The Yellow Rose Beauty Shop (Cadillac, Texas #3)(64)

Charlotte ordered the pizza and then sat down in an easy chair beside the bed. “Stella tells me she has a job and Piper has already bought the vodka.”

“I guess you heard that Heather is planning on each feller coming down the stairs from the buyers’ balcony on one side and crossin’ the barn to take his lady’s hand in his. Then he’ll lead her out to the dance floor and wait until all the names are called out before the first dance commences?”

Charlotte nodded.

“Your job is to convince her to let you do the name callin’. I don’t give a shit if you have to knock her out and drag her back behind the barn. But I want you to call out the married and engaged people first and then go on to the single folks.”

“Why?” Charlotte asked.

“Stella is going to goad her into eating her chicken some way or she’s by damn going to dye her hair black. I swear it on my mama’s Holy Bible. If she can’t get Heather to eat chicken, then she don’t deserve that mop of red hair.”

“What if Heather hates chicken as bad as red punch?” Charlotte asked.

“I already know that’s her favorite kind of barbecue and I’ve already had a talk with Cathy, who will be delivering a dozen peppers to Stella the day before the ball. Her chicken is going to be extrahot, so that will send Heather straight for the punch bowl once she samples it. Since she’s got holy blood flowin’ in her veins, I reckon she ain’t never had much to drink. It shouldn’t take much liquor to make her dizzy, and by that time she’s going to be real worried about the money.”

“What money?”

“She’s spending too much and there ain’t no way the admission money is going to cover it all. So there’s no doubt in my mind she’s going to be real worried,” Agnes explained.

“Okay,” Charlotte said and waited.

“Now this is where you come in. I want you to offer to give her a thousand dollars to let you call out the names.”

“A thousand dollars?” Charlotte whispered.

“I’m donating that to the cause. She’ll jump on it; believe me. I been keepin’ tabs on what she’s spending.”

“Why?” Charlotte asked.

“I want you to pull out Stella’s name from the women’s bowl and Jed Tucker’s from the fellers’ bowl,” Agnes said.

Charlotte sat straight up in the chair and said, “Why?”

“You sound like a damn parrot, girl. Because Stella has a boyfriend and she likes him a lot or she would tell y’all who he is. For some reason she don’t think she’s good enough for him. If he’s there, it won’t bother him if she’s dancin’ with a preacher. I don’t want her to lose someone that she loves, Charlotte. And while you’re at it, fix it so that Piper and Rhett wind up together, too. The rest of it is up to you,” Agnes said.

“You old toot.” Charlotte laughed.

“You’d do the same if you’d have thought of it. She just looks so happy and sad at the same time. I couldn’t bear it if she lost her boyfriend because her name got put with Rhett or some other sexy feller and the boyfriend got all jealous,” Agnes said. “But you can’t tell her what your job is. You just say that I said it was one of them FBI things.”

“Yes, ma’am. Pizza should be ready. I’ll be back in ten minutes,” Charlotte said.

“Walk real slow past Violet’s room with it,” Agnes said.





CHAPTER SIXTEEN

The strong aroma of bleach preceded Piper into Stella’s living room. She looked up from the sofa where she was watching Steel Magnolias. “You ever realize how much Agnes and Ouiser are alike?”

Piper hauled her suitcase toward the guest bedroom. “Of course. How come you didn’t see that before now? I’m here until the boys come home. I’ve tried staying at my house and it’s too damn lonely. Send me a bill for room and board at the end of the time.”

“Hey, if you clean, I’m sure we can work something out,” Stella yelled and went back to her favorite movie.

She heard the bathroom door shut and the shower start. Thirty minutes later Piper carried a blanket from the linen closet to the recliner, threw the side lever, and covered up.

“You smell better, but you do know this is summertime in Texas,” Stella said.

“And you keep this house at sixty-five degrees and I’m cold-blooded. His spirit is still in my house. When he filed for divorce and moved all his things to Rita’s place, it was gone. But it’s back now. That leer on his face is there every time I turn the corner. I wish he really was there and the boys were outside playing. I’d knock him flat on his ass and enjoy doing it.”

Stella didn’t take her eyes off the screen. “I like this part. They’re in the locker room of the football team.”

“Are you hearing me, Stella?” Piper raised her voice.

“Yes, I heard every word, but you don’t have to worry about a thing. It’s taken care of, and short of moving out of Texas, which Gene won’t do because it would mean leavin’ his mama, he’s going to get a lifelong dose of karma chewing holes in his ass.”

“What did you do?”

“Me, not one thing. I just had a long visit with Mama.”