Love Inspired December 2014 - Box Set 1 of 2: A Rancher for ChristmasHer Montana ChristmasAn Amish Christmas JourneyYuletide Baby

by Brenda Minton

  Meanwhile, Ethan planned to take joy in all that he could. The pageant had gone well, and the bells had been restored to the church. Robin’s parents had given their blessing for her marriage to him, and in time they might even be pleased about it. Ethan and his sister had made their peace. Robin had Ethan’s ring on her finger, and he could hope and pray that his faith would be vindicated. True, Jackson hadn’t accepted Robin as part of the family, so her great-grandmother’s hopes had not been realized, but the bridge would reopen at last, thanks to Dale Massey. The museum would open, too, and the new time capsule would be buried. The gold remained missing, but so be it.

  The long centennial celebration would at last come to an end, and Jasper Gulch would begin life with a new normal. Ethan hoped that he and Robin would be part of that for a long time to come, but what mattered most was that they live out God’s will for them, hopefully together.

  Please, Lord, he prayed, wherever and however You say, but please let it be together.

  Chapter Fifteen

  They rang the bells on Christmas morning, Robin and Ethan working in tandem. Even the Masseys showed up for the 10:00 a.m. service, which was well attended, meaningful and joyous. The a cappella women’s quartet quietly assumed their positions in the foyer as Ethan opened the service with a prayer, then took up the handbells secreted beneath the pulpit and began to toll the beat for the song. When the women’s voices rang out, rich and sweet, people literally gasped. Afterward, the ladies received rousing applause. The singers slipped into the sanctuary between short Bible readings and joined in carols accompanied by the piano and a pair of guitars. Finally, Ethan recited a poem, then closed the service with a blessing.

  To Robin’s delight, he had spoken to his sister again that morning, as well as to his niece, Erin, and his aunt Molly. “So this has already been the merriest Christmas I’ve had in years,” he’d said, hugging her.

  To hear people say that they had been pleasantly surprised twice, first with the bells and then with the a cappella quartet, made Robin smile. Ethan obviously felt a great sense of accomplishment, and she was delighted to have been a part of it. Having his ring on her finger made everything that much sweeter, though she knew it might ultimately cost him.

  They’d made no announcement, but she saw people glancing at her hand and heard murmurs of speculation. Apparently so had the Shaws, because Nadine and Jackson made a beeline for them as soon as the service ended.

  Feeling Ethan’s protective arm slide about her waist, Robin braced herself for a confrontation. She hadn’t told Ethan that she planned to deny her great-grandmother’s claims; she feared he would object and ruin everything. Before either of them were put to the test, however, Deputy Sheriff Cal Calloway appeared at Jackson’s shoulder, speaking quietly into his ear. Jackson nodded, spoke to Nadine, and the pair turned away, following Calloway from the building.

  “That’s odd,” Robin murmured.

  “You never know what God’s doing, sweetheart,” Ethan told her as Olivia and Jack McGuire bore down upon them. After that, they had time only for hugs, congratulations, best wishes, “I told you so!” and “Merry Christmas!”

  Lacking a formal dining space at the inn, Mamie had offered to make Christmas dinner at the parsonage. Ethan and Robin had eagerly taken her up on the offer, even when she’d asked to invite several others to join them: Rusty Zidek, Abigail Rose, Chauncey Hardman and a couple from the inn, all folks who would be alone for the day. Robin had never eaten venison roast for Christmas, but then she’d never before spent Christmas in Jasper Gulch, Montana.

  After the jolly but somehow tense meal, which took a long time to prepare and clean up, Robin hurried off to the inn to dress for Faith’s wedding. She met the other members of the women’s quartet in the vestibule to practice one last time, without the handbells, before the wedding, then went off to find Ethan.

  He was in his office, putting on his robe.

  “Wow,” she said, smiling. “Never thought I’d like a guy in a skirt, but you look very handsome, and there’s a certain authority in that robe.”

  Ethan laughed. “You look great, much too fine for this humble preacher.”

