Livvie's Song (43 page)

“Um….” Only one thing came to mind. The dusky room grew silent, and they slowly turned to face each other. “Will, I…I need to tell you something.”

“Tell me anything.” He took a step closer, and she did the same.

“This morning, I awoke around two thirty with the most wondrous sense of peace. God spoke to me, Will. He assured me of His love and faithfulness. There were areas in which I needed to seek His forgiveness, and so I did, and He forgave me.”

“Livvie, that’s wonderful.”

“I’ve learned some things about my past, Will—some disturbing things about how my parents’ house burned. There were some letters. Oh, dear; it’s a long story. Marva Dulane’s father—”

He nodded. “I already know.”

Livvie gazed into his azure eyes with wonderment. “You know?”

“Marva told me. The night we were searching for you, Quinn drove me out to her house. I went there on a hunch, and my hunch proved correct. I know about her father, your father, her mother, the letters…all of it. Marva slipped clear off her rocker, Liv. She told me things she didn’t even know she was saying. That’s how I learned for sure that Clem had taken you. She’s living in a precarious place right now, somewhere between reality and whimsy. I don’t know if she’ll ever come all the way back.”

“I told Margie I want to visit her sometime. I need to tell her I’ve forgiven her.”

He took her hands in his. “I think that could be arranged, provided I go with you.”

Tender warmth emanated from his touch, and her love for him surged in devastating swells. But she didn’t know how to tell him; she couldn’t quite make the words skip from her heart to her mouth. “Margie says you’re an amazing man,” she said instead.

He chuckled. “Is that so?”

“She says I shouldn’t let you get away.”

“She said that, did she?” With his thumbs, he rubbed the backs of her hands, causing a ripple of chills to run straight up her arms. “And what do you say about that?”

“I say, my sister is extremely intuitive.”

“Is that all you can say? That your sister is intuitive?” He released one of her hands and ran a finger beneath her jaw and up her chin. “Tell me what you’re feeling, Olivia Beckman. I want to hear the words.”

Touching his lips with her index finger, she lifted her gaze to search every inch of his magnificent face. “I love you, Will Taylor,” she whispered.

The way he closed his eyes and heaved a loud sigh, the way he licked his lips and then bit down on the lower one, made her heart do a crazy, wild dance. She freed her other hand, took his face between her palms, and repeated the words.

“Livvie, I love you,” he whispered back, swooping down for a kiss that started softly and tenderly but quickly grew in intensity and made her utterly breathless. When they separated, he ran all ten fingers through her hair, then rested his hands on her shoulders. “I told Howard how I feel about you. He approves.”

She felt her eyebrows shoot upward. “He approves?” Her heart skipped so many beats, she thought she might swoon.

“Will you marry me, Livvie Beckman? I would consider it an honor.”

She stood on tiptoe to peck his cheek. “On one condition, Will Taylor.”

He kissed the curve of her neck. “Anything.”

“That you take over the bookkeeping. I’m a lousy accountant.”

“I think I could do that. Are you still the boss?”

“Of course. Some things will never change,” she teased with a smile. He leaned down and kissed her cheek. “Serenade me, would you?” she asked before he kissed the other. “I love the way you play that harp.”

He took out the instrument and played a few chords, but a scratch at the screen door put a stop to the lovely music and made them turn their gazes to the front of the restaurant. A lop-eared dog stared back at them.

“Reggie!” Livvie exclaimed. “What’s he doing here?”

“Coming to check on his girl, I guess. I’m going to have to tell him to lay off. You’re my girl now.”

Hand in hand, they walked to the front, and Will pushed the screen door open. “Does Coot know where you are, you silly hound?” As if he owned the place, Reggie sauntered past them, turned several circles in the middle of the room, and lay down.

A breeze blew in through the window, carrying with it the scent of the Wabash, where, Livvie knew, fish jumped, ducks paddled, and soaring birds chirped, creating a lovely river song. And wild daisies along the riverbank dipped their yellow heads and thanked their Maker.

My dear readers,

Who doesn’t think the most wonderful aromas originate in Mom’s kitchen? Memories of my precious mother, who went to be with Jesus at the age of ninety-six on January 28, 2010, flood my mind whenever I think about walking through the front door of my beloved parents’ home. Often, I’d find Mom standing at the stove or kitchen counter, frilly apron tied around her waist, whipping up some concoction or another. If it wasn’t bread, pie, or cake, it was a supper casserole, meat loaf, chicken, pasta, or some kind of yummy salad. For me, besides being a place of safety, warmth, and unconditional love, home meant mouthwatering smells emanating from our small, cozy kitchen.

