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Natalie hesitated another few seconds. Then she sighed and opened the door. “All right.” She poked her head out onto the porch and scanned the yard. “You’d better come in quick, though. That Rufus goat was out of his pen this morning, and he seems to want to come in the house. He was at the back door just a minute ago, but he can be really fast when he wants to be.”
So could Jacob. He was inside before Natalie could change her mind.
Things at Lark Hill had definitely improved. The living room had been dusted, and an aqua-and-silver vacuum cleaner, the kind with a long hose attached to a round wheeled tub, sat in the middle of the floor. It looked ancient, but it must have worked because everything was a lot cleaner. She’d taken down the dingy curtains, and sunlight sparkled through the bare windows, casting golden rectangles on the floorboards.
“You really have been cleaning.” It came out like an accusation. “Are you sure that’s a good idea?”
She glanced up at him, her eyes startled wide. They were clear and bright today, and just the color of the spicy amber tea his grandmother had always brewed at Christmastime.
“I don’t like dirt,” she answered simply, “and anyway, I’m just using plain old dish soap and water. That’s not going to hurt anything.”
As Natalie led the way into the kitchen, Jacob halted in the doorway, stunned.
The litter of trash had vanished. The worn countertops and appliances shone, and the chipped enamel sink was empty of dishes. A raggedy broom leaned against one corner, the peeling linoleum floor was neatly swept and a bowl of sudsy water sat on the table. The lemony scent was strong in here. She must have been in the middle of scrubbing when he knocked.
This kitchen had been a complete disaster yesterday, but now it felt homier than his own bachelor apartment. Jacob shook his head slowly.
Women were amazing creatures.
But still... “I really don’t think you should be working this hard.”
She laughed, but there wasn’t much humor in the sound. “Don’t worry about me. I’m used to hard work.” She pulled out one of the chairs and lowered herself into it slowly.
He dragged out a second chair and joined her at the table. “I’m guessing Adam didn’t come back.”
“No, but he called.” Avoiding his eyes, Natalie dipped the rag into the bowl, wrung it out and busied herself scrubbing at a spot on the table. “He’s coming back in two weeks. I’m going to stay here in the meantime and get things ready.”
So the wedding was still on. Supposedly. But in Jacob’s opinion, the rest of that plan was definitely a nonstarter. “You can’t stay way out here on your own for that long in your condition. You don’t even have a working car.”
For a second or two, her rag stilled. Then she tightened her lips and began scrubbing even harder. “I’ll be fine.”
Jacob considered the stubborn set of Natalie’s jaw with a sinking feeling. From the look of things, unless he was prepared to manhandle an extremely pregnant woman out of this house and into his truck, there wasn’t much he could do.
But he had to do something.
He pulled out his cell phone and scrolled through his contacts until he found the one he was looking for. Two rings later, his call was answered.
“Hey, Mike. Listen, I need a favor. There’s a car parked over by the Sunset Motel on Highway 36. Do you think you could tow it back to your garage and get it running?”
“What are you doing?” Natalie had straightened up in her chair, the dripping rag forgotten in her hand. She shook her head at him furiously, her ponytail swinging.
He held up one hand in a calming gesture. “Yeah, I know, Mike. You’re always backed up, but this is an emergency. Like I said, I’m calling in that favor you owe me. Sure, tomorrow’s fine. Yes, whatever it takes. Just fix it. I’ll drop the keys off first thing in the morning.” He ended the call and smiled at Natalie, who was staring at him with her mouth open. “Give me your keys, and I’ll run them by Mike’s garage tomorrow. He’s a member of my church and the best mechanic in town. If anybody can get your car running, Mike can.”
“I...” Natalie blinked at him. “I appreciate the thought, but you should have checked with me first. I’m on a...limited budget right now. I’d love to get an estimate, but I can’t give the go-ahead for the repairs until I’m sure I can afford them.”
“There’s no way you can stay out here without a car. It’s not safe. Don’t worry about the cost. My church can help.” They could. But would they? Given everything that was going on right now, he wasn’t sure.
