Small-Town Girl (17 page)

Chapter Fifteen

T
he bells tinkled as Laura Daniels ducked into Kendall's office. The young woman tucked her hair behind her ears. “Are you and my brother fighting?”

Kendall allowed herself a minute to figure out how she should answer. Technically she and Brice weren't fighting—they had fought once, three days ago. Perhaps it was best to redirect the conversation away from the argument. “What makes you say that?”

“None of us can get in touch with him.” Laura shrugged. “He never answers his phone, so whatever, but all the other times he at least leaves a message letting us know what's going on.”

He hadn't even spoken to his beloved little sister? That alarmed Kendall, but she didn't want to worry Laura. Kendall tucked her pen into the top desk drawer. “I asked Evan about it earlier. He said taking off isn't abnormal for Brice.”

“This time feels different.” Laura folded her arms over her chest. “You know, if you guys are fighting, you should go after him.”

“Oh, I should, should I?” Kendall locked her desk and shut down her computer. She'd been at the office for only two hours, but work wasn't going to happen today. “What if your brother doesn't want to be found?”

Laura's brow furrowed. “Everyone wants to be found.”

“Maybe so, but how he and I left things... I don't believe it's me he wants finding him.”

Laura shook her head. “You know, I thought you were different.” Her eyes narrowed, but it looked as if she was holding in tears more than anger. “I thought you'd be good for him and not just another person who would end up hurting him.”

Laura was too young; she didn't understand. Kendall sighed. “Believe me, hurting him is the last thing I ever want to do.”

“After everything he's been through, Brice needs someone who's willing to fight for him.”

That made Kendall pause.

Someone who's willing to fight for him.

For so many years, that had been her desire. She'd never turned it around, though. Never let a man know he was worth sticking through the bad for. She'd spent years waiting for someone to be her champion, but what if it was her turn to be the white knight in someone's life? A message from a church service so many weeks ago flooded back into her mind. She was called to love people. She wasn't called to turn inward at the first sign of possible heartache. And she loved Brice. So she'd fight for him.

Kendall got to her feet. “You're right, Laura. I can't believe I didn't see that before.”

Evan offered to go with her to locate Brice, but she felt that, after everything, this was something she needed to do on her own. After Laura, Evan and Kendall piled into Evan's car, Kendall dialed her father's number and let him know they were heading to Evan's house. Her father had rented a room in town for the next week so they could spend time together.

“For all we know, he may be back at his cabin. We're going to stop there first to see. Laura checked this morning and his cabin was still locked up. But he might have gotten back in the last few hours.”

“And if he's not back?” her father asked.

“Then I'm going to go find him. Evan knows his favorite camping spots. He offered to draw a map.”

“Please be safe, honey.”

“I'll have my cell phone on at all times. I'll be fine.”

She gave him both Brice's and Evan's addresses. Laura and Evan invited him to wait with them at Evan's house while Kendall went out searching. If she hadn't returned by nightfall, or if she got lost, she was under strict instructions to stay wherever she was and Evan would come find her. Evan might have been the town flirt, but it turned out he was just as skilled an outdoorsman as his older brother.

With a backpack full of water bottles, granola bars and a few first-aid supplies, Kendall set out a little after noon. Brice and Evan both owned acres and acres of land, and their land backed up to the property that used to serve as a sleepaway summer camp, which was now shut down. Evan had explained that Brice often crossed onto the old camp's property because it was remote and had some of the best fishing for miles. The camp property spanned over six hundred acres of forestland.

Kendall gulped down one of her water bottles and checked Evan's map. She'd stopped at the first two possible spots and hadn't found any sign of Brice. There were two more spots to check, but both looked far away, deep into the camp property.

It was closing on four in the afternoon when Kendall reached a large ravine. Using branches for handholds, she started to make her way down the steep incline. She'd have to get to the bottom, cross a small stream and then head back up the other side. There didn't look like any other option. Her calves and thigh muscles shook and her lungs ached. Forget workout videos—after this experience, she'd take up hiking to stay in shape.

A low growl of thunder made her stop halfway down. She craned her neck, trying to get a sense for how near the storm was. When she left Evan's home there hadn't been a cloud in sight, but gray blanketed the sky now.

