He’d tossed those 600-count sheets into the washer before he came down to the store this morning. If they felt half as good on his skin as Sierra claimed, he’d be in heaven tonight when he slid between them. Maybe one day he’d share his bed with Sierra. Now that would be heaven indeed.
The bell above the door jangled as someone came in.
Gabe rounded the end of the shelves to greet his first customer of the day.
Tyrell Burke filled the doorway in black jeans and a leather jacket. He tipped his black cowboy hat at Gabe then glanced around. “It sure does look busy to me, Rubachuk.”
“Hey, Burke.” He’d let that remark slide. “What can I do for you today?”
Burke lifted a manila envelope and dropped it on the counter beside him. “Just brought you the stuff for Sunday school. Glad to give it up to you.”
The guy made it nearly impossible for Gabe to hold his tongue. “Might as well take it right back with you, man. I never said I’d do it.”
The bigger man shrugged. “Well, who else?”
“You? You’re the one who agreed.”
Burke shook his head. “Temporary fill-in is all. I’ve been away a lot, and that doesn’t make old man Graysen very happy, I can tell you. But I’m a busy guy, and when the weather’s right for bees, I need to be out there working them.”
The window behind the counter framed a gray sky that hadn’t bothered to lighten up much for daytime. Unrelenting rain blasted by all but horizontally. Gabe might not know a lot about bees, but this didn’t look like a day for outside work. Besides, hadn’t Sierra said something about getting the hives ready for winter last week?
Sierra. When Burke had tried to pin this on Gabe before, he’d been unsure of his long-term plans. Now he was dreaming of making a home in the apartment upstairs with Sierra. She had picked him over Burke. He could afford to be magnanimous to the loser.
Besides, he liked the kids. They deserved better than Burke.
Gabe jutted his chin toward the manila envelope. “What’re you guys studying these days?”
“Bunch of stuff from Paul’s letters. Themes more than stories.”
“Like?”
Burke shrugged. “Forgiveness. Seeking God’s will. That sort of thing.”
At least he’d read the material. Probably.
“Look, Rubachuk. It’s not that I don’t believe this stuff, but it’s kind of new to me. Found out about Jesus a couple of years ago. I’m really not knowledgeable enough to answer these kids’ questions.”
Gabe’s heart softened a little. “They ask some doozies all right.”
“I don’t know where they get them from.”
“You must’ve had a lot of questions, too. That’s what sent you searching for God, right?”
Burke’s eyebrows pulled together. “Yeah. I guess.”
“Who answered yours?”
“Preacher dude in California. Pastor Ron at the church here, somewhat.”
“But you had someone.”
“Your point?”
“My point is that these questions the kids ask, they’re real. And if you don’t know the answers, go searching. Ask Pastor Ron, or maybe the other guy via email. Or Ed Graysen. You’ll learn a lot and be able to help the kids.”
Burke stared at him for a long moment before slowly shaking his head. “I get what you’re saying, Rubachuk, but it’s not working. Some of these kids were practically born in that church building. They haven’t missed a Sunday in their entire lives. They’re way ahead of me.”
Gabe had so not seen this conversation coming. “You can teach them to be real. Where the rubber meets the road. It’s a genuine problem for kids who’ve been sheltered. Some of them are totally unprepared to make their own decisions.”
“Nice try, Rubachuk. I’m not convinced. I still need you to take it over again. Think of it as a favor I did you for a while.”
“Uh.” But he did have a heart for those tweens, and he wasn’t really thinking of leaving town anymore, right? Not with things looking good with Sierra and his business solidly in the black? “Well, okay, Burke. One condition.”
Those bushy brows rode up into the cowboy hat’s brim. “What’s that?”
“I’ll need a substitute occasionally myself. Can I call on you?”
“Yeah. Maybe.” Burke stared hard at him. “There might be a condition to that, too.”
“Oh?”
