His gaze traveled around the table as he remembered the Saturday he brought Patti home to meet his parents for the first time. After dating a couple of months, he knew Patti was destined to be more than just another girlfriend, and he wanted his family to know she was special to him. He remembered the way Patti laughed at his dad’s jokeseven the lame onesand raved over his mom’s cooking.
More memories of other good times in this old farmhouse kitchen drifted into his mind. Christmases and Thanksgivings when his grandparents were still living. Birthday parties, both his and Eric’s. The day he and Patti told his parents they were engaged. The day they announced they were expecting. Another day when they informed his folks they were having twins.
If he and Patti moved away from Hart’s Crossing, would their kids have the same sort of rich memories as he had? How often would they get to see his parents? Would Wes have the opportunity to tinker with Grandpa Mark on some old tractor? Would Sunni learn to bake pies with Grandma Carolyne in this big old kitchen?
But maybe he was idealizing everything. Maybe they would make even better memories in a new home in a new town. Maybe if he wasn’t so stressed over finances, he would be a better husband and dad.
It’s about more than money.
He looked across the kitchen table at his wife who was listening to something his mom said. Love surged in his chest, a feeling so strong it was almost painful. Had she any idea how much he loved her?
“And you husbands,” Paul said in Ephesians, “must love your wives with the same love Christ showed the church.”
Had he loved her that much? When he replayed the events of the past couple of weeks in his mind, he had to answer no. Even when he finally agreed that he would look into finding a better paying position, he’d done it with reluctance and an attitude that told her this was all her fault.
Pride. He’d let pride get in his way of doing the right things, of saying the right things.
* * *
Patti glanced across the table at her husband and found him watching her.
I don’t want us to leave Hart’s Crossing. This is our home.
She hoped her mother-in-law was wrong. She hoped Al could read her mind. At least this once.
I’m sorry, Al.
Somewhere in the New Testament, wives were instructed to respect their husbands. There hadn’t been much respect going on when she was insisting on her own way, when she was buying things their budget couldn’t handle, when she was asking for money from her mother behind his back. Or when she let fears surface, fears that he might one day walk out, the same way her father had. What sort of faith did that show? It didn’t show faith. It said she didn’t trust him. And perhaps he felt that lack of trust.
But she could change all that. She must change it. She needed to share her uncertainties and fears. She’d held back parts of herself from him since the day they met, and that was wrong of her. He was her husband. She needed to trust him with her full self, her full heart.
This morning, she’d told God she needed to know how to start setting things right. Well, now she had her answer. She would begin with trust. Trusting Al. Trusting God.
Chapter 10
AFTER PUTTING THE TWINS to bed for the night, Patti went in search of her husband. She found him in the family room with his laptop open, his fingers tapping on the keys.
“Are you working?” she asked as she sat on the sofa nearby.
He looked up. “I’m updating my resume.”
“You don’t need to do that.”
“Yes, I do. It may take some time to find a better-paying position, but I think my qualifications are”
“Al, I don’t want you to find another job. I don’t want us to move away from Hart’s Crossing.”
“You don’t?” He closed the laptop. “What changed your mind?”
“I love you, Al, but I haven’t shown it the way that I should. I…I’ve made things, possessions”—she motioned toward the room around them“this house, more important than they should be. I guess that’s how I wanted you to prove your love for me. By providing all these things.” She drew in a shuddery breath. “I was afraid, and the more afraid I was and the more we fought, the more wrong choices I made and the farther away you seemed.”
Al set the laptop on the coffee table and reached for Patti’s hand. “I’m not far away. I’m right here. I’ll always be right here.”
“I’ve been afraid that you wouldn’t be. Always here with me, I mean.”
“You have?”
“Yes.”
“But”
She reached up with her free hand and touched her index finger to his lips. “Let me finish.”
He nodded, his gaze not leaving hers.
“My parents used to fight all the time before my dad walked out on us. When you and I started fighting, it brought up all of those unhappy memories. And then when I saw Cassandra flirting with you”
Al’s eyes widened.
“I was afraid I might be driving you to her.”
“Patti, I would never be unfaithful, and I don’t have any interest in Cassandra Coble.”
