She could craft a simple piece of lace into a work of art. By fifteen, anyone who saw her work marveled that she was so gifted. At the tender age of twelve, she had shown an astonishing ability with needle and thread.
Brides came from as far away as the West Coast to purchase one of her exquisite gowns. Vonnie knew she wasn't just pretty fluff. "You're cruel!" Her words held no malice. "You're not serious! You're honestly going to make us wait until the wedding?" Mora and Carolyn chorused. Yet no one ever spoke of Vonnie's mixed heritage. Coal-black hair, amethyst-colored eyes, dimples men found irresistible. Beth might be the nicest girl in the county, but few wouldn't agree that Vonnie Taylor was the prettiest. "Ah, but you'll have to wait until the wedding." Vonnie tried for a teasing tone, doing her best not to allow her true feelings to show.
Vonnie, you can't keep us in suspense any longer! What's it like?" "Janie's so nice," Carolyn said as the couple walked on. "Evening, Hildy." Jane flashed friendly smiles at the women. The girls nodded when Janie Bennett and her fiancé, Edward Lassitor, strolled by. And now, the nicest person in Potter County would marry the best-looking man in Texas. Vonnie casually bit into flaky crust, feigning indifference to the conversation though her insides churned like a waterwheel. When the eldest Baldwin son's engagement to Beth Baylor was announced, the town's eligible female population had groaned with envy. "Beth is a lovely person." The murmurs readily concurred that Beth was the nicest person anyone could hope to meet. Yet, everyone knew the Baldwin/Baylor marriage was arranged by the senior Baldwin. At times she could be insanely agreeable. Beth was known to go to any lengths to keep peace. And even if she didn't, she'd say she did." "I wonder if Beth knows how lucky she is." Carolyn nodded. Vonnie edged away, eyeing the tray of cherry tarts, attempting a show of enthusiasm she didn't feel. "Very good looks," Carolyn Henderson concluded. "I know a good-looking man when I see one." "Hildy Mae!" Mora Dawson slapped a hand across her mouth. "Just looking at him makes my heart flutter like a butterfly's wings!" "I do declare that Adam Baldwin is the best-looking man in Potter County." Hildy Mae Addison's eyes were riveted to the gorgeous sight. The most memorable event in Vonnie Taylor's life took place in rural Amarillo in the late summer of '98 when Adam Baldwin predictably announced his engagement to Beth Baylor.
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