Jezebel (5 page)

“Yes.” She wrapped her arms around him.

Her mother cleared her throat noisily. “We have a lot to do in a short amount of time. Jessie Belle, let's get busy.”

When they were alone in her parent's bedroom, Anabeth hugged her daughter. “You did it, Jessie Belle.”

“I told you that Traynor would be mine. We're gonna be man and wife.”

The week passed by in a blur as preparations for the wedding took place.

“I can't believe it,” Jessie Belle murmured. “I'm getting married tomorrow. And did you see Traynor's father? He's so rich-looking.”

“Hold still,” Anabeth fussed. “I'm trying to pin your dress for hemming.”

She glanced down at her mother. “Aren't you happy for me, Ma? I'm marrying into a powerful Louisiana family.”

Anabeth didn't respond.

“Ma?”

“What, chile?”

“Aren't you happy for me?” Jessie Belle asked. “I've found a good husband. He comes from a very wealthy family and he's handsome. We're gonna make some pretty babies.”

“Yep, he sho' is a good man. I just hope you ain't so on fire to up to marry him just because you think he got a whole lot of money. Reverend Deveraux is well-off but he ain't what you'd call rich.”

“He might not be rich right now, but Traynor's got a lot of potential. With me by his side he's gon' do some great things. We're gonna have a great big house and drive nice cars. We're gonna have horses, anything we want. But to answer your question—I'm marrying Traynor because he loves me and he wants me to be his wife, Ma.
He picked me
.”

“Do you think he'd still want you if he knew you weren't as pure as you've been pretending?”

Her smile faded a little. “I haven't really figured out what to do about that yet.”

“I told you never to give away your goodies until you got a ring on your finger.”

“I thought he was gonna marry me, Ma.”

“Well, you thought wrong. You're beautiful, gal. Use your looks and not your body. Just the promise of something more is enough for most men,” Anabeth advised.

“I remember how the butcher would give you extra meat from time to time or that Deacon Jones used to give you more fabric than you asked for.”

“And I never had to defile my marriage bed.
Remember that
. I let them assume whatever they wanted to—had nothing to do with me.”

“I will,” Jessie Belle vowed. “I won't forget it.”

“I gotta get busy on the hem. You getting married tomorrow—we don't have a minute to waste.”

“Ma, I don't love Traynor,” Jessie Belle confessed.

“You'll learn to love him. You can't help but love a man who puts your needs before his own.”

“Do you take this woman to be your wife….?” Jessie Belle's father said.

When it was his cue to respond, Traynor answered, “I do.”

Jessie Belle couldn't stop smiling. Her dream of becoming a fine lady was finally coming true. She'd studied Jacqueline Kennedy—her role model—and fantasized about dressing like her, talking like her and being rich like her. In a few minutes she would be a first lady just like Jacqueline—only she would help her husband lead his church and not a country.

She was so caught up in her thoughts that Jessie Belle almost missed her father's question.

“I do,” she stated. “I do.”

Jessie Belle was not at all pleased with the simple wedding band Traynor placed on her finger, but he promised to buy her a diamond soon.

His daddy could've given me the one he'd given his late wife.
Traynor told her that his father kept it in her jewelry box. The woman was dead—she wouldn't be needing any of her jewelry, so why was he being so stingy with it? That ring would've been a nice wedding present.

For the past couple of days, Jessie Belle had tried being friendly to her father-in-law, but while he was polite, she had a strong suspicion that he didn't care much for her.

Traynor's aunt threw away all pretenses. She couldn't stand Jessie Belle and didn't bother to hide her dislike.

After the ceremony, Jessie Belle walked over to Eleanor Deveraux-Barrett and said, “I'm so happy to be married to Traynor. We're family now.”

Traynor's aunt walked off without a response.

“Your aunt hates me,” Jessie Belle later confided in Traynor while they were seated at the head table, waiting to be served.

“Aunt Eleanor doesn't hate you,” he stated. “She's still in a little bit of a shock over the news of our getting married. It happened rather quickly. I came to Mayville to preach in place of my father, and now I have a wife. They're just worried that we're moving too fast. Give them some time to get used to the idea of us being married.”

