The October evening was cool and perfect, the sky just turning a radiant shade of pink. Maybe when Lucy got back, he’d start a fire in his fireplace. They could cuddle up and watch a movie or just talk awhile.
His steps quickened at the thought. She’d been pretty busy lately between work and her community center project. She’d bought the firehouse and was already making plans for its renovations. They’d spent many hours dreaming together about the purpose it would serve. He loved the way she lit up when she talked about it.
He dashed across the half-full lot and up the steps, pulling at the heavy, oversized door. He crossed the threshold and drew to an abrupt halt at the sight before him.
“Lucy.”
She stood in front of the closed sanctuary doors, facing him.
His gaze fell over the simple white dress that hugged her compact curves, over the small bouquet of tiny blue flowers. His eyes cut back to hers.
Apprehension flared in her eyes. “Hey there . . . I hope this is all right.”
Was she kidding? The upcoming two months had been stretching ahead like an endless highway. A smile spread across his face as his heart pounded with joy.
“All right?” His eyes searched hers, noticing the silver sparks flashing in the blue depths. “Honey, you just made this the best night of my life.”
Her lips curled up as her eyes turned glassy. She blinked back the tears. “Oh, thank God. I was so worried. I know you wanted to move it up, but it seemed like it took you forever to get here, and then I started second-guessing myself.”
“I would’ve been here sooner if I’d known you were waiting for me.” He took her in, his woman, his true love, his bride. His heart felt so full. “You’re so beautiful, Lucy. Inside and out. I’m the luckiest man on the planet.”
She flapped a hand in front of her face, then dabbed at the corners of her eyes. “Stop that. You’re going to ruin my makeup, and Eden worked awful hard on it.”
He remembered the text from Eden that had set all this off. “Maid of honor stuff, huh?”
There was a glint of amusement in her eyes. “Well . . . it’s true now.”
She gestured toward the high square windows in the sanctuary doors, and he peeked inside. Pastor Daniels stood at the front with Beau on one side, Eden on the other. Mrs. Pritchard waited at the piano, her back ramrod straight. His eyes drifted over the people seated in the sanctuary. Aunt Trudy, Sheriff Colton, and so many other friends and neighbors. All of them waiting for the moment he’d been dreaming of for so long.
“I can’t believe you did all this.”
“There’s a suit for you in the men’s room. And we’re Skyping Riley in so he doesn’t miss anything.”
He looked at her in wonder. She was amazing. And she was all his. “How in the world did you pull this off? We’ve hardly been apart the last two months.”
She grinned. “Lots of texting. And good friends. Really good friends.”
He reached up, cupping her soft cheek in the palm of his hand. “Thank you for doing this. I can’t wait to hold you all night long—to make you mine.”
His gaze fell to her lips. He should wait till after the wedding. But he’d never been good at waiting where Lucy was concerned. He bent low and gave her a long, slow kiss. She didn’t seem to mind his jumping the gun. Her lips were soft and pliant and tasted sweet as honey. His heart sighed when she roped her arms around his neck, and he fervently wished the bags in his hands would disappear.
The sanctuary door burst open, and Zac reluctantly drew away.
A flush crept up the pastor’s face. “Whoops. I guess it’s a go then?”
Zac gave him a pointed look. “I’m not sure if we have time, what with the baptistery leak and all.”
Lucy elbowed Zac.
Pastor Daniels had the grace to look sheepish. “Well, there is a slow drain.” He cleared his throat. “I think I’ll just give you two a moment,” he said as he disappeared behind the door.
Zac leaned into Lucy, eager to pick up where they’d left off.
But she set a firm hand on his chest. “Oh no, mister. We have a plane to catch tonight, and right now you have a date with a suit. You can have all the kisses you want . . . later.”
It was only the “later” part that gave him the motivation to step away from her. He held up the bags. “What am I supposed to do with these?”
“Put them in the reception hall. I’m already famished, and we have guests to feed.”
When he started backing down the hall, she lifted a playful brow. “Don’t you even want to know where we’re going?”
