Promise me tomorrow (34 page)

"That just about describes her," Chase said with a shake of his head.

"Come now, Chase," Clayton teased him. "You wouldn't want to be bored."

The younger man smiled wryly. "I don't know. Every once in a while, I'd welcome a little boredom."

Clayton could only laugh.

***

"Your father told me you look well."

"Did he?" Rusty said with a smile. "I'm glad."

"You must be enjoying the work."

"Oh, Mother, Quintin is such a sweet little guy. He stares at your face when you read to him. He's more interested in the person holding him than in the book. The eyes he turned on his father tonight were enough to melt my heart."

"I can tell. I wish you could have heard him show us the room. He took the job so seriously. Am I right that things seem to be better between Mr. McCandles and his son?"

"Yes. Mr. McCandles is trying so hard." Rusty paused. "We had a huge fight. I was out of line, but he was very forgiving."

"But you think it helped."

"Yes, I do. Wrong as I was to attack him, he wasn't aware of what he'd been doing. As I said, he's forgiven me for the way I spoke to him, but he's also taken things to heart and is trying."

"You must be so pleased."

"Yes, I am," Rusty said softly as snatches from the day came back to her. Quintin was special, but then so was Mr. McCandles. Rusty was more drawn to him all the time. Even when she was angry with him, she somehow wanted to protect and help him. Anyone meeting him would not see him as a man in need of help, but Rusty wouldn't have agreed.

"You've fallen quiet."

"Just thinking."

"About Mr. McCandles?"

"Yes."

"Is your heart being affected in all of this, Rusty?"

"I think it is, Mother. I'm not sure how I feel about that."

"Shall I tell you how I feel?"

"Oh, please do."

"I don't think you should fight this, Rusty, even if it means letting yourself fall in love."

"Oh, Mother."

"Come here, dear." Jackie needed her oldest child closer. "Come so I can see you."

They had been side by side on the davenport, but Rusty moved until Jackie could put an arm around her. Jackie spoke again once she'd pulled Rusty close and cradled her cheek with her free hand.

"Did I frighten you?"

"No, but it's a little shocking when someone so perfectly speaks my thoughts."

"What did I say?"

"That I'm afraid to let myself fall in love with him. Its the truth, Mother."

"Why does it frighten you?"

"Because I'm afraid he won't love me in return. But worse than that, I'm still afraid he might not be a good father. I couldn't stand that."

Jackie pulled Rusty's head down close and rested her cheek on the top of her head.
What do I say Father? I cant promise her that Mr. McCandles will love her, although I suspect he already does. I can't tell her just to throw caution to the wind; she must think clearly on this. They haven't known each other very long. Help me to be wise and careful with my words. I fell for Clayton so swiftly, but it was years before we had each other. Help me, Lord, and help Rusty to know her heart but never to forget Yours.

"We are never to worry, Rusty," Jackie said softly. "That's a much easier thing to say than to practice, but God is firm on this subject: Worry is a sin. If you are fretting about your feelings or whether he'll be a good father, you must confess your lack of trust. God has so much better for us than we ever do for ourselves, and His yoke and burden are light. Did that make sense?"

"Perfect sense. Thank you." Rusty paused again. "How would you feel about Mr. McCandles in the family, Mother?"

"If you love him, and you both want to build your relationship and family in Christ, I think it would be wonderful."

Rusty sighed, a huge load lifting from her heart. For some reason she needed her mothers permission; and not just her permission, but her approval with God's standard behind it. She knew if she kept this in mind she could not go wrong.

"You're feeling better already, aren't you?"

"Yes. I needed to hear those words."

Jackie pressed a kiss to her brow. "I'm glad, but I must be honest with you and tell you that your hairpins are putting a hole in my cheek."

Rusty sat up with a surprised laugh. Jackie joined her. By the time the men gained the drawing room, the women were both flushed with giggles that were aided by fatigue. They knew it was time to head to bed when neither of them could explain why they were laughing. Clayton and Chase let them go. Rusty walked with her mother upstairs where they talked a little more, but both women were sound asleep when the men finally called it a day and came upstairs themselves.

