Gold in the Fire and Light in the Storm

by Margaret Daley

  Then why doesn’t he ask me to stay? Darcy silently screamed, frustrated, even more torn up inside.

  “Sean has enjoyed himself this summer.”

  Darcy held up her hand. “Hold it, Lizzy. No more. I know all the reasons I should stay.”

  “But?”

  “But I can’t. I just can’t.” Darcy turned away, busying herself rearranging her overnight bag to keep Lizzy from noticing how much her hands quivered.

  “I don’t see why not.”

  Darcy slid her eyes closed for a moment, then faced Lizzy. “Because I couldn’t live in the same town as Joshua and not be with him.”

  “From what I’ve seen, you are with him.”

  Darcy sank onto the bed next to Lizzy. “He still has issues with Carol.”

  “Are you so sure that’s the real reason you’re leaving? Isn’t it possible you still have issues with your husband and even your father?”

  A heavy sigh whispered past Darcy’s lips. “Yes, if I’m truthful with myself that’s as much a reason as any.”

  Lizzy covered her hand on the bed. “I know your father can be a hard man, but he’s trying to make things better between you. Darcy, it won’t happen overnight, but if you stay away it may never get better.”

  “I’m coming back at Christmas,” Darcy said defensively, knowing that really wasn’t enough, not when she’d stayed away for ten years.

  “Are you going to let your deceased husband continue to dictate how you’re going to live? I’ve seen you change this summer and I think it’s partially due to Joshua’s influence. He allows a woman to be herself. He appreciates you for who you are.”

  “I know. But I was wrong about Clay. I thought I knew him, too.”

  “Some people are good at hiding behind facades. Joshua isn’t one of those people. I’ve known him for years and he’s always been very straightforward.” Lizzy patted Darcy’s hand. “But don’t listen to me. Listen to your heart. What’s it saying about Joshua?”

  “I love him.”

  “Then why are you leaving?”

  “Because I’m scared. I’ve been hurt before.”

  “So has Joshua, but he wants you to stay and see if it will work between you. Take the risk. Life is full of them. When you stop taking risks, you stop living life fully.” Lizzy rose slowly, placing her hand at the small of her back. “This old body doesn’t work like it used to. Think about what I said and pray for help. The Lord is wonderful to turn to when you have a dilemma.”

  When Lizzy closed the door behind her, Darcy stared at its dark wood, mulling over Lizzy’s words. Darcy wanted to put down roots, had picked Panama City because that was the last place Clay had been stationed. But why couldn’t she put down roots in her hometown? Sean needed his grandfather and, yes, Joshua if he would have her. She needed her father and most of all Joshua. Independence was great, but she would rather have interdependence—with Joshua, with her family. These past two months with Joshua had given her a glimpse of what a good relationship was like. He respected her opinions, even sought them, something Clay had never done.

  Could she take the risk and stay?

  “I am with you always, to the very end of the age.” The verse from Matthew 28:20 was one of her favorites. She needed to remember that Jesus was with her through the bad and good times. With His strength and presence in her life, she could take the risk because she knew she would be all right in the end.

  Darcy walked from her bedroom, intending to find her son, father and Lizzy to tell them she was going to stay. With each step she felt the rightness of her decision. Joshua was worth fighting for. What they had between them was good, and she was going to remind him of that. She would help him work through his issues with Carol instead of turning away from him as she had done. She had always run away from a problem in the past. Now it was her chance to stay and figure out a solution.

  Downstairs she heard some laughter and headed toward the sound. In the kitchen she found her father with his arms about Lizzy, looking into the woman’s eyes with an expression Darcy hadn’t thought she would ever see again on her father’s face. Love. Darcy’s heart swelled at the sight of the two so wrapped up in each other that they hadn’t heard her enter.

  She coughed. They parted, looking surprised.

  “I thought you were still packing,” her father said, his cheeks flushed.

  Lizzy began wiping down the already clean countertop with quick movements, her head turned away.

