Rebecca (Angel Creek Christmas Brides #15) - Lily Graison Page 0,18

spoke as they passed dishes around the table and filled their plates but the moment they settled in Amanda barreled into a long-winded tale of what had happened at school that day before cackling at the fact she’d scared Diana by jumping into the cellar with her, something she did to him so many times, he came to expect it now.

When Amanda stopped talking, he turned his attention to Diana. She looked tired. There were dark smudges under her eyes. He wasn’t sure if it was soot from the fireplace or if she was truly that tired. Seeing the house so clean, he figured it was a little of both.

He took a bite of the potatoes. They were definitely on the burnt side. He washed them down before clearing his throat and looking back up at Diana. “Did you find everything you needed in the cellar?”

She stilled, her fork halfway to her mouth before she laid it down and nodded. “Yes.”

“Good.” He glanced at Amanda. “Since there’s no school tomorrow, Amanda can show you how to get to the mercantile.”

Their conversations after that ranged from what was going on in town to the annual Christmas party. He’d been so busy as of late, he hadn’t even realized it was so close to the holidays. He’d have to add that to his list of things to worry about. Amanda wasn’t a spoiled child, but he’d always stuffed her stocking full on Christmas Eve and even bought small trinkets for his mother. This year Diana's name would be on his list.

A wedding ring would do.

The thought whispered through his head. A ring would make a nice Christmas gift.

You’re assuming she’s going to stay.

He glanced up at her. She still looked tired but after such a long trip across the country, that was to be expected. Would she stay? The question rang inside his head the rest of the evening, well after he’d told Diana he’d clean up the supper dishes and she should go on to bed. As much as he’d dreaded her arrival, now he feared she’d leave.

You’ll just have to make sure she has no reason to.

He could do that. How, he wasn’t sure, but he’d figure it out like he did everything else.

Chapter 6

Angel Creek was a pretty place. Rebecca loved the ocean, but the sight of those snow-covered mountains in the distance and the ice-covered rocks in the creek was breathtaking.

“There’s a big swimming hole down there.”

Rebecca glanced at Amanda who stood beside her on the bridge looking down at the stream. “Is the water cold?”

“Most of the time but in the summer, it feels really nice.”

She was sure it did. Charleston wasn’t so far south that the temperature was sweltering but there had been more than one day she’d found herself near the seashore in a shady spot just to feel the cool breeze coming off the ocean or to splash in the surf.

Amanda stepped away from the rail and nodded toward town with her head. Rebecca followed while the girl told her who lived in each of the houses they passed along the way.

The town of Angel Creek was spread out with lots of space between the houses and businesses. Charleston had been the exact opposite, with houses squeezed right up against each other down every street all the way to the battery. She didn’t know a single person who’d lived in those houses back home but Amanda seemed to know everyone here.

A man stood on the porch of a building at the end of the street. He leaned against the handle of the shovel he was holding. It had snowed again, which thrilled her. She’d never tire of the sight of it.

The building the man stood in front of was a bathhouse according to the wooden shingle hanging over the door. He nodded his head in greeting and smiled when Amanda introduced her to him as her new mother. The girl had called her that the day she’d arrived at the stagecoach station. Then she’d hugged her. Rebecca couldn’t remember the last time anyone had hugged her, or touched her for that matter—except for the baker grabbing her—so the embrace had taken her by surprise. Not as much as the fact that in a way, she really was the girl's mother now.

Not until Caleb marries you, you’re not.

The thought brought a smile to her face. How many times had she dreamed of getting married? Of having a family? She’d never held out much hope of