TUESDAY TALES - WORD PROMPT "BURNED"

 

 Greetings! 

Welcome to Tuesday Tales. This week we're writing to the word prompt "burned". I have another segment of my work-in-progress, "Sam's Decision." Hop on over to read all the wonderful Tuesday Tales stories. Find them HERE. 

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“But since I’m here, I can stay to visit a while,” he said, cupping her cheek. “You’re looking right plump.”

“Can you stay for dinner?” she asked. “We’re having venison stew.”

“Sure can. Thank you.” Visions of the meat, roasted potatoes, and freshly baked cake danced in his head.

“Charles, please tell Collette we’ll have another at the table,” Sarah said, taking her brother’s arm. “And please tell her we’ll have tea in the parlor now,” she said.

“Yes, Missus.”

Charles turned toward the kitchen while Sarah guided Sam to the spacious room. Sarah flopped down on the largest sofa and patted the seat next to her. Sam joined her.

“I was in town today,” she said.

“Oh?” Sam raised his eyebrows. 

                                                                                            

“Yes. Had to pick up some things at the General Store.”

“You saw Becky?” Sam shifted in his seat.

“Yep. We had a good long talk.”

“Oh?” Sweat beaded on Sam’s forehead. “What did she tell you?”

Sarah slapped his shoulder. “What do you mean about getting a farm? Asking Becky to marry you just to become a farm hand? Huh? You’re doing so well at the smith shop. Why would you want to have a farm?”

“It’s my dream,” Sam said, jutting out his chin. “

“You have forgotten how hard papa worked – night and day, just to put food on our table.”

“But we ate good, didn’t we?”

“We got by, that’s all. We all worked on the farm. Without a family, how are you going to make it work?”

“I don’t need a family. I ain’t plowin’ and plantin’ all forty acres. I’ll plant only what we can manage. We only need enough food for ourselves. Being two people, how much can we eat?”

“What happens when you become three?”

Sam’s eyes glittered at the prospect of what becoming a father entailed. Then his expression sobered. “We’ll manage.”

“Who’s we? Becky ain’t gonna marry you.”

“She ain’t the only woman in this town!” Sam bolted up from his seat. “You’re pretty high and mighty now that you got a rich husband. Who you be telling me what I should or shouldn’t do?” 

“I’m sorry, Sam. I just want you to be happy. And I don’t think you’ll be happy married to anyone but Becky.”

“She got pretty high and mighty, too. The females in this town burn me up. What's got into y'all, anyway? Think you can push a man around? I make my own decisions.”

That's all for today. Thanks for stopping by. 

TUESDAY TALES - HOT

  Welcome to Tuesday Tales. This week our word prompt is "cold". We have another episode from "Sam's Decision". Sarah confronts Becky and finds out the truth her brother had been hiding. Don't forget to read the other great stories by Tuesday Tales authors. Find them HERE. 

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“Nice to see you, Sarah,” Becky said, picking up the list. “Is this for Mrs. Fitch?”

“Yes.”

“I meant the other Mrs. Fitch,” Becky grinned.

“I can’t get used to being Mrs. Fitch,” Sarah confided. “Oh, and I need some thread.”

“Go pick your colors. I know, Sarah. What’s it like to be a married woman?” Becky slowed her work filling the Fitch order so she could chat with Sarah.

“It’s heaven. Seems to me you might be tryin’ that out yourself before long,” Sarah said.

“Me? Whatever makes you say that?”

“Didn’t my brother make his intentions clear to you recently?”

Becky’s face turned as red as her hair. “Word sure travels fast in this town.”

“I heard you turned him down,” Sarah said, moseying over to the thread and looking over the colors.

“That’s my business,” Becky said, speeding up her work.

Sarah put her hand on Becky’s forearm. “You can’t get rid of me that easy. I want to call you sister. Why did you turn Sam down?”

“Sam doesn’t want a wife. He wants a farm hand,” Becky sniffed.

“What do you mean? He’s a smith, not a farmer,” Sarah said.

“Not for much longer. He’s fixin’ to get a ranch from old Mr. Fitch.”

Sarah gasped. So that’s what Sam was doing at the Fitch office!

Becky turned a sharp eye on her friend. “Didn’t you know? You’re his sister.”

Now it was Sarah’s turn to blush. “Of course, of course, I did,” she lied.

“You’re mighty surprised for someone who knew,” Becky said, before going in the back room to fetch two jars of molasses.

Sarah covered her mouth. She bet her mother and Caleb didn’t know of Sam’s plans. She plucked a licorice candy stick from the assortment on display and tucked it into her pocket. When Becky returned, Sarah said, “And add two cinnamon sticks and one licorice to my order, please, Becky.”

“Sure thing.”

Sarah lowered her voice, “You sure you don’t want to marry Sam?”

Becky drew her eyebrows together. “I don’t want to be no farm hand. I want to be a wife.”

“You’d be with Sam. You know he loves you.”

Becky raised her gaze to Sarah’s. The redhead’s face clouded over, hot anger spit from her eyes. “He didn’t say nothin’ about love.”

That's all. Thanks for stopping by.