Autumn Dreams (25 page)

Dan stared at Andy’s letter for a long time. Five hundred and twenty-five missionaries, including Andy and Muriel, at about twenty thousand dollars each a year, give or take. Over ten million a year in funds passed through GTI, and that didn’t count the salaries of the home office workers or special funds like those for vehicles and home leave and emergency illnesses.

That was a lot of money to mismanage, a lot of administrative challenges to meet.

Dan shrugged. It wasn’t as if he had lots to do, though he had promised Cass he’d help paint the front porch as long as he didn’t have to do the spindles. She’d just smiled, and he’d known he’d do the blasted spindles too. What mattered here was that GTI and his brother needed help.

Andy’s response was immediate.

Dan spent the rest of the afternoon thinking about GTI. Having done due diligence on over five hundred companies in the course of his career, he knew what made a company sound. He went to GTI’s web page and studied it, especially their mission statement. He made lists of questions for Adam, lists of things he needed to think through himself. When he finally checked his watch, he was surprised to find it was time for dinner.

He hurried downstairs, anxious to see Cass. He wanted to tell her about the opportunity to help GTI. It seemed to him that it was just the type of thing she’d be taken with. He was right.

“Oh, Dan, how wonderful that you can help here!” She blessed him with one of her glorious smiles. “Just think. You’ll be helping with the spread of the gospel around the world. How special is that? If the Harmon Group were still going full-bore, you wouldn’t have the time to give.”

If the Harmon Group were still going
, Dan thought,
I wouldn’t be eating dinner with you
.

Jenn looked from Dan to Cass and back, and it was obvious that she was not impressed with Dan’s opportunity. She looked at Jared. She took a couple of bites of her barbeque sandwich, then stood. “Call me when it’s time to do the dishes. I’ll be in my room. The company here is giving me a stomachache.” Grabbing her
plate and her drink, she clomped upstairs.

Jared watched her go, shaking his head. “I sure hope she grows up someday.”

Dan very much agreed, thinking that she was like the hurricane that the weather service said was churning its way up the East Coast, all fury and flash,
Sturm und Drang
. He shoved a forkful of potato salad into his mouth to keep from saying so.

Cass placed a hand on Jared’s as he reached for the bowl of fresh fruit. “Taking Paulie along wasn’t the wisest thing you’ve ever done,” she said gently. “You can’t make her like him.”

“At least Paulie’s honorable.” The depth of his concern for his sister was clear to see, and Dan, already impressed with Jared’s maturity, liked the boy even more. “I wouldn’t have to worry about her with him. But Derrick—”

Cass released Jared’s hand and patted it a couple of times. “I wish she liked Paulie too. Well, quite frankly, I wish she didn’t like anyone. It would simplify all our lives. But if she’s got to like anyone, I’d prefer Paulie over Derrick any day, too.”

Since they were all in agreement on that issue, there seemed nothing more to say. They ate in silence for a minute. Then Cass spoke.

“Poor Dan. He’s got this wonderful opportunity to serve the Lord, and what do we do? Get sidetracked. Tell us more about it, okay?”

“Yeah,” Jared said, looking glad for the change of topic. “How come they got in trouble in the first place?”

“I don’t know yet. That’s part of what I’ll have to find out.” Dan eyed the platter of sloppy joes, debating with himself about taking another.

“Well, if money’s a problem, they have to cut expenses somehow, don’t they?” Jared took another roll full of hamburger barbeque, his third if Dan was counting correctly. “Isn’t the best way to let people go? That’s what they did at Dad’s company a couple of years ago. They cut 10 percent of the workers across the board. Dad had to decide who in his department went. It almost gave him an ulcer.”

Dan watched the boy devour his sandwich in four bites. Amazing. Had he taken time to chew, or did he just swallow it whole, sort of like a dog did? “Most people think you make cuts in
a situation like GTI’s, but I disagree. It’s too easy to lose good workers that way. What you really need to do is increase income.”

“But if they knew how to do that, they wouldn’t be in this problem.” Cass poured herself another glass of iced tea.

