Shelley handed her mom and dad a fresh cup of coffee, then turned to see what the commotion was behind her. Someone was calling Zac’s name. Someone who sounded remarkably like Caleb.
Bailey rushed toward them. “Come quick. Sam’s feeling light-headed.”
Leaving everything beside their seats, Elena, Ted, and Shelley hurried toward the meeting room.
Shelley’s heart plummeted when she saw Sam lying on the floor with her eyes closed.
“I’ve got Zac,” Caleb said from the doorway.
Zac handed Caleb a set of keys. “I parked my truck behind the sign welcoming people to the church. My bag is under a blanket on the back seat.”
Caleb left as fast as he’d arrived.
All Shelley could do was stare at her sister and worry.
Elena knelt beside Sam’s head, gently stroking her daughter’s hair away from her face.
Zac looked at everyone. “I saw Sam a couple of weeks ago and everything was normal. Has anything changed since then?”
“Not that she told me,” Shelley said before looking at Bailey.
“Sam didn’t say anything to me, either. I got her a muffin when she said she was feeling dizzy.”
After checking her pulse, Zac gently placed Sam’s hand on the floor. “Can someone wet a dishtowel with cold water and bring it back here?”
“I’ll go,” Ted said quickly.
Sam’s eyelids flickered open.
“It’s okay, Sam.” Zac said. “You’re lying on the floor because you fainted. You’ll be okay.”
“Where’s Caleb?” she whispered.
“He’s gone to get my medical bag. He won’t be long.”
Sam sighed and closed her eyes. “I felt sick this morning and didn’t have any breakfast.”
“Bailey got you a muffin. You can eat that when you’re feeling better. But just stay where you are for now.” Zac looked at Shelley and John. “Would you find something sweet for Bailey to drink?”
“I’ll go,” Shelley said to John. “You stay here with Zac in case he needs you.”
She rushed into the corridor and met her dad on his way back.
“How’s Sam?” Ted asked.
“She’s awake. I’m getting her a drink.”
Her dad gave Shelley a quick hug before hurrying into the meeting room.
Shelley hoped their bickering hadn’t made her sister faint. She should have told John about Jarrod before now, but it didn’t seem important. Not after she’d decided to move to Sapphire Bay.
Thankfully, no one was waiting by the kitchen. Shelley grabbed two glasses of orange juice. That should be enough to help—
“Shelley?”
Slowly, she turned around and faced the man who’d caused her more than one sleepless night over the past couple of years. “I can’t talk now, Jarrod. Sam isn’t well.”
Jarrod frowned. “Can we talk later?”
“I don’t know. It depends on how Sam—”
“Please. It won’t take long.”
She’d just spent the last ten minutes telling everyone she could look after herself. Now, here she was, using any excuse to keep away from Jarrod. “Okay. I’ll text you when Sam’s feeling better.”
Without looking back, she hurried toward the meeting room and away from the man whose heart she’d broken.
John sat with Shelley, Bailey, and their dad as Zac kept a careful eye on Sam.
As the color returned to her face, Sam began to feel better. “I’m sure I fainted because I didn’t have any breakfast.”
“That’s one explanation,” Zac said with a smile. “But just to make sure, I’d like you to come back to the clinic with me.”
“Is our baby all right?” Caleb asked.
“The heartbeat is nice and strong but, just to be extra certain, I’d like to do an ultrasound.”
“We will come with you,” Elena said as Ted helped his wife to her feet. “A woman needs her mama at times like this.”
Sam looked across the room at John and Shelley. “Thank you for waiting with us. I know you have other things you need to do.”
“I’d sooner be here. Nothing’s more important than family,” John told her.
Elena gave Shelley and Bailey a hug, then held her arms open for John. “You are a good man.”
He stepped into her embrace.
“Ted said he saw Jarrod,” she whispered. “Do not let him near Shelley. He is a man who does not understand what family means.”
“Don’t worry. I’ll keep her safe.”
Elena touched John’s cheek. “Your mama would be proud of you.”
A knot of emotion blocked John’s throat. He’d called his foster parents two nights ago to make sure everyone was okay. Apart from their normal aches and pains, they were in good health. His mom was looking forward to having Christmas together in Los Angeles and she couldn’t wait to give him a hug.
Spending time with Shelley’s family, even if it wasn’t in the best circumstances, reminded him of his own family and how long it had been since he’d seen them.
“We should go,” Ted said to Elena.
“Do you need a ride to the medical clinic?” John asked.
“I’ll be all right to drive,” Ted said as he shook John’s hand. “Hopefully, we’ll see you before we go home.”
Caleb and Zac helped Sam to her feet. When she was feeling steady, she smiled at Shelley. “I’ll call you when I arrive home.”
Shelley and Bailey gave their sister a hug.
“Take care,” Shelley said.
“I will.” Sam held onto Caleb’s arm as they walked out of the room. After grabbing his medical bag, Zac joined them, followed closely behind by Elena and Ted.
Bailey took a deep breath. “I hope everything’s okay.”
“So do I,” Shelley said sadly.
John wrapped his arm around Shelley’s waist. “Zac knows what he’s doing. He won’t let Sam go home until he’s certain that she and the baby are okay. Do you want to go to the Colemans’ ranch or stay in town?”
“I’d prefer to stay close to Sam, but Jebediah insisted we clean the barn today.”
John didn’t think that would be a problem. “If you don’t need me, I’ll go to the ranch with Steven and the other volunteers. I’ll make sure it’s left how we found it.”
“That would be great. Remember the tree. Ben wants to pick it up from the barn this afternoon. But the decorations and lights need to be removed before it goes anywhere.”
“Don’t worry. I’ll remember.” John looked at the worried faces around him. “We still have some time before Steven and I need to head out to the ranch. Why doesn’t everyone come to my house for lunch?”