“I’ve seen how you look at my girl, Rubachuk. Time to forget those thoughts. She’s mine. I can offer her way more than you ever will.” He glanced around the old store again, shook his head, and reached for the door handle behind him.
A threat? Or what? A multitude of reactions raced through Gabe, hot and cold. But it didn’t matter what Burke said. It was Sierra who’d made the decision, and she’d chosen Gabe. He couldn’t imagine her kissing Burke the way she’d kissed him. Nor did he want to.
* * *
Sierra shook her head and stalked straight across the waiting room and out the clinic doors, Chelsea scrambling to catch up.
“I was right in the middle of a Reader’s Digest joke. Couldn’t you have waited three seconds?”
Sierra bit the inside of her lip. “No.”
“Hey, I was kidding. Wait up.”
Why did she have Chelsea along when all she wanted was to process the information Dr. Wilburn had given her after that horrid pelvic exam? Yeah, she knew. Because she’d never have come if her sister hadn’t pretty much forced her. But now. Oh man. But now…
She jerked the passenger door of Chelsea’s car open and slid inside. If she’d had waves of pain before, this was a tsunami. A lot of it was in her gut, but much was in her heart, surging up her throat, pouring out her eyes.
Chelsea climbed in on the other side. “Talk to me. What’d he say?”
“He’s sending me for an ultrasound to be sure.”
“Okay.” Chelsea sounded less certain. “What does he suspect? Sierra, you haven’t been sleeping with that beekeeper guy, have you?”
“No!” The word sprang from Sierra’s lips. She stared at her sister. “How can you even think that?”
“Well, aren’t ultrasounds for keeping an eye on a developing baby?”
“Not only. They can see lots of other issues in the abdominal area with them, too.”
“Like…”
“Like endometriosis. For instance.”
“What’s that?”
“It’s when cells normally found inside the uterus are outside, so instead of being flushed away, they build up and cause issues.”
“What kind of problems?”
Sierra shrugged. “He said the scar tissue on my uterus was among the worst he’s seen.”
“So he’s seen this before?”
“Oh yeah. I’m not unusual. Just at the bad end of a nasty spectrum.”
“So if he’s sure that’s what it is, what will the ultrasound prove?” Chelsea shot her a worried glance. “Does he think it’s cancer?”
Sierra took a deep shaky breath and let it out as slowly as she could. “I’m not sure.” But it was the first place her brain had slid, too. “Auntie Pam.”
“Mom’s sister?”
“Yeah. She had a hysterectomy because of uterine cancer, but it had gotten elsewhere, too.”
“She died.”
Sierra nodded. “About a year later. I was twelve.”
“So I was nine. No wonder I don’t remember it as much. Well, we can beat this thing, sis. We just need to trust God and do our part. Stay positive.” She quirked a grin. “Trust the doctors.”
“Yeah.” Sierra found no enthusiasm to pour into the word.
“I hate returning to Portland with things the way they are, but it can’t be helped. I’ll come back as soon as I can, but at least you have really good friends here. We’ll let everyone know so they can pray and support you.”
“No.” Some things were meant to stay private.
“What do you mean, no? I thought you guys told e
ach other everything. It’s one of the things I envy most about your set-up here. How close you all are.”
“I need time to process this. Don’t tell.” Gabe. Oh, Gabe. He wanted a family so badly.
A puzzled frown crossed Chelsea’s face. “Well, they all know we went to the clinic. They’ll ask.”
“Promise me you won’t tell.” Sierra choked on the words.
Chelsea put the car in gear. “For now.”
Chapter 19
Sierra sat at the head of the long farmhouse table on Wednesday morning with Jo and Claire on one side and Allison and Chelsea on the other. It still seemed strange not to be at Nature’s Pantry most days, especially now that most of the garden produce had been brought in and processed for winter. What was she going to do with all her free time once the sauerkraut crocks were full? She’d always meant to take up quilting…
“I really like what I’ve seen around here the past few days.” Allison set her iPad on its Bluetooth keyboard. “You’ve been here for three and a half years now, and you’ve accomplished a lot.”
