June (3 page)

June lifted her eyes to meet Parker Sentell's. For a moment their gaze held. Shivers raced down June's spine, and she suddenly felt chilled. He was scrutinizing her-looking her over closely, and she detected resentment in his stormy blue eyes. An awkward moment passed before he briefly inclined his head, silently acknowledging the introduction. A man of few words, June decided. Instinct told her that Parker Sentell was trouble.

She wondered how two complete opposites could form such a close friendship, yet Eli had written that the bond between Parker and himself was as strong as that of brothers.

Parker stationed himself at the doorway, crossing his anus over his massive chest. The width of his biceps was as impressive as the breadth of his shoulders.

He fixed his cool eyes on her.

When the coughing refused to abate, Reverend Inman gently eased June toward the doorway. "We'll return in the morning when you're feeling stronger."

"Thank you ... Reverend." Eli feebly lifted an imploring hand to June. "I'm sorry.... Perhaps tomorrow ..."

"Of course. Tomorrow. I'll come and sit with you-all day if you'd like."

Nodding, Eli doubled up in another coughing spasm.

As June slipped past Parker Sentell, their eyes met again. She resisted the urge to assure him that nothing would change for him once she and Eli married. She would have many friends, as Eli would. Parker needn't feel threatened by her presence.

But he did. She could see it in the cool depth of his eyes.

Accusation? Animosity? She wasn't sure what was mirrored in his eyes. Nor was she sure why, but the implication was clear: She was an intruder.

Brushing past him, she made a mental note to ask Reverend Inman why this man, this powerful-looking man who was Eli's best friend, was so hostile.

She glanced over her shoulder and shivered at the sight of his intimidating stature. Then again, maybe she didn't want to know.

The reverend retraced their steps through the corridor, and he showed her to her room. The cubicle was adequate but sparse. Octagon-shaped, the small space held a single bed, a washstand, a simple clothespress, and a stove. Wind whistled around the cracks in the walls.

She shivered, spying her valise sitting on the bed.

"Breakfast is at seven."

"Thank you, Reverend." Saying good night, she closed the door and leaned against it as the long day closed in on her. Rain battered the windowpane with unrelenting velocity. What a week this had been. The long trip from Cold Water, Eli's unexpected illness. She sank to the side of the bed, trying to organize her thoughts. Tomorrow she would sit with Eli, and they could talk. They would tell one another all about themselves, and she would get to know her soon-to-be husband. The same intuition that told her Parker Sentell was trouble also told her she was going to like Eli Messenger. He seemed a gentle soul, and he had been most polite, even as bad as he felt.

Yawning, she slipped off the bed and rummaged through her valise for pen, ink, and writing paper. She wanted to share this first exciting day in Seattle with Aunt Thalia.

Dear Auntie,

I am so weary I can hardly keep my eyes open, but I wanted to inform you I have arrived in Seattle without incident. The Lord protected my way, and I made a new friend, Samantha Harris. Sam is here in Seattle to assist her ailing aunt, who runs a small orphanage not far from the crusade grounds. I hope to visit there one day soon.

A few minutes ago Isaac Inman, of the Isaac Inman Evangelistic Crusade, introduced me to my husband-to-be, Eli Messenger. Eli is presently under the weather, but Reverend Inman assures me he will be fit again very soon. Eli's friend, Parker Sentell, was visiting Eli tonight. I understand the two men are good friends. Although I like Eli very much, I personally didn't take to Mr. Sentell. He's certainly one giant of a matt, tall, poweifully built, with arms so large they resemble small hams, and eyes ... eyes, Auntie, so blue they remind me of that robin egg I found one day when I was six. Remember? I brought it to your house for safekeeping.

I sense Mr. Sentell resents my presence here, though why I cant imagine. I will pray that he will be of comfort to Eli during his illness and that in time he will consider me a friend. That said, Auntie, I will say an extraspecial thank-you to the Lord that he has sent me to be a helpmate to Eli and not to a matt like Mr. Sentell.

I hope this letter finds you well and happy in the Lord. I miss you, and I hope I can send money for your passage to Seattle very soon. We will have a long visit and rejoice in my new he.