“As long as I’m alone with you for days on end, it’ll be just fine.”
“St. Lucia should fill the bill then—just you and me and miles of white sand.”
Paradise. “Sounds like heaven.”
She gave him a slow, sweet grin as he backed away, her dimples coming out to tease him. “I’ll see you at the end of the aisle, Zac Callahan.”
“I’ll be there.”
Then he hustled down the hall. Suddenly he couldn’t wait to see her walking toward him. Couldn’t wait to slip that band on her finger. Couldn’t wait to make her his forever bride.
Discussion Questions
1. Who was your favorite character and why?
2. What was your favorite scene in The Goodbye Bride? What did you like about it?
3. Zac was hesitant to trust Lucy again after she left him. Discuss the role of trust in a relationship. Has someone ever broken your trust? Did he or she manage to earn it back? Can trust be restored to its previous level once it has been broken?
4. Lucy and Zac experienced many hardships on their journey toward love. Have you ever gone through difficult circumstances only to later see God’s hand in them? Discuss.
5. If you could have permanent amnesia about a specific event or period of time in your life, would you sign up? Why or why not?
6. In Lucy’s need to avoid being abandoned, she became like her father, leaving people before they could leave her. Have you ever experienced a similar phenomenon?
7. Fear prevented Lucy from having meaningful relationships. What are some other ways fear can spoil relationships?
8. The starflowers at her mom’s graveside were like a sign from heaven in Lucy’s time of need. Have you ever experienced something similar?
9. The Bible says, “There is no fear in love; but perfect love casts out fear” (1 John 4:18). What does this mean to you?
10. Riley is in love with his best friend but is far away serving in the military. What do you think might happen upon his return?
Acknowledgments
Writing a book is a team effort, and I’m so grateful for the fabulous team at HarperCollins Christian Fiction led by publisher Daisy Hutton: Katie Bond, Amanda Bostic, Karli Jackson, Elizabeth Hudson, Jodi Hughes, Becky Monds, Becky Philpott, Kristen Golden, and Kristen Ingebretson.
Thanks especially to my editor, Becky Philpott, for her insight and inspiration. Thanks also to editor LB Norton, who has saved me from countless errors and always makes me look so much better than I am.
Author Colleen Coble is my first reader. Thank you, friend! Writing wouldn’t be nearly as much fun without you!
I’m grateful to my agent, Karen Solem, who’s able to somehow make sense of the legal garble of contracts and, even more amazing, help me understand it.
Thank you to Mainer Susan Faloon, who kindly agreed to read this manuscript to make sure I’d gotten the setting details right. Any errors that made it into print are mine alone.
Kevin, my husband of twenty-six years, has been a wonderful support. Thank you, honey! To my sons, Justin, Chad, and Trevor:
You make life an adventure! It’s so fun watching you step boldly into adulthood. Love you all!
Lastly, thank you, friend, for letting me share this story with you. I wouldn’t be doing this without you! I enjoy connecting with friends on my Facebook page, www.facebook.com/authordenisehunter. Please pop over and say
hello. Visit my website at the link www.DeniseHunterBooks.com or just drop me a note at [email protected]. I’d love to hear from you!
An Excerpt from Barefoot Summer
Chapter One
Madison McKinley scanned the crowded town hall, wondering how many of her friends and neighbors she’d have to fight to get what she came for. Half of Chapel Springs had turned out to support the fire department. The faint scent of popcorn and coffee from last night’s Rotary club meeting still lingered in the air, and the buzz of excitement was almost palpable.
When she reached the front of the line, she registered for her paddle, then looked for her mom. She spotted Joann McKinley seated on the left, near the old brick wall.
Before Madison could move, Dottie Meyers appeared in the busy aisle. “Madison, hello, dear. I was wondering if I could bother you about Ginger. I found a little knot behind her leg. I’m worried it might be something serious.”
Last time it had only been a burr. Still, Madison set a hand on the woman’s arm. “I’m sure it’s fine, but I’ll have Cassidy call you tomorrow and squeeze you in, okay?”
