Wanda E. Brunstetter (4 page)

Bev moaned. This kind of news was not what she needed. The rent on her small two-bedroomapartment was already sixty dollars a month, and she didn’t think she could afford another five. With the addition of bus fare to and from work every day, and the fact that her wages at Twice Loved wouldn’t be as much as what she had made at Bethlehem Steel, she couldn’t afford the rent increase.

Maybe I should look for an apartment closer to town so I can walk to work. That would save money, and perhaps I can find something cheaper to rent
.

Bev dismissed that thought as quickly as it came. She had heard that apartments in the heart of the city were in demand, and with so many men and women returning from the war, it would be difficult to find one that wasn’t already rented, let alone cheaper.

Bev massaged her pulsating forehead. Just when she thought the Lord was watching out for them, another problem had come along. Ever since Fred died, it seemed as if her whole world were out of control. Bev attended church on Sunday mornings, read her Bible regularly, and prayed every day. Yet her faith was beginning to waver.

Blinking back tears, she closed her eyes and prayed, “Lord, show me what to do about the increase in my rent. If there’s something closer to town, please point the way.”

For the last couple of hours, Dan had been sitting at his desk going over some paperwork. Trying to run two businesses by himself had put him behind in the photography studio. But that was about to change. Now that he’d hired Bev Winters to run Twice Loved, things would get back to normal. At least he hoped they would. What if Bev didn’t work out? He didn’t know much about the woman other than she had worked as a bookkeeper, had a young daughter, and was widowed. He hadn’t thought to ask for a résumé or any references. He’d based his decision to hire Bev on her need for a job. That and the fact that she said she was a Christian.

A beautiful one at that
, Dan thought, tapping his pencil along the edge of the desk. It wasn’t just Bev’s shiny dark hair and luminous blue eyes that attracted him either. There was something about her demeanor that reminded him of Darcy.

He rapped the side of his head with the pencil. “Get a grip on yourself. You hired the lady to run Twice Loved, not so you could become romantically involved.”

the phone rang, and he grabbed for it, glad for The interruption. “Fisher’s Photography. May I help you?”

“Hello, Dan. This is Pete Mackey, with
Family Life Magazine
. We talked at Bethlehem Steel a few weeks ago, remember?”

Dan’s gaze went to the ceiling. “I hope you’re not calling about that article you’re doing on grief, because, as I told you before, I’m not interested in being interviewed.”

“I’d hoped if you had a few weeks to think it over that you might have changed your mind.”

“Nope. Sorry, Pete.”

“Here’s the phone number where I can be reached, just in case.”

Dan studied a set of negatives on his desk as Pete rattled off his number. There was no point in writing it down because he had no intention of doing that interview.

“I appreciate your time,” Pete said. “Please call if you ever want to talk.”

“Okay, thanks. Good-bye, Pete.”

Dan had no more than hung up the phone when he heard a knock on the door of his studio.
Wonder who it could be? I don’t have any appointments scheduled for the rest of the day
.

When Dan opened the door, he discovered Leona Howard, holding a casserole dish wrapped in a towel with a paper sack balanced on top.

“Hi, Danny,” she said, offering him a pleasant smile. “Since you’ve been too busy lately to have dinner at my place, I decided to bring a meal over to you this evening. It’s Chicken Noodle Supreme.”

Leona wore a maroon-colored, knee-length skirt with a single-breasted jacket that had wide lapels and padded shoulders. It looked like something a woman might wear when she went out to dinner—but not to drop off a casserole for a neighbor.

“I’m working right now,” Dan said as she swept into the room, her fragrant perfume leaving a trail of roses behind.

“Surely you’re ready for a break. I’ll be disappointed if you don’t try some of my yummy casserole.” Leona nodded at the paper sack. “I even brought some dishes, silverware, and napkins, so all you need to provide is a place for me to set the table.”

Dan was sure the woman wasn’t going to take no for an answer, so he removed the negatives and paperwork from his desk and slipped them into a folder. “You can put the food here.” He pulled out his desk chair, grabbed another one for Leona, and sat down.

She quickly set out the dishes, opened the lid of the casserole dish, and served them both a hefty amount. “Oh dear, I forgot to bring something to drink,” she said with a frown. “Do you have anything cold on hand?”

He reached into the bottom drawer of his desk and grabbed a thermos. “It’s coffee, so it’s not cold.”

She smiled. “That will be fine.”

“Mind if I pray before we eat?”

She shrugged. “If it makes you feel better. I wasn’t planning to poison you, Danny.”

He bit back a chuckle. That thought had crossed his mind.

After the prayer, Dan poked his fork into the gooey mess she’d put on his plate and took a bite. Ugh! The stuff tasted worse than it looked. He grabbed his thermos, twisted the lid, and gulped down some coffee.

Leona’s lower lip protruded. “You don’t like it?”

Searching for words that wouldn’t be a lie, Dan mumbled, “It’s…uh…different.” He set the thermos lid down and wiped his mouth on the cloth napkin she had provided. “I’m really not hungry.”

Leona pushed her chair aside, and it nearly toppled over. “I can tell you’d rather not eat it.”

