by Delia Latham
“Thank you!” She fingered the soft fabric of the tunic. “I actually love vintage clothing and tend toward exactly this kind of look when I’m not on the air.”
“I can see why.” Autumn glanced around the room. “Does anything else in here need to leave this room with you?”
She picked up a couple sheets of folded paper off the tray table. “Just my release papers. I’m all set.”
“Then let’s go get your brother and find a better place to be.”
Tap-tap-tap. Tap-tap-tap.
“What in the world?” Autumn’s verbal reaction accompanied the physical response of all three women as they swung toward the window.
“Is that cardinal trying to get inside?” Summer asked.
Winter shrugged. “I’m not sure, but he’s been tapping at that window on and off the whole time I’ve been here.”
The other two women locked gazes and something passed between them. Neither spoke, but smiles pulled at the corners of their lips.
“What?” Winter narrowed her gaze. Had she missed something?
“Nothing…but I have a feeling you haven’t seen the last of your little feathered friend.” Autumn strode toward the door, fiery hair swinging around her face. “Come on. Let’s find Kai and Russ and get out of here.”
6
Winter followed the other women down the hall. She’d seen her brother only once since they were hospitalized—for a glance and a quick wave when a nurse pushed him past her door on the way to some kind of scan on his aching but uninjured head.
Dr. Julia Rafferty sat in a chair at one side of Kai’s bed, his chart open on her lap. A handsome, sandy-haired man stood on the other side, facing the door. His gaze flew to Autumn and something in his eyes made Winter look away. This was Russ, of course.
Would a man ever look at her like that?
“Hey, look who’s all set to face the world.” Dr. Rafferty’s pleasant voice eased the tension in Winter’s soul. “How does it feel to wear real clothes again, Kalani?”
Her brother’s delighted grin elicited a silent, slit-eyed warning from Winter. “It’s Winter. Please.”
“Oh!” The attractive doctor frowned. “Did someone mess up in admitting? Because I’m certain your chart said—”
“No one messed up.” Winter managed a smile she hoped was reassuring. “Kalani is the name on my birth certificate, but I no longer use it. I’m Winter now, and I’ll soon have the paperwork to make it legal.”
“OK, I’ll make a note of it. Just making sure our staff didn’t drop the ball.” She swung back toward the bed. “Don’t forget your promise, Kai. If the pain in your head worsens, even a little, I want you back here immediately. If you experience lightheadedness or nausea or—”
“I get it, Doc.” Kai raised a hand in surrender. “Any pain, any sickness—even a thought that’s not my normal kind of thinking—and I’ll hotfoot it right back here.”
“Exactly.” The doctor hesitated and then turned to Winter. “I need just a moment or two alone with my patient. Would you all please wait in the hallway?”
“Of course.” Winter hesitated. Was something wrong? Had Kai hidden any injuries from her?
“I’m OK, sis, don’t worry.” Kai’s soothing voice gave her only minimal relief.
Dr. Rafferty’s eyes widened. “I’m sorry if I frightened you. Kai’s right…he’s doing very well. I just need to discuss one little matter in private.”
Winter followed Russ and the other two women into the hallway.
Autumn introduced her fiancé, and the four of them chatted in low tones until the doctor joined them.
Dr. Rafferty smiled. “He should be ready in a few moments. Winter, what I said to your brother goes for you as well. If anything changes in your condition, even something small and seemingly unimportant, I want to know about it. Remember that I’m not releasing either of you for at least a week. Don’t leave the area until after we set the appointments.”
“So, we’re prisoners?” Winter was only half kidding.
The attractive doctor’s wide smile and twinkling eyes helped ease any possible sting in her unyielding reply. “For the time being, absolutely.”
“Nui. Pono nui.” Dr. Rafferty probably didn’t understand Winter’s sarcastic response, and Winter made no effort to enlighten her. Great. Just great. The comment required no response anyway.
Paradise, in Winter’s opinion, was the perfect name for the lodge Miss Angie owned. Or was she a manager? No one had said.
