A Texas Sky (Yellow Rose Trilogy) (10 page)

outside. He half-expected the girls to follow but soon

found himself alone with Darvi at the clothesline. She

plucked fabric from the basket, pegging the curtains carefully

in the sun, Dakota moving with her.

"Dakota?" she said softly after a few minutes.

"Yeah?"

"Did you mean it when you said your time is your own

right now?"

"Yes, I did."

Darvi looked at him before going back to work.

"Is it going to interfere with any of your plans if we stay

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until Monday?"

"Not in the least."

"Do you mean that?" Darvi turned to him with such

hope on her face that Dakota was amazed.

"Certainly. We can stay longer if you like."

"I would like to," she said as she went back to the

clothes basket, "but I think company can get old very fast.

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I don't want to wear out my welcome, but I do want to stay

through the weekend. If s rather important to me."

"Thaf s fine. Do you mind my asking why you want to

stay?"

Darvi hesitated. This was so new to her, and she was

sure if he asked her any difficult questions, she would

make a complete mess of things. However, the man beside

her was waiting. Seeing no help for it, she admitted, "I

want to go to church with Calder and Merry."

Darvi had all she could do to keep her mouth shut when

Dakota said, "111 join you if you don't mind."

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Dakota saw the surprise in her eyes, but the twins came

looking for them just then and neither one had time to say

another word. Less than an hour later Dakota left for town.

Darvi didn't wait five minutes before telling Merry what he

had said.

%r%r

Calder knotted his tie on Sunday morning, not quite

able to grasp the last few days. He couldn't think of the last

time he'd been so busy. Merry and the girls were having

the time of their lives with their guests, but Calder had

delivered four babies, wrapped broken bones, patched

split heads, and all this among his other duties. He was

starting to think the people of Stillwater were on some type

of mission, one that would let them visit their doctor on a

regular basis. Calder thought he would be ill as well if they

kept it up, and all of mis knowing that Darvi and Dakota

were leaving the next day.

Dakota had even come into town and stopped at

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Calder's office, but he'd been with a patient and had two

more waiting. The big Ranger had not looked put out, but

Calder had been frustrated by it all.

There was a time when I begged You for a successful practice,

Lord, and now I'm complaining. Please help me to enjoy the time

I have with these folks and leave the rest to You.

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"Papa?" a little voice called from outside the door.

"Come in."

Calder listened to his daughter try before he stepped

over and opened the door.

"Mama says eat"

"Okay, Viv. 111 be right down."

Vivian waited for him, and when they both gained the

kitchen, Calder was pleased to see that neither Darvi nor

Dakota had come in yet. He didn't want to miss any more

time with them. In less than five minutes everyone was

gathered, and they sat down as a group. Calder prayed,

and to his amazement, Dakota had a question as soon as he

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was finished.

"Do you ever worry that God isn't hearing you,

Calder?"

"I haven't for a long time, but I used to."

"What changed for you?"

"Something my father said. He asked me if God's Word

was true or not. It forced me to evaluate what I believe, and

the truth is, I believe every word of the Bible. With that in

mind, I looked at the different people who were devoted to

prayer, including Jesus Christ I know I can follow their

lead."

"Where did you find those examples in the Bible?"

"I have some verses written in the front of my Bible that might help. Would you like me to copy them for you?"

"I would, thank you."

"Have you spent much time reading the Bible, Mr.

Rawlings?" Merry asked.

"Just recently I have. I'm afraid that not all of it makes

sense to me."

"I don't think anyone would claim to understand all of

it," Merry added with a smile. "If he did, I'm not sure I

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would believe him."

Darvi was careful not to look at Merry, but she was

nearly falling into her plate to listen to this exchange. Realizing

she was staring at Dakota, she forced herself to eat

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From there the time simply sped away. Everyone was

barely finished when Merry said they were running late,

and before Darvi knew it, she was sitting in church, the

Scott family to the left of her and Dakota on their other

side.

Some of the songs were familiar, but the sermon was

something she'd never heard before or even considered.

The pastor told them, with verses to support it, that God

had not only saved man, but saved him with a plan. God

had good works for His children to do, and His will was

evident on every page of the Bible.

Darvi was still thinking about the sermon when she

walked absentmindedly out the church door. She had told

Merry she wanted a moment alone at the wagon. She was

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nearly half a block down the boardwalk when a male voice

stopped her.

