by Heather Gray
“So what does redemption look like going forward?”
She lifted her shoulders. “Not a clue. I’m sure God already has it sorted out, so I’m trusting Him with the details.”
“Will it keep you here in Rainbow Falls?” He held his breath.
She gave him a smile. A broad, beautiful, one-of-a-kind Skye smile. “That much I know. I’m not leaving again. I’m done running away. I can’t promise I won’t ever be tempted to…”
“You didn’t need to run from me.” Her presence in Rainbow Falls was encouraging, but the way she’d vanished and refused to return his calls still hurt.
“I did, though. Don’t you see? When we build walls up around our hearts, those walls can only be breached when we allow it. You were a danger to my walls, and I was about to let you in. So I ran. I thought that was better for both of us.”
This time he did reach out, just enough to touch her. He pulled away the strand of hair that kept blowing in her face and hiding her from his view.
“I told myself it was about the business and tying up loose ends, but if that was the case, I would have returned your calls.”
“But you didn’t.”
She shook her head. “You’re as dangerous to me as I thought when I first saw you. Only, it’s not because of your earring or those tattoos. It’s because of your heart. You have one of the most beautiful hearts I’ve ever seen in another human being, and… It makes me want things. Things I didn’t think I deserved to have.”
CHAPTER 41
Skye soaked in Sam’s presence. “Where do we go from here?”
He smiled, and those blue eyes she’d once thought of as icy heated her skin. “I know a place. Great ambiance. Good people. You might even get lunch out of it. You’ll have to drive, though. My ride left without me.”
“You’re letting Franco drive the van now?”
Sam snorted. “Not hardly. Baxter came along today.”
Skye chuckled, but then her laughter faded, and all those insecurities that had kept her twisted up for so long came rushing back in. “What if I push you away every time you start to get close?”
He reached out and took her hand, threading his fingers through hers. “One day at a time, okay? We’re not buying diapers for our grandkids today. God has everything between here and there already figured out.”
“Between here and there implies a there. With diapers and grandkids. Now you’re kind of freaking me out.”
His hand, warm against hers, squeezed ever so slightly. “Lunch. We’re talking about lunch. After that, who knows? Maybe we’ll go shopping and buy you some curtains. Or a couch.”
“How do you know about…?”
“A couple of colorful little birds told me.”
Skye held tight to his hand. “I’m not sure why it’s been so hard to furnish my house.”
Sam turned to face her. “You’ve had a lot of decisions to make in your life recently. Sometimes we get so caught up in those really big decisions that we don’t have anything left to offer the everyday decisions.”
“Like couches and curtains?”
“Couches, curtains, relationships.” With those words, Sam released her hand and cupped her face. “If you’re not ready for a couch and curtains, we could try a kiss.”
Skye leaned into his touch. He was casting a spell over her, pure and simple. “I’d like that.”
Laughter flared to life in his eyes but was almost immediately doused by an emotion that darkened their blue and made his pupils dilate. Want. Passion. Desire.
Sam dipped his head until his lips met hers. His kiss was silk against satin — soft and warm. Skye’s toes curled while her imagination took flight. With his lips against hers, diapers and grandbabies didn’t seem like such a far-off thought. It felt real, solid. Like Sam.
He pulled away but dropped another kiss on her cheek, then her forehead.
Skye smoothed the front of his shirt where she’d been gripping it. “That wasn’t bad for ‘next.’”
A smile shaped his mouth, and he leaned in to place another kiss on her forehead. “I’m glad you enjoyed it.”
“I want there to be a lot of nexts. I’m going to disappoint you eventually, though. I know that.”
“I’ll disappoint you regularly. I’m human. So are you. We’ll both get exercise in forgiving.”
He made it sound so simple. And she wanted him to be right.
Skye stood, tugging Sam with her. “Well then, let’s go. I believe you promised me lunch.”
