Chapter Twelve
The following morning Eddy dipped the tip of a spoon into the marmalade she’d made the evening before and took a small taste. It was so delicious she moaned.
“How is it?” Sylvia asked, coming into the kitchen.
Eddy handed her a clean spoon and the jar. “Taste for yourself.”
Sylvia complied and swooned. “Oh my goodness. I’ll need you to make vats of this.”
Eddy laughed.
“Irene Lee sells this at her bakery and she asks two arms and a leg for it. Now, she’ll never get another dime from me. Thank you, Eddy.”
“My pleasure. I just took some biscuits out of the oven.”
“Great.”
While Sylvia helped herself, Eddy thought about the marmalade she’d promised Rhine. Part of her wanted to put his portion in a jar and indeed mail it, or have one of housekeeper Maria’s sons take it to him, but that would be the coward’s way out and she was definitely not that.
But she set thoughts of him aside when Vera walked in bearing gifts.
“Morning ladies. Eddy, Shanna and I worked all day yesterday on getting some of your clothing sewn, so here’s the first batch. I brought you two blouses and two skirts.”
Eddy looked at the lovely garments and for a moment didn’t know what to say. The soft white cotton blouse and the navy blue skirt were practical enough for everyday wear, but the other blouse with its lacy pleats down the front and thin band of lace bordering the wrist and throat was for nicer occasions and absolutely beautiful. “Thank you so much, Vera.”
“You’re welcome. And so you’ll know, my customers raved about the sweet wafers.”
“You actually had enough left to give them some?”
“Sassy child,” she said with mock admonishment. “Yes, I did, and I’ll need more when you have the time. Many more.”
“I’ll make the time.”
Sylvia said, “Vera, pull up a chair. If you thought those sweet wafers were over the moon, wait until you taste this marmalade of hers. I’d bathe in this if I could.”
A laughing Eddy left them to their treat and took her new clothes up to her room.
Standing in front of her vanity’s mirror, Eddy surveyed her reflection. With her hair pulled back and wearing her new attire, she now resembled the woman of means Vera had alluded to. It had been quite some time since she looked so nice, and it felt good. She removed her mother’s locket from the small ring box that was its home. Inside the locket were two tiny photographs—one of her beautiful ebony-skinned mother and the other of her stern-faced father. She touched their faces lovingly. She missed them now as much as she did the day the local sheriff came to the house with the terrible news. Since then she’d struggled, but kept her head up and done her best to honor their memories. She placed the frayed blue ribbon around her neck and tied the ends. She’d have to ask Vera for a new length of ribbon, but wearing it again felt right.
When she reentered the kitchen, Sylvia and Vera beamed with approval.
“The men around here are really going to have fits now,” Sylvia said, smiling. “You look brand new.”
Vera added, “There’s something about new clothes that makes a woman feel good both inside and out.”
Eddy agreed.
Sylvia said, “Wait until Zeke sees you.”
“You’re matchmaking again, Sylvia.”
From the smile on Vera’s face, Eddy assumed Sylvia had told her all about her meeting Zeke, but Eddy had to admit she was interested in his reaction.
“I should have the rest of your clothes done by this time next week,” Vera told her. “Then I’d like to do some fittings for a few day dresses and maybe a fancy dress or two.”
Eddy wasn’t sure about the fancy dresses, but Vera would plow ahead with the project whether she approved or not, so she kept her doubts to herself.
Walking over to the cold box, she took out the second bowl of marmalade and spooned some into a teacup. After covering it with a small doily, she secured it with an elastic band and placed it in a basket. “Sylvia, I’m going to take this over to Rhine.”