  She’d chosen the royal blue dress that he liked so well and paired it with a lacy shawl. The sides and front of her hair she’d twisted into a loose, elaborate knot atop her head, leaving the back to flow in a sleek fall past her shoulders. She wore a bit of eyeliner tonight, along with a stroke of mascara and a dab of red lip gloss, which she’d had to replace after she kissed Ethan, with some thoroughness and just a hint of desperation, before returning to the other members of the quartet.

  They all sat together in a pew at the back of the church to await the beginning of the ceremony. Marie Middleton, lovely in a fluttery dress, came to tell them when they were to slip out and sing, then hurried off to attend some other detail.

  Austin and Adam Shaw, dressed in black Western-style tuxedos with red rosebuds in their lapels like their brother Cord, lit the many candles in the church, which was beautifully decorated with its centennial Christmas finery and pew bows of gold-and-silver netting tied about long-stemmed red roses. The Massey men all wore gray tuxedos, with red rosebuds in their lapels.

  Jackson wore the same black tuxedo as his sons when he escorted Faith down the aisle. She looked gorgeous in a white satin strapless bodice with a long-sleeved chiffon overlay and full gossamer skirt. Being petite, she was short enough to pile her lovely auburn hair on top of her head and set her long billowing veil in place with a coronet of white roses to match those in her bouquet.

  The ceremony went off without a hitch. Afterward, Ethan rang the bells in joyous cacophony while the guests left for the reception and the wedding party gathered for photographs. Ethan and Robin had agreed that she would wait for him in the parsonage, but to her surprise, Jackson called out to her before she could leave the sanctuary.

  “Robin, would you mind hanging around? I have something I need to say.”

  Suddenly fearful, she sat down again. Was she going to have to publicly recant? Would Ethan even allow it?

  After only a few photos, Jackson dismissed the photographer, as well as Marie, then he deftly got rid of the Masseys, asking Dale’s brothers to head out to the ranch to oversee the parking situation and make sure everyone was safely and conveniently being transported down to the barn where the reception was to be held. He assigned Dale’s father the task of standin host and even went so far as to ask Ronna Massey to check on the caterer and make sure all was running smoothly on that end until he and Nadine got there.

  Ethan had removed his robe to ring the bells. Now he draped it over a pew and came to sit beside Robin, looping his arm about her shoulders protectively. When the room had been cleared of all but family, Ethan and Robin, Jackson walked to the center of the aisle right in front of the altar and put his hands together, obviously gathering his thoughts. Finally, he spoke.

  “Guess there’s no way to say this except to come right out with it. I am a thief.”

  Nadine shot to his side. Some present laughed, thinking it a jest. Some gasped.

  Ethan looked at Robin, clasped her hand and whispered, “Thank God. I knew He wouldn’t let Jackson live with this for much longer.”

  Robin bit her lip, tears welling in her eyes. If only she’d had such faith! Then again… She looked at the ring on her finger and smiled.

  Nadine quelled the outburst with sharp gestures of her hands. “Now, now. Let Jackson explain. He has his reasons.”

  Jackson glanced at Robin, saying, “I don’t know how she knew, but Robin was right. There is gold. It was hidden in the time capsule.”

  “So that’s why Pete Daniels took it!” Cord exclaimed.

  Jackson shook his head. “Pete tried to steal the time capsule, just to cause trouble, I expect, but I caught him digging it up. Then I got rid of him and opened it myself out of sheer curiosity. I didn’t know about the gold until I saw it and read the accompanying note. It was meant for all S
haw and Massey heirs to share equally.”

  “Oh, Dad,” Faith said, clinging to her brand-new husband.

  Jackson nodded, looking at Dale. “I’m sorry, Dale. That was before we knew you. At the time, all I could think was that the Masseys are rich in their own right and they got that way on money stolen out of the bank that our two families started here in Jasper Gulch, money my family had to struggle for years to cover for our investors and depositors. It just didn’t seem right that your family should then turn around and recoup the gold in the time capsule. So I took matters into my own hands.”

  “I can understand your motivation,” Dale said, “knowing what Silas did.” Faith tightened her arm around his waist.

  “But what about all the vandalism and the notes?” Cord asked.

