Rebecca (Angel Creek Christmas Brides #15) - Lily Graison Page 0,21

girl never could sit still for long. He put a hand to the top of her head, ruffling her hair, grinning when she squealed. “I’ve got to get back to work. I’ll see you two at supper.”

Diana was staring at him when he lifted his head. “I’m here every day so if you ever need me, this is where I’ll be.”

She nodded and smiled down at Amanda when she grabbed her hand and started dragging her away. He watched them leave, the desire to go with them strong. They'd not had a chance to talk since she arrived. With the long hours he worked, sunup to sundown most days, there wasn't time. Maybe he could cut out earlier now that she was here.

She glanced back over her shoulder and smiled at him as they exited the barn. Something in his chest tightened at that smile. It eased the loneliness he’d felt since Ruth died, and for the first time in what seemed like forever, he looked forward to going home. He loved his daughter and mother but that love wasn’t the same as the love a man had for his wife. That special bond married couples shared left a hole in his heart when Ruth left him and he wanted nothing more than for Diana to fill it. He missed the closeness, knowing that someone supported him and needed him and would listen to his woes without judgment. Missed feeling the touch of another against his skin and warm, slow kisses and whispers spoken in the dark. He missed feeling loved and wanted.

He sucked in a breath and turned, heading back outside. He had a long day ahead of him and standing there wishing for things that may never be wouldn’t earn him his pay.

Rebecca paused as she stepped through the door of the mercantile, her gaze traveling along the floor to ceiling shelves filled full of goods. The building looked as if it held everything a person could want. The market square back home stretched an entire city block. Here, everything was squeezed into one building.

“Well, who do you have with you, Amanda?”

A woman greeted them from the counter. Amanda grabbed her arm and tugged her across the room. “This is my new Ma. Her name is Diana.”

The woman’s smile brightened. “So this is the woman you’ve been chewing on my ears about.” The woman stepped away from the counter and smoothed the apron tied around her waist. “It’s nice to meet you, Diana. I’m Cassie. Welcome to Angel Creek.” She nodded to a man at the far end of the counter talking to a young girl. “That’s my husband, Jeremiah, and our daughter, Isabell. We have four more around here somewhere so if you ever need anything, you don’t be shy. Just ask and one of us can get it for you.”

Cassie excused herself a moment later when another lady stepped up to the counter. Amanda grabbed her hand and led her deeper into the store.

Everything you could imagine was here, crammed onto the shelves and stacked high on tables scattered around the room.

Amanda stopped by a shelf filled with preserves before grabbing a jar of apples. “Wanna try to make a pie? Apple is Pa’s favorite.”

Did she? She shrugged. “I don’t see why not. I didn’t burn the breakfast this morning.” And she hadn’t, unlike the night before. Her first attempt at making supper for Caleb had been a disaster. He’d eaten it without complaint. She wasn’t sure if he’d just been too hungry to care or if he’d choked it down in order to not hurt her feelings.

The oats she’d made at breakfast were pasty and much thicker than when Caleb had made them. But again, no one complained and once she’d filled hers with a heaping amount of honey and cinnamon, she decided it was the best-tasting thing she’d ever eaten.

They browsed the shelves for another half hour before she followed Amanda to the counter. The jar of preserves was added to Caleb’s account and two days ago, knowing she had free rein to charge to an account at the local mercantile would have thrilled her for no other reason than she knew she could skip town and not have to do so empty-handed. Now, the thought made something in her chest clench tight. She was content with life at the moment and those looks Caleb had been giving her earlier made butterflies dance in her stomach and she realized she could have an actual