Page 80 of A Twist of Faith
Only Jesus? But what about all the work she’d done? All the money she’d given, back when she actually went to church somewhat regularly? And all the wrong things? She needed to pay some sort of penance for those. “Only Jesus? You’re telling me that if I just ask Jesus to save me, that’s it? That gets me into Heaven?”
“That’s it.”
Dee stood slowly, digesting the new information. “But that can’t be right. Anybody could be a Christian. Anyone could go to Heaven.”
Mrs. Mitchell’s eyes lit, point made. “Exactly. You can’t do nothin’, Dee, good nor bad to get into God’s Heaven. It’s all about Him. His love. His grace.”
Dee slid back into her chair, legs weak, and the inner skeptic offering an objection. “Sounds too easy.”
“Does it?” Mrs. Mitchell’s smile softened. “Not if you really think about it. It takes a divine change of the heart to humble us enough to bring empty hands to God. We all want to be good enough by ourselves so we have braggin’ rights, but nothing else will fit through the door of Heaven but Jesus. He’s all you need. He’ll right your wrongsandmake you good enough for His family all at the same time.”
A car door outside alerted them of a break in their private conversation.
“Thank you, Mrs. Mitchell.”
“Grace.” She corrected and patted Dee’s hand, her name more apropos than she realized. Or, maybe from the glint in her eyes she knew exactly how appropriate.
“Thank you, Grace.”
Reese likedthe feel of Dee’s hand in his.
They’d spent a long time talking at his mama’s house the day before and added another few conversations at lunch the next day, then a date night followed. An actual date—one where two-year-olds didn’t throw ice cream and sisters kept their tires on their cars.
A place where dinner involved higher class food than hamburgers and professional casual was the preferred dress. He planned on showing Dee Roseland his classy side, or at least the less grungy, kid-stained side. He did have one, it just took a little while to grease up the hinges of his memory to find it.
She sat across the candlelit table at Rossi’s, the only high-end Italian restaurant in Ransom, wearing some blue, shiny blouse and looking like a princess. After over two months of knowing her, he recognized with more clarity the various emotions she tried to hide, but even more he saw the change in her. A softening, or maybe a release of the beauty she kept hidden behind a heap of hurt. She needed love more than anyone he’d ever met, and the call to meet that need pulled like a magnet.
Jana swept into his life like a dream—all certain, gorgeous, and demanding. Starstruck wonder and pure stupidity at her interest in him blinded him from her self-centeredness and need for change. She’d never been broken, and even when the ugly truth about her adultery bled into knowledge, she refused to admit her wrongs, blaming her choices on everything and everyone else.
As Dee smiled at his crazy attempt at humor, he realized the difference. Humility and gratitude. Maybe he’d changed on the outside a little, with nice clothes and fancy talk, but she’d blossomed like a spring flower with a little bit of love for rain. His chest expanded with purpose. If all she needed was love, well, he grew up with the right preparation, family, and faith to meet her need.
“I never noticed this place before.” She glanced around the room, smile growing.
“Charlottesville quality?”
“Oh yes.” She took a drink and lifted a one-shouldered shrug. “Not exactly what I expected from little Ransom.”
“Now, Doc, there are all sorts of little surprises in Ransom if you take the time to look.”
Her gaze leveled on him, seeming to take in his deeper meaning. “Kind of like you … and your entire family.”
“I think my family might come as more of a shock to one’s system than a surprise.”
She laughed. “Well, they’ve been both to me.” Her gaze grew serious, focused. “You certainly have.” Dee pushed her hair behind one ear and stared down at her plate. “About the time I think I have you figured out, you do something else to surprise me.”
He leaned forward, lowering his voice, knowing full well he planned a huge surprise for her in a few days. “Do you like surprises, Dee?”
She looked up, dark gaze glittering in the candlelight. “I do now.”
He patted the table in his signature move to add emphasis. “Well, I’d rather you think I’m surprising than a lost cause.”
She took his hand and squeezed his fingers, gaze softening. “Not you, Reese.”
Her unspoken admission softened his heart even more than the pudding it already was. If this romance continued long-term, would she be content to stay in Ransom? With him? He knew his care only touched the tip of her longing, but not the deepest need of her heart. He couldn’t breathe life into her soul or provide healing for her lostness or give her a dream job in Charlottesville.
“You know, I wouldn’t be surprised if Ransom didn’t hold a few more surprises for people with big-time dreams but smalltown hearts.”
The fact she took a drink before responding gave him more of an answer than her words. Nope, her heart still belonged, at least partially, somewhere else. “Some dreams are such a part of who you are, it’s hard to see past them, but … I think I’m beginning to understand.”
