by Lyn Cote
“It’s not that there’s anything wrong with it,” Tanner replied. “I just think we needed to discuss it and see if it’s as good an idea as it sounds.”
Simmering with irritation, Lucie turned to Ignacio. “Can you see any problem with evening games? It is hot. And it’s going to get hotter. It’s cooler in the evenings.”
Tanner let out a sound of disgust. “That’s not the issue. Stick to the subject.”
Ignacio grinned. “You two are funny.” He turned with a farewell wave. “¡Mañana!”
Lucie stared at Tanner.
Tanner stared at Lucie.
It began to be a chore looking huffy. An image of Tanner at the pulpit on Sunday mornings intruded. He always made so much sense when he preached. Why didn’t that transfer over into his everyday life? “I’ll be over at seven to help you with the new bulletin,” she declared, ending their staring contest.
“Fine.” Tanner’s voice was firm and his eyes still stormy. “I’ll be here.” The sentence came out as a challenge.
Lucie sighed. Couldn’t anything be easy this summer?
That evening, in the church office, which was in the cool basement of the old brick church, Sancho snored on his rug in the corner. Tanner adjusted the ancient black fan so it would oscillate. At the same time, he tried to adjust his marked reaction to the pretty blonde perched behind his desk. He failed.
“How old is that thing?” Lucie asked. Her voice still had an edge to it, just as it had this morning.
He looked at her, not the fan. What was the bee in her bonnet? Why didn’t she let him help her? “I think it dates from about 1935. Someone replaced the cord again recently.” He patted the metal covering over the motor and tried to release the tension he felt building inside him. “They used to make things to last.”
“Be careful,” she said sharply. “That thing could chew off your fingers, easy. It was built before safety standards.”
Is she trying to start a fight with me? Why? Tanner studied Lucie. Her shining cap of curls brightened the room. Her subtle fragrance—a mix of suntan lotion and soap—scented the office as the fan wafted the air around. This afternoon as he’d sat down here alone at his desk writing Sunday’s sermon, he’d thought about her. He hadn’t wanted to. But it seemed that whenever he closed his eyes, Lucie’s image came up in his mind.
“I see you’re preaching on the Parable of the Good Samaritan,” she commented, glancing at his sermon notes on the desk beside his computer.
“Yes.” He approached her, feeling as though she were a live bomb that had to be carefully handled. He’d stewed for quite a while after this morning’s dustup. Was that still bothering her?
“That’s a good sermon for the town.” Her tone had moderated. She picked up his notes. Her delicate hands were sprinkled with tiny gold freckles.
His throat tightened as he imagined taking her hand in his and pulling her to her feet, then… “Loving your neighbor is a good message for any town.” His tone dropped, coming out low and gruff.
She nodded and recited, “‘Jesus replied: Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: Love your neighbor as yourself.”’ She closed her eyes as if she were praying. “Do you think the ball games are doing what we wanted them to?” She looked up into his eyes.
The sight of her blue irises and upturned nose started a buzzing in his blood. He’d never been so susceptible to a woman before. And she never flirted, never even tried to get his attention. “It’s a little early to tell,” he managed.
“So?” she challenged him suddenly. “Have you thought about letting the kids play in the evening and invite their parents to watch? It would be an excellent way to at least get everyone together in the same place.” She pouted, her pink lips puckering provocatively.
He steeled himself against leaning over and tasting them. “Sometimes that’s good and sometimes that’s bad,” he replied noncommittally.
“How so?” She arched an eyebrow, white-gold against her tanned forehead.
“When different groups get together, there’s always an equal opportunity for discord as well as harmony.”
This stopped Lucie. She hadn’t thought of that. She looked up into Tanner’s honest eyes, which drew her.
“And I don’t know if you had noticed, but over the past few years, youth sports teams have had a lot of trouble with parents who cause trouble.” He frowned. “Fighting with coaches and putting pressure on their kids to win when all we want is for kids to have fun. And the tensions in this community might just find the baseball diamond as another place to stir up discord.”