***

Saturday morning started with the O'Briens' arrival. All the McCandles and Taggarts were gathered in the breakfast room when Mrs. Whitley told Chase privately that he had visitors. Just seconds later he was hugging Sammy and putting his finger up to silence the children. With a sparkle of delight in his
eye,
Chase led the way under the arch, into the hallway, and finally into the breakfast room.

Jackie's head turned at the sound. She could tell that several people had entered the breakfast room, but for a moment no one spoke. There was a small giggle, but Jackie didn't think it was Quintin. This only added to her curiosity.

"Hello, Jackie."

Jackie's face split with a huge smile. "Hello, Sammy. I've had a feeling Clayton's been up to something. Are you all here?"

"Yes, we are," Paddy answered as they surged en masse to hug and greet one another. What followed was a scene of complete confusion punctuated with laughter and giggles. Quintin met everyone, a smile on his face, but then sought Rusty's lap as a refuge. It wasn't often that he saw this many people in Briarly, let alone in the breakfast room.

"Renny." From her corner of the table, Jackie was almost through "seeing" everyone. She spoke with her hands on the little boy's shoulders. "You're so tall. I wouldn't have known you. '

"Aunt Jackie," he said seriously, "we studied about Louis Braille in school. Do you know who he is?"

"I certainly do. I've shown you my Bible and some of my books, haven't I?"

He nodded before remembering. "Yes, I've seen them. He made those, didn't he?"

"Well, he made the method of the raised dots so I could read them."

"He was blind too," Renny informed her.

Jackie smiled and hugged him again. "Thank you for telling me, Renny. I'm so glad you studied him, and I'm so thankful for the method he developed." She sat back in her seat a little and just listened to the words around her.

"I'm so pleased that you got my letter," Clayton was saying. "How long can you stay?"

"Until tomorrow night."

"Good!" Chase declared, echoing everyone's thoughts.

It was just the start of a full day of laughter and fun. The group had a complete tour of the house, stable, and grounds, and then loaded into every carriage that Chase owned and went for a long drive and outing. They missed lunch, but came back in the late afternoon and had an early dinner. Then they played games until it was time to turn in.

More laughter ensued at bedtime as everyone found a place to sleep. Rusty gave her bed up for Paddy and Sammy and bunked in with Quintin. Her cousins took Mrs. Harding's room.

In the morning there was a line for the bathroom, but at last they were all ready and even arrived for church on time. It was not a huge congregation or church building, so it wasn't hard to take up an entire pew. Pastor Radke was relaxed and fun, and Rusty felt her heart swell with pleasure when he asked Chase to introduce his guests.

'This is Clayton and Jackie Taggart, Katherine's parents. They live in Boulder. And Mrs. Taggarts sister and family. It's been awhile since they've been here, so I'll refresh your memory. This is Padriac, Samantha, Eileen, Nolan, and Renny O'Brien from Manitou."

"You're with the orphanage that Chase supports, is that right, Mr. O'Brien?"

"That's right."

"We pray for you often. Would you mind giving us a rundown on the work there?"

"I'd be happy to," Paddy agreed and took the next few minutes to do so. He gave the present number of children at the orphanage, as well as the present number of staff, and then closed with these words. "Please know that God is honoring your prayers on our behalf. Some children Rusty placed just this spring, a boy and a girl, visited us with their new parents last week. They're doing so well with their new family that the parents are interested in two more children. God is doing great and mighty things, and we thank you for remembering us."

"Thank you, Mr. O'Brien," Pastor Radke said sincerely. And with that the service was underway. As with most Sundays, it was a special time of praise and nourishment from God's Word for Rusty, but her mind was also on something else, or rather someone else, this morning. She finally had a moment with that someone when they were all back at Briarly for lunch.

"I didn't know," Rusty whispered so softly to Chase that he had to bend down. Everyone else had gone inside, but Rusty lingered without in order to have a moment alone with her employer. Chase didn't mind. She looked beautiful in the new dress her mother had had made for her, the very one they had chosen the fabric for on Rusty's last trip home.