“Our initial hopes were to do more.” Claire took a sip of hot mint tea. “But life has a way of taking over.”
“We weren’t expecting Zach and Noel,” Jo put in with a grin.
Thanks for the reminder Sierra was the only single one. Maybe that would change, and maybe it wouldn’t. It might be nice having Allison around, just in case.
“They did bring in some different dimensions,” Claire agreed. “Zach came with more land to work, which is both a pro and a con. And Noel’s idea of guiding fishing and hunting tours in the mountains has changed things, too.”
“As well as helping with the farm’s bottom line,” said Jo.
Claire nodded. “So we’re in a more solid financial situation than we were, but still having trouble forging ahead to the next stage of the dream.”
“But you did run some weekend workshops this past summer?” Allison’s fingers poised over the miniscule keyboard.
“Three,” said Sierra. “Plus the longer one that got the duplex mostly erected. We hosted several weddings and one family reunion. It seems there’s always plenty to do without taking the big plunge.”
Chelsea laughed. “Sounds like you guys need me as much as you need Allison. I live to organize.” She batted her eyelashes at Sierra.
Sierra smirked. “She does, at that. However, she’s actually good at it.”
Jo and Claire exchanged a glance before Jo leaned forward. “Allison, what do you see going forward? What can you offer?”
The young woman tucked a strand of long black hair behind her ear and tapped her screen. “I’d like to offer several four-week modules. Principles of organic farming and gardening, managing the soil, selecting and seeding crops, food preservation. That kind of thing.” She glanced up. “We can train people to run market gardens. I bet we can even hook up with the woofer program.”
“The what?” Claire looked as perplexed as Sierra felt.
“Woofer. It stands for worldwide opportunities on organic farms. It’s a volunteer program where people interested in learning the lifestyle can work on a farm in exchange for room and board.”
“Wow, I didn’t know anything like that existed,” said Jo. “Is it new?”
“Not new, but gaining ground.” Allison grinned. “No pun intended. I woofed one winter on an Argentinean farm and spent another summer in California. It was a great experience, and I see no reason we couldn’t implement it here. We have a lot to offer. Or I should say, you do…”
Her voice trailed away.
Sierra thought for a moment. “We can offer other things, too. The workshop on straw bale building was well received. We actually had more interest than we could capitalize on. And people are interested in solar power and unconventional water systems.” She shot a glance at her sister. “We didn’t make the best of the opportunity. Didn’t stay focused. Part of that was my fault, I guess. I got so busy working with Doreen at Nature’s Pantry, I kind of ignored work at the farm. Though it did help pay the bills.”
“Here’s the thing. I can invest this much money into something.” Allison looked at each of them in turn and named a generous figure. “Would I be able to build a home and classroom here? In keeping with the over-all ideology of the place, of course.”
“Our zoning does allow it,” Claire said slowly, glancing from Jo to Sierra.
They were obviously going to need a discussion between the three of them, as well as Zach and Noel, but the potential seemed clear.
“You laid out good possibilities in the email,” Sierra said. “Very in line with our original plans.”
“There’s a level area beside the driveway right beside Thompson Road,” Jo put in. “We run the chickens there now, but that’s only because we can’t be bothered to mow it.”
“We meant to get a goat,” said Claire.
Jo rolled her eyes. “The chicken coop is easily moved, remember? We put that on skids so we could drag it with the tractor.”
“That’s a good spot,” Sierra ventured. “And, um, if we go forward with this, I’ve got a spare room you can stay in until your place goes up.”
“Hey, don’t give away my pink room,” protested Chelsea. “I want in on this, too.”
“It’d be nice to have someone administer the whole thing,” Jo agreed, eyeing Chelsea. “I’m best at just digging in and doing the work. Being polite to idiots has never been my strong suit.”
Chelsea chuckled. “Most of them aren’t idiots. They just need a gentle touch.”
“Yeah, well. That’s not me. Ask Maddie, even.”
