Finally a Bride (25 page)

Noah smiled. “I’d be obliged.”

Mr. Howard nodded and took his seat beside his wife. His family took up two whole pews.

For the next ten minutes, people filed in, greeted Noah, and took their seats. As his pocket watch hit the top of the hour, Noah headed for the front, trying to shake his disappointment that Jack and her family had failed to come this morning. Was she still angry with him?

On second thought, maybe her not being present was a blessing. He cared deeply that his parishioners would receive him as their pastor and friend. But it mattered immensely more what Jack thought—and that idea threatened to shatter his tenuous peace. Grasping hold of the podium, he stared at the crowd and determined to shut Jack from his mind—at least for the next hour.

He glanced at Agatha Linus and nodded. The woman began a flowery introduction of “At the Cross.” He smiled. “Would you please stand and join me in worship to our God?”

Most of the crowd rose to their feet, leaving Bertha Boyd and a few old folks and youngsters still seated. Noah closed his eyes, offered a final, quick prayer that God would speak through him and that the congregation would forgive his actions of the previous night, and then joined in the singing:

“At the cross, at the cross where I first saw the light,
And the burden of my heart rolled away,
It was there by faith I received my sight,
And now I am happy all the day!”

Chapter 18

C
arly quickened her steps as voices lifted in song emanating from the church filled the muggy air with a beautiful serenade of praise to God. Time had gotten away from them, and the last thing she wanted was to go in after the service had started and receive the scolding stares of those already seated—the very people she hoped would accept her.

“Horse feathers. We’re late.” Jacqueline hoisted Emma into her arms and hurriedly shooed her siblings along like a mother hen.

“Horses ain’t got no feathers.” Alan shook his head, his short legs pumping fast to keep up.

“Goodness, Alan. Where’d you ever learn to talk like that?” Jack grabbed Abby’s hand to keep her from dashing back home to her ma. “C’mon.”

“Yeah, don’tcha know
ain’t
ain’t a word?” Abby stuck her tongue out and made a face.

“Abby! Stop that. You two better behave, or you’ll get no pie today.” Both kids frowned but settled down at Jack’s warning.

Carly wondered how Rachel would manage having another child when the ones she already had were so rambunctious. Hopefully the new baby would take after Emma, who seemed to have the most docile character of the bunch.

The open doors of the church looked more like a monster’s mouth ready to swallow rather than welcome her. Now that they had arrived, a part of Carly wanted to rush back to the security of the boardinghouse to stay with Rachel. But if she were there, Rachel would feel obligated to stay up and talk, and the poor woman needed her rest. And Carly desperately needed to hear an encouraging message this morning.

Thunder sounded to the west, and she glanced up at the gray sky. Even the heavens looked unsettled today. The air hung heavy with moisture, and sweat already dampened the back of her dress.

At least she’d met the new minister and had shared several meals with him and the Davis family. He seemed kind and accepting of her; then again, he didn’t know about her past. But with him being new, wouldn’t most of the church folk be focused on him and whether his sermon passed muster and not concerned about a new woman in town?

They entered the doorway and shuffled down the aisle to the closest empty row. Emmie squealed when she saw the reverend and waved. “Howdy, Pas’er.”

Most folks nearby chuckled, but a few cast stern glares their way. Reverend Jeffers grinned, even though singing, and waved his fingers at the toddler. Carly sat down and bit back her own smile. Jack had her hand wrapped securely over the girl’s mouth and had leaned over to whisper something in her sister’s ear.

Carly joined in the third verse of the song, which she’d learned at Reverend Barker’s church:

“Was it for crimes that I had done;
He groaned upon the tree?
Amazing pity! grace unknown!
And love beyond degree!”

Carly’s heart clenched, and she closed her eyes. Jesus had suffered on the cross partly because of her own sins.
Forgive me, Lord
. She knew in her heart that He had pardoned her, but remembering the price Jesus had paid for her salvation kept her humble. She had much to be thankful for. God had freed her from prison and given her peace—at least most of the time. And He’d blessed her by making it possible for her to live in Lookout again with her dear friend who had told her about salvation. God’s faithfulness was truly great. She prayed again that He would open the townsfolk’s hearts toward her and that He’d give her the home she’d never had before.

She rearranged her skirt and smiled at Alan, who sat next to her. From behind, she heard the loud whispers, “Outlaw. Convict.”

Her heart clenched, and her hope wilted like a daisy in a drought. She closed her eyes as the pastor prayed.
Help me, Lord
.

She simply had to make a stand here in Lookout, because she had nowhere else to go. Either people would accept her, or they wouldn’t. If their scorn was the worst she had to face, then she could endure.
But please, Lord, don’t let things get any worse
.

Footsteps shuffled down the aisle, and someone squeezed into the small space between her and the edge of the pew. She scooted closer to Alan then glanced over to see who had just arrived. Garrett Corbett stared down at her with those intriguing blue eyes. Her hands started sweating, and she yanked her gaze away.
Oh, Lord, why’d he have to sit here?

Jack scooted to the end of the pew so that Carly could move over and not have Garrett crowding her. She probably should have mentioned that he often sat with her family and then came over for Sunday dinner.

