CHAPTER
SEVEN

When she took Piper to catch her train Thursday morning, Truda wasn’t sure which of them was more excited—Piper or her. If only she’d done something like this when she was younger. She had broken from tradition and stayed single instead of settling for a man she didn’t love. She had kept hoping for that man when she was Piper’s age, until it became apparent she was dreaming of a man who didn’t live in her world.

She wanted Piper to marry and be happy, but the girl had plenty of time. A horizon-expanding experience with Mary Breckinridge’s nurses was not to be missed, even if her father was frantic with worry she was throwing away her chance to capture Braxton Crandall.

He blamed Truda for that. He had pounded on her door Monday night, his face red, his hands clenched, ready to fight. She loved her brother, but sometimes he lacked vision. He wanted everything to stay the way it had always been, but one sure thing in life was that everything changed. Except the Lord. He didn’t, but people and situations did. Those who accepted such changes were more likely to find happiness. She’d told him as much.

“A daughter listening and abiding by her father’s wishes shouldn’t change.” He had paced back and forth in her small sitting room, on each round barely avoiding banging into the wingback chair where she sat. But if he bumped into the chair, on purpose or not, he would be the one with a bruised leg.

His words echoed his thoughts of how a sister should listen to her brother. Especially a spinster sister with no man to take care of her. She chose to go for peace rather than telling him she had quite capably taken care of herself for years.

“I’m sure Piper listens to you, Erwin. Just because she wants to do something out of the ordinary doesn’t mean she won’t come back after the summer and be more than ready to marry and settle down.”

“Braxton Crandall may not wait. I do think he was ready to ask for her hand in marriage.”

“You’re rushing Piper. She isn’t going to agree to a business arrangement between you and the Crandalls. She wants to marry for love.”

“Bah. You’re talking romantic nonsense. You make a good match and do what you should for the marriage to work. The way Wanda Mae and I did. We listened to our parents and everything has been wonderful.”

“Do you love Wanda Mae?”

He stopped pacing and frowned at Truda. “What kind of question is that? Of course I do. She’s my wife. And Braxton Crandall will love Piper in the same way if she’s not so foolish as to throw away her chances with him.”

“If it’s meant to be, it will happen.”

“Balderdash. Things happen because people make them happen.” He glared at Truda and pointed his finger at her. “This is your fault. Piper has always admired you.” He looked around. “Why, I have no idea. Living here all alone in these little rooms with no children.”

Truda pulled in a breath to hide how his words hurt her. “I realize you are upset, so I’m going to pretend you didn’t say that. I had nothing to do with Piper deciding to go to the mountains. All I did was host a tea for Mary Breckinridge. How could I know Piper would hear her talk and then choose to spend her summer in a charitable endeavor there? I’m proud of her. You should be too.”

Erwin stopped pacing and stared down at the floor. “I am proud of her. Of course I am. I just want what’s best for her.”

Truda stood up and took his hand in hers. “I know you do. But she’s twenty years old. Being away to school gave her a taste of independence and now she wants to think for herself.” She squeezed his hand lightly and turned it loose.

“But all this debutante stuff was supposed to signal her readiness to marry.”

“You know she only went through that ordeal to please Wanda Mae.”

“The same as you did for our mother.”

“Yes, but times were different then. Had I found the right man, I would have married. I would have loved having children of my own, but such didn’t happen.”

“There was one man, wasn’t there? One who didn’t work out.”

“Not really.” There was no reason to look back at something so long ago with regrets.

But Erwin didn’t let it go. “He was going to be a doctor, I think.” Erwin’s face tightened with concentration. “Yes, that was it, but Father claimed he wasn’t a suitable match and nixed the relationship.”

“There was never a relationship.” Truda shrugged off his words. “Only a dream.”

“And now you’ve passed along that dream to Piper.”

“I have not. Piper has her own dreams. Be glad she can chase one of them this summer.”

So this morning Truda was taking Piper to do that very thing. Piper had thrown her case packed with jeans and shirts in Truda’s back seat. One dress just in case, Piper said. “I don’t know in case what, but Mother insisted. She can’t imagine not needing a dress for something.”

“Perhaps for church. She wants you to be prepared.”

“Oh, I am, Truda. Prepared for something different.” Piper practically bounced on the car seat. “I can hardly imagine how different.”

“You will write, won’t you?” Truda parked at the train station and climbed out of the car to walk with Piper to get her ticket.

“Of course. I hope I have time to write all the letters I’ve promised to everyone. To you. To Mother. To Leona. Even Braxton Crandall wants me to write.”

“That should make your father happy.”

“I didn’t tell him and don’t you either. I wouldn’t want to raise Father’s hopes. Braxton is nice. Who knows? Given time, we might make a perfect couple, but I don’t like feeling as though I’m just another name on a business agreement.”

