Summer In Iron Springs (8 page)

“Why yes, it was.” Anna smiled. “You have quite an eye Phoebe.”

“I noticed the silhouette at the top of the mountain over there. It’s the same as this one.” She pointed to the painting. “Except that here it’s covered in snow . . .” Phoebe paused for a moment. “. . . You can still see the form of the mountain peaks right here and here.”

“Did you notice that it’s not signed?” Anna asked.

Phoebe nodded her head and glanced curiously at
Anna. “None of the others are signed either,” Anna said glancing over her shoulder at the paintings hanging on the wall in Phoebe’s room.

Phoebe was sure
Anna knew who the artist was but she didn’t want to ask. She had already concluded that they were all painted by the same person and she knew that most artists either signed all of their pieces or none of them.

“I thought it was strange that she wouldn’t sign them,”
Anna said. “But she told me that her favorite art teacher once said that it was not a good idea to sign paintings.”

“That’s odd,” Phoebe said. She had taken several art classes and she had never heard anything like that from any of her teachers.

“That’s what I said. I don’t know why the teacher said that but Bessie apparently had a lot of respect for his opinion so she never signed any of her paintings.”

It took a moment for
Anna’s words to register in Phoebe’s ears and when they did she turned to face her aunt. “Bessie? Did my mother paint these?”

Anna
nodded slowly as she studied Phoebe’s eyes. “Yes, she did.”

She glanced at the painting and then at
Anna as her eyes started to water. She stood up and went inside with Anna following behind her. Tears rolled down her face as she stood before the group of paintings. She wondered why her father had never mentioned anything about her mother being an artist. Why did she have to find it out from Norm and Anna? None of her mother’s paintings hung in their home.

“I kinda want to be alone.” Phoebe glanced at
Anna who stood silently beside her as her mind flooded with thoughts.

Anna
nodded and headed toward the door. “Okay, dear. I just wanted to check in on you. I’m sorry I upset you.”

“It’s okay. I’m fine. I just feel like being alone.”

Anna nodded and gave Phoebe a kiss on the cheek. “Let me know if you need anything.”

Phoebe stood before the paintings looking at them now through different eyes. Noticing each brush stroke and imagining her mother putting it there. Wondering about the story behind the paintings and wanting, so badly, to talk to her mother. Tears
filled her eyes, spilled over and ran down her cheeks and she did nothing to stop them. For once, she let them flow.

Five

“Let me help you with that.” Billy ran over and removed several heavy branches from Phoebe’s arms. In her rush to get finished, she had picked up more than she was able to manage. Now, carrying a much smaller load, she could actually see where she was going and wouldn’t risk smacking into a tree on her way to the mulch pile.

“Thanks,” she said, shifting the load she was carrying. “I guess I shouldn’t have tried to carry so much at once.”
After two weeks in the orchard, she was getting pretty good at the job—that’s not to say she was enjoying it but she was adjusting to her new routine.

Billy chuckled. “You’re a hard working girl now. Pretty soon those biceps will be bigger than mine.” He gave an appreciative glance at Phoebe’s
newly toned arms.

“I sure hope not. Your arms are huge.”
Phoebe immediately regretted her words. She didn’t want Billy to think she was flirting with him. “I mean, on a girl they’d be huge but on you they’re fine.”

Billy laughed even louder. “So, you think I’m fine?”

“That’s not what I meant,” Phoebe stammered, her face grew hot. “I was just saying that boys are supposed to have bigger muscles than girls.”

“Oh, I see. You think I have huge muscles.” Billy transferred the braches from one arm to the other and made a show of flexing his bicep.

“No, I was just saying that—”

“It’s okay Phoebe.” Billy chuckled. “I was just messing with you. I know what you meant.”

When they arrived at the mulch pile, Phoebe dropped her load and brushed the dirt and debris from her arms. “It’s so hot today,” she said, running her arm along her forehead. The sun was shining brightly and without a breeze, the orchard was terribly hot.

“Come on, let’s take a break,” Billy said. “It’s gotta be over a hundred degrees today.”

Phoebe nodded and followed him to Norm’s truck. He reached into the cooler and pulled out two bottles of cold water. “Here you go,” he said handing her one. He hoisted himself up on the back of the truck. “Have a seat,” he said, patting the spot next to him.

Once she was seated, Phoebe opened her water and took a long refreshing drink.

“So, how’s day going? Have you run into any more snakes?”

Phoebe laughed. She had seen at least half a dozen snakes since
her first day in the orchard. It hadn’t taken long for her to get used to simply letting them go about their business as they let her go about hers. “It’s great. I love my job.” She turned slightly and smiled at Billy.

