Thankful

by Shelley Shepard Gray

  It might even be just fine.

  chapter fifteen

  Jana was staring at the message Ruth had taken and left on her desk when Pippa came into her office. “Pippa, Christina called in sick. We’re going to be short a server again today.”

  Pippa’s eyebrows rose. “Two days in a row? Does she do that often?”

  “Never,” she mused. “I guess she must really be feeling poorly.”

  “I’ll go take her tables,” Pippa said as she turned to leave.

  “No. Wait a second. It’s not too busy out there. Marla can handle everything. I wanted to see how you’ve liked working at the restaurant. You haven’t said much.”

  Pippa smiled. “Well, I’ve been waiting to hear what you’ve thought about me being here. Do you think I’m fitting in? Do the other women seem okay with me being here?” She wrinkled her nose. “Or do you feel that they would rather not work for a girl like me?”

  Pippa always came across as so confident, she must really be worried to be asking so many questions. “I’ve never seen you like this, Pippa. Has someone said something mean to you?”

  “Not here. It’s just that sometimes it’s happened in the past. Once or twice.”

  Pippa’s voice was thick with emotion. Jana’s heart went out to her. “I am sorry to hear that. But as far as the Sugarcreek Inn goes, everyone loves having you here. The other girls have enjoyed getting to know you. I’ve been impressed with you, too.”

  Pippa’s gaze warmed. “That makes me happy. If you think things are working out, I’d like to move forward. ”

  Actually drawing up the paperwork was a big step, but Jana knew it was time to move forward.

  As Pippa stared at her, Jana thought about all the things she’d been missing out on. She could travel. She could visit her kids instead of hope they could find time to visit her in Sugarcreek.

  She could even get to know Ross better. If she did that, she had a feeling that her life could definitely change. She would start living in the present and dreaming about the future instead of only recalling her past.

  But only if she really made some changes.

  At last, she gathered her courage and took the plunge. “Pippa, I would like our partnership to be seventy-thirty.”

  Pippa blinked. “I see. Well, um. I am not sure that I would want to run the inn with only a thirty percent ownership, Jana. I would feel like I didn’t have any real authority, you see.”

  “Thirty for you?” Jana chuckled. “I’m sorry. Once again, I don’t believe I explained myself. I meant you have seventy percent and I have thirty.”

  Pippa’s expression changed from incredulousness to excitement to what could only be called fear. “Are you certain about that?”

  “More certain than ever. Pippa, I not only want you to run the Sugarcreek Inn, I want you to feel like it is your restaurant now.”

  “And what are you going to do?”

  “I, Pippa Reyes, am finally going to live.”

  At last Pippa smiled. That same wonderful, exuberant smile Jana had seen her wear when they’d first met and Pippa had first seen snow.

  And that had to be her sign, Jana realized. Her sign that things were going the direction that God had intended. And that she intended, as well.

  For the first time in a long time, Jana felt the fresh, warm, comfortable feeling of hope bloom inside her.

  And it had never felt so good.

  Pippa grinned. “Thank you, Jana. You won’t regret this.” They shook hands, and then the deal was made.

  Privately, Jana thought nothing had ever felt as sweet.

  The whole family surrounded Aden with a parade of questions after Janice dropped him back at the house.

  At first he’d tried to brush off their curiosity—and his slight embarrassment about being observed being dropped off by an English lady—but he was fairly sure he wasn’t succeeding.

  No matter how much he tried to pretend otherwise, this was a new development, and it signaled yet another change and divide between him and Christina.

  He was glad that he’d gotten up early and gone to the bank that morning. The banker was only too glad to discuss Aden renting the apartment above the vacant hardware store.

  When Aden heard the price of the rent, he immediately asked when he could sign the papers. After that came another tour of the apartment, this time with an eye on repairs to make and what furniture he needed to buy.

  Now, at the end of a very long day, he had the key to his new home. All he had to do now was find the time to clean it up and make it his own.

