Love Finds You in Miracle, Kentucky

by Andrea Boeshaar

  Slowly, he lowered his head. She lifted her chin, and when their lips met, Meg’s limbs felt as wobbly as Grams’ strawberry Jell-O. His arms slipped securely around her, and she sagged against him. She couldn’t recall ever enjoying a kiss more.

  Then all too soon, it seemed, Vance pulled his head back. The headiness of the moment waned and Meg blinked, taking in his baffled expression.

  “I don’t know what came over me…”

  “Or me either. But, whatever you do, don’t apologize, Vance.”

  “All right.” His expression showed a mix of relief, shock, and amusement. “I won’t.”

  She noted his reluctance to release her, and she allowed herself to enjoy being held close. She fingered the tiny white buttons on his denim shirt and decided that weak-kneed romances weren’t just for characters in novels. They really happened.

  The sudden sound of a man clearing his throat caused them to step apart. Meg pivoted and saw her father standing with his hands on his hips and an indiscernible expression on his face.

  “You two find what you’re looking for?”

  At the sound of his harsh tone, Meg tensed. She had a hunch he was assuming the worst. But she and Vance hadn’t done anything wrong. In fact, being held in Vance’s arms felt anything but wrong.

  “Vance, if you’re looking for a soda, it’s in the ice chest over there.” Dad inclined his head.

  Without a word, Vance strode to the ages-old chest, opened the lid, and slid out a couple of bottles of soda. “Meg, are you thirsty?”

  She slacked up on her jaw enough to reply. “Yes, and anything diet will do. Thanks.” She looked back at her father, who continued to regard them both without a trace of cordiality. What in the world was his problem?

  Meg knew she couldn’t let this go. It was time she and her father talked.

  Vance handed her the cold bottled beverage and Meg gratefully accepted it. “Will you excuse my dad and me for a few minutes?”

  “Sure.” He looked from one to the other with confusion on his face.

  “I’ll meet you back outside.”

  Vance nodded, once to Meg and again toward Dad. Then he left.

  Meg returned her gaze to her father. “I’m not a child anymore.” She kept her voice calm and even. “I’m an adult. It just so happens I care for Vance and—well, he obviously likes me, too. What’s so terrible about that?”

  “I never said anything was terrible.” But the scowl on his face showed no signs of fading.

  “You don’t have to say a word. You look like an ogre standing there. You probably scared off poor Vance. He’s a nice guy.”

  “Never said he wasn’t.”

  This conversation was going nowhere fast. “So what’s the problem?”

  “Well, if there is a problem it’d be with Vance. He came in here looking for something and I reckon he found it.”

  “It? I’m hardly an ‘it.’” In a flash, Meg knew exactly what her father insinuated. “You think I’m my mother’s daughter, don’t you? Well, I’m not what you think. Yeah, I’ve made some mistakes. But God knows I just want what everybody wants: love, peace, happiness, success.” Her feelings of injustice mounted. “You know, you can stand there and judge me, but if you would have bothered to get to know me in the last twenty-six years, you’d know that I’m not my mother. I’m me!”

  Turning, she marched toward the worn wooden door. She had just yanked it open to leave the barn when Dad caught her around her belt loop. He swung her around to face him.

  “Listen here, little girl—and, yeah, you’ll always be my little girl. I don’t care how old you get. I do know you, better than you think, and as your daddy, I reserve the right to be a—an ogre to anyone who gets the idea he’s gonna manhandle you.”

  “Vance didn’t ‘manhandle’ me.”

  “Good, because that boy’s known his share of trouble and I’d hate to think he’s backsliding.”

  “So sharing a kiss makes us bad people?”

  “Maybe. Maybe not. Now, this is what I’ve told Kelly. I told her—”

  “Oh, spare me, will you? Kelly is sixteen.”

  “I told you, age don’t matter.”

  “And I’m telling you that I don’t need this daddy lecture at this point in my life.” Meg stared hard at her father, her throat constricting with a sudden onset of emotion. Tears of hurt and frustration began burning the backs of her eyes. “Where were you ten years ago when I needed—and wanted—your protection? You weren’t a part of my life then.”