“Do you have any regrets?”

Traynor shook his head no. “I've never been this happy before, Jessie Belle.”

“Neither have I,” she replied. Her heart danced with excitement. She was Mrs. Traynor Deveraux.

Her gaze traveled the room, eyeing the expressions on some of the girls' faces. Jessie Belle gloried in their heartache and disappointment.

She'd won.

When her mother could get her alone, Anabeth pulled Jessie Belle into one of the tiny rooms in the back of the church hall.

“Here, take this,” she said, handing Jessie Belle a tiny pack of blood. “Now, remember what I said.”

Skeptical, Jessie Belle questioned, “You really think this is gonna fool Traynor?”

She nodded. “Mamie Ella did it for her daughter when she married Saul Tinsdale. He never knew a thing. Traynor will think he married a virgin. Now, remember to cry a little and for goodness' sake, don't act like you're enjoying it. And now that you're a married woman—you need to start talking real proper-like.” Anabeth broke into a grin. “You gon' be living in Atlanta.”

Jessie Belle smiled. “I love you, Ma.”

“I love you, too.”

Her eyes traveled the reception hall, searching for her husband. Jessie Belle found Traynor talking to her father.

Their eyes met and held.

It was too easy to get lost in the way Traynor looked at her. Jessie Belle planned on being the perfect wife in every way, and she prayed that she'd be able to return his love. She didn't want to hurt Traynor ever.

J
essie Belle couldn't believe how easily Traynor was fooled. Her mother's scheme had actually worked.

He pulled her perspiration-damp body into the crook of his arm. “I hope I didn't hurt you too bad,” he murmured. “There's so much blood.”

She moved away from him to get out of bed.

When he protested, she said, “Sweetie, I need to take a bath. Ma says that soaking in a tub of hot water will ease some of the soreness. Maybe you can get some fresh sheets out and put them on the bed?” she suggested.

Her parents stayed with an aunt down the road so that she and Traynor could enjoy their wedding night. Jessie Belle didn't want to stay at the rooming house, although it had occurred to her to rub Miss Mabel's and her daughter's faces in her newfound happiness.

In the bathroom, she ran a tub full of scented water, then climbed inside. Jessie Belle hummed softly to herself as she bathed. She was finally getting out of Mayville. She and Traynor were leaving first thing in the morning.

I can't wait
.

Jessie Belle lay back in the tub, smiling. All her dreams were about to come true.

She finished her bath and got out.

Jessie Belle headed back to the bedroom wearing a towel. She loved sex, so it wasn't long before she started to crave the feel of her new husband. Traynor was inexperienced and a bit awkward at first, but he was definitely a quick learner.

Strolling into the bedroom, she let the towel drop to the floor.

Traynor's eyes lit up like firecrackers. “Are you still sore?”

“Huh?”

It took her a few seconds to remember that this was supposed to be her
first time
. “Just a little,” Jessie Belle lied.

“I don't want to hurt you, sweetheart. Maybe we should wait and try again tomorrow.”

It was so sweet to see Traynor so concerned about her, but she was growing weary of the charade.

“No,” Jessie Belle uttered. “I want you now. I'm your wife, Traynor. Baby, we can have all the sex we want.”

Jessie Belle woke up early the next morning feeling happier than she'd ever been in her entire life. She held up her left hand to admire the tiny gold band on her ring finger.

Freedom
.

She was finally getting away from Mayville, Georgia, and not a moment too soon as far as Jessie Belle was concerned. She turned to face her sleeping husband and gently nudged him. “Honey, we should be getting up. We got to get dressed and get on the road. I can't wait to see our home.”

He was sluggish, drunk with sleep. “Huh…”

“It's time to get up,” Jessie Belle whispered. Maybe she shouldn't have kept Traynor up most of the night making love.

When he still didn't move, she covered him in soft kisses beginning with his ear and neck, and traveling to his cheek.

He moaned, then began to stir.

Traynor reached for her.

“C'mon, honey. We need to get up and get on the road. There'll be plenty of lovemaking when we get to our house in Atlanta.”