Tanner’s words melted into her mind like sugar stirred in warm tea. Inside, she experienced the same warm thawing. Tanner was too close for her own good. “I hadn’t thought about that.” She lowered her head into her hand. “What can we do to prevent that?”
“I’ve thought about that all afternoon and I’ve only come up with one answer.”
Caught by the intensity in his voice, Lucie glanced up into his eyes and then couldn’t look away. “Yes?”
“All we can do is try it and pray. Only God can change the hearts of men. I certainly don’t have that power.” He stepped around the desk and touched her shoulder. “When are you going to tell me what’s bothering you? You know I’d do anything to help.”
Fighting her eager reaction to his touch, she dipped her chin. “It’s that obvious, is it?”
He lifted her chin with his had. “Yes. Isn’t there anything I can do?”
She worried her lower lip and then sighed. Gentle currents shivered from his hand through her.
She realized that her worry over Zoë was discernible to Tanner, the man who usually missed stuff right under his nose! This finally convinced her. I’m not the one to handle Zoë. Mom has to come. I’ll call her tonight.
“I don’t want to pry, but…”
“It’s Zoë. She’s getting into a—she’s so innocent.” She turned toward him. “I’m frightened for her.”
Now only the corner of the desk separated them. The clock ticked in the near silence. The refrigerator in the kitchen across the hall thrummed. Outside, an eighteen-wheeler rumbled down Main Street.
Tanner took a step closer to her.
She rose to meet him.
He cupped her cheek in his palm.
From his rug, Sancho rose and yipped once, scolding them.
Stepping away, Lucie blushed.
Tanner cleared his throat. “We’d better get busy or you won’t get home until midnight.”
She nodded and sat down. “I’ll also type up a Spanish-English announcement about evening games. How about Thursdays?”
He nodded.
She wondered if he’d been as aware of her as she had been of him.
Later, when Lucie returned home, the house was quiet. Deepest twilight hugged the horizon—gray-violet over gold. On the front porch, she found Sophie sitting alone except for Fella at her feet. Around the chairs on the wooden floor, citronella candles flickered, warding off mosquitoes. The heat of the day had at last lost much of its punch.
“Are the kids down for the night?” Lucie asked in a hushed voice while patting Fella’s head in welcome.
Sophie didn’t reply. She sat, staring downward.
“What’s wrong, Sophie?” Lucie touched her cousin’s slender shoulder.
“Nothing.” Sophie’s low voice revealed just how misleading her reply was.
Lucie moved closer and folded her arms around her cousin. “I want you to tell me what’s bothering you—just as if I were Mom here asking you.”
Sophie burst into tears. “Everything’s wrong! I can’t keep depending on neighbors taking care of the crops Nate planted. I need farm help and there isn’t anyone available!”
Lucie squeezed her cousin more tightly. “Oh, Sophie.”
“And Nate is going to be moved out of the hospital soon.” Her c
ousin spoke through her tears. “Our medical insurance has almost run out and Nate thinks we may have to sell some land to pay for his continuing care at a rehabilitation center. Oh, Lucie, I can’t bear it!”
Lucie’s heart sank. Selling land that Nate’s family had held on to through the Depression, droughts and floods was a crushing thought. “If he doesn’t need to be in the hospital, isn’t there any way we could take care of him at home instead of sending him to the rehab center?”
“I’ve been trying to make that work, but I’ve got to take care of the boys, Carly, the farm….” Sophie bowed her head. “If either Nate or I had someone strong enough physically to handle Nate who could come and stay and pitch in, we’d be able to manage. Nate’s ready to come home. He wants to leave the hospital. If I were strong enough, able to take care of Nate at home by myself, you’re right, I could just run Nate to his appointments. But it’s almost impossible to find someone I could afford to live in.”
