Southern Charms

Equals

When I arrived home, I expected to find peace and quiet, but as soon as I pushed open the door, I was struck by the clamor of female voices, each trying to talk over the other. It was almost enough to make me try to slip away, but Mama and her ever present intuition interfered before I could make a run for it.

"Rose, come in the dining room!" The noise faded as everyone waited for me.

With an obvious groan of irritation, I dropped my bag next to the pile of shoes on the floor and made my way to the commotion. Seven pairs of eyes in varying shades and shapes locked on me the moment I appeared. The reprieve ended and everyone began shouting at once.

"Enough," Clemmy hollered. Her hands clapped together, and the magical boom made our ears ring. "Let's hear what Rose thinks."

"Who cares what she thinks?" Harmony muttered, earning a sharp glare from our grandmother.

Caly's eyes nearly fell out of her head as she looked between the two women, and I figured my face probably matched hers. Harmony was a pill on a good day, but she never directed her sass at Clemmy. It was simple self preservation.

"Rose?" Mama prompted, reaching for my elbow and pulling me into the room.

"What are we looking at?" I glanced at the table. Swaths of fabric, all pastels, covered the scarred wooden surface.

Aunt Ophelia bounced up on her toes, her green eyes shimmering as they settled on her eldest daughter, Ivy. My cousin smiled serenely, her fingers dancing over the delicate materials. A sliver of sunlight struck the tasteful diamond atop her left ring finger, scattering rainbows around the room every time she moved.

"Stephen finally pop the question?" I asked, arching one brow and grinning like a maniac at her.

From the time they were ten years old, Ivy and Stephen told anyone who'd listen they were getting married one day. Bout gave Aunt Ophelia a heart attack when they announced they were moving in together two years ago. No rings on anyone's finger then. Part of me wondered if they'd waited as long as they did just to get under her skin.

"He did. We're thinking a May wedding," Ivy gushed.

"You and every other bride in Black Brier," Harmony said with a huff as she dropped into a chair and rubbed her eyes.

"I suppose you were hoping for your own May wedding?" I teased, the charm around my neck making me foolish, but I couldn't forget she'd not given up on ensnaring Ash. While I may not believe he could ever be mine, I knew he sure as hell didn't belong with her.

Caly looked as though she might faint. Alma held onto her rounded stomach while she snickered, and I wouldn't be the least bit surprised if Mama bent us both over her knee, audience be damned. But it was Harmony who concerned me the most. None of the raging fire I was so accustomed to burned in her eyes. 

Instead there was ice- cold, sharp, and far more dangerous.

"We wanted to know your opinion on dress colors not your sister's love life," Clemmy snapped.

"Well, what are you leaning toward, Ivy?" I asked, ignoring my grandmother's chilling stare by angling my body so the daggers she was flinging would strike between my shoulders and not between the eyes.

"Oh, it's so hard. The robin's egg blue is beautiful, but Laura Elizabeth used those colors last year. The lavender is nice, and would go well with everyone's complexion. But I don't really like the flowers we'd have to use then."

"What about this pale rose," I asked, picking up the strip and turning it over in my hands.

Ivy bit her bottom lip and nodded. I didn't miss the nervous glance she gave my sister before she said, "I think that's my favorite too. It's so feminine and romantic. Just the kind of tone I want to set."