Charity's Heart by Ramona K. Cecil

Author:Ramona K. Cecil [ Cecil, Ramona K.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 978-1-60742-960-9
Publisher: Barbour Publishing, Inc.
Published: 2008-09-15T00:00:00+00:00

thirteen

“Where do you go, Daniel, when you look off into that place the rest of us can’t see?”

Uncle Jacob’s quiet words pulled Daniel back to his parents’ parlor. Grinning, he turned to his uncle and accepted the mug of hot apple cider he held out to him. He inhaled the fragrant steam spiraling from the mulled drink. “Sorry,” he murmured, wishing his uncle wasn’t so perceptive.

Uncle Jacob settled himself on the sofa across from Daniel’s chair and breathed a contented sigh. “You’ve been staring at that Christmas tree for ten minutes, and I’ll wager you couldn’t tell me if Lucy got her way and topped it with an angel, or my Rose won the argument and a star sits on its highest branch.”

Unwilling to admit that his mind had indeed been absent, traveling unbidden back to Vernon, Daniel decided an evasive maneuver was the best tactic. “I didn’t think preachers were supposed to gamble, Uncle Jacob,” he said and sipped the warm, spicy cider.

“You know very well I meant it only as an expression. Don’t change the subject. And no fair peeking.” Uncle Jacob’s blue eyes sparkled with fun.

Daniel averted his eyes from the spruce tree in the front corner of the parlor. He, Pa, Uncle Jacob, and Travis had spent the better part of the morning scouring the wooded hills on the north side of Madison for the two best-looking young spruces they could find. One now graced the front parlor of Uncle Jacob and Aunt Rosaleen’s parsonage. The other stood across the room, being adorned in festive splendor by Lucy, Travis, and Daniel’s cousins. From an adjacent settee, Mother and Aunt Rosaleen offered the enthusiastic young workers suggestions as to how they might best proceed.

“Why, it’s an angel, of course, Uncle.” Daniel gave Uncle Jacob a sly grin. “You know Lucy always gets her way.”

A rich, throaty chuckle burst from Uncle Jacob’s lips. “That she does,” he admitted, his attention turning to Lucy, who stood laughing with her intended across the room. “The poor fellow had no idea his fate was sealed the moment your sister set her cap for him.”

Daniel watched Lucy and Travis argue playfully over the placement of a brightly colored glass bulb. At another time, his uncle’s comment might have brought an easy grin to his face. But not now. Not with the rich smell of pine in his nostrils, the taste of spiced cider on his tongue, and the dazzle of Christmas brilliance all around him. Instead, his mouth drooped with his heart. To his shame, he felt a wave of envy swell up in his chest.

He wrapped both hands around the warm cup of cider and gazed into its amber contents. “Oh, I don’t know, Uncle. I’d say Travis is one lucky man.”

“That he is, Daniel.” The smile in Uncle Jacob’s voice faded, and Daniel could sense his elder’s gaze. “Hmm,” he murmured in that knowing tone that warned Daniel his thoughts had been breached. “That brings us back to where we

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