The way her cousin leaned her head wearily against Lucie broke her heart. “And all you’ve got is me. I wish I could do more—”
“You take care of the boys and help with the house and garden. You’re doing enough.” Sophie pulled away and wiped her eyes. “Don’t you think I realize that you should be out job hunting? But you’re the only one I could call on. Everyone else has their families and jobs and can’t get away.”
“I’m glad I’m here,” Lucie said, and realized she meant it.
“I’m going to call the real estate agent and list the acres tomorrow.” Sophie’s voice sounded dead.
Lucie patted Sophie’s arm. “Wait on that. Let me pray about it and I’ll ask my parents—”
“No! I don’t want to burden your parents. They’ve done enough for me. When I was a kid, I would have been so lonely if they hadn’t let me come and stay with you and your sisters every summer.” Sophie gripped her hand.
Everything Sophie revealed strengthened Lucie’s resolve not to tell Sophie about Zoë’s escapade with Riel the other night. “Okay, I won’t call them about the money, but please give me a day or two to pray about this. And Mom is coming for a visit. I just talked to her recently.” She was very relieved that she’d called her mother from the pay phone before she’d left town tonight.
Sophie sighed, giving a sound of total defeat. “Okay, I’ll wait a day or two. But it won’t do any good. The insurance is running out and there’s no money in the bank. All we’ve got is the land.”
Lucie squeezed Sophie once more and then sat down in the wicker chair beside her. Dear Lord, please bring Mom soon. And what about the money for Nate’s care? I know You can provide. Please help Sophie find a different way to get the money. But make it plain, Lord, because my mind feels jumbled right now!
The next day, Tanner and Ignacio had the kids running laps around the diamond to finish up their morning practice. They panted, huffed and called to each other.
“After all this running, they’ll all be quiet and well behaved for their madres all afternoon,” Ignacio observed with a wry twist. He stood with Tanner and Lucie under the shade of a wide, green-leafed oak.
Tanner nodded, but beside him Lucie was again sunk in her uncharacteristic gloom. Had something else occurred since last night?
Ignacio cocked an eyebrow at him and gave a trace of a nod toward Lucie.
So Ignacio had noticed, too. Tanner picked up the unspoken question and returned a bare shake of his head. This couldn’t go on. This morning, even the kids had been eyeing her.
The kids rounded the final lap and rushed their coaches. Tanner followed Ignacio’s lead and spoke to each of his players; all the while his mind mulled over Lucie’s low spirits.
“Hey, Coach!” Miguel called out. “My mother still wants to see me play! Can’t we come here after supper tonight and play?”
The other children joined in, clamoring their agreement with Miguel’s idea.
“Here you are, muchachos, muchachas.” Ignacio lifted the folder of brightly colored announcements. “Take these home. Starting July sixth, parents can come every Thursday night.”
“Yah!” Miguel shouted and pumped one arm skyward. “¡Gracias!” Then he mounted his bike and waved goodbye. All the other children climbed onto bikes or ran to waiting cars. Even Mikey and Danny drove off to spend the afternoon with friends.
Soon, only Tanner and Ignacio remained. They turned to Lucie. Ignacio nudged Tanner’s arm and then went about gathering up the canvas bags of balls and bats.
Tanner forced himself to take a step closer to her. “Lucie, what’s up? I thought you were feeling better last night after we talked.”
She glanced up and paused, looking as though coming to a decision.
Tanner searched his mind. “It’s not right to keep troubles to yourself, not if a…neighbor offers a hand.” He didn’t like the way his words came out, as though he didn’t know what to say.
Lucie chewed her lip. “I don’t know if you can help. It’s Sophie…and Nate.”
“Lucie, trust me.”
The tone of Tanner’s rich voice touched Lucie. She took a step closer to him. She might as well tell him. Everyone would know when the For Sale sign went up.
“Nate’s insurance money has nearly maxed out. Sophie is going to sell some of their land to pay for his continued care at the rehab center. If I can’t come up with an idea, she’s going to list the property tomorrow.”
“Ay caramba,” Ignacio murmured beside her. “How come the insurance money ran out so quick?”
