The Way of Grace (Miller's Creek Novels) (51 page)

She
squinted at the light as she turned
on the lamp
and reached for the phone. The display read ‘unknown.’

“Hello?”

No answer.

Grac
e
dropped the phone to the bed as if it were hot.
Sh
e’d purchased the cell phone to escape the
anonymous calls, but obviously whoever
wanted
to scare her
now
had her number.
Her brain whizzed through the possibilities. Finally she decided that Elena must have found the card she’d given Consuela. Without hesitation, she turned off the phone and crawled back into bed.

T
he next morning
Grace entered the kitchen, dressed and ready for the day, curious about the new woman in her father’s life, but also dreading the news she had to deliver.
She’d promised Jason she would be in
Bellview
in time to work that afternoon.

Papa and
Maria
stood
at
the stove, both busy with preparations for breakfast. The mouth-watering smell of
chorizo
wafted from a sizzling skillet.

“Good morning.”

The other two turned at her greeting
. Papa laid down his spatula and made his
way to her, engulfing her in an
embrace.
What had come over the man who a few short weeks ago had refused to even make eye contact with her?
As he pulled away, Grace once more marveled at the
miraculous change
.

“Good morning,
la
hija
. You sle
p
t
well
,
si
?”

She
chose not to answer. Instead, sh
e smiled shyly
at the woman whisking the eggs.

“
Buenos
dias
,
Graciela
.
I hope you were able to get back to sleep after we woke you.
” She placed the bowl on the counter,
and
w
iped her hands on her apron.
“You look very pretty.”

As
Papa and Maria
turned back to the food
, a
sudden rush of
comfort
flowed through her
. In spite of the recent chain of disasters, God’s grace was still at work. How happy Papa seemed, and all due to this woman she barely knew.

A few minutes later, t
hey
sat down to dine
on breakfast burritos wrapped in fresh homemade tortillas.
At first the
conversation seemed forced and a
wkward
,
and a
n u
ncomfortable silence developed.

Papa cleared h
is throat and laid down his burrito
. “Graciela, I want you to know that although I love Maria very much, it doesn’t mean I love your Mama any less.” He paused, his frown bearing testimony to deep thought
and careful attention to his words
. “
I didn’t do this on a whim.
Maria
and
I’ve known each other
for many years. We grew up next door to one another and were childhood sweethearts before she went away to sch
ool
. I know it must seem
to you
that I’ve gone
loco
, but
when we saw each other
, it was like we
were
young again.
Like it was meant to be.
I hope you understand.”

Grace
nodded,
glad
he’d shared the story. It
somehow
helped to know that he hadn’t just gone to Mexico for the purpose of finding a woman. “Thank you
for explaining
, Papa. I can tell
you and Maria are very happy
, and I’m elated for you both.”

“I hope we haven’t made you late for work.” Papa said, joy still inscribed on his face.

The perfect opportunity to share her news had fallen into her lap, but it still wouldn’t be easy
. “Actually I need to talk with you about that. I’ve taken a job in
Bellview
that starts today. I need to leave
pretty soon to allow myself time to unpack. If it’s okay, I’d like to
use the old
pickup
until I can afford to buy a car.”

A
heavy cloud
descended on Papa’s face
as she spoke, and
he looked ready to explode.

Maria
noticed the approaching storm and
laid a hand
over his
.
“A new job.
H
ow exciting.
Isn’t it wonderful, Juan?
”
She sent Grace an
unde
rstanding smile
.

“You are n
o longer working in Morganville?
”
Papa’s face and voice held
familiar gruffness.

She shook her head.
“I
t didn’t work out
, Papa
. I
don’t really have
time to explain
it
now, but
I promise to write you a letter once I
get settled into my new place
.”

“So y
ou have a place to live?”

“Yes,
and I’
ll be fine. Please do
n’t worry. This is for the best, and
I’ll be back in a few weeks for Christmas.”

He still looked doubtful.

“Graciela is right
.
”
Maria
patted his hand.
“
She’s a grown woman now with her own
life to lead.
This is a good thing.”

