For the first time in his life, Stephen was actually jealous, and he didnât like it, not one little bit. The question was, what should he do about it?
âWait, donât go yet, Kaylie. IâI have something to say.â
Heart pounding, he held out his hand. She hesitated, but finally drew near, putting her hand in his. A ridiculous smile broke out on his face. It was insane, but he couldnât help a surge of sheer joy.
âIâve been unreasonable at times, and I apologize.â
âNo apology necessary,â she told him softly.
âI know itâs selfish of me to want to keep you to myself, but itâs so much easier when youâre here.â
âI understand,â she said.
âI donât think you do. When youâre with me, I feel soâ¦peaceful, hopeful, but itâs more than that. Itâsâ¦â
How could he tell her he had been existing in a barren, lonely place, and Kaylie was his first, perhaps only chance to escape it? She was contentment and peaceâand perhaps much too good for the likes of himâ¦.
says, âCamp meetings, mission work and church attendance permeate my Oklahoma childhood memories. It was a golden time, which sustains me yet. However, only as a young, widowed mother did I truly begin growing in my personal relationship with the Lord. Through adversity, He has blessed me in countless ways, one of which is a second marriage so loving and romantic it still feels like courtship!â
The author of seventy novels, Arlene James now resides outside Dallas, Texas, with her beloved husband. Her need to write is greater than ever, a fact that frankly amazes her, as sheâs been at it since the eighth grade! She loves to hear from readers, and can be reached via her Web site at www.arlenejames.com.
Honor your father and motherâwhich is the first commandment with a promiseâthat it may go well with you and that you may enjoy long life on the earth.
âEphesians 6:2-3
To Susan (aka Janis Susan May),
my sister in so many ways that we were almost surely separated at birth! Love, DAR
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen
Chapter Fourteen
Questions for Discussion
She couldnât help being impressed. As a nurse, Kaylie Chatam had encountered many patients whose physical conditions sadly diminished them, but not this time. Not even the bulk of the casts protecting his broken bones deflected attention from the big, commanding presence asleep on the high, half tester bed. Tall and long-limbed yet brawny, with an air of intensity about him even in sleep that his shaggy blond hair and lean, chiseled face did nothing to diminish, he emitted a potent force, a larger-than-life aura.
Kaylie lifted a petite hand to the heavy, sandy-red chignon at the nape of her neck, wishing that sheâd secured it more firmly that morning when dressing for church. Sheâd have preferred to conduct this interview in the shapeless scrubs that she always wore when working, her long, straight hair scraped back into a tight knot. Instead, here she stood, wearing skimpy flat mules with big silver buckles on the shallow toes, a straight knee-length skirt and a frothy confection of a white blouse, her hair slipping and sliding, tendrils hanging about her face.
Turning to the man crowded next to her in the doorway of the bedchamber in one of the second-floor suites of Chatam House, the antebellum mansion owned by her three delightful aunties, Kaylie felt at a distinct disadvantage. Stocky, blunt-featured and of medium height with short, prematurely gray hair, a practiced smile and a pricey, light grayish brown suit, Aaron Doolin had identified himself as the patientâs agent.
âWho is he exactly?â
âWho is he?â Doolin parroted, obviously shocked. âWho is he? Why, thatâs the Hangman.â At her blank look, he went on. âStephen Gallow. Starting goalie for the Fort Worth Blades hockey team.â He glanced at the bed, muttering, âAt least he was before the accident.â
A hockey goalie? Here at Chatam House? She knew little about the game beyond its reputation for violence, but that was enough to make her wonder what the aunties had gotten themselves into now. More to the point, what had they gotten her into? Provided, of course, that she decided to take on this patient, which she could not do in good conscience without at least nominal approval from her father.
âWhat happened to the bed hangings?â she asked Doolin, gesturing toward the massive headboard of the bed. One of her auntsâ prized English antiques, it stood a good seven feet in height. Even the square footposts were taller than Kaylie, though at a mere five feet in her stocking feet, that wasnât saying too much.
Doolin just shrugged. âI donât know from hangings.â
âThe curtains at the sides of the front of the bed.â
âOh!â He waved a hand, the sapphire on his pinky flashing in the midday light. The edges of his ever-present smile frayed. âWell, during the excitement last nightââ he churned his hands then shrugged sheepishly ââthey sort of came down in the scrum. Your aunts thought it best to get them out of the way.â