Dan held his glass out, and she filled it for him. He smiled his thanks. “My guess is that their problems aren’t really financial, though that’s what presents itself as obvious. The problems are more likely relational and psychological. By that I mean that they may have to get rid of some programs—and maybe some people—that they are attached to but are no longer doing the job they were designed or hired to do. Conversely, they may have to initiate some programs they’ve been loathe to establish. They may also have to hire some new highly qualified people.”

“The old hire one, fire one,” Cass said.

Dan looked at her in surprise.

“I might have been an English major, but I have a business minor. I’ve also taken several courses on running a B&B.” She smiled sweetly and took a forkful of fruit salad. “I am not a dummy.”

“No, you’re anything but.” Dan started to reach for the last sandwich and sighed as Jared beat him to it. That’s what he got for hesitating.

When Cass called Jenn to come do the dishes, the girl came down with obvious reluctance, the great burden of unfair labor practices draped over her slim and undeserving shoulders. She did the dishes as noisily as she could manage.

Dan winced at every slap and slam of china and cutlery. The crash of the pans rattled the windows. “Are girls always like this when they’re miffed?” he asked Cass
sotto voce
as the two of them lingered over their coffee.

“Just some girls. We happen to be living with a master.”

Dan shook his head. Guys were so straightforward. If he’d had a gripe with Andy when they were young, he either pounded his brother into the ground or had it out verbally. “I never knew girls were so good at wringing every last dram of drama out of a situation.”

“You poor sheltered man.” Cass laughed softly at him.

“I bet you weren’t like that when you were a kid.” She was too straightforward to have ever been so. He knew it to his bones.

“I don’t think I was. Neither my mother nor the brothers would have tolerated it. Besides, I’m a pleaser. Always have been.”

He looked at her. She sure pleased him. “And she isn’t?” He jerked his head toward the sink and Jenn as a particularly loud crash of pots sounded.

“Well, she doesn’t like to purposely make people mad at her, but if things don’t go as she likes, she’s—” Cass searched for the right word.

“A pain in the neck?”

“Dan!” Cass said, but she was laughing.

Jenn turned to glare at them with a how-dare-you-be-happy-when-I’m-not stare.

Jared loped down the stairs and into the kitchen, a basketball tucked under his arm. “Hey, Dan, want to play some one-on-one?” He bounced the ball, making the whole room shudder. Jenn’s glare intensified, something Dan found astounding. He wouldn’t have thought she could look any angrier.

He looked at Cass. Much as he wanted the exercise and the challenge of beating the kid, he hated to abandon Cass to the irate Jenn. “Want to play too?”

She smiled. “Go ahead. I’ve got some things to plan for next week.”

“You’re sure?”

“Yes.”

He nodded and turned to Jared. With a quick swipe, he stole the ball midbounce. He was just petty enough to enjoy the boy’s startled look and Cass’s admiring smile. At least he thought it was admiring. “Let’s play, guy. I feel the need to whup someone.”

“Yeah, right. Like you could.” Jared grabbed the ball back and was out the door before Dan stood up.

Jared was good. He was quick on his feet, had a good eye, and had perfected a three-point shot that invariably slid through the hoop with barely a ripple of the net. When the kid learned not to whoop so loudly after each score, he’d be the consummate player.

“Do you play on your school team?” Dan asked, puffing more than he liked from chasing the kid all over the apron of Cass’s drive.

Jared nodded as he feinted and drove for the basket. Only an inglorious lunge on Dan’s part knocked the ball off its trajectory.

“Jared,” Cass called from the back door. “Jeannie’s on the phone for you.”

The boy arched his eyebrows and grinned. Dan laughed as he retrieved the ball, dribbling it automatically.

“I’ll only be a couple of minutes,” Jared said as he passed Cass and went into the kitchen. He pulled the door closed behind him, leaving Cass on the outside.

She shook her head. “They’re good for at least a half hour.”

Dan agreed. “They’ve got last night and today to discuss.”