A short time later, they pulled up to the curb in front of Samaritan’s Reach, but it wasn’t the same Samaritan’s Reach Skye remembered.
“Where’d the roof go?”
Sam scratched his head. “It was there when we left for church this morning.”
“Are you being punked?”
Sam reached for her hand and tugged her with him as he climbed the steep driveway. Two commercial-sized dumpsters sat in the middle of the courtyard. They were filled to the brim with old, faded, worn out shingles.
“Madison!” A woman’s voice rang out, but Skye couldn’t pinpoint its source. Someone shimmied down a ladder, though, and it clicked into place.
“Madison, look at you!” She gave Sam a tight hug then extended a hand to Skye. “Ginger Schneider. I used to serve with this big lug.”
Skye took in the petite woman with blunt-cut fire-engine-red hair. A well-used tool belt hung low on her hips, with a pair of worn leather work gloves waving at her from one of the belt’s compartments. “You’re the one who told him about Rainbow Falls.”
She grinned. “Guilty as charged.”
A twinge wormed its way through Skye’s middle. She wasn’t going to let insecurity win, though. She wrapped her arms around Ginger and gave her a hug. “Thank you for telling him about our home. If it weren’t for you, Samaritan’s Reach wouldn’t be here, and I never would have met Sam.”
Color climbed Ginger’s neck. “Don’t go making a federal case out of it or anything.”
Before Skye could say anything else to Ginger, Gideon strolled out of the kitchen carrying two plates. He shoved them both at Sam and pulled Skye into a hug. “It’s good to have you home, Miss Skye. This place wasn’t the same without you. The boss wasn’t the same without you, either.”
Some of the men she’d only met in passing. Some of them, though, had burrowed into her heart when she’d been busy looking the other way. She hugged Gideon back. “It’s good to be home. I missed you, too.”
He pulled back. “You need to meet my niece. She’s around here somewhere.”
Something a lot like pride lit his face, so Skye didn’t bother telling him she’d met Gabbie briefly the first day she’d come looking for her Uncle Gid. Instead, she pointed to the young woman making eyes at a broad-shouldered member of the construction crew.
“Gabriela Pierce, you get over here right this instant!” He ran a hand down his wiry beard. “I tell you, I had no idea having a niece was going to be this hard. That girl has a mind of her own. Just like her mama did.”
Skye and Gabbie shook hands before Sam’s voice pulled her back in his direction. “You remember Conway, right?”
Skye shook another hand. “Do we have you to thank for our missing roof?”
Conway pushed a cap back on his head. “As soon as the judge made his ruling, I made a call. Got the shingles lined up and figured we’d do our best to give Sam a nice surprise when he got home from church today. ‘Course, it looks like he got a nice surprise at church, too.”
Skye wrapped her fingers around Sam’s forearm. “I guess it’s a day full of surprises.”
Conway nodded. “I suppose you’re right.”
Sam pushed one of the plates toward Skye. “Here. Go eat. There’s room over at the picnic table. I’ll join you in a minute. I want to go over a few things with Conway. Like making sure he got all the proper permits.”
Skye carried her plate over to the lone table and hoped nobody saw fit to throw shingles
, nails, or anything else in her general direction. She sat on top and inspected the bustling courtyard as she took a bite of what turned out to be a turkey sandwich, no mustard.
Two bites later, Alan climbed up to sit on the table next to her.
She took another bite.
More than anyone there — except for Sam — she felt like she owed Alan an apology. Finding the words, though, was proving harder than she’d expected.
“Remember when you came after me that day? Back when Rafael went off the rails?”
“Yeah.”
“You stopped me from leaving because you knew I needed to be here.”
“You deserved to be here.”
“You try to run again, I’m gonna return the favor. You need to be here, too.”
How could she take another bite with tears clogging her throat so she could barely breathe?
Alan wasn’t done, either. “You have family here. This is a safe place to be.”
