Orchard Hill Volume Three

by Kara Lynn Russell

  The woman frowned. “They would. I guess I’d better go, but you take care of yourself, missy. I’m going to be checking up on you.”

  “Oh, Rosie.” Joy gave her a tremendous hug. “What would I do without you?”

  “You know you’re like family to me, don’t you?”

  “I know. I love you.”

  “I love you, too.”

  Joy thought that maybe Rosie was the only one who had ever loved her, outside of her real mother. Her grandmother had died before she was born, she didn’t know her father, and her mother had died when she was eight, leaving her with only one living relative—her grandfather. And he’d been less than welcoming when she’d arrived here as a frightened child whose whole world had been turned upside down.

  ****

  On Sunday morning Isaac noted the warm looks that passed between Ian O’Neil and Lily Robinson. He resigned himself to the fact that there was going to be another engagement announcement soon. It looked as though there would be no after-Christmas lull for him this year, Isaac thought, as he removed his robe and stole in his office after the service. Nine couples—now that he’d agreed to marry Susan Schmidt and her fiancé—expected him to officiate at their weddings. There were ten if you counted Shaun and Patience renewing their vows—before Easter. And it would all kick off with Misty and Pansy’s wedding on the Saturday after Christmas. He wondered what had happened in Orchard Hill this past year to cause this huge matrimonial urge.

  Although he didn’t really feel like being social, Isaac left his office and went to the gathering space to participate in the post-worship coffee hour. He only hoped he could avoid being caught in a discussion of what type of wedding cake was best or how to incorporate all the items from the old “something blue” rhyme.

  Before he even had a chance to get a cup of coffee, Pansy Parker accosted him. “Isaac, I’d like you to meet my niece, Delia. She’ll be visiting me for a few weeks to help me pack up the house.”

  A tall, slim woman with sparkling brown eyes accompanied Pansy. He offered her his hand and welcomed her to Orchard Hill Community Church. She responded with a firm grip and a wide smile.

  “Pastor, can you entertain Delia for a few minutes? I want to take Joy aside and show her a few things she’ll need to know. You don’t mind, do you Delia?”

  The woman’s smile turned sly. “Not at all, Aunt Pansy. I’m sure we’ll be fine.”

  Pansy was gone before Isaac could say anything. For a seventy-five-year-old woman, she could move quickly when she wanted to.

  “Is this your first visit to Orchard Hill?” asked Isaac.

  “No. I’ve been here a few times. I’m surprised we’ve never met.”

  “Yes, well, I guess that is surprising.” Isaac mentally rummaged through his supply of small talk and was about to make a comment on the weather when, to his horror, Delia wound both her arms around one of his and cuddled up to his side.

  “It really is a nice town. Maybe I should visit more often.”

  He tried to slide his arm away, but she held on. What was going on here?

  “I’ll be here for a while. You could show me around some day.”

  “Uh, I’d love to, but I don’t think I’ll have time. This is a busy season, and I’ll be training a new secretary.” Isaac stepped back, hoping she would let go, but she moved with him instead.

  “Oh, that’s a shame. What about your evenings? Are you free then?”

  “Um…nope. There are always meetings and confirmations, and Sunday School program practice…” Was he going to have to chew his own arm off to escape?

  “Surely you don’t have to be at all those things,” Delia purred. “You can’t work twenty-four-seven.”

  Isaac was spared from having to answer by his best friend, Joseph, who walked over to them. “Hello, Delia,” he said, casually drawing her away from Isaac. “Do you remember me?”

  “Yes. Joseph Velasquez, isn’t it?”

  “Good memory. Visiting your aunt?”

  While Joseph distracted her, Isaac slipped away. Who would think prim and proper Pansy Parker had a niece like that! He grabbed a cup of coffee and started to circulate through the room, taking time to talk to as many people as possible. Joseph caught up with him again after the crowd had thinned out.

  “Thanks for saving me back there,” Isaac said to him.

  “That was weird,” Joseph replied. “I’ve met Delia before, and she didn’t act like that.”

  Isaac shrugged. “I guess you just don’t have my charm.”

  “Very funny. Meanwhile, if you’re so charming, why am I marrying a beautiful woman while you’re spending your nights home alone?”

  “You know why. If I went on one date with a girl, the gossips would have us walking down the aisle. And then, if things don’t work out, one of us gets torn apart by them.”

  “I think you’re a little paranoid.”

  “It’s happened to me before. I try not to repeat the worst of my mistakes.”

  “So that’s it. You’re a bachelor for life?”

  “Maybe. Who knows what God has planned for any of us? All I know is: I won’t ask a woman out unless I’m sure she’s something really special.”

  At that moment, the office door opened. Pansy came out, followed by Delia, and then Joy.

  “How will you know she’s special if you don’t even go out with her? Isn’t that what dating is all about?”

