A Gift of Family (Love Inspired)

by Ross, Mia

  The caller ID told her it was the vet’s office, and she slipped into the storeroom for some privacy. If he was calling with bad news, she didn’t want to fall apart in front of all these people.

  “Good morning, Dr. Farnum. Do you have good news for me?”

  “The best. I just heard from the lab, and all those scary tests came up negative. Cleo has a simple infection, and the antibiotic she’s on should clear that up in another day or two.”

  “Oh, thank you!” Exhausted and relieved, Lisa sagged up against the wall to keep from falling down. “That’s the best Christmas present I could’ve gotten.”

  “I know how you feel. I’ve gotten pretty fond of that spoiled cat of yours.”

  “Me, too. Thanks again.”

  They traded goodbyes and Lisa turned off her phone. Resting it against her forehead, she whispered a quick prayer of gratitude. She knew God had a lot of things to worry about, and it was comforting to know He’d heard her plea to leave Cleo with her awhile longer.

  Once she’d composed herself, she called Seth. Before the first ring was done, she heard his groggy voice. “What’d the vet say?”

  “She’s fine,” Lisa all but sang, too giddy to feel tired anymore. “The medicine she’s on should fix her up in a couple days.”

  “That’s great news. We couldn’t have asked for better.”

  Even over the phone, he sounded as happy as she did. If he’d been there, she would have kissed him no matter who was watching.

  “I’m so jazzed, I don’t know what to do. Actually, yes, I do,” she added impulsively. “When you’re finished at the church, come by my place for supper. We’ll celebrate.”

  “I thought you said you didn’t cook.”

  His suspicious tone made her laugh. After the long night she’d had, it felt wonderful to be so upbeat. “I can toss together spaghetti and salad like nobody else. What do you say?”

  “You don’t mix ’em in the same bowl, do you?”

  Picturing the mischievous glint in his eyes made her giggle. “Only if that’s how you like them.”

  He chuckled. “Separate is fine. I’ll see you later, then.”

  “I’m sure Cleo will be okay on her own, Seth. You can go if you want.”

  “Her highness is sound asleep on my chest. If I move her, she might have me beheaded or something.”

  If her cat was the real Cleopatra, he’d probably be right. “Good point. I guess I’ll see you at two.”

  “I’ll be here.”

  After they’d hung up, his parting words bounced around in her mind. Knowing he’d be at her place when she got off work improved Lisa’s already stellar mood. Hard as she’d tried to keep her emotional distance from the lanky carpenter, somewhere along the line she’d gotten attached to him.

  Time and again, he’d proven himself both reliable and fun to be around. All along, she’d known he wouldn’t be in town forever, but for the first time Lisa faced the stark truth. Seth wasn’t like the other guys who’d strolled into and out of her life. She was really going to miss him when he left.

  Because she hated to ruin a perfectly wonderful morning brooding about something she couldn’t change, she put it out of her mind and got back to work.

  * * *

  Just after two, Seth handed a much perkier Cleo back to her grateful owner and headed over to the church. Following the schedule he’d designed, shifts of volunteers came in throughout the day, checking tasks off Seth’s list as they were completed. They had a week left, and only two big jobs remained: finishing the newly framed wall and replacing the heavy-duty blue tarp with a proper section of roof.

  The wall wouldn’t be much of a problem, he judged. Their siding contractor had matched the old clapboards perfectly, and his crew was outside nailing them on with professional efficiency. Two sisters who ran a painting company had donated material and their crew’s labor to paint the outside of the entire church a crisp white that made the old color look more like gray. They were already on-site, ready to start as soon as the siding was complete.

  In short, everything was on track and just slightly over budget. When Seth mentioned the latter to Pastor Charles, the man had just winked and assured him that was no problem. Apparently, more money had appeared out of thin air. Seth suspected at least some of it was coming from his aunt, which only made him prouder to be part of this project that was so important to her. The chapel might not be completely finished by Christmas Eve, but folks would be warm and dry and have places to sit.

  Satisfied with the new wall, he turned his attention to the roof. It was a sunny day, so they’d pulled the blue tarp away to allow the light in. Looking up at the square hole, he judged it would take a couple of hours to lay the plywood and reshingle the quarter-section of roof. Or, he thought with a grin, they could pull off decades’ worth of patches and do it right.

  Inspired by the idea, he grabbed a roofer’s harness and pulled himself up the studded wall for a better look. He tied himself to one of the beams, yanking the strap to make sure the clasp was secure. Walking across the intact section, he felt soft spots here and there where water had worked its way in and started rotting the old boards. Taking the chisel from his tool belt, he lifted several corners and found that many of the shingles were damp on the bottom.

  A spot-check showed him pretty much the same over the whole roof. The next soaking rain would probably end up leaking into the sanctuary, ruining all the interior work they’d put in. He hated wasting time and energy, and he had no doubt the members of the congregation would feel the same. But a whole new roof would be expensive. While everyone might agree the work needed to be done, where would they find the money to pay for it?

  “What’re you doing up there? Trying to break your neck?”

