Sabrina (Big Sky Dreams 2) (14 page)

"Just resting my feet," Crystal said, thinking he was too good- looking and knew it.

"Do you see much of Bri Matthews?" Bret asked next, trying to appear nonchalant. Crystal's smile turned a little mean before she answered.

"You're out of your class there, Bret. She's a nice girl."

Bret's eyes grew cold. He did not like the word no, and he didn't like to be told he wasn't good enough. With a move he couldn't quite pull off, Bret shrugged and shifted in his chair, glancing around the room in disinterest.

"I just noticed a scratch on her face and wondered what happened."

"Oh that." Crystal took the bait and didn't even know she'd been caught. "Zeke was drunk and giving Eliza the once over. Bri came at him, and he hit her too."

The anger that flooded through Bret was a surprise to him. Women like Sabrina Matthews were not for hitting, and Bret thought men like Zeke were worthless even when they weren't drunk.

"What was Bri doing there?"

"I guess she heard the fight and went in to check."

Crystal finished her drink then and pushed to her feet. She

119 halfway hoped that Bret would want a little more of her time, but she was suddenly weary of men talking to her about Sabrina. Without saying goodbye, Crystal went to the bar. A man had come in that she hadn't seen before. Maybe he would want to talk about her and no one else.

"Over here!" Clancy called the moment she spotted Sabrina. "Over here, Bri."

Sabrina wasted no time. She had made her bean stew again, and a loaf of bread, And arrived at the town's Fourth of July celebration hoping to sit with someone she knew. Tables were lined up along the creek, and the meal was potluck.

"How are you?" Sabrina asked when Clancy rushed to hug her legs. She bent enough to hug the little girl in return.

"Mama made cake."

"Did you help?"

"Only with licking."

Sabrina laughed as she asked, "What kind of cake?"

"Spice. It's Hannah's favorite."

"Where is Hannah?"

"She's with Heidi." A sudden frown appeared. "I don't have anyone."

"Well, that tells you where we stand, Bri," Jessie put in, more amused than offended by her daughter's words. "Here, give those to me and I'll take them to the food tables."

"What shall we do?" Sabrina asked, having handed off her dishes and taken a seat at Jessie's table. Clancy took a seat beside her, and for a moment the little girl only smiled at her.

"You look pretty," Clancy suddenly said.

"Well, thank you, Clancy. I like your dress too."

"Mama sent for it."

"That must have been fun."

120 "Oh, look!" Clancy jumped to her feet. "It's Mrs. Vick, with Nellie."

Sabrina saw that Miranda was headed her way. She had a picnic basket in hand and Nellie on her free arm.

"Is there room here, Bri?" she asked.

"I think so," Sabrina said, not sure who else was joining Jessie. "We've got Rylan with us too," Miranda added, and Sabrina was surprised to feel her heart skip a beat.

"Hello, Miranda," Jessie greeted as she returned. "Going to join us?"

"If you have room."

"Certainly. Where is Rylan?"

"He and Chas are on their way."

Jessie looked at Sabrina and said, "For some reason Rylan and I always end up at the same table. It's become tradition."

Sabrina didn't have time to reply. Miranda had spread a blanket near the table and put Nellie in the middle of it. With a baby to play with, Clancy soon had plenty to do, but she also wanted Sabrina on the blanket with them. Watching both the baby and little girl play, Sabrina completely missed the slow way the men joined the group.

"She took it well," Rylan said, having told Chas all the details. "She listened to everything I had to say. She argued a little, but when that fell flat, she still stayed and listened to me."

"And you think you got through?" Chas asked. "She's going to be hurt if she keeps this up."

"I won't swear that she'll never find herself in another scrape, but I don't think she'll repeat her actions of Saturday night. And she asked me some very thoughtful questions about Colossians. I can tell she's taking a lot in."

Chas stopped. They were close to the crowds of townspeople now, and he did not want to be overheard.

te

121 "And how well are you thinking about all of this?"

"I can honestly say I don't know anyone else like her. I'm still very drawn, but I think I'm keeping my heart in check."

Chas might have had something else to say, but Mayor Lake was trying to get everyone's attention. It was time to eat.

"Aren't you going to join the lifting competition, Rylan?" Jessie asked when plates were nearly empty.

"I was thinking I would pass."

"Why is that?" Sabrina asked.

"My work at the livery puts me at an unfair advantage."

Everyone took this at face value, and the topic was dropped with Rylan, but Franklin wanted his father to compete. Chas put up with some good-hearted ribbing for the next few minutes, bringing laughter all around.

Sabrina was reaching for her glass when Rylan leaned a little closer from the chair next to hers with a question.

"Do you know who Bret Toben is?"

"From the Boar's Head Saloon, yes."

"Do you have much contact with him?"

"A little. He was in the alley one day when I was looking for an apartment. It was that first day I saw you."

"I remember."

"Why do you ask?"

"He just keeps looking over here, and I don't think he's interested in Jessie."

Sabrina thought about this and remembered their last conversation.

"He saw the scratch on my face, and it seemed to bother him."
He's not alone,
Rylan thought, but instead he asked, "Where do you see him?"

"At Jessie's, but I got the impression that he'd given up."

122 "On what?"

"Trying to see me."

Before Rylan could respond to this, Mayor Lake was standing on a chair and announcing that the races and competitions were about to begin.

Rylan did not get out of the lifting competition as he'd hoped, but Sabrina missed the whole thing. She told Miranda she would sit with Nellie, who had fallen asleep on the blanket. Part of her wished she hadn't volunteered, and another part of her knew it was for the best.