  Isaac’s eyes locked onto Joy. “I’ll know.”

  ****

  At five o’clock on Monday morning, Joy gave up on pretending to sleep and got up. Rosie’s son had picked her up yesterday afternoon and Joy was alone now until after the holidays.

  Knowing that in a few hours she would be in charge of the church office filled her with so much anxiety she felt ill. In an effort to prepare herself she spent some time reading both her Bible and her latest book on social anxiety. Following one of the book’s suggestions, she wrote down a Bible verse on courage on a small slip of paper: “in God I trust and am not afraid. What can mere human beings do to me? Psalm 56:11” She read it over several times and then slipped it into her pocket.

  Isaac was there to greet her when she walked in the office door. A connecting door linked the secretary’s office and Isaac’s.

  “Morning, Joy. I have a busy schedule today, so let’s go over a few things.”

  Isaac showed her where to record his appointments. Then he gave her some notes for next Sunday’s bulletin. There was a template for it on the computer. She was to find it and create the bulletin. There was filing to do, and the phone needed to be answered. The quilter’s group was meeting today and they would expect Pastor Isaac and Joy to come down and have lunch with them.

  By the time Isaac had finished, Joy’s head was already swimming. He disappeared into his office while Joy eyed the computer with unease.

  She didn’t know anything about computers. Her grandfather had despised them and refused to allow one in the house. Joy hated to admit it, but every time she thought of buying one, she failed to go through with it. The memory of her grandfather’s disapproval was enough to dissuade her.

  After looking the machine over, Joy managed to find the ‘on’ button. The computer beeped and began to whir. Beyond that nothing seemed to happen. Hesitantly, Joy touched the keys. Still nothing.

  Fifteen minutes later when Riley O’Neil walked in, she still hadn’t figured it out, and was near tears. Luckily, Riley was one of the few people that she felt almost comfortable with.

  “Joy, what are you doing here?” he asked. “Don’t tell me Pansy is sick.”

  “No,” she replied. “She’s quit so she can have time to get ready for her wedding and the move. I’m filling in.”

  “Oh. Well…that’s nice.”

  He was too polite to say anything, but Joy was sure he was thinking how unsuitable she was for this job.

  “There wasn’t anyone else available.” She wanted to cringe at the defensive tone in her voice.
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  “I’m sure you’ll do fine. What…um…what are you working on now?”

  “I’m working on…” She tried frantically to think of a clever fiction and then gave up. She was too nervous and frustrated. “I’m working on turning on the computer.”

  To his credit, Riley didn’t laugh. He looked over her shoulder to see what she had done.

  “Um, Joy, the monitor needs to be turned on.” He pressed a button under the computer screen and it came to life.

  Joy dropped her head into her hands. He must think she was a total idiot. At least it was Riley and not Pastor Isaac.

  Riley laughed and patted her shoulder. “I’m guessing Pansy didn’t have time to train you before she left.”

  Just then Isaac came out of his office. “I thought I heard you out here, Riley,” he said and then stopped. His gaze lingered on Riley’s hand, still resting on Joy’s shoulder.

  “Joy was having a bit of trouble with the computer,” Riley explained.

  “Oh…Thanks for helping then. Come into my office for a minute, will you? I want to talk to you about the kitchen renovations.”

  “I thought the kitchen was finished.”

  “It is, but now that the kitchen looks so good, the hall seems shabby by comparison.”

  The men moved into Isaac’s office and Joy found herself alone again. She hated to do it, but she thought she would have to call Pansy about the computer. She let the phone ring and ring, but there was no answer.

  The day didn’t improve from there. Joy continued to work at figuring out the computer but the phone rang and people stopped in, and every time she returned to it, she forgot what she had been doing and had to start all over again.

  By the time one of the quilters came in to say that lunch was ready, Joy was near tears again. She didn’t think she could handle a group lunch, but didn’t know how to get out of it.

  Isaac emerged from his office, where he’d been holed up all morning. He took one look at Joy and then ushered the woman out of the office.

  “Thanks for the offer of lunch, but since it’s Joy’s first day, I thought I’d take her out.”

  “That’s certainly nice of you, Pastor,” the woman responded.

  “Not at all. I owe her big for stepping in.” Isaac spoke to Joy over his shoulder. “I’ll just say hello to the ladies, and then we can go.”

  Isaac hoped he was doing the right thing. Joy certainly looked like she wasn’t up to lunch with a gaggle of older women, particularly ones like Cora Applebaum who would be looking for gossip to spread. On the other hand, skipping the quilter’s potluck luncheon so he could take Joy out might excite even more gossip.

