The Lady's Mine by Francine Rivers

Author:Francine Rivers [Rivers, Francine]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: FICTION / Christian / Romance / Historical, FICTION / Historical / General
ISBN: 9781496447609
Publisher: Tyndale House Publishers
Published: 2022-02-08T00:00:00+00:00

Kathryn couldn’t feel her toes or fingers by the time she reached Calvada. Ronya’s living quarters at the back of the café glowed like a beacon in a stormy sea. Shivering, her breath like smoke, Kathryn opened the garden gate, trudged through the snow, and knocked.

“Thank heavens!” She motioned Kathryn inside. “Ivan came looking for you. You said you’d go back to the hotel.”

“I will.” She watched Ronya looking her over and glanced down. “Oh, no! I’m so sorry.” Her high-button shoes were soaked and dripping mud on Ronya’s clean floor. “I’ll go now.”

“You’re not going anywhere. You’re half-frozen!” Ronya pulled Kathryn toward her fireplace. “Stay right there.” She disappeared into the bedroom and quickly returned with a buttonhook, a thick blanket, and a pair of woolen socks. Kathryn gasped in pain as Ronya unhooked the buttons and pulled off the wet shoes. “You’ll be lucky if you don’t have frostbite!” Ronya tsked. “Where did you go?”

“Willow Creek Road.” She gritted her teeth as Ronya worked on her feet with warm, strong hands.

“Wandering around like everything is perfectly fine.” Ronya glanced up with an accusing glare. “You haven’t got a lick of sense.” She wrapped soft cloths around Kathryn’s bare feet and kneaded them more.

Kathryn sighed as the pain lessened. “Oh, that feels good.”

“Well, don’t get used to it.” Ronya stood. “I’ve got something that will warm you up.”

Kathryn hoped it was a nice, hot bowl of stew, but when Ronya returned, she held a steaming mug. Thanking her, Kathryn held it to warm her icy hands.

“Drink it!” Ronya ordered.

Obedient, Kathryn took a small sip and spit it back into the mug. Mortified at what she’d done, she apologized. She’d never tasted anything so vile. Ronya told her to take another sip and swallow it this time, then stood, hands on hips, watching to make sure she did. Shuddering, Kathryn tried again. She managed to swallow a few drops and almost gagged. “I am truly sorry, Ronya, but that coffee is revolting.”

Ronya snatched the mug and marched into the restaurant kitchen. When she came back, she handed it to Kathryn again. “Now try it.”

Peering into the mug, Kathryn saw cream had been added. She took a cautious sip. And lots of sugar! She took a bigger sip and tasted cinnamon and something else she couldn’t identify. “It’s delicious.”

“Glad you like it. It’s one of my winter specialties.” Ronya stood over her while she sipped. “You’re worse than City. Do you know that? You can’t just wander around without telling anyone where you’re going. He knew how to fight. You’re just a girl.” She took the empty mug from her. “You’re still shivering. One more of these and you’ll be nicely thawed out.”

Kathryn’s stomach felt plenty warm by the time Ronya came back, but she obeyed. The second mug of coffee was even better than the first. When Ronya demanded to know what she had been up to since leaving the restaurant, Kathryn told her about Tweedie and her feather-fan plan to bring her some income.

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