A Mother's Gift (Love Inspired) (11 page)

“I
sn’t Belle sweet, Ms. Windham?”

Julia winced as one of the dog’s massive front paws crushed her toes.

Sweet? Not exactly the word
she
would have chosen.

“She’s very…big.”

Beth grinned. “Dr. Blake says she’ll be a great watchdog.”

Julia hid a smile of her own. She didn’t doubt for an instant that the amiable giant would watch a burglar break into the house and help himself to the valuables inside.

“Dad’s talking to Mrs. Robertson, and the movers are almost done. Do you want to see my room?”

Now that Julia had successfully reunited the dog with its owner, all she wanted to do was go home. And avoid seeing Nick Delaney again.

She still remembered seeing the confusion—followed by the flare of panic—in his eyes when she’d hesitated a split second too long before accepting Beth’s gift. And if Nick had had an opportunity to talk to Lucy, he would understand the reason
behind
that hesitation….

“I don’t think—”

“Great. Come on.” Beth grabbed her hand and towed her across the muddy yard toward the back door.

Before Julia knew it, she was standing in the kitchen. Face-to-face with the very man she’d wanted to avoid. The abrupt silence that filled the room and the guilty look on Lucy’s face told Julia exactly what the topic of their conversation had been.

Something she should have been used to by now.

“Yes, well…good luck settling in, Nick. Um, nice to see you again, Julia.” The Realtor made a break for it and the screen door snapped shut behind her.

Julia forced herself to meet Nick’s gaze, and her heart missed a beat.

Over the past week, she’d tried to convince herself that her memory had exaggerated how attractive he was. It hadn’t. And that his eyes weren’t really
that
green. They were. But when those eyes locked with hers over Beth’s head, wariness replaced the friendly warmth Julia had seen in them the day they’d met.

What did you expect,
she chided herself.
That Nick Delaney would be thrilled when he found out you wanted to take away his house?

If only he understood the reason why.

It doesn’t matter, does it? It isn’t like you’ll ever have an opportunity to explain it.

Beth skipped through the maze of cardboard boxes to her father’s side. “Julia—I mean Ms. Windham—wants to see my room, Dad,” she said cheerfully. “Is that okay?”

One of Nick’s dark eyebrows shot up.

Julia’s cheeks heated as she choked out a denial. “I didn’t say that I…” She took a step backward and bumped into a furry wall. A rough, pink tongue swiped her hand.

Beth giggled. “See? Belle likes you.”

“Great.” Julia forced a smile as the dog collapsed at her feet.

Nick’s lips twitched. “Thank you for bringing her home. She must have escaped when the movers left the door propped open.”

Escape sounded good to Julia. Unfortunately, it wasn’t an option with a furry chin propped on her shoe.

Beth darted back and tucked her arm through Julia’s as if they’d known each other for years. Julia stiffened, not completely comfortable having her personal space invaded so easily. But something about Beth Delaney’s sweet personality made it difficult to keep her usual boundaries in place.

“After you see my room, I’ll show you the paint that Dad and I picked out,” Beth said. “It’s called ‘rose petals.’ Pink is my favorite, favorite—”

“Beth,” Nick interrupted, his husky voice pleasant but firm. “We still have a lot of unpacking and I’m sure Ms. Windham has things to do, too. Maybe another time would be better.”

He was offering her an out. One Julia should have been eager to accept…until she saw the disappointment on Beth’s face.

“I suppose I have a minute.”

Twenty minutes.

Nick paused at the bottom of the staircase. Judging from the trapped look in Julia’s eyes, he had expected her to take a quick peek at Beth’s bedroom and then hightail it back home.

Especially after the enlightening conversation he’d had with Lucy Robertson.

Nick shook his head, amazed at the way things had worked out. If even the smallest detail hadn’t fallen into place, Julia would own the property and he and Beth would still be searching for a place to live. If Irma Robertson had told him about Julia’s interest in the house, he would have backed off and looked for something else. But things hadn’t happened that way and Nick recognized a gift when he was given one.

I see your hand in this situation, Lord, but I sure don’t know what you’ve got planned. All I know is that Beth loves this place….

And he didn’t want that to change.

Nick’s fingers closed around the banister as a disturbing thought pushed its way in. If Julia wanted the property so badly, would she happen to mention to Beth that it had once been part of Wind River Farm? That she’d always intended to buy it back if it came on the market?

