Seven

Ric sat in front of his computer in his office, staring at it. On the monitor, a screen saver of a family of ducks wearing sailor hats swam back and forth, back and forth, but he didn’t pay any attention to them.

He had other things on his mind. What if she said no? What if she said she didn’t want to stay? What if—

“So do you like it?”

Marnie leaned against the doorjamb, watching him.

“Like what?”

“The screen saver.”

“The what?”

She sighed and crossed the room. “This,” she said, jabbing her finger at the computer monitor. “The ducks.”

“Ducks? Why on earth would you—and why are they wearing sailor hats?”

“Ah, just noticed, did you? I thought they were cute. And definitely more interesting than that dot thing you had on there before.”

“They weren’t dots. They were stars.”

“And you’re going to tell me that was more interesting than ducks wearing sailor hats?”

He sighed. Past experience told him that he’d have to get used to the ducks. If he removed them from his computer, she’d probably put flying snails or horses in sneakers in their place.

“You’re worried she might say no, aren’t you?”

“I’m not worried—,” he began, but she shook her head. “Okay, I am worried. A bit. I do know that God has this all in His control, and whatever He has planned is for the best. I guess I’m hoping that He and I are on the same page here.”

“Been advising Him again?” she asked with a sympathetic tilt of her head.

“Constantly.”

The sound of Todd’s voice echoed down the hallway, and Marnie laughed. “I’ll take Mr. Todd to the day care and leave you to discuss the deal with Lily.”

Discuss the deal. He wanted a cup of coffee, but he was so nervous that more caffeine would probably jangle his nerves so much he could play “Jingle Bells” without an instrument.

He could hear Todd’s words still going as Marnie led him to the playroom, and Lily stuck her head in.

“Marnie said you wanted to talk to me?”

Suddenly he realized that his announcement needed grander surroundings.

He stood up and, with a nervousness that took him by surprise, cleared his throat.

“I’d like to take you and Todd out to dinner tonight,” he said. “Wildwood Inn is open again. It’s kind of a legend in the area since it’s so old.”

“Oh, I’ve heard of it!” she said. “The food is supposed to be terrific.”

“They’re known for their walleye. Plus, the Inn has quite a history, and many of the original furnishings are still there. It’s quite a showcase.”

She smiled. “I’d love to go.”

❧

“I don’t want to go.” Todd stood in the living room and crossed his arms over his chest stubbornly.

“I’m not going to argue with you. We’re going.” Lily stood her ground firmly, too.

“But I hate those places. And I hate getting in my nice clothes. They itch. I’ll have to sit there all evening and eat icky food and itch.” His lower lip came out.

“Todd—”

The phone rang, and she reluctantly left the argument to answer it.

It was Marnie. “Lily, my grandson is visiting for the evening, and we’re going to a movie. Would Todd like to come?”

She glanced at her son, still pouting in the center of the room. “We’re going to the Wildwood Inn with Ric.”

Marnie hooted. “That’s no place to take a boy. I’ll run by and pick him up in five minutes. We’re just going to stop by the Burger Beat and grab a snack, and then it’s off to the show.”

Todd’s mood was getting darker by the minute. She hated to relent, but taking him to dinner in the mood he was in was inviting trouble. “Thanks, Marnie. I’ll have him waiting.”

“Well, tiger,” she said as she hung up the phone, “you’ve just received a reprieve.”

“What’s that?” Todd asked sulkily.

“That was Marnie, and she’s going to pick you up in five minutes and take you and her grandson to Burger Beat for dinner and then to a movie.”

The joy on her son’s face told her she’d made the right decision. As he quickly changed into a clean T-shirt, he babbled about the fun he would have.

She’d just handed off her now-changed son into Marnie’s capable care when she realized she had only moments to get herself ready.

She tore out of her work clothes and into a long black knit shift. It was classically simple enough that no matter what the dress code was at the Wildwood Inn, she should be fine.

A quick comb through her hair, a last dusting of powder and pink lipstick, a light gossamer sweater thrown over her arm in case the Inn was overly air-conditioned, and she was ready to go.

“Where’s Todd?” Ric asked when he arrived.

Lily told him, and he smiled. “Hope he has fun.”

She couldn’t tell if he was sorry or not that Todd wouldn’t be going with them.

The Wildwood Inn was a beautiful old house not too far from the river. Ric explained to her that it had belonged to a steamboat captain at the turn of the century, and the gracious building had been turned into an inn in the twenties.

