Heart of the Matter (17 page)

Authors: Marta Perry

Tags: #Fiction, #Romance, #General, #Religious

BOOK: Heart of the Matter

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“Cyrus thought I was crazy.” He shook his head. “Crazy was what I was before, when I let myself be eaten up by anger and ambition. Maybe being humbled by losing everything I thought was important was the only road back to finding out who I really am.”

Tears spilled over again, but they were good tears. “I’m sorry you went through that. But if you hadn’t, I’d never have met you.”

“Maybe you’d be better off if you hadn’t.”

“Don’t say that.” She hesitated, wanting to put into words the effect he’d had on her. “Being challenged by you made me realize what’s really important to me.”

He reached out slowly, letting his fingers brush her cheek. Warmth flooded through her, erasing the last bit of tension.

“I already know. Your family. Your faith. Any chance there’s room for me on that list?”

She couldn’t breathe for the happiness that filled her, bubbling up until she felt she might lift off the floor. “There’s plenty of room for you.”

“I love you, Amanda Bodine.”

She caught his hand, pressed it against her lips and said the words. “I love you, Ross.”

“Enough to marry me?” There was the faintest trace of uncertainty in the words.

“Definitely,” she said.

He drew her against him, his lips claiming hers in a kiss that promised a love that would last a lifetime. Her arms went around him, holding him close, knowing this was meant to be. God had planned them for each other from the beginning. They’d just both been too stubborn to see it.

Ross pressed his cheek against hers. “My grandmother would be delighted.”

Joy bubbled up in her again. “Miz Callie will be, too.”

He held her back a little so that she could see the love burning steadily in his eyes. “I’m afraid your father is not going to be exactly pleased.”

“He’ll come around when he sees how happy you make me,” she said. “He’ll see that God meant us for each other. Forever.”

Epilogue

M
iz Callie had insisted on a family dinner to celebrate Amanda’s unexpected engagement. Amanda wasn’t so sure that was a good idea. Maybe it would have been better to wait until everyone had gotten used to it—in this case, everyone being her father.

Still, so far they all seemed to be behaving themselves. Against Miz Callie’s will, everyone had brought something, with the result that there was enough food spread out on the long table at the beach house to feed half the island.

Since they’d long since outgrown the number of available tables, folks had spread out all over the place, and the volume of Bodine chatter was faintly overwhelming, even to someone who was as used to it as she was.

She glanced at Ross, sitting next to her on the living-room floor. He smiled, seeming unaffected by the clamor, and leaned over to kiss her cheek lightly.

“Everything okay?” he asked.

“Very much okay.” She moved a little closer. “You’re officially accepted, I do believe.”

“More or less,” he said, but it didn’t seem to bother him that Daddy wasn’t quite reconciled.

“Of course you’re accepted.” Miz Callie, sitting behind them in her favorite rocker, touched Ross lightly on the head. “Brett is even being pleasant.”

“Maybe he’s just relieved that this investigation is wrapped up and moved off the front page,” Ross suggested.

“Well, now, I wouldn’t be surprised.” Miz Callie’s face clouded a little. “He took it hard, knowing that an officer under his command betrayed the service that way.”

They’d all been shocked to learn that her father’s aide, Thomas Morgan, had been using his position to take money under the table from contractors in exchange for doctoring the bids.

“Nobody wants to hear that a fellow officer is crooked.” Adam, arms wrapped around his knees, leaned forward to join the conversation. “That’s someone you might have to trust your life to one day, besides the fact that it gives all the honest men and women in the service a black eye.”

“I think most folks know enough not to blame anyone else for what one person did.” Miz Callie rested her hand on Amanda’s shoulder. “As for us, I’d say we have a lot to celebrate.”

She’d raised her voice a little on the words, and the room seemed to fall silent as she spoke. Miz Callie’s descendants turned their faces toward her.

“We celebrate our Win’s safety after a dangerous mission.”

Win smiled, looking a little embarrassed as sounds of thanksgiving echoed through the room.

“We celebrate the fact that truth has come out in a difficult situation.” She looked at Amanda’s father, her eyes bright with unshed tears. “Your daddy would be proud of you, Brett. You did your duty.”

More than one person blinked back tears, Amanda knew. They realized, none better, just how hard that had been for her father.

