DUST IN THE WIND
Chapter Seven
Back at the Dawson house,
Samantha and George were downstairs making coffee while recovering from the
shock of Jack’s return, while Molly and Jack tended to Rose up in his old room.
Jack’s curiosity about the situation was finally getting the better of him. He
wanted to know everything that had gone on in Rose’s life since her rescue from
the water.
"Molly. Tell me, what’s
going on? What’s Rose doing here? Why couldn’t I find her on the Carpathia? How
did she get rid of her mother and Cal?" Jack questioned, watching Molly
lay a damp cloth on Rose’s forehead.
"One question at a time
there, darlin’." Molly laughed good-naturedly. "You couldn’t find
Rose on the Carpathia because you were looking for Rose DeWitt Bukater. She was
going by Rose Dawson in order to hide from Ruth and Cal. Three months later,
she found out she was pregnant with your baby and she got in touch with me.
Rose was terribly upset about your death, the fact that you wouldn’t get to see
your baby grow up, and that she didn’t know much about you to tell the baby, so
I came up with a solution to come here to your hometown, where people knew you
and would be able to tell her all about you to tell the baby. She told your
cousins downstairs that she was your widow. Of course, that’s not exactly true.
But I do think that you’ll correct that soon enough."
"So everyone thinks we’re
married?"
Molly nodded. "You’ll be
glad to know that everyone in this town has been right kind to Rose since our
arrival. They’ve treated her like one of their own. Especially your cousin. He
took us in the very day we arrived, practically."
"I’ll have to thank him
someday." Jack smiled, looking back down at Rose. "And I plan to make
Rose my wife as soon as possible."
"She’s waking up."
Molly nodded as Rose began to stir.
*****
Light filtered through Rose’s
eyelids as she began to awaken, sure that she’d lost her mind. Everyone must
think she was insane by now. She frowned as she noticed the texture of the
floor. It was so soft and warm, and there was someone holding her hand. She
opened her eyes all the way, to see Molly smiling down at her.
"I see Sleeping Beauty’s
awake." Molly grinned.
"Where am I?" Rose
groaned.
"Back at the Dawson house.
You had us all scared, Rosie. But the doctor said you’ll be fine. You just had
a shock. That’s all."
"Jack…I saw Jack, Molly. He
looked so real." A tear fell from Rose’s eyes, breaking Jack’s heart.
"I am real, Rose." Jack
squeezed her hand, moving closer to her. "I’m here now. Everything will be
all right."
"Jack!" Rose gasped,
turning in his direction. "Oh, my God, Jack! You’re alive! You’re really
alive!" Rose’s eyes filled with tears as Jack pulled her into his arms and
held her tightly against him.
"I’m sorry, Rose. I’m so
sorry that you went through the past months alone. I should have been there for
you."
"But how? I called you, but
you wouldn’t wake up. I shook your hand. I saw you sink into the ocean."
"I’ll go down and help
George and Samantha. You two have a nice talk." Molly patted Rose’s hand.
"God has granted your wish, Rosie. You must be doing something
right." Molly smiled before leaving them alone.
"The cold water woke me up,
and the officer must have seen me resurface, because the next think I knew, I
was being lifted up into the boat, and then I passed out. I looked for Rose
DeWitt Bukater when I woke up and was able to move about. But I couldn’t find
you. Molly told me you were going by Rose Dawson."
"I was. Taking your last
name made me feel closer to you. I wish I had known you were alive…I should
have looked for you…"
"Rose, you thought you had
watched me die. It’s perfectly understandable that you didn’t look."
"Where did you go after the
Carpathia docked?"
"I stayed in New York,
looking for you. But after three months, I decided there was no use. You were
either dead, or married to Cal. Either way, you were lost to me forever. So I
saved enough money and headed back here to Chippewa Falls. I wanted to hide out
from the world."
Rose felt hot tears course from
her eyes as she sat up and embraced Jack, thanking God for reuniting them. She
had really thought she had lost him forever. "Oh, Jack…I’m sorry. I wished
that we were together. I needed you so much!"
"I know, Rose. And I’m sorry
I wasn’t here for you. But I promise I’m going to make it up to you. I’m here
now, and I’m going to make everything all right. First off, by making you Mrs.
Dawson for real."
"Oh, my God, Jack, people
already think…"
"We’ll go to Eau Claire and
elope there. No one has to be the wiser that we’re not already married."
Jack kissed her forehead. "We’ll go first thing tomorrow."
Rose sniffed and bit her lip.
"Jack…George and Samantha…I want them to be there. They’ve been so kind to
me, and I’ve hated lying to them. I want to tell them the truth and have them
there to see us marry."
Jack nodded. "Okay. We’ll
tell them when you’re ready."
"Now." Rose sat up,
clinging tightly to Jack’s hand. "I want to tell them everything
now."
Jack nodded, just as George and
Samantha entered the room, followed by Molly.
"We wanted to check on
Rose," George explained.
"Come on in. We were just
talking about you." Jack smiled. "Rose and I have something to tell
you."
