Chapter 39.
A week later Carole had begun coming back to work. There was still no applicant suitable for the job, the girls were starting to lose hope.
It was a quiet afternoon, too nice to be inside but not too hot anyone needed to escape the heat. The doorbells tingled and Brody came in backwards with a dolly carrying five plastic containers filled with pre cut and packaged cheeses. They had been flying out the fridge once customers knew she used the very cheeses on display, and Brody had his work cut out for him keeping up.
"How are the new ladies?" Renny asked him about the new goats added to the crew
"Trouble" he grinned "these should see you through the weekend" He began unloading the products "and those two" he pointed "are Melody's" Who came in at that moment, arm in arm with Molly.
"My ears are burning" she said, kissing her on the cheek and looking in the unstacked containers
"So you're coming tonight, right Brody?" Carole came from the back, she had been asked to do only light duties, chopping and coffee, no clearing, no cleaning, no lifting
"Yes, I'll be there"
"Us too" Molly called
"Perfect" She clapped her hands together
"I have to get back to the market" Brody put the now empty plastic boxes back on the hand trolley "see you all tonight" he waved them off on the way out, whistling as he walked
"Good guy" renny shook her head
"He is" Melody added
"Shame he can't find someone" Carole shook her head
"I'm out too. See you tonight girls" and Molly blew Melody a kiss and headed back to her bakery.
As the women turned to get back to work, the bells jingled again, and a girl, probably in her twenties with dark blonde hair and a sweet little floral babydoll dress came in, a large purse over her shoulder.
She was looking them over "Hi, I'm here about the job?" She pulled a resume from the purse, "I have worked in a breakfast place, I have done it all" she smiled, a wide friendly smile "My name is Berry. Well, Mayberry, but everyone calls me Berry. Never May, I don't know why!" She chatted "anyway I came across your sign the other day but I had to get the resume printed because mine stopped working" she handed the papers in their general direction, hoping one of them was the boss "I was here for the opening too, those sandwiches are amazing"
"Paninis" Melody kindly corrected
"Right, paninis" she looked apologetic "you might not remember me - funny story, but a few weeks ago, maybe a month now i was at the market when one of your goats had escaped and ran through the crowd, you ended up catching it, up a ladies dress... that was my Aunt" she chuckled
"Oh my! Is she ok?"
"Her pride was sore for a minute, but she recovered just fine"
The ladies looked amongst themselves.
"Tell us a little more about yourself Berry" Renny asked, a twinkle in her eye.
Later at the barbeque, outside in Carole's now blooming garden, thanks to Renny, Brody and Davis had found a way to manage being around each other, comfortable conversations about farming and irrigation systems, occasionally lifting their beer in agreeance.
Carole,Dr Evans, Mave, Dixie, Mary, Betty and Sue all sat around the patio set on the deck under the shade umbrella, all adjourning very wide floppy straw hats, and Molly and Melody sat in the grass, bare feet. The charcoal was heating up, and the meat platters were all waiting to be cooked, the salads still covered and deserts in the fridge.Renny was in the kitchen refilling the water, adding mint leaves from Davis's garden.
Hands crept around her waist, pulling her in
"Mmmm" he whispered into her neck
"Thought you were talking to Brody"
"I was. There's only so much weather you can talk, y'know?" he nuzzled into her "Need help?"
"Nope. All good" she slapped her hands together, and turned around "any minute now"
"Any minute now what?" he squinted suspiciously
"The universe" she looked up and around at the space around them dramatically
"What are You up to Renny J" he said in a country bumpkin voice
"Me? Nothin" she got up on her toes and kissed his nose.
The doorbell rang, and Renny skipped around the front door to greet her mysterious guest.
She brought her around the back, to the crew she called family "Everyone, this is Berry"
Renny stood next to the young woman, whose hands were folded behind her back.
"She's starting at the Cafe on Monday. Berry, this is everyone
From the corner of her eye, she saw Brody straighten, his attention taken, with Berry.
"That's Molly, she owns the bakery that does our pastries and Melody's girlfriend, that's Dr Evans, my mom's, friend" she shrugged a little, still not sure what had been going on there, it clearly was beyond doctor patient relationship "and those ladies" she pointed at each and named them "Don't play poker with them" she mockingly said in a loud whisper, which made them giggle in delight "and that is Brody, Melody's brother and owner of the demon goat" she said with a high note at the end, making 'demon goat' sound almost sweet.
"Hi" she said to him, her dimples deepening as she smiled at Brody.
Davis, behind her was shaking his head propped against the house
"What?" She mouthed, almost cocky
"Alright" Carole stood "I'll get the meat started"
"Miss Carole" Dr Evans, whose name was Stanley, tutted at her and stood ahead of her and went for the meat instead, joining her again at the barbeque, where she hooked her arms around him, sharing small little slaps and gushes between each other.
"Come with me" Renny grabbed Davis's hand
She led him around to his house, to the peach tree he had planted, for her as a representation of a home and her grandmother, for the depth of love he had for her in knowing her that well. The tree was much more than a simple peach tree. It was a memory, a feeling, a place of peace and love.
She pulled the necklace from her pocket. She hadn't worn it, it didn't feel right. It wasn't hers, it was Annabelles.
She undid the clasp, and then wrapped the small delicate chain around the juvenile tree. The heart hung down the trunk, the little diamonds catching the light every now and then.
"What do you think?" she held his hand
He reached for the other hand and entwined his finger in hers, looking her in those green eyes.
"I think" he moved in close, his mouth close to hers and whispered "we're exactly where we're supposed to be."
The End.
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Signs
RomanceRenny and her very proper but sweet southern mother had moved to the small Wisconsin town, and started fresh with new lives. They had started a cafe, made friends and their neighbor, a man called Davis and his dog Ruby had infiltrated her life. With...