  Her father’s features softened. “I tried, Meggie.”

  “No, you didn’t.”

  “You’re wrong.” He glanced at his boots before lifting his gaze.

  “You always paid your child support, is that what you mean to say? That’s how you were there for me, making sure guys didn’t ‘manhandle’ me? And my once-a-year weekly visits to your neatly kept horse farm in the country? That gives you daddy rights over me?”

  He ran a hand through his rust-colored hair. “I tried.” His voice sounded hoarse, weary. “I really tried…”

  She wasn’t sure what that meant, he tried, but she decided not to pursue the matter. Not now. Not here. Besides, she already felt a stab of guilt for flinging the past at him, especially as the rest of his family had been so warm and welcoming since her arrival in Miracle.

  “Okay, Dad, well, look—” She searched for the right words. “I’m sorry if I offended or embarrassed you by kissing Vance. I’ll be more careful in the future. But despite what you might think, I do care about how you and this whole community view me. I want to be a respected and effective schoolteacher.”

  Dad rubbed his jaw, looking thoughtful.

  “As for the rest—” Words seemed to fail her. There seemed to be no way to verbalize the intense feelings that had surfaced. She gave up. “Let’s just forget it, all right? The past is dead and gone and maybe I was wrong to resurrect it.”

  With that, Meg exited the stable. She couldn’t help letting the door slam shut behind her as she left.

  Chapter Sixteen

  Vance tinkered with the engine from Arnie Stiller’s ATV, but his heart wasn’t in his work. True, it was a gloomy Monday morning, and his own motor wasn’t fully functioning yet. But the reality was that his thoughts were stalled on Meg and on what had transpired between them a couple of days ago. That kiss had taken them both by surprise.

  All day Saturday he’d had a hard time taking his eyes off of her. Her golden hair and expressive blue eyes, combined with her quick wit and genuine warmth, had all worked together to capture his senses. He hadn’t felt so enamored since the days he and Angie dated, and he had a hard time coming to grips with the fact.

  Was falling in love again a real possibility? Kissing Meg made him believe it was. His thinking had turned.

  He only hoped Meg didn’t have regrets. They hadn’t exchanged more than a few sentences since Saturday afternoon. Sure, she had assured him that everything was “fine,” but he sensed that it really wasn’t. And he felt responsible. In addition, he had to admit that Paul Jorgenson still made an imposing figure. When he started up with those authoritative glares, Vance didn’t know whether to laugh or turn tail and run like a delinquent thirteen-year-old boy.

  Well, at thirty-three, he wasn’t a boy. But twenty years ago it was a whole different story. Back then, he was a delinquent, and fathers had good cause to be concerned for their daughters with Vance anywhere in the vicinity. All that had changed when he turned his life over to God. Studying the Word changed his thinking. Even so, he knew that plenty of times folks around here got their minds stuck in the past and couldn’t distinguish between then and now. Seemed Meg’s dad was one of those folks.

  He picked up a nearby rag and wiped the grease off his hands. Another cup of coffee was in order.

  In the shop’s staff lounge, he filled a plastic mug with dark, steaming brew from the automatic maker that ran practically all day long. Taking a sip, he thought about this mo
rning when he’d dropped Cammy off at school. Meg had seemed as pleasant as always. Her smile could make him forget the dreary weather. Her eyes were the color of a cloudless sky.

  “Hey, Bayer!”

  Vance jerked to attention as Andy Smith walked into the lounge. As one of the salesman who worked out front, he wore dress pants, shirt, and tie, whereas the repairmen in the shop, like Vance, sported uniforms and overalls that were usually stained with motor oil.

  “Some dude’s in the store, asking for you,” Andy said, eyeing the coffee.

  “Repair question, or what?”

  “No clue. Go talk to ’im, will you?” Andy walked to the coffee maker and began filling a cup. “He’s being kind of insistent and won’t tell me anything.”

  “All right.” Vance dragged himself from the lounge and, coffee in hand, walked into the brightly lit storefront. Shiny new items hung neatly on hooks and, on the adjacent wall, various automotive parts lined the shelves. As he entered the area, he almost missed a step when he saw Paul Jorgenson waiting for him.

