Breakfast at the Honey Creek Café by Jodi Thomas

Author:Jodi Thomas [Thomas, Jodi]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2020-03-16T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter 18

10:45 a.m.

Sam

The church bells rang loud enough to travel down the valley and echo back again. Sunday. For the first time since he was more boy than man, Sam Cassidy stood and simply listened to the day begin. He closed his eyes. Cars were parking outside. Doors slamming. Children running along the gravel. And somewhere a baby cried.

Sam heard people moving up the wooden stairs to the choir loft, their shoes tapping almost in rhythm.

Stella had been right about the music director. He arrived early and was playing the organ as if it needed warming up. Sam couldn’t see her, but he bet Stella was sitting near him getting ready for her solo.

Sam couldn’t wait to hear her sing like an angel, just like her mother had told her she could. He had a feeling folks were probably coming more for the singing than his preaching. Since he got back from Anna’s house so late he’d only had time to jot down a rough draft of his sermon last night before he fell asleep. It was nothing grand, but it would do.

The walker cluster was already seated on the second row left. The church always let their Sunday school class out early so the old folks could be seated first and, of course, have the pick of the donuts because row two was a direct line to the parlor. All walkers were lined along the wall.

Miss Daisy, the old dispatcher, would be among them.

Stella had told him that the widows from Widows Park always sat on the second row right. Tradition.

Sam closed his eyes. He’d had three hours sleep, but he was as ready as he’d ever be. He’d pieced bits of sermons together from what he remembered. His father often preached the same sermons several times because the congregation was always new. Once he had circled back to a town too soon and accidentally preached a repeat lesson. Only one person mentioned he’d heard it before.

Sam would start with how people should love one another. As near as he could tell these folks were already doing that. Then he’d go over the commandments. Since he wasn’t a priest, there was no confession, but several members hadn’t hesitated to mention other people’s weaknesses. They seemed to think they were doing the poor sinner a favor by confessing for him.

He hadn’t been in town three whole days, but Sam was becoming convinced that coming here had been a bad idea. You can’t go back fifteen years and start living the life you once wanted. But, like it or not, the past few days had changed him. He didn’t know if it was for better or worse, but he had a feeling it was forever.

“You ready, Sam?”

He turned and was surprised to find Anna. “I’m ready. Did Stella make it here?”

“She did. I haven’t seen her brother. Probably still home trying to figure out how the toaster works. She did everything for him, even bought his clothes.”

“Is she penniless?” Sam had spent most of the way home fearing she was.

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