"Okay. Sure. What is this
about?" Samantha led the way deeper into the room.
"Uh…well, you two have been
so kind to me the past couple of weeks. Putting up with my constant grief over
Jack’s death…and I’ve hated not being totally truthful with you. You have been
so kind and honest…but the truth is that Jack and I aren’t married."
"What?" George and
Samantha asked in unison.
"I can explain why I lied. I
was pregnant and unwed. The father of my baby, Jack, I thought was dead. I knew
that if people knew that I wasn’t married, they’d look down on me and the baby
and Jack. And I couldn’t let them think badly of Jack or his baby. They were
too important to me. I wanted to tell you the truth so many times, but I was
afraid."
"Don’t feel badly towards
Rose. She’s new to this sort of situation. Plus, she was scared and alone and
grieving. Besides, if we had never been separated, we would have married as
soon as possible," Jack quickly jumped in, trying to read his cousin’s
face, but unsuccessfully. Whatever George was feeling, he was hiding it well.
"Why are you telling us
now?" George asked. "Jack’s alive, and you two could go on pretending
to be married, no one the wiser."
"Because we’re going to Eau
Claire to be married first thing tomorrow, and Rose and I want you to be there.
In fact…I’d like it if you’d be my best man," Jack explained. "What
do you say?"
George looked at Samantha, who
was still recovering from the shock of the truth. "What do you say?"
"What do I say? I say you
poor dear." She went and embraced Rose. "I understand completely why
you weren’t truthful. I, too, was in a similar situation. My father disowned me
when he found out I was pregnant before George and I wed. It must have been
doubly frightening for you, thinking that Jack was dead."
"Frightening and comforting
at the same time." Rose nodded. "I was scared of what was going to
happen to me and the baby, but comforted that I had a part of Jack with me. It
made the hurt of losing him lessen a bit."
"Yes, Rose, we understand
all about unforeseen circumstances. I’m sure that you and Jack were already
planning a life together and weren’t expecting that ship to sink." George
nodded his own understanding. "And Jack…are you sure it’s me that you want
as a best man? What happened to Thomas or Fredrick?"
"Because, for one, Rose and
I aren’t going to tell anyone else that we weren’t really married. I don’t want
anyone in this town looking down on Rose. Not after all she’s gone through. And
second…you’re my best friend. I don’t trust anyone as much as I trust you.
Plus, you’re the only ones that we plan to know the truth. You know how
judgmental this town can be at times. They’ll never forget that Rose lied when
she got here."
"Well, that’s the
truth." George nodded.
"His answer is yes."
Samantha stood up and wrapped an arm around her husband’s waist. "He’d be
honored to be your best man."
"On one condition. You treat
Rose with respect and never ever leave her again." George crossed his
arms.
"Now, that’s a promise I can
keep." Jack grinned at his soon-to-be wife.
"Well, then, you have a best
man."
"Molly…will you give me
away? I know it’s unconventional, but my father is dead, and my mother…well,
you know the story behind that," Rose nervously said.
"Oh, Rose, of course I will.
I’m honored." Molly wiped at her eyes with a handkerchief.
"And I’ll be your maid of
honor." Samantha volunteered happily. "This will be great. Having
another female around to talk to."
"Thank you. Thank you both
for being so good to me." Rose wiped away her remaining tears.
"Tomorrow is going to be the happiest day of my life."
"It sure will be,
sugar." Molly grinned. "But now it’s time for you to catch up on some
much needed sleep. Jack, will you be staying with her?" Molly looked at
the young man, who never took his eyes away from Rose.
"Of course." Jack
nodded. "I’ll take good care of her."
"I’ll go down and get dinner
ready." Samantha smiled. "George, we need some more firewood."
"Yes, dear." George
kissed his wife. "Jack, trust me, you’ll love married life." George
waved as he walked out the door.
"Well, I’ll see you two children
later this evening. Rosie, you get some sleep. I mean it now." Molly
sternly wagged a finger at Rose, who happily snuggled closer to Jack.
"I’ll make sure of it,
Molly. Don’t worry." Jack squeezed Rose’s shoulder.
Molly nodded before leaving Jack
and Rose to themselves.
"Alone at last." Rose
sighed happily.
"Yes. Alone at last. I can’t
begin to tell you how much finding you here means to me. I thought I was
looking at a ghost when I walked into that church and saw you standing
there." Jack sighed.
"You’re not the only one. I
thought you were another one of my daydreams, and when you didn’t disappear…I
actually thought I was losing my mind."
"Well, you’re not. I’m here,
and we’ll never be separated again. That’s a promise. Mrs. Dawson."
Rose smiled at the thought that
this time tomorrow, Dawson would truly be her last name, not just wishful
thinking. "Jack…do you think I’ll be a good housewife?"
"You’ll be a wonderful
housewife, and I’ll do my hardest to be a wonderful husband to you, Rose. I’m
going to take good care of you."
"Just don’t be like Cal.