“I want you…,” Traynor pleaded.

“I have to finish up my packing. The sooner you get up, the sooner we'll be home.”

Jessie Belle jumped out of bed and began to get ready to leave. She couldn't wait to get to Atlanta and see her new house. Traynor had told her that it was two stories and had three bedrooms and two baths. He told her that she could change anything in the house she didn't like. She imagined herself getting out of the Thunderbird and walking up to a huge brick mansion.

Her parents arrived home just as they were putting the suitcases into the trunk of the car.

“Y'all gon' stay for breakfast?” her mother asked.

Jessie Belle shook her head no before Traynor could open his mouth to utter a response. “Ma, we need to get on the road. We're gonna stop along the way. Thank you, though.”

Traynor and her father walked over to the porch and talked.

“You married now, gal. It's time for you to act like a proper lady. Be careful not to ruin Traynor's good name. He don't deserve that.”

“I'm not gon' do anything to ruin my marriage, Ma. I feel like a rich lady now.” Tossing her curly hair over her shoulders, Jessie Belle added with a chuckle, “I might not even know who you are the next time you see me.”

“You might be on your high horse right now, Jessie Belle Holt, but it's still a pony to me. Mind your horse don't throw you, gal.”

“It's Mrs. Traynor Deveraux,” she shot back. “And don't you go forgetting it.”

Grinning, Anabeth hugged her daughter. “My sharp-tongued chile. I wish you all the happiness in the world. Call me regular, now. I don't want to be worrying about you up there in Atlanta.”

“We're only three hours away, Ma. I'ma be just fine.”

“Stop talking like a country gal. You a big-city gal now.”

“I'll be fine.”

“That's much better. If you want money—you got to walk around like you already got it.”

She blew Jessie Belle a kiss before turning around and walking up the steps to the porch, where Elias pulled her into his arms.

Jessie Belle had already said her goodbyes, so she stood beside the car while Traynor hugged her parents.

She was ready to leave.

Jessie Belle nearly cheered when she saw the sign bidding them farewell from the city of Mayville. She vowed to never return to this dying town of her birth—except to bury her parents. Now that she was free, she never wanted to look back.

“Think you gonna miss Mayville?” Traynor asked.

Jessie Belle shook her head no. “Not hardly. I've been wanting to leave this place since forever.”

He glanced over at her. “I know you're gonna miss your parents.”

“Yeah,” Jessie Belle murmured. “But we're a family now. Besides, I'm sure they're happy to finally have the house to themselves.” She was more than ready to get away from Mayville and her parents.

It was the first day of the rest of her life.

Jessie Belle swallowed her disappointment when Traynor pulled into the driveway of a redbrick two-story house that had clearly seen better days. “Is this the house?”

“Yeah, sweetheart. This is our house. Our home.”

He seemed so proud and excited about it, but Jessie Belle just couldn't summon up the enthusiasm. It was bigger than the house she'd grown up in, but not by much. This was
not
the house she'd dreamed about or the house that he'd described as elegant. It wasn't even pretty—just functional.

Traynor insisted on carrying her over the threshold.

Jessie Belle didn't think much of the idea but kept quiet. She didn't want to hurt Traynor's feelings when her husband was trying to be romantic.

He gave her a tour of
his
house. She wasn't ready to call it her home.

The rooms weren't very large, Jessie Belle noted sadly. This was definitely not the grand house she'd imagined they would be living in.

“What's wrong, sweetheart?” Traynor inquired. “You look upset.”

“Your father bought this house for you?”

He nodded.

“I thought he'd bought you a new house. This place needs a lot of work.”

Traynor glanced around. “It's a very nice house, I think. We can fix it up together.”

Jessie Belle nodded. She didn't trust herself to speak right now—she was so disappointed. This was definitely not how she'd envisioned her new life beginning.

That night, she pleaded a headache. She wasn't in the mood for making love. Jessie Belle felt like she'd been the one tricked.

She was in better spirits a week later after painting all the bedrooms in the house and putting up new curtains. Jessie Belle had even coerced Traynor into buying a brand-new sofa for the living room and a dining room table.