You can't have feelings for your pastor, Sabrina,
she told herself.
You're all wrong for him. He can't have a woman with a past like yours, and he's just being kind. He cares and checks with you only because he's your pastor. It's his job.

"Is she still out?" Jessie asked, having come back by the table to find her glass.

"Yes. I almost envy her."

"Oh, you don't want to sleep today," Jessie said. "You might miss something."

"That's true."

"You might even fall in love."

Sabrina didn't even try to keep her mouth closed. Jessie drank her water as though she'd not said a thing, but Sabrina could see the amusement in her eyes.

"What did that mean?" the younger woman demanded, only to have Nellie move around a bit. "What did that mean?" Sabrina repeated herself, much more softly this time.

"Only that you'd have to be blind not to see what a fine man Rylan Jarvik is. Good-looking too, and taller than you. Bret Toben is also good-looking, but he doesn't go to church, and I can tell that's important to you."

123 "How many people know you're a matchmaker?" Sabrina asked, but Jessie only laughed. Nellie moved again, and the women fell silent. Sabrina was glad for that. She had things to think about, and they had nothing to do with men. Rylan had talked about the things he was known for in Token Creek and the fact that people knew they could come to him when they were hungry enough.

Crystal had told Paula about her, and now Jessie knew that going to church was important to her. Sabrina felt hope in Rylan's words for the first time. She didn't have to go searching. She could keep studying her Bible, being part of the church family, and caring for others when she had the opportunity. Maybe someday even Jessie would come to her, when her reputation was as well known and fine as Rylan Jarvik's.

124

"WE START PAINTING THE church building a week from tomorrow," Rylan mentioned to Pete Stillwell at the end of the day. "I'd like that Wednesday off too if you can spare me."

"When am I going to persuade you that you need to buy the place, Rylan?" the older man asked, not for the first time. "I tell you it's time. I'm almost 50, my nephew isn't interested, and none of the girls want to manage it."

"It's out of my budget, Pete, and you know I don't want to smith full-time."

"You're the best employee I've ever had," Pete said, moisture coming to his eyes.

Rylan stayed quiet. Pete cried only when he'd had a little too much to drink. The Fourth of July celebration did that to many people "Does Wednesday work?" Rylan asked again.

"Sure, sure. I'll be there."

Rylan was glad Mrs. Stillwell chose that moment to join them. Pete ended up telling his wife the days he needed to work, and Rylan did not have to worry the shop would go unmanned. If he did forget, his wife would see he got there.

125 By the time Rylan was ready to head home to the parsonage behind the church building, Sabrina had cleared out. He told himself that worry was not an option, but he certainly hoped she planned to head to her apartment, lock the door, and stay there.

The Tuesday that was planned for painting was busy, too busy for Jessie to give Sabrina time off, but when Jeanette remembered that Sabrina knew how to paint, she encouraged the younger woman to go home and change into work clothes so she could join the paint party on Wednesday.

Six people had made it out. Rylan was at the front of the building with Chas, Jeb, and Patience, and for some reason, Sabrina went to the north side, ending up next to Trace Holden.

"How are you, Bri?" he asked.

"Doing well, thank you. How is Cassidy feeling?" Sabrina asked, working on the corner where Trace had directed her.

"Mornings can still be a little rough, but overall she's doing very well."

"Do you hope for a boy?"

Trace smiled. "I would have said yes before meeting Savanna, but not anymore."

"She's pretty fun," Sabrina said, thinking that she was rather partial to little girls but that it was probably because of Hannah and Clancy.

"You know," Trace said, turning to her, "it's like you've always been here."

"In Token Creek?"

"Right. We were at Jeanette's on Sunday, and she couldn't stop talking about you, even though she said you're not always careful enough and was ready to send Timothy to move you back to her house."

Sabrina had to laugh, but it was more than just amusement. There

126 was relief there too. She did feel like she belonged, even in this short time, and she was glad to hear others felt the same way.

"I think there's a little too much fun going on over here," Rylan said, coming around the corner and looking stern. "Now, Trace, Sabrina is here to work. Stop distracting her."

"Yes, sir," Trace said, turning to wink at Sabrina.

"I didn't know you were going to be a taskmaster," Sabrina teased Rylan.

"Well, now you do, so hop to it."

Sabrina spotted a piece of wood that was hanging just far enough out of reach that she couldn't get a grip on it. Rylan noticed and came to her rescue with his brush.

"Thank you," she said.

"You're welcome. A little person like yourself can't be expected to get that high."

"No one has ever called me little."

Rylan stared down at her before saying, "I guess it's all relative."

"How tall are you?" Sabrina asked.

"Without my shoes, six foot, four inches."

"How about you, Sabrina?" This came from Trace.

"With my shoes, five foot, ten inches."

"Are your parents tall?"

"My father was. They're both dead."

"Tall siblings?"

"Just a sister, and she is taller than I am. Are you the tallest, Pastor Rylan?"

"By a good three inches. They're not sure what happened to me. The men in my family are big, but not quite this tall."

"You missed a spot," Sabrina said, and Rylan turned to her in surprise.

Trace shouted with laughter at the stunned look on his pastor's face before asking, "Now who's the taskmaster?"

"Well, you did," Sabrina said, trying not to laugh at the look

127 Rylan was giving her. She felt free to smile when he looked painfully disgruntled and went back to painting, starting with the spot he missed.