  “It’s okay, you two. I’m glad you’ve finally come to your senses, Dad. Lizzy is a wonderful woman.”

  His flush deepened to a scarlet red. “Yes, I know. You don’t mind?”

  “Of course not. No one should be alone. And with that in mind, I’ve come to tell you that I’m staying in Sweetwater. If you’ll have me, I would like to help with the farm for the time being. You need an assistant manager. You’ve been working way too hard.”

  Her father covered the expanse between them. “Are you sure, honey? I’ve never felt better in my whole life than I do now, but I would love the help.”

  “It’s that diet that Lizzy has you on, and Lizzy’s influence,” Darcy said with a laugh. “Yes, I’m sure. I want Sean to know you. And I want to see where my relationship with Joshua goes.”

  “Ah, a good man.”

  “Mom! Mom!” Sean shouted from the entrance hall.

  She started forward.

  “Mom, Joshua’s here to see you.”

  Darcy froze, her hand poised on the swinging door into the dining room. Her heart began to pound, her palms to sweat. She smoothed her hair back and glanced down at the shorts and oversized T-shirt she had on.

  “You look great. Go get him,” Lizzy said, standing again beside her father.

  Darcy gave both of them a wink and pushed her way through the swinging door.

  “Mom!”

  “Sean, I’m right here. You don’t have to shout the house down.”

  “Oh, I thought you were upstairs.” Sean had positioned himself at the bottom step.

  “And you couldn’t go upstairs to get me?”

  He grinned.

  “I think Lizzy has some cookies for you.”

  Without another word, Sean raced toward the kitchen.

  Darcy shifted her attention to Joshua, who stood by the front door as though positioned to leave if she wanted him to. “I’m glad you’re here.”

  His brows rose. “I wasn’t sure you’d want to see me.”

  “Until a while ago, I wasn’t sure I wanted to see you either.”

  “What happened?” He took a step toward her.

  Her heartbeat kicked up a notch. “I’m staying in Sweetwater. I just told Dad I want to be his assistant farm manager.”

  “Is that the only reason you’re staying?” He came another step closer.

  “No. Sean needs to stay in one place with people around him who care about him.”

  “True. Is that all?” Joshua moved two more steps until he was in front of her, an arm’s length away.

  “But mostly, I’m staying because of you.”

  “Why?”

  “Because I love you and I want to see if there is an ‘us.’”

  He drew her against him. “I can tell you there definitely is an us.” His lips settled over hers in a long kiss.

  When he pulled back to look into her eyes, Darcy smiled, still feeling the tingling sensation his kiss had produced throughout her body. “What’s changed? There’s something about you that is different.”

  “I took your advice and dealt with my past. I went to see Carol before I came here. I told her I forgave her for leaving me at the altar.” He snuggled closer. “And I meant every word I said. I want her to be happy because I’m happy. I love you, Darcy O’Brien.”

  “Are you sure?”

  “Yes. Are you?”

  “Yes. I want to stay and see where this relationship leads us.” She laid her head against his chest, listening to the hammering of his heart that matched th
e fast tempo of hers. “We have all the time in the world to get to know each other. I’m not going anywhere, Joshua Markham.”

  Epilogue

  Dressed in a black tuxedo, Joshua straightened to his full height, rubbing his thumbs across the tips of his fingers. Scanning the crowd in the sanctuary, he saw the expectant faces of his friends and family. Next to him stood Sean in a similar tux, a huge grin on his face.

  The people in the church fell silent. The organ stopped for a few seconds, then started again. Joshua held his breath, his lungs burning. Tanya appeared in a pink satin dress pushing Crystal’s wheelchair. Crystal wore the same type of dress as her mother and her dark hair was pulled on top of her head in curls with glittering stars peeking out. The young girl tossed pink rose petals down the long aisle as her mother rolled her toward the altar.

