Finally a Bride by Vickie Mcdonough

to make a difference in this town while I’m here. Give me a chance to redeem my early years before I knew You.”
    He paused at the end of Apple Street and stared past the houses lining the lane. A half-mile northeast of town was the site of his old home, a shack really—if it was still standing. Part of him longed to go see if anything remained, but another part didn’t want to have anything to do with his past. He kicked a rock and sent it skittering across the dirt road. Most of his memories were bad ones, anyway.
    The pie plates under his arm slipped, and he pressed his arm tight against his body to keep them from falling. They’d reminded him of the task he still had to complete. His heart pounded harder the closer he got to the mayor’s house. What if someone saw him and asked what he was doing? How could he respond without telling a falsehood?
    Lord, I believe in my heart that You want me to make restitution for my past deeds, so give me the courage to complete this task .

     
    Jack moseyed into the store and searched the building, disappointed to find it empty except for Mrs. Morgan. She was certain she’d seen the parson enter when she’d glanced out her bedroom window a few minutes ago. There was nothing particularly odd about a minister going into a mercantile, but her reporter instincts sensed Noah Jeffers was up to something.
    “Morning, Jacqueline.” Mrs. Morgan smiled. “It’s good to see you up again. I hope you’re feeling better after your fall.”
    Jack grimaced at the mention of her plummet off the mayor’s roof. She’d been halfway surprised he hadn’t marched over to her house to lecture her about respecting people’s property. The fact that he hadn’t confirmed in her mind that he was working on some big plan for the city. She just had to discover what it was. She leaned against the counter and took the weight off her injured leg. “I’m still a bit sore, but I’m getting better. Thanks for asking.”
    “If you’re looking for Tessa, she isn’t here. She ran out the door, mumbling something about needing to go to Penny’s for a while.”
    “No. Actually, I was wondering…. Didn’t Noah Jeffers come in a little while ago?”
    Mrs. Morgan nodded, picked up a feather duster, and started swiping the cans of vegetables on the shelf behind the counter. “Yes, he was here about ten minutes ago. Bought a few things and left. He’s a nice young man, and quite handsome with that dark hair and eyes, don’t you think? Tessa can’t quit talking about him.”
    Jack wasn’t about to admit that she did indeed find Reverend Jeffers attractive, much to her consternation. Shouldn’t a minister be plain looking so a woman wouldn’t waste time dwelling on his features instead of his message? Why, the man had even invaded her dreams. How was she to fight something like that? Forcing her frustrations aside, she smiled at Tessa’s mother. “Yes, she made it clear to Penny and me that she intends to marry him.”
    Mrs. Morgan’s blue eyes widened. “She never said a thing about that to me. Isn’t it ironic that I just gushed about her attributes to the parson?”
    Jack pursed her lips. The poor man hadn’t been in town two days, and the Morgans already had him in their sights. At least she hoped she was no longer in Billy’s. A shudder wormed its way down her back.
    Mrs. Morgan paused. “Tessa told me that you don’t plan to marry Billy.” She nibbled her lower lip and stared out the door. Finally she met Jack’s gaze again. “I can’t say as I blame you, although I was hoping to welcome you into the family. Billy has always been a handful, and now that he’s far bigger than me, I don’t know how to handle him.”
    Jack shifted her feet, uncomfortable talking about Billy with his mother. From the day the Morgans first moved to town, she’d known Billy was a wild child. He seemed to pick up where Butch Laird left off when he left town. She hadn’t been very kind to the lonely