  “That’s where I made my worst mistake,” Jackson admitted, clapping a hand to the back of his neck. “Pete figured something was up when I didn’t turn him in but let everyone think the time capsule had been stolen. If I’d just taken the gold and let everyone find the rest, I might have gotten away with it, but there wasn’t time for that. I panicked and hid the whole thing. Pete tried to force my hand by vandalizing things around town and sending those cryptic notes to throw suspicion onto Lilibeth Shoemaker.”

  “Now, there’s where you’re wrong,” said a familiar voice. Rusty Zidek pushed into the sanctuary from the foyer, letting the door swing closed behind him. Obviously, he’d stayed behind to listen. “I sent those notes.”

  “You!”

  “That’s right. I knew ’bout that gold, see. Just like I told you.” He stabbed a finger at Cord.

  “But how could you know?” Nadine demanded.

  “Lucy Shaw told me,” Rusty insisted. “Just like I said. L.S. stands for Lucy Shaw. She told me ’bout that gold long before she faked her death and ran off with Cyrus. And I told Robin when I figured out she didn’t know. See, I recognized her right off. Why, she couldn’t look more like Elaine Shaw if she was her twin.”

  Julie walked up to Robin and took her hand. “So you really are Lucy’s great-granddaughter.”

  Robin nodded, tears rolling down her face. “Yes, I am.”

  Jackson wilted. “I knew she had to be,” he said, “but admitting that meant admitting that the gold existed and I was the one who took it, and I was just too ashamed to do it until now.” He sucked in a deep breath and went on. “You all should know that Pete Daniels has been seen around town again. Deputy Sheriff Calloway told me today, and I will not have Pete arrested for my crime. I’d hoped to keep him away, but this is as much his home as mine, and I’m as responsible for whatever he’s done as he is.”

  “But you’ve returned the time capsule and everything publicly owned,” Ethan pointed out, looking to Robin.

  “That’s right,” she said, sniffing. “So long as the private property is dispensed of as it should be, what real crime have you committed?”

  Nadine looked around hopefully, the tracks of tears on her face.

  “As far as I’m concerned,” Dale said, “my family only has to know that they have some money coming. I wish I could say that they’d pass it by when they learn the truth about Silas, but…” He grimaced. “I wouldn’t count on it. My share can go to the city of Jasper Gulch, though. That ought to pay for some of the damage.”

  “That’s where mine will go, for sure,” Jackson rumbled, sounding choked up. “And whatever else happens, I intend to announce my resignation as mayor tonight.”

  Nadine slipped her arm through his in a show of support. She’d be standing by her man through thick or thin. He kissed her cheek.

  The Shaw sons all traded looks. “Does that mean one of us is going to have to take over as mayor?” Cord asked reluctantly.

  “Eh, what’s wrong with Ellis Cooper?” Rusty wanted to know.

  “Not a thing,” Jackson said. “Ellis is a good man, and maybe it’s time for the Shaws to step aside and just concentrate on family.”

  “I’m for that,” Cord said, clasping Katie’s hand.

  Jackson’s gaze sought out Robin’s then, and he said, “You’re part of this family, Robin, though you may wish otherwise now. What do you say?”

  She had to clear her throat and blink away the tears. She could barely believe it. Jackson Shaw admitting that she was family, asking for her opinion. Suddenly she realized that her every hope had been fulfilled far beyond her wildest dreams. She looked to Rusty, who smiled, his crinkled eyes gleaming, and gave her a satisfied nod, as if to say his work was now done. Recalling what he’d said about her great-grandmother knowing from heaven what transpired here on earth, she finally managed to croak, “I say, thank God!”

  “Then let’s do just that,” Jackson rumbled. “Pastor, would you lead us in prayer?”

  “It’s my honor to do so,” Ethan said, getting to his feet and bringing a quietly weeping Robin with him. “My very great honor.”

  *

  Ethan called a meeting of the church council two days after Christmas. Still reeling from Jackson Shaw’s resignation as mayor, they listened to Ethan’s explanation about his past with ill-concealed impatience, thanked him for his honesty and hurried home to their families.

  As Rusty Zidek put it, “Son, we already knew you were no lightweight. Keep up the good work.”

  Mick McGuire had another take. “There’s rich fodder for some mighty fine sermons.”

  And that, as they say, was that.