“Stick to your guns on that. Hold out for love. Not a business contract.”

“I suppose it would be possible to have both. If I weren’t heading to the mountains.” Piper’s face lit up and she looked ready to dance right there on the train platform. She was wearing riding pants in case she had to make the final leg of her journey to Mary Breckinridge’s house at Wendover by horse. “Love is officially postponed until further notice.”

“Are you going to write to that Jamie boy too?” A shadow fell over Piper’s face and Truda rushed out more words. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have asked that.”

“That’s all right. And who knows? Maybe I will write to him. What’s one more letter?” Piper laughed. “I hope they sell ink in Hyden.”

“Worry not. I’ll send you some.”

Worry not. Her aunt’s words echoed in Piper’s head after she climbed aboard the train. She wasn’t worried. Not exactly. She wanted to think she was nothing but excited, but she couldn’t deny the apprehension tickling through her. She knew nothing about the mountains or the people there. Nothing for certain anyway. She’d heard the stories about feuds and shootings. Her father warned her that mountaineers didn’t like strangers. But Mrs. Breckinridge said they welcomed her nurses. That had to include her couriers too.

Piper found a seat by an open window and watched the people milling around the platform, either arriving in Louisville or leaving the way she was. She didn’t see Truda. She must have already gone back to her car.

A man walking away from the train station made her think of Jamie. Truda mentioning him must have her dreaming him up. But when the man glanced back, Piper’s heart leaped up in her chest. It was Jamie.

She stuck her head out the window to wave. “Jamie.”

“Jamie.”

At first she thought her shout might be echoing off the station walls, but no, someone else was calling him. A girl in a blue dress and heels ran across the platform. “Wait up, Jamie.”

Jamie stopped and turned around. A smile lit up his face. A smile Piper remembered well from other times but then for her.

The girl’s blonde curls bounced on her shoulders as she caught up with him and grabbed his hands. Piper didn’t know the girl.

“Miss, please sit down in your seat.” The conductor stood in the aisle by Piper.

Piper pulled her head back inside the window, but she could still see Jamie and the girl. They were obviously happy to see one another. As happy as Piper would be if she were the one holding Jamie’s hands.

She turned to properly sit in her seat. “Oh, sorry. I just saw somebody I hadn’t seen for a while.”

“An old boyfriend, eh?” The conductor grinned. “You’ll have to see him another time. This train is on the way and trains don’t stop for nothing. That’s why they’ve got cowcatchers on the front of them.” He chuckled and headed on down the aisle to make sure no passsengers risked arms and heads by leaning out the windows.

Piper didn’t see any reason to laugh. She stared down at her hands clutched in her lap. Obviously, Jamie had moved on, found another girl. Tears popped up in her eyes as she took a shaky breath. She couldn’t stop imagining his brown eyes full of light, looking at her as if she were the only girl in the world. Turns out she wasn’t. Those eyes had been smiling at the blonde in the blue dress and not at Piper.

He didn’t see you. The words ran through her head. But he did see her, she argued back. The beautiful girl in the blue dress. And was very happy about it. Piper didn’t know if the girl was truly beautiful. She hadn’t seen her face. Only her back as she ran toward Jamie, with the golden curls bouncing with each step. She had seen Jamie’s face. The smile. The welcome.

He looked fine. Not at all miserable, as she’d been imagining him. She should have known better. Jamie couldn’t be miserable. Not for long. It wasn’t in his makeup. That was one of the things she liked best about him. How he could always find a reason to laugh and make her laugh too.

But she hadn’t seen him for months. A person could change. He could leave behind old friends and forget promises made. But then, they had never made any promises. Not for the future. Not for now. She had no claim on him. A guy could find another girl. He had no claim on her. A girl could decide to do something different.

Piper swiped away her tears, relieved nobody was sitting in the seat beside her to notice. She lifted her chin and stared out the window. They’d left town and were rolling through the countryside. Wind blew in the open window to tousle her hair, and some ash from the steam engine smoke dotted her arm. She pushed the window partly closed, but the breeze still ruffled her hair. The day was warm. The air felt good.

She would keep her eyes and thoughts forward and not look back. She would push the sight of Jamie and the blonde girl clear out of her mind. Soon she’d be riding horses up into the mountains with no time for romance anyway. Not until after summer.

Then if Braxton Crandall kept his promise to write to her and he didn’t find a more amenable bride this summer, maybe she would entertain his attentions.

Still, she wished she had been out on the depot platform to see Jamie and find out how he was doing. He could have introduced her to his new girlfriend. Maybe she would write to him after all. Simply as one old friend to another.