that there van? I coulda croaked, waitin’ on y’all.”
“I’m really sorry,” Rachel said. “I was worried, too. Guess I wasn’t thinking clearly.”
Hannah leaned down to focus on the child. “And you. How old are you?”
“F-five.”
“So, how did we say you could remember the number of your bus?”
The child stared at the toes of her worn sneakers. “Five. Same as me.”
“That’s right.”
“What a good idea,” Rachel interjected, trying to sound upbeat.
Hannah straightened and glared at her, hands fisted on ample hips. “Now you, missy. What do you have to say for yourself?”
“Excuse me?”
“There is no excuse for what you did.”
Sean stepped up beside Rachel, clearly taking sides. “Most teachers would probably have left the child’s welfare in the hands of the bus driver. Ms. Woodward, however, took it upon herself to try to put things right. That speaks very well for her, don’t you agree?”
For the first time, Hannah took notice of Sean. She gave him a critical once-over. “And who might you be?”
He introduced himself and extended a hand of friendship. The annoyed woman begrudgingly accepted it. Then, instead of stuffing his hands into his pockets the way he initially had when he’d run into the pretty teacher in the hallway, he took half a step closer to Rachel and nonchalantly looped one arm around her shoulders. The gesture was casual yet obviously protective.
Mrs. Brody noticed immediately. Her eyebrows arched. “Oh, I see. You two were too busy playing patty-cake to pay attention to anything else.” She grabbed the child’s hand and started away. “Well, what’s done is done. Come on, Samantha. It’s too late to take you shopping for new clothes today like I’d promised. I got to go start supper.”
The little girl glanced back over her shoulder, silently pleading with her teacher and Sean to rescue her as Hannah Brody led her away. That soulful look was enough to put Rachel’s heart in a twist and leave a lump in her throat.
For an instant she wanted to weep. Instead, she waved, smiled and called, “Bye-bye. See you tomorrow, Samantha.”
“Will she be okay with that old grump?” Sean asked softly.
“Hannah?” Rachel glanced up at him while deliberately removing his hand from her shoulder. “Hannah’s not a bad person. She gets a little irritable sometimes but she’s basically good-hearted. She’s been taking in the kids nobody else wanted to bother with for years.”
“Samantha’s one of those?”
“Apparently. Her social worker did say she was having trouble adjusting. That’s probably why they gave her to Hannah.”
“I see. What else can you tell me about the Brody woman?”
“Well…” Rachel’s smile stayed. “She baby-sat for lots of folks here in Serenity who’re all grown up, now. Me included.”
“You’re kidding! No wonder you let her talk to you like that.”
“Hannah means well. And she was right. I should have called her so she wouldn’t worry. I was so worried about finding Samantha, I guess it just slipped my mind.”
“That’s understandable. Don’t beat yourself up about it.”
“I won’t. The only thing that bothers me is the way the small-town rumor mill is going to have fun with us.”
“Us?” Sean’s expression showed bewilderment. “What us?”
With a wry chuckle, Rachel shook her head. “You do have a lot to learn about living in a place like this, don’t you. There doesn’t even have to be an us for people to talk. By tomorrow morning, half the folks in town will be saying you and I are practically engaged. And the other half will be trying to decide if you’re good enough for me.”
She’d expected Sean to enjoy the lighthearted banter. Instead, he seemed upset. She pressed on. “Hey, don’t look so glum. I didn’t say it was my idea. It’s just how it is in a place where everybody knows everybody else, and half of them are related, besides.” That statement brought a further conclusion. “Oh-oh.”
“What’s wrong now?”
“I just had a horrible thought. Hannah’s my mother’s second cousin by marriage.”
“So?”
“So, I’ll bet Mom is the first one she calls.”
Sean huffed. “Don’t tell me you’re still worried about pleasing your mother at your age?”
“Hey. I’m not that old.”
He deliberately took his time looking her up and down and fully appreciating what he saw. Chances were good that he was at least seven or eight years older than she was, maybe more, yet they had to be contemporaries in spite of her youthful appearance. For starters, he knew this wasn’t Rachel’s first year of teaching. A person didn’t usually finish college and earn a degree until they were in their twenties at least, so she had to be halfway to thirty by now.
“You don’t look a day over sixteen,” he finally told her.
“Actually, I’ll be eighty-four my next birthday,” she said. Struggling to repress a giggle, she twirled in a circle to put herself on display. “Pretty good for an octogenarian, huh?”
“Excellent.” Sean was shaking his head in disbelief and laughing softly under his breath. “You certainly had me fooled. What’s your secret?”
“Clean living. I never miss a Sunday in church, either.”
“Very commendable.”
“I think so. Hey! Since you’re new in town, how’d you like to come visit my church?”
“Church and I don’t exactly get along.”
“That’s too bad. We won’t eat you, you know. We really do accept everybody, even sinners.” The astonishment in his expression made her chuckle. “That was a joke, Bates.”
“I’ll laugh later, okay?” He reached into his pocket for his car keys and jingled them in one hand. “You ready?”
“As soon as I go grab my purse,” Rachel said. “Wait here. I’ll just be a minute.”
Starting away she heard him mutter, “I don’t believe it.”
She spun around. “You don’t believe what?”
“You. You were driving all over the country without your license?”
“Guess I was. I told you Christians aren’t perfect. You’d better start believing me or I may have
