Wildwood Flower

Nora paced around the creaky wooden floor, catching a glimpse of herself in the vanity mirror each time she walked her path – trying to decide what she should do. It had been a few days ago that her Poppa told her a man had stopped by the farm, asking his permission to invite her to a barn dance. Initially Nora had said no and on her behalf Poppa relayed that message. Now, though, she was dressed and made up – her hair pin curled and styled, her favorite deep red lipstick on her full lips – and thinking maybe she'd made a mistake in saying no. It had been what felt like an eternity since she'd interacted with people her own age and the idea of spending an evening dancing – even if it was in a barn – was sounding more and more like a good time.

Nora studied herself in the mirror, the blue dress she'd worn on her adventure in the woods hugged her slim body beautifully, she'd added a thin brown leather belt with a golden buckle around her waist; this detail cinched the fabric in, showing her waist. With slender hands on her hips she gave herself a nod and decided that it would be in her best interest to go to the dance.



Forrest sat in a corner, nursing a jar of applebrandy, watching Howard and Jack make fools of themselves on the dance floor after having too much 'shine. At least they were enjoying themselves – especially Jack. The youngest Bondurant was disappointed to hear that his invitation had been turned down and of course, Howard running his mouth and saying a few I told you so's hadn't helped Jack's mood. One corner of Forrest's mouth turned up into the slightest, barely there smirk for a fleeting few moments as he watched his brothers having a good time – their troubles forgotten easily with liquor and a pretty girl to dance with.

Forrest scanned the barn, despite the jovial mood he was still on edge when it came to Rakes and he was expecting to see the deputies at some point this evening. His thoughts of Rakes stopped when he saw her, wearing that same blue dress he'd seen fluttering in the breeze that day in the woods. Henry was with her, the old man wearing his dirty overalls and unlaced work boots as he glanced around the barn before spotting Forrest in his corner.

Forrest's heart started beating a little harder as Henry took his granddaughter by her hand and lead her over to him. Out of respect, Forrest pushed himself up from his chair and realized he couldn't tell if the heat rushing through him was from the applejack or her.

“Evenin', Forrest,” Henry said with a nod, reaching a well worked hand out to shake Forrest's. The handshake was brief, a friendly hello between neighbors.

“Henry,” Forrest returned, keeping his eyes on the old man.

“This here is Nora, my granddaughter. Jack invited her up here an' I can see he's already havin' a good time,” Henry looked over his shoulder at Jack dancing with Howard and a girl, “Can you see she gets home alright?”

“Ma'am,” Forrest said, addressing Nora in the same way he had back at Keller's store, with a tip of his hat. He finally let his eyes go to her, that dress sparking a memory of her in the clear water of the pond. He knew he should tell Henry to take her home, if Rakes showed up, Forrest would have enough to worry about without worrying about Henry Whitaker's pretty granddaughter. Before he could stop himself he was already answering his life long neighbor, “I can see her home, Henry.”

“Good, girl needs to get outta the house,” Henry said with a grin, thumbs hooked in his pockets, “Can I get me a jar of that applejack?”

Forrest turned and picked up a new, unopened jar and handed it over to Henry.

“No,” Forrest said, holding a hand up as Henry pulled out a dollar or two. The old man gave Forrest a grin and a nod.

“Thanks, Forrest,” Henry said before turning to Nora, “Go dance and have a little fun, Nora Jean. You been mopin' since you got here, try and smile.”

“I will,” She said, her voice quiet and just about drowned out by the music. Henry hugged the girl and then he was gone, disappeared into the small crowd, leaving Nora in Forrest's care.



Nora looked at the man, Forrest, their eyes meeting for just a moment before he looked away, out to the crowd.

“Jack's over there,” Forrest said, gesturing out to the people already dancing. Nora's gaze followed his hand, “In the white shirt.”

“They're all in white shirts,” Nora said, “Is he the short one in the white shirt, or the tall one in the white shirt?”

