Snowbound With The Best Man. Allie Pleiter

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       Chapter Four

      “Do you think Carly and Mr. Bruce liked our church, Mom?” Lulu asked as they loaded the dishwasher from Sunday lunch.

      “I can’t say for sure, sweetheart.” She’d been surprised that Bruce and Carly had shown for church, but he’d looked unsettled during most of the service, and hadn’t spoken much afterward.

      The man was impossible to read. Had he been irritated by the country congregation, or just needed some time to process his reaction?

      “Carly’s fun. I really like her.”

      I can’t really say the same for her father, Kelly thought. “She seems like a nice friend to have.” She handed a glass to Lulu.

      “Carly said our church is tons more fun than the one she used to go to when her mom was alive.”

      Kelly felt her heart pinch the way it always did when young Lulu talked about a parent dying in such a matter-of-fact way. It shouldn’t ever be normal, not to any child. And yet Carly’s remark told her a lot about Bruce, didn’t it? He’d been part of a church community, and then cut himself off—for whatever reason—after his wife’s death.

      Why? Kelly couldn’t imagine how she’d have gotten through the dark days after Mark’s death without the support of MVCC. The congregation had held her up, prayed her through, even fed her. Though her own parents were far away in Texas, she’d never been alone, but had multiple invitations to choose from on those crushing first holidays and birthdays. How could anyone do it alone like he seemed to have? She wondered if the bruised nature of his soul—and he surely appeared to be a wounded soul to her—had come from that isolation. It made her sad and wary at the same time. Whatever small connection she felt with the man or his adorable daughter had to be tempered by the fact that he was a long way from healing.

      “How much longer till they get here?” Lulu whined.

      “Oh, just enough time for you to get your math worksheet done,” Kelly said, pointing to Lulu’s backpack on its hook by the door.

      “Mom, it’s Sunday. Pastor says it’s rest day,” Lulu retorted, one cocky hand on her slim hips.

      “Then maybe you’ll need a nap to pass the time,” Kelly teased.

      Lulu rolled her eyes. “Fine. Math is better than naps. But not by much.” She pulled a folder out of her backpack and flopped down on the kitchen counter with a dramatic sigh. “Third grade is hard.”

      Thirty-one is harder, Kelly moaned in the silence of her heart. And lately, for a host of reasons, thirty-one alone felt extra hard.

      When the doorbell rang twenty minutes later, Lulu scampered off her seat and made it to the door before Kelly even put down the magazine she was reading.

      “It took forever!” Carly announced once Lulu mentioned how long the wait had seemed.

      Kelly gave a soft laugh at the girls’ enthusiasm. “Remember when two hours was forever?” she asked Bruce.

      “Not really,” Bruce replied, scratching his chin.

      “Wouldn’t it be great if we got a snow day this week that closed school so you could come over again?” Lulu said as she opened the hall cabinet where the driveway chalk was kept.

      “Are we gonna get lots of snow, Daddy? You said Miss Tina wanted to be a snow bride.” Carly clearly thought lots of snow sounded like a marvelous idea.

      “Then I’d like four inches, please,” Kelly offered. “Fluffy not icy, with a nice, quiet wind. And sunshine by ten in the morning on the wedding day.”

      Bruce furrowed his brow. “Not too particular, are you?”

      Kelly gestured out the window. “We look gorgeous in a few inches of snow and bright sunshine. Like a postcard.”

      “What about all of Miss Tina’s pretty flowers? Won’t they freeze?” The little girl’s concern was touching.

      “No,” Kelly assured her. “I made sure to use flowers just right for a winter’s day.” Kelly was especially proud of the creative mix of winter-hardy amaryllis, anemones and silver brunia balls she’d designed, perfectly accented with pine and red ribbons. Like the cake Yvonne had designed, Kelly was sure nothing matched it anywhere in Asheville.

      “Here’s the chalk for hopscotch,” Lulu pronounced, holding up the bucket. Obviously, there was not a minute to waste.

      “Hat,” Kelly reminded Lulu.

      “And mittens,” Bruce chimed in, for Carly had a hood on her sweet pink-and-purple jacket.

      “Mom,” Lulu moaned, followed by a copycat “Dad” from Carly, though both girls obeyed the instructions.

      They watched the girls race out the side door without so much as a single look back.

      “I feel bad adding to your load on a Sunday...” Bruce began.

      “Oh, no,” she cut in, “you’re actually helping. Keeping Lulu occupied can be a bit of a challenge sometimes.” Kelly caught the mix of relief and reluctance in Bruce’s eyes. Was he glad that СКАЧАТЬ