She lowered her eyes to their clasped hands. “I know. Deep down inside, I know. But fear isn’t very rational, is it?” When he didn’t answer, she looked up again. “I think we should call Betty Frazier and put the house on the market. We can find a home with a smaller mortgage that is more suited to us.”
“But you love this house.”
“For the wrong reasons.” Tears flooded her eyes. “And besides, I love you more.”
With a tug on her hand, he drew her from the sofa and onto his lap, holding her close, her face nestled in the curve of his neck and shoulder.
“I’m sorry, Al. I’m sorry for not being honest, for not trusting you, for making you feel as if you’ve failed me. You haven’t.”
“I’m sorry, too.” His breath brushed her ear as he spoke. “I could’ve done a lot of things differently. I love you, Patti.”
She felt her body relax in his embrace. There was more that needed to be said between the two of them. It would take effort and patience and understanding to get their relationship back on track. But for now, it was enough to know they loved each other.
Epilogue
December
“MERRY CHRISTMAS, MR. BEDFORD!” Lyssa Sampson called on her way out of the classroom.
“Merry Christmas, Lyssa. Enjoy the holidays.”
“I will.” The door swung closed behind her.
Ah, the sudden and very welcome silence.
Al made a quick sweep of the classroom, looking for anything that shouldn’t be left behind until school resumed after the New Year. Finding nothing out of place, he returned to the front of the classroom. As he bent to retrieve his briefcase, his gaze alighted on the new photograph sitting on his desktop. There they were, the happy Bedford familyAl, Patti, Weston, and Sunniall of them wearing red and white sweaters. Looking at the photograph made him grin every time.
“Knock, knock.”
He turned. “Hey, beautiful.”
Patti held the door open wide. “Are you ready to go?”
“I’m ready.” He picked up his briefcase.
Twice a month, on the advice of their counselor, Al and Patti left the twins for a few hours with his parents or Miss Hart and Amy Livingston, and they did something fun, just the two of them. Dinner out, a movie, a walk in the parkit didn’t matter what they did as long as both considered it fun and they did it together.
This afternoon they were decorating their new home for Christmas. The fifty-year-old house was surrounded by tall trees and mature shrubs, perfect for trimming with strings of lights. There were many couples he knew who wouldn’t think hanging Christmas lights a fun activity, but he and Patti were both so glad to be moved into their new home before Christmas, they’d thought it a great idea.
Betty Frazier, their Realtor, said that closing on the sale of their old house and closing on the purchase of their new one so quickly was
nothing short of a miracle. Al agreed, especially since they were now debt free, except for their quite reasonable mortgage.
Arriving at the door, he set his briefcase on the floor so he could wrap his wife in his embrace and kiss her soundly. When they’re lips parted, he said, “I love you.”
Three simple words, but they spoke of trust and healing, determination and forgiveness, hopes and dreams. Thanks to wise counsel and a shared faith, they’d weathered the storm that had battered their marriage earlier in the year and come out stronger on the other side. Now he knew that when more trials came, as they did in every life, they would face them together.
With an arm still around Patti’s shoulders, Al picked up his briefcase a second time and said, “Honey, let’s go home.”
The End
About the Author
Robin Lee Hatcher is the best-selling author of over sixty books. Her well-drawn characters and heartwarming stories of faith, courage, and love have earned her both critical acclaim and the devotion of readers. Her numerous awards include the 2000 Christy Award for Excellence in Christian Fiction, the 1999 and 2001 RITA Awards for Best Inspirational Romance, Romantic Times Career Achievement Awards for Americana Romance and for Inspirational Fiction, and the 2001 RWA Lifetime Achievement Award. Catching Katie was named one of the Best Books of 2004 by the Library Journal.
Robin enjoys being with her family, spending time in the beautiful Idaho outdoors, reading books that make her cry, and watching romantic movies. She is passionate about the theater, and several nights every summer, she can be found at the outdoor amphitheater of the Idaho Shakespeare Festival, enjoying Shakespeare under the stars. She makes her home on the outskirts of Boise, sharing it with Poppet the high-maintenance Papillon. For more information, visit her website at www.robinleehatcher.com
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Table of Contents
Title page
Home to Hart's Crossing (4-in-1 Edition) Page 26
