Promise me tomorrow (18 page)

"I have no wish to intrude on your time," he said sincerely.

"You won't," she graciously told him. "My sister would love to meet you. Rusty and I were concerned only about your own plans, but now that we know you are free, we'd be honored if you would join us."

Chase inclined his head. "Thank you, Mrs. Taggart." He then assisted the older woman into the coach. As soon as she was settled, he turned back to Rusty.

"I'm sorry I upset you."

Rusty bit her lip. She hated being so transparent.

"I'm the one who needs to apologize. It's really none of my business what you do."

Her comment bothered Chase. He honestly cared what she thought but knew she would find it odd if he told her that.

"I think that women are more sensitive to the needs of children than men are," he said rather slowly. "I didn't find you intrusive or bossy. Indeed, I strongly value your advice, especially where Quintin is concerned."

His words did a great deal for her heart. Chase saw the pleasure in Rusty's eyes and felt an unexplainable contentment at having pleased her. He sent a smile in her direction, offered her a hand, and helped her onto the seat in the buggy. She thanked him quietly, but he didn't answer. Even after he joined them and picked up the reins, he could still feel Rusty's small hand within his own.

***

"For heaven's sake, Rusty," Patsy Langley, Rusty's cousin, said, her young eyes huge. "He's gorgeous!" "Who? Mr. McCandles?" "Of course! Who else could I mean?"

Rusty laughed. She and Patsy were in the kitchen where Rusty was getting a glass of water. Fifteen-year-old Patsy had not joined her siblings as they went to work at the church cleanup day because she was just getting over a spring cold.

"What did Clare and Dana say when they saw him?"

"About the same, I guess."

"You act like you haven't even noticed," the younger girl accused.

Rusty stared at her. She
had
noticed that Chase McCandles was nice-looking. She'd even told him so. But she couldn't look at him without seeing Quintin, and that put a damper on her view. How could a man be so charming and caring of others, and yet not know his son existed?

"Rusty, are you all right?"

"Yes," she mentally shook her head. Now was not the time to examine her feelings for the handsome Chase McCandles. "I was just thinking," she added but did not explain. She got her drink and then returned to the living room, her cousin in tow. The other adults were still talking.

Rusty and Patsy sat down in the midst of a story they never found tiring.

"And Clayton had no idea that you lived here?" Chase asked.

"That's right," Jackie clarified. "Robert and Eddie had brought me here from Georgetown, and we all thought that Clayton was in Denver."

"He had been," Eddie inserted, "until just before we saw him. With no children, Robert and I were not involved in school activities. We had heard that a new schoolteacher had been hired but never heard the name."

"But it turned out to be Clayton?"

"Yes." Jackie picked up the story again, her voice soft with remembrance. "I had lied to him in a letter and told him I'd fallen for someone else. You can imagine how surprised he was to see me. Not only was I not involved with someone else, I was blind. Robert hired him to tutor me, and the fun really began."

It didn't take more than a heartbeat for Chase to see that it hadn't been fun at all.

"Actually," Eddie said, "it was fun as soon as Jackie came to Christ and let Clayton get close to her. He never stopped loving her, not in all that time did his feelings fade."

Chase smiled. Even he could recognize a romantic story when he heard one. And he had seen the end of the story as well. He'd watched Clayton and Jackie Taggart together. They were clearly as much in love today as they had been all those years ago.

"Thank you for telling me," Chase said graciously.

"I think Eddie should tell her story," Jackie said with a smile. "Our Mr. Langley, a most successful banker, actually got a wrong address and lost his heart in the process."

Eddie laughed in delight.

"Now this sounds interesting," Chase coaxed. "I must admit you have piqued my curiosity."

"It's not as complicated as Clayton and Jackie's story, but it was fun. I was having tea at my aunt's, and this handsome man knocked on the door. He had the wrong address. We looked at each other and, well, let's just say he never made his appointment. "

Patsy beamed at her mother, and Eddie smiled tenderly at her. "Now, 23 years and five children later ..." She let the sentence hang.