While writing
Livvie’s Song
, I simply couldn’t stop thinking about my loving mother and some of her finest recipes. For that reason, I am quite certain Will Taylor used many of them while he mixed ingredients in Livvie’s Kitchen—with my permission, of course!

When I finished writing the book, I couldn’t kick the nagging notion that it didn’t feel complete. Then, it came to me like a splash of glorious sunlight: Mom’s recipes! They needed to live on through my wonderful readers! Therefore, it is with great pleasure and joy that I share a handful of them with you. Remember Clara Gillen’s scrumptious baked chicken? Mom’s recipe. And the meat loaf? Straight from Mom’s recipe box. And how about Helen Brent’s pineapple pork chops? Again, from Mom’s collection. I decided to let Fred of Fred’s Place borrow one of my mom’s recipes, too—beef stew.

May your kitchen always be a gathering place full of God’s love and warmth, and, of course, delectable aromas that help create beautiful, lifelong memories.

Blessings and bon appétit!

—Shar

***

Pineapple Pork Chops

Serves as many as needed.

Ingredients:

Pork chops (your favorite cut)

Salt

Worcestershire sauce

Onion, thinly sliced

Fresh or canned pineapple slices (round)

Brown sugar

Ketchup

Orange juice

1. Preheat oven to 350º F.
   

2. Arrange pork chops in a large baking dish coated with cooking spray. Lightly salt each chop and then sprinkle with a few drops of Worcestershire sauce. Lay a thin onion slice on each one, topped with a slice of pineapple. On top of that, put a heaping teaspoon of brown sugar and a tablespoon of ketchup. Finally, douse the pork chops with orange juice (2/3 cup per pan).
   

3. Bake, uncovered, for approximately one hour or until tender.
   

***

Baked Chicken

Serves 6 to 8, depending on the size of the chicken breasts.

Ingredients:

Chicken breasts

½ cup (1 stick) butter, melted

2 cups bread crumbs

¾ cup grated Parmesan cheese

¼ cup chopped fresh parsley

1 clove garlic, minced

1 teaspoon salt

¼ teaspoon pepper

1. Preheat oven to 350º F.
   

2. Mix together bread crumbs, Parmesan cheese, parsley, garlic, salt, and pepper.
   

3. Melt butter. Dip chicken breasts in butter, then dredge in bread crumb mixture. Place in a lightly greased baking pan and bake, uncovered, for 1½ hours or until done.
   

***

Meat Loaf

Serves 6 to 8.

Ingredients:

1½ pounds ground beef

½ cup uncooked oatmeal

¾ cup cracker crumbs

¼ teaspoon dried thyme

¼ teaspoon parsley flakes

1 cup tomato juice

2 tablespoons ketchup

1 egg, lightly beaten

1/3 cup diced onion

1. Preheat oven to 350º F.
   

2. Mix all of the above ingredients and place in a greased loaf pan.
   

3. Bake, uncovered, for one hour.
   

***

Baked Beef Stew

Serves 6 to 8.

Ingredients:

2 pounds beef stew meat

12 small pearl onions

1 cup chopped celery

2 cups diced potatoes

6 carrots, peeled and chopped

1 slice white bread, cubed

1 (12-ounce) can tomato sauce

1 cup water

1½ teaspoons salt

¼ teaspoon pepper

1. Preheat oven to 250º F.
   

2. Combine all ingredients in a large casserole dish.
   

3. Cover and bake for five hours.
   

***

Whole Wheat Bread

This is a very old recipe (on a brown and weathered note card), so some of the terminology may be a bit unfamiliar to us modern-day cooks. I remember Mom baking this bread. Oh, how my mouth watered for that very first warm slice!

Ingredients:

8 cups whole wheat flour, sifted

1 cake compressed wheat

2 tablespoons sugar, divided

1 tablespoon salt

3¼ cups lukewarm water

2 tablespoons shortening

1 cake yeast

1. Dissolve 1 cake yeast in ¼ cup lukewarm water with 1 teaspoon sugar. Allow to stand 5 minutes, then add the balance of the sugar, water, and salt. In large bowl, knead the flour (one cup at a time), wheat, water, and yeast mixture to a stiff dough. Knead until smooth, then knead in the shortening.
   