Skye set her plate down. He’d just bestowed a great honor on her, and she wanted to treat it with the respect it deserved. “I’m privileged to call you my family.”
He gave her a nod and headed back to the courtyard, passing Sam in the process.
Sam took her hand. “Come with me. Quick, before anybody else interrupts.”
She followed him as he led them behind the building, over near where the van was parked.
He brushed the back of his hand against her cheek before circling a finger under her chin and tilting her face to look at him. “We’ve had lunch. More or less. So it’s time to think about what comes next. After the last next.”
“So the next next?”
He leaned in, and the air between them grew heavy with charged electricity. His lips brushed against hers, the barest hint of a caress, before he moved to kiss her forehead. “I told myself I wouldn’t rush you, that I’d let you control the pace.”
The compulsion to reach out and touch him robbed Skye of coherent thought. She rested her hands on his biceps, and his muscles bunched under her fingers. She slid her hands upwards until they danced along the collar of his button-up church shirt. When her fingers brushed against his skin, he sucked in a hissing breath.
He leaned his forehead against hers. “You’re playing with fire.”
Maybe I want to get burned. She swallowed the retort and circled her arms around his neck and held him in a loose embrace.
“Are you going to kiss me now?”
With a growl deep in his throat, Sam pulled her close and seared her soul with a kiss. His earlier words floated along the edge of her consciousness. Playing with fire…
Skye’s knees melted, and she went from a loose embrace to holding on for dear life.
“Come on, people! Give them some privacy.”
Sam broke off the kiss, and they both looked skyward. So much for being out of the way of prying eyes.
“Guess I forgot there was a roofing crew up there.” Sam’s hoarse whisper tickled her senses.
“That’s probably for the best.” Skye hadn’t been prepared for the intensity of Sam’s kiss this time. It had taken months for their relationship to go from stationary to a snail’s pace, but in the course of a single day they’d shot from snail’s pace all the way up to flying on the Autobahn.
Conway yelled from the rooftop at the bottom of the u-shaped structure. “You should have gone inside if you didn’t want any of my crew to witness it. We can see the whole property from up here.”
Ginger’s voice floated down from the roof closest to them. “Awww, I think it’s sweet.”
Kissing noises showered down on them.
Note to self: Don’t make out with a guy within sight of a construction crew.
Sam cupped her face with his strong hands. “I know I said we’d go as slow as you want, and we will. I got carried away with the kiss…”
Skye grazed his jawline with her fingertips. “Slow is kind of a relative term.”
“I don’t want to have to imagine my life without you.”
She slid two fingers up to his lips, gently memorizing their shape as she traced them. “If I have my way, you’ll never need to.”
Then she moved in, stepped all the way into his space, keeping a hair’s breadth of distance between her lips and his. “I’m pretty sure I’m in love with you.”
“That makes two of us.” He winced. “In love. Not in love with me. I’m not in love with myself.”
She closed that last tiny little span of air and kissed the man who had made her think of a thug when she’d first seen him, the man who had taught her so much about preconceived notions, selflessness, and beauty.
He pulled out of the kiss before she lost too much of herself in it, but his eyes held the promise of more to come. More kisses, sure. But more tomorrows, too. Tomorrows filled with love, laughter, diapers, and grandbabies.
Funny how she’d first come to Rainbow Falls to escape the life she thought she’d been born into. And in the process, she’d renewed old friendships, discovered a new purpose, and found the strength to forgive herself and others. More than all that, though, she’d found her way back to the God who had been waiting for her all along.
“Hey, Boss!” Franco’s call came from around the corner of the building.
Sam dropped another light kiss on Skye’s forehead. “Duty calls.”
She pushed him away. “Go see what he needs. I’ll be right behind you.”
Sam disappeared around the corner of the building, and Skye stared after him. She rested a hand on the cool cinder block wall of the shelter. “Thank you, Mom.” Her whispered words disappeared in the Montana breeze. “I wouldn’t have met Sam if I hadn’t had a place to run away to. Thank you for giving me this town and these people.”