Chase turned to Patsy as well. She was a lovely young woman with eyes as blue as her mother's.

"Are you the youngest?"

"No, that would be Bethany."

"And she is—" Chase asked.

"Thirteen," Patsy supplied. "Bobby is the oldest, and he just turned 20, then Marty is 18, and Christian is 17."

"Three boys and two girls. Sounds like fun."

"It usually is, but Chris is a horrible tease, and Beth falls for his jokes every time."

"And you never do," Eddie said quietly.

Patsy dimpled. "Only some of the time."

"Chris is a tease," Rusty confirmed, "but then so is Bobby. Remember when he had us convinced that he'd seen a ghost, and that it kept showing up outside each night?"

"Yes." Patsy was indignant. "And it turned out to be Les! My hair stood on end for a week."

Rusty laughed. "Clare and Dana were sad that they'd missed the whole charade, but I don't think they knew how eerie he looked with that white paint on his face."

"I can't remember how you saw him, Rusty," Jackie said to her daughter.

"He scared me out of my wits when he snuck back into the house while I was in the kitchen getting a snack."

"Oh, that's right. Your father tried to scold him but was laughing too hard."

Listening to them banter back and forth, Chase thought how special it would be to have siblings and cousins near. He did have a few cousins, but they were all in the Midwest. And now for the first time he wondered what family Quintin would have. Chase had no plans to remarry and no siblings. Without forethought, his eyes swung to Rusty. The successful entrepreneur suddenly knew that if he could meet a woman like Katherine Taggart, he would be strongly tempted to marry again.

Eddie chose that moment to ask Chase a question. His train of thought was interrupted, so he was never given a chance to ask himself why he thought he needed a woman like Rusty and not Rusty herself.

"Does he have a toy train?" Rusty asked.

"I don't know."

Rusty bit her tongue. If Mr. McCandles said "I don't know" one more time, Rusty thought she might become violent. They had left the Langleys more than an hour ago, and even taken Jackie home before attempting to shop, but they were no further along in their endeavor. Rusty was becoming more frustrated by the moment. She knew Chase was not involved in his son's life, and she knew they shared little, but unreasonable as it was, she still expected him to know what toys the child had.

"Did
you
notice if he had a train?" Chase asked Rusty.

She shook her head. "We spent most of the day out-of-doors and then reading his books. I did notice that he doesn't have any little stuffed animals—you know, something to cuddle at night."

Rusty didn't go on as she might because Chase was already shaking his head.

"My wife didn't want Quintin to become attached to toys. She thought that people were more important. I have given Mrs. Harding instructions about switching Quintin's toys often."

Rusty could have wept but told herself not to break down. Her emotions hovered right under the surface, but she knew she must keep calm and think clearly on this shopping trip.

"I understand your wife's viewpoint, Mr. McCandles," Rusty replied kindly, for indeed this belief was not new to her. "I think that in many cases that approach can be wise, but Quintin's mother is gone, and you travel often. I can't help but wonder if a little cuddle toy isn't just what he needs."

Chase's eyes had been on the items on the shelves, but they now swung to Rusty. Carla had been adamant on the subject, but of course that was when Quintin was very young. What would she say now? What type of mother would she be now?

"Have I said something out of line, Mr. McCandles?"

"No." Barely aware of the way she looked right back at him, he realized how odd his behavior must seem. "No, you haven't. I was just thinking."

Chase reached for a tiny figure of a bear. It was very cute but made of porcelain. While he weighed it in his hands, Rusty handed him a stuffed dog. He looked up at her in surprise.

"It's no fun sleeping with a bear that feels like a lump of glass," she explained. "The dog is cuddly."

Chase couldn't stop his smile. She was being fierce again.

She was doing an admirable job hiding it, but the bantam rooster in her was coming out. Chase replaced the bear and held the dog in both hands.

"This doesn't really look like a dog."

"Tell me about the last gift you took to Quintin," Rusty requested softly.

Chase shrugged. "I don't think I ever have."