“All right, everyone,” the emcee was saying into the mike. “It’s about that time.”
“Thank you so much, dear,” Dottie was saying. “I’m so excited about this year’s play. It’s called Love on the Line. You are planning on coming out again, aren’t you? You’ll be fabulous as Eleanor.”
Auditions were still two months away. “Looking forward to it. See you tomorrow.” Madison participated in the town’s production every year. She enjoyed the theater, and the proceeds supported the local animal shelter, a cause she was committed to.
She turned toward her mom and ran straight into a wall. “Ooomph.”
Or a chest. A hard chest.
She looked up into the face of the one man she least wanted to see, much less slam into. She jumped back, looking square into his unfathomable coal-colored eyes.
She nodded once. “Beckett.”
He returned the nod. “Madison.”
His black hair was tousled. He wore a Dewitt’s Marina work shirt and at least two days’ stubble. His jaw twitched. She hadn’t spoken to him since she’d confronted him two weeks ago—for all the good it had done.
“Please take your seats,” the emcee said.
Gladly.
She stepped to the left at the same time as Beckett. He was wide as Boulder Creek and twice as dangerous. She’d always thought so. The incident with her little sister had only confirmed it.
“Excuse me,” she said.
He slid right and swept his arm out as if to say, After you, princess.
She shot him a look, then hurried down the aisle and slid into a metal chair beside her mom.
“Hi, sweetie. Good day?” Mom’s short blond hair and blue eyes sparkled under the fluorescent lights, but it was her smile that lit the room.
“Twelve dogs, seven cats, two bunnies, and a partridge in a pear tree.”
Beckett passed her row and slid into a seat up front by his sister. Layla had long brown hair and a model-pretty face. Their mom must’ve been beautiful, though Madison didn’t remember her. Beckett leaned over and whispered something to his sister.
Madison tore her eyes away and loosened her death grip on the auction paddle. She refused to think about Beckett O’Reilly tonight.
The emcee took the podium and spoke about the importance of the fire station and their financial needs, then she introduced the auctioneer—hardly necessary since he also ran the local gas station. Moments later the bidding was under way.
Madison’s eyes swung to Beckett’s dark head. She could swear he was stalking her lately. He seemed to be everywhere she turned. If anything, the man should be avoiding her. Should feel ashamed of . . . well, whatever he did to Jade.
Madison tracked the auction items, ticking off each one as they sold to the highest bidder. A handmade quilt, piano lessons, pie of the month, a cabin rental at Patoka Lake, and dozens of other things generously donated by the community.
Someone had made a miniature replica of the town’s sign. Welcome to Chapel Springs, Indiana, it said. Prettiest River Town in America. A writer from Midwest Living had used the phrase twelve years ago, and the town had squeezed every last drop from it.
Evangeline Simmons, eighty-five if she was a day, amused all by driving up the bids. It was no secret that the fire department had saved her beloved Persian from a tree last month. So far her generosity had left her with two items she probably had no need for. But money was no object for Evangeline.
People trickled out as the auction wore on. Beckett left after losing a tool kit. Over an hour later, Madison grew tense as her item came up. The auctioneer read from the sheet.
“All right, ladies and gentlemen, this next one’s a winner. Dewitt Marina has kindly donated a sailing/regatta package. Lessons taught by sailing enthusiast Evan Higgins. Learn how to race on the beautiful Ohio River, just in time for our 45th Annual River Sail Regatta, and sail with Evan Higgins, winner of the regatta for two years running! Now, who’ll give me five hundred?”
Madison’s grip tightened on the handle, waiting for the auctioneer to lower the bid. Her breath caught in her lungs. Patience, girl.
“All right, a hundred, who’ll give me a hundred? A hundred-dollar bid . . .?”
Casually, Madison lifted her paddle.
“A hundred-dollar bid, now a hundred fifty, who’ll give me one and a half . . .?”
In her peripheral vision she could see her mom’s head swing toward her just as Evangeline raised her paddle—and the bid.
“A hundred fifty, who’ll give me two, now two . . .?”