No matter where life took Skye, Rainbow Falls would always be the place where life was meant to be lived in full color and where hope was filled with every shade of the rainbow.
THE END
Author’s Note
Thank you for spending time with me in Rainbow Falls. I hope that, like me, you are looking forward to getting to know these characters more. I have it on relatively good authority that Sunny’s story will be next and that Tawny’s happily-ever-after is going to be a bit of a surprise. As for Jette… It’s going to take a special kind of guy to get past her reserve. One thing is for certain. Life is never dull when you live in a town filled with colorful people.
If you can, please take a minute to tell others about this book by leaving a review on Amazon and Goodreads. I wouldn't mind if you told all your friends about it, too. Or took out an ad in your local paper… although that might get costly. In all seriousness, though, reviews are golden, and I appreciate every single one of them.
As any writer will tell you, gratitude is a way of life in this line of work. I am beyond thankful that God gives me stories to share and the words with which to tell them. He has allowed me to do something I love, and it's a blessing every single day. Writing isn't a solitary journey, though, and I want to thank the people who have helped pull this story together and make it shine.
Thank you to everyone who cheered me on while catching all my dangling modifiers and missing antecedents: Elizabeth Maddrey, Shari Schroeder, Kay Springsteen, and Lynellen Perry. You're each invaluable.
About the Author
Heather loves coffee, God, her family, and laughter – not necessarily in that order! She writes approachable characters who, through the highs and lows of life, find a way to love God, embrace each day, and laugh out loud right along with her. And, yeah, her books almost always have someone who's a coffee addict. Some things just can't be helped.
She takes joy in creating characters that, much like her, are flawed...but loved anyway.
You can sign up for Heather's newsletter by going to http://heathergraywriting.com/newsletter or catch up with her online at http://www.heathergraywriting.com. She can also be found at http://www.facebook.com/heathergraywriting, http://www.twitter.com/laughdreamwrit
e, and http://www.instagram.com/laughdreamwrite. If you’d like to check out a prayer group and street team she shares with another author, visit The Inspired Inkpot at https://www.facebook.com/groups/theinspiredinkpot/.
Other Books by Heather Gray
Informal Romance
An Informal Christmas, https://www.amazon.com/dp/B017L07I0G
An Informal Arrangement, https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01AUF0FS6
An Informal Introduction, https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01EB4U5X2
An Informal Date, https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01MQHISUM
An Informal Affair, https://www.amazon.com/dp/B075DXRQX4
An Informal Reception (coming summer 2019)
Rainbow Falls (contemporary Christian romance)
Skye
Sunny (coming winter 2018)
Rose (coming summer 2019)
Other Contemporary Christian Romance
Ten Million Reasons, https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00E5TLMV8
Nowhere for Christmas, https://www.amazon.com/dp/B06W2LH36C
Bella Notte, https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07CB9KG7M
Ladies of Larkspur (Christian Western Romance)
Mail Order Man, https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00C6TPCWO
Just Dessert, https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00F2Z9X9M
Redemption, https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00K031XRQ
Regency Refuge (Christian Regency Romance)
His Saving Grace, https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00E891FV2
Jackal, https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00L2DW7D2
Queen, https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00P8ACR1C
PREVIEW
An Informal Date
Informal Romance Book 4
Chapter One
Here he comes again.
Kimi pretended to organize her muffin assortment as Dr. No-Name approached. She could set her clock by him. Every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday at 7:05 in the morning, he came for his large half-caff triple nonfat medium whip white mocha. Even though she knew what he would order, she waited for him to arrive. One day not too long ago, she’d started his drink as soon as he’d stepped into view. She’d had the steaming beverage ready and waiting for him. The poor guy had been so flustered he’d knocked over the fruit basket and taken out half the cookie display in the process.