  But first he had to eat some ice cream with the Kempfs.

  It was Leanna’s birthday, and to celebrate Martha had bought everything for hot fudge sundaes.

  After wishing Leanna a happy thirteenth birthday and making all the noises that were expected about having yet another teenager in the house, Aden sat down next to Christina.

  So far she’d been doing a pretty good job of avoiding him. But he knew it was time to mend things. After all, he was now just days from moving out. “Ice cream sundaes taste good no matter what the weather, don’t you think?”

  “I suppose.”

  “Did Leanna have a good supper?”

  “Oh, jah. We had fried chicken and french fries. Her favorite supper.”

  “That’s my favorite, too. I’m sorry I missed it.”

  “Well, you had your own plans, didn’t you?”

  Ouch! “I told you that I had to work late. And that Janice had been kind enough to offer me a ride home.”

  “And go out to supper with you. We can’t forget that,” she said archly.

  His ice cream dish was empty now, but Christina’s was hardly touched. Thinking it might be best to push the focus off of himself, he said, “I hope you didn’t have any trouble getting a ride home from the restaurant today.”

  “Actually, I didn’t go into work today.”

  “You didn’t? Was something wrong?”

  “Not at all. I was just tired. And Treva reminded me that I never take any time off.” She shrugged her shoulders. “I figured that maybe I was due for a break.”

  He didn’t know what to say to that. “What did you do all day?”

  She shrugged in an offhand way. “Nothing too special. A little of this and that.”

  “Such as?”

  “I helped Mamm with a couple of chores around the house. Wrapped Leanna’s presents. Oh, I embroidered, too.”

  “What? You hate embroidery.”

  “Not necessarily. I didn’t hate it today.”

  He decided not to touch that one. He’d seen lots of her half-finished projects over the years. In his opinion, all needles needed to stay far away from her. “I’m glad you had a good day. I don’t work tomorrow. Do you?”

  She nodded.

  After waiting a moment, he asked, “Do you need a ride either way? Or both ways? I’ll be happy to take you.”

  “I’d hate to bother you.”

  “It’s no bother. I’m going to be near the Sugarcreek Inn anyway.”

  “And why is that?”

  “I’m going to look at an apartment tomorrow. Maybe even sign my lease.” He decided it would probably be best not to tell everyone that the lease was signed and the key was in his pocket.

  “Do Mamm and Daed know that you are doing that?”

  “Does it matter? All of you know that I had planned to move out.”

  “Yes. You did tell us, didn’t you? Since you’ve got a busy job. And an English woman friend.”

  Her sarcastic, clipped tone didn’t sit too well with him. Neither did the fact that the way she said “English woman friend” could have been substituted with “dangerous ax murderer.”

  But as Aden watched her stand up in a huff, rinse out her dish, and then walk out of the room, he knew he was at a loss as to how to make things easier between them. The fact of the matter was that things needed to change between the two of them.

  He couldn’t go around holding
her and kissing her anymore. If he stayed, he was liable to do it again.

  Leaving had definitely become less a matter of choice and more a matter of necessity.

  And given the way Christina was acting, it would be best for both of them if he left as soon as he could.

  chapter sixteen

  “That man came back,” Marla said. “And I do believe that he’s looking for you.”

  Christina looked up from the stack of napkins she’d been folding. “What man?”

  “You know. That handsome man with the green eyes. The one you chatted with the other morning when he came in with his family.”

  “Oh, him? He said he was going to come in one day soon. But I’ve yet to see him make an appearance.”

  Marla shrugged. “Ain’t no reason for you to get in a tiff about it. You know that life happens. Maybe he got called to work or something.”

  “Maybe. In any case, I’m not interested in him anymore.” Without a doubt, she knew she wasn’t going to be interested in any other man besides Aden Reese now that he’d kissed her. When she’d allowed his kiss, she’d known that she’d taken him into her heart.