  Vance greeted him with a polite nod. “What can I do for you?”

  “Wanted a word with you.” His casual but professional attire resembled Andy’s, and Vance had the feeling that Meg’s dad had come here straight from his job at the Panasonic plant in Danville. “Got a minute?”

  “Sure.”

  “How about we step outside?”

  Vance set down his coffee mug behind the counter, then held out his arm toward the glass-paned door. “After you.”

  As he stood on the pavement beneath the shop’s canvas awning, Vance watched the older man shift his weight from one foot to another. He seemed to grope for words.

  Finally, he said, “Meg told me I needed to apologize to you. I thought it over and decided she’s right. You two aren’t children.”

  “Apology accepted.”

  “Now, hold on.” He raised his hand to forestall further remarks. “I ain’t finished yet.”

  Vance grinned and folded his arms.

  “Me and Meg had a talk—well, first she told me off, and I might have deserved it. But last evening she come over to the house, and we had one of those ol’ heart-to-hearts, you know? Shoulda talked like that years ago. But, well—it’s hard with kids. And then they grow up—”

  “I think I know what you’re trying to say.” Vance had to respect the guy for dialoguing with Meg. Said a lot about his character.

  “Meg said you’re a fine man and I believe you are.”

  “Appreciate it.” Vance was encouraged to hear he was still in good standing with her.

  “And to show you I mean it, I want to ask you and your little girl to my house for supper tonight. Meg’ll be there, too.”

  Confusion engulfed him. “But I saw Meg this morning and she didn’t mention—”

  “That’s because she wanted me to do the apologizing and the inviting.”

  “I see.” Vance sent him an empathetic grin. He knew firsthand that it wasn’t easy to choke down one’s pride, but Paul was doing a good job. “I’m grateful for your invitation, and Cammy and me’d love to come to supper tonight. Thanks.”

  He bobbed his head, looking genuinely pleased. “Come about six thirty.”

  “Will do.” The thought of seeing Meg again on a social level sent a thrill right through him. One thing was for sure, he’d be watching his p’s and q’s this time.

  Paul stuck out his right hand.

  Vance accepted it in a friendly shake. Then he set his hands on his hips and gazed at the sky. As the store was on a hill, he could see a band of blue stretched across the horizon. “You know, I think the weather’s clearing.”

  “Son,” Paul drawled, “I think you’re right.”

  Meg stood to help her stepmom clear the dining room table.

  “Relax. You’re company tonight.” Donna glanced across the table. “Kelly will help me.”

  The sixteen-year-old pressed her lips together in displeasure, but she didn’t argue.

  Meg settled back in her chair and looked over at Vance. They exchanged polite smiles. An air of awkwardness filled the formal, oak-furnished dining room. She guessed the reason for the discomfort was the general unfamiliarity between these people. Small talk dominated the conversation. Still, she was glad that Dad suggested this dinner of recompense.

  Lifting her water goblet, Meg took a sip and regarded Vance from beneath her lashes. He’d been kind enough to pick her up at Grams’ house after he’d stopped home and changed out of his work clothes. Now, as he sat across the table from her, he didn’t appear uncomfortable, although he’d been relatively quiet during dinner. His attire was just as subdued as his demeanor: faded blue jeans and a plum long-sleeved, button-down shirt. After Saturday’s kiss at the stable, Meg felt sure she was falling for the guy. But was that wise? She’d recently ended a bad relationship, and Vance had just broken up with someone, too. Meg hated to think their attraction to one another could be some sort of rebound, and yet she wondered. She couldn’t help feeling curious, too, about his deceased wife. Meg had never dated a widower before. Had Vance been a good husband? Was he faithful?

  “What’s your grammaw doin’ tonight, Meg?” Donna asked, carrying in a plate of brownies.

  “Not sure. Didn’t have time to ask.”

  “Must be boring over there,” Ryan said. He removed two brownies from the plate and shoved one into his mouth. They were hardly bite-sized.

  Meg couldn’t help grinning at her brother and the bulge in his cheek. “I haven’t had time to be bored.”