The evening of their release from the hospital, she and her brother sat on the upper deck in comfortable lounge chairs, enjoying a peace so intense it was almost tangible. Birds chirped and sang from a bazillion trees in various species and shades of green. Squirrels bounced around on the expansive lawn and scampered up and down tree trunks. Deer peeked out from the sheltering woods, now and then venturing out of the trees to explore the lodge grounds. Rabbits hopped about on the lawn as if no harm could come to them in this place.
“Do you love it here as much as I do?” Kai asked quietly, interrupting Winter’s observation of their surroundings.
“Well, I can’t deny the beauty, and it’s certainly peaceful. ‘Love’ might be a little over the top, but I’d say it’s a wonderful place to visit.”
“Mau loa. I’d be content to stay forever.”
Winter laughed. “Kai, this lodge is all you’ve really seen of Cambria. You don’t know that.”
“I do. I don’t know how to explain it, but the moment I stepped onto Paradise Pines property, I knew I’d come home.”
He was serious.
Winter’s heart pinched. Could she handle living several hours from Kai? Their jobs kept them from seeing each other as often as they’d like, but they’d always been secure in knowing only a mile or two separated them. Cornelius Cove, almost five hours north of Cambria, seemed an entire world away when she thought of being that far from her brother.
“Look, Sis.” Kai’s whisper held a note of urgency. He nodded toward the far end of the deck.
Following his gaze, Winter gasped.
A male cardinal perched on the railing, brilliant red feathers glistening in what remained of the sunlight. But surely he was just some random cardinal, probably one of many in the area. This couldn’t be the same bird who’d kept her entertained at the hospital.
Could it?
What was it about Paradise Pines that made her think anything was possible?
She couldn’t look away. She was absolutely certain the bird’s little black eyes were fixed on her. And then he opened his shiny, orange-red beak and sang.
Winter and Kai sat transfixed, neither of them able or willing to look away.
Having trilled his little heart out, the cardinal lifted a foot or two off the railing and hovered there. Then he tilted to the left and fluttered his right wing, keeping the other one close to his body. With barely a break between, he then repeated the process in reverse—tilting to the right, his left wing spread and beating a rapid rhythm in the air.
“Is this really happening?” Winter whispered.
“I’m not sure.” Kai’s response was barely loud enough to be heard. “I’ve never seen anything like it.”
The cardinal then dove across the length of the deck and landed on the railing next to Winter’s chair. He sang again, a different tune entirely. Following the last note of his beautiful aria, he lifted his head and emitted a couple of soft, low sounds, a bit like a rattling purr. Churr, churr!
Brother and sister watched, fascinated. The bird seemed to know he had their attention. After the last churr, he lifted once more into the air, and then soared off into the trees.
Winter couldn’t find her breath for a moment. Finally, she hauled in a lungful of air and slowly turned her head toward Kai. He was staring at her, eyes wide, lips curved into a sideways grin. He opened his mouth to speak, but Winter held up a hand and shook her head.
Without a word, she stoo
d and walked into the apartment.
Kai followed, but he stared out toward the trees for a long time before he closed and locked the door.
She wanted to tell him about the cardinal at the hospital, but why? Not only was it unbelievable, but it had to be pure coincidence. She smothered a sigh. “I think I’ll make an early night of it. Do you mind?”
“Of course not.” His brows drew together. “You’re OK?”
“A little tired, that’s all.” She smiled, hoping to ease his concern. “And your leg is killing me.”
Her brother’s low chuckle followed her down the hall and into her room.
Brady knocked on Miss Angie’s door the next morning, not really expecting her to answer. He’d rarely found her at home, unless she was expecting him. He had no idea where she went all the time—or how she got there, since she didn’t own a vehicle—but it didn’t change the facts. Everyone who knew Miss Angie had learned to schedule a visit if they expected to find her at the lodge.
The door swung open and there she stood, a knowing smile toying with her lips—as if she knew exactly what he’d been thinking.
