A Groom Worth Waiting For. Crystal Stovall

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СКАЧАТЬ “I need an address and telephone number where I can reach you.”

      Amy bit her lip as she was painfully reminded that she was temporarily without a home or a job. Inhaling deeply, she said, “I’ve just arrived in Lexington…this morning…and I don’t have a permanent address yet. But I’m planning to stay at the hotel near the airport until I can find a place. I’m headed over there to check in as soon as we’re finished,” she promised.

      “Do you have a work number?”

      “I thought I had a job and an apartment, but they both fell through this morning. But that’s another story,” she said, hoping to conceal the embarrassing state of her personal life.

      The concerned expression on Matt’s face bothered her. It was almost as if she could see another hare-brained idea percolating in his deep blue eyes. She may have needed his help during the robbery, but only she could put her life back together. No one could help her find her place in the world again or rebuild her relationship with God.

      Turning toward Matt, the officer wrote down an address as well as home and work telephone numbers that meant little to Amy. But in another week or so—if she stayed—she’d know her way around Lexington.

      Thinking they were free to go, Amy walked into the convenience store, only to come face to face with a crowd of media reporters. With microphones thrust in front of their mouths and bright lights glaring in their eyes, Matt and Amy once again recounted their story. And when Matt got to the part of the story where they were huddled in the storeroom closet, he paused to look at Amy for just a second. It was a moment the reporters missed but a moment Amy would always remember. She had shared something extraordinary with this man that she would never forget. In those closet moments, they’d lived in an unreal world where their fears and hopes had meshed into one.

      But this was the real world, Amy told herself. Matt Wynn was a stranger and a man. And she’d learned the hard way that if you trusted a man he would eventually break your heart.

      When the media prolonged the interview, Matt gripped Amy’s arms and with a move that caught both the media and Amy off guard, he guided her through the store, out the door and into his car.

      After locking the doors, Matt quickly left the parking lot and headed down the highway.

      “Now, why did you do that?” Amy demanded.

      “I was doing us both a favor,” Matt said. “The media wanted to make a lot more out of this story than there was.”

      “You’re talking about the way they focused on us being in the closet together for over an hour.”

      “Exactly. They’ll make a mountain out of a molehill.” Matt concentrated on the road, which was still wet, though at least the fog had lifted and the rain had stopped.

      “And nothing happened in the closet,” Amy said, wanting to be very clear on this point.

      “No, nothing happened. Well, we can’t exactly say that. We shared a very unique experience, but that was all.”

      Amy looked out the window. He’d said precisely what she’d wanted to hear, and yet his declaration left her disappointed.

      Turning toward him, she asked, “Then why am I in the car with you, and where are you taking me?”

      “To Aunt Lila’s,” he said as if his response should make perfect sense.

      “To Aunt Lila’s?” she echoed.

      “Like I told the police officer, I was on my way to see Aunt Lila before we were detained at the convenience store. The local stations always cut into programming when there’s a crime or emergency in progress, and if Aunt Lila didn’t have her television on, I’m sure someone in the family did and has called her. She won’t be satisfied until she sees both of us in person and she can judge for herself that we’re both fine.”

      Amy started to object, but closed her mouth. What choice did she have? She couldn’t exactly jump out of the car. She’d go see his aunt Lila and then she’d take a cab back to the convenience store to pick up her car and her meager possessions, which were stored in the trunk.

      Glancing at Matt, she sensed an urgency behind his serious countenance. He was up to something, and she had an uneasy feeling his plans involved her.

      Matt turned onto the long, winding drive, which was edged by a white wooden fence. Though he didn’t look at Amy, he felt a huge measure of satisfaction at her awe-inspired gasp. Even though he’d driven this quarter-mile drive thousands of times, he never took its beauty nor its history for granted.

      When the main house and stables came into view, Matt couldn’t resist stealing a glance at Amy. With widened eyes, she didn’t miss a single detail of the two-story white antebellum home that had been in his family for five generations. Turning slightly, she shifted her gaze to Aunt Lila’s formal garden, then to the white barns and corrals, all of which were framed by low rolling hills and a lush meadow on the north and east. He purposely kept his back toward the west so the sprawling housing development wouldn’t intrude on the picture-perfect horse farm.

      “It’s beautiful,” Amy said. Leaving the car, she completed a slow three-hundred-sixty-degree turn. “Do you live here?”

      Matt shook his head. “It belongs to my aunt. However, I oversee the upkeep for her, so I spend a lot of time here. Plus, she boards my horses.”

      “You have horses?” Amy asked.

      Matt nodded. “Do you ride?”

      “Oh, no,” Amy said, shaking her head for emphasis. “But I once had dreams of owning a horse until my father explained that a collie puppy would make me just as happy.”

      “Well, if you’re going to live in Lexington, you’ll have to learn to ride.”

      Amy shook her head again. “Maybe later. I’m going to be pretty busy for the next few weeks.”

      Matt looked toward the grassy meadow while he silently debated whether it was wise to even consider his plan. After all, what did he really know about this woman? One quick glance at her intent eyes squelched his doubts. He’d held this woman in his arms for an hour, and while he might not know much about her life, he knew enough about her heart and spirit to believe he wasn’t making a mistake. And if Aunt Lila felt she could trust the woman, too, then that would confirm his instincts.

      “You told the officer you were between jobs,” he said.

      “Yeah,” she answered, obviously unwilling to volunteer any more information than necessary.

      “What kind of work are you looking for?”

      Amy looked at the ground, then let her gaze roam the green vista. In that moment, he wanted to view the Wynn land through her eyes. Did she see the same beauty he did, or did she just see another wide-open space ripe for development?

      When Amy finally met his gaze, he sensed a hesitation that grew from embarrassment. “Actually, I’m looking to change fields and I’m not certain what I’m going to do. I’m thinking of going back to school. If I do, I’ll need something that will pay the rent, yet be flexible enough to accommodate my class schedule.”

      Matt read more into the response than СКАЧАТЬ