  And though he was currently full of regrets and infatuated with some fancy hospital nurse, she wasn’t in any hurry to look around at another man.

  Marla rolled her eyes. “Christina, sometimes I am certain that you are as stubborn as Miriam! Go on out there and at least be pleasant. It doesn’t hurt anything to go out there and say hello. It might even help your case of the blues.”

  “Fine.”

  “Gut.” She made a shooing motion with her hands. “Now, off you go. Go smile and say hello. I chatted with him for a moment when I seated him. He’s a farmer, living over in Walnut Creek.”

  Trying to become enthused, she said, “That’s close.”

  “It is. He’s also as handsome a man as I’ve seen in a long time. And he’s friendly enough.”

  Christina looked down at the pale green skirts of her dress, neatly surrounded by the white apron all of them wore at the restaurant. She didn’t want to go out to see him. Actually, ever since she’d had that fateful walk with Aden, she didn’t want to do anything but moon over him and try to find a way to get him to see her as a grown woman.

  But of course, he had moved on. He wanted her to know that, too. Otherwise he wouldn’t have let that English nurse bring him home. Otherwise he would have deflected all their questions and told them directly that Janice meant nothing to him. That she’d merely given him a ride home. That was all.

  But of course, he hadn’t done that. Instead, he’d acted mysteriously, as if there was more to his story than he was willing for the whole family to know.

  Further compounding the problem was his new apartment in town. Obviously, he was determined to put as much space between him and her as possible. As quickly as possible.

  She could pretend that she either didn’t notice or realize that there was no future between the two of them.

  Marla crossed her arms over her chest. “Earth to Christina. Are you going to go see him or not? If you don’t take his table, I’ll need to. Or someone else will. We can’t let him sit there by himself much longer. What do you want to do?”

  Suddenly, it felt as if it wasn’t about tables and orders. It was about opportunities versus disappointments. It was about looking toward a future or remaining with her heart firmly ensconced in the past.

  “I’m going out right now,” she said, and then started walking forward before she let herself change her mind again.

  Behind her, Marla chuckled. “Good for you, dear. We were hoping you would do that.”

  Marla’s gentle push forward made Christina push her shoulders back and even manage to smile at the farmer. Who, she was delighted to see, had been eying the kitchen door with a watchful expression.

  “You decided to return after all,” Christina said when she reached his table. “Was the coffee irresistible?”

  “It wasn’t the coffee that brought me back.”

  His gaze was so direct, his unusual green eyes so filled with admiration, Christina felt her cheeks flush.

  His gaze also gave her the courage to attempt to flirt a little. “Whatever the reason, I am glad you returned. Now, what may I serve you? Would you care for another piece of pie?”

  He drummed his fingers on the table. “When do you get off?”

  “Pardon?”

  “When you get off, I was hoping that maybe we could go for a walk or something.”

  “I work until two o’clock today.”

  “That’s not too far off. If I come back at two, would you take a turn with me around Sugarcreek?”

  He was eager. It was exciting and nerve-racking, too. “I don’t even know your name.”

  “It’s Christy.”

  “Christy? That’s a girl’s name.” Realizing what she’d said, she clapped a hand over her mouth. “Forgive me. I’m not usually so rude.”

  But instead of looking offended, Christy laughed. “No worries. Believe me, I get that all the time. My real name is Christopher. Christopher Fisher. But I was named after an uncle, and I have a cousin Christopher, too. You know how that goes. Soon everyone was calling us Christopher One and Blond Christopher.”

  She giggled. “It always happens.”

  The farmer smiled. “After a while, Christy it became. It stuck. And I’m right fond of it, if you want to know the truth.”

  “I like it,” she said politely. Though she had a feeling she’d never actually think of him as a Christy—that was Aden’s pet name for her, after all—she did suppose that there was no harm in striking up a friendship with him. He was so very handsome. Striking, with perfect green eyes, brown hair the color of a mink in the winter, a square jaw. Somehow, it seemed to make sense that such an attractive man would have such a pretty name. It would be strange if he was a Frank or an Eli.

