For Rose, the rest of the summer passed in a miserable mixture of regret, heartache, and dread. While Violet reveled in the singing school, planning Pa and Nancy’s coming wedding, and preparations for the winter school season, Rose stayed close to home, caring for the house and canning the vegetable garden’s bounty. She came to dread Sundays most of all, becoming adept at avoiding interaction with either of the eldest Roberts brothers. Ty had said no more about their brief interaction at the threshing party or what he’d wanted to talk with her about that day. Several times she’d considered breaking off their relationship, but each time he would say something sweet or hand her a flower and she’d lose her nerve. For the most part, keeping her distance from him hadn’t been a problem. Between farm work and mischief-making, he’d made little effort to spend time with her. Jamie simply avoided her as if she were contagious.
Violet, on the other hand, fairly glowed with happiness, especially on Wednesdays following singing school. Each Wednesday she’d wait with bated breath for Jamie’s arrival. While she never said in so many words that she’d fallen in love with him, Rose couldn’t deny that her sister showed all the signs of a woman in love.
As summer gave way to autumn and the many fall social parties neared, Ty began pressing Rose to attend them. She faced each event dreading the very things she’d hoped for last spring at Nora Bennett’s wedding reception: a set wedding date for her and Ty, plus an engagement announcement from Jamie and Violet.
So when neither of those things occurred during a log rolling at the Bennett place and an apple paring at Will Isaacs’s, Rose faced the cornhusking party at their own farm in early October with building trepidation.
As for Rose’s worries about Nancy Martin, the woman had done nothing to further Rose’s suspicions, and Pa’s stomach and heart both appeared to thrive under Nancy’s care. Still, Rose couldn’t shake her lingering concerns.
By the night before the husking, Rose could no longer bear the weight of worry pressing down on her. Her pillow wet with tears, she crawled to the Lord and unburdened her heart. Whatever plans God had for her life and the lives of her loved ones, she relinquished it all into His hands. Tomorrow, with God’s help, she would finally tell Ty that her heart had changed and that she could no longer keep their engagement, and she’d ask him to release her from her promise. If Jamie and Violet announced their engagement, Rose would rejoice with them and wish them well.
So the next day, with her heart at peace, she walked into the barn already alive with the happy voices of her neighbors, most of whom were milling about or seated on trestle benches shucking baskets of corn. Rose lifted one of the bushel baskets that lined the barn wall and searched for an empty spot at one of the benches.
“Rose, come sit here.” Bertha Newkirk beckoned from her seat at the east side of the barn. “Looks like we’re gonna be kin soon.”
Smiling, Rose set her basket down beside Bertha’s. “Yes, Pa and Nancy are planning a December wedding.”
Beside Bertha, a plump woman Rose didn’t recognize, gave her a cheerful smile. “I was so happy to hear about Nancy’s good news. Bertha speaks so well of your pa.”
Bertha blinked. “Oh, Rose, I expect you haven’t met Lydia Engle. She’s from over Salem way.”
Lydia shook her head, her expression turning sad. “So awful about Nancy’s husband, Paul. A wasting cancer took him, ya know.” She sniffed and picked an ear of corn from her basket and began to shuck it. “My own brother attended him the last months of his life.” She smiled. “He’s the doctor in Salem, don’t ya know?” A tinge of pride crept into her voice.
“No. No, I didn’t know.” Nancy had told the truth. A mixture of relief and shame swooshed through Rose. She held out her hand to the woman. “It’s so nice to meet you, Lydia. We’ve all come to love Nancy very much.” And she meant it.
Pa, with Nancy at his side, beamed as he stepped to the center of the barn. “Thank you all for coming, and be sure to holler out if you come across a red ear of corn.” He glanced at Nancy and his grin widened. “It’ll earn a gal a kiss from each gent, and a gent a kiss from each gal.”
Glancing about, Rose noticed Violet sitting with Jamie and the singing school master, Edmond Anderson, all three in laughing conversation as they worked. At that moment, Jamie looked at Rose, catching her gaze and sending her heart into pounding contortions.
Willing her hands to stop shaking and her lungs to breathe, Rose managed to tear her gaze from his and shift it back to the ear of corn in her hand. Dear Lord, help me think of him as a brother. I must learn to think of him as a brother.
“Red ear!” Violet’s triumphant announcement stilled the crowd an instant before a collective cheer filled the barn. Standing, she waved her red-kerneled prize over her head.
To Rose’s surprise, the singing school master claimed the first kiss, and Rose wondered at Jamie’s thoughts when the man kissed Violet directly on the mouth. Jamie then placed a chaste kiss on Violet’s cheek igniting a flash of jealousy in Rose. When Ty’s turn came to claim his kiss, Rose felt nothing as her intended embraced Violet and kissed her cheek, erasing any lingering doubt that Rose needed to break her engagement to Ty before the evening ended.
Sending up a silent prayer for courage and peace, Rose picked another ear of corn from her basket and began pulling the dry, brittle husk and brown silks from the ear. For months, she’d tried and failed to think of a painless way to break her engagement to Ty. She ran her fingers down a rough row of hardened golden kernels, trying again to gather the right words that would end her relationship with Ty while inflicting minimal pain.
The sensation of a hand on her shoulder pulled Rose from her musings. She looked up into Ty’s face and her stomach tightened. All right, Lord, I hear You. Now is the time.
