Slater thought fast; two nights on that bunk was having

  an effect. Nevertheless, he still said, "I'm not very fresh for

  church."

  "I'll get some extra water to you.*

  "I'd need my saddlebags."

  "I can get out what you need."

  39

  Slater saw it for the olive branch it was. There was no

  denying that this man had been more than fair. Slater knew

  he was being stubborn about paying.

  "I'd appreciate that" was all Slater said before turning

  to the bunk to eat the food and drink the coffee that arrived

  on the tray.

  "I'll be back in about an hour," Griffin said as he went

  out the door. Not anticipating trouble, he certainly hoped

  to learn a little more about the man who at present was

  quite the mystery. Griffin guessed Slater to be in his

  midtwenties, but there was a worldliness about him that

  made the sheriff think he knew his way around. That

  wasn't all. From time to time Griffin also saw regret in

  Slater's light blue eyes and wondered what plagued him.

  He hadn't honestly thought Slater would accept the offer

  to attend church--not many did when they learned they

  had to be cuffed--but Griffin was pleased nonetheless.

  Riding home, Griffin let himself in the back door of his

  own house and began to ready himself for the day. He

  never relished wearing his guns with a suit, so he opted for

  40

  dean denim pants, a nice shirt, and a narrow tie. He shaved

  carefully, looking forward to the service but also to possibly

  catching sight of Tess. He was sorry he'd missed her

  Every Little Thing About You 27

  the day before. He didn't know if going to her house for

  dinner was wise, but saying no to the invitation would

  have been easier if he could have spent a few minutes with

  her. Now he found himself wanting to accept the invitation

  just to see her.

  His heart sighed with the quandary of it all even as he

  moved through the house to leave. Having someone love

  him had never been part of his plan; loving her back was

  even less so. With a prayer for continued wisdom and

  kindness, he mounted his horse, Tess on his mind until he

  arrived back at the jailhouse to help Slater with his saddlebags.

  %s

  41

  Griffin watched Slater take his Bible in cuffed hands.

  The sheriff nearly shook his head in wonder as he directed

  Slater out the jailhouse door. A little more of the mystery

  was solved. Whether or not this man had accepted the

  words of Scripture and claimed them for his own, he was clearly under some type of conviction. No wonder he zoos so angry, Griffin thought as he waited until the service started

  and then escorted his prisoner to the corner of a rear pew.

  The congregation was on their feet joined in prayer, which

  allowed Griffin to bring Slater in unobtrusively.

  The men sat down with the rest of the worshipers when

  the pastor closed the prayer, and Griffin saw Liberty rise

  from the other side of the church to head to the piano. He

  glanced at the man beside him and saw that he'd noticed

  as well. A mischievous thought passed through Griffin's

  mind, a hunch he had to try out. He spoke when Slater

  glanced at him.

  "She looks different in a dress, doesn't she?"

  For several heartbeats Slater frowned at the sheriff in

  confusion before his eyes flew back to the woman at the

  piano. He stared in disbelief. Could that actually be the

  42

  deputy? Slater had all he could do to keep his mouth dosed.

  t-

  m--

  ^J^V

  w-**

  28 lori wick

  Looking utterly feminine in a bright yellow dress, Liberty

  readied herself at the keys, completely unaware of

  Slater's scrutiny That man took in the way she'd swept her

  hair off her neck, thinking he'd never seen her without a

  hat. The dress had long, fitted sleeves, and Slater was surprised

  by how small her arms and shoulders were; there

  was never a hint of form in the baggy clothes she wore. The

  neckline of the dress was rounded with white lace, and it

  looked as though she had a locket at her throat. Slater had

  to tear his eyes away when Griffin handed him the hymnal.

  He didn't know the song at all but did his best. Anything

  to keep his mind on why he was there.

  43

  Slater suddenly gave up and began to pray the way he

  should have prayed two days before. He stopped trying to

  sing and poured his heart out to God, confessing his pride

  and anger. He knew when the song ended but was not

  quite ready to open his eyes. Not until Griffin leaned over

  and asked if he was all right did he open his eyes, his heart

  feeling pounds lighter with the load lifted.

  Why do I fight everything You want me to do? Slater asked

  the Lord when three other people stood and moved to the

  front, not toward the piano, but toward the pastor. Slater

  thought they were going to sing until he saw that Liberty

  had left the piano bench.

  "We have a little skit for you this morning/' Pastor Ross

  Caron told the congregation as his wife, Felicia, their

  daughter, Mayanri, and their son, Tanner, came forward.

  Pastor Caron had a way with drama, and his parishioners

  were accustomed to his putting a Bible passage or an illustration

  into skit form.

  Tanner and Mayann went off to the right side of the

  church, but Felicia stood right in front of the pulpit, a

  44

  mixing bowl and spoon in her hands. Ross came onto the

  scene from the side.

  "Felicia, have you seen Mayann? I asked her to bring

  me those notes I have upstairs. She's been gone for 20 minutes."

  Every Little Thing About You 29

  Felicia shook her head, her arm cradling the bowl as

  she stirred. "I asked her to bring the clothes in off the line,

  but when I looked out a minute ago, nothing had been

  done."

  Ross walked away shaking his head. Felicia kept up her

  stirring for a moment and then set the bowl aside. "I guess

  I'll have to do it myself," she said as she walked to the side

  of the room.

