Page 25 of Magnolia Summer

He had baited her. Now she remembered the mischievous little smile the day before when he’d said what he’d said. The heat in her cheeks intensified.

“What I said was true, but I said it to tease you.” His amused smile returned. “But it is a compliment to you. A man always teases the woman he wishes to impress.”

Celia tried to think of a retort, but huffed instead. She turned on her heel and stalked away.A man always teases the woman he wishes to impress.Was he saying he wanted to impress her?

Her heart tripped and tumbled, thumping against her chest.Stop that!She was beginning to think he was just an incurable flirt. Or someone with an overactive, ill-placed sense of humor.

How in creation could he wish to impress her after her fit of temper? And why did the fact that he did make her heart flutter?

* * *

That night,after the rest of the house was asleep, Celia stood behind Lizzie, brushing her long honey-blond hair. She and Will had taken after their father, while Celia had inherited her mother’s dark hair.

“Lizzie, I’ve decided I’m going to town tomorrow to send an ad to the Huntsville newspaper about our farm.”

“What do you mean? To sell it?” Lizzie turned her head to look up at Celia.

“Yes, of course. We don’t need to stay here.”

“But what about what Mama said?”

Celia was hoping Lizzie wouldn’t bring that up. “Mama hardly knows she’s in the world. She ignores the twins, she barely eats. Maybe a change of pace and scenery is exactly what she needs.”

“But Celia. She already told you she didn’t want to move.”

“She said she didn’t want to move because Daddy wants us to live here—present tense!—as if Daddy is still alive.” Celia made an attempt to lower her voice. She certainly didn’t want to wake up Will and the twins, especially during this discussion. The less they knew, the better. She took a deep breath and went on, determined to outline her reasons and plan to Lizzie. If she could get her approval, perhaps the others would fall in line.

“There’s no reason why we should stay here. I have to get back to my work in Nashville.” Celia had to take a deep breath to calm herself again. “And even if I stayed here, the three of us can’t run an entire farm, not profitably anyway. No, I think it’s better if we sell the farm and move back.”

“What if we can’t afford to live in Nashville? You’re the only one who has a job.”

Celia started braiding her sister’s hair in one thick braid down her back. “We can live simply, maybe rent a small house, until I can afford something better for you all.”

“But what if we can’t sell the farm?”

“I don’t know.” That was Celia’s biggest fear. What they needed was a tidy sum of money to get a house while they waited for the farm to sell—in case it didn’t sell right away. “Are you sure Daddy and Mama didn’t have an account at the bank where they kept some money? Surely they had some money somewhere.”

“I never heard tell of it if they did.”

Celia tapped her chin. “That’s another thing I need to do tomorrow. I’ll send an inquiry to the bank in Nashville, to see if Daddy still has an account there, and I’ll go to the bank here and see if he deposited some money there.” Celia finished braiding her sister’s hair.

“All right.” Lizzie turned to face her. Her eyes were so wide, innocent, and guileless. Lizzie had taken over so many chores, had taken care of the twins all by herself, practically. But she trusted Celia to take care of them all.

And that’s exactly what Celia would do. She would not let Lizzie down. Or Will. Or Harley and Tempie.

Lizzie’s forehead clouded a bit. “But what about Mama? What if she gets upset? You know how mad she was at you for mentioning selling this place.”

“We can’t worry about that.” Celia made her face convey more firmness and confidence than she was feeling. “We have to do what’s best. Mother isn’t thinking clearly—obviously—isn’t thinking at all. We have to make the decisions now.”

“Will might not understand. He likes it here.”

“Will is only twelve. He doesn’t have a say, I’m afraid.”

* * *

Celia wore her big,fashionable hat again as she rode to town on one of the mares.

That’s another thing I need to sell. These horses her father bought. The two missing ones would probably never be found. Someone probably caught and sold them. But they still had three that they could sell. Perhaps she could send them back to the breeding farm in Kentucky where her father bought them. She’d have to look into that too.