"In that case, the last thing on his mind will be whether this toy really looks like a dog." That was when Rusty spotted another plush toy—a bear. His face was very grumpy, but he was cute nonetheless. She handed it to Chase.

"I think this one might be better. He'll remind Quintin of his father."

Chase looked down into the scowling face and tried not to smile. She was being downright insulting, but he still wanted to laugh. And the bear
was
cute.

"I'll take the bear," he said at last, his voice dry as he gave as good as he got. "And not because of my sour moods. It will remind me of how many times I got frowned at during this shopping trip."

Now it was Rusty's turn to hide a smile. She stayed in the aisle with the toys while Chase turned for the front counter. There were a few more items of interest to her. She looked them over, but her heart was not on the toys. She meandered to the end of the row, and from there she could see Chase as he paid the proprietor.

If her cousin and sisters were any indication, Chase Mc-Candles should be the man of her dreams. Rusty stood watching him, her heart in a muddle. He was leaving Monday, and she would probably never see him again. She couldn't tell right now if she was pleased about that or not. No one heard her soft sigh. By the time Chase joined her, she managed to school her features and cover the myriad emotions inside.

21

"How was your meeting with Robert?"

"It went very well, thank you. There's a piece of land I'm looking at," Chase explained to Clayton after dinner that night. "I have houses in mind right now, but I'm open to other suggestions. Your brother-in-law knows the man who owns the tract and thinks he'll be interested in selling."

"Are you thinking of moving there yourself?"

"No, and it's strictly speculation at this point. To tell you the truth, I'm in no hurry. I've also met very briefly with a land agent in town. He's looking into the matter for me."

"But Robert was open to financing this for you?"

Chase hesitated but then explained. "Actually, I wasn't seeing Robert about financing. I'd heard that he owned the land. He's the one who put me in touch with the agent."

"That's great," Clayton said sincerely. "I hope it will bring you into our area more often."

"I could live with that. Boulder is a beautiful city."

"I quite agree with you." Clayton glanced toward the window and commented on how dark it was getting. He reached for the lantern that sat next to them on the kitchen table and turned it higher.

"I think Jackie is in the living room. Shall we join her?"

"Certainly."

They moved to that room to find it dark. There was a tiny bit of light coming from the window in the front door, but it was quite dim. Jackie's lone figure could be made out on the sofa.

"How come you're sitting here in the dark?" Clayton asked as soon as he set the lantern down. Both men watched her smile and set her book aside.

"Is it dark already? I can't say that I noticed."

Clayton dropped a kiss onto her head before lighting the lamps and stoking the fire. He joined her on the sofa, and Chase took the rocking chair.

"Where are the kids?"

"I think Rusty and Clare are talking in Clares room, and Dana said something about a report on India."

"What about Les?"

"Didn't he tell us he was headed to Pastor's house?"

"Oh, that's right."

"Did you need him?"

"No, but I wish he could hear this. Chase and I were just talking about the land he's interested in."

"Where is the land, Mr. McCandles?" Jackie asked.

Chase explained the location and his present plans. Jackie and Clayton had many more questions, and Chase, having clearly thought it all out, had an answer for nearly every one.

***

"I've never felt like this in my life, Rusty," her sister Clare admitted to her. "I want to get out and see things. We go to Denver every year, and of course we visit Grandmother and Grandfather in Georgetown, but I just feel so empty inside." Tears filled the younger girl's eyes. "Even Manitou would be a change of pace. I'm kind of jealous of you."

"What exactly are you looking for, Clare?" Rusty asked

kindly.

"Just people, I guess. I'm studying my Bible right now more than ever, and I think the Lord has really helped me with my tongue and attitude, and that has helped me get closer to more people at school this year. Mother and Papa have both noticed, but the more I study, the more I long for something else. We're studying India right now in geography, and I want to go there. I want to touch the sand and feel the heat of the day. I want to see the people and experience their life."

"Maybe that's what you're supposed to do, Clare," Rusty said simply. "Maybe that's where God wants you. If you're sinning in your discontentment, then you know that can't be from God, but maybe this restlessness is to help you let go of home because you're not supposed to stay here forever."