Cass walked to the driveway and watched as he bounced the ball from hand to hand. After a minute, her hand lashed out and the ball was hers. She dribbled for the basket and jumped for as pretty a layup as he’d ever seen. She caught the ball as it dropped through the net, turned, and smiled at him in blatant challenge.

At first Dan checked himself as he played, not wanting to hurt her, but it soon became apparent that she had no similar qualms. She bumped him, elbowed him, and blocked him like she was one of the boys. His height and weight didn’t intimidate her in the least.

“Four brothers,” she said after throwing her hip and knocking him off-stride and out of bounds. The ball went flying. She reclaimed it with a grin and was at the basket before he was even back on the court.

From then on he played as if he were facing one of the guys. They both worked up a sweat, and Dan realized he hadn’t had so much fun playing basketball in years. She wasn’t as quick as Jared—twenty-two years was bound to slow someone—but she made up for any lack in speed with skill and smarts. If he didn’t stay on his toes, she’d beat him, something he had no doubt she’d love.

He scored, and she took the ball, dribbled to the back of the court, and began her move. She drove straight for him, feinted at the last second, and broke to her left. The first two times she’d tried that move, he fell for it. This time he was ready for her. She hit him hard, bounced off his chest, and started to go down. He grabbed for her, snaking an arm about her waist. She in turn clutched at his sweatshirt.

They ended up facing each other, mere inches apart. Somehow his second arm ended up around her, and he held her
in a loose embrace. She felt good in his arms, substantial but definitely feminine. If he tightened his grip, he wouldn’t have to worry about snapping her spine. If he kissed her, he wouldn’t give himself a stiff back from bending low. She was just the right height, just the right size. Just the right person.

She looked up, startled to find herself held so close. He wasn’t certain what she saw in his face, but her surprise vanished, replaced by a soft little smile that made his heart swell.

In the spotlight mounted on the corner of the garage, he could see little tendrils of hair, loosened from her ponytail by their vigorous game, curling around her lovely face. Her nose was red from the nip in the air, and her upper lip was moist with perspiration. Her cheeks were rosy, and those wonderful eyes had a slightly dreamy look. Her breathing was accelerated. Just from the game? He knew his own heart was beating fast, and it wasn’t all from exertion. Not by a long shot.

“You are so beautiful,” he whispered.

She sighed, and the hands gripping his sweatshirt uncurled and slid to his shoulders. His arms wrapped more tightly about her. He leaned down and brushed her lips, his touch tentative. He hovered a moment, testing her reaction. He thought she leaned even closer. She definitely did not pull away.

Smiling inside, he kissed her again, a true kiss this time, one that stopped time, at least for him. At first she was hesitant, not pulling back, but not fully participating. Then suddenly her arms were around his neck and she kissed him back with an enthusiasm that matched his own.

When they finally pulled apart to take a much needed breath, he kept his arms tight so she wouldn’t escape. When had he felt like this, kissing a woman, holding a woman? Had he ever reacted so strongly?

She laid her cheek against the hollow between his neck and shoulder, snuggled in, and took a few deep breaths. He smiled into her hair. He’d like nothing better than to kiss her again and again, but he knew he mustn’t. It would be too much too quickly. Also, they were literally standing in the spotlight with Jenn and Jared mere feet away. He knew being a good example to them was important to Cass. And most important, as a Christian, he knew there had to be limits to physical expressions of affection, even the
relatively safe and totally delightful action of kissing.

The back door slammed open, and Cass jumped like she’d been hit with a cattle prod. She pulled from him, eyes wide, looking like she was guilty of a terrible crime. He had to smile. All Jared had to do was look at his aunt, and he’d have a very good idea what she had been doing and with whom.

“I’m back,” Jared announced as he grabbed the basketball, forgotten and lying at the edge of the drive. He dribbled to the basket and shot without looking at them. “Miss me?”

Cass almost ran to the door. “I-I’ll just get back to my work.”

Dan watched her go, and just before she pulled the back door shut behind her, she turned and looked at him. She gave a slight smile, then ducked her head and was gone.