“And we celebrate the truth coming out about another family member who did his duty.” Now a tear did trickle down Miz Callie’s cheek, but her hand on Amanda’s shoulder was strong. “We know now that Ned Bodine served his country in the navy during the war, and he’s going to be honored as he should be for that service. Adam has learned that Ned didn’t die in the war.”

A murmur of surprise went through the room at that. Most of them had just assumed that Ned hadn’t come back.

“We’ll find out what became of him afterward, Miz Callie.” Ross took her hand. “I promise.”

Miz Callie touched Amanda and Ross, her touch seeming to link them to all the generations that had gone before. “And we share the happiness of Amanda and Ross. May their love grow and flourish all their days.”

Amanda let her gaze move from one face to another around the room—her kin, the people she knew best in the world, linked by faith and by love. She had them, and now she had Ross. Her heart was filled to overflowing with thankfulness.

Dear Reader,

Thank you for choosing to pick up the second book in my new Love Inspired series about the Bodine family of South Carolina. Amanda Bodine takes center stage in this story as she struggles to find her place in the world, defend her family and commit to true love.

Amanda and her hero, Ross, are both searching for the secret to who they really are and what God wants for them. I’m sure many of us have walked that road, wondering whether we’re really on the path God intends. I hope you’ll identify with Amanda’s struggles.

I hope you’ll let me know how you felt about this story. I’d love to send you a signed bookmark or my brochure of Pennsylvania Dutch recipes. You can write to me at Steeple Hill Books, 223 Broadway, Suite 1001, New York, NY 10279, e-mail me at [email protected], or visit me on the Web at www.martaperry.com.

Blessings,

QUESTIONS FOR DISCUSSION

Can you understand why Amanda was troubled by the doubts she felt about her life choices when she turned thirty? Have you struggled with any of the landmark birthdays? If so, how did you resolve those feelings?
Amanda’s personality leads her to become a sister to anyone in trouble. Is that always a good reaction? Can you think of a time in which that might backfire on a person?
Amanda, like Georgia in the first book of this series, finds that everyone in her family has an opinion as to what she should do. Had this ever happened to you? How do you sort out God’s calling from the demands of others?
Ross is so caught up in his anger over what happened to him in the past that he can’t see his present clearly. How do you deal with it when you can’t forget a hurt?
Ross drifted away from his early faith in God after his grandmother’s death. Have you ever experienced that? If so, how did you come back to God?
The scripture verse for this story reminds us to put God first in all that we do. How do you feel about doing that? Is it difficult to do that in the press of your daily life and experiences?
Amanda finds it difficult to confront Ross initially, but she finds the courage to do it when other people’s happiness is at stake. Has that ever happened to you, causing you to feel that you had to confront someone over their behavior? How can you do that in a Christlike manner?
Why do you think C.J is so antagonistic to Amanda at first? Should Amanda have done anything differently with her?
Amanda’s grandmother longs to find the truth about the past. Do you think it’s always a good idea to do that?
Did you sympathize with Ross’s need to get back the life he’s lost? How might he have handled the situation better?
In the end, Ross realizes that he was to blame in part for the situation that caused him to lose his job. Why is it so difficult for him to face that?
Ross also comes to realize that if he hadn’t gone through the bad times, he’d never have turned back to God. Do you think God can use the difficulties we encounter to help us to turn to Him? Has that ever happened to you?
Which character in the story did you feel was living the most Christ-like life? Why?
How do you feel about Win’s decisions during the rescue effort? Does he do the right thing?
In the end, Amanda feels that she and Ross have discovered their “true colors,” the people they are at a soul-deep level. Do you think that some people never really understand themselves? Do you think that people change who they really are at bottom?

ISBN: 978-1-4268-4862-9

HEART OF THE MATTER

All rights reserved. Except for use in any review, the reproduction or utilization of this work in whole or in part in any form by any electronic, mechanical or other means, now known or hereafter invented, including xerography, photocopying and recording, or in any information storage or retrieval system, is forbidden without the written permission of the editorial office, Steeple Hill Books, 233 Broadway, New York, NY 10279 U.S.A.

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events or locales is entirely coincidental.

This edition published by arrangement with Steeple Hill Books.

® and TM are trademarks of Steeple Hill Books, used under license. Trademarks indicated with ® are registered in the United States Patent and Trademark Office, the Canadian Trade Marks Office and in other countries.

www.SteepleHill.com

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