"Well, hello."

Pulled from her musings, Darvi turned to find two men

leaning against the side of a building, both dressed in

denim, dean shirts, hats, and boots. There was nothing disreputable

about them; indeed, they were clean-shaven and

well pressed, but Darvi thought it rude to address her

without an introduction. Her chin went into the air, but

they only smiled, pushed away from the wall, and started

to move toward her.

"Been to church, have you?"

"You, sir," she began, but stopped before starting the

set-down she was ready to give him, not certain her old tactics

were a good idea.

"Sir?" The man who was fairer-haired spoke again.

"Did you call me sir? Oh, I like that."

"And I'd like it if you'd move on and leave the lady

alone."

Neither man looked particular guilty or intimidated by

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the large, dark man who appeared behind the woman, his

entire face visible above her head, but neither did they

want to tangle with him. Pretty as the woman was, the

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dark, intense eyes of the man who shadowed her were a

little more than they bargained for.

Watching them walk away, Darvi stood very still. She

could tell she was shaking a little and wasn't up to facing

Dakota. He didn't know this. Only a moment passed

before he stepped around and faced her. Darvi made herself

look up.

"Are you all right?"

"I think so," she said with more bravado than she felt.

"What did they want?"

"I don't know."

"But they wouldn't move on when you told them to."

"I didn't tell them to move on."

Dakota's brows rose on this. "Why is that?"

Darvi's face filled with frustration before she answered.

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"I don't know! I'm a different person now, Dakota, and I

don't think I'm supposed to talk to people that way."

Dakota's eyes narrowed, his own temper rising.

"Let me get this straight. You didn't want to hurt their

feelings?"

Darvi scowled at him but didn't answer. Seeing the

upset and confusion in her eyes, Dakota softened. He

spoke quietly, his voice compassionate.

"Unless I miss my guess, Darvi, you and I have had a

recent change in our lives."

The strawberry blonde nodded.

"If yours is anything like mine, right now you don't

know which way is up."

"That about explains it. It's been wonderful," she was

swift to add, "but I'm so unsure about so many things."

Dakota saw that Calder was headed their way. He gave

him a quick wave and turned Darvi back toward the

church. As he hoped, Calder only waved back and turned

himself, giving them a moment alone.

"No matter what changes have occurred, Darvi, God

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wants us to keep using our heads. I refuse to believe mat

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there's some verse in Scripture that says once you accept

Christ, you have to let men accost you."

"No, I don't suppose it does say that, but my tongue's

been getting me into trouble for a long time."

"Nevertheless, you know what appropriate attention is

and what it is not If you wanted those men out of your

face, you had every right to tell them."

"But I was angry, and I didn't want to blast them with

my temper."

"Thaf s wise of you, but you can still tell someone, quite

firmly, I might add, that you don't wish to speak to him."

Darvi stopped and looked up at him.

"I'm not going to argue with you, but I'm going to have

to think on that"

"Thaf s fair enough," Dakota agreed. "What did you

think of the sermon?"

Darvi sighed. "Wow."

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"I know what you mean."

"I just never thought about God having a plan for us.

Did you?"

"Not personally, no. My parents taught my brothers and

me to believe there was a God, but if s only recently that I

considered the fact that God has thoughts of me or that He

would want a relationship with me. If s a little more than I

can take sometimes."

Darvi was still framing a reply when Calder pulled up

with the wagon. The whole family was already on board,

and the girls tried to climb onto both of them the moment

they were seated. Darvi ended up holding the Bibles, and

Dakota took both girls on his lap.

"Koda?"

"Yes?"

But that was all Filar wanted to say. She laid her head

against him, and Dakota held her close. Vivian spent the

whole ride looking up into his face but didn't care to talk

either. The girls gave him such a longing for Laura

Peterson, his brother's young sister-in-law, that Dakota

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determined to visit Slater right away. He was thinking

about how he could do this when Darvi shifted beside him,

and he was reminded of his present job. Working not to let

his emotions take over but not quite making it, Dakota's

thoughts were very determined.

I'll get Darvi off safely, and then I'll make my way home. I'll

visit Cash for a while and then go see Slater and Liberty. If Brace

doesn't want me back by then, I'll go back to the ranch for good!