“That sounds wonderful,” Bailey said. “I’ll go to the supermarket and buy some pre-made sandwiches and juice for everyone at the clinic. Is there anything you want Steven and me to bring to your house?”
“I’ll visit the supermarket, too, so don’t buy anything extra. All I need to do is make sure the church is tidy and lock the doors after everyone’s gone home.”
“And I need to talk to someone.” Shelley sighed. “I shouldn’t be more than five minutes.”
“That’s okay,” John said. “I’ll be here if you need me.”
Shelley’s eyes widened. “You know?”
“Your mom said Jarrod’s here.”
“At least she didn’t make a scene in front of everyone.” Taking a deep breath, Shelley picked up her jacket and bag. “Wish me luck.”
For Shelley’s sake, John hoped she didn’t need it.
When Shelley walked into the kitchen, she was surprised to see Jarrod helping with the dishes. With his curly brown hair and easy smile, he was most people’s idea of the perfect man. And that’s what Shelley had thought before she realized marrying him would be the worst thing she could do.
She stood in the doorway. “Hi, Jarrod.”
He looked over his shoulder and frowned. “How’s Sam?”
“She’s feeling a lot better. Zac’s taking her to the medical clinic to do a few more tests.” Shelley pointed to the meeting room. “Why don’t we sit by the window? We can speak there.”
John walked into the room. The intense stare he sent Jarrod would have told most people to be careful. But, knowing Jarrod, he wouldn’t have understood the message.
After Jarrod sat beside her, Shelley placed her hands on her lap. “You said you wanted to speak to me?”
“I’m sorry, Shelley. I shouldn’t have kept calling you after we broke up. You were right. I took the job in Boston because you were there. I honestly thought we could have a second chance at our relationship.” He took a deep breath. “I met someone last month and we really like each other. That’s when I realized how annoying I must have been.”
“I’m glad you’ve found someone else. If that’s all you wanted to say—”
“Someone I know in New York City is looking for a forensic accountant.” Jarrod took an envelope out of his pocket. “I can’t leave my job, but I thought of you. The company is well thought of and has offices around the world. The salary is at the top of the range.” He handed her the envelope. “Applications close next week.”
Shelley looked down at the envelope. “Why are you giving me this?”
“Because working on short-term contracts gives you the opportunity to travel, but not much job security. And that was the one thing you always wanted. It doesn’t make up for annoying you, but it gives you another option when you leave Sapphire Bay.”
Shelley gripped the envelope. Jarrod assumed she was leaving and she couldn’t blame him.
For most of her life, she’d done everything she could to get away from small-town life. When she was growing up, Bozeman was the last place she wanted to be. But, here she was, setting down roots and falling in love with a town that was a lot smaller than anywhere she’d ever lived. And she couldn’t have been happier.
“Thanks for telling me about the job and for your apology. I hope you have a happy life.” She glanced across the room at John. Just knowing he was near gave her more courage. “I have to go, now.”
Jarrod stood beside her. “Thanks for listening. I hope you apply for the job. It’s a great opportunity.”
After an awkward moment when neither of them knew what to do, Shelley stuck out her hand. “Bye, Jarrod.”
“Bye.”
And without a backward glance, Jarrod left the meeting room, and, Shelley hoped, her life.
John slid another box of decorations into the back of his truck. After two hours of solid work, they’d removed all of the decorations from inside the barn and loaded the Christmas tree onto the back of Ben’s trailer.
Steven and John were the last to leave the ranch.
“Are you storing the decorations or using them for another event?” Steven asked.
“We’ll hang some of them in The Welcome Center and the rest we’ll leave in storage. Patrick is happy to look after them at the old steamboat museum.”
John’s cell phone beeped and he looked at the text. “Shelley and Bailey have just left Sam’s house. She’s much better now that she’s home.”
“I hope the appointment with the specialist went okay.”
“So do I.” Because Sam had fainted before, Zac wanted to make sure she didn’t have any underlying heart issues. He’d referred her to a specialist at Polson Hospital and Caleb and Sam were seeing her tomorrow.
Steven rested his hands on his hips. “Bailey told me about Jarrod. She wasn’t very complimentary.”
“I can’t say I blame her. Hopefully, Shelley has seen the last of him.”
“He came a long way to talk to her.”
John hoped he’d flown to Sapphire Bay out of a sense of guilt and nothing more. “He has family in Bozeman. Maybe he was visiting them, too.”
Steven shook his head. “I don’t think so.”
“I know what you’re thinking,” John muttered.
“If anyone’s fiancée canceled their wedding the day before they were supposed to get married, it would be hard. Especially if they were engaged for more than a year. You can’t blame him for wanting to get back together.”
John pulled a heavy-duty tie out of his truck and threw it over the boxes. “When your girlfriend tells you not to contact her again, that gives you a pretty good idea about how she’s feeling.”
“True. I won’t ask how you feel about Shelley, because it’s none of my business. But take it from me—when you find someone who makes you feel whole, hold on to them. That kind of feeling doesn’t come around very often.”
John leaned against the truck. “I’ve never met anyone like Shelley and I never thought I would. But I’m worried that she hasn’t thought through living in Sapphire Bay.”
“Sometimes it’s not about thinking. Her sisters are here and her parents aren’t far away. That makes more of a difference than most people realize. Shelley was talking about moving here even before she met you. That must give you some hope that she’s decided to live here for the right reasons.”
John pulled the tie tight to stop the boxes from moving around. “All it tells me is that her family is important to her.”
“What about you? Are you important to her?”
With all his heart, he hoped so. If their relationship didn’t work out, John wouldn’t be like Jarrod, holding onto a lost dream. He would have to move forward with his life, but it would never be the same again.