“Do I detect a hint of sarcasm in your words?”

Phoebe took a long drink of the cold water. “Maybe just a little, I mean, it’s not exactly what I had in mind for my summer.” In the time since she’d started working in the orchard, not a day had passed that she hadn’t fallen into bed completely exhausted. But, while it wasn’t what she wanted to be doing, there was something about the job that was satisfying. “I’m getting used to it though,” she added before finishing off the last drop of water and tossing the empty bottle into the bed of the truck.

“Well, you have to admit, this is
almost
as good as New York.” Billy made a sweeping motion with his arm.

“Yeah, almost.”
Phoebe laughed.

“Well, from where I’m sitting, I actually think it looks a whole lot better than New York.” His eyes had settled on Phoebe and a sly smile spread across his face.

Phoebe’s eyes met his and, as the unavoidable heat rose in her cheeks, she smiled. “Really, why is that?”

“Well, let’s just say, the scenery in Iron Springs recently got a whole lot better.”

              Despite that she had no idea how to respond to it, Phoebe appreciated the compliment.

“Thanks.” She smiled shyly. “And, thanks for your help.” She hopped off the truck bed and brushed off the dust that had settled on her pants. “I better get back to work.”

“Me too,” Billy said. He reached over and pulled a piece of tree bark from her hair and threw it to the ground. Then, he used his hand to smooth her hair. “Call me if you need help with anything,” he said, tapping his hand to the radio attached to his belt.

“Thanks,” she said, again. “I’ll see you later.”

“I’ll be looking forward to it,” he said, winking as he turned to walk away.

Phoebe stood for a moment in that spot. She reached up and put her hand to the place where he had just touched her hair. She and Billy had spent a lot
of time together over the past couple weeks and the feelings she had developed for him were like nothing she had ever felt before. She looked forward to seeing him each day. She anticipated lunch breaks so she could be near him. She’d even started getting up before Norm’s bellowing voice rang through the house so she could put at least a little effort into her appearance. She’d stopped wondering about Jaxon and was actually happy when Elise emailed to say that he was spending all his time with Laree. She guessed that meant they were no longer boyfriend and girlfriend and that was fine with her.

***

             
“Hi Anna. Hi Alyssa,” Phoebe said, hurrying up the porch stairs toward the front door. She couldn’t wait to get in the shower and get rid of the dirt and sweat that covered her body.

“Hang on one second,”
Anna said. “This is for you.” She held up a white envelope.

Phoebe glanced at
Anna. “It’s probably a letter from my dad. I’ll read it later.” She figured her father had written to her because she hadn’t been answering his emails.

“It’s not from your dad,”
Anna said smiling. “It’s from me.”

Phoebe turned to face her aunt. “What is it?”

“Open it and find out.” Anna smiled and held the envelope out to Phoebe.

Phoebe shrugged, walked across the wooden porch and took the envelope from
Anna. She slid her fingernail under the flap and pulled out a check for almost five hundred dollars. She stared at it for a moment before looking at Anna.

“What’s this?”

“It’s your paycheck Phoebe. “Anna said. “You worked hard these past two weeks.”

Phoebe smiled and glanced at the dollar amount again. She’d read it right—it was for four hundred ninety seven dollars. “Oh, I thought . . . I mean—I didn’t know I was getting paid.”

“Well, of course you’re getting paid,” Anna said. “You aren’t going to work for free!”

Phoebe put a hand to her mouth. “Are you serious? I mean, this is really for me?”

“It sure is.” Anna nodded. “You earned every penny and more. Norm can’t say enough about what a hard worker you are.”

“Thank you,” Phoebe said and she meant it, sincerely. The work in the orchard was hard and hearing
Anna repeat the words Norm had said to her many times was almost as good as getting her first ever paycheck.

“I should be thanking you,”
Anna said with a smile. “You’re the one who’s doing all the work. I was thinking we could go into town and open you a bank account?”

Phoebe looked down at her dirty arms and sweaty clothes. “I need to get cleaned up first.”

“How about we leave at four thirty?” Anna said, checking her watch. “It’s only a five minute drive to the bank.”

Phoebe nodded and headed inside. She rushed to her room, took a quick shower and went to her closet. She pulled a light yellow cotton sundress over her head and slipped her feet
into her white leather sandals. After blowing her hair dry and applying mascara and lip gloss, she checked herself in the mirror. She admired her bronzed, newly toned skin and the naturally sun kissed highlights that had recently emerged in her hair. She gave her reflection a smile. It was nice to feel happy and she allowed herself to enjoy it. She retrieved a small jewelry box from her closet and chose a necklace and bracelet to wear. She hadn’t worn jewelry since arriving in Iron Springs; wearing it now, she felt more like herself. She put on a pair of silver hoop earrings, examined her reflection one last time and hurried downstairs.

