allow him so close if she wasn’t seriously considering his suit. Before, it was innocent fun – now it wasn’t. But Maggie had promised another sled run. She endured the tumult of emotions long enough to sled twice more, then claimed she needed to go see to lunch.
Ever since proposing, he’d called her Miss Margaret. No one ever called her that – unless they paired it with Titania, and then she knew she was in trouble. Hearing the sound of her full name on this handsome buck’s lips confused her even more. Formal, yet oddly personal. She still addressed him as Mr. Valmer, though. If Uncle Bo heard him address her informally, he was liable to plunk himself square in the middle of everything.
When they returned home, Uncle Bo was waiting to meet them about twenty yards from the barn. “Margaret Titania, I need to have a word with you.” Slowly, she nodded. They needed to talk. Alone. Uncle Bo looked at her with an intensity he reserved for the few times she’d gotten herself into a sore and sorry mess. She shivered, but not from the cold. A chill swept through her soul, warning her of the utter desolation she’d feel if she left Uncle Bo.
“I will put the sled away.” Mr. Valmer strode off.
Her uncle took her hands in his. “Margaret Titania, I’ve important things to say.”
“So do I. Uncle Bo, I love you. You’ve been with me – ”
“For a long spell. Todd Valmer’s a good man. Could you come to respect him?”
The question caught her off guard. “I already do. Look what he’s done for his mama and how he’s helped out everyone I love.”
“I’m wanting to see you settled with a godly man, one who’ll fill your heart with love and house with laughter. If it means I travel a ways to dandle your children on my knee, so be it.”
Most of what he said was a repeat of his marry-you-off speech. But the part about him having to travel was new. It never occurred to Maggie that she’d leave the holler, but Uncle Bo suspected it. How could she do without his wisdom and insight?
A bittersweet smile lifted the corners of his mouth. “Growin’ you up as I have, I can read your heart like your daddy could read a book. Don’t let your worries for me and the others hold you back. Elding’s got women coming in who can cluck and fuss over us.”
“That’s not the same.”
“Aye, but to everything there is a season. Glowing inside you is a spark I recognize well. Your mama and aunt both wore the same radiance, and it gained more luster every year. Love’s budding in your heart, and happily-ever-after dreams are beckoning you.”
She couldn’t deny her feelings. Were they that strong, though? Love? Could her heart have turned to a man she barely knew?
“I’m shovin’ you outta the nest, Magpie. Even if it means that man don’t ask until he puts his foot on the train, you fly away with him.”
Rattled by his order, she gulped. “He asked.”
A rusty chortle bubbled out of Uncle Bo. “The boy didn’t let grass grow ’neath his boots.”
“You suspected?”
Her uncle nigh unto bust his buttons. “More than that. He asked for your hand last night.”
“And you didn’t warn me?”
“Stop fighting the inevitable and take care of essentials – like your legacy.”
Maggie folded her arms across her chest. Mr. Valmer didn’t even know about that. Goodness only knew he’d tossed every other skill and tradition into his argument. But her legacy was rooted in the holler. “My legacy dictates I stay. A duty to the generations before me rests on my shoulders. I owe them – ”
“A daughter to whom you pass the legacy. All the history and generations gone by are for naught if you die without passing those roses on. They crossed the ocean and took root in this holler six generations back.” Uncle Bo wagged a finger at her. “With the weather gone so cold, the bushes are dormant. Couldn’t be a better time to take ’em to a new home. By the time you get settled in and have a plot
Ever since proposing, he’d called her Miss Margaret. No one ever called her that – unless they paired it with Titania, and then she knew she was in trouble. Hearing the sound of her full name on this handsome buck’s lips confused her even more. Formal, yet oddly personal. She still addressed him as Mr. Valmer, though. If Uncle Bo heard him address her informally, he was liable to plunk himself square in the middle of everything.
When they returned home, Uncle Bo was waiting to meet them about twenty yards from the barn. “Margaret Titania, I need to have a word with you.” Slowly, she nodded. They needed to talk. Alone. Uncle Bo looked at her with an intensity he reserved for the few times she’d gotten herself into a sore and sorry mess. She shivered, but not from the cold. A chill swept through her soul, warning her of the utter desolation she’d feel if she left Uncle Bo.
“I will put the sled away.” Mr. Valmer strode off.
Her uncle took her hands in his. “Margaret Titania, I’ve important things to say.”
“So do I. Uncle Bo, I love you. You’ve been with me – ”
“For a long spell. Todd Valmer’s a good man. Could you come to respect him?”
The question caught her off guard. “I already do. Look what he’s done for his mama and how he’s helped out everyone I love.”
“I’m wanting to see you settled with a godly man, one who’ll fill your heart with love and house with laughter. If it means I travel a ways to dandle your children on my knee, so be it.”
Most of what he said was a repeat of his marry-you-off speech. But the part about him having to travel was new. It never occurred to Maggie that she’d leave the holler, but Uncle Bo suspected it. How could she do without his wisdom and insight?
A bittersweet smile lifted the corners of his mouth. “Growin’ you up as I have, I can read your heart like your daddy could read a book. Don’t let your worries for me and the others hold you back. Elding’s got women coming in who can cluck and fuss over us.”
“That’s not the same.”
“Aye, but to everything there is a season. Glowing inside you is a spark I recognize well. Your mama and aunt both wore the same radiance, and it gained more luster every year. Love’s budding in your heart, and happily-ever-after dreams are beckoning you.”
She couldn’t deny her feelings. Were they that strong, though? Love? Could her heart have turned to a man she barely knew?
“I’m shovin’ you outta the nest, Magpie. Even if it means that man don’t ask until he puts his foot on the train, you fly away with him.”
Rattled by his order, she gulped. “He asked.”
A rusty chortle bubbled out of Uncle Bo. “The boy didn’t let grass grow ’neath his boots.”
“You suspected?”
Her uncle nigh unto bust his buttons. “More than that. He asked for your hand last night.”
“And you didn’t warn me?”
“Stop fighting the inevitable and take care of essentials – like your legacy.”
Maggie folded her arms across her chest. Mr. Valmer didn’t even know about that. Goodness only knew he’d tossed every other skill and tradition into his argument. But her legacy was rooted in the holler. “My legacy dictates I stay. A duty to the generations before me rests on my shoulders. I owe them – ”
“A daughter to whom you pass the legacy. All the history and generations gone by are for naught if you die without passing those roses on. They crossed the ocean and took root in this holler six generations back.” Uncle Bo wagged a finger at her. “With the weather gone so cold, the bushes are dormant. Couldn’t be a better time to take ’em to a new home. By the time you get settled in and have a plot
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