Her reservations about it just being the two of them quickly dissipated as Ric chatted easily, drawing her into conversation and making her feel at ease. Part of the problem, she knew, was that she didn’t know if this was a date or if it was just two friends having a nice dinner together.

Until she knew, she’d consider it the latter. It was safer.

But still, a date would be nice.

“How are you liking Wildwood so far?” Ric asked.

“Oh, I love it! It’s the kind of place I’d like to have Todd grow up in.” Then the entire story about the house poured out. “It’s my dream house, Ric. Of course, I haven’t seen the inside, so maybe I’m being foolish, but both Todd and I lost our hearts to it. I’m seeing it tomorrow after work. A real estate agent that Sam knows is going to show it to us.”

“Tell me about it,” he prompted her.

“Well, I’ve only seen the outside, and I know it’s probably had flood damage. I mean, what house hasn’t? But it’s a little brick house, and it has a swing set, and a fireplace, and Todd has decided he wants to grow carrots in the backyard.”

“Carrots?”

She grinned. “Well, that’s today. Tomorrow it may be corn, and the next day the garden may be out of the plans entirely and he’ll be building a fort there. But I’d love to have a garden. Fresh tomatoes! Think of it. Fresh tomatoes! Fresh corn! Everything, right from my own backyard!”

“You’re glowing. You should get the house.”

“It’s a good dream,” she said. “But the fact is, I don’t know if I can afford it.”

“Maybe this can help you as you make your decision.” He cleared his throat. “You know that the flood has fast-tracked a lot of things that would, in a normal, unflooded world, be tied up in administrative red tape for months on end. The day care is an example.”

She nodded.

“Lily,” he continued, “we’ve received permission from the district to offer you the position of child-care coordinator on a permanent basis.”

“Forever?”

“Forever—or as long as you want,” he said. “Do you want the job?”

“Do I want the job? Of course I do! I love it here. I love Wildwood.” There was more, but she left it unsaid.

This job meant everything to her. She couldn’t bear to think about leaving Wildwood and Resurrection and Marnie, and even Ric. Yes, the vision of life without Ric in it was almost too terrible to consider.

“There are a few changes to your job description,” Ric said, and he proceeded to explain them to her.

The duties were somewhat expanded from what they were now, which made sense. The day care right now was an emergency setup, but in the future it would have to operate under different circumstances.

The inherent challenge was exciting. The district wanted her to upgrade the facility while keeping it within the confines of the church. She was to keep an eye on possible expansion if the need presented itself, which it might if more day cares didn’t reopen.

She had the authority to apply for any grants that might enhance the day care. At the Nanny Group, she’d written a successful proposal that had funded a special project, so that was good.

But what was especially appealing was the salary. It was generous, far beyond whatever expectations she might have secretly harbored.

When she’d talked to the real estate agent in the morning, he’d told her the asking price of the house. Maybe she would be able to afford to buy it now, if she was careful with her money.

“Still sound good to you?” Ric asked, his blue eyes twinkling like azure stars.

She nodded. “I want this job, Ric. I want to stay here, and Todd wants to stay here. I feel I can do some good here in Wildwood and live my life of service.”

“It may not be as directly related as the ministry,” Ric said, “but it is the Lord’s work.”

“Theirs is the kingdom of God,” she said almost to herself.

The server arrived with their food, and before they ate, Ric looked at her. “Shall we say grace?”

They bowed their heads, and his hands covered hers in a warm grip. “Blessed Lord, we thank You for this food and for the company of our friends. We ask always to stay mindful of You and to live in Your service. In the name of the Most Precious One. Amen.”

Dinner was wonderful, the kind of food that Lily liked but never seemed to have the time to prepare at home. And, to be honest, even if she had the time, Todd wouldn’t have cared for the herbed crème sauce on the baked walleye, or the cheese-flavored potatoes, or the crusty crab cakes that came as a side dish. For him, the best food was a pile of chicken strips and french fries served in a plastic basket at the Burger Beat.

Lily gave into temptation and let Ric order dessert, some horribly calorie-filled concoction called Chocolat a Deux, a rich fudgy mousse with bittersweet chocolate drizzled on the top and tart raspberries on clouds of whipped cream around the edge.

The server brought them two spoons. “It’s a bit much for one person,” he explained. “That’s why it’s called Chocolat a Deux, which is sort of French for ‘Chocolate for Two.’ ”

After the waiter left, Ric looked at her with raised eyebrows. “Sort of French?”

