for my family. Now look at the mess you made."
"Change is never easy," Jo said. "But it's usually necessary."
They hit a rock and the wagon bounced. Jo's hand reached out for purchase and grabbed Jack's thigh.
"Sorry," she murmured and snatched it back. His eyes stayed glued to the dirt road, but she saw a slight blush in his cheeks.
"Why is everyone acting funny?" Tommy asked. "Are you mad at us, Jo?"
Jo turned and tousled his hair. "You could never make me angry, Tommy."
He smiled and turned back around. Jo let out a yelp as they went over another hole in the road, but kept her hands in her lap. The constant up and down was making her already sore backside ache. She shifted in her seat and rubbed the side of her buttocks.
Jack’s gaze flicked to her hand moving back and forth, and the wagon hiccupped and glided off the road. Jack quickly shifted the reins, and the horses trotted back to the road and onward to the picnic.
Lively music rolled up and over the small hill they crested as they approached a small white church. Wagons lined the side of the road and horses grazed on the grass under their hooves. Women and men wandered the grounds mingling or sat on quilts laid on the short grass. Children ran playing and laughing in the open field next to the church, and a wood platform was set up where the small band of musicians played and couples and children danced.
Lucy and Will sat on a blanket near the stage and waved them over. Jack laid out their quilt, and they settled in next to the couple. Jo noted Lucy and Will didn't have any children, but didn't ask why. They were older, in their early thirties, and should have at least a few children by now.
Ruby took Tommy and they fell into a game of tag with the older children as Will and Jack went to speak to some of the other gentlemen and get the women ice tea.
"What's going on with Ruby?" Lucy asked.
"Well, I'm not sure what your thoughts will be on all this, but I'm afraid I've overstepped. I loaned Ruby one of my dresses and did her hair up when she visited James yesterday. But she said he laughed at her. I thought he was meant to be her beau? I don't understand it. But now I'm the enemy."
Lucy shook her head. "James and Ruby have been a match since she was born. Neither one of them has ever really had a say in it. Ruby adores James, but I think James is going through the motions of what’s expected of him. I always hoped that when Ruby matured, James would see what a gem she is. But she resists womanhood, and I’m not sure why."
Jo watched Ruby running around with the children. The girls and boys who were closer to her age mingled at the edge of the picnic, laughing and eating. There was a stark contrast between them and Ruby, and it became more apparent to Jo how much of a child Ruby still was.
“Could it have to do with her mother dying in childbirth? Perhaps she’s afraid to grow up in case that is her fate.”
“That could be part of it. Jenny’s death was a shock to everyone,” Lucy said, smoothing her honey-brown hair back from her face. “But I think it has more to do with Jack. He tries his best, but he’s not a replacement for a mother’s gentle guidance into womanhood.”
“Has she ever come to you for advice?” Jo asked, but Lucy was already shaking her head.
“Will and I were never blessed with kids, so what could I say?” Bitterness laced Lucy’s words, and Jo dropped it.
“Coming here may have been a mistake.” Jo squeezed her eyes shut and massaged her forehead.
“Has Jack been unkind? He’s rough sometimes but has a good heart.”
Jo’s cheeks flushed, and she took a plate and fanned herself, hoping to cover the blush. "I don’t think he likes me. He certainly isn’t happy at what my brother did. Not that I blame him. I’m working hard to make his life easier, but he’s determined to fight me at every turn. And . . .”
Jo paused. She wanted to mention the spankings and the new and strange feelings that stirred inside, but she worried Lucy would be stunned by her confessions. Instead Jo said, “And to make matters worse, Ruby seems to think James is keen on me. But I've only met him once. He hasn’t had time to form an attachment."
"My dear, you underestimate the intoxication of newness. We don't get a lot of visitors in these parts. You're an exotic creature." Lucy swept her hand around the picnic. "See how they stare? Both the men and the women."
Around the lawn eyes were cast in Jo’s direction, heads tilted low in conversation. "I feel like an animal in the Central Park Zoo."
"To them, that's exactly what you are. Something to gawk at. And fear."
Jo laughed. "Why should they fear me?"
"Because they don't trust you. You're different. And different is scary." Lucy leaned forward in confidence. "And because you’re a beautiful woman of marrying age staying with the town's most sought-after bachelor."
Jo gaped at Lucy. "They have nothing to worry about. I have no interest in Mr. Harrington, except as a guardian who can give me a warm place to stay and honest work. Besides, he barely looks at me."