Ordering for me, acting like I’m some fragile porcelain doll…that’s definitely
something I’ve had enough of."
Jack laughed. "I got that
idea in your stateroom."
Rose just rolled her eyes.
"Too bad that picture went down with the Titanic. It would have been a
great memento."
"Yeah, and have our son or
daughter find it later on? No way." Jack shook his head. "You’d never
live it down."
"Me? How about you, Mr. Big
Artiste?"
Jack laughed. "I’m only the
artist. Not the model."
Rose just growled and playfully
punched his arm. "See if I model for you again."
Jack only smiled and pulled Rose
closer. "Just as long as you’re with me always, I won’t hold it against
you."
Rose only smiled happily and
closed her eyes, enjoying the realness of him, his warmth and strength. She had
thought she’d never feel those things again. She sighed dreamily as he began to
hum the tune to Come Josephine to her, unknowingly lulling her to sleep.
"Rose?" Jack asked
after a while, noticing how still she had become. He looked over her shoulder
and smiled as he saw that she had fallen into a comfortable, peaceful sleep.
"Sweet dreams, Rosie." He gently kissed her head, laying her on the
pillow.
*****
Jack had decided to get up and go
downstairs to visit with his family and friends. It had been a long and lonely
five months, plus he wanted to be filled in on how things were holding up in
town since his departure. He found George on the porch, smoking a cigarette.
George looked at him and held out the pack.
"Want one?"
"No, thanks." Jack
shook his head. "I’m going to kick the habit now that I’m going to be a
father."
"Sam wants me to do the
same, but it’s not as easy as it looks. You’ll find out."
"Anything is easier than
going through a sinking." Jack shrugged, taking a seat in the chair next
to George. "So, Samantha seems nice. How did you two meet?"
"It was a year after you
took off. I was going into Eau Claire for some supplies for the house, which,
by the way, I was remodeling. I thought you’d like it fixed up if you ever
returned. Well, anyway, I was in Eau Claire for some supplies when I saw this
beautiful creature behind the counter. We hit it off instantly. Six months ago,
after a night of passion, I found out she was expecting. So, since I loved her
anyway, I proposed, and we’ve been together ever since."
"Wow." Jack nodded.
"Love at first sight for you, too, huh?"
George happily nodded.
"She’s my life, Jack. Sam and our child…they’re my whole world. As long as
I have her, I can do anything."
"I’m happy for you, George.
I’m glad I’m not the only Dawson to find true love. Rose…she’s the most
amazing…woman I’ve ever known. Sure, she can be a brat sometimes, but when the
going gets tough, her fire comes out. You should have seen her on the Titanic,
George…I really saw why I loved her so much. She rose to each challenge we
faced on that ship. She and Molly are the bravest women I know. Especially
Rose. You’d never expect it from a first class girl."
"Well, I’m glad you found
happiness, Jack, and I’m sure that Aunt Sarah and Uncle William would have
loved Rose if they had met her. She fits right in with our family, you
know."
"You think?"
George nodded. "And I’m
honored that you asked me to be your best man. Even though I’m sure that’s just
because of you and Rose’s little secret."
"George, if we were having a
big wedding with the whole town there, I’d still choose you to be my best man.
There’s really no other choice for me. I know for a fact that if Thomas knew
the truth, he’d look down his nose at both Rose and myself. To tell the truth,
I don’t know what got into me that night. I just knew that I loved her and had
to have her. Actually, I thought I’d never have a chance to be with her again,
until she announced she was getting off the ship with me."
"Why do you say that?"
George asked, confused.
"Rose was engaged to a rich
and powerful man. We only met by chance. We fell in love almost immediately…and
the rest is history." Jack shrugged. "I thought by time the voyage
was over, Rose would go back to her life with her mother and fiancé and I would
return to my adventures. I didn’t want to let her go, but I wouldn’t have had a
choice."
"Wow. Wait a minute…it’s
Hockley! I knew I saw Rose somewhere before. I just never put two and two
together." George sat up straight and stared at his cousin with wonder.
"Gee, Jack, you sure do aim high, don’t ya?"
Jack laughed. "Believe me, I
wasn’t aiming. I just got lucky. All the way around…even in the sinking…I
really could have died that night. I don’t know how or why I didn’t, but I
could’ve. It gives make each day count a whole new meaning for me."
"For me, too. When Rose told
me you had died…I couldn’t believe it. It really brought things home to me.
Family is everything. What I’m trying to say here, Jack, is that I know that
we’ve grown apart since your departure, but now that you’re back, I want us to
be close again. Like we were when we were kids. I want you to be a part of my
kid’s life, as well. What do you say? We rebuild our relationship back to where
it was, maybe even better?"
"Sure! That’d be
great!" Jack enthusiastically agreed.
"Sam will be so happy to
have female companionship around here. She gets mighty lonely."
"And Rose can ask her
questions about her pregnancy. It’ll be great." Jack nodded. "I knew
coming back here was a good idea. Now, not only do I have Rose back, I get my
family back as well." Jack got to his feet and embraced his cousin.