and whole in heaven now, putting together a yoga class.
Pastor McDonald stood at the grave site, read several passages from the Bible, bowed his head, and said a final prayer.
It was finished. Now we were left to carry on.
Without Harper.
Those who’d assembled started to walk back to their cars. The funeral home had provided a vehicle to drive us back into town. I knew Lucas and Chantelle and John needed to return to Seattle.
Dad came to Lucas and me. “Son, I need you to take Chantelle and Willa back home.”
“You’re not coming with us?” Lucas asked, and seemed as puzzled as I was. He looked to me for an explanation, but I had none.
“Not yet,” Dad said. “I’m staying.”
I hadn’t a clue what Dad was thinking.
“What are you going to do?” Lucas asked, concerned.
Our father placed a hand on each of our shoulders. “I’m not going to let a backhoe bury my daughter. I’m going to do it myself.”
“Oh Daddy.” I hurled myself into his arms, overcome with love for my father and his tender heart.
“You don’t need to do it alone,” Lucas said. “I’ll join you.”
“As will I,” John added.
Everyone had left, or so I believed, until I saw Sean walking across the cemetery, with the man I could only assume was the groundskeeper. In his hands were four shovels.
CHAPTER 30
Willa
Life was supposed to return to some kind of normal now that Harper had been laid to rest. My sister might be resting, but those of us who had been left behind had to find a way to return to our lives again. The task felt overwhelming, if not impossible. The one thing that would save me, I decided, was my daily routine. That meant getting my business up and running again. I would need to do that in stages.
My first step was to approach the local bank to see if I qualified for a loan to cover rent until I was back on my feet. This wasn’t something I looked forward to doing. I delayed as long as I could. My only assets were a car, which I was still paying off, and my business, which was in danger of folding.
I knew the loan officer, Leon Bent, was sympathetic, but this was business. A few years back he’d briefly dated Harper before she’d introduced him to the woman who eventually became his wife. That was Harper, the matchmaker.
Part of me believed my sister somehow knew she wasn’t long for this life. That helped explain why she never allowed any relationship to continue for more than a few weeks. She’d never let herself fall in love. The one exception had been John Neal. She had fallen head over heels for the wonderful doctor and he had fallen hard for her. It hurt to think of all Harper would be missing in life. She would have been a terrific wife and a fabulous mother.
Pushing thoughts of my sister out of my mind, I squared my shoulders and opened the glass door that led into the local bank. Leon was expecting me, and stood when I approached his desk.
“Willa,” he said, and extended his hand for me to shake, reminding me this was all business. “What can I do for you?” He gestured for me to take a seat.
I lowered myself into the chair and clasped my hands, which were trembling. Unsure where to start, I struggled to hold back the tears. “As you might have guessed, the last few months have been tough.”
“Ellen and I were terribly sorry to hear about Harper.”
Glancing down, I swallowed hard and held my breath, fearing if I tried to speak, I’d fall apart emotionally. After several tense seconds, I looked up and managed a weak smile.
“As I was saying, being away from the shop was detrimental to my cash flow.” No need to delay the purpose for my visit. “I’m here about a loan, Leon, otherwise I’ll be forced to close my doors.”
“You’re already closed,” he reminded me.
“Close permanently,” I whispered, nearly choking on the words and the thought of losing the years of hard work and sacrifice I’d put into Bean There.
Leon asked all the questions I knew he would, then gave me the paperwork to fill out and leave with him. Once I laid it on his desk, he said, “I’ll do what I can, Willa, but no promises.”
“Thank you.” I appreciated his honesty and left with little hope.
Suspecting the bank would refuse a loan, my second and less