8

 

Late the following Friday afternoon, Pia drew a deep breath and stepped outside. A large tote stuffed with tiny gift bags dangled from one arm, and a bowl of baked beans balanced precariously in the other hand.

All the tenants had been invited to the monthly barbecue Hart hosted in the center court of the complex—a large, grassy area outfitted with an impressive brick grill and several picnic tables under brightly colored umbrellas. Using one booted foot to close her gate, Pia assessed the small group milling about the lawn. Almost everyone had shown up, despite the wintry chill in the air.

David manned the grill, surrounded by several neighbors. Slightly apart from the crowd, his uncle stood with an attractive older woman who wore a bright pink cardigan over her few extra pounds. Viv Mallory laid a hand on Hart’s arm and said something that made him laugh. Stunned, Pia realized it was the first time she’d seen the man’s humorous side.

Standing next to David, her brother’s crisp, dark waves shone in the sunshine. He spotted her and raised a hand in greeting. Finally having moved into the complex, Gabe seemed completely at ease in the circle of neighbors. She loved seeing him like this—kicked back and casual, wearing a carefree smile and that old, teasing light in his eyes.

Who’d have thought she’d ever miss her brother’s merciless teasing?

Zoe rushed across the lawn. “Here, let me take that.” She carried the hot dish to a table already groaning beneath an array of bowls and platters. “Smells luscious. What is it?”

“Baked beans.” Pia spoke in a conspiratorial whisper. “It’s the only thing I make well enough to offer innocent diners.”

The other girl’s trilling laughter brought an answering smile to Pia’s lips.

“Grab a drink and come on over.” Susanna’s sparkling chestnut eyes beckoned from a round table under a purple canopy.

“Be right there.” Zoe fished a soft drink from a washtub filled with ice and beverages, handed one to Pia, and popped the top on another for herself. She dropped into a chair across from her oldest friend, and Pia claimed the chair next to her. “So how long have you two known each other?”

Susanna’s eyes sparkled, and her smile lifted Pia’s spirits. “We met a year or so ago.” She tugged on a chain around her neck and pulled a silver pendant from beneath her blouse. Pia’s Angel Wings design. “I thought I told you about it. Pia introduced herself to me at a local trade show and handed me this lovely necklace.”

Zoe laughed. “The two of you had never met, and she just walked up and gave you jewelry?”

“Well, I’d been by her exhibit, and we spoke briefly—just casual chit-chat. Then she chased me down because ‘God wanted me to have this.’“

“That is so cool.” Zoe shook her head and turned her cat-like gaze on Pia. “How do you do that?”

Pia shook her head. “It’s not a big deal. The Lord just gives me a little nudge when a certain piece is meant for someone in particular.”

“It was a big deal to me,” Susanna said. “Without going into details, I’d say it was a God-thing.”

“I know what you mean.” Zoe indicated the graceful cross resting against her own chest. “When she gave me this cross, it hit me like Saul’s Damascus Road experience. Except, rather than blinding me, God opened my eyes.”

Susanna leaned in to admire the pendant. “Pia, this has really become a ministry for you, hasn’t it? Isn’t it amazing the things God uses to get His message across?”

Pia laughed. “Well, I suppose if He can use a donkey to say what needs to be said, like He did with Balaam, He can use me and a piece of jewelry.” She sobered and shook her head. “I’ve never really thought of it as a ministry though. I don’t feel worthy of that.”

Zoe leaned closer, wrapped one arm around her shoulders and gave her a gentle squeeze. “None of us are worthy. That’s the beauty of salvation. God loves us in spite of our faults.”

Across the table, Susanna fixed a curious gaze on them. “You two must be related, somewhere down the line.”

Zoe released Pia and sat back, laughing. “Why? Do only relatives get hugs?”

“No, it’s—” Susanna looked up as David approached with Gabe. “Hey, guys, come take a look at these two. What do you see?”

The two men rounded the table to stand on either side of Susanna. David grinned. “I see two bee—eautiful ladies.”

Susanna elbowed his leg. “Besides that, preacher man.”

Pia had no problem with her brother examining her eyes, but David’s intense stare set her heart flopping around like a fish on the desert floor. She hadn’t seen him since she dumped her entire history in his lap on Sunday. Her sordid past had changed their relationship, just as she’d known it would.

Only God truly forgave and then forgot the sin. Man might forgive, but forgetting seemed to be another matter entirely.

Now she fidgeted beneath David’s intense observation, wondering what he was thinking as his gaze traveled from her to Zoe, who preened and prissed playfully, and back to Pia again.

The men spoke at the same time. “Their eyes.”

“What?” Puzzled, she looked at Zoe, who stared back at her.

“They’re very much alike.” David narrowed his own deadly peepers and tilted his head. “It’s uncanny.”

Gabe raised a brow. “He’s right, sis. The two of you could be sisters.”

Once again, she turned to look at Zoe. Now that the strange likeness had been pointed out, it was disturbingly obvious. Peering into the younger girl’s eyes was like seeing her own in a mirror.

Zoe laughed, delighted with the discovery. She raised one finger and nodded like a precocious child. “That settles it. The eyes are the windows to the soul.” Rising from her chair, she touched Pia’s shoulder with an exaggerated flourish and curtsied dramatically, while the others grinned at her antics. “I hereby officially dub thee my soul sister, Pia Peretti.”