  Hearing Jim Canfield’s very familiar bark, Seth looked down at him through the new roof supports.

  “I’m tied off.” To prove it, he rattled the clasp on his harness.

  Glowering darkly, Jim crossed his arms in an angry gesture. “That don’t answer my first question.”

  “Actually, I’m wondering if it might make sense to replace the whole roof.” Settling on one knee, Seth glanced at the intact section, then back down at their self-appointed roofing expert. “I’m not sure how long it’d take, but I was hoping you and I could talk it over.”

  Something like respect softened the older man’s weathered scowl, and he made some kind of thinking noise. “Roofs are expensive, y’know.”

  “Actually, I have no idea,” Seth hedged in an effort to make his adversary feel as though he had the upper hand. It was a trick he’d learned years ago from his martial-arts trainer, and he was hoping it would work for him now. “Maybe you could educate me on that.”

  After a few moments, Jim muttered something not entirely unflattering. “Come down here, boy. I’m getting a crick in my neck.”

  Taking that for the crusty man’s version of approval, Seth quickly descended to join him inside. He was surprised when Jim shook his head with a grin.

  “You really want to do a good job on this, don’t you?” he asked, sounding more than a little surprised.

  “Yes, sir. What happened here was just short of a tragedy, and I want to make it right.”

  “So do I.” After a long pause, Jim rubbed a hand over the back of his neck. “I suppose I should’ve said that before, instead of just being bullheaded and blocking you all the time.”

  “This is your church, so the job’s personal for you,” Seth replied easily. “I understood.”

  “I appreciate that.” Clearing his throat, he added, “Most folks don’t get that about me.”

  “I do. I’m the same way.”

  “My wife told me I was handling it badly, taking everything the wrong way. I really just wanted to be in on the planning, y’know? I guess it burn
ed me when Pastor Charles put you in charge.”

  They stood there for an awkward moment, and Seth recognized that it had taken a lot of courage for this man to open up to him. Because of that, he decided to give Jim what he’d wanted from the start. “Totally understandable. I could really use your expertise now, though. I can see the roof’s shot, but I have no idea how to fix it properly.”

  Offering his hand, he smiled to show there were no hard feelings on his end. Their quick handshake erased the tension that had crackled between them since their first awkward meeting, and Jim actually managed a creaky smile.

  “All right, then,” he said with an unexpected twinkle in his dark eyes. “Let’s go on up and see what needs doing.”

  Seth gave him the harness and motioned for him to go up first. While he waited, he felt his eyes slide toward the boxed-in stained-glass window. He was still a little shaky on the faith thing, but he couldn’t help wondering if Jim Canfield’s turnaround was some kind of a sign.

  * * *

  “So,” Seth finished his story while he set Lisa’s table, “nobody needs to worry about getting dripped on during your Christmas Eve service.”

  More than a little impressed, Lisa shook her head as she dumped spaghetti into a colander to rinse it out. “Jim’s the most stubborn, cantankerous man in town. How on earth did you get on his good side?”

  “I’m not sure,” Seth confided as he took the salad bowl from the counter. “I guess when he realized I was in it for the right reason, he changed his mind about me.”

  Laughing, she put on the snowman-shaped oven mitts her nephew and niece had given her last year and pulled the garlic bread from the oven. “He must have caught the Christmas spirit or something.”

  “Yeah,” he said softly, “I was thinking the same thing.”

  Completely stunned, she stood there with the tray in her hands and just stared at him. For the first time in a while, he looked the way he had the first time she’d met him. Uncomfortably shy, to the point that her heart went out to him.

  Setting the bread down on the stove, she turned to him with an encouraging smile. “That’s good, Seth.”

  “You think?”

  “Very good,” she added, nodding enthusiastically. “If you’re starting to think that way after what you’ve been through, that’s amazing.”

  “I didn’t get there on my own.” Looking down at the salad, he added, “It’s mostly because of you.”

  Flattered beyond belief, she took a step closer. “Me?”

  “Yeah,” he said, lifting his eyes to meet hers. “I had it once, you know, just like you. I lost it somewhere along the way, and I wasn’t sure how to get it back so I quit trying.”

  “That’s totally understandable.” Deciding to take a huge risk, she added, “God understands, too. He’s just been waiting for you to find your way back.”

  “Maybe.”

  “Definitely.”

  Shaking his head with uncertainty, Seth moved down the counter to take the salad spoon from her tool crock. It was obvious he wasn’t comfortable confiding these very personal feelings in her, and Lisa felt as if they’d gone several steps back in their friendship. Once again, she was reaching out to him while he retreated from her.

  This time she wasn’t letting him get by with it.

  Her kitchen was so tiny, there were only a few steps between them. She covered them quickly, then reached up to frame his perfectly sculpted face in her hands. Something like hope kindled in his eyes, and she smiled as she brought his mouth to hers.

  In a single heartbeat, she was circled in his arms. The strength that coursed through him flowed around her in a current that actually took her breath away. When she eased back, the emotion showing on his face mirrored her own feelings.

  He flashed her a very male grin. “What’d I do to deserve that?”

