Among the Magnolias by Diane T. Ashley

Author:Diane T. Ashley
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Barbour Publishing, Inc.
Published: 2012-04-10T00:00:00+00:00

eleven

Nathan rubbed at his eyes again and shook his head to clear it. He had gotten up and dressed before the sun rose to avoid waking Mr. LeGrand.

Outside, he walked from one end of the steamboat to the other. The only other people he saw were busy crewmen who were tending their duties in the boiler room, the galley, and the pilothouse. He knew the other passengers would be up and about soon, and he needed to find some tranquility before facing anyone.

If only Abigail’s words had not kept rolling around in his head all night long. They had carried so much authority. “Your sin will find you out.” He could have snatched more sleep if his conscience had allowed it. Or if he had not relived those harrowing moments again and again during the night. The struggle, the fear, the sickening feeling of the knife entering Ira Watson’s body. Over and over again, he saw the man’s shocked face loosen into a death mask. How could he ever ask for forgiveness? He didn’t deserve it.

Because of that, he knew he did not deserve any woman’s consideration, especially not a woman like Abigail LeGrand. So why had he lowered his defenses? The answer to that question was easy. He was beginning to care for her. He thought back to his feelings for Iris Landon, which were a mere shadow of what he felt for Abigail. And his attraction to Margaret had never grown past friendship. Abigail was so different—so complex and invigorating. He liked being with her, talking to her, teasing her.

How had he gone so quickly from one extreme to the other? For a moment or two yesterday afternoon as they crossed the gangway together, he had thought she was the other part of him, the best part of him, the part God had fashioned only for him.

Maybe if he hadn’t taken advantage of her misstep last night when they were alone. . .but she had felt so right in his arms. And he would have sworn she was comfortable there, too. Then she had turned into a wildcat. Her attack might not have left visible scars on him, but her words had surely cleaved his heart.

He wondered how she would act today. What would he say to her? Should he apologize? Or act as though nothing had happened last evening? If only he could turn to someone for answers. But he’d had no one since his parents’ death. Uncle Richard, the man who had raised him, had never been much of a role model—a fact proven for good when the man was arrested for kidnapping.

He had friends back in Chattanooga, but no one in whom he could confide. A feeling of homesickness washed over him. But had he ever really had a home? Had God singled him out to live his life without the comforts of hearth and home? So what was this longing inside him for some-thing more?

The sun rose over the tops of the trees, washing the eastern side of the steamboat with buttery color.

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