Easter Blessings (6 page)

Mariel understood what her grandmother meant. Sadie had never been one to mind other people’s business. Yet Mariel couldn’t help but be a bit hurt by this well-kept secret. All those years of wondering and worrying.

“Where is he?”

“He lives in Shreveport. Last I heard, he was working
for one of the hospitals there, as a maintenance man. He never married, but he’s had lots of lady friends.”

“That figures.”

Mariel grew quiet, wondering what other secrets her family had hidden deep inside these old walls.

“I’m sorry I never told you,” Sadie said.

“Why are you telling me now?”

Sadie shrugged. “Well, you’re here for a while. He’s near…” Her voice trailed off. “I had to wait for the right time.”

Mariel went back to the window. “I’m not sure this is the right time. I’m so mixed-up, so out of sorts. I don’t know why I’m here, I don’t know if I want to go back to my job or Simon. I don’t think this is the time to have a confrontation with the father who abandoned me.”

Sadie came to stand beside her, both of them gazing down on the white-tufted lilies gleaming in the first light of the moon. “I didn’t suggest a confrontation, dear. I suggested a reunion.”

Mariel turned to face her petite grandmother. “Is this just one more of those loose ends you’re trying to tie up before you…go on to meet your Heavenly Father?”

“You could say that,” Sadie replied. “I’d like my house in order when I do move on to eternal salvation.”

“You ask a lot, do you know that?” Mariel said as she reached out to hug Sadie.

“I only ask what I know you can bear,” Sadie replied as she hugged Mariel tight. “And I ask it because I love you. And I know God loves you.”

“I love you, too,” Mariel said. “But, Granny, about God—I haven’t been as loyal about that as you’d probably like.”

Sadie chuckled. “Don’t tell me that, child. Tell the Father. You know where I stand. Maybe it’s time you take a stand of your own regarding that matter.”

Mariel let go of Sadie, then looked down on the lilies again, her heart searching for answers that wouldn’t come easily. Then she saw Heath leaning over a particularly tall stalk, his nose touching on the budding tips of a sweet-smelling blossom. The nurturer tending his field.

It was an image she took to bed with her that night.

That same image flowed through her dreams in a sweet song, a song that came singing softly from the beautiful petals of the lilies in the field. In her dream, Mariel could hear the song of the lilies.

But she woke to silence.

“N
ow’s your chance,” Mariel said to Heath the next afternoon.

He lifted his brows in a questioning look. “My chance for what?”

“I’m going into Shreveport this afternoon, to talk to my uncles about having the family here for Easter. You’re welcome to come along.”

They’d been to church with Sadie. It was a perfect day for an afternoon excursion. The sun tinged the air with a burnished warmth, the breeze was gentle and nature was exploding in a burst of flowers. Heath couldn’t resist the chance to be with the woman in the pretty pink floral dress and matching pink sweater.

The woman who was beginning to show up in his dreams.

“That sounds nice,” he said. “But are you sure you want me tagging along when you visit family?”

She nodded, causing her hair to fall over her shoulders and curl around her bare neck. Causing Heath’s heart to unfurl like a blossom finding the sun.

“Oh, that won’t take long. I just want it clear that I expect all of them to be here for church and dinner on Easter Sunday. It’s important to Granny.”

Heath sensed it was important to Mariel, too. “Okay, I’ll ride along with you, but only if you let me buy you lunch.”

Mariel turned to find Sadie and Dutch coming down the church steps. “Granny, do you mind if Heath and I skip your pot roast? We’ve decided to drive into Shreveport.”

Sadie’s eyes widened, but she looked pleased as punch. “Of course not, honey. That’s just more pot roast for me to send home with Dutch.”

Mariel gave Dutch a beseeching look. “Could you give Granny a ride home?”

Dutch bobbed his head, his striped Sunday bow tie turning crooked with the effort. “I’ll keep your grandma company, Mariel. Might take her fishing down at the pond.”

Sadie huffed, then slapped him playfully on the arm. “I might be up for a nice walk, after my nap, of course.”

Mariel kissed her grandmother goodbye, winked at Dutch, then walked with Heath toward her car. “Want to let the top down?” she asked, indicating the late-model convertible.

“That’d be great,” Heath replied, grinning. “Nice wheels.”

“I got a good deal on it,” she explained. “The previous owner treated it with great respect, so it’s in mint condition.”

“And just waiting for such a perfect day.” He helped her with the canvas top, then opened her door.

“Thanks,” Mariel said, that becoming blush moving up her face.

Heath came around and got in beside her. “I haven’t been in a convertible in a very long time.”

