The Pastor's Wife

The Pastor's Wife by Jennifer Allee Read Free Book Online Page A

Book: The Pastor's Wife by Jennifer Allee Read Free Book Online
Authors: Jennifer Allee
Tags: Fiction, Romance, Contemporary, Christian
A few more of those, and this project might turn out all right after all.

 
     
5
    M aura was still so excited after her first unofficial business meeting with Rachel that she almost didn’t notice Nick when she walked into the house. The sounds from the kitchen got her attention, and that's where she found him, putting away what looked like dinner leftovers. She inhaled deeply. Something sure smelled good. Was that roast beef? She didn’t see any evidence of it, but her nose wouldn’t lie to her.
    “Hey, when did you learn how to cook?” She cringed as soon as the words were out of her mouth. W hat do you think, stupid, he stopped eating after you left him?
    Nick had the good grace not to point that out. He turned from the sink, wiping his hands on a dish towel. “Surprising, I know, but I can kind of find my way around the kitchen. Actually, roast is one of the easier meals to make.”
    Maura thought back to her conversation with Rachel. “I’m surprised you’re home. Didn’t you have to be at the church board meeting tonight?”
    “I told them I couldn’t be there.” Nick shrugged. “Since this is your first night here, well, I wanted to …” His voice trailed off and he tossed the dish towel on the counter. “I just wanted to be around.”
    This was a first. He’d skipped a meeting for her. And he’d cooked dinner. She dropped her purse on the dining table and noticed it was set with her mother's china. Her heart jumped.
    Da had given the set to them as a wedding present. When she left Nick, she’d been so upset that she hardly took anything. She left the dishes behind, never expecting to see them again. Now, running a finger gently around the rim of a plate, she smiled. Nick used to be afraid to touch them because he’d accidentally broken one of the tea cups. Yet, he’d brought them out today. “You kept the set.”
    He looked shocked that she’d considered anything else. “Of course. I know how much it means to you. I figured someday you’d send for it, or come back to get it.” He shook his head. “Of course, I never figured this was how you’d end up coming back.”
    He’d gone to so much trouble. Not just preparing the meal and setting the table, but he’d cleared his calendar for the evening. It warmed her down to her toes. “Nick, I’m sorry. I had no idea you’d done all this. If I had, I would have come … back.” She’d almost called it home . But she couldn’t. She couldn’t let herself start thinking about this as home, no matter how good it smelled, or how irresistible Nick looked with his sleeves rolled up and water spots all over the front of his shirt.
    “No big deal. I had to eat, anyway. And now we’ve got leftovers.” He dismissed her concerns with a raise of one shoulder, as though the situation didn’t bother him. But Maura could hear the twinge of disappointment in his voice. “So, have you eaten already?”
    She nodded. “I ran into Rachel Nelson at the library. We ended up having dinner.”
    His smile became genuine. “That's great. I’m glad you’re reconnecting with old friends.”
    Friend , she thought. There wasn’t anyone else she’d connected with during her short residence in Granger. She’d tried to work with people: Bettie Schwaab on the Thursday morning Bible study, Lena Tyler on the Vacation Bible School planning committee, Stu Pierson on the hospital visitation team, to name a few. She’d tried and failed to work with so many people. The experiences had not bound her in friendship to a single person. But Nick wouldn’t know that. He’d thought she was getting along great with everyone, and she’d let him believe it. If he still believed it, there was no need to set him straight now.
    “Yeah, it was fun catching up with her. But it was so much more than that. We started talking about the theatre and—”
    Nick raised his hand like a traffic cop bringing her to a halt. “Wait. This sounds interesting. Why don’t we sit down,

Similar Books

The Long Farewell

Michael Innes

The Black Lyon

Jude Deveraux

The Angel of Bang Kwang Prison

Susan Aldous, Nicola Pierce

Assassin's Blade

Sarah J. Maas

The Emerald Swan

Jane Feather

Slocum 421

Jake Logan

One Wicked Night

Shelley Bradley

Lethal Lasagna

Rhonda Gibson