Your loving niece,

June Kallahan

Blotting the letter, she folded it, then laid it aside. Stretching out on the bed, she listened to the rain pelting the window, wishing she were home in Cold Water, in her warm bed in Aunt Thalia's normal-shaped attic.

Chapter Two

HE rain refused to let up. It came in heavy sheets, nearly blinding June as she picked her way along the thin board sidewalk. She was chilled to the bone, and it was getting dark. Gripping the lantern tightly in one hand, she bunched her skirt in the other and cautiously made her way to the complex. The ground was a quagmire.

Sighing, she paused to get her footing, her attention diverted to the activity taking place around her. Mules, the biggest she'd ever seen, pulled wagons heavy-laden with tents, poles, pews, and equipment necessary to operate the massive church crusade. Once-lush, green Seattle countryside was mired in thick ruts. Someone had laid boards end to end for a makeshift walkway. Unfortunately, the rawpine planks didn't always meet in the center. Twice, June snagged the hem of her dress and almost plunged headfirst into the dank mire.

The gloomy weather only added to her growing melancholy. She'd been in Seattle two days, and El was still ill-so ill they had yet to have their promised talk.

Each day she made the trek down the hallway to his room, but each day Parker Sentell turned her away, saying, "El isn't up to visitors today. You'll have to come back tomorrow." He was polite, but June had the feeling he didn't like her.

Well, who did this Parker Sentell think he was? He protected El as if he needed protection from her-her, his wife-to-be. She'd spoken to Reverend Inman about the matter, but he only shook his head and suggested she pray that El would soon enjoy robust health again. As El's intended wife, she had a right to help. She had always been good at nursing people back to health. Parker had no right to exclude her from El's illness.

June took her eyes from the board for an instant, and her foot slipped. Hopping around on one foot and waving both arms, she did a desperate dance in an attempt to steady herself and keep from sitting down in the muck. She managed not to fall down. But one foot landed on the board; the other sank up to her ankle in gray slime. Muttering under her breath, she jerked free, but her boot remained buried.

Heaving a huge sigh, she glanced around to see who, if anyone, had witnessed the spectacle. Men whistled and called to their mule teams, but most seemed unaware of her predicament.

With a great sucking sound, she broke the mud's hold and pulled her boot free. She was drenched, chilled to the bone, and feeling more than a little foolish. It would take an hour to scrape the mud off that boot.

She continued down the walk in an uneven gait, wearing one boot and holding the other in the hand that held the lantern. The saturated planks were icy beneath her stockinged foot.

As she approached her quarters, lightning split the sky. A clap of thunder jarred the ground, and the clouds opened up and poured. She quickly ducked inside the complex, wondering if coming to Washington had been the right thing to do. She thought of Aunt Thalia's parlor in Cold Water. The old house was drafty but always comfortable. It was nothing like the strange-looking complex that was supposed to be her new home.

Scraping mud off her boot, she swallowed against the thick lump forming in her throat. She thought of her sisters; Faith was in Texas, Hope in Kentucky. They might as well have been at the ends of the earth. How long would it be before the sisters were reunited? She didn't want to think of how long. Right now, it felt like an eternity.

Lord, forgive me for fretting over material things like warm parlors and happy talks with my sisters when you've given me a new start.

Taking a deep breath, she brightened. She might be barely seventeen, but she was about to marry a preacher-or almost a preacher. Eli was only an assistant pastor, but he would be a preacher someday. And as a minister's wife, certain things would be expected of her.

She vowed to relinquish her selfish thoughts and endure whatever it took to be a loving wife and devoted helpmate to Eli. A supportive wife, wholeheartedly involved in his ministry. Shivers ran up her back just thinking about it. She, June Kallahan, a preacher's wife. And one day, the mother of Preacher Eli's children. Growing up as a preacher's kid, she had dreamt of marrying a wonderful man like Papa. Now here she was, a mail-order bride to a preacher. God had provided her with her dream.