2. Allow to rise until dough doubles in bulk. Knead again, place towel over dough, and let rise.
   

3. Grease two loaf pans. When dough has risen, split and place in loaf pans. Let rise till doubled in bulk.
   

4. Preheat oven to 450º F.
   

5. Bake at 450º F for 15 minutes, then lower oven temperature to 350º and bake for an additional 35 minutes.
   

6. Remove and place pans on cooling rack.
   

7. Allow to cool ten minutes before removing loaves from pans to cool completely on the rack.
   

***

Broccoli Casserole

Serves 6.

Ingredients:

1 cup water

½ teaspoon salt

1 cup instant rice

¼ cup butter

¼ cup chopped onion

¼ cup chopped celery

1 can cream of mushroom soup

1 can cream of celery soup

1 (16-ounce) package frozen broccoli, thawed

½ cup diced American cheese

1. Preheat oven to 350º F.
   

2. In a medium saucepan, bring water and salt to a boil. Add rice and remove from heat. Let rest five minutes.
   

3. In a small skillet, sauté onion and celery until tender.
   

4. In large mixing bowl, combine rice, celery and onion mixture, and the remaining ingredients. Stir well and then pour into a greased 1½ quart casserole dish.
   

5. Bake for 1 hour.
   

***

Chocolate Mayonnaise Cake

Makes one 9 x 13-inch sheet cake.

Ingredients:

3 cups all-purpose flour

1½ cups sugar

2 teaspoons baking soda

Dash of salt

6 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder

1½ cups mayonnaise

1½ cups lukewarm water

1½ teaspoons vanilla

1. Preheat oven to 350º F.
   

2. In a large bowl, whisk together the first five dry ingredients till blended, then add the mayonnaise, water, and vanilla. Beat till smooth.
   

3. Grease and lightly flour the bottom and sides of a 9 x 13-inch baking pan.
   

4. Bake for 25 minutes or until toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
   

***

Mama’s Best-Ever Chocolate Frosting

Makes enough to frost one 9 x 13-inch sheet cake.

Ingredients:

1 cup sugar

3 tablespoons cornstarch

1½ ounces bittersweet chocolate (or ¼ cup unsweetened
cocoa powder)

Dash of salt

1 cup water

3 tablespoons butter

1 teaspoon vanilla

1. Prepare frosting while the cake bakes. In a small saucepan over medium heat, mix sugar, cornstarch, chocolate or cocoa, salt, and water, stirring constantly, till mixture bubbles and thickens.
   

2. Remove from heat and stir in butter and vanilla, blending thoroughly.
   

3. Spread over the cake while still warm.
   

Born and raised in west Michigan, Sharlene MacLaren attended Spring Arbor University. Upon graduating with an education degree, she traveled internationally for a year with a small singing ensemble, then came home and married one of her childhood friends. Together they raised two lovely daughters. Now happily retired after teaching elementary school for thirty-one years, “Shar” enjoys reading, writing, singing in the church choir and worship teams, traveling, and spending time with her husband, children, and precious grandchildren.

A Christian for over forty years and a lover of the English language, Shar has always enjoyed dabbling in writing—poetry, fiction, various essays, and freelance work for periodicals and newspapers. She remembers well the short stories she wrote in high school and watched circulate from girl to girl during government and civics classes. “Psst,” someone would whisper from two rows over, always when the teacher’s back was to the class, “pass me the next page.”

Shar is an occasional speaker for her local MOPS (Mothers of Preschoolers) organization; is involved in KIDS’ HOPE USA, a mentoring program for at-risk children; counsels young women in the Apples of Gold Program; and is active in two weekly Bible studies. She and her husband, Cecil, live in Spring Lake, Michigan, with Mocha, their lazy, fat cat.

Through Every Storm was Shar’s first novel to be published by Whitaker House, and in 2007, the American Christian Fiction Writers (ACFW) named it a finalist for Book of the Year. The acclaimed Little Hickman Creek series consists of Loving Liza Jane; Sarah, My Beloved (a finalist in the 2008 Inspirational Reader’s Choice Contest, sponsored by the Romance Writers of America); and Courting Emma. Shar’s last series, the popular Daughters of Jacob Kane, comprises Hannah Grace, Maggie Rose, and Abbie Ann. Livvie’s Song is the first in her latest series, River of Hope.