Marrying Mandy (Brides of Clearwater Book 1)

by Melanie D. Snitker

  They stood in silence and watched as the orange and yellow flames continued to make their mark on the beautiful house. Even when the fire department arrived and fought the fire, Mandy remained silent. Men worked together to douse the persistent flames. The stench of the smoke was all Preston could smell now. After what seemed like an eternity, the flames died down. The floodlights from the fire engine revealed a charred hole where the back of the house used to be. The porch was nothing but a skeleton now and looked like it would collapse with the slightest breeze.

  The sun began to peek its head up over the horizon, the orange glow of the sky almost an echo of what had consumed a portion of the house. How much damage had been done? Was anything recoverable? After everything Mandy had endured over the last month, Preston worried this would be more than she could take.

  She trembled against him and dropped the framed photograph of her grandparents. It hit the ground at her feet with a crack. When she bent to turn it over, the glass from the front was now only shards on the grass. At least that had protected the image itself from getting wet. Her chin dipped and rested against her chest as her shoulders fell.

  One man from the fire department approached. Mandy stood again, clutching what was left of the picture frame in both hands.

  Preston shook the man’s hand. “Thanks so much for your quick work.”

  Soot marred the fireman’s face. “We got the flames out as fast as we could. It’ll be some time before you can go inside and see what all has been damaged. Unfortunately, the kitchen was gutted and the two bedrooms upstairs on that side have been destroyed.”

  Mandy and Mrs. Hudson’s bedrooms. Mandy sagged against Preston, and he put an arm around her waist to support her.

  He swallowed. “What about the rest of the house?”

  “There will be smoke and water damage. Hopefully you’ll be able to salvage a good amount from the rest. But this house isn’t livable. You’ll have to contact your insurance company and have an adjuster determine whether it can be repaired or not.” The guy didn’t look real positive about that last bit.

  Looking at the house now, Preston doubted it himself. “Any idea what caused the fire?”

  “We’re going to have to do some further investigation. It looks like it may have been some old wiring behind the stove.” He turned and motioned to one of the other firemen who stood nearby.

  “This is an older house. Do you know when the wiring was last inspected?”

  Mandy shook her head. “No. I have no idea.” She said nothing else as the firemen told them what they could expect over the next few days. When they left again, Preston turned his attention to her.

  She still wore the shorts and oversized shirt she’d been sleeping in. He looked down at the impressions their bare feet had made in the grass. They needed somewhere to stay and some clothes. “Are you cold, Mandy?”

  “No. At least, I don’t think so.” She’d been clutching the photo frame to her chest and lowered it. That’s when they both noticed one of her hands had blood on it. She stretched her palm out, revealing a small cut by her thumb. “Probably from the broken glass.” Her head lifted, and she looked at the front of the house. “I guess we’ll have enough damage to report the broken window after all.” She tried to smile, but it didn’t quite reach her eyes.

  Wordlessly, Preston took her hand and led her over to his truck. He helped her sit down on the passenger seat, still facing the door. He reached around her and retrieved a tissue from the console and pressed it to the cut on her hand. If they hadn’t smelled the smoke when they did, or gotten out of the house fast enough to call the fire department… Preston swallowed hard. He could’ve lost her.

  What was going to happen if the house couldn’t be repaired? This place meant too much to Mandy. It was the only reason she’d agreed to the marriage in the first place. Without the B&B, would she want the marriage dissolved? She said she’d never get a divorce. But would that change if she no longer had all of this to fall back on? After all the time they’d spent together the last couple of weeks, and last night in particular, he didn’t think so. He wanted to push those concerns out, but they refused to release their hold on him.

  ~

  Mandy stared at the tissue on her hand as red seeped through the layers. She couldn’t feel the pain from the cut. Preston had asked if she was cold. She wasn’t. Truthfully, she felt nothing right now. Everything was muted. Numb.

  She looked at the house. From the front, you wouldn’t know what kind of damage the place had sustained. Many of her personal things had been in her room. Destroyed. And Granny and Papa’s stuff…

  Preston gently placed a hand under her chin and lifted her gaze to his. “I’m worried about you, Mandy.”

  She saw the truth of his statement in his eyes. “Everything’s gone. Papa. Granny. Now the house. Gone.” Tears filled her eyes and this time, instead of fighting against it, she let them flow. For the first time in longer than she could remember, Mandy cried. The salty streams carried with them the pain of being abandoned by her parents and the grief of her grandparents’ death. Sobs racked her body as Preston held her close and spoke softly against her hair.

  Knowing the only home she’d ever had was damaged—possibly beyond repair—meant the last connection to her grandparents might be lost forever.

  The waves of grief crashed mercilessly against her heart. She tried to focus on the words Preston said and realized he was praying for her. Praying for peace and the comfort only God could give her, and thanking Him they both made it out of the fire safely. Only then did the pain she was experiencing ease just a little. The sound of his heartbeat filled her ears, slowly working to calm the frantic beating of her own.

  Mandy hiccupped and drew in a slow breath. “What are we going to do, Preston?”

  “The only thing we can do. Pray and take it one thing at a time.”