  “So, what do you want to do? Are you going to let me take you walking?”

  “I don’t know. . . .” If she said yes she’d feel like she was betraying Aden.

  “Come on. All I’m askin’ is to spend some time with you when you’re not working. Surely you don’t think any harm can come to you by going walking with me down Main Street in the middle of the day?” Humor laced his voice and lit his eyes.

  She looked away, embarrassed. She suddenly felt too young, too sheltered. Too timid.

  “What do you say?”

  It was time to make a decision. She could either continue to pine for Aden and wish things were different between the two of them. Or she could finally move forward and take a chance.

  And put that way, there really was no choice.

  “I would like to take a walk with you, Christy.”

  His lips curved into a genuine smile. “Are you ever going to tell me your name?”

  “Oh, I’m sorry. Christina.”

  His eyes widened. “Now I understand why you looked at my name so strangely! Look at us—Christy and Christina. Now, there’s a pair.”

  She laughed. It felt so good to laugh and tease another boy. Felt so good to stop worrying about a hundred past experiences, hoping each one could be overlooked and/or forgotten. “Jah,” she murmured, happy with herself for taking a chance. Happy to be chatting with someone who she didn’t share years and years of memories.

  Who didn’t make her pulse jump just by walking into the room. “We are quite a pair,” she replied at last. “For sure and for certain.”

  chapter seventeen

  Jana was blessed with four absolutely wonderful kids. Each was unique, and each had been supportive of the business and of her schedule over the years. When they were younger, they’d even each had a turn working at the restaurant.

  When they finished high school, each had gone off to college. Slowly but surely, their length of time at home had gotten shorter and shorter. Now Nick was married with two children, Melissa worked in Cleveland, and Jane was all the way out in San Francisco. The three of them were now so busy with
their lives, it seemed even their phone calls were rushed.

  Only Garrett, her youngest, seemed at loose ends. But that didn’t mean he stopped by to see her or call her on a regular basis.

  She didn’t expect him to. Kids were supposed to grow up and be independent. Although she’d had her own growing pains about them all leaving the nest, she’d managed to muddle through. She’d sold the house, worked hard at the restaurant.

  And now she was even taking time for herself, working with Pippa and easing into a comfortable partnership with her. Thinking about how Ruth and Marla got along with Pippa so well, Jana realized that she’d been a fool to wait so long to step away. The Sugarcreek Inn was not only doing just fine under Pippa’s leadership, word had spread that the restaurant was trying out some new dishes. Each day it seemed that more tables were filled.

  Obviously, change was a good thing.

  So was her new relationship with Ross. After three visits to the restaurant, Ross had admitted that he couldn’t eat another piece of pie . . . but that he’d love to take her out to dinner someplace else.

  She was surprised by how good all the change felt in her soul.

  Which was probably why she was feeling so stung by Nick’s current strand of conversation.

  Juggling the phone to her ear, she cleared her throat. “Nick, you are sounding a bit judgmental. Son.”

  “I’m not being judgmental; I’m just saying that lately it’s been really hard to get a hold of you.”

  Smoothing back her hair, she put on her reading glasses and sorted through the mail while she shifted the phone under her chin yet again. Perhaps if she focused on bills she wouldn’t feel so frustrated.

  “Restaurants don’t run themselves, dear. You don’t need me to tell you that. If someone doesn’t show up or there’s a problem, I have to be there. This is nothing new.”

  “Mom, I know what’s in your bank account. You don’t have to work another day in your life if you don’t want to.”

  “Your father did leave me financially secure. . . .”

  “It’s not just what Dad did. You’ve done a great job with the restaurant, and you made some good investments, too. I hope I do as well with my finances as you’ve done with yours.”