She took her backpack off, set it on the ground and fished out her cell phone. The signal was low, but she pulled up her weather app to check on the storm. A large mass of swirling clouds showed a fast progression over Lake Michigan, and Goose Harbor was directly in its path. Lightning flashed nearby, so bright and close, Kendall jumped. Simultaneously the cell phone slipped from her hand and she lost her footing.

Kendall screamed. She crashed forward, down the steep incline, rocks and branches smashing against her hands, her knees, her back, her ankles. Reaching out desperately, she tried to grab on to something to slow her progression. Her right leg crunched loudly as it caught and twisted in a copse of trees. Her bag tumbled down the hill after her and landed with a loud slosh into the stream.

As she lay caught in the last grouping of trees before the stream, her breath came fast. Pain rippled through her body. Her arms and legs were scraped up, but what concerned her most was the odd angle of her foot. Broken? Shock kept the worst of the discomfort away, but there was one way to know for certain.

Locking a breath in her lungs, Kendall braced her hands on a fallen log and tried to lift herself to standing. When she placed weight on her right foot, it felt as if a hundred burning knives had been shoved into the tendons of her ankle. She cried out and collapsed onto the fallen log.

Her cell phone was long gone, lost somewhere under the brush in the ravine or under the water in the stream. She couldn't call Evan for help and she couldn't walk back to safety with a broken ankle.

A drop of rain hit the side of her face. One drop and then another. The light rain gave way to a downpour. Dark clouds covered any trace of daylight. Thunder rolled, making her jump.
Stay calm.
Someone would come for her; she had to believe that.

Kendall shivered. It would be easy to break down and cry, to give up and feel abandoned. Rain drenched her hair. She crossed her arms, trying to stay warm. Think positive. Focus on the good.

“You've never abandoned me, have You, God? Just like my father... You've loved me and sought after me my whole life.” Tears slipped onto her cheeks, mingling with the rainfall. “Even now, You're here with me. Aren't You? Forgive me for ignoring You. For pushing You away. I've been so blind. I can't believe how long I felt alone when You were always there. I'm so sorry for being so stubborn.”

The verse that Claire had jotted down for her when Kendall first opened Love on a Dime rushed back... God was doing a new thing.
I am making a way in the wilderness and streams in the desert.
If she surrendered her fear and learned to trust Him fully—even if every human friendship failed her—she'd never have to feel abandoned again.

“I surrender.” Kendall tipped her head back, letting the rain wash down her face. “I'm Yours. Forever. I won't forget that again.”

* * *

“I should have left yesterday,” Brice grumbled.

Rain pelted the side of his face as he shoved the rest of his camping gear into his pack. The larger items would slow him down on the walk home, and with the way the storm had rolled in, he'd be wet to the bone by the time he got to his cabin. To speed his journey, he decided to stow the heavier items—a cast-iron skillet and extra cans of food, among other things—beside a tree trunk. He tucked a small tarp over the items and then secured the flap to his bag, slinging it over his shoulder.

Camping and solitude hadn't soothed his soul this time around. His heart and mind felt restless, and he wasn't even certain the unease had to do with Kendall. Sure, their argument had sparked his thoughts, but he had more to sort through than just what to do about what he'd dubbed the
Sesser Situation
. As he searched his heart and mind, he'd found bundle after bundle of hurt feelings tied around barbed wire. Land mines of pain waiting to destroy his world if he dealt with them. Which was why he'd stored the bad memories away, pretending they didn't exist or bother him.

A part of him wondered if he should leave Goose Harbor altogether. Perhaps he should have done that straight after college instead of returning to his hometown. Brice's soul ached for a clean start. He wanted the land mines gone. Goose Harbor held all the reminders of his bad memories. He'd been foolish to ever believe he could make a life here. Who was he to stand against a man like Sesser Atwood?

It wouldn't be difficult to sell his house. If it didn't sell, he could put it up on a rental website for tourists to use while they vacationed. His shipping company wouldn't be hard to divide and sell off in chunks either. The handful of men who worked for him could be placed with the other shipping companies too. Brice had no doubt he could negotiate jobs for all of them.

He stopped walking. Even just considering leaving Goose Harbor made his gut twist into knots. This was his home. This was where he belonged. He'd tried to move away when he attended college, but he hadn't fit anywhere else.