Dan opened his mouth to reassure her, but Leona gathered her things so quickly that he barely had the presence of mind to say he was sorry.

“I’ll try something different next time,” she said as he followed her to the door. “Something I know you’ll like.”

D
an took a swig of coffee and glanced at the clock on the far wall. Bev Winters should be here any minute and would be bringing her daughter along. He moved across the room and put the O
PEN
sign in the window. It was almost nine o’clock. Better to have the store ready for business on time, even if his new employee wasn’t here yet.

I wonder if her bus was late, or maybe she had trouble getting her daughter out of bed. Sure hope I did the right thing in hiring her
.

Dan thought about his favorite verses of scripture—2 Corinthians 1:3–4. It reminded him that God is our Comforter, and because He comforts in all our troubles, we should comfort those who have trouble as well. Through God’s Word and the godly counsel of his pastor, Dan had been comforted many times since Darcy’s death. It was only right that he should offer comfort to Bev, who was probably hurting from the loss of her husband and also her job. He’d known yesterday that he needed to give her a chance. If hiring her to work at Twice Loved could help them both during their time of need, then so much the better.

Dan’s gaze came to rest on the clock again. It was now ten minutes after nine. Bev was late. Maybe she’d changed her mind about the job and wasn’t coming.

The bell above the front door jingled, and his thoughts were halted. Bev entered the store holding a metal lunch pail in one hand and a brown pocketbook in the other. A young girl stood at her side, clutching the same doll He’d sold Bev yesterday afternoon.

“I’m sorry we’re late.” Bev patted the sides of her windblown hair and smoothed the wrinkles in her knee-length, navy-blue dress, covered by a short black jacket. “The bus was late, and there was more traffic this morning than I’ve seen in a long time.”

“It’s okay,” Dan said with a nod. “There haven’t been any customers yet.” He smiled at the little girl who stood beside Bev. She was a beautiful child—curly black hair like her mother’s, and the same brilliant blue eyes. She wore a beige-colored tweed coat with a pair of darkgreen overalls with patched knees peeking out from underneath. “So, this must be Amy.”

“Yes.” Bev’s generous smile seemed to light up the room.

Darcy used to smile like that
, Dan noted.

“Amy, this is Mr. Fisher, and he owns this store where I’ll be working.”

The child smiled shyly and glanced around the shop. “I like it here.”

“Me, too.” Dan’s throat constricted. He and Darcy had wanted children, but that wasn’t to be. Did Bev Winters know how fortunate she was?

“Why don’t you find a book to read?” Bev said to her daughter. “Mommy needs to begin working now.”

Dan pointed across the room. “There’s a table in the corner where you can sit if you want to read or work on a puzzle. Feel free to play with any of the toys that are in baskets sitting on the floor.”

Amy didn’t have to be asked twice. She slipped out of her coat and handed it to her mother. Then she sprinted across the room, grabbed a fat teddy bear from a wicker basket, and helped herself to a book from the bookcase. A few seconds later, she sat at the table wearing a contented grin.

Dan turned his attention back to Bev. “Should we take a look at some of the toys that need to be fixed?”

Her eyes widened. “Uh…about the toys…”

“What about them?”

“Yesterday you mentioned a broken train, and I thought I should let you know that I’m not the least bit mechanical.”

He chuckled and led her over to the desk. “I was only kidding. The train will have to be sold as is. ”

A look of relief flooded her face. “There’s an elderly man at my church who collects old trains. I could speak to him and see if he might be able to look at the broken train.”

“That would be great.”

Bev set her pocketbook and lunch pail on the desk, removed her jacket, and draped it and Amy’s coat over the back of the wooden chair. “Which toys did you want me to see about fixing?”

“First, I’d like to tell you something.”

“What’s that?”

You’re beautiful
. Dan shook his head, hoping to clear his ridiculous thoughts. “Uh—the dress You’re wearing might not be practical here at the store.”

She crossed her arms. “Too dressy?”

“It’s not that.” Dan paused. How could he put this tactfully? “Sometimes you’ll have to get down on the floor, in order to sort through the boxes of toys that come in. You’ll also be working with glue and other repair items. It might be better if you wear slacks to work from now on.”

She blinked. “You wouldn’t mind?”

He shook his head.

“I was expected to wear a dress at Bethlehem Steel, so I figured—”

“Wear whatever you’re comfortable in here, Bev. I trust you to use good judgment.”

“Thank you, Mr. Fisher.”

“Dan. Please call me Dan.”

Bev’s cheeks turned pink as something indefinable passed between them, and she looked quickly away. “Guess you’d better show me what to do, so I can get to work.”

He glanced toward the room where his studio was located. “That makes two of us.”

Bev’s stomach growled as her gaze went to the clock on the wall across from her. It was almost noon, and she couldn’t believe how quickly the morning had passed. She’d mended two doll dresses, stitched a stuffed kitten’s eyes in place, and waited on several customers. In all that time, Amy had hardly made a peep. She’d kept herself occupied with various toys, books, and puzzles. Dan excused himself soon after showing Bev what needed to be done, and he’d been in his photography studio ever since.