"I didn't know you were a benefactor at Fountain Creek." She was still speaking very softly, and Chase stayed bent over to hear her, his
eyes
on her face.

"Does that bother you?" His voice was quiet too.

"No, I just didn't know." She was afraid she might become emotional, but she still had to say it. "You make it possible for those children to have a home, and well, all this time," she shook her head. "I just didn't know." Rusty ran out of words. For a moment she looked into his face and then suddenly shifted just enough to tenderly kiss his cheek. Chase's brows rose in question, and Rusty dropped her eyes.

"I think you're wonderful," she told him by way of explanation and began to turn toward the house. Chase stopped her with a hand to her arm.

"Thank you," he said when she let her eyes meet his.

Seeing how pleased he was, Rusty was glad she'd said something. She smiled a lavender blaze at him, but Chase didn't detain her any longer. However, he thought about the kiss off and on for the rest of the day.

***

"Its been a wonderful weekend," Clayton said to Rusty as they took a stroll around the property.

"Yes, it has. You and Mother can surprise me anytime you like."

Clayton only smiled.

"What train are you taking?"

"The ten o'clock. We'll get in a little later, but it's nice not having to rush around this morning."

"Please hug my sisters and brother for me."

"I'll do that. They'll have a hundred questions for me."

"Well, tell them I'm doing fine and that they all could write a little more often."

Clayton laughed. "I'll tell them, but Clare for one is so busy at Mrs. Woods, you probably won't hear a thing."

"She told me in her last
brief
letter that she loves it, and that Mrs. Wood said to tell me hello."

"She does love it, and Mrs. Wood is a gem. Clare hasn't heard from anyone overseas yet, but her enthusiasm mounts daily."

"I'm so happy for her."

"She'll be happy for you too," Clayton said calmly.

"Over what?"

Clay only glanced at the house and then back at his daughter, who looked content.

"I'm leading with my head, Papa, just like you told me, so don't give Clare any news yet."

Clayton smiled at her. It was foolish to take Rusty Taggart for granted. Her innocent eyes and impetuous nature made her seem overly protected and naive, but beneath that head of dark red curls was a hardworking mind.

"I will tell Clare and your other siblings that you're doing fine, because it's very true."

Rusty's smile was warm. "Thank you, Papa."

With Clayton's arm around her shoulder, the two strolled back toward the house to join Jackie, Chase, and Quintin in the breakfast room. Rusty felt no sadness when Briarly's coach took them away an hour later. It had been a wonderful weekend, and her heart was so thankful that there wasn't room for tears.

38

Two weekends later, near the middle of July, Rusty returned to Manitou for Tibby's wedding, and her absence proved to be an enlightening time for everyone. Chase thoroughly enjoyed his time with Quintin and found his heart did erratic things when the little boy sought him out over Mrs. Whitley, or when he climbed into his lap and called him Papa, as Rusty had begun to refer to him. But still Chase recognized that something was missing, or rather, someone.

Chase had not wanted to pursue things with Rusty too swiftly after the Taggarts had gone home, but the way he missed Rusty on this weekend could not be ignored. He thought about her constantly, and when Quintin asked about her almost as much, he knew it was time to speak with her. Easier to think about than act upon. Just exactly what was he going to say to her—I want to court you? How do you feel about me? Have you ever pictured yourself married to a widower with a child? All those things seemed so contrived. He lost a great deal of sleep over the weekend, but to his surprise the decision was partially taken out of his hands.

Rustys train had brought her back to Briarly on Sunday night, so Monday morning brought business as usual. Whit had made an early run into town and kindly stopped at the post office on the way back. Normally he would have placed the mail on Chase's desk, but he spotted him in the breakfast room and delivered his correspondence there. On the top of the pile was a personal letter.

"She's not coming back." The words were out of Chases mouth before he remembered that he was not in his office. He lowered the paper to find both Rusty and Quintin staring at him.

"I beg your pardon?" Rusty said politely.

"She's—" Chase began, but then his eyes darted to Quintin and he shut his mouth. Rusty assumed that he wished to speak to her privately.