Knowing his tenderhearted daughter, her joy would deflate like a day-old helium balloon if she thought they had taken something away—even accidentally—from someone else.

A cardboard box plastered with daisy stickers provided the perfect excuse to find out what was going on. Nick took the stairs two at a time and, as he reached the small landing at the top, he heard the sound of muffled voices coming from Beth’s room.

“…this one is Gold Dust but I can’t remember what kind of horse he is. It’s kind of a weird name.”

“A Norwegian Fjord,” he heard Julia say. “You can tell by the short, two-toned mane.”

Nick peeked through the gap in the door and almost dropped the box in his hands.

He’d put the bed frame together shortly after the movers had deposited it in Beth’s room but planned to unpack the sheets and blankets later that day when he had more time.

Julia had beaten him to it.

He watched in disbelief as their new neighbor plumped up the pillows and smoothed out the wrinkles in Beth’s favorite comforter. His daughter sat perched on a bright pink director’s chair near the window, where the dusty ledge provided a temporary corral for her collection of model horses until Nick could put up some shelves.

Beth picked up another horse. “Granna Claire gave me this one for Christmas last year. She’s on her honeymoon cruise right now but she promised to bring back a special one for my collection.”

“Your…
grandmother
…is on a honeymoon cruise?”

“Yup. I was her maid of honor,” Beth said matter-of-factly, as if there wasn’t anything unusual or amazing about a grandmother going on a honeymoon cruise. Her voice lowered to a conspiratorial whisper. “Dad and I were the ones who got her and Grandpa Robert together.”

“Really?” A soft, musical laugh followed the question.

Nick’s heart reacted to the sound by trying to put a hole through his chest. And Nick reacted to that by almost dropping the box. Again.

“Yeah, but I miss her a lot. They won’t be able to visit us for a while but Dad promised we can e-mail pictures of the house to them before I go to bed tonight. She’s going to love it.” Beth sounded absolutely certain. “We prayed that Dad and I would find the perfect house, and this is the one God gave us.”

Nick closed his eyes briefly, uncertain how Julia would respond to that. His daughter may have been only ten years old but her simple, unwavering faith both humbled and amazed him. Along with her complete unselfconsciousness when it came to sharing it with others!

Through the gap in the door, Nick tried to see Julia’s expression but her gaze remained riveted on the faded carpet, the silky tendrils of her tawny hair concealing her profile. But there was no mistaking the rigid set of her shoulders.

“Your dad is probably wondering what’s taking us so long,” Julia said quietly.

“Can’t you stay a little longer?”

The plaintive question raised a warning flag in Nick’s mind. Even though Beth was excited about the move, he knew she missed the girl talk that she and her grandmother had frequently indulged in. Something that he felt woefully ill-equipped to duplicate.

Nick was sure that Julia wouldn’t be interested in serving as his mother’s replacement. But in spite of that certainty, he couldn’t help but be intrigued by the subtle contradictions he saw.

When Julia had brought Belle home, he’d braced himself for a lecture about unruly dogs and respecting property lines. Instead, she’d stunned him by giving in to Beth’s plea to see her room and then listening patiently to the lengthy introduction—including names
and
breeds—of a herd of model horses.

A tragedy…it changed her. Not Julia’s mother…Julia.

Fragments of his conversation with Lucy Robertson returned. She had mentioned something about Julia being in an accident but hadn’t had a chance to elaborate.

But what kind of accident? There were no physical scars that he could see, but he knew from experience that some of the deepest wounds were on the inside. They were the easiest to conceal and yet they could be just as permanent. And damaging.

Nick couldn’t shake the feeling there was more to Julia Windham than met the eye.

“I really do have to go,” Julia said. “But thank you for showing me your room. And your horse collection.”

Beth’s face brightened. “Maybe Belle and I could visit you tomorrow after church. Do you go to Clear Springs Community? Dad and I are going to visit that one first because Irma Robertson invited us.”

“I—”

Nick decided it was time to step in. Fast. He cleared his throat to warn them of his approach and then waited a second before shouldering the door open the rest of the way.

“Special delivery for a Bethany Claire Delaney.”

“Look, Dad! Julia found all my blankets and made up the bed.” Beth flopped across the mattress, hugging a daisy-shaped pillow to her chest.

“I see that. Thank you.” Nick watched the color rise in Julia’s cheeks before she averted her gaze.