  It all seemed like a blur as Preston drove her to his parents’ house. Ellen immediately drew Mandy to her in a hug. “I’m sorry this happened. It’s absolutely terrible.” She looked up at Preston. “I’ve got a call into the church and they are rounding up clothing donations to bring by later this morning. But for now,” she gave Mandy a reassuring smile, “you two need to get cleaned up and get some rest. I can only imagine how exhausted you must be.” She led the way to the spare room at the other end of the house. “They may not fit perfectly, but here are some clean clothes. If you need anything else, please let us know.”

  “This is great, Mom. Thank you.” Preston kissed her cheek.

  Ellen left and Mandy stood staring at the neatly folded clothes on the end of the bed. Maybe Ellen was right. Mandy was exhausted, making it impossible to think straight right now.

  Preston picked up one stack and handed it to her. “You go get a shower first. Then come in here and get some sleep. I’ll get cleaned up when you’re done.”

  It wasn’t until the warm water pelted her skin that she comprehended how much dirt and smoke she’d brought with her. She had to shampoo her hair three times to get the smoke smell out.

  The warm water relaxed her muscles a little and by the time she turned the water off and got dressed in clean clothes, she was yawning. She’d had to remove the bandage from her hand and, since the cut stopped bleeding some time ago, didn’t worry about leaving it exposed.

  The sound of voices in the other room drifted down the hall as Mandy padded her way to the spare room. Preston had put her phone and both the photo frames she’d managed to get out of the house on the little table next to the bed. She lay down and tried to get comfortable. Her whole body ached and her eyes hurt from the smoke and all the crying. Yet, her mind refused to stop churning and allow her to fall asleep.

  She was vaguely aware of the shower starting up in the bathroom. A while later, a creak in the floor brought Mandy’s head up. She found Preston in the doorway, studying her. He walked forward, his face full of concern. “You okay? Why aren’t you resting?”

  Mandy shrugged.
“I can’t fall asleep.” She pointed to the image of her grandparents. “I keep staring at their picture. They’d be devastated if they saw what happened to the house. Depending on how badly everything was damaged, this and my ring may be all I have of them.” More tears silently escaped her eyes and flowed, dripping off her nose and cheek and onto the bedspread below her. How was it possible she had any tears left to cry?

  “If there’s anything I can do, you know I will.”

  She squeezed her eyes shut, stopping the flow of tears. He would do anything for her. He’d demonstrated that by marrying her to save the B&B. And for what? To have it destroyed weeks later? Her head pounded with the swirl of thoughts and emotions that refused to let up. She rolled over to face him, her head resting on the arm bent beneath it. “Will you hold me?”

  Preston’s eyes softened, and he set his stuff on the dresser nearby. “Of course.” He lay down beside her, gathered her into his arms, and held her close.

  Mandy released a shaky breath. It took only seconds of listening to the sound of his heartbeat for blessed sleep to finally claim her.

  ~

  Preston watched in amazement as several members of the church carried bags and boxes into his parents’ living room. Mandy reached for his hand. Her eyes were wide as she slowly shook her head, and he assumed she was as shocked as he was at the outpouring of love.

  Mrs. Whipple gave Mandy a tight hug and then Mom as well. “Now, I brought enough food for lunch and dinner for you all today. Someone should be bringing a meal by every day for the next week so y’all don’t have to cook.”

  “Thank you so much,” Mandy said sincerely.

  “Are you kidding? We’d do anything for Samantha and Barry’s granddaughter. Don’t think another thing of it.” She patted Mandy’s cheek.

  Pastor Dan shook Preston’s hand and then Dad’s as well. “Go through the boxes and keep any clothing you can use. Whatever you don’t want, just bring it by the church or call, and I’ll come pick it up again.”

  “I appreciate it, sir. Mandy and I can’t thank you enough for what you’ve done. All of you.” He put an arm around Mandy’s waist.

  She nodded. “Thank you so much.” Her voice broke.

  Pastor Dan prayed for them and their situation. “Remember, if you need anything, let us know. We can organize a group of people to help clean up the place or make repairs. Or if you find you need more than what’s in the boxes, we can figure something out.”

  They walked their visitors to the door and waved good bye.

  “This is incredible.” Mandy looked like she didn’t know where to begin.

  Ellen pointed to the boxes. “Why don’t you kids start going through the clothing. We’ve got Wilma Whipple’s famous chicken spaghetti for lunch. I’m going to toss the salad, and we can eat while we make a list of the other things you’ll need.”

  Dad pushed himself up from his chair. “I’ll help you out, honey. If I sit around much longer, my legs will forget what they’re supposed to do.” He laughed at his own joke.

  Preston watched his parents go into the kitchen. Dad had improved a lot over the last few days, although Mom regularly reminded him to take it easy. He also had every intention of going back to work on Monday. He wasn’t happy about the extra time off but admitted it’d be better to recover completely than to risk getting sick again.

  Preston moved one of the boxes to the coffee table and turned to Mandy. “You doing okay?”

  “Better than I probably should be. I’m not sure if that’s a good thing or a bad thing.” She pulled her hair back and twisted it into a bun. When she let go, it fell to cascade around her shoulders again.