Mariel cranked the car, then turned it toward the high
way, leaving the tiny church and the dwindling Sunday crowd behind. “When was the last time you were in a car like this?” she asked, her words hitting the soft wind flowing around them.

Heath pushed a hand through his straight hair. “I dated an up-and-coming actress once. She had stars in her eyes and thought she was already a movie star. Spent way too much on her fancy car and wound up having to move back to Ohio.”

“She never made it big?”

He shook his head. “Last I heard, she got married and had three kids. Now she writes and acts in plays at the local theater. But at least she’s happy.”

He watched Mariel’s eyes. They were a brilliant green, earthy and lush. She checked the long ribbon of road, then glanced over at him. “And why haven’t
you
ever married and had three kids?”

That question shook him. “Oh, you know the old saying. I’ve never found the right woman.”

Mariel tossed her hair out of her eyes, one hand on the steering wheel. “That’s a lame excuse.”

“It might sound cliché, but it’s the truth,” Heath said. “My parents had the perfect marriage—loving, close, happy—even when they fought. I guess it’s hard to try to expect that standard, but I haven’t found it yet, so I’m still single.”

“Picky?”

“Let’s just say I’m selective.” He held his bangs off his face, his arm against the warm red leather of the car seat. Right now, he could narrow that selection down. Mariel Evans was as close to perfect as he’d ever seen, even with her insecurities and doubts. Mariel had a good heart. He knew that. After all, she was Sadie’s granddaughter.

Mariel shifted gears, then gave him a long look. “Why are you staring at me?”

Heath decided honesty might work best here. “Because you really are very pretty.”

She put her gaze back on the road. “Are you flirting with me, Heath?”

“Can I flirt with you, Mariel?”

“I thought we agreed to a business relationship.”

“Hey, you’re the one who asked me on this date.”

“This is not a…date. You said you wanted to see Shreveport.”

“And you’re being so very accommodating on that account. Can I help it if I like that dress.”

She glanced down at her gathered skirts. “This was my mother’s dress. I found it in one of the closets at home.”

“A classic,” Heath replied. “Like something out of a fifties movie.”

Mariel shrugged. “It fit.”

“It does fit,” he said, tilting his head toward her.

They came to a stop sign and Mariel gave him a warning look. “Okay, enough about my wardrobe, or lack thereof. What do you want for Sunday lunch? Seafood—Cajun or Creole? Soul food? Or a good-old fashioned hamburger?”

Heath frowned in mock-concentration. “Well, that all sounds good.”

“Fine, I’ll take you to a place that offers all three,” she said. Then she shifted gears and blasted off toward the Interstate.

Heath held on, his breath in his throat. Mariel Evans was a woman full of becoming surprises. He sat back to enjoy the ride, and wondered what might come next.

Mariel wondered why she’d gone and asked Heath to come with her to Shreveport. She’d never been one to follow a whim. She’d never been impulsive. Simon had often teased her about being a stick-in-the-mud. He’d told
her she needed to lighten up and learn to be more spontaneous.

Well, Simon would sure be proud of her today. Here she sat in a legendary downtown restaurant not far from the Red River, with a man she was only beginning to know and had yet to completely understand. And
she’d
invited him to lunch.

I must have spring fever, Mariel thought as she watched Heath bite into a batch of fried crawfish. He grinned, wiped hot sauce from his mouth, then took a long drink of sweet tea.

While Mariel swallowed back the surge of—what was it?—longing she felt each time she was around him.

“Do I have hot sauce on my nose?” Heath asked her.

“What?” Mariel mentally shook herself. “Oh, no. I was just enjoying watching you eat that. So you like fried crawfish, huh?”

“I do now,” he replied. “Strange little creatures, but very tasty.”

“We’ll have to have a crawfish boil at White Hill,” she told him before taking a bite from her shrimp salad. “Dutch can really cook a mean batch of mudbugs.”

“Mudbugs?”

“That’s what we call them around here. And we also have a hockey team by that name.”

“A hockey team in Louisiana? That’s different.”

“Yes, considering the only ice around here is in the arena. We get snow every now and then, but mostly we just get humidity.”

He nodded. “Tell me about it. But the lilies seem to thrive in spite of that. It still amazes me that your grandmother has that wild field growing right up to her yard.”

“That’s the original garden,” Mariel explained. “She’d never change that field. She insists on letting it grow at random.”

“Well, that field has been good to her,” Heath replied. “I’m very glad to be here helping her keep up the tradition.”

“I’m glad you’re here, too,” Mariel admitted.

