for a moment as Eli and Alex worked to unload the recliner from her truck which Mrs. Sharp donated. Eli’s long-sleeved T-shirt clung tightly to him. His heavy coat lay tossed to the side and hung over the edge of the truck bed.
“Holly? The tags?”
Jerked from her admiring stupor, she blushed and hurried toward the workroom. Berating herself for acting like she was back in high school mooning over some guy, she made her way down the darkened corridor then turned left.
In the workroom, she flipped on the light and went to the file cabinet.
Just as she opened the drawer, the lights went off. For a moment, she didn’t move, just froze. Thoughts of the break-in at the store, the scare at her house, the waterfall, Alex’s gifts, the roses, the…noise in the hallway.
Darting to the door, she looked out. Just a dark hall, no light coming from anywhere. “Eli? Alex? Mary?”
No answer. Shaking her head at her paranoia, she turned back to see if she could feel her way around the desk. Surely there would be a flashlight somewhere.
A scrape.
She darted back to the door and peered out again.
Heavy breathing. More footsteps. A door closing?
A flashlight beam rounded the corner.
She opened her mouth to call out again then snapped it shut. What if it wasn’t someone she wanted to meet in a dark hallway? What if it was the person who was outside her home last night? What if…
She stepped back and shut the door with a quiet click and twisted the lock.
Heart hammering in her throat, she reached for her cell phone.
The doorknob rattled….
“Hey, Holly? You in here?”
Relief washed through her. Eli.
Opening the door, she rushed out. The flashlight beamed across her face. Eli gripped her upper arms. “Are you all right?”
“I’m fine. A little scared, but fine. What happened to the lights?”
“I think we blew a fuse or something. I was looking for the breaker box. Mary said it was back here. She said you were, too, and for me to keep an eye out for you.”
“Why didn’t you answer when I called out?”
His forehead crinkled. “I didn’t hear you call out.”
It was her turn to frown. She’d heard footsteps and heavy breathing. He should have been close enough to hear her. “Oh. Okay.”
So, it hadn’t been him in the hall?
“Come on,” he encouraged. “I’ll help you find the tags. And by the way, Alex left. Said he got a call he had to take care of.”
Gladness filled her. Good, she could finish what she needed to do without stumbling over Alex every few steps.
Two minutes later, Eli had the breaker switch thrown and the lights came back on.
She looked at him. “Thanks.”
He grinned that grin that made the hairs on the back of her neck stand up and the butterflies in her stomach start to dance.
Before she could do something stupid like throw herself into his arms and make him promise he was really back to stay, she turned and headed back to the gym.
Eli brought up the rear.
Soon, everything was in order. Items separated, classified and tagged. The work completed for now, Holly said she’d lock up. The two couples said their goodbyes and left, leaving Holly and Eli alone in the church.
“Whew.” Holly sat on the bottom bleacher and wiped a hand across her forehead. “That’s hard work.”
Eli nodded and joined her as he drained the last of Mrs. Sharp’s to-go cup of tea. “I admire what you all are doing here.”
“Thanks.” Holly had finished her tea an hour ago. She licked her lips and vowed to bring a stash of water with her next time. “It’s worth it to keep the orphanage up and running. I’ve only made one visit, but I plan to go again in the summer.”
“How do you go and not come home with a couple of children?”
Bowing her head, she stared at the floor then said quietly, “It’s not easy, that’s for sure. Maybe if I was married…” She shrugged, not needing to go there. Not with Eli.
“Eli? You in here?”
“Buckeye?” Eli jumped up, worry paling his face. “What is it? What’s wrong?”
“It’s your daddy, he’s taken a fall. I called the ambulance to come get him. They’re taking him into Bryson City to the hospital. I sure hope he didn’t reinjure that leg of his.”
“What? Why didn’t you call?”
“I did. It went straight to voice mail. I knew you were going over to Elva’s so called her and she said you’d probably be here.”
Eli pulled out his cell