  “My friend Sasha Donahue said you’re going to her house for supper tomorrow night,” Cammy said.

  “That’s right. I’ve gotten so many dinner invitations from my students that I’m going to have to create a special social calendar.”

  “How do you stand the excitement?” The sarcasm in Ryan’s voice was unmistakable, but Meg caught the twinkle in his eye.

  Kelly excused herself and rushed away from the table. Meg looked at her dad and then at Donna. Both shrugged.

  “Her cell phone’s probably ringing,” Dad muttered.

  “Daddy, can I ever get a cell phone?” Cammy asked from where she sat beside Meg. Although her wheelchair wasn’t quite high enough for her to reach the table comfortably, the little girl never complained and had minded her manners all evening. “Maybe when I’m in high school?”

  “I think we’ve got some time before deciding on that.” Vance sent his daughter an affectionate wink.

  “Cell phones are amazing as long as you keep them charged up and don’t forget to turn them on,” Meg said with a grin. “I miss more calls. I hardly use the thing.”

  “You are such an old lady, Meg,” Ryan teased. “No wonder you’re not bored at Grams’ house.”

  Meg was tempted to retaliate by throwing a chunk of her brownie at him, but then she remembered that she was a dignified school teacher.

  Ryan’s blue eyes danced with amusement.

  “So this is what it’s like to have a pesky little brother, huh?”

  “I wish I had a little brother,” Cammy said.

  Meg nearly choked on her mouthful of chewy chocolate. Vance turned a shade of crimson, and Ryan, Donna, and Dad laughed.

  “Maybe you can get a puppy, instead,” Meg offered diplomatically.

  Cammy gasped, and an expression of sheer joy washed over her face. “Oh, I’d rather have a puppy than a little brother any day.”

  Chortles echoed around the table.

  “Ta-dum!”

  Everyone turned to see Kelly, standing at the doorway in a semi-formal dress, a slinky emerald creation that left very little to the imagination.

  “What do you think? For the homecoming dance next month? Actually, it’s only three weeks away.”

  “Looks like one of them things that goes under the dress,” Dad said.

  “A slip,” Donna clarified.

  “Right. So now you need to put on your dress, Kel. And I’d like to remind y
ou that we have company.”

  “This is the dress, Daddy.”

  “Well, you ain’t leaving this house looking like that.”

  Kelly huffed, placing her hands on her hips. “Meg, what do you think?”

  “I think maybe I agree with Dad on this one.”

  “Ol’ lady,” Ryan muttered.

  Meg feigned a glower. She’d get even.

  Meanwhile, Kelly pouted out her disappointment. “Oh, all right, then. Let me model the other two dresses. Y’all can tell me which one you like best.”

  “Dad, please don’t let her.” Ryan scrunched up his face like he’d taken a bite of bad sushi.

  Vance sat by, looking embarrassed.

  Dad noticed. “How ’bout a little Monday Night Football for us fellas?”

  “Sounds all right to me.” Vance looked at his daughter and then at Meg.

  “Cammy can stay here with us girls,” she said, seeing the questions in his eyes. “We’ll watch the fashion show.”

  “Yay, yay, yay!” Cammy cheered.

  The men rose from their chairs and departed, Dad talking up his new, wide-screen HDTV.

  Minutes later, Kelly returned. This time she wore a pearl dress with a high neckline, lacy bodice, and blue satin sash.

  “Oh, my!” Cammy seemed awestruck. “That’s the most beautiful dress I ever saw.”

  Meg disagreed. “You look like Mary Poppins, Kel.” She started singing. “‘Everyday’s a holiday with you, Bert…’”

  Kelly heaved a tired-sounding sigh. “Great. Just great.”

  Donna laughed, and Meg thought she’d never seen her stepmother so amused before. The woman actually looked pretty when she relaxed and smiled. Meg wondered why she’d never noticed before.

  “Okay, I’ll try on the last dress. I hope y’all like it,” Kelly drawled, “or I’m back at square one.”

  “How ’bout some coffee, Meg?”

  She nodded at her stepmom’s offer. “Thanks.”

  “Cammy, would you like something more to eat or drink?”