  Only a moment longer, Joshua told himself, beginning to feel the constriction about his neck from his tie. Sean gave Crystal a thumbs-up when she went by him to sit next to the front pew on the left-hand side.

  Then Jesse appeared at the back in a different version of the pink satin that Crystal wore. As she neared Joshua, she winked at him, then went to stand on the other side.

  Suddenly the organ music changed to “The Wedding March.” Everyone rose and turned to the back. Joshua forced himself to release his pent-up breath, his gaze riveted to the empty place where Darcy should be.

  One second…Two…Then he saw her and pure joy swept through him. Never in his life had he seen such a beautiful sight as his soon-to-be wife walking down the aisle on her father’s arm toward him, dressed in a long, cream-colored gown of lace and satin. Her smile filled his vision, his heart. He would soon have the family he’d always desired.

  Darcy slipped her hand in Joshua’s with all the self-assurance that she was making the best decision of her life. What a perfect day to get married, she thought. Valentine’s Day. A day for lovers. A day for beginnings.

  Her father kissed her on the cheek. “You take good care of her, son.”

  “I will, sir.”

  And Darcy knew Joshua would. Together they turned to face Reverend Collins as equal partners, with Darcy eager to start her new life.

  Dear Reader,

  In my first book in THE LADIES OF SWEETWATER LAKE series, Gold in the Fire, I explore the topic of people taking emotional risks in their lives. It is important to learn to put our trust in God and not to shy away from change. Life is full of changes that we need to embrace, but those changes can be scary.

  With faith in the Lord we can be better prepared to accept the changes and risks. Darcy had to learn this with the help of Joshua. For Darcy, coming back home was full of emotional risks—first with her father, then with Joshua. But Darcy wasn’t the only one in the story who had to take an emotional risk; Joshua put his life on the line many times working as a firefighter. In his personal life he didn’t take any risks at all—until Darcy forced him to through her love.

  In THE LADIES OF SWEETWATER LAKE, five women form a bond of friendship to help each other through tough times. Darcy’s story is the first one in the series. The second book, A Mother for Cindy, features Jesse Bradshaw, the town matchmaker and Darcy’s good friend. Then comes the third story, Light in the Storm, about Beth Coleman, another member of the circle of friends.

  I love hearing from readers. You can contact me at P.O. Box 2074, Tulsa, OK, 74101 or visit my Web site at www.margaretdaley.com.

  Best wishes,

  LIGHT IN THE STORM

  With us is the Lord our God

  to help us and to fight our battles.

  —2 Chronicles 32:8

  To my readers—I appreciate your support.

  To my local RWA chapter, Romance Writers Ink—You are a wonderful group of writers.

  Chapter One

  With a huff Jane Morgan plopped into her desk. “I don’t see why I have to be here.”

  Beth Coleman sighed, turned from watching the snow falling outside Sweetwater High School and said, “Because you’ll be the topic of conversation. It’s your future we’ll be discussing. I thought you should have a say in it.”

  Flipping her long, dark brown hair behind her shoulders, Jane slouched in her desk, her arms folded over her chest, a pout firmly in place. “What future? Don’t you get it? I don’t want to be here.”

  Beth again looked at the snow coming down and wondered if this was the best time to have a parent conference. Of course, when she had contacted Jane’s father yesterday, there hadn’t been any snow. “Does your father have a cell phone?” Maybe she should call him and cancel until the weather was better. She could drive Jane home.

  “Yes.”

  As with Jane’s performance in class the past few weeks since the teenager had enrolled at the beginning of the second semester, Beth realized she would have to ask what the number was, because Jane wouldn’t give any information unless she absolutely had to. “What is—”

  “Sorry I’m late, but as you can see, the weather is getting bad.” A large man with blond hair and brown eyes stood framed in the classroom doorway.

  Speechless for a few seconds, Beth just stared at Jane’s father. Samuel Morgan wasn’t anything like her image of him when she’d talked to him briefly the day before. His voice was gruff and deep, but his looks were refined—handsome but not ruggedly so. More along the lines of a male model she’d seen in a magazine selling cologne. Whoa! Why in the world had she thought that?