Pia feigned a regal nod and patted Zoe’s head. “I am honored, oh small one.”

“All right, everyone, let’s eat!” Mrs. Mallory’s voice broke into their conversation. “Andy says it’s ready, and it smells mighty fine.”

They all turned toward the grill where the landlord stood with a grin on his lined face. “Well, it’s done and pipin’ hot. David let me take over a minute ago so I could claim some credit if these ribs are as good as he says they’ll be. Not bein’ the grill master today, I can’t say how ‘fine’ they are, but we can hope.” He nodded in David’s direction. “You wanna ask the blessin’?”

The next few moments were filled with chatter and laughter as everyone filled their plates. Pia heaped hers with meat, baked beans, a dollop of fluffy potato salad, and a slab of bread then drifted back to the purple-shaded table.

Mrs. Mallory slid in beside her, a smile lighting her blue eyes. “Everything looks so good.”

Pia grinned. “Including you, Mrs. Mallory.”

“Thank you, Pia, but—won’t you please call me Viv?” The older woman’s brows dipped downward. “How many times must I ask you, dear? Is there a magic number after which you’ll agree?”

Susanna and Zoe laughed as they joined them. Susanna’s plate rivaled Pia’s own ample fare, but Zoe’s held mostly fruit and salad.

“All right, then.” Pia gave the older woman’s arm a gentle squeeze. “Viv it is.”

“Well, it’s about time.” Viv rolled her eyes as she buttered her bread and addressed the newcomers. “It’s taken me a year to make this happen. There must be something special about today.”

“It’s the angels,” Zoe blurted, then froze as the other women turned startled stares her way.

Pia giggled through a mouthful of potato salad. She washed it down with a drink then shook her head. “Do you mean Mr. Hart’s angels?”

“Well, yes, but…mine are here, too. So are yours. Don’t you feel them?”

Pia couldn’t think of a response. Susanna bit her lip and toyed with her food.

Viv grinned and speared a tomato on her fork. “I think you shocked our friends, my dear.” She shrugged. “Including me. Zoe, honey, are you talking about angels, like in the Bible? Literally?”

Zoe hiked one brow and nodded. She popped a grape into her mouth and chewed it while she studied all of them. Finally she sighed, and her gaze drifted toward Andrew Hart. “Sometimes I forget that not everyone sees them.”

Remembering the conversation she and David had overheard between his uncle and some unseen companion, Pia followed her friend’s gaze. The landlord stood with his nephew and Gabe, a dripping rib gripped in one hand. Both younger men wore broad grins. Old Hart could be quite entertaining.

She opened her mouth to tell Zoe she whole-heartedly believed in angels—sometimes even felt their presence, though she couldn’t see them—but an ear-splitting crash interrupted the conversation. Susanna screamed. Viv gasped and clasped both hands to her heart.

The landlord picked up the plate he’d dropped and tossed it in the trash. “Those two-bedroom units started goin’ up today. That was just the first of what’ll be a whole lot o’ noise. Someone must’a dropped a sheet of plywood or something.” He cocked his head for a minute. Pia saw his eyes fix on a point beyond David’s shoulder. Finally he nodded. “Nobody’s hurt.”

Gabe had started around the corner. He halted at Hart’s words and turned. “How do you know that? Shouldn’t we go check it out?”

Hart shrugged. “Suit yourself, son. I know you got those cop instincts to deal with. But I’m tellin’ ya, everythin’s OK out there.”

The younger man hesitated, but finally joined David, who stood calmly refilling his plate.

Viv picked up their previous conversation as if there’d been no interruption. “Zoe, honey, Andy hasn’t actually said so, but I think you and he might have that angel thing in common. That man is not a lunatic like some people think.” She used her napkin to wipe daintily at her lips. “I’ve listened to him when he doesn’t know I hear, and now that you’ve mentioned angels…well, I think that just might be what’s going on.” She squinted across the lawn, studying Hart.

The old bachelor must have felt her gaze, because he winked and grinned. Surprised, she shot a look at Viv. The woman’s round cheeks grew rosy, but a tiny smile tugged at her lips.

Pia swallowed a chuckle. Well, well, well. Thinks of his old chum’s widow as a friend, does he?

“Hey, where are Kaci and Ryne?” Rising from her seat, Pia glanced toward Kaci’s unit.

“I think they’re working at the school. Something about a Valentine’s Day dance,” Zoe said. “And Zack Manning is, uhm…not feeling well today.” She laid her fork aside and guzzled her soda while a faint wash of color flooded her cheeks.

Pia blinked. So, even her little hippie “soul sister” had been bitten by the Heart’s Haven love bug. David’s story on that first day she met him…maybe he hadn’t been spinning a tall tale, after all.

Ridiculous. Just stop it.

She carried her plate to a nearby trash can then returned to the table for the gift bag she’d slid underneath. “Well, ladies, I’ve got a couple deliveries to make, and I’m late already.” She grinned at Zoe. “Hey, soul sister, would you mind taking my casserole dish home with you? I’ll pick it up later.”