. um . . . I spoke to Avery Snowden yesterday and he sort of . . . kind of . . . mentioned that the young man, Jason Woods, the one who helped our guests, has had a tough time of it, working a backbreaking job and going to school. He’s paying for his education himself. He has bills. A lot of them. He is also taking night classes during the summer. His other friend, Stacey, is . . . um . . . in more or less the same position young Jason is in. And with all that going on, he still found time and energy to help Rosalee and Amalie. Not to mention digging into his tuition money to help them.”
“So you paid for the balance of their education. Anonymously, of course, knowing you. That’s wonderful, Annie. So why is a good deed like that bothering you?”
“Well because . . . because young Jason’s heart belongs to his friend Stacey, who works in the paint department, not our guest Rosalee. Jason considers Rosalee a friend, nothing more. No one is sure what Rosalee’s feelings are. One of Avery’s people, a female operative, wormed her way into the break room at Home Builders and posed as a new hire. Girls talk, you know how it is. The whole thing is actually a comedy of errors. Jason introduced Stacey to a guy named Jackson. They date. Stacey introduced Jason to Rosalee. They just hung out because Rosalee couldn’t really date when they were on the run. The thing is, both Stacey and Jason have a ‘thing’ as the young people say today, for each other, but for some strange reason, neither one will admit it. It’s not like the company has a policy where employees can’t date each other.”
“Uh-huh,” Myra said, wondering where all this was going.
“You see, the thing is, Myra, Rosalee wants to invite Jason to the gala Saturday evening. I don’t know if it’s just because she doesn’t want to show up without a partner or if she actually cares for Jason or cares for him on another level.”
“And this is your problem, why?”
“Well, now that you ask, Miss Smart-Ass Rutledge Martin Sutcliff, I had Dennis all picked out for Rosalee. They would be perfect together. And don’t tell me you disagree either because I won’t believe you. It’s like Amalie is going to be so perfect for Jack Sparrow. They just don’t know it yet. I need to work on that,” Annie fretted.
“You’re meddling, Annie.”
“I am. I admit it. I need help, Myra.”
Myra clapped her hands. “I thought you’d never ask. Sit down and let’s plot out a . . . whatever it is we can do.”
Outside on the terrace, Dennis had finally managed to snag a seat next to Rosalee when Kathryn got up to stretch her legs. He grinned at the pretty young girl and made some inane comment that made her laugh. “Tell me about yourself, Rosalee. You know, before you went to work for Amalie. Where are you from? About your family, your friends. I like to know about people we help. Are you ‘a thing’ with Jason Woods?” There, he’d asked the question that had been bugging him since he set eyes on the dark-haired girl.
“Jason and I are just friends. I was and am grateful for his friendship. Once we went into the railroad program, neither Amalie nor I could have friendships. By that I mean meaningful friendships.
“I come from a very large family. I have seven sisters and four brothers. My mom never worked outside the home, how could she? My papa has a lawn-maintenance company. My brothers all work with him. None of us went to college; we had to work, but that doesn’t mean any of us are dumb. We all read, we all study things that are important to us. My brothers could probably be horticulturists. They, along with my papa, know more about trees, plants, and growing than men with degrees. And they stand behind their work. If something dies, they replace it at no cost. My mom could be a fabulous cook in a big, five-star restaurant. Four of my sisters are married with children. There are still three teenagers at home. We all give money to our parents to help out. That’s why I took the job with Amalie because the pay was so good and for the health insurance Mr. Moss provided. I have seventy-six cousins and many uncles and aunts.