  Beth mentally shook her head and crossed the room. Presenting her hand, which he took in a firm grip and shook, she said, “I’m Jane’s English teacher, Beth Coleman. Please come in and have a seat—unless you’d rather reschedule this meeting because of the snow. It doesn’t look like it’s going to let up any time soon.”

  He shrugged out of his heavy black wool overcoat, ran a hand through his wet, conservatively cut hair and entered the room. “No, this is too important to postpone. And besides, I’m here, so we might as well talk now. Don’t you agree, Jane?”

  When Samuel squeezed into the desk next to his daughter, Beth noticed how he dwarfed it, even though it was standard size for a high school class. She knew he was a minister, and yet for a brief moment he seemed more a warrior than a peacemaker.

  “Sure. Why not?” Jane averted her face, staring off into space, defiance in every line of her body.

  “On the phone, Miss Coleman, you said that Jane was having a problem with the work you’ve assigned.”

  Beth took a desk near the pair, scooting it around so she faced both of them. “She isn’t doing any of the work. She’s been here nearly two weeks and I have yet to see anything from her. We’ve had four graded assignments so far this semester. She has a zero right now.”

  “Not one grade?” Samuel asked Jane, his tension conveyed by his clenched jaw and frown.

  His daughter lifted her shoulders in a shrug, but didn’t say a word, her head remaining turned away.

  “Is there a problem I’m not aware of?” Beth saw a flash of vulnerability appear in his dark eyes before he masked the expression. It touched a part of her that over the years had seen many single parents struggle to do the job of both mother and father.

  “As I’m sure you’re aware, we’ve just moved here.” He glanced at his daughter. “Jane has never adjusted well to new towns.”

  “How many times have you moved?”

  “This is our sixth move. I was a chaplain in the army until recently. We’re both looking forward to settling down in one place.”

  “Adjusting to a new town can be tough. If Jane’s willing to work and stay after school to make up the assignments, I’ll take them late this time.”

  “What do you say, Jane?” Samuel leaned forward, his hands laced together on top of the desk. His whitened knuckles indicated nothing casual in the gesture.

  His daughter, silent, peered at the snow falling, as though she hadn’t heard the question.

  “Jane?” A firmness entered his deep, gruff voice.

 
She swung her gaze to her father, her pout deepening. Chewing on her bottom lip, she stared at him, several emotions vying for dominance. Anger won out over a need to please.

  “Would you rather the zeros remain on your grade?” he asked with an underlying calm that amazed Beth.

  Samuel Morgan was the new reverend of Sweetwater Community Church, where she attended. It was obvious that he had a great deal of patience, if his dealings with his daughter were any indication. That was comforting to know, since Reverend Collins, their previous minister, had been beloved by all in the congregation.

  Jane sighed, straightening in the desk. “If you must know, I didn’t understand a couple of the nts.”

  “Did you ask Miss Coleman for help?”

  “No.”

  “Jane, I’ll be glad to help you when you stay to complete the work. And for that matter, any other assignment you have trouble with. All you have to do is ask me for help. That’s part of my job.”

  The teenager looked at Beth as if she thought Beth was crazy to think she was going to ask for any assistance on an assignment, especially in a class of thirty students. Beth wondered if something else was going on beneath Jane’s defiance. It wasn’t that unusual to see a teen rebel, but Beth sensed a troubled soul begging for help. She made a mental note to check with the young woman to see if she understood her homework assignments. Sometimes when a student moved a lot, she lost ground because curriculum wasn’t always the same in each school.

  “Miss Coleman, Jane will stay after school every day until she has made up her work. Since I pick her up, it shouldn’t be a problem.”

  Beth slipped from the desk. “We can start Monday. Hopefully the weather will be clear by then.”

  Samuel rose. “She’ll be here.”