Brice lifted branches out of the way and continued down his well-worn path.

No, he would stay. He couldn't run away every time something bad happened to him. Despite the abuse in his past, he had chosen to stick it out in Goose Harbor even with his father living nearby. If he could share a town with his father and survive, he could deal with passing Kendall on the street every now and then. Couldn't he?

But ignoring the land mines in his heart wouldn't make them go away. He jammed the heel of his palm into his chest. They'd go off at some point, derailing his life again. If only...if only he could deactivate them. Deal with them and be done with the pain forever.

Forgive.

Kendall had mentioned the word to him so many times the thought came automatically. The barbed wire in his heart and thoughts, the baggage taking up all the room inside—he was so busy hanging on to all the bad things, he had no room for the good God brought into his life.

His hurt might be legitimate, but allowing it to hinder his life wasn't. In the past, he thought he had moved on. Buried everything. But in truth, he'd never forgiven the people in his past; therefore, as Kendall had suggested, the bad feelings had taken hold of his heart.

There were so many people he needed to forgive. Not because they deserved it—no one on earth deserved forgiveness, including him—but because his soul couldn't heal until he forgave them. His dad for a lifetime of abuse. His mom for making him feel he should never have been born. Andrew, his brother, for bailing on their family without a word. Audra for the scar of rejection. Sesser for all the pain he'd wrought on the Daniels family.

And himself... Brice needed to forgive himself. For not being able to fix his family. For not being able to save those he loved from hurt. For years of bitterness he hid behind being introverted.

Ignoring the rain and the mud, Brice dropped to his knees and wove his fingers into the long grasses. “Forgive me,” he whispered. Rain beat against his back and streamed down his nose. “Please, forgive me.”

Chapter Sixteen

K
endall's skin was numb to the pinpricking light rain that found its way to her through holes in the canopy. Storms always came like that. First with a rush of power and destruction and then they ended with a shower of blessing. Clouds still imprisoned the sun, but that mattered little; it would set any minute. Soon it would be dark and cold and she'd have to wait until morning to be found.

But she wasn't alone. God was with her. Even now.

Lord
...
I know You're here with me. I don't doubt that. You'll be here with me all night. But...but please send help. If Evan or anyone is out looking for me, please guide their steps. The ground is so slick still. Keep them safe.

Wind swept down the ravine and Kendall shivered. The tank top and shorts that had seemed so sensible for hiking during the day offered little protection against the coming night. About an hour ago, the intense pain in her ankle had gone away, wearing down into a constant pulse of discomfort. She'd tried to stand again, but that had sent another wash of agony through her leg. Sitting and waiting was best.

“Kendall!” A voice came from above. It was followed by the sound of someone slopping through mud. Brice was at her side quicker than she would have thought anyone could descend the wet hillside safely. He dropped to his knees in front of where she sat on the log. His gaze raked over her face; his lips were parted. “Why? I don't understand.”

“How did you find me?”

“I was up there. Praying.” He pointed up the hill. “When I stood up, I happened to glance down here. I spotted you right away. What are you doing out here?”

Brice. Strong and steady Brice. He was here and either he was so shocked to find her in the middle of the forest that he'd forgotten to be upset with her, or he was no longer angry.
Please let it be the second option.

She hesitated for a heartbeat before laying her hands on his shoulders.
Just say it. Speak honestly. Be vulnerable.
“I came after you.”

He splayed his hands against the tree bark on either side of her and tilted his head to meet her eyes. “Why, though? Is everything okay? Is someone—”

“Everything's not okay.” She leaned toward him. “Not when you and I are at odds.”

He nodded, once. “I was such a mule, Kendall. So, so stupid. If you'll take me back, I'd like to make it up to you and find a way for us to be together. Would it...? Is it possible you could forgive me?” His head dropped and he rested his forehead against her knee. “I understand if you don't want to.”

She worked her fingers into his hair. “I forgive you. And, Brice?” She tipped his head back so she could see his gorgeous green eyes. “I love you.”

A sharp intake of breath parted his lips. He reached toward her and gently brushed a wet tangle of hair from her face. Then he rested his palm against her cheek. “I love you too.”

For a minute they sat there, grinning at each other in the twilight.

“Let's head home,” Brice said, rising to his feet and offering his hand.

