Hometown Reunion. Pam Andrews

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СКАЧАТЬ but didn’t ask any more questions, and his reticence discouraged her from satisfying her curiosity about his wife, although she did wonder why he never mentioned Joey’s mother.

      “You really do look good,” he said after he returned from checking on Joey.

      It was the last thing she’d expected him to say, and she didn’t know how to respond.

      “You’re not one of those cooks who enjoy their own food too much,” he said.

      He smiled directly at her, and it was like the sun coming out on a gloomy day. She wanted to say something nice in return, but she was at a loss for words.

      “Here he comes. I knew he’d get hungry eventually.” Scott stood to let his son slide into the booth beside him.

      “That big kid kept hogging the slide,” Joey complained. “He sat there and wouldn’t let anyone else go down.”

      “Maybe he’ll be gone when you’re done eating. You can play a little longer if Lori doesn’t mind,” Scott told him.

      “No, of course not. I was tempted to jump into those balls myself,” Lori confessed.

      “Big people aren’t supposed to,” Joey said, with a worried frown.

      “I’m not really going to do it,” she assured him.

      “Lori is very good at resisting temptation,” Scott said.

      She couldn’t help but notice that Scott didn’t smile when he said that.

      After letting Joey play awhile longer, they headed home. The little boy dozed off on the way back to Apple Grove, but the silence in the truck felt comfortable. She and Scott had grown up in the same town, had gone to the same schools, and had known the same people. Their shared history made it unnecessary to fill the time with words.

      Joey woke up when she got out of the truck.

      “Bye, Lori,” he said sleepily.

      “Have fun making stuff with your new hammer,” she said as she turned to walk up to Aunt Bess’s house.

      Scott thanked her for coming along. She stood and watched as his truck went down the street and disappeared from sight.

      Chapter Four

      Lori walked to church beside her aunt, drawing in the sweet scent of spring with every breath. It was the first Sunday in May, and she couldn’t have imagined a fairer day. The sky was a beautiful blue, and the sun was almost too warm for the white sweater she was wearing with her light pink dress. A light wind teased her silky flared skirt and caressed her cheeks, and she felt truly at home for the first time since arriving back in town.

      “Everyone will be so happy to see you,” Bess trilled, hustling along in her pointy-toed shoes with one-inch heels.

      She was dressed in one of her standard colors, forest green, but she’d softened the effect by wearing a creamy ruffled blouse with her suit. Bess looked lighthearted, which matched Lori’s mood perfectly, although she was hard-pressed to understand the rush of happiness the morning had brought.

      Certainly she was pleased to be going to Apple Grove Bible Church again. She’d enjoyed services at a Chicago church, but the congregation was so large that she’d felt lost in the crowd. It would be good to see familiar faces, and she was eager to hear a sermon by the new minister, Reverend Bachman.

      Not surprisingly, there was a good crowd milling around outside the open church doors; people were enjoying the pleasant weather and exchanging small talk. The sound of the choir’s last-minute practice wafted out, a signal that they had a good fifteen minutes before church began.

      “I need to talk to one of the Sunday school teachers,” her aunt said. “No need for you to come inside yet, but save me a seat somewhere in the middle.”

      Lori nodded assent as her aunt hurried off, then looked around for familiar faces.

      “Lori Raymond!” a voice behind her said.

      “Sara! I wondered whether I’d see you this morning.”

      “You remember Todd, don’t you?” the apple-cheeked, red-haired young woman asked, introducing her husband.

      “Of course, you were a few years ahead of us in school. It’s nice to see you, Todd,” Lori said.

      “Lori’s been in Chicago, working as a chef,” Sara told her husband.

      “Here for a vacation?” Todd asked, running his finger around the collar of a crisp white shirt.

      He was a big man, muscular but not beefy, with a pleasant face and close-cropped blond hair. Lori remembered him as a popular football player, but as rather shy and quiet.

      “Not exactly,” Lori said as a trio of little girls in pastel dresses and little straw hats raced past her.

      “Oops. Looks like Sunday school is letting out,” Sara said. “I’d better round up Sunny. Call me again soon.”

      When Sara and Todd darted around to the rear entrance to collect their daughter, Lori looked for other people she knew. There were familiar faces, but before she could approach anyone, she was surprised to see the last person she would expect to find at church.

      “Scott!” she called.

      He stopped suddenly when he saw her and grinned broadly.

      “Lori.”

      “I didn’t expect to see you here,” she told him.

      “No, I suppose you didn’t,” he said, coming two steps closer.

      He was wearing his Sunday-best jeans, if there was such a thing, and the cuffs of a pale blue dress shirt were rolled up to his elbows over golden-tan arms. He wasn’t wearing a hat, and his hair looked thick and wavy.

      “Well, I’m glad to see you.” She was surprised by the pleasure she felt.

      “I’m picking Joey up from Sunday school,” he explained.

      “Oh.”

      “I’m not staying for the service, though.”

      “Does Joey enjoy Sunday school?”

      “He likes to be with kids his own age.”

      “Well, I’d better go inside,” she said. “Say hello to Joey for me.”

      “Yeah, waiting isn’t Joey’s strong suit. I’d better go get him.”

      For a long moment he didn’t move away, and she was conscious of his eyes focused on her. Then he was gone, and the sun seemed to go behind a cloud. She moved slowly toward the open church doors, trying not to think about things that could have been different if they’d been more than friends years ago.

      When the service began, Lori tried hard to concentrate. She had to admit that the new minister was a gifted preacher, СКАЧАТЬ