Later that afternoon, a couple from one of the neighboring houses came by to formally welcome them into the neighborhood.

“Hello, my name is Richard Reed and this is my wife, Mary Ellen. We live in the house next door. The one with the green shutters.”

Traynor introduced himself, then Jessie Belle. “This is my new wife, Jessie Belle.”

Richard held on to her hand a little longer than necessary, she noted silently. Jessie Belle broke the hold. “It's very nice to meet you both.”

They settled down in the living room.

Jessie Belle was so grateful that the new sofa had been delivered the day before. She would've been horrified if they'd seen the worn brown leather couch that was there before.

While they talked, Jessie Belle's eyes traveled the room—she was relieved that the deep burgundy curtains matched the burgundy in the striped sofa and in the floral patterned rug.

They hadn't put up any pictures yet, so the bare walls bothered her, but there wasn't much Jessie Belle could do about it right now.

“You've done a beautiful job with the house,” Mary Ellen complimented.

“We still have a long ways to go,” she replied. “But we've only been working on it for a week.”

“It looks real nice.” Lowering her voice to a whisper, Mary Ellen said, “You should have seen it when the last owner had it. These walls were orange.”

“Uggh…are you serious? I didn't like the pea green color Traynor had painted it, so we changed it to sage. I think it looks so much better.”

Mary Ellen nodded. “It really looks nice. The old owners had some ugly green chairs in here, too. They were leather, but I didn't like the look. Every time I came over here, I felt like I was in a pumpkin patch.”

They cracked up with laughter.

“You actually made me feel better,” Jessie Belle murmured. She liked Mary Ellen a lot.

Smiling, Mary Ellen responded, “I'm glad I could help. By the way, we'd like to host a dinner party for you and Traynor tomorrow night. It'll be a nice way for you to meet your neighbors.”

“Thank you so much, Mary Ellen. We'd be honored.”

The Reeds stayed for about an hour before going back over to their house.

“I guess they're curious about you,” Traynor said to her after their visitors left. “They never bothered to come over before today.”

“Probably just wanting to make sure the good preacher isn't shacking up,” Jessie Belle responded.

They chuckled.

Jessie Belle was looking forward to the dinner party tomorrow.

“You sure you want to go?” Traynor inquired as they were preparing for bed later that evening.

“Yeah,” Jessie Belle answered as she examined her skin in the mirror for flaws. “I want to see if Mary Ellen's house looks better than ours. And I'd like to meet the people living around us.”

“What does it matter how her house looks?” Traynor asked. “I love our house.”

Jessie Belle picked up her brush and began brushing her hair. “It's a woman thing. You'd never understand.”

Mary Ellen had apparently decided to invite everyone in the neighborhood, from what Jessie Belle could tell.

The women circled around Jessie Belle, while the men had Traynor cornered.

“Where are you from?” a woman who introduced herself as Nan asked.

“I'm from a small town called Mayville. It's about three hours from here.”

“Welcome to the neighborhood, Jessie Belle. We hope you and the pastor will be very happy here.”

“We will,” she stated.

Jessie Belle was like a sponge. She soaked up every piece of information about the women in her presence. Nan lived in the largest house on the street, a two-story brick house with huge white columns. Hers was the type of house Jessie Belle thought she'd be coming to live in. Nan's husband worked at the Atlanta Bank and Savings.

Mary Ellen worked at one of the local radio stations as a program manager and her husband, Richard, was a history professor at Morehouse College. Lucille Beckham worked for Coca-Cola as a department manager. Her husband owned several laundry facilities in the area.

Cynthia Hargrove was divorced but had come with a date, whom she introduced as Atkinson Bradford. Jessie Belle was acutely aware of him watching her intently. He was a handsome man and dressed well.

When they were introduced, he reached out, taking her hand in his. When Atkinson didn't release it right away, Jessie Belle pulled away and excused herself.

Moments later, Atkinson appeared by her side. “I heard that you're from Mayville. I have some family in the next town. We used to go to Mayville quite a bit to the farmers' market.”

Jessie Belle smiled politely. “Everybody used to come for the vegetables and fruits.”