The First Ladies Club Box Set
Page 87
“I was so scared,” she gulped, stepping back and looking embarrassed.
“This has been quite a day,” Gideon laughed. “Now, how about that celebration dinner? Who’s hungry?”
…
The following Sunday, Shebana joined the Hopkins family for dinner after church.
Hope served a pork loin she’d popped into the slow cooker with root beer and spices before going to church.
Placing a basket of steaming corn muffins onto the table beside a bowl of tossed salad, Shebana called out, “Dinner’s on the table, you two. Get it while it’s hot!”
Gideon and Dawn, who had been in a fierce battle for supremacy in the Mario Kart video game, put down their controllers and came to the table as Hope added a dish of buttered noodles to the spread.
When they were seated, the family joined hands for Gideon’s prayer of thanksgiving.
“Amen!” Dawn said, reaching for the basket of muffins and putting two onto her plate.
“Please pass the honey,” she said.
“Dawn, please don’t fill up on muffins before at least trying the rest of the meal,” Hope said as the girl slathered a muffin with butter.
“You already sound just like somebody’s mother, Hope,” Shebana teased, glancing at Dawn to see the girl’s reaction.
“That’s because I already am,” Hope said, proudly. “And the practice I’m getting with my daughter is going to make me a better mother to her little brother or sister.”
Dawn looked up and grinned with muffin crumbs dotting her lips.
“Guess I’d better have some meat and salad,” she said.
After dinner, Gideon and Dawn went back to their video game while Hope and Shebana cleaned up.
“So, whatever happened to that foster mother from hell?” Shebana asked, scraping a dish into the garbage disposal.
“They caught up with her just this side of the California border. She’s been arrested for neglect and fraud. I think she’ll go to jail, but at the very least, she’ll never be allowed to care for vulnerable children ever again,” Hope said with some satisfaction.
“And what about that guy who attacked you?” Shebana asked.
“Well, he’s in this country illegally, so I guess he might be deported. I’ll feel better if he stays safely locked-up, though. I’m not sure how all that gets handled,” Hope replied with a frown.
“Wasn’t there another man involved in the first attack?”
“Yes, but he’s disappeared,” Hope said. “I feel like he’s gone for good.”
“You’ve had an interesting few months since marrying my little brother. You couldn’t have imagined you’d have those wild adventures while camping, or that you would be petitioning to adopt a teenager and be expecting a baby, too.”
Hope chuckled. “I certainly didn’t foresee any of this. In fact, my biggest worry was fitting into the life of Gideon’s church and not embarrassing him with my efforts.”
“How’s that working out for you?” Shebana grinned.
“Seriously, I feel like I’ve found my calling. The church people are so accepting and loving. I can relax and be myself, warts and all.”
“I never noticed any warts. You must cover them well,” Shebana teased.
“Are you going to keep working with the youth group?”
“Yes. After all they went through, the Millers felt like stepping back, at least for a bit. They asked if I’d take over leadership and let them be my helpers. It’s the perfect solution. I can rely on their experience while taking on the more stressful aspects of the role. We may have to revisit the division of labor after the baby comes, but we’ll cross that bridge when we get to it,” Hope explained.
“Hey, you two!” Gideon called from the other room. “This reckless driving speed-demon wants to challenge you to a race. She says I’m not enough of a challenge.”
“I’ll be right there,” Shebana responded. “I can teach Dawn how a real champion does it.”
Hope remained in the quiet kitchen for a few moments gazing out the window at a few golden leaves falling through the clear, autumn sunshine onto their back garden.
Hearing her family laughing together in the other room, she smiled.
She breathed a personal prayer of thanksgiving, patted her stomach, and joined the others while humming a hymn from that morning’s church service, God is So Good.
Fiction by J. B. HAWKER
The Tillamook Tillie Series
Mrs. Thistlethwaite and the Magpie
Mrs. Thistlethwaite and the
Whippersnapper
Mrs. Thistlethwaite and a Shadow of Doubt
The First Ladies Club Series
The First Ladies Club
A Body in the Belfry
A Corpse in the Chapel
Shadows of Hope
The Bunny Elder Novels
Hollow
Vain Pursuits
Seadrift
...And Something Blue
Short Story Collections
Cozy Christmas Sweets
Cozy Campfire Shorts
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