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“Evan … I’ve got to go. The girls will come looking for me.”
With a nod, Evan let her go. He turned and went into the adjoining bathroom and closed the door. She worked to slow her breathing as she walked out and down the steps.
“Jenny,” Gracie said, “Where were you? Everybody is waiting.”
“I forgot something.” She’d forgotten something all right, her mind, her common sense. She looked down at the smiling child and thought about the man upstairs.
She was quickly losing her heart to both of them.
“They’re called the wee people. Some call them leprechauns. I only met one, Finn O’Donovan. And oh, he was a tricky one. He would rob you blind if you turned your back on him.”
“What does he look like?” a girl asked.
“A wee man, no bigger than yourselves. They have rosy cheeks and big blue eyes that make you want to trust them. I met Finn when I was no older than you young ones. He lived in the forest right outside of the town where I lived in Ireland. First time I saw him was when I came home from school one day. He asked me never to tell anyone about him. My first mistake. He promised to show me where he hid a pot of gold. Well, let me tell you. I was a poor fella with lots of brothers and sisters. My da and ma could use a pot of gold.”
“Did you ever find it?” Carrie asked.
Sean shook his head. “No. The scoundrel had been laughing at me the whole time. Soon after, my family left for America, so I never saw Finn again which was good, since we didn’t part on happy terms. But some strange things have been happening lately. I have a feeling that Finn has returned to my life.”
“He’s here?” Cherry whispered.
Sean’s eyes grew large as he nodded, then glanced around the crackling fire at his attentive audience. “I have proof.” He reached behind him and pulled out a green felt pointy hat. “See, this is the same hat Finn wore all those years ago.”
“Where’d you get that, Grandpa?” Gracie asked.
“I found it in the vineyard. Finn is here.”
Everyone gasped.
Evan stood at the patio door and watched as the girls listened to his father. No one could tell a story like Sean Rafferty. Seeing Gracie’s happy face, he was glad that his dad was there to help out. His gaze settled on Jenny. This night for Gracie wouldn’t have happened if she hadn’t agreed to give up her weekend.
The only problem was that it was getting harder and harder to keep away from her. He still couldn’t believe what had nearly happened upstairs. He’d almost kissed her again. He wanted it more than his next breath.
Suddenly Matt came out of the shadows, sat on the bench next to Jenny and scooted closer to her. He didn’t seem to have any trouble talking with her, flirting with her.
And unless Evan spoke up, he didn’t have any right to tell his brother to stay away.
Was he ready to do that?
CHAPTER SEVEN
AWEEK had passed since the sleepover and Jenny had tried to stay focused on other things besides the man who’d been keeping her up nights. Not only Evan had been disturbing her sleep, but worry over his daughter’s feelings had, as well.
Classes had been going well for everyone except Gracie. She struggled with the intricate work needed to complete her mother’s quilt. Jenny herself even needed Allison’s help. The pattern was far too complicated for an eight year old, and the child’s frustration was growing.
She’d realized she had to convince the girl to go in another direction. That was when she’d asked for advice from Allison and her new friend, school principal Lily Perry.
The three of them had discussed her concerns and had come up with something that might convince Gracie to put her mother’s quilt aside for another few years and work on something simpler.
It was nearly the end of the day’s class when Jenny took Gracie aside. They walked to the round table in the corner of the room that had quickly become a popular spot with the regulars. Only on Wednesday and Saturday afternoons was the area vacant.
Jenny motioned to a chair and Gracie took it. “Am I in trouble?” she asked.
“Of course not.” Jenny looked at Allison who’d followed them over. “We just have an idea we want to talk to you about.”
The child still looked worried as Jenny took a seat next to her. “I’m concerned about you, Gracie. I think the quilt you’re working on is harder than you thought it would be, huh?”
The girl looked sad. “It’s not too bad.”
Jenny exchanged a glance with Allison. “But still, it’s pretty hard to sew for someone your age.”
“Maybe.”
Jenny was relieved. “Allison and I came up with an idea that might help. We want you to listen to it first, before you decide if it’s good or bad.”
“Okay.”
“We were wondering if you’d consider putting your quilt aside for a few years until you’re older and a more experienced quilter.”
Tears welled in her eyes. “But I promised Mommy.”
“We know you did, sweetie,” Jenny said soothingly. “But, as I said before, I don’t think your mother expected you to finish it right away. Since she chose the DoubleWedding-Ring pattern, don’t you think she planned to have it ready for when you got married?” Jenny smiled. “Are you getting married anytime soon?”
Gracie actually smiled too. “No!”
“Then you have plenty of time to get it done.”
“I guess so,” she hesitated. “But will you still help me?”
Jenny wasn’t sure how to answer her. She’d always planned to go back to San Antonio to teach. “I’ll promise you this, Gracie, I’ll do my best.”
The girl wasn’t excited by her answer. “You said you’d help me finish it.”
“And if possible, I will. Besides, if you keep practicing, just think how good you’ll get and you can do it yourself.”
The child looked sad. “Does this mean I can’t be in the class any more?”
“Oh, no. We want you to stay in the class. Would you be willing to work on another project, something simpler?”
Gracie nodded eagerly.
“Good. We’ve come up with an idea and all you girls can work together. Even Mrs. Perry is going to participate in this project.” Jenny stood. “Come on, I’ll announce to everyone what’s going to happen.”
Gracie hurried back to her seat as Jenny turned to Allison. “She took it better than I thought.”
“She seemed relieved.”
But Jenny wasn’t sure she was out of the woods yet. Hadn’t she been the one who had fought to get Gracie into class, assuring Evan she could handle it?
Why should she care what he thought? The man had run hot and cold, kissing her, making her want more. But she hadn’t seen or heard from him since. Apparently he’d wanted to put some distance between them.
