Page 54 of Over the Verdant Hills
“Same. I think it might be the smell. It is divine. But we went on a carriage ride with Becky and Rodney and then flew kites along the lake, and I didn’t eat nearly enough food.”
“Wait until they’re both teenagers—you’re going to need to buy a grocery store in order to keep from getting eaten out of house and home.”
“Oh goodness. Maybe I’ll be happy at some point that my husband has them over the summer, so I can get an extra job just to pay for the food I’m going to need in my house.”
“I don’t know how people with big families do it.”
“They need a garden. So they can feed their kids. And with all those kids, they have plenty of free labor to grow and weed and work in the garden.”
They laughed together.
They chatted about the weather and about a few things in town, and how Raspberry Ridge really needed a restaurant or something.
“It’s too bad Lauren’s mom isn’t feeling well. Since the bakery closed down a few years ago, it just hasn’t been the same.”
“I agree. No one could bake like Lauren’s mom.”
“Except Lauren. Lauren actually made a few things that I liked better.”
“I guess I’ll always be partial to my grandma’s homemade bread. Unfortunately, she passed before I truly learned her secrets. My bread doesn’t turn out like hers.”
“I think that’s what makes the people in our lives special. If we could just do everything that they did, we wouldn’t miss them.”
“I suppose you’re right. Still, Lauren’s mom made cheese bread that was just absolutely divine.”
They chatted a bit more, and then Claire apologized. “I wish I couldstay longer. But Josiah is making barbecue ribs for us tonight, and I don’t know how I’m going to eat another bite, but I definitely don’t want to miss it. He’s expecting me to be there.”
“Of course. I… I think you and Josiah might have something going on.”
Claire knew her cheeks had to be beet red. “I hope so. I can’t imagine anyone being more supportive of someone than what Josiah was of me during this whole situation. I’m not talking just since Grandma died, but when she was diagnosed with cancer. It’s true that he knew and didn’t tell me, but that was because Grandma didn’t want me to know. And he respected that. But no one could have been more supportive or kind or better in any way than what Josiah was.”
“I guess you know by now that kind of man isn’t easy to find.”
“No. It’s not. And if he happens to be funny, and handy, and…” Claire blushed even more red. “A good kisser.”
Grace laughed. “You’ve known that since you were what—fourteen?”
“Something like that. And yeah, it was a little bit of knowledge I had tucked away.”
“He’s probably gotten better over the years.”
Claire paused, and then she let the words come out. “I hope I get to find out.”
Chapter Twenty-Two
“Oh my goodness, I had the best day,” Claire said, and Josiah wanted to reach across between the chairs and pull her from hers onto his lap.
But Dan and Lana were sitting across the fire from them in their own chairs, and her children might wonder what was going on with the adults if he did what he wanted to.
So he didn’t, but he contented himself with looking at her and enjoying the happiness that practically radiated from her face.
They had taken the boat out on the lake. They’d flown kites again, hiked along the beach, walked up as far as they possibly could, had a picnic, and walked back. They’d even taken another carriage ride. Plus, they’d made twenty loaves of bread and delivered one to every house in Raspberry Ridge.
The kids had helped work in the flower beds some, and he’d gotten a little bit of work done in the kitchen, although he still wasn’t done with it.
But how could he resist when Claire invited him to go along with her and her children? He wasn’t going to say no. If she didn’t want him, she shouldn’t ask.
They’d finally gotten around to the campfire—one last onebefore the funeral. Tomorrow everything would be about Grandma, celebrating her life, attending her funeral, and burying her. It was sure to be a hard day, and he was making his barbecue ribs for that evening, so they’d have something to look forward to. Maybe they’d have another bonfire.