Well, it didn’t matter. If the board wouldn’t allow the benevolence fund to cover the repairs, Jacob would pay for them himself. Somehow.
“No!” The force of her refusal seemed to surprise her as much as it did him. She blushed and continued in a calmer voice. “It’s really kind of you to offer, Jacob, but that wouldn’t be right. I’m not even a member of your church.”
“That’s not a problem.” It wasn’t. Well, not to Jacob. “In any case, there’s no point worrying about it until Mike gets back to us about the repairs. We don’t even know what’s wrong with your car yet. It might be an easy fix.”
“I suppose.” Although Natalie’s expression made it clear that she doubted it.
“So. Now that we’ve got that settled, what else can I help you with today?”
* * *
Natalie hesitated. She wasn’t sure what to do, and right now she didn’t like any of her options very much.
She hated the thought of getting any more mixed up with Jacob Stone or that church he kept mentioning. But just before he’d arrived, she’d asked the Lord to help her manage until Adam came back. She couldn’t afford to turn her nose up at His answer, just because it wasn’t what she’d hoped for. And, she was stuck out here in the middle of nowhere without a vehicle and with nothing to eat but Adam’s leftover junk food. If it wasn’t for the baby, she’d make do, but...
Once again, there was no real choice to make.
“Do you have time to drive me to the supermarket? I can be ready to go really fast. I just need to do a quick check and see what I need.” Probably everything, but given her lack of funds, she’d make sure.
“Sure,” Jacob agreed instantly. “Take your time. While you make your list, I’ll go put Rufus back in his pen for you and make a couple of phone calls.”
Fifteen minutes later, they were rumbling toward town in Jacob’s old truck. As he drove past fields dotted with grazing cows or rows of seedlings, Jacob kept up a friendly conversation about their various owners. Natalie nodded, but she wasn’t really listening.
She went over and over her grocery list in her head, trying to decide which items were absolute necessities and which she could find a way to do without. She had to stretch her tiny amount of cash as far as she could.
In spite of her worries, she perked up when they reached the city limits sign, craning her neck as she peered through the smudged windshield. She’d fallen in love with the town of Pine Valley the minute she’d seen it.
This place had such a peaceful, unrushed air about it. And it was so pretty, too. A rosy brick courthouse sat proudly in the middle of a grassy square, ringed by old-fashioned stores advertising various kinds of businesses: a barbershop, a hardware store and a bookstore. Most of them had Sorry, We’re Closed signs in their windows. People in Pine Valley apparently took their Sunday rest seriously.
She expected Jacob to drive past the square, figuring there was probably a chain supermarket on the outskirts of town. Instead, he parked in front of a small storefront with bright green-and-white-striped awnings over its windows. Bailey’s was written in flowing white script across the sparkling glass of the door. Through the wide windows, Natalie saw baskets of produce, invitingly angled to show off the vegetables and fruits to potential customers.
This was no supermarket. This was some sort of fancy food boutique that looked as if it might have a surcharge for just walking in the door. No way could she afford to shop in a place like this.
“Here we are.” Jacob pulled his keys from the ignition. “You’ll love this store. Bailey’s always has the best stuff in town.”
Maybe, but she didn’t need the best stuff in town. She needed the cheapest stuff in town. Before she could figure out the least humiliating way to explain that, Jacob had rounded the truck and was opening the passenger side door.
“I only need a few things,” she said quickly, “so this won’t take long.”
“I’m in no hurry. Here now, watch that curb.” He cupped her elbow, steadying her as she stepped up onto the sidewalk.
The touch was light and brief, but she felt it all the way to her toes. Adam would never have thought about doing anything like that. He’d always bounded ahead of her like an overexcited puppy.
Not Jacob. Jacob made her feel...treasured. Nobody had ever made her feel like that before. That was why she’d embarrassed herself by crying on the porch yesterday, when he’d insisted on checking the boards and steadying her arm. She’d forgotten for a moment that Jacob was a minister, that he was just doing his job.
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