Secrets in the Sand by Carolyn Brown

            “Well, hot damn! It’s about time both of you woke up.” Hilda’s frown turned into a wide smile, and she rushed over to hug Angel. “I was just about to leave. Supper is on the stove. Does Jimmy know yet? Can I tell him when he gets to work tomorrow?”

            “Of course you can,” Angel said.

            “Just stack the dishes on the counter when you’re finished.” Hilda removed her apron and hung it on the back of a bench in the foyer. “I’ll put them in the dishwasher tomorrow morning, but I won’t be here until after you leave for work. My great-granddaughter has a dance recital tomorrow, and I promised her I’d be there.” She stopped and pointed her finger at Clancy’s nose. “If you ever make Angel cry again, you’ll have to deal with me. And when I finish, the buzzards get the leftovers. Now have a good supper.”

            “Whew!” Clancy wiped sweat from his forehead. “Did I pass inspection at last? I can’t tell by the way she talks.”

            “Yes, of course.” Angel smiled. “Now, will you hold me one more time and tell me what you said on that bridge? That you’re not scared when I’m with you. Was I dreaming or did you propose?”

            He dropped down on one knee and took her hand in his. “I’ll do it right this time. Will you marry me, Angel, next Friday night?”

            “Yes, Clancy, I’ll marry you, but why next Friday night?” she asked.

            “You’ll see.” He stood up and gathered her into his arms for a kiss that sealed their promises and their hearts together forever and ever.





Epilogue


            “What am I doing?” Angel looked in the mirror the very next Friday night. The same woman with the same kinky hair that she saw every morning looked back at her, but she didn’t have the answers to the questions in Angel’s heart. “Well, it’s time,” she said to her reflection. “Feels kind of crazy, but hey, I said whenever and wherever. If this is what Clancy wants, I’m willing to do it.”

            Angela got into her shiny Jaguar and drove down Main Street in Tishomingo. The city rolled up the sidewalks at five o’clock and only one red light worked after ten, even if it was Friday night. She passed a few cars full of kids out for a drive, but mostly the little town was quiet. She made a sharp right turn across the Pennington Creek Bridge and carefully drove her car to the sandbar where a few people waited in folding chairs.

            Red met her at the car. He wore his best western-cut suit with a carnation on the lapel. “You’re beautiful, and I’m glad for this honor.” He tucked her arm into his.

            Fiddle music began off to one side. Then she heard Mindy on the keyboard, playing a few soft chords. Clancy had said there would be a few people and the girls, but that their wedding would be small, and now the band was set up to one side, playing as Red led her down the aisle between the two rows of chairs.

            “Who gives this woman to be married to this man?” Dillon asked, but his voice didn’t boom like it did in the church.

            “Her friends and I do,” Red said as he handed Angel’s hand to Clancy.

            Dillon continued. “We are gathered here because this is the time of night that Clancy first met Angel, and this is the time of night, I’m told, that they parted company exactly ten years ago this day. Clancy says this is what he should have done that night. And now we’re doing something not everyone gets to do in their lifetime. We’re getting to go back in time.”

            “Angel, I’ve got something to tell you,” Clancy said loud and clear. “I remember the words I spoke to you ten years ago, and I’m sorry, but like you’ve said, we are stronger now, and I for one am glad for this second chance.”

            Angel reached out and took his hands in hers. She had chosen her dream wedding dress, white satin with a short train. Instead of a veil, she wore white baby roses braided into a crown on top of her unruly hair that she’d worn down just for Clancy. “I’ve got something to tell you, Clancy,” Angel said. “I’m glad that Fate, or Destiny, or God—whoever or whatever—has given us a second chance, and I do not intend to waste a moment of it.”

            Clancy looked down into her eyes, and suddenly, Angel felt as if they were alone on the creek bank, just like they had been ten years ago.

            He cleared his throat and said, “I love you with my whole heart, Angel. It’s been branded with your name for the past ten years, and I want to stay with you forever, through this lifetime and eternity.”