He leaned over the small table, causing Mariel to forget the buzz of hurrying waitresses and the noise of happy diners. “Even though you didn’t like me at first?”

“Did I say that?” she teased, the intensity of his blue eyes making her question her better judgment.

“Yes, you did,” he reminded her. “Hurt my feelings, not to mention my pride.”

“I was just looking after my grandmother.”

“Sadie is safe with me, I can assure you. She reminds me of my own grandmother.”

“Oh, do you keep in touch?”

“She passed away when I was a teenager.”

“Oh.” Mariel took a drink of water. “I don’t want to think about Granny passing away. But she seems to be dwelling on that a lot these days.”

“Sadie is a realist,” Heath said. “She is a true example of what being a Christian is all about. She’s had a good, full life, but she knows there is much more to come.”

“And apparently, she’s ready to face that.”

He nodded, leaned back on his chair. “Does this make you uncomfortable?”

Mariel blinked. “Being here with you?”

He grinned. “Well, that, too. I mean, talking about Christ and death?”

She picked at a slice of Roma tomato with her fork. “No, not really. I haven’t been a faithful churchgoer, but Granny always taught me about the Bible and Christ. It’s been there inside me, all the time, I think.”

“But you seem doubtful.”

“I am doubtful. Granny is so firm in her beliefs, but look at her children. Take my parents, for example. They
are agnostic to the core. When I was young, I felt torn between my mother’s cynical disbelief and Granny’s firm encouragements. But I think Granny has won out.”

“She is the best example,” he repeated, his eyes soft and sincere. “She only wants the best for you, for all her children and grandchildren.”

“She told me she’s kept in touch with my father,” Mariel said, then instantly regretted it. That was not something she wanted to discuss.

“How do you feel about that?”

Mariel shrugged, pushed her salad away. “I don’t know how to feel. He left when I was ten and I haven’t seen him since. My mother probably did drive him away, just as Granny said. But…I can’t understand why he didn’t at least try to stay in touch with me.” She sat silent, then said, “He lives here, in Shreveport.”

Heath lifted a brow. “Do you want to find him?”

“No, not today. Maybe one day.”

Heath gave her one of his endearing half smiles. “We could go see him together.”

She shook her head. “No, I’m not ready for that. Right now, we need to do our duty and go visit the other wayward relatives. Think you’re up to that?”

“I’m up for anything you throw at me,” he told her. “The question is—are you up to this?”

She got up, grabbed her purse. “I have to do this, for Granny. But this won’t be the toughest part. I still have to call my mother.”

Heath held a hand to her arm before they headed out the door. “You’re very brave, Mariel.”

The intimate husky quality to his voice made Mariel feel as light and mellow as the coconut pie this restaurant was famous for. “I’m a coward, just a determined coward.”

They walked to the car, the quaint inner-city neighborhood moving and flowing around them.

Heath turned to her before she could open the car door. “I don’t think you’re a coward. I admire you for what you’re trying to do for Sadie.”

His eyes told her he felt more than admiration for her.

And Mariel’s heart told her what her head didn’t want to accept. She was beginning to admire Heath Whitaker, too. Way too much.

“Let’s get this over with,” she said in defense of her erratic feelings.

“Okay.” He opened her door, then came around to get in beside her. “Then…I want you to show me the river.”

Mariel nodded. “If you insist.”

“I do.” He buckled his seat belt, then leaned close. He stared at her, his eyes moving over her face and mouth, but he seemed hesitant, then backed away. “I think sitting with you on the river is going to be highly romantic.”

Mariel swallowed, tried to find her keys. “Oh, do you now?”

He nodded, helped her insert the key into the ignition, his hand over hers while his eyes held hers. “Yep. And I think I’ll wait until we get there…to kiss you.”

Coming apart like a flower in the wind, she frowned, then pushed his hand away. “What makes you think I’ll let you kiss me?”

“I’m just hoping, is all,” he replied, his silky bangs falling across one eye. “And preparing the way.”

Mariel somehow managed to get the car in reverse. “Preparing the way?”

“I’m giving you warning, Mariel. And time to think about it. I want to get to know you more, and I really want to kiss you. Just keep that in mind, okay?”

“Got it,” she said, her eyes on the traffic light, her heart revving right along with the motor of the speedy little car.

She didn’t know how she was going to get through a
serious talk with her uncles now. Not when all she could think about was kissing Heath.

And she wondered with a slight trace of disappointment, why did he have to wait?

Mariel had never before been in such a kissing mood. She didn’t need any preparation or warning.

And that was what scared her the most.