The little girl was scooting a toy bike around the great room, contented for once, if not exactly quiet. Maybe it helped that Domino was outside. She had a hard time leaving the dog alone.
“This seems as good a time to mention it as any.” Jo leaned forward, her fingers twined around her mug of chamomile tea. “We’re expecting again.”
Sierra didn’t miss the glance between Jo and Claire. She hated feeling left out. Were Claire and Noel trying? She didn’t even know.
The rampant cells on her uterus clenched. Lots of women with endometriosis had trouble conceiving. Some never could. Which would be her kind of luck, especially with the strong desire Gabe had for a family.
On the other hand, Tyrell didn’t. And he was a nice guy, too. She could be really happy with him. Without kids. Couldn’t she?
“Congratulations!” The word came from all the other mouths.
Claire reached over and hugged Jo.
Sierra managed a smile. Hopefully it looked genuine. “That’s great!” If only she could be truly happy for her friends. She wanted to be.
* * *
Gabe thumbed through his mail as he walked from the post office to the store. A few bills, a couple of cards — birthday cards? — and a large manila envelope. He stared at the yellow paper for a moment, his eyes finally registering the mark in the top left corner.
North Idaho College.
He’d almost forgotten requesting a catalog. He’d gone online since then and perused their offerings, but hadn’t immediately thought to go that route on the heels of three years in Eastern Europe.
Gabe stuck his key in the lock of Nature’s Pantry before realizing the door was unlocked and the lights were on.
His heart leaped. Sierra? He hadn’t seen her since Monday evening when he’d kissed her goodnight.
“Hi, Gabe.”
Doreen, not Sierra. He managed a smile for the woman who’d meant so much to him for years. “Good morning, Doreen. I didn’t expect you in today.”
She shrugged. “The bee stings have helped my rheumatoid arthritis so much I got bored sitting at home. I thought I’d come down and see what I could do to help.”
“I hate to take advan—”
“Oh, you’re not. Find me a task. Please.”
Deep in thought, Gabe set his mail down on the counter. What could he get Doreen to do? She might be feeling b
etter, but that didn’t mean she was up for moving shelving or restocking the shelves with yesterday’s freight delivery. Hmm.
“What’s this?” Doreen fingered the college envelope. “Is there something you forgot to tell me?”
He pushed it aside. “Not really.” Not anymore.
Doreen raised her eyebrows. “They don’t send these out to every mailbox. How did you get on their mailing list? Are you thinking of going back to school?”
She wasn’t going to let it go.
“I wasn’t sure what I was planning to do when I first got back. Thought I’d analyze some options.” He’d actually moved on from the local college system and looked in greater depth at larger universities in far-off cities. Places with no ties to memories of Bethany. Good thing a catalog for Oregon State or UCLA hadn’t shown up under Doreen’s watchful eye.
She crossed her arms. “Gabe, I thought we were passed this point. You know I can’t take care of the store. Why didn’t you even talk to me about this?”
Gabe’s jaw tightened. “I was looking into options, I said. This has nothing to do with you.”
“Nothing to do with me? When I’ve run this store for you for three years? How can you say that?”
“Look, Doreen. I’ve got no plans to go back to school, okay? I wasn’t running on the assumption I could ask you to stay here forever.”
“Who else? Sierra has her own… wait a minute. I get it.”
Gabe looked at her hopefully. He didn’t really want to talk about his relationship with Sierra yet. Not with Doreen of all people. This town contained far too many people interested in his future.
“You are going to sell Nature’s Pantry.” She pressed her hand to her chest. “I can’t believe it. Oh, Gabe.”
That was last month. Not now. “Doreen, honestly. I ordered this ages ago, on a whim. There’s no need to read so much into it. I’m not going anywhere.”
“Really? But all you and Sierra seem to do is fight.”
Okay, he could not keep the grin from his face anymore. “Not quite all.”
A Farm Fresh Romance Series 1-3 (A Farm Fresh Romance Box Set) Page 66