His expression somber, Ty shifted from one foot to another, while not quite meeting Rose’s gaze. “Rose, I need to talk to you.” Offering a nod of acknowledgement, he gave the older women beside her a weak smile. “Bertha. Mrs. Engle.”
Ignoring the women’s soft twitters, Rose stood on shaky legs and struggled for breath. She followed Ty to a spot near the horse stalls, away from the crowd.
Ty took Rose’s hand, cleared his throat, and finally met her gaze. “I’ve been thinkin’ and prayin’ on this real hard for a long time.” He cleared his throat again and glanced down before lifting his gaze back to her face. “I don’t think I’m ready for marriage.” His throat moved with what seemed a hard swallow and he winced. “I need to ask you to release me from my promise to marry you. You deserve a man who loves you better than I can. Besides, farmin’ ain’t for me. I plan to leave Honeytown and even Indiana.”
Stunned at Ty’s news, Rose felt her jaw go slack while a mixture of relief and concern swirled inside her. “Leave? B–but where would you go?”
His eyes lit with excitement. “The Great Lakes, to be a merchant marine.” He shook his head. “There’s too much world out there to see for me to stay stuck here in Jackson County, Indiana.” The exuberance in his eyes dimmed and they turned anxious, begging for understanding. “So, will you release me from my promise?”
Rose couldn’t rein in the smile stretching her mouth wide. “If that is what you want, of course I will. With a full heart.” The tears stinging her eyes surprised her. “But you must promise to write often and let us know of your great adventures.”
“Thank you, Rose. I will.” Smiling, Ty hugged her then wiped away the tear that had slipped down her cheek. “You’ll always have a special place in my heart, Rose.” He glanced across the barn. “But I reckon a girl as pretty as you won’t be without a feller very long.” Giving her a parting wink, he took off across the barn at a jaunty pace.
For a long moment Rose stood still, trying to process what had happened. When she finally made her way back to her seat beside Bertha and Lydia, she couldn’t help humming the hymn “God Moves in a Mysterious Way.”
Bertha and Lydia exchanged a knowing grin, and then Bertha turned a smug smile toward Rose. “So, have you and Ty Roberts set a wedding date?”
Rose bent down and picked an ear of corn from the basket. “There’s not going to be a wedding. At least not between me and Ty.” She smiled at the women’s puzzled frowns, deciding to let them draw their own conclusions.
As she began to pull the husk from the ear of corn in her hands she glimpsed a deep reddish color.
“Red ear! Red ear!” Bertha stood up and pointed at Rose then bent and whispered, “Bet you’ll be gettin’ yourself a new feller quick.”
Jamie Roberts stood up and began to stride toward Rose, and her heart seized in her chest. Her breaths came in soft gasps as he reached her and helped her finish shucking the red ear of corn. The barn turned silent except for the chirping of the crickets.
“I’ve come to claim my kiss,” Jamie announced in a voice that carried across the barn. “And more,” he whispered to Rose before he took her in his arms and pressed his lips down on hers.
Everyone else in the barn disappeared as Rose floated in a sphere that held only her and the man she loved. When Jamie released her, dropping her back to earth, the sound of hushed murmers filtered into her consciousness.
Jamie took her hand and gazed into her eyes, his October blue ones filled with love and hope. The next moment, he dropped to one knee. “Rose Hamilton, I ask you in the presence of God, our families, and neighbors, will you do me the honor of becoming my wife? Will you marry me?”
For a long moment, Rose stood frozen, wondering if she’d been caught up in a wonderful dream. When Jamie didn’t evaporate into a mist, her heart began to beat again and she managed to make her head nod amid a flood of tears gushing down her face. “Yes. Yes, I’ll marry you.”
She’d scarcely choked out the words when he stood and kissed her again. When he finally let her go, she blurted the question blaring in her mind. “B–but what about Violet?”
Violet, who had come to stand near them along with both their families, hugged Rose. “I am thrilled for both of you, and so is Edmond.”
“Edmond?” Rose blinked as the singing school master stepped to Violet’s side and slipped an arm around her waist. Since their first meeting in the churchyard back in May, Rose had paid the man scant attention.
Edmond reached his hand out to Rose and she accepted it, impressed by his firm but gentle grip. “Congratulations, my dear.” He angled a smile at Violet. “Soon to be dear sister.”
Rose gaped as Edmond and Violet disclosed their own engagement, kept secret until tonight.
Violet beamed. “Edmond and I are planning a May wedding.”
Jamie put his arm around Rose and smiled at Edmond. “Then I hope to beat you to it.” Giving Rose a hug, he shifted his smile to her. “If you’re in agreement, love, I’d like for us to get married as soon as possible.”
Rose experienced a flash of panic. “No!” she blurted, extinguishing Jamie’s smile and sending him back a step. At his surprised look, she took his hand and tempered her voice. “But darling, if we get married before Violet and Edmond do, Violet would have to dance in the hog trough, and I won’t have it!”
At the back of their small group, Ty chuckled and said, “I told you, brother.”
Smiling, Jamie slipped his arms around Rose’s waist, his azure gaze melting into hers. “Then I propose a double wedding with no hog trough dancing involved.”
“I think that’s a wonderful idea, darling,” Rose murmured through her irrepressible smile. As she snuggled into her intended’s embrace, the words from Isaiah drifted into her mind: “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the Lord.” Rose sent up a silent prayer of thanks for God’s perfect ways and impeccable matchmaking.