She could deal with rejection. If only he would stay away, stop making her long for more, making her want what she couldn’t have—a man who would never be hers.
Jenny walked back to the group. “Girls, it’s about quitting time and I’d like to talk to you all.”
They stopped and looked at her.
“First of all, I want to tell you how pleased I am with the work you’ve all accomplished in just a few short weeks.” She looked around. “Is everyone having fun?”
The group cheered and Jenny’s chest swelled. She glanced at Lily. “Well, if you like what you’re doing, we’d like to go a step further. When the class began, we talked about everyone making their own quilt, but that’s a big project, and it can take a long time, especially with school-work and chores at home. How about we each work on a section of blocks, then everyone combines them to make one quilt?” She rushed on to say, “It’ll still be about your family, but we’ll put everyone’s together.”
There was silence.
She continued, “Why not make a quilt that tells a story about the town, about past generations? You are the future of Kerry Springs, but we should know where we came from, too. I know a lot of you are already using fabric from your relatives. That’s perfect. Now with the assistance of mothers and the helpers, you can embroider those people’s names and dates on the blocks so we’ll know who they are.” Jenny moved aside so Lily could join her. “And now Mrs. Perry is going to tell you more about this project.”
“Hello, girls.”
“Hello, Mrs. Perry,” they said in unison.
“I’m also impressed with the work you’re doing here. And I’m taking a personal interest in this project, since both my daughter and my mother are working on it, too.
“When I first heard of Jenny’s idea, I thought, what a great idea, to preserve our town’s history in a quilt. And then I thought, as well as a quilt, how about an essay contest? We have Founders’ Day coming up in July. So what better way to celebrate it than to write about the families that make our town great?”
Jenny watched as the girls took in the idea.
“This isn’t a school requirement. It’s strictly for this class and for your own curiosity. But the girls who turn in stories will have them published in the town paper. Even better, Jenny and Allison will display the finished quilt in the shop window so everyone in town will see your hard work.” Lily smiled. “How do you feel about that?”
The girls cheered. “We should do it,” Cherry said. It was seconded by girl after girl.
“Okay, that gives us three months to finish. So you’ll keep working in class, but you’ll need to interview your parents and grandparents, learn their stories. Good luck to all of you.”
The room buzzed with excitement as the girls put away their sewing while discussing what they were going to do. Jenny glanced toward the back of the room and saw Evan.
Now it was her job to get him to go along with the sudden change of plans.
Evan watched as Jenny moved around the room talking to each student. It was obvious the girls adored her. She had an ease around kids, around everyone.
Not him. Outside of family, he’d always had trouble talking to people. He’d rather be alone than in a group. Megan hadn’t been eager to bring him out. She’d had her own social groups; besides quilting, there was her work at the church. Yet now, he could see his daughter needed more.
Although he’d once loved the solitude of working the vineyard, he’d found of late he was lonely. More so when he thought about Jenny Collins. Whenever he got close to her, he could feel the pull. Then there was the memory of the sweetest kiss and the stirring in his body that told him he wanted more, needed more as well.
His daughter came running toward him. “Daddy, guess what?”
“What?”
“We’re all going to make a big quilt together and have a writing contest. I need to get some old clothes from Grandpa for my blocks ‘cause I’m gonna write about him being from Ireland, and you and Uncle Matt, too.”
He looked at Jenny, who had arrived next to his daughter. “So you’re working on a new project already?”
“We’re taking a little detour,” Jenny answered.
Allison and Cherry walked up. “How about us girls go for some ice cream, Gracie? Then your dad and Jenny can talk.”
“Can I go, Daddy?”
Evan dug into his pocket for a few dollars and handed them to her. “Sure, but only get one scoop and don’t take too long.”
He watched as they left the shop, then turned back to Jenny. “What’s going on?”
“First of all, I was planning to tell to you about it when you got here.”
“Well, I’m here.” He glanced at Millie, who was with a customer. Both ladies were watching them with interest. “Is there somewhere private we can talk?” he asked.
“I can’t leave Millie.”
“I’ll be fine,” the saleswoman assured her. “You two go talk.” She smiled at Evan. “Good to see you again, Evan. Say hello to your father for me.”
He nodded. “I’ll do that.” He followed Jenny toward the back of the shop. She went to the office, then bypassed it. “The bookkeeper is working in there.”
Evan was surprised when Jenny opened another door that led to a staircase and started up. He followed her, and they ended up in her apartment.
He looked around, and then walked to the narrow window. “You can see Main Street.”
“Yeah, the view sold me on the place.”
He turned his attention to her. She looked tempting in fitted jeans and a tapered green blouse. Her sunny hair hung around her face and thin bangs brushed her forehead, highlighting her big brown eyes. She didn’t wear much makeup, giving her a fresh-scrubbed look. His gaze went to her full mouth and her perfect lips.
He shook away the direction of his thoughts. “Okay, what’s this change of plans?”
She blew out a breath. “You were right.”
He didn’t expect her to say that. “About what?”
“Gracie is too young to handle the complicated quilt pattern.”
He folded his arms across his chest. “Isn’t that what I tried to tell you from the beginning?”
“You did,” she conceded. “But what you didn’t realize about your daughter was she needed some independence. And she had to attempt to do the quilt before anyone could convince her otherwise. It seems stubbornness runs in your family.”
“You think I’m stubborn? You’re the one who wouldn’t let go of this.”
“But it helped. Can’t you see the difference in her?”
He nodded. “All right. She has been happier these last few weeks. But she has to be disappointed that she can’t finish the quilt.”
Jenny shook her head. “Oh, she’ll finish it, but she’s willing to wait.” She smiled. “And she got the one thing she truly wanted.”
“What was that?”