Lily shook her head and dipped her spoon into the dessert. “That way he’s covered, in case it’s really sort of Italian.”

She took a bite of the rich dessert and closed her eyes. “I know what they serve in heaven. This is absolutely incredible! It’s drenched in calories, I know that, but wow!”

Even with both of them working on it, they couldn’t finish the dessert, and at last they sadly laid down their spoons in defeat.

“I can’t eat another bite,” she confessed.

“Nor can I.” He groaned. “And I can’t move anymore. We still have a major hurdle ahead of us. We’ve got to get to the car.”

“Just pull up to the front door, and I’ll roll out to meet you. I couldn’t walk for anything.”

The server returned with the check, and while Ric settled the bill, Lily fought the increasing urge to fall asleep.

“They’re going to kick us out unless we go of our own volition,” Ric said.

She glanced at her watch and suddenly came back to life. “It’s after nine! I have to pick up Todd. He needs to go to bed.”

They were both too stuffed to do much talking on the way to Marnie’s house to pick up Todd. The even movement of the car’s rhythm on the road was like a lullaby, and she fought to stay awake.

As Ric pulled up in front of the secretary’s house, he turned off the car’s engine and faced her.

“I had a good time tonight, Lily.”

“So did I.” Somewhere in her mind the message peeped through that he was going to say something of importance, but she was too lulled by the evening to comprehend.

“I’d like to see you more. Can you give that some thought?”

She nodded sleepily. More than anything, she wanted to curl up beside him, put her head on his shoulder, maybe let him wrap his arm around her, and go to sleep.

But it was not to be. The car door flew open, and Todd launched himself into her lap. “Mommy, Mommy!” he shouted in her ear. “I met Andy, and now he’s my bestest, bestest friend in the whole-wide world that doesn’t live here. He’s got this game, too. You hold it in your hand, and it beeps and shakes, and he got it at that store with the big Z on the front. Can we go now and get it?”

She struggled to make sense of his words, and over her son’s shoulder, she saw Ric watching them. She couldn’t quite decipher his expression, but in there she could have sworn she saw sadness.

That evening, after Todd was settled and asleep, she lay in bed and thought through the events of the day. Her life had suddenly taken a change that she’d never expected it to.

Obviously God had something in His plan for her to do, and maybe the trouble at the Nanny Group was just a way of preparing her to do her major service here in Wildwood. It was a possible answer to the question she’d been asking herself for so long.

And now that she had the answer, she could attend to other parts of her life. Like Ric.

She’d been sleepy tonight—and maybe she’d misunderstood what he was saying—but he seemed to want to take their relationship beyond the world of work. At least that was the impression she had gotten.

And she didn’t have to ask herself how she felt about it. She knew. Just the thought of him, the sight of him, made her smile.

And now, without the awful image of the Nanny Group hanging over her head, she was free to let all those thoughts she’d tucked into the back of her mind come to the forefront.

Who would have imagined that out of the catastrophe at the Nanny Group, and out of the disaster in Wildwood, something as wonderful as love might grow?

It never paid to second-guess God, she’d learned. But when He made His ways known, it was sweet, so sweet.

Lily was singing as she got ready for work the next day. Song after song poured out of her, and when she ran out of songs she knew, she made up some more.

Even Todd’s grumpiness, the result of his late bedtime, didn’t faze her.

“Why are you so happy?” he asked her as he struggled into his clothes.

“Lots of reasons, tiger. We’re going to stay in Wildwood, I’ve got a good job, we’re going to look at the house tonight where we can have a carrot garden for you, little guy. And above all”—she plunked a kiss on the bridge of his nose—“God’s in His heaven, and all’s right with the world.”

She threw open the curtains in the living room and smiled at the outside world of the parking lot. “Isn’t it a beautiful day?”

Todd frowned. “It’s raining.”

“And a beautiful rain it is. Here, put on your slicker and boots, and I’ll put mine on, too, and we’ll run through the puddles.”

“On purpose?”

“On purpose.”

“You’ll get mad.”

“No I won’t.”

“How come you’re so happy?” he asked her again, pulling on his bright red rubber boots. He smiled impishly. “Did you kiss Ric?”

“You shush!” she reprimanded him. “No, I didn’t kiss Ric, and you shouldn’t talk that way. I’m just in a really great mood today because life is good. This morning, nothing can upset me. Nothing at all.”

But when they got to the church and Todd joined his friends in the day care, Marnie handed her a registered letter.

And Lily’s world caved in.