  He tucked a stray wisp behind one of her ears. “Everything’s so messed up right now, I’m not sure, either.” He kissed her and pulled her into a hug. “But God’s doing a pretty amazing job of providing what we need so far.” Mandy nodded against his chest. “There is one thing I’m going to miss once we go through these clothes and get everything organized.”

  “What’s that?” She took a step back, her brow furrowed.

  Preston grinned. “I like seeing you wear my old shirts Mom found in the closet.”

  She looked down at her oversize shirt and blushed furiously. “Yeah, well, don’t get used to it.” She reached for the box. Some of her hair fell forward to block her smile.

  Chapter Nineteen

  Late in the evening, two days later, they got the official word from the insurance company. It would cost a lot more than they could afford to repair the house, even with the insurance money. Mandy had known in her heart this was coming.

  Preston looked at her in concern from his spot beside her on the Yarrow’s couch. His parents were thoughtful enough to leave the room once the call had come in. “I was hoping we’d hear differently. I’m sorry, Mandy.”

  “Me, too.” Even though she was disappointed, the pain she expected to experience at the news didn’t cut nearly as deep as she thought it would.

  “They’ll have a company clean out the house and make sure we get everything that’s salvageable. Since the fire was contained in one side of the house, I’m hoping that means not everything was lost.”

  “I wonder how long something like that takes?” She wiped the palms of her hands off on her jeans. She’d often visualized the house and tried to guess what might have made it through the fire. The most important things were in her bedroom and Granny’s. But not everything. “I’m glad the workshop remained untouched.” The little smile on her face fell as guilt bubbled up. “I’m sorry I haven’t been able to go out there with you and help yet. I got some website work done earlier today, though. Tomorrow, I should be able to jump back into everything. I’ll see about taking on some more clients, too.”

  Preston shook his head. “Don’t rush, Mandy.”

  Mandy looked toward the door to the kitchen and lowered her voice. “Your parents have been absolutely amazing, but we can’t stay here forever. I don’t want them feeling crowded. If I can get caught up on the web work, and if the contractors will get back to you with some estimates soon…”

  He didn’t let her finish. “Please, give me until the end of the week. I promise you, we’ll figure something out.”

  She wanted to object, but the near desperation in his eyes made her agree. “Okay.” A yawn escaped, and she covered her mouth with one hand.

  Preston stood when she did. “Don’t give up, Mandy.” He leaned over and brushed his lips against hers. “Let’s tell my parents good night and get you to bed. You look like you’re about ready to drop.”

  “I am tired.” As Mandy readied for bed, she kept thinking about Preston. There was a difference in him that suggested he had something on his mind, but she couldn’t quite put her finger on what. She wanted to question him, but she didn’t even know what to ask.

  They’d get some sleep tonight and tomorrow her head would be clearer.

  ~

  Mandy woke the next morning. With her eyes still closed, she put a hand on the other side of the bed, expecting to find Preston there, still sleeping. When all she felt were blankets, she opened her eyes. The early morning light filtered through the curtains in front of the windows. Where the curtains parted, a thin stream of light made its way through and lit up the photograph of Papa and Granny. Next to it on the table was a wrapped gift with a card on top and her name written on the envelope in Preston’s handwriting. When had he left it here? She must have been sleeping hard if she hadn’t even heard him get ready and leave this morning.

  Curious, she reached for the gift and set it on her lap. She withdrew the card and read the note written inside.

  Mandy,

  You are the most important person in my life. When we got married, I promised I’d take care of you no matter what life threw at us, and I meant every word. Trust me, baby. Trust us.

  I love you always.

  Preston

  She read the note twice more and swallowed past the lump in her throat. She carefull
y set it on the bed next to her. The wrapping paper easily fell away from a small box with no pictures or wording on the outside. Mandy opened one end and reached inside. She gasped as she withdrew a silver picture frame with delicate filigree and butterflies etched all the way around. Engraved at the bottom were the words, “Love. Hope. Family.”

  Mandy didn’t realize she’d been crying until a tear splashed on her arm. She sniffed and used the sleeve of her nightshirt to dry her face.

  He’d bought her a replacement frame for the photo of her grandparents. Preston’s gift couldn’t have been more perfect or thoughtful. Warmth filled her heart and radiated to every cell of her body.

  That photo was still lodged in the broken frame. Mandy hadn’t had the energy to do anything with it until now. She carefully took the back of the frame away and was surprised to see there were other pictures behind the first.

  Mandy took the photo of her grandparents, intending to put it in the new frame. The picture below stopped her. She remembered the day Granny had asked Preston to take this picture of Mandy, Granny, and Papa on the front porch of the house. Mandy was seventeen and had gotten her driver’s license. All three of them had big grins on their faces as they smiled at the camera and Preston behind it.

  She ran a finger over the engraved words at the bottom of the new frame.

  Love. When her parents signed over their parental rights and walked away, Mandy was nothing but a skinny, damaged kid with more problems than she could shake a stick at. Looking back now, she could see how God had never turned His back on her. He’d brought Papa and Granny into her life. They’d stepped up and given her the home and love she needed. If it hadn’t been for them, Mandy had no idea what would have become of her.