Kendall shook her head. “I can't.” She held up her ankle. “I think it might be broken.”

He gaped at her leg and dropped back down beside her. “Oh, Kendall. You should have told me about that first.” Gripping her calf, he lifted her foot to rest on his thigh and gingerly touched her ankle. “Does this hurt?”

Fire erupted under her skin. She hissed. “A lot.”

He peeled off his backpack and dropped it next to the log. “I'm going to carry you out.”

Placing a hand on his chest, she made him pause. “Think this through. It's a long way back. It would be easier with a couple more people and a stretcher. Leave me here and—”

“Leaving you is out of the question.”

“Brice.”

“I can do this,” he urged. “Let me take care of you.”

“Okay.” She nodded and then pointed at his backpack. “If you leave your gear behind, it might get ruined.”

“You're more important.” Hands under her knees and behind her shoulders, he scooped her up and settled her against his chest. “Loop your arm around my neck.”

“Gladly.” She sighed and leaned her head on his shoulder.
Thank You
, she prayed.
Thank You for taking care of me. Thank You for all You're doing in my life. Thank You for being a God who creates streams in the desert.

* * *

Brice's arms burned from carrying Kendall, but his cabin wasn't far now.

She lifted her head from his shoulder. “If you want to set me down for a while, we could rest and start back again later.”

Didn't Kendall realize by now? As long as it was within his power, he was never letting go of her again.

He tightened his hold on her. “We're close.”

“I met my father.” Her breath warmed his jawline. “He saw an article about my business in a newspaper and showed up on my doorstep.”

Brice clenched his teeth, working through what to say. Like her mother, was her father after money too? If anyone came up against Kendall, they'd have to get through Brice first. He'd be her protector from now on, as long as she wanted him to be. “Are you considering this a good thing?”

“My mom kidnapped me, Brice. Kidnapped!” She launched into the background. Her mother moving them all the time and how her dad had always been looking for her. “He loves me. He never stopped looking for me. Brice.” Her arm resting across his shoulders tensed as she got excited. “I was never abandoned. That was my perception, but it wasn't the truth.”

“I'm so glad you get to have a relationship with him now.”

She went on, telling him about her three siblings. Her dad had invited her out to Ohio to meet everyone, and Kendall was planning to go within the month. “But more than all that, I came to the same realization about God.”

“And what realization is that?”

“He never abandoned me either. I blamed Him for so much. I kept holding on to this idea that I was all alone in the world and had to take care of myself because no one else would if I didn't, but that's so wrong. I was completely wrong.” She shook her head in a sad way. “God's always been there. He's been taking care of me all along and I haven't been giving Him credit for it.”

“That's amazing, and you're right—neither of us has ever walked alone. That's powerful.” Brice's cabin came into view. Lights burned through the window, letting him know that either Evan or Laura had decided to check on his place while he'd been gone. “While we're on the subject, I took your advice.”

“Oh?” She smoothed a hand down the back of his head. “And what advice was that?”

“I forgave everyone.” His gaze captured hers. “You were right. Without realizing it, I'd been holding on to so many grudges. They were clogging up my heart—there wasn't room for the love I wanted to have in there. There is now, though.” He stopped walking so he could focus solely on her. “I love you so much. I hope you realize that.”

She answered him with a smile and then leaned in, pressing her lips to his.

His front door banged against its hinges. “They're here! They're back,” Laura yelled. “And they're kissing!”

Kendall tossed back her head and laughed.

“Take it easy,” he teased. “We need to get you to the hospital.”

Kendall's laughter faded. “I need to clean up first. Please don't make me go looking like a drowned rat.”

He was in the middle of telling her how beautiful he thought she was when Evan and another man rushed out of the house, ushering them both inside as they asked a hundred questions. Brice helped Kendall to the bathroom and then left her in the care of his sister. Before the door closed Kendall whispered she loved him. Brice went downstairs, his heart soaring with a newfound lightness now that it finally had room for all the love God had surrounded him with when he wasn't even looking.

* * *

Thankfully Laura had spare sets of clothing at Brice's house and offered Kendall her choice from the drawer. The shirt was a little snug, but the sweatpants were a good fit. Once she was dressed, Brice rushed upstairs, carried her back down and set her on the wide couch near the fireplace. Laura brought over an ice pack and her father urged them to head to the hospital.

