and I don’t have to be afraid of our pasts or how they were shaped. We do have to be brave and ask God to heal us from those fears and help us trust people in our lives who want to help and love us. I hope you enjoyed Greer and Locke’s story. I love to hear from readers, so please email me at [email protected] and sign up for my newsletter to keep in touch and be “Patched In” with all things bookish! Sign up at www.jessicarpatch.com.
Warmly,
Jessica
Be strong and of a good courage, fear not, nor be afraid of them: for the Lord thy God, he it is that doth go with thee; he will not fail thee, nor forsake thee.
—Deuteronomy 31:6
To Mom, for loving us kids sacrificially and unconditionally, and letting me sit out on the porch as a kid watching thunderstorms instead of making me come in the house.
Special thanks to my agent, Rachel Kent, who’s always in my corner and a joy to work with. To Shana Asaro, for her excitement about weather disaster plots and for always being a rock star editor; to Emily Rodmell, for her help early on in the story; to Susan Tuttle—the other half of my author brain and human shovel always ready to dig me out of a plot hole; and to Jill Kemerer, for helping me burrow into my heroine’s and hero’s hearts to find their fears.
Contents
Spring wasn’t the only thing in the air. Storms were rolling in, and if Greer Montgomery didn’t need the money she wouldn’t be standing here in the middle of a field on an April evening taking photos for the upgraded Goldenville Chamber of Commerce website. Nope, she’d be home snuggled up with her own little Stormie Lin, listening to her suck a pacifier and inhaling that sweet baby scent—a mix of innocence and baby powder. But Greer would work three more jobs, if necessary, to provide for her nine-month-old princess.
The Stellar Entertainment traveling carnival had spent most of last night and early this morning setting up for the week-long spring-fest. Greer had been by earlier to catch some of the action and meet with the Chamber of Commerce’s executive director—and her friend—Cindy Woolridge to discuss the vision for the website.
Most of the patrons tonight would be donning ponchos and rain boots. Alabama’s springs could be wet and soggy. But that didn’t stop families from coming out in droves to indulge in corn dogs—or, as everyone around here called them, Pronto Pups—pretzels, rigged games, a Ferris wheel and cotton candy. Greer peered into the sky. The sun had been eclipsed by thunderheads that looked a lot like spun cotton candy piled high on a stick. Breaking through the dappled clouds, lightning flashed in the distance. The scent of rain rolled in, which brought a whole different flood of emotions.
She clicked a few photos of the lit-up Ferris wheel. Perfect for the chamber website. Tourists would want to come and visit; folks moving to the area would see how family-friendly Goldenville was. Southern hospitality at its best. When she returned home a year and a half ago, she’d been welcomed with open arms. One set of feeble arms had belonged to her mother. Greer had expected to come home temporarily to help her after a mild heart attack, but Mama never completely recovered and three months ago, she’d passed into the strong arms of Jesus after a severe heart attack. Greer missed her daily. Missed that Lin wouldn’t get a chance to know her grandmother.
Another flash of lightning, accompanied by a peal of thunder, revealed the storm was fast approaching. Maybe less than thirty minutes. Greer had already taken a ton of photos this morning after her shift at the sheriff’s department. She normally worked days, but they were short a few deputies,
