Free Romantic Short Story-An Autumn Affection

The Apple Orchard Heir and the Music Teacher

Chapter One- Shared Roots

Claire Monroe shook her head. Not one single music class in her new elementary school knew a thing about traditional mountain music. How had that happened? Having left her mountain home to teach in Richmond, Virginia, Claire had grown weary of the push and pull of city life. The Blue Ridge mountains beckoned, and she answered their call by gaining a position in the same elementary school she herself had once attended. 

Looking out over her students, it was hard to miss the sour looks and rolling eyes. She loved being a music teacher and wanted her students to love “old time music” as much as she did. After all, traditional mountain music was the reason she had become a music teacher in the first place. Her students ought to know and enjoy their musical heritage, but these kids weren’t interested in “Cluck Old Hen,” or “Pretty Polly.” Claire gave a big sigh. This has to be remedied. There must be some way to reach these kid’s hearts. I wish the school had the funds to sponsor a weekend bluegrass festival. I could teach classes and expose the kids to new instruments and songs. Her principal would never go for it. With all the funding cuts, Claire’s elementary school was lucky to have a music program at all. 

The next Sunday, Claire stood in the church choir loft. The beautiful old wood smelled of hymnals and polish. It was the perfect vantage point to look out over the congregation. She was greeted by several smiles. Emmet Jones, an old timer and well-known amateur historian gave her a wink. She bet Emmet knew every old time song there was to know. Maybe she could get him to speak to her classes. Glancing across the aisle, her stomach did a flip flop. There sat non-other than Ethan Caldwell. She should have known he would be here. Why hadn’t she quizzed her parents about his whereabouts and been more prepared? She was bound to run in to him some time. She just didn’t expect it to be today. Flanked by his mother on one side and his cousin Jeb on the other, Claire was surprised to see him without a young lady on his arm. Surely Ethan was married by now.

They had met eight years before during the summer of Claire’s senior year in high school. Ethan—she remembered him as the boy with the calloused hands who left dances early to help in his father’s orchard. Ethan had always had a certain serious, introverted quality that attracted her extroverted sensibilities. She and a dozen other town beauties. Tall and broad shouldered, today he was dressed in his Sunday best plaid shirt and kaki pants. That square jaw of his was just as handsome as she remembered. 

Four years older than she, Ethan was just finishing his freshmen year of college when she came to work at his family’s orchard part time. It had been a beautiful summer and she and Ethan had fallen in love. But their time together was short. Claire’s scholarship to Shenandoah Conservatory of Music bound her away and Ethan’s father demanded he finish college before making any “romantic entanglements.” 

Their summer romance over before it hardly began, Ethan, ever the dutiful son, had broken up with her. Chalking it up to puppy love, Claire tried to move on, but Ethan had never left her mind or her heart. As the hymn ended, Claire tried to turn her attention to the sermon, but continued watching Ethan out of the corner of her eye. So far, he hadn’t noticed her. A care-wore look had settled around his eyes. What had happened to him over the last few years? She didn’t know and she didn’t want to know. Ethan had broken her heart and she wasn’t about to lower herself and go begging.

As soon as the service ended, Claire made a beeline for the backdoor and met her parents at their car to let them know she would be over for Sunday lunch in about a half an hour. Happy to have avoided Ethan, she turned to open her car door when a familiar, deep voice stopped her in her tracks.

“I thought that was you.”

She turned to face Ethan, craning her neck in order to look him in the eye. She didn’t know what to say.

“I heard you were teaching at Hillsville Elementary. Why didn’t you let me know you were back in town?”

“And why would I have done that?” Claire replied. “We haven’t spoken in eight years. How did you know I moved back home? School just started, and I’ve barely had a chance to get moved into my apartment much less see anybody.”

Ethan looked up at the beautiful blue sky and scratched the back of his neck. “It’s a small town. Word travels fast.” 

Claire turned her nose into the air. To her shock, Ethan reached out, took her hand in his and exuded a light pressure without crushing her fingers. “It’s good to see you again.”

She squeezed back. “It’s good to see you.”

Ethan finally dropped her hand. “Still know how to pick a bushel of apples? We could use you out at the orchard. You always did make a good field hand.”

Oh! Thought Claire. How insufferable. She knew he was kidding, but his comment still rankled her. “I don’t suppose my teaching commitments would give me much time to pick apples.”

“No, I don’t suppose they would.” She felt his smile all the way to her toes. His tone became suddenly serious. “Daddy passed away three months ago. I’m running the orchard by myself.” 