“Miss Angie, I—uhm, you’re home.”
“Where else would I be?” She waved him inside. “What can I do for you, Pastor?”
He hesitated, wondering what had made him think he’d had such a good idea, after all. But he was honor bound to be truthful about the reason for his visit.
“I was hoping your guests might be around, Miss Angie.” He shrugged, and a wash of warmth flooded his face. “They’re kind of stranded here without transportation, and the church van is just sitting there and not really being used at the moment. I thought maybe—”
“What a wonderful idea!” Miss Angie reached up to pat his cheek, her fingers cool against his skin. “They’re certain to need a way around. You should just go on upstairs and talk to them.”
“I don’t know, Miss Angie, I hate to bother—”
“Brady. They will be grateful you thought of them.”
“But maybe you should just let them know the van is there, and they can decide whether or not they want—”
Miss Angie’s soft laughter cut him off mid-sentence. “Brady, dear, there’s nothing wrong with showing kindness.” She shook a long finger at him, but the twinkle in her blue eyes belied any censure. “As you know, Pastor Merckle, the fourth chapter of Ephesians says, ‘be ye kind one to another.’ That’s verse thirty.”
He rolled his eyes but managed a half-hearted grin. “Yes, of course I know that scripture. And I suppose, since you haven’t done so already, you’re not going to offer to just deliver the message for me.”
“Oh, no, I couldn’t possibly. God wants you to do it.” She flashed him a wide smile.
Miss Angie’s smiles and laughter were somehow tuned in to Heaven. Long before he witnessed her surreal transformation at the crash site, Brady’s mind had manufactured angel choirs when she turned on the charm.
“Besides, even if I should agree to tell them you were here, how would they get to that van? As you mentioned, they have no transportation.”
“Oh.” How could he have not thought this thing through? “You’re right. One of them will have to ride back to the church with me.”
“It’ll have to be Winter, dear. Kai has a concussion, remember? He’s not been released to drive yet.”
Was it possible for a heart to sink and a spirit to soar at the same time? “I guess I’ll head upstairs, then.”
Miss Angie laughed, setting off a chorus of angel song, and closed the door between them.
Brady straightened his shoulders, pulled in a deep breath and headed for the stairs, eager to see Winter, yet reluctant. From first sight, the woman had gripped his heart. For the first time in forever, Brady felt the tug of genuine attraction.
But Winter Wonder was a journalist. She made a living out of digging into people’s lives, uncovering their secrets and making them public. He had no business getting close to someone like her. He could show the kindness and friendliness expected of a pastor without making it personal. And he would, because he had no choice.
As he reached the top of the stairs, a bright cardinal landed on the railing. Brady stopped and stared. In all the excitement and busyness after the crash, he’d refused to think much about the bird that had seemed to heal the wound on Winter’s head. The idea was too much to take in, so he’d shoved it to the back of his mind and tried to leave it there.
But now the entire scene replayed in his mind in vivid color, while the bird on the railing held his gaze in an unrelenting, beady black stare.
Brady’s breath cut short as another fuzzy memory followed the first. Hadn’t there been a cardinal flitting around somewhere in his dreams every night since Winter crashed into his world?
7
“Brady? Are you all right?”
The bird lifted slowly off the railing and soared away.
Brady blinked and turned to meet the curious gaze of the beautiful woman who stood just outside the open door of the apartment. Once again, her gray-green eyes captivated him, making it impossible to look away.
He swallowed hard, forced a smile, and pushed his reluctant voice past a dry throat. “Hi, Winter. I’m fine, just a little scattered.” He ventured a step closer. “I should be asking about you, not the other way around.”
Her smile was like sunshine. Brady felt its warmth all the way to the tips of his toes.
“I’m doing great, other than my brother being a pain in the leg. But then, I guess I can’t complain, since he’s relieved me of what is apparently a monster of a headache.”
Brady chuckled. “Well, I’m glad to see your sense of humor survived the crash.”