Agatha Linus started playing the chorus of “What a Friend We Have in Jesus,” and the pastor started singing, his deep voice clear and surprisingly on-key. She pulled Emma back against her, hoping the warmth of the room would put the toddler to sleep, and continued listening. Who would have thought Noah could sing so well?

His handsome face looked dreadful. His black eye had all but swollen shut, and his other cuts were puffy and red. She wondered why he hadn’t worn the bandages the doctor had put on his wounds last night. Maybe he wanted folks to know he had nothing to hide.

If that was the case, why wouldn’t he talk about his past with her? The fact that he refused to stirred up her investigative senses and made her want to discover his secrets. But what if he was hiding something that could hurt the town? Didn’t people have a right to know that?

What if he was a reformed train robber? Her gaze immediately shifted past the children to Carly. She’d been an outlaw, but God had changed her. So if He could change an outlaw into a kind, God-fearing person, He could change anybody.

But not Butch Laird.

Jack glanced to her right and gazed out the open window. Where had that thought come from? She hardly ever thought of her old nemesis these days. She had a hard time believing even God could change a fat, pig-stinking bully like him, but in her heart, she knew that He could.

She hadn’t treated Butch kindly, either, but had ganged up on him with her two childhood friends. She’d even lied about him. But at least she’d come clean on that and had told Luke the truth. Jack remembered going to Butch’s home to wallop him for the words he’d painted on the town’s walls, but when she saw the shanty he lived in, her anger had fled, and she had the overwhelming urge to apologize. She’d never been certain which she’d actually have done, but he’d been gone. Had left town and never returned. Where was he today? Was he still alive?

Shaking thoughts of Butch from her mind, she concentrated on the words she was singing:

“Have we trials and temptations?
Is there trouble anywhere?
We should never be discouraged—
Take it to the Lord in prayer.”

Jack ducked her head. She didn’t pray half enough. She was always doing things she thought was right, but she needed to seek God more.

Emmie’s eyes rolled back, and her lashes lowered. She’d open them wide for a moment, and they’d drift closed again. Leaning down, Jack placed a kiss on her sister’s head. When was the last time she’d prayed for her siblings?

Abby shoved Alan, and he pinched her leg. “Ow!” Heads swerved in their direction.

Jack leaned over. “I’m warning you two. No pie.”

Abby scowled at Alan and leaned on Jack’s left arm. Her right arm was already going to sleep. Maybe she should talk to the reverend about starting some kind of Sunday school program for the young children to attend during the service.

“Thank you kindly, Mrs. Linus.” Noah Jeffers nodded at the piano player as she left her bench and proceeded to the pew where her sister sat. The pastor cleared his throat and held on to the podium so tightly that Jack could see the white of his knuckles. He stared out at the congregation.

“I tried to introduce myself as each of you came in this morning, but I apologize if I missed anyone. I’m Noah Jeffers, and I’m filling in for Pastor Taylor while his family is out of town.”

He lowered his head, pursed his lips, then looked back up with resolve. Jack wondered if he was as nervous as he looked. Preaching to a crowd for the first time would be difficult enough, but to be doing so battered and bruised …

“Last night, I had the misfortune to be in a fight.”

Jess Jermaine leaped to his feet. “A man’s got a right to defend himself, Preacher. Everyone saw that you tried hard to not fight that Morgan boy.”

“Not when he’s the pastor, he don’t.” A man Jack hadn’t met before jumped up. “A pastor oughta be a man of peace.”

“Gentlemen, please. Have a seat, and let me continue.” He stood quietly while the two men stared each other down, then finally sat. “I want to apologize to y’all. I don’t condone fighting.”

Jack sucked in a breath. He was apologizing for defending her? She held Emmie so tightly the child began to fuss. She forced her arms to relax. Was he sorry for what he did?

“I can’t deny that this is a rough land and men sometimes have to take actions to protect themselves and their families. But as your current pastor, I should have tried harder to resolve last night’s situation without fighting. For that, I apologize. That’s all I want to say on the matter now, but if you feel it necessary to talk more, come and see me at the boardinghouse at your leisure.”

He looked down and opened his Bible. Heat scalded Jack’s cheeks. She stared down at Emmie’s little fingers, feeling rejected and foolish. Everyone would have been better off if she’d just stayed home last night instead of attending the social when she had no intention of dancing. Then Billy wouldn’t have created a commotion, and Noah Jeffers wouldn’t have had to sully his reputation and suffer for her sake. The sooner she left town, the better it would be for everyone.

“I thought a fitting verse to start with this morning would be Matthew 5:46: ‘For if ye love them which love you, what reward have ye? Do not even the publicans the same?’ “ Noah walked away from the podium and stood at the front of the pews. “Y’all know that a publican was a tax collector?”

Several heads nodded.

“Good. Well, we all know that nobody likes a tax collector.”

Chuckles echoed across the room.

“Jesus is saying here that even men we might not like love their wives and children—people who love them. It’s a simple thing to love people who care about you. But it’s far harder to love a person who, say—pokes fun at you for something you did or said. And what about that man who cheated you last month? How easy is it to love him?”