Claire’s mouth dropped open. “Oh, Ethan. I’m so sorry. I hadn’t heard. I don’t know why my mother and father didn’t tell me.”

“It’s okay. It was expected, but that doesn’t make it any easier.”

“No, I’m sure it doesn’t”

“I was surprised to see you up in the choir today, but I suppose I should have expected it. You always did like to sing. It was a nice surprise.” Claire nodded wondering where this conversation was going. Ethan leaned back and crossed his arms. “I thought you might like to come out to the orchard and see how I’ve improved the operation over the last few years. We’ve added a beautiful country store where we sell our produce. Several local peach orchards and vegetable farms contribute and sell there as well. We also created a small stage area with a dance floor and coffee bar. There’s a square dance every Saturday night during the summer. It’s been a great draw and the business is doing well.” Ethan looked at the ground and scuffed his foot in the dirt. “It’s a lot different than when you were there. Just thought you might like to see the old place again.”

Claire swallowed the lump in her throat. Was this supposed to be date? She couldn’t tell. Asking her to come see an apple orchard was not the same thing as asking her out. This was just a get together for old time’s sake. She would like to see the place. Especially the new country store. But more to the point, she didn’t dare admit to herself she wanted to see more of Ethan. “Thank you for the invitation. That would be a lovely idea. It’ll have to be next weekend, though. I doubt you’re open late enough for me to come after school.”

“Next Saturday would be perfect,” replied Ethan. “It’s the last square dance of the season. Doors open at six.”

“Six it is,” said Claire as she got in her car and attempted to close the door. 

Ethan stopped her by resting his hand on the doorframe. “I wouldn’t mind if you came a little early. The coffee bar sells sandwiches, we could grab some dinner and catch up.”

“Uh...” this definitely sounded like a date. The face of every man Claire had dated flashed through her mind. She looked up at Ethan. None of them had held a candle to him. “Okay, I guess. How about 5:30?”

“That’s perfect,” Ethan replied. As she prepared to leave, he interrupted once more. “It might be a good idea to give me your number. You know, just in case something changes.” Claire hesitated. “But you don’t have to,” said Ethan.

Claire covered her hesitation with a laugh. “Hand me your phone and I’ll add myself as a contact.” Ethan handed her the phone. Typing quickly she made sure to include her address. “There you go.” Her heart gave thump, thump, thump as she handed back the phone. 

Chapter Two-Clash Among the Apple Trees

Humming a happy tune, Claire jumped in the shower and used her extra good-smelling body wash. The school week had gone well and she had spent her Saturday planting a container garden on the balcony of her apartment. Several tomato plants stood tall and a beautiful herb garden now grew in a large barrel. Her fingernails were black from the dirt. She scrubbed hard with her nail brush. Putting on an extra squirt of body spray, Claire then dried her hair letting the long, loose curls fall around her shoulders. “I guess I look alright for twenty-six,” she said gazing into the mirror. Feeling terribly old for her age she let out a long sigh. “Sure thought I’d be married by now. And here I am back in Hillsville, mooning over the same guy I fell in love with in high school. Am I stupid or what?”

In the past, she had tried to commit to a relationship, but memories of Ethan always got in the way. “For pete’s sake, we only dated for a summer. The man kissed me a total of two times. Carrying a torch this long is the most ridiculous thing I’ve ever heard of.” Despite the reprimand, Claire could not still the excitement or longing that had flared to life since her encounter with Ethan on Sunday. The entire week, when she wasn’t thinking about her students, she was thinking of him. 

Five o’clock soon arrived, and driving down the familiar mountain road, Claire passed by row after row of beautiful apple trees. A blue haze had settled over the mountains and the first whiff of autumn floated on the breeze. A bright red Cardinal landed on a rough rail fence. She breathed in the smell of fallen leaves and fresh tilled earth. In another few weeks, the mountains would be ablaze with color. With her windows rolled down, she didn’t notice the way the wind whipped her hair or the fact that it was messing up her carefully coifed locks.

She soon passed through the gates of “Caldwell Farms.” A huge sign painted on a brown background and sporting a picture of a bushel of apples announced the entrance. The orchard looked beautiful, the trees even bigger than she remembered. Turning a corner, she saw the newly constructed “Country Store.” Built of rough hewn planks, it perfectly reflected the ambiance of the mountains. There were even rocking chairs placed in front of apple bins on the front porch. 

“Wow,” said Claire as she got out of the car. “This place is amazing.”

Ethan smiled as he hurried toward her. “Thanks. I’m glad you like it. We put a lot of work into it.”

“I can tell,” said Claire. 