“I prefer to keep busy,” she murmured.

Why didn’t he believe her? And why did she look embarrassed that he’d caught her doing something nice for Beth?

“Well, I appreciate—”
It.
Nick didn’t get a chance to finish the sentence because Julia brushed past him and the faint scent of jasmine stirred the air, temporarily paralyzing his vocal cords.

Beth bounded after Julia, and Nick caught up with them at the bottom of the stairs to run interference. If he wasn’t mistaken, Julia was about to be on the receiving end of another hug.

He tried to deflect it. “There’s a surprise for you in the living room, Tig.”

“Really? What is it?” Beth’s excitement over the news spared him a scolding reminder that he wasn’t supposed to call her by her nickname anymore.

“See for yourself.”

Nick breathed a sigh of relief as Beth veered toward the living room, where he had spread out a checkered blanket in front of the fireplace.

“A picnic!” Beth dropped to her knees and admired the centerpiece—a jelly glass full of wild violets—that Nick had discovered growing along the foundation of the house. “This is so cool, Dad. What did you make?”

“A call to a local pizza place,” Nick admitted. “I haven’t unpacked the kitchen boxes yet.”

Beth’s smile widened to include Julia. “We’re having a…what’s it called again, Dad?”

Nick raked his fingers through his hair. Maybe it hadn’t been such a good idea to surprise Beth with a picnic until
after
Julia had left.

“A housewarming party,” he muttered.

“That’s right. People have one of those when they buy a new house,” Beth explained, as if Julia might not be familiar with the tradition. “Only it isn’t going to seem like a party with only two people.”

Nick didn’t need a GPS to follow his pint-size extrovert’s train of thought.

“Do you want to celebrate with us?” Beth asked Julia, looking at him to rally support for the idea. “Julia can stay, can’t she, Dad? There will be enough pizza—”

A succession of cheerful blasts from a car horn drowned out the rest of the words. Distracted from her closing argument, Beth raced to the window.

“It’s Mrs. Robertson!”

Nick strode across the room. Sure enough. Irma Robertson hopped out of a bright yellow bus with the words
Clear Springs Community Church
painted on the side.

A bus filled with people.

“Wow.” Beth blinked.

Nick thought that just about summed it up.

Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Julia pivot sharply and walk toward the door.

Beth spotted her, too, and her face fell. “Aren’t you going to stay, Julia?”

Nick thought he saw a flicker of regret in Julia’s eyes, but when their eyes met over Beth’s head, the cool mask was back in place. “It looks like you’ll have more than enough people to help you…celebrate your new house.”

“J
ulia knows a lot about horses, Dad.”

“Really.” Nick kept his tone neutral as he flipped back the blankets on Beth’s bed.

“She knows what a Norwegian Fjord is. Isn’t that awesome?”

Beth held up one of the model horses, just in case there might come a day when her father would have to identify a Norwegian Fjord, too.

Nick held back a sigh. Julia’s name had come up frequently over the course of the day. Too frequently. For a woman who visibly stiffened whenever anyone got within three feet of her, their neighbor had made quite an impression on Beth.

That concerned him.

Clear Springs was a small town. Julia Windham most likely knew the people that Irma had brought with her the day before and yet she’d disappeared out the back door without saying hello to anyone. Nor had she offered to join the volunteer crew that had given up a Saturday to help him and Beth get settled in.

That told him more than anything how Julia felt about them moving next door.

“Into bed now. You’ve got a big day tomorrow.” Nick did the same thing he’d done every time Beth brought up Julia’s name. He changed the subject. “Are you sure you don’t want me to drive you to school in the morning?”

“I want to ride the bus.” Beth wiggled underneath the comforter. “Didn’t Julia do a great job making my bed?”

Lord, give me strength.

“I suppose.”

“I wonder where she was when Belle and I went to visit her this afternoon.”

“When you did what?” Nick choked out the question.

“Went to visit her. I told Julia we’d come over after church today and say hello.” Beth’s forehead pleated. “But she didn’t answer the door when I knocked. Her car was there but maybe she didn’t hear me.”

Nick closed his eyes. His original plan—
not talking about Julia
—didn’t seem to be working.

Why should it
? a pesky voice in his head taunted.
Not thinking about her doesn’t seem to be working, either.

Nick pushed the thought away. This was about Beth, not him. And he didn’t want his daughter’s feelings to be hurt if Julia rebuffed her continued attempts to be friendly.