“Absolutely. Life without a sense of humor…” She shuddered. “Can you even imagine?”
“It wouldn’t be pretty. The Bible even backs up that theory, but of course you know that.”
She hesitated, bit at her lip, and then shook her head. “Actually, I have to admit my knowledge of the Bible is skimpy at best.” Curiosity lit her gaze. “I didn’t realize it mentioned anything about humor.”
“Oh, yes. If Miss Angie were here, she’d have gotten there ahead of me…but I’m happy to share. It’s in Proverbs, chapter seventeen. Basically, it says laughter is good medicine.”
She wrinkled her nose. “Really? I thought the Bible was all ‘thou shalt’ and ‘thou shalt not.’ Nothing to smile about.”
“The Bible is much more than do’s and don’ts, Winter. You should take a look sometime. I think you’d be surprised.”
“Maybe I will.” She held his gaze for a moment, and Brady got the distinct impression she wanted to say more on the subject. But then she stood a little straighter and hiked her brows. “So are you here just to check on my brother and me?”
“I did want to do that, of course. I’m still having a hard time believing both of you survived that crash without some serious bodily damage. But to be honest, I have another reason for standing on your doorstep without calling ahead.”
“And that is…?”
“Well, since your transportation is lying in pieces out in the woods—and it wouldn’t really be a viable means of local transport anyway—I thought you might need a way around.”
“Oh, my goodness!” She shook her head, and Brady forced himself not to reach out and touch the swaying strands of gold that stroked her cheek and shoulders. “We couldn’t possibly allow you to play chauffeur, Brady. I’m sure you’re too busy to put yourself at our disposal.”
She has no idea how much time I could free up for her.
He snapped a clamp on his wayward thoughts and smiled. “Spending time with you doesn’t sound like a chore, but to be honest, I was thinking more along the lines of providing you with wheels while you’re here. Our church van is sitting out behind the sanctuary, and seeing little to no use right now. It isn’t fancy, but it’s reliable. If you want it, it’s yours and Ka
i’s for the duration of your stay in Cambria.”
He held out the keys, and they dangled for a moment.
Winter’s fingers slid across his as she took the key ring, and Brady’s mouth went dry.
“This is so thoughtful of you. I don’t know what to say. Just…thank you! I appreciate it, and I know Kai will too.”
“You’re welcome. I guess one of you will need to ride with me back to the church to get the van. If you have time, of course. If not, I’ll come back later.”
“Not a chance. I’ll go with you. Kai’s lying down, thanks to my headache. Besides, he can’t drive until Dr. Rafferty releases him, because of my concussion.” She laughed, a bright, silvery sound that demanded a smile in response. “I know how crazy that sounds.”
“Lady, I’ve seen crazy, and it don’t look nothin’ like you.” He grinned and then gestured toward the stairs leading to the small lobby and outside. “Your chariot awaits. Shall we?”
“So let me see if I’ve got everything straight.” Winter relaxed against the passenger seat in Brady’s comfortable, but far from luxurious vehicle. “You’ve been the pastor of Cambria House of Praise for five years. Before that, you lived here another ‘five or so years,’ working as an all-around handyman, doing a little of this, a bit of that, and a tad of the other thing.”
Brady nodded as he swung the car off the main road and onto a narrow, graveled drive. “That pretty much sums it up.”
Did she detect a bit of tension in his response? Was the good man of God hiding something?
Brady Merckle had shown Winter and Kai nothing but kindness. Common courtesy said she should leave it alone…but the journalist in her couldn’t do that. If a person had something to hide, she was like a dog with his teeth sunk into a particularly juicy bone. She simply couldn’t let it go until the secret came to light. “And before you came to Cambria?”
“Well, I was still pretty much a kid back then.” Brady stopped beside a small, white church surrounded by evergreens, eucalyptus, oaks, and the occasional California pepper tree. He switched off the engine and switched on something Winter recognized as more grim than grin. “Not a lot to tell.”