To her surprise, Ethan took her by the hand and led her towards the building. “I didn’t think you’d ever get here. I’ve been thinking about you all day.”

“You have?” Claire felt her heart give a leap. Not nearly as much as I’ve been thinking of you, but she didn’t have the courage to say her thoughts out loud. 

Giving her a tour, Claire was amazed at all Ethan had accomplished. There was even an old-time candy section filled with tiny wax soda bottles, bubble gum cigars and candy necklaces. Claire fingered the rainbow colored candy on a string. “This reminds me of when I was a kid.”

“That’s the goal,” said Ethan as he led her to the small stage area. “We wanted it to be a place filled with nostalgia and happy memories. I think we’ve accomplished that. What do you think of the dance floor?”

“It’s fantastic,” said Claire stepping out into the middle and whirling around. Her hair floated wildly about her shoulders. Ethan grinned watching her from the side. She suddenly stopped. “I...I...”

Ethan crossed to her looking concerned. “What’s wrong, Claire? Are you okay?”

She looked around and waved her arms wide. “This is an amazing space.”

“Yeah, I know that,” said Ethan laughing. “And I sure am glad you think so.”

“No, I mean, it’s an amazing space for my kids!”

“Your...kids?”

Claire began jumping up and down. “Ethan, don’t you see? This would be the perfect place for my Bluegrass festival. It would be a draw for the entire town, and I could give my kids extra credit for attending. I could even offer my students a chance to perform! Oh Ethan, what do you think?”

Her heart dropped when she turned to look into his face. He shook his head. “Kids? Running around here? We have kids at the square dance, but not in the numbers you’re thinking of. The apple orchard comes right up to the building. If we had a bunch of kids running around, they could damage the property not to mention the trees. But a bluegrass festival is a great idea! It would be another great way to increase business. Might even bring in more people than the square dancing did. I don’t know why I didn’t think of it before.”

Claire felt disappointment rolling over her like a rock. “You’ve got to be kidding me, right? Increase business? You’re a troll of the worst sort, Ethan Caldwell and just as annoying as you were all those summers ago. There’s more to life than profit. My students don’t know a thing about their musical heritage and don’t want to know. I’ve been wracking my brain ever since school started about a way to get them to participate in mountain folk music. I should have known you wouldn’t help me. This is nothing but a replay of that stupid summer I wasted on you. I should have taken you at your word. You didn’t want to be with me then, and you don’t want to be with me now. I don’t know why I came tonight.” 

Claire began to storm out, but Ethan caught her by the arm. “Whoa there just a minute. It was you who broke up with me all those years ago.” He gently turned her to face him. “I haven’t gotten you out of my mind ever since.”

Claire softened looking down at the floor. “I broke up with you? You were the one who said you had to finish school.”

“I did say I had to finish school, but I never said I was breaking up with you. You were the one who wouldn’t return my phone calls.”

“What? You mean...” Claire’s mind was flooded with a flash of memory. Ethan had called her, multiple times, but she had been too angry to answer. “You mean, all this time I had assumed you didn’t want to be with me when you really did?”

“It seems so,” said Ethan. “And as to your festival, I only said a bunch of kids running around here might damage the property...might. I think we could figure out a way to coral the young hooligans.” Ethan looked down into her eyes. “I would do anything to help you, Claire, including but not limited to sponsoring a bluegrass festival. In fact, why not make Friday nights, bluegrass night? We could hold a festival every week.”

Throwing her arms around his neck, Claire jumped into his arms as Ethan twirled her around and around on the dance floor. Placing his lips against her ear, his deep voice sent shivers up her spine. “Seems we’ve both had a misunderstanding and it’s lasted eight years. Maybe now our timing is finally right. Welcome home, Miss Monroe.” He set her on the ground. “I’m making you chairperson of the Bluegrass Festival committee.” Bending down their lips met in a deep kiss. 

“I accept,” Claire smiled. That night, Claire only had eyes for Ethan and he for her. Though the place was packed, it felt as if they were the only two people in the world. And as far as Ethan and Claire were concerned...they were.

Points for writers to notice:

-Backstory: Notice how the background is given immediately.

-Point of View: Notice the entire story is told from the point of view of Claire. One of the most important things about writing a readable book is to learn how to control your point of view. I imagine myself in Claire’s shoes and do not go inside the mind of any of the other characters. Their responses are always described as if Claire is watching the scene. When you do not do this, it is known as “head hopping.” You can go inside the mind of other characters in a longer form of the book but only at paragraph or chapter breaks. I confine my point of view changes to chapters. It’s just easier and makes things clearer for the reader.