Brice placed a pillow on top of the coffee table so she could elevate her ankle. “If you're hungry, Evan made some noodle something while you were showering. If not, we need to get you to a doctor.” He rested his arm on the back of the couch as his gaze assessed her. It took everything in her not to lean into his chest again and kiss him. But there were other people nearby, so she held back. There would be time for affection later.

Evan had explained that when he hadn't been able to reach her phone, he and Laura had moved to Brice's cabin to wait, knowing that would be the place they'd probably return to. The storm hit too fast for Evan to have realized it was coming, although he apologized profusely for sending her out into the wilderness without checking the radar first. Worried when the rain started, her father had called Evan and then decided to join them at Brice's cabin to wait for her. Evan and her father were setting out to go search when she and Brice had returned.

Kendall jutted her chin toward the kitchen, where the three others were huddled around the island eating. “I'll eat before we go. Who knows how long we'll be at the ER? And I haven't had anything since my morning coffee.” She patted her stomach.

Evan scooped food onto a plate and carried it over. Steam curled from the top of perfectly browned cheese layered over stuffed shells. “And it's not noodle something, as my bear of a brother so eloquently put it. These, my dear woman, are chicken pesto shells. Eat and be amazed.” He bowed as he handed her the plate.

Kendall shook her head. The man would always be a charmer, but he couldn't hold a candle to his older brother, not in Kendall's eyes.

Brice rolled his eyes, watching his brother walk back to the kitchen. “If you can get past his smugness, he's actually a really good guy.”

Kendall took a bite of the pasta shells. The tangy flavor of pesto rushed over her taste buds. “And a great cook! I could eat ten of these.”

“I'll have him pack some for the hospital.” Brice laughed.

“Let's not go that far.” Kendall bumped her shoulder into his. “Evan might get an even bigger head if we rave too much.” She polished off the four shells within minutes.

Brice held out a hand to take her plate. “Should we head out?”

“Look,” she whispered and pointed toward the kitchen, where Laura, Evan and her father were laughing together. “For my entire life I felt cheated because I didn't have a family. It was only me and Mom, and more often than not, she was MIA. But we have family, Brice. Those people in there, they care about us.”

He nodded. “They love us. All three of them want what's best for us.”

“The best for me is you.” She laced her fingers through his and pressed a kiss to the back of his hand.

“About Sesser...” Brice cleared his throat.

Her fingers tensed. “I can't break my partnership with him.”

“I know. It was wrong of me to ask that.”

“I trust you—you know that, right? If you say Sesser is bad news, I believe you. I'll be careful. I won't get in deeper with him than I already am, but I can't quit my business.”

“I agree. And I want to keep doing sunset cruises.”

“But what about the tourist tax? You'll never be able to save enough to pursue your dream. To build your own pier.”

“I will.” His hand covered hers. “I'm going to beat him, but I'm going to do it honorably. I'll pay his taxes and fees. It'll take longer, but I'm still determined to thrive in this town. Sesser doesn't get to steal that from me. Not where my business is concerned, but even more so, not when it comes to you.”

Kendall nodded, pressing her lips together as she held in happy tears. She was overwhelmed by Brice's love.

He rubbed his thumb over the back of her hand. “Let's get you to the hospital now. We need to make you well.”

She laughed as he scooped her up in his arms again. Laura ran to get the door for them.

“Brice.” She caught his wrist and tugged him close when he set her in the passenger seat of his vehicle. “I've never been better in my life. I'm so blessed. I feel so overwhelmed by it all.”

“We've both been blessed. You're the greatest blessing in my life.” Brice dropped a kiss on her lips before closing the door. He called something to Evan, who was on the porch, and then climbed into the car, backing them out of the driveway.

Everything in life wasn't perfect. Her mother and she were still at odds and might always be. Her credit was still a disaster from what her mother had done. She was in debt to Sesser Atwood, a businessman she now realized she'd need to be wary of. Brice's parents were both still abusive in their own way. She couldn't make that better for Brice. And his business would continue to struggle. The other brother of the Daniels family—Andrew—was still missing. Life would never be perfect. There would always be struggles and pain.

But in the midst of everything, there would be blessings. Streams in the desert.