“Farmers are self-employed,” Lucie explained, “so it was an individual policy and he’s young. They weren’t carrying enough coverage. And the drunk driver who caused the accident didn’t have insurance.”
“And,” Tanner added, “it was a really bad accident. Nate was on a tractor when he was hit. For almost two weeks, we didn’t think Nate was going to make it.”
“Sophie says,” Lucie continued, “she could bring him home now, but she isn’t strong enough to care for him at home by herself. He’s still light-headed and unsteady on his feet. If he started to fall… She’s too small to be able to help him up and down the stairs to the bathroom or in and out of the shower….”
“Can he come home?” Tanner asked. “I mean, doesn’t he still need physical and occupational therapy?”
“Sophie says she could always take him to the hospital or the long-term care facility for that—”
“So la señora only needs help at home?” Ignacio clarified.
“Well, she also needs someone to work the fields,” Lucie added.
“I think Nate should come home.” Tanner nibbled the inside of his mouth. “Nate’s really depressed being inside all the time. I think he’d do better at home.”
“I agree,” Lucie said, “but I’m not strong enough to move him around. He’s six foot five in his stocking feet and still weighs around two-thirty.” She shrugged with her palms out.
“I could manage him,” Tanner said.
Silence.
“I could manage him,” Tanner repeated. “Why couldn’t I come and stay until Nate can handle himself better?”
Lucie stared at him.
“I could come, too,” Ignacio said. “It would be an honor to help the father of two fine boys as Mikey and Danny.”
Lucie gazed at both of them. Her mind raced. Would Sophie agree? Would it be enough? “You’re wonderful!” She leaped up and hugged Ignacio, then Tanner. The feel of his broad shoulders against her hit her with undiluted force. Why do you keep coming to my rescue? I’m liking you too much, Tanner. And that’s got to stop!
Sophie drove the minivan close to the back door of their farmhouse. Tanner, Ignacio and Lucie waited at the bottom of the steps. Tanner hurried forward to open the door of the vehicle. “Great to see you out of that hospital! Here, I want you to meet Ignacio Valdez, a good friend and neighbor.”
As Nate shook Ignacio’s hand, the older man said, “Let’s get you inside, amigo.”
“That w
on’t be too easy,” Nate grumbled.
“No problem.” Tanner pulled the crutches from behind Nate’s seat. “Let’s see you handle these.”
“I’m still pretty clumsy. My equilibrium is the problem. My muscle strength is coming back, but I still get dizzy.”
“Tanner will walk behind you,” Ignacio suggested, “and I’ll walk in front. If you start to lean too far either way, we’ll get you back on track, sí?”
Nate grinned suddenly. “Sí. All I want is to be back in my own place.”
“I understand.” Ignacio held his hands out in front as the big man struggled to get upright from the car seat. “I feel the same way each night when I get myself settled into my recliner. Ah, the comfort!”
Obviously unsteady, but determined, Nate slowly heaved himself onto the crutches and covered the short distance to the back steps. He eyed them for only a moment. “Can you hold one crutch?”
Ignacio took it.
“I’m still right behind you,” Tanner reassured him.
“Okay.” Nate hoisted himself up one step at a time, using the railing and one crutch.
Lucie held her breath as he made it up one, two, three and finally the last step.
“Made it.” Nate breathed long with relief.
The entourage followed the man who towered over all of them into the living room where he lowered himself into his favorite armchair. He sighed with pleasure. “Wow.”
Mikey and Danny swarmed up onto his lap like eager puppies. “You’re home! Daddy’s home!”
Lucie couldn’t look at Nate’s face. The raw joy and pain mingled in his expression made the glib, cheery words she was about to speak catch in her throat. She left the room and hurried outside. On the back porch, she became aware that Tanner had followed her.
“I wanted to give them a moment,” he explained, stepping beside her.
“Thank you,” Lucie murmured, feeling the tears begin to start in her eyes. “Thank you.” Before she could stop herself, she kissed Tanner dead center on his mouth!