Summary: This is a prequel in which Marie’s grand gala for the ladies of the area is interrupted by a son in a most shocking way as two other sons cavort elsewhere. The family has to pull together to fix this mess.
Rating: PG  Word count: 1470

“I Was Hot”

            It was a blistering heat that stole the moisture from your lips and the energy from your soul. When the wind came, it wasn’t relief, it was as if to sear your sorry skin from your bones. Plants wilted and leaves drooped on the trees as constant reminders to people of the thirst that constantly nagged for relief. In the midst of the misery, Marie Cartwright was determined that nothing would interfere with her planned ladies gala. It was to be festive, she said. It would take everyone’s minds off their misery and make them happy. Ben nodded and would have grumbled except he knew he would pay for that. Instead, he gave his sons explicit instructions.

“Adam, Marie wants you to help make and decorate paper fans for the ladies. Then she wants you to help string the decorations.”

“But, Pa, …”

“Stop there. There are no objections that will change anything. Now, Hoss, your job is to supervise Little Joe while Adam is helping your mother. When Adam is done, he will get Little Joe to bed and keep him quiet when the ladies arrive.”

“Pa, it’s so hot upstairs. Can we go outside to cool off when Little Joe is sleeping and maybe take a dip in the creek?”

Ben was thoughtful. It was a reasonable request.

“If you both do exactly as I have instructed and do it with good humor and grace, then, yes, I will grant that request. But you will get one hour outside, and then you must be back inside to supervise Little Joe when he wakes from his nap. He always sleeps about two hours.”

Adam was the first to answer and affirmatively. Hoss was slower and had a question first.

“Pa, what’s grace?”

“You behave with good manners.”

“Oh, I can do that. Why didn’t you say that right off?”

Ben shook his head wondering if he had made the correct decision.

“Can you comply as I asked?”

Adam took Hoss’ arm before he could say anything more.

“It means we do as we’re told, smile, and don’t ask any questions. All right?”

Hoss nodded. He understood Adam’s directions perfectly. No more clarification from his father was needed.

All went smoothly after that. Shortly before the ladies were to arrive, Adam took Little Joe upstairs for his nap promising stories and lullabies to entice him away from the decorated area downstairs. Hoss waited patiently outside away from the front door so he wouldn’t do anything to embarrass his mother. When Adam got Little Joe asleep and he could hear the gala well underway downstairs, he slipped down the back stairs quietly. He and Hoss headed to the creek for some well deserved and greatly anticipated cooling off time. There were only a few pools of tepid water left where the creek used to run freely, but it was enough for the two boys. They eagerly plopped in and enjoyed the cooling effects of water on their hot, dry skin.

At the party, Marie was enjoying herself immensely. The ladies praised the beautiful paper fans they had received as party favors on entry as so artful and so practical too. Ben dressed in his best brocade vest helped Hop Sing serve cool beverages and dainty desserts. There was plenty of chatter and a smattering of reasonably polite town gossip and some real news.

Then disaster struck. Marie was about to sing a song to entertain her guests when there was a commotion at the top of the stairs. Little Joe stood at the top with one hand on the post and another tugging at his ear. He had on a rumpled shirt and nothing else. From his belly button down, everything was visible. Marie gasped but hardly louder than all of her guests.

“Little Joe, where are your clothes?”

“I was hot!”

Frozen by shock and shame, Marie stood staring as her guests were either bemused or appalled and responded with comments appropriate to their context of the situation. Ben came from the kitchen when he heard the commotion and rushed up the stairs bellowing as he ran when he saw his son standing with his privates exposed. Scared and shocked by that, Little Joe burst into tears and worse, his bladder lost control. Ben’s finest brocade vest took the brunt of it as he reached down to grab his son and whisk him out of sight.

The gala was over. There was no rescuing it after that moment. The ladies began excusing themselves and returning to their carriages trying to escape as quickly as they could get ranch hands to prepare their carriages for the return to town and the chance to tell this story.

Marie was mortified knowing the story that would be told. It wouldn’t be the grand gala and the beautiful paper fans that everyone would hear about. It would be her two-and-a-half-year-old son who had appeared naked in front of every prominent lady from the area. Then, her gaze narrowed. She wondered where Adam was and why he had allowed this catastrophe to occur.

Dressing Little Joe, Ben was wondering the same thing. He had relied on Adam to watch Little Joe and had been sorely disappointed. He wondered where his eldest was. He walked down the stairs with Little Joe and met Marie. He saw the anger in her and hoped it wasn’t directed at him. It wasn’t.

“Where is Adam?”

“I don’t know.”

As Adam and Hoss walked into the yard from the one hour of release, Marie burst from the house in a fury. Adam and Hoss had been wondering why there were no carriages parked in the yard, but they had no idea why Marie was so angry.

“Adam, you irresponsible boy. You ruined my gala. You did it on purpose.”

Ben followed after Marie.

“Marie, please, go in the house. Let me handle this.”

“He must be punished.”

“He will be. Let me take care of this.”

Spinning on her heal, Marie stormed into the house leaving Adam and Hoss staring after her wondering what had happened and why Adam had to be punished and for what. Ben’s orders did not clarify anything.

“Hoss, take Little Joe and go play in the garden. Adam, go in the barn. We have to have a talk. Now.”

“Pa, I didn’t do anything wrong.”

“Do not talk back to me or it will be worse.”

Silently, Hoss took Little Joe’s hand and Adam trudged to the barn. In the barn, Adam waited for his father wondering what was going to happen.

“I have to punish you, Adam.”

“Why?”

“Little Joe interrupted and ruined Marie’s party. It was your responsibility to watch him.”

“I did exactly as you told me to do. I got him into bed for his nap. I made sure he was sleeping soundly. I took Hoss to the creek. We were there less than an hour because I didn’t want to be late. What did I do wrong.”

“Little Joe woke up early and came out to the party without his pants.”

“Without his pants?”

“He said he was hot.”

“He said he was hot?”

Even under the circumstances, Adam was fighting a smile. Ben realized too how funny it was even if Marie didn’t think so.

“And you think this was my fault?”

“Marie does.”

“Did you tell her the instructions you gave me?”

There was silence.

“You would rather punish me for doing nothing wrong?”

“Mind your tone!”

Knowing he had pushed things as far as he could, Adam said nothing more. Ben sighed deeply.

“All right, I’ll go face the music, but you will never repeat this story. Understood?”

“Understood.”

Dinner that evening was quiet. Only Little Joe’s chatter broke the silence until he asked why no one was talking. Then Marie said something that opened up the conversation they needed to have.

“I guess it was a wee bit funny.”

Ben was diplomatic.

“It could be seen that way.”

Adam was a planner though, and he had been thinking about this as a problem to be solved. He thought he could see an overall solution,.

“Mama Marie, you are a good storyteller. Perhaps, if you tell the story in your special way, and make it as funny as we know you can, it will be a good story and not a bad one.”

At first appalled by the idea, it began to grow into an intriguing thought. Ben and Adam could both see the shift as Marie warmed to the idea of making the story her own and embellishing it with her way of telling. She turned to Ben.

“I think I want to go to town for supplies a day early this week.”

Then she grinned. All was well in the family again.