Anna
was bent over in front of the stove when Phoebe walked in the kitchen. “I’m ready whenever you are,” Phoebe said.

“Perfect timing
,” Anna said as she slid two large meatloaf pans into the oven. She closed the oven door, set the timer and wiped her hands on the front of her apron. “Let me just wash my hands and we’ll go.” She turned to face Phoebe and, when she did, her eyes grew wide. “Phoebe, you look beautiful!” She examined Phoebe from head to toe. “I mean, you really look just . . . so pretty.”

“Thank you,” Phoebe said, enjoying at the compliment.

***

“It
sure is a beautiful day today,” Anna said as they drove into town.

Phoebe enjoyed feeling the warmth of the sun on her skin. It was very different from the wetness of Seattle. She had always loved the rain but getting the chance to see the sun on a regular basis was one of the many things about Iron Springs that were definitely growing on her.

“It’s a lot different than Seattle.”

Anna
gave Phoebe a sideways glance. “Are you homesick?”

“I was at first.” Phoebe gazed out the window at the beautiful scenery. “But I’m not anymore.”

“I’m glad to hear that dear. I’ve been asking your dad to let you visit for years. He would never allow it until . . .”

Phoebe looked at
Anna and then at the road ahead. “Until my arrest. It’s okay to say it Anna.”

“I just didn’t want you to feel uncomfortable or embarrassed. I hope you know I don’t care what the reason. I’m just glad you’re here.”

“Thanks. And I do know that,” Phoebe turned to look at her aunt. “Do you know why he wouldn’t let me visit before?”

Anna
thought about the question for a minute. “I think so. I’m pretty sure he has never dealt with the grief of losing Bessie. And Iron Springs is her home. I’m sure that’s why he has never come back here and I imagine that’s why he never allowed you to.”

Phoebe thought about how much she had learned about Bessie in the short time she’d been in Iron Springs. She cherished the knowledge and wouldn’t trade it for anything but being there—feeling her mother’s presence everywhere—it was painful at times. As she thought about this, her heart softened toward her dad and she made the decision to call him soon. “You’re probably right,” she said.

Anna nodded thoughtfully. “When Ed died I thought about pulling up stakes and moving somewhere else. I could never do it, of course. Iron Springs is in my blood. But for a while, everything I looked at, everything I touched . . .” her voice cracked and she paused before going on. “Well, pretty much everything reminded me of him. It still does but I’ve found ways to deal with it.”

A sting swelled in Phoebe’s heart as she listened to
Anna talk about her late husband. She hadn’t thought about how painful losing Ed must have been for Anna. “How do you deal with it?”

Anna
smiled. “Well, at first, it was difficult. I cried a lot. But, over time, I found that I could think of him and not feel sad. When I was ready to talk about my feelings, I joined a grief group.” She glanced at Phoebe and there were tears in her eyes. “That’s where I met Alyssa. She was engaged to be married when her fiancée was hit by a drunk driver. He was killed instantly. It helped to have a friend to talk to—someone who could sympathize with what I was going through. Then, when your mom died, it was like starting the whole process over again.” A tear tumbled down her cheek.

Phoebe swallowed the lump in her throat and blinked hard to keep her tears at bay. “So, the grief group helped?”

Anna nodded. “It saved me. I tried to talk your dad into finding a group in Seattle but he didn’t want to talk about it. He even stopped answering my calls. I’ve worried a great deal about him over the years.”

In that moment, her father’s confusing life suddenly made sense to her. She understood why he spent so much time at work and why he ran for hours every day. He was filling his time and his thoughts with anything he could to keep himself from having to think of Bessie. The realization caused Phoebe’s heart to ache. He missed his wife. That was the motivation for all that he did, and for all that he didn’t do.

***

After opening a checking account, Phoebe asked the teller to order her a debit card. Then, she withdrew some cash and immediately started making plans for the next day. She would get up early and head into town. She’d spend her whole Saturday shopping. She could hardly wait.

When she and Anna arrived back at the ranch, Billy and the other men were sitting on the front porch. It was still a while until dinner so Phoebe headed past the men and through the front door. “Can I talk to you for a second?” Billy asked, following her into the foyer.

Phoebe turned to face him. “Sure, what’s up?”

Billy took a look around at the men who were clearly waiting to hear what he had to say to Phoebe. “Would you mind if we went in here?” He motioned toward the living room.