"Oh, I see how he doesn't look at you. A man that works that hard to keep his eyes away from you must want to look very badly."
"Jack never told me how mischievous you are, Lucy." Jo and Lucy fell into each other laughing. How refreshing it was to chat and gossip with a friend. Jo hadn't realized how much she missed female companionship. She’d hoped to find it with Ruby, but it was an uphill battle. The friendship with Lucy came effortlessly.
"But you have made a difference. Even if Jack can't see it yet. When he visits Will at our farm he’s more relaxed, like a burden has been lifted. I know you're working hard, learning how to care for the animals, and finally taking care of that mess of a home. I don't think Jack even remembered what it was like to have a home filled with heart and how safe that can feel."
If that was true, then perhaps Jack would forgive Jo for overstepping with his wife’s things. She had only done it for Ruby's benefit. And for Tommy. Jo would've been doubly heartbroken if her brother had hidden away all her mother's treasures. When her mother died, Jo slept with her housedress for months, until the sweet smell of her mother faded. But even then, Jo kept it close for comfort. Just looking at it made her feel closer to her mother's memory.
A blonde woman with rosy cheeks and a wide smile on her face approached. She wore a blue dress that brought out her cerulean eyes and swung from side to side with every step.
"That's Sandy. She's very fond of Jack." Lucy stood and shook the woman's gloved hand. "Sandra Woodley, may I introduce Miss Josephine Taylor. She's a family friend staying with the Harringtons for a while."
Jo stood and nodded in greeting. "Nice to meet you. I'm enchanted by your town."
Sandra plopped on the blanket next to Jo. "I'm sure it's nothing compared to the wonders of Manhattan.” Jo blinked in surprise. “It's a small town, everyone talks,” Sandra explained. “Especially when there's someone new to town."
"So I've heard."
"It's so nice you're here. I'm sure Jack gets lonely in that house all by himself." Jo couldn't tell if Sandra was being friendly or if there was something nefarious in her tone.
"He has his children," Jo pointed out. "And I'm only here to help with the daily burdens of the farm and family."
The band started playing an upbeat tune Jo didn't recognize, and Sandra clapped her hands. "I love this tune. It's so fun to dance to."
Sandra directed her comment to Jack, who had returned with a tray of lemonade and ice tea. He passed the cool glasses around the group and then set the tray down.
"Did you know Jack doesn't allow any dancing or singing in his house?" Jo leaned in, as if this were some juicy gossip.
"Our Jack is very serious." Sandra's eyes sparkled at him. "But how can there be no music in a home? Jack, really. Lucy, did you know this?"
Jack's jaw twitched, but he said nothing.
"Yes." Lucy weighed her words. "Ruby mentioned it."
"Jenny would never approve." Sandra spoke to Jo, but loud enough for all to hear.
"Well, she's not here. I am," Jack snapped.
"Oh my. I've never heard you so agitated," Sandra tut-tutted, but cast her eyes on Jo. "And how long will you be visiting?"
"I don’t kn—"
"She'll be gone by the end of the month," Jack said.
The blood in Jo's veins froze. Tears filled her eyes, and she put her head down and drank her lemonade so no one could see.
"Oh, I do love this song," Sandra spoke, her curls blowing around her face.
"For goodness’ sake, Jack. Ask the poor gal to dance," Will said, and Lucy laughed. Jo bit her lip and watched Tommy playing a game of tag in the fields. She didn’t want to witness Jack dancing with this other woman.
Jack offered his hand and, delightedly, Sandra took it, and they moved to the dance floor. Lucy and Will joined them, leaving Jo to sit on the blanket. She nibbled her food and wondered how she could feel so alone when she was surrounded by people.
On the dance floor, Jack was smiling. Something so rare, Jo had to look twice. His hand was around Sandra's waist, and Jo swallowed the lemonade over the lump in her throat. That was the kind of woman Jack should marry. She was closer to his age, and Jo couldn’t imagine him ever taking sweet Sandra over his knee. A giggle escaped her throat at the image, but then stopped when the memories of the previous night flooded her senses.
"Is the heat getting to be too much for you, Miss Taylor?"
The shadow of James Lucas moved over her, and Jo's hand fluttered to her cheeks.
"Yes. I believe it is."
"Would you like to take a walk with me and find some shade in the grove of trees behind the church?" Jo gave one last glance at Jack and Sandra and then placed her hand in James’s. The warmth of his skin reminded her that there was no point in indulging in fantasies of a man who partly despised her and at the moment was laughing and dancing in the arms of another woman.
So she let James lead her away.