Dropping the lantern on the tabletop, she shrugged out of the raincoat and hung it up to dry. The long braid she'd so carefully plaited earlier was now plastered to her back. Releasing the buttons on her wet dress, she stepped out of it and draped the wet garment across the back of the chair. She suddenly recalled the letter Parker Sentell had thrust through the partially opened door, stating that it had arrived that morning from Eli's mother. "Read it somewhere dry," he'd said. As if she would sit down in the middle of a downpour and read mail!

June admitted that her thoughts about Parker Sentell weren't exactly charitable, and she had to bite her tongue to remain civil whenever she saw him. If Eli considered Parker a friend, she would like to share that friendship too. But it didn't look as if it would be easy.

Rummaging through her satchel, she located her flannel gown and robe and quickly changed into the warmth of the dry nightclothes. Wrapping her wet hair in a towel, she stifled a sneeze, praying she wasn't coming down with a cold.

She removed the envelope from her dress pocket and sat down on the side of the bed.

Eli filled her thoughts, and she wondered if he thought often of her. What was his impression of her? She considered herself somewhat of a plain soul even if Sam didn't. Even more so, when compared to her sisters, Faith and Hope. She often wondered why Papa hadn't just named her Jane. Plain Jane. But instead he named her June. June, though a pretty month, seemed rather uninspired for a name. Charity-now that would have been more appropriate. Faith, Hope, and Charity. But Mama had died giving birth to her, and Papa, in blind grief, hadn't felt very charitable toward his new infant daughter. June, he declared. Her name would be June. So June it was, but charity was close to June's heart. Helping others gave her a peace she couldn't explain. It was an intricate part of her, a part she needed to fulfill in order to feel whole.

Deep down, it didn't matter that she was rather ordinary looking and without any remarkable strengths. The heavenly Father may not have seen fit to make her as independent as Faith or as beautiful as Hope, but he had blessed her with a singing voice. More than one kind soul had remarked that she had a voice superior to most, young or old. She didn't think so, but she hoped the good Lord saw fit to let her use her talent-however small-in Eli's ministry.

Slipping her fingertips along the envelope seal, she carefully opened the letter. Eli's mother had sent the letter all the way from Ohio for her son's new bride. But there was more than just a letter enclosed. Inside the pages was a neatly folded handkerchief. June admired the pale blue fine linen, crisply starched and trimmed with delicate white lace. For a moment she held the gift close to her heart, inhaling its subtle lavender fragrance.

As nice as the present was, she couldn't wait to read Mrs. Messenger's words. She quickly unfolded the pages.

Dearest June,

I hope you won't mind my taking the liberty of addressing you by yourfirst name. When Eli wrote, telling us of his plans to marry, his father and I were elated. We wish you and our son great happiness. Perhaps when you're settled, we can come and visit you.

When Eli wrote last year, informing us of the accident, we were gravely concerned. Eli explained how a tree had fallen on him and crushed his leg. Parker Sentell, Eli's boss and very good friend, took Eli under his care and secured for him the services of the finest surgeon to be found in Seattle. After the operation and much time spent recuperating, Eli says his limp is only slightly noticeable.

We were very grateful to the Lord and Parker Sentell. And, of course, to Reverend Inman. I'm certain you can imagine our joy when Eli wrote that he had accepted the Lord's call to preach the gospel. It was the answer to our prayers. To have a son in the ministry! And now, to know he has chosen a w fie who shares his love for the Lord. Well, it doesn't get any better! Except, of course, when the grandchildren start to arrive.

I hope you like the enclosed wedding gift. It was Eli's paternal great grandmother's, and was given to me on my wedding day. I want you to have it.

I pray many happy and prosperous years embrace your marriage. We are anxiously waiting to hearfrom you.

Love,

Ruth and Paul Messenger

June sat for a moment, holding the letter. Ruth Messenger's thoughtfulness already made her feel a welcomed part of the family.

Folding the letter back into the envelope, June placed the handkerchief inside her satchel with the rest of her wedding attire. She would carry it on top of her Bible as soon as Eli was well enough for the ceremony.

Kneeling beside the small cot, she prayed for Eli's health to be restored, for his family, and for their forthcoming marriage.

Slipping beneath the cool sheets, she fell asleep to the sound of rain hammering the roof, content in the belief that morning would bring Eli's first real signs of recovery.