Madison lifted her paddle, keeping her eyes straight ahead.
“Two hundred, now who’ll give me two fifty, fifty, fifty . . .? Got it! Now three, three hundred, who’ll give me three . . .?”
Madison sighed, waited a moment before nodding.
“Three, now who’ll give me three and a half, three fifty, fifty, fifty . . .?”
Evangeline turned toward Madison, her eyes twinkling. She raised her paddle.
Evangeline. Madison hadn’t counted on spending so much. Would serve the lady right if she dropped out. Just imagining the spry old woman on the bow of a boat, trying to manage the ropes and sails and whatnot, all four-foot-eleven of her . . . It was tempting.
Madison could, after all, just go down to the marina and buy the lessons, but then she wouldn’t be virtually assured of a win, would she? She needed Evan Higgins for that.
“Three fifty, do I hear three fifty . . .? Got it! Now four, who’ll give me four . . .?”
A murmur had started in the crowd that remained, a few chuckling at Evangeline’s antics.
The woman lifted her paddle.
“And now we’re at four and a half, four and a half, who’ll give me five, five, five . . .?”
Madison clenched her jaw. She glared at Evangeline’s silver head. It’s a good cause. It’s a good cause.
“And we have five, five, who’ll give me five fifty, five fifty, five and a half . . .?”
The rumbling had grown louder, though half the crowd was gone now that the auction was nearly over. The remaining people were being rewarded for their patience with a good show.
“Five fifty, fifty, fifty . . .?”
Evangeline turned, and their eyes met. Her thin lips widened into a grin, then she folded her hands on top of her paddle.
“I’ve got five, now, five fifty, five fifty . . . anyone, five fifty . . .? And . . . sold at five hundred to Madison McKinley.”
Madison expelled a heavy breath. She was five hundred dollars poorer, but she had her lessons. She was going to learn to sail, and she was going to win the regatta. For Michael’s sake.
Chapter Two
You want to do what?” Dad stopped the basketball mid-dribble, straightening from his crouch. His short gray hair was tousled and damp with sweat.
Ryan gave up the guard and faced Madison,
hands on slim hips, frowning at the interruption. The firstborn of the McKinleys and steady as an oak, he was the sibling they turned to in a crisis.
Madison hadn’t planned to tell her family just yet, what with the stress over Jade, but they were going to find out eventually.
“She said she wants Michael’s boat.” PJ, the baby of the family, flipped her long brown ponytail over her shoulder. She’d inherited her dad’s brown eyes and her mom’s winning smile—though it was missing at the moment.
“So that’s what the sailing lessons are all about,” Ryan said.
“You know they actually put the boats on water,” PJ said.
Madison swatted her sister’s arm.
“Jo,” Dad called, his eyes on Madison. “Know what your daughter’s planning?”
Joanne set a container of potato salad on the cloth-covered picnic table. “You mean the regatta? I was at the auction, remember? You know the burgers are getting cold, right? Daniel, honey, could you grab the silverware?”
“Sure thing, Momma Jo.” Daniel Dawson had been an honorary member of the McKinley family since Ryan brought him home in junior high. His wealthy grandma had raised him while his parents were off doing more important things. Daniel had recently won the mayoral election in Chapel Springs, following in his grandfather’s footsteps.
At the mention of burgers, Dad dropped the ball. It patted the concrete as they walked off the court.
PJ kicked Ryan in the backside for no apparent reason, and he threw her over his broad shoulders just because he could. She squealed and pounded his back, but he didn’t set her down until they reached the table.
“Brute,” PJ said, giving him a playful shove.
“Brat.”
Ryan saved lives, and PJ could feed an army, but when they got together it was like they were twelve. She was home for the weekend from culinary school.
They took their seats at the picnic table. Twilight had swooped across her parents’ backyard, but the white lights strung over the patio and along the landscaping twinkled brightly. The mild spring temperature had beckoned them outside for the weekly family meal. Somewhere nearby, a cricket chirped from the flower garden, which was already burgeoning with new life.
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