Papa gazed into his new wife’s eyes for a long minute before h
e finally nodded. “Yes, it is good
.” He
turned his gaze to Grace
with a sad smile
. “Go, with my blessing,
la
hija
,
but I would like that letter sooner rather than later.”

After sending them both an appreciative smile, Grace
r
ose to her feet and carried her plate
to the sink.
Papa moved
up
beside her
, wrapped an arm around her shoulder, and
d
rew
her
in
close.
“I hope you know how much I love you, Graciela.” Unshed tears glistened in his eyes.

Grace
planted a kiss on
his weathered cheek.
“
And
I love you, Papa.”

A half hour later, she backed onto the dirt road
and
wave
d at
Papa and Maria
one last time
.
The old house seemed somehow brighter with
the fresh start of the couple standing nearby, the
future ripe with possibility. And now, with the mistakes from the past
behind her,
God in His great mercy had given her the o
pportunity for a do-over
as well
. M
ore tha
n anything
, she
need
ed
to get
it right
this time around
.

21

A
bell jangled above
her
head as Grac
e entered the small bakery in
downtown
Bellview
early Wednesday morning. Filled to capacity, the
room
quieted temporarily as
eyes turned her way.

Heat flooded her cheeks. Though the place was quaint and rustic, she
longed for the familiar faces at
Granny’s Kitchen.
But
this was her new home
now
, and the only way to get to know these people was to join them.
It was time to
put the past behind her.
She released a slow breath.
T
he aroma of fresh-baked cinnamon rolls
float
ed around her head and
drew
her closer to the counter
.

“Can I help you, miss?” The middle-aged woman
, her red apron dotted with flour
,
drummed her fingers against the counter, obviously running a tad shy in the patience department
.

Grace grimac
ed
at
the prices. “I’ll have a cinnamon roll and water, please.” She counted out the money while the lady wrapped the pastry and rang it up on
an
antique cash register.

Her hands full, she turned to find a place to sit, only to realize that every table was taken. Close to walking out and traipsing back to her apartment, an elderly man near the door sent a smile and motioned her over to t
he table he shared with
his wife.

He stood as she
approached. “We’d love
to have you join us.” He offered his hand as she
set
her
plate and glass
on the table. “I’m Jake, and this is my wife Julia.”

“So nice
to meet you both.”
Grace
smile
d and pulled out a ladder-back chair which instantly
reminded her of Mama Beth.

“Are you new
in town?” Julia, her salt-and-pepper hair clipped close to her head
, smiled broadly
.

“Yes.
My third day here.
I’m working for Mr. Thomas and leasi
ng the small apartment above his
office.”

The couple exchanged a knowing look
in the noisy café
.

Grace forked a piece of
gooey roll in her mouth, savoring the cinnamon
and cream cheese frosting
. A cold glass of milk would make
this
even better. She sipped her water. “So have you
two
lived here long?”

“Going on seven years.”
Jake’s white bushy eyebrows arc
hed slightly. “I’m the pastor at
Grac
e Fellowship
down the road
.”

She brightened. “Is that the cute little country church I passed on the outskirts of town?”

“That’s the one
. We’d
be tickled pink
to have you join us
Sunday
.”

A smile blossomed in her heart and moved to her face.
Only here a few
days,
and already she had a place to go to church.
Though the thought brought joy, it also brought a bit of apprehension.
Bellview
was smaller than Miller’s Creek. What if no one welcomed her?
“I’ll be there
.”

Though c
onversation
was a bit uncomfortable, Grace forced herself to make small talk
. Both Jake and Julia had a way of making her feel like a long-time friend, and by the time she finished her breakfast, she felt less lonely.

Before leaving
for work, she jotted the time
s
for Bible study and worship on her napkin, and then
hurried out the door and down the street.

In less than a minute, she entered the
office
of the Thomas
Law Firm, a dusty old building
sorely
in need of
a good dusting and several gallons of paint.
A sneeze erupted
.
It always took a good half hour for her
nose
to
grow desensitized to
the
reek
of stale cigars.

Mr. Thomas stepped
from
his office as she put her purse away, a stogie
clamped between his teeth
. “Y
ou finish that research I gave you yesterday?”

“Yes sir.” She
handed him the file folder from her desk
.