“Short one,” Forrest answered her, without looking away from Jack. Nora struggled to keep her eyes off of Forrest, he was certainly a sturdy looking man – much taller than her slim five feet, making her feel smaller than she was. She couldn't help feeling as though she was bothering him by being there, his face was devoid of all emotion, not even a hint of a smile or contentment graced his features.

“Maybe I should just wait for him to come over here,” Nora said, the awkwardness of the situation settling over her - she didn't know anyone here and now she was stuck until Forrest and his brothers decided it was time to leave. Perhaps she should have stayed home, the story of Alice popped into her mind and she felt as though she was down the rabbit hole.

“Might be waitin' a while,” Forrest responded, his voice gruff, he looked at her from the corner of his eye, catching her looking at him once again. Nora's porcelain cheeks grew red as she averted her eyes to the barn door, when she looked back, Forrest had made his way through the crowd to Jack. Nora's steely blue eyes watched as Forrest spoke to Jack, gesturing over his shoulder at her and making his younger brother come over rather than keep her waiting.



The dance ended just before midnight, everyone dispersing into the hills and walking or driving down the dirt roads to their homes. Forrest rounded up Jack, Howard, and Nora just before the mass exodus of the crowd. Jack and Howard had spent the rest of the night dancing with Nora and one of those church girls from up the mountain, Forrest had watched his brothers silently an ember buring in the back of his thoughts, it's heat growing hotter each time one of them took Nora's hand. He had no claim to her, but part of him felt he should, especially when he knew what beauty was beneath that expensively tailored dress.

In the bed of the truck, Howard snored nearly as loud as the engine of the pickup, Jack was just as bad off, but he'd managed to get himself into the passenger seat of the truck. Nora sat in the middle beside Forrest in the driver's seat. It was a tight fit with the three of them in the cab, Nora and Forrest sat shoulder to shoulder, his skin feeling warm beneath the thin material of his shirt where his body touched hers.

They rumbled through the darkness, the fires from the stills shining bright in the dark of night. From the corner of his eye, Forrest could see Nora looking out into the darkness.

“That's quite the sight” She breathed, her soft voice like music over the grumble of the engine.

“Mmm,” Forrest agreed, looking up the mountain at the flickering lights.

“You been doing this long?” She asked as he shifted gears, his eyes studying the pale outline of her face in the dark before going back to the road, “I mean – I didn't mean to sound rude. Your business, have you had it long?”

“A while,” Forrest said, “A long while.”

“The law doesn't scare you?” She asked as Forrest turned the truck toward the Whitaker farm. Forrest thought before answering her, he noticed how tight his grip on the wheel was and loosened his fingers just a bit.

“No, the law don't scare me,” He answered. He didn't know why he wanted her to know these things, to keep talking to him. Silence fell over them and remained there until Forrest brought the truck to a stop outside Henry's farmhouse. Forrest got himself out of the truck to allow Nora out, he held his hand out to her as she slid to the edge of the seat. She placed her small, smooth hand into his as she stepped out of the automobile, the touch making Forrest's breath catch in his throat.

“Thank you for bringing me home,” Nora offered, pulling her hand slowly from his. Forrest gave her a nod in response and the two of them walked the short distance from the truck to the porch.

“G'night,” Forrest offered, for the first time that night he caught her gaze and held it. His mind took him back to the woods, to seeing her smooth porcelain skin, her breasts and-

“Goodnight, Forrest,” She said, her words pulling him from his thoughts, he looked down at her and the urge to pull her against him, to hold her in his arms was there and it was strong as hell. She gave him a last smile and then in what felt like an instant she turned and opened the door to the house and she was gone.

The drive home was a short one, just over the hill that separated Henry's farm and the Blackwater. Forrest got Jack and Howard inside before he retired to his sparse bedroom. He stripped himself of his button down shirt, his pants, socks, and his undershirt before crawling into his bed. He lay there for a long time, trying to figure himself out, to understand why he couldn't shake that feeling of childish nervousness all night. He didn't bat an eyelash at a fight, kept his cool when being threatened or when drawing on someone, but the thought of Nora Whitaker had him nearly tripping over himself.