  And he had to admit he was probably mostly to blame for Joy’s bad morning. He’d shut himself up in his office without offering her a lick of help. But the outer office was too small and she was too tempting. He’d felt an unreasonable surge of jealousy when he’d found her alone with Riley. It was unreasonable because Riley’s heart was truly taken by his fiancée, Grace. Logically, Isaac knew this, but he couldn’t deny that seeing Riley’s hand on Joy’s shoulder had given him a jolt.

  “Do you want to go to the Apple-a-Day Café?” Isaac asked.

  “It’s very nice to offer to take me for lunch, but…” Joy stopped and bit her lip.

  “But what?”

  “But I hate for you to miss the quilter’s lunch. I don’t want them to feel slighted.”

  “They won’t. It will be fine, Joy.”

  “Then…then could we just get a sandwich at Grace’s? It will be quieter there than at the Café.”

  “Sure. I’ll get my coat.”

  It was quiet at Grace’s. The Grace Place was a coffee shop, run by Riley’s fiancée. Although the emphasis was on the beverages rather than food, Grace did serve soup and sandwiches at lunchtime.

  Isaac purposely chose a table in the middle of the room rather than a booth. A booth was too intimate and people would talk. He was used to it, but it would hurt Joy.

  “So I take it the morning didn’t go well,” he said before taking a bite of his ham and cheese on rye.

  “No, not really.” Joy just picked at her turkey and cheddar on whole wheat.

  “I’m sure it will get better,” Isaac offered.

  Joy didn’t reply, and they ate in silence for a while. She looked so miserable that Isaac finally asked, “Is there anything I can do to help?”

  She didn’t say anything, and for a moment he thought he was off the hook. Then, in a tiny voice he barely heard even though he was sitting across the table from her, she replied, “I don’t know how to use the computer.”

  “I’m sure you can learn. How much do you know?”

  “When Riley was in earlier…”

  “He said he was helping you.”

  “He was showing me how to turn the computer on.”

  Isaac was stunned. “Wow. You really don’t know anything about computers, do you?”

  “No. I never touched one before today.”

  “I thought everyone had to learn at least the basics in school these days.”

  “I was homeschooled by tutors, and my grandfather wouldn’t allow a computer in the house.”

  “Did you have any brothers or sisters?” he asked, forgetting about the computer.

  “No, it was just me and my grandfather.”

  He was beginning to understand. He didn’t ask about her parents. It was obvious they either were dead, or had abandoned her. Either way, he didn’t want to bring up painful memories. Better to get back to the matter at hand.

  “I can give you a quick lesson on the computer when we get back. I have an appointment at two, but I can show you the basics before then.”

  “I should have told you that I didn’t know how to use it right away,” Joy admitted. “If you don’t want me to come back, I’ll understand.”

  He had an out. He could let Joy go, and no one would get hurt. But then he’d be back where he started, with no secretary at all. Which was worse?

  And if he let Joy go now, she’d feel like a failure. Her confidence was already dismally low. No, this was not an out for him.

  “Of course I want you to come back,” he assured her. “It’s your first day. First days are always hard.”

  Back in the church office, Isaac did attempt to teach Joy a little about the computer. He showed her what the mouse was for, and how to open a program.

  “Double click on that icon,” he said pointing to the one that would open the template for the church bulletin.

  “Double click?”

  “Like this.” He leaned over to take the mouse from her. This turned out to be a huge mistake. His hand covered hers on the mouse. Suddenly his senses went on high alert. He felt the softness of her skin beneath his hand, and breathed in the light, flowery scent that Joy wore. He turned his head to look at her and became mesmerized by her soft hazel eyes.

  The sound of the office door opening forced him back to the present, and he abruptly straightened. What had he been doing? Oh yes, double click. “Just press the left button two times,” he said and then turned to see who had come in.

  It was Misty Green, and for some reason she had a huge grin on her face. “I hope I didn’t interrupt anything.”

  “Just a computer lesson,” Isaac told her.

  Misty crossed the room to the bank of cubbies that served as mailboxes for church staff and leaders. Misty was the choir director and Isaac suddenly remembered that she was getting married and moving away as well. He had to find a new choir director. Great. One more thing to add to his list.

  “Can I borrow your secretary for a bit?” Misty asked. “I want to go over some new music with her.”

  “Yes,” said Isaac, perhaps a bit too enthusiastically. “I can spare Joy for a little while.”

  ****

  As Joy and Misty walked to the choir room, Joy reflected on Isaac’s swiftly given permission for her to go. He’d said he could spare her for a while. More like forever, thought J
oy. By the end of the day he’d be convinced that having no secretary would be better than having her.

  “Why are you looking so down?” Misty asked. “I’d be a whole lot happier if Pastor Isaac cozied up to me like that. If I were a few years younger, of course.”

  Joy thought about that moment, when his hand had covered hers. She couldn’t deny that she felt something. She felt something every time she came close to Isaac. But there was no way he’d look twice at anyone like her.