Mountain Sanctuary (15 page)

How could Adam turn down that innocent plea. “I’ll be right there, Kyle.”

He did a U-turn then headed back toward the inn. He’d fix the problem, then he’d be on his way home. After all, he was so very good at fixing things.

Stella stood in the middle of the garden, tears falling softly down her face. She couldn’t get the sprinklers to turn off and the leftover wedding cake and food was ruined, right along with the once-white tablecloths and the ribbons of pink satin the rental place had provided. She’d have to pay to have it all cleaned or replaced.

But she didn’t care. She was crying because she had just made the biggest mistake of her life. She’d let the man she loved go, without even fighting to keep him.

And all because of her resentment toward her mother.

Wally came running out to tug her into his arms. “Honey, you’re getting all wet.”

“I don’t care,” Stella said. “Daddy, I’m so sorry.”

“For what, sweetheart?”

“For never understanding.” She wiped at her eyes. “I understand now. I saw the painting. I read the letters.”

“You’re not making any sense, sugar. C’mon into the house and let’s get you dry.”

“I can’t,” Stella said, wishing she could tell Adam how sorry she was and how much she loved him. But she’d sent Adam away. He’d tried to be noble and do the right thing, but she’d accused him of just the opposite.

She’d seen it all right there in the painting. There embedded in the flowers and leaves just below the surprised morning glory had been a message from her mother.

“To Stella, love Mommy.”

Those precious words were hidden there, curled around blossoms and entwined with vines. And to back them up, letters in the old trunk, stacked neatly and bound by a blue ribbon. Letters to Stella that stretched over years and years, telling of her mother’s struggle with mental illness and how she’d had to seek help, telling of Estelle’s fear that she couldn’t be the best mother to her little girl. So…she’d let Stella go, left her to the stable, hardworking father who could take care of her. Estelle had died all alone and away from her family, because she was too afraid of being a burden.

Things hoped for. Things not seen.

Her mother had left her a message, going on faith that Stella would know Estelle loved her.

Why couldn’t Stella have gone on faith, with her mother and with Adam? And why wouldn’t these aggravating sprinklers cut off?

He found her standing there, all wet and shaking her head, her long hair hanging down to her waist, her pretty blue dress ruined and clinging to her in soaked tufts of watery silk.

“Stella?”

She turned to stare at him, then blinked. Then she started crying again. “Adam, you came back.”

“The sprinklers,” he said, walking through shooting water to get to her. “Kyle called me.”

Stella’s sobs grew louder while Adam grew wetter. She shook her head. “Great. Another man with honorable intentions around here.”

“You need to get out of this water,” Adam said as he went to the main line for the sprinklers and tried to turn the stuck valve. With a good wrench and a little grunting, he finally got the thing shut off. The cascading water went from an all-out hissing and swishing to a gentle spew and then finally, to tiny little trickles around the yard.

Adam waited until the water died down, then went back to stand in front of Stella. “It’s over. I fixed it.”

She looked up at him, watering dripping off the crape myrtle trees all around her. She had several tiny pink blossoms scattered like a veil in her hair. She gulped back a sob and said, “I love you, Adam. Can you fix that?”

Adam looked into her eyes and saw the truth shining there. “You do?”

She bobbed her head. “I do. I’m sorry I got so angry about the painting. It’s the nicest birthday gift I could ever have.”

He pulled her into his arms. “You saw the picture?”

“I saw,” she said. “She left me a message.”

“She sure did. And she left you the story of her life, too, Stella. Did you find the letters?”

She pulled back to nod. “Yes. I read them and now I understand so much more about her. There was always so much more to her than we could see.”

“I’m glad you see now,” he told her, pulling her back into his arms. “I’m so glad for you.”

“Will you forgive me, then?”

“Only if you’ll forgive me.”

She smiled, then wiped at her eyes. “I think we have a deal, Callahan.”

Then he backed away, his hand moving down the tear streaks on her cheek. “I have to go home, though.”

She looked confused, but he lifted her chin with his fingers. “I have to make peace with my family, Stella, so that when I bring my bride to meet them, they won’t turn me away.”

She started crying again. “You want to marry me?”

“I sure do, and soon.” Then he tugged her back into his arms. “But before I leave to fix this one last thing, you owe me something.”

“What’s that?”

“A kiss.” With that, Adam held her head in his hands and leaned down to touch his lips to hers. He savored the sweetness of her mouth, the salt of her tears and the smile he felt coming from inside her soul.

Then they heard giggling and both turned to find Wally and Kyle at the kitchen window, watching them.

“Are y’all spying on us?” Stella asked, her hand in Adam’s as they strolled through the wet grass toward the house.

“Yes, ma’am,” Kyle said, grinning from ear to ear. Then he glanced around to his grandpa. “We saved y’all some wedding cake, before we turned on the sprinklers and tightened the spigot, I mean.”

Adam grinned, then put his arm around Stella’s shoulder. Giving her a look that told her all that was inside his heart, he said, “Wedding cake. That sure sounds nice.”

Stella smiled up at him. “Yes, it does.”

With that, he lifted her up in his arms and spun her around and around, laughing as he kissed her again.

And off near the honeysuckle bushes, the gray doves lifted their voices to coo their gentle approval before they spread their graceful wings to fly away home.

ISBN: 978-1-4268-1436-5

MOUNTAIN SANCTUARY

Copyright © 2008 by Lenora H. Nazworth

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