  Say it, that tiny voice whispered. Tell him you love him.

  “It’s for being so great with Cleo,” she sputtered. “I really appreciate all your help.”

  “I mixed the salad, too,” he teased, drawing her back in for another kiss.

  Even though she knew it was a mistake, she went along. Here in her cozy studio, with a warm supper and an even warmer companion, she had the sensation of being encased in a cocoon. It was her favorite time of year, Cleo was fine and Seth was here.

  Next week, he’d be gone, and she knew she’d miss him terribly. But here and now, wrapped up in his arms, was the only thing she wanted to think about.

  Chapter Ten

  Sunday afternoon, Lisa met Seth at the work shed in Gus’s backyard. The new benches were ready, and now they were going to finish all twenty of them with the stain she’d mixed and brought with her. Hopefully, they’d be done before midnight.

  “It’s pretty chilly today,” Seth commented as he slid open the door and carried the boxful of cans inside. “I started the heater up earlier, so I hope you’re okay.”

  “I’m a country girl,” Lisa assured him. “I’m tougher than I look.”

  He snapped on the lights, and she stood there for a minute taking it all in. Gus’s style to the core, the workshop was decorated in early male, complete with mounted deer heads and a rainbow trout the size of a small shark. How he’d reeled it in was beyond her. In the corner, an ancient potbelly stove was cranking out enough warmth to make it comfortable, and she took off her jacket while Seth closed the door.

  When she saw what he’d been working on, she gasped in surprise. “Seth, they’re beautiful!”

  The church had had the exact same pews since the day the original builders put them in. The tree disaster had wiped out half of them, leaving the others intact. That meant they had to either replace them all, which was simpler but more expensive, or create new ones that matched the old.

  Based on finances and sentiment, the congregation had voted for the second option. Seth had done a masterful job, Lisa thought as she examined them up close. Except for the raw oak, she would never have been able to tell them apart. From the rounded edges to the flowers carved into the aisle panels, they were exactly the same.

  Completely amazed, she turned to stare at him. “You had to make ten of these. How on earth did you get them done with everything else you’ve got going on?”

  “No TV.”

  For a second, she thought he was serious, which was depressing. How could someone living in this century not have a TV? Then he added one of his rare grins, and she laughed. “You had me going there for a second.”

  “That was the idea.”

  “You sound like Matt. I can never tell when he’s kidding, either.”

  Opening the stove door with a poker, he tossed in a couple of small logs. “You make that sound like a good thing.”

  “Oh, it is. He drives me nuts, but I love him to pieces.” Concerned that Seth might think she meant she loved him, too, Lisa quickly added, “If we’re going to be sitting on these Christmas Eve, I’d better get started.”

  “Sounds good.” Reaching up to a high shelf, he turned on the old radio and asked, “What kind of music do you like?”

  She blinked at him as if he’d lost his mind. “Christmas.”

  “Right. What was I thinking?”

  The lightness in his tone made her smile. She’d heard it more lately as he became more comfortable with her and opened up a crack at a time. Because she was female, she couldn’t deny that she was drawn to this handsome, complex man. He was nothing like the guys she normally dated, but that was part of his unique charm. Now that they had some time alone together, she wondered if his feelings for her had moved beyond the let’s-be-friends stage to something more.

  Deciding it was time to force the issue out in the open, she kept her eyes on her moving paintbrush. “Seth, do you like me?”

  “Sure.” She g
lanced over, and he grinned. “A lot.”

  “And I like you.”

  “That’s good to hear.”

  Wiping a cloth over the wet stain to set it, she went for broke. “So do you think we should do anything about it?”

  After a few moments, he sighed and set down the brush he’d been using. Crossing the floor, he slipped his arms around her and gazed down at her with an expression somewhere between a smile and a frown.

  “Lisa, I think you’re amazing. Probably the most amazing woman I’ve ever met. You’re pretty and funny, and you make me feel like Superman. But I’ve still got a few pieces missing. Big pieces. Until I find them, I’m not ready for anybody. Especially not you,” he added, dropping a kiss on her forehead.

  She was completely lost. “What do you mean especially not me?”

  “You deserve a man who can give you everything he’s got, share everything he is with you.”

  “And you can’t ever do that,” she finished, picking up what he didn’t say from the misery clouding his eyes. “I could learn to live with that.”

  Scowling, he shook his head with finality. “You shouldn’t have to.”

  But I want to almost popped out before her brain kicked in and stopped her. Seth was worth the compromise, her heart was certain of it. The trouble was, she knew herself well enough to realize it would always bother her, that part of him that existed in the shadows just beyond her reach.

  “Seth, will you please tell me what happened? I don’t need top secret details, just the basics. I’m not being nosy, and I promise not to tell anyone. I just think it would really help you to get it out.”

  After a long pause, he finally answered the questions that had plagued her since she first met him.

  “It was the kind of mission you don’t hear about in the news. Twelve of us went in.” He swallowed hard. “Two of us came out.”

  As the silence stretched on, she feared he’d gotten stalled in his horrific past. Gently, she nudged him forward. “Is that when you hurt your shoulder?”