  The city council decided in very short order that bringing charges against anyone served no purpose, as nothing belonging to the community had been taken and all damages had been covered, with a nice nest egg left over for the city coffers. Ellis stepped into the mayor’s shoes gladly and, with Jackson’s full blessing, oversaw the ribbon cutting at the bridge on New Year’s Eve and the dedication of the museum, which opened to rave reviews. The new time capsule was filled and buried—without any hint of gold or any other valuable being included.

  As for Jackson, he declared that his new occupation was to be hassling his children about providing him with grandchildren.

  Neither Robin nor Ethan had any desire to prolong their engagement. They decided to marry on New Year’s Day, right in the middle of the newly reopened Beaver Creek Bridge, just about at the spot where Ezra Shaw’s Model T had gone into the water on that fateful evening so long ago.

  “Who in her right mind would choose to get married out of doors in the middle of winter in Montana?” Sheila Templeton Frazier wanted to know as she helped Mamie fluff the fur on the edge of the satin-lined cape that hung about Robin’s shoulders. “Though I have to admit, it’s a very pretty dress.”

  Mamie, God bless her, had called all around Bozeman until she’d found the right dress in the right size and the right fabrics to make the cape, to which she’d added the most beautiful sequined fasteners and appliqués. As Robin dressed for her wedding at the inn, she said a silent goodbye to the little room where she had spent the past six months.

  The Shaws had graciously insisted that her parents stay with them at the ranch. They, too, were family, after all, and Sheila and Gary seemed suitably impressed with their quarters. The Shaws and, therefore, Jasper Gulch had risen considerably in their estimation.

  The groom would wear his ministerial collar, at Robin’s insistence. The pastor who would conduct the ceremony came from L.A. with Ethan’s sister, niece and aunt, who had hit it off with their hostess, Mamie, as if they were all old friends. Robin was delighted to meet the famous Pastor Rick, who had come prepared with full ecclesiastical robes for the wedding. Ethan’s niece, Erin, would serve as flower girl, though the only flowers were to be the white roses in Robin’s bouquet and the petals in Erin’s basket.

  In deference to the weather, they kept it short and sweet. No music, no poetry, no candle lighting or long processions. Just a couple in love, a minister and their witnesses standing on a bridge beneath a winter sun in the sight of God. Livvie attended as matron of honor, but it pleased Robin that both Ju
lie Shaw Travers and Faith Shaw Massey offered to do so. Jack stood up with Ethan, grinning at his wife the whole time Robin and Ethan repeated their vows.

  Pastor Rick had a few surprises up his ecclesiastical sleeve. While Ethan kissed his bride, Rick sent a discreet text message. Suddenly, bells pealed across the valley floor, filling the air with their joyous music.

  Those residents of the town who did not brave the cold to stand out on the bridge during the brief ceremony waited back at the church until the happy couple arrived for a cake-and-punch reception. Amidst the gaiety and laughter there, Ethan’s cell phone rang.

  Robin watched emotion wash over her husband’s face as he softly said, “Hello, Dad.” Then, “Yes, I wish you could’ve been here, too. She’s a wonderful woman. You’ll love her.”

  Colleen stood nearby, and she looked away, but Pastor Rick quickly positioned himself so he stood directly within her line of sight. Robin knew then that Rick had arranged the call. The burly, middle-aged pastor stepped forward, bent and whispered something into Colleen’s ear.

  She shook her head and pushed past him, but as she brushed by Ethan, she said, “Wish the old man a happy new year from me.”

  Ethan’s expression contained such joy in that moment that Robin could not resist the impulse to take his hand in hers, as she would so often over the coming years. She recalled then the words that he had quoted to comfort and encourage her when her faith had been weak and lacking.

  They were the very words that would be carved above the door of the lovely stone chapel erected on the campus of the Mountainview Church of the Savior, one that never closed: a place for prayer, a shelter in time of storm, a shade in the heat of the day. Built with Robin’s share of the Shaw-Massey gold, the chapel would become a popular place for small weddings and other ceremonies. These timeless words from Isaiah 41:10 would be there through the generations to strengthen all who worried and wondered:

  “Fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God; I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.”