“Beth—”

“I think I know why God gave us this house, Dad.” Beth’s winsome smile surfaced and Nick couldn’t help but smile back. Not only because it never failed to melt his heart but also because he welcomed the momentary reprieve.

“Why?” He tweaked one of her copper curls. “So you can finally have real animals instead of plastic ones?”

“Nope. For Julia.”

“For
Julia?
”

“She’s lonely.”

“Lone—” The second syllable got stuck in Nick’s throat. He tried again. “I don’t think she’s lonely, sweetheart.”

“But she lives all by herself. She doesn’t even have a dog.”

That was probably because she didn’t want one, Nick was tempted to say.

“Some people prefer to be alone. And we have to respect that.”

“Okay.” Beth closed her eyes.

Okay?

“You understand what I’m saying, right?” he pressed. “Julia could be the type of person who likes her privacy. That’s the reason she lives in the country. Alone. Without a dog.”

“I understand.” Beth rolled over. “G’night, Dad. Love you.”

Nick stared down at his daughter suspiciously.

Beth understood him…but did she
believe
him?

“Well?”

The imperious tone on the other end of the line made Julia wish she had checked her caller ID before answering the phone. Not that she would have ignored a call from her mother but at least she would have had a few seconds to prepare for it.

“Well, what?”
Nice try, Julia, but you’re only delaying the inevitable.

Her mother’s impatient sigh sounded like a tire losing air. “Honestly, Julia, don’t pretend you don’t know what I’m talking about. Why do you think I called?”

I don’t know, Mom. To have a real conversation with me instead of the usual five-minute duty call you make so you can tell your friends that we talk once a week?

Julia took a restless lap around the room and ended up in front of the window—the one that offered a sweeping view of her property and the house across the pasture—just in time to see a yellow school bus chugging down the road.

As the vehicle rumbled to a stop near the mailbox, Beth streaked out of the house with Belle close behind, playfully nipping at the pink backpack that bumped against her owner’s heels.

Beth’s first day at her new school.

Judging from the spring in her step, it didn’t look as if she was nervous or scared but it couldn’t be easy to switch schools at the end of a semester. Julia found herself hoping that Beth would make some friends right away. She remembered what it had felt like to be the “odd man out” on the playground.

Another familiar figure emerged from the house, causing Julia’s breath to stick in her throat. It was Monday morning, but Nick, in faded jeans and a sweatshirt, didn’t look as if he were dressed to go to the office.

Beth spun around before she clambered up the bus steps and it looked as if she paused to blow her father a kiss.

After the bus rolled around the corner, Nick remained in the driveway, staring at the empty road. Belle sat at his feet and let out a series of sharp little yips, as if demanding to know why her favorite person had disappeared.

Julia felt a tug on her heart. Because something in Nick’s posture made her wonder if he wasn’t thinking the same thing.

It’s just me and Dad.

Beth’s words scrolled through her memory. She’d talked with open affection about her Granna Claire but hadn’t mentioned a mother….

“Julia! Are you still there?”

Julia cringed. “Yes, Mom. Still here.”

“Then why didn’t you answer my question?”

Because I wasn’t listening?

Not that Julia was brave enough to admit it. “I’m sorry. I got distracted. I’m in my office.”

Staring at my new neighbor.

She wasn’t about to admit that, either.

“I asked if you’d offered to give Nick Delaney more than he paid for the place,” Tara snapped. “He could find a nice house in Clear Springs. One that isn’t about to fall down around his ears.”

Julia thought that was a bit of an exaggeration. True, the outside needed a makeover, but the interior wasn’t as bad as she’d imagined it would be. Nothing that some paint and new carpeting wouldn’t cure.

“I don’t think Nick is interested in selling.” Julia watched him pick up a stick and throw it for Belle. He moved with the fluid grace of a natural athlete and she felt a strange flutter in her stomach.

“You don’t think Nick is interested in selling,” her mother repeated after a moment. “I can’t believe you’re giving up so easily. I’m disappointed in you, Julia.”

Julia felt the sting of the words even though she wasn’t surprised by them. After all, she’d been disappointing her mother for years.

We prayed that Dad and I would find the perfect house, and this is the one God gave us.

Unbidden, Beth’s words came back to her.

The little girl might believe the house was an answer to prayer, but to Julia it represented one more thing God had taken away from her.

Somehow, that didn’t surprise her, either.