  Ross came back to the center now, and on his way, he

  stumbled and righted himself.

  "What in the world? Mayann, where are you? I just

  tripped over your skates. You left them right in the hall.

  Mayann!" he tried again, but when he received no answer,

  he shook his head and went back the other way.

  45

  As soon as he was gone, Mayann and Tanner walked

  slowly across the front.

  "You mean it?" Mayann asked. "You want me to be in

  charge of the money?"

  "Yes," Tanner told her. "You're good with numbers,

  and we want to be sure that all the proceeds go to the new

  hymnals."

  "I'd love to do it. I can't wait to tell my folks."

  Ross and Felicia came back to the middle then, and

  Mayann wasn't long in joining them.

  "You'll never believe what happened!
" Mayann nearly

  shouted. "I've been asked to be in charge of the hymnal

  money. Isn't that great?"

  "The hymnal money?" Ross said with surprise. "That fund is growing fast, Mayann. That's a large responsibility. I'm not sure you can do it."

  "Yes, I can," she told her parents. "I've always been

  good with numbers."

  "But there's more to it than that, Mayann," her mother

  put in. "You've got to be responsible with the account book

  and all the receipts."

  46

  "I will be," the girl assured her parents, who looked at

  her for a moment.

  30 lori wick

  "Where are the sermon notes I asked you to get me?"

  Ross finally questioned her.

  Mayann's hand came to her mouth.

  "Did you fold the laundry when you got it off the line,

  Mayann, or just throw it in the basket?"

  "Oh, no!" she said. "I forgot all about that."

  "You also forgot where your skates belong. I tripped on

  them."

  Mayann hung her head. Ross ended the skit by saying,

  "We've got some work to do."

  Slater took in the words of each actor, impressed with

  the idea and point that was made. He was staring straight

  at the pastor when that man stepped behind the pulpit and

  asked, "How good is your reputation? Mayann's wasn't

  very good with her parents, was it? That wasn't a complicated

  skit Anyone could figure it out. But the message

  47

  needs to hold a lot of weight with all of us. How good is

  your reputation? How good is my reputation? Can the

  people of this congregation come to me if they feel I'm

  wrong, or do they fear I'll be angry and send them away?

  Can I come to you and know that you'll listen to me? Is

  your reputation that good?

  "As we look again in our Bibles at the life of Nehemiah,

  we see that his reputation was excellent. Let me give you

  just a few examples. Nehemiah is saddened by sin as we

  see in chapter 1, verse 4, and his first response is to pray

  and recognize God's greatness, verse 5. He's humble, verse

  6; repentant, verse 7; and he claims God's redemption,

  verse 10. Go to chapter 2 and see that he's bold, a trusted

  worker, organized, discreet, tactful, and gives credit where

  credit is due."

  Pastor Caron looked up from his Bible and notes. "I

  don't know about you, but I can learn from this man."

  So can I, Slater thought. He realized he'd never even

  read the book of Nehemiah. The Texas Ranger who had led

  him to the Lord had urged him to study in the New Testament.

  48

  Beyond that, Slater had spent so little time in church

  Every Little Thing About You 31

  that his training had been very limited. Trus was one of the

  reasons he'd walked away from his job.

  Slater had let his mind wander further than he

  intended. Surprised when everyone stood for the closing

  prayer, he didn't have a chance to bow his head. Since the

  sheriff was already leading him outside, he had all he could

  do not to drop his Bible with cuffed hands. He looked forward

  to getting back to the jail and paying his way out He

  was surprised again when Sheriff Drake did not return him

  to the jail.

  "Then what did you do?" Liberty asked Laura, their

  faces dose as the little girl sat in her sister's lap.

  "I just looked away," Laura told her, working not to let

  her voice quiver.

  49

  "You did well," Kate inserted from her seat nearby.

  "I'm glad you didn't pinch back."

  Laura nodded and looked down at the dark bruise on

  her arm. One of the other children at church had pinched

  her.

  "I didn't cry," Laura told them, "but I think Zach

  wanted to."

  "Zach loves you," Liberty put in. "He hurts when you

  hurt."

  "I love Zach too."

  Liberty kissed her sister's soft temple and hugged her

  dose. Laura had always treated Liberty like another

  mother--both children did--and their mother had never

  done anything to alter that

  "All right, Laura," Kate instructed after she kissed her

  youngest daughter too. "Will you please help me get things

  ready for dinner?"

  Laura nodded.

  "Please take your dolls off that chair. Your brother

  brought a guest today."

  50

  * i*

  32 lori wick

  "Who is it?"

  "You'll meet him when he gets here. Where is Zach?"

  "I think he's outside."

  "Please go tell him we're almost ready to eat."

  Griffin and Slater, both sitting in the parlor, listened to

  this last sentence in silence. Slater had not uttered a word

  since Griffin had led him from the church, and Griffin had

  done little more than lead him up the street, into the front

  door of a two-story home, and to a satin-covered chair in a

  very comfortable room, where he now sat.

  Not thinking that the sheriff was inclined to visit, Slater

  let his eyes roam the walls. Clearly a woman lived here.

  Family pictures were displayed on tables and walls; lace

  curtains graced windows and doilies sat on the arms of

  upholstered furniture. And everything was freshly dusted.

  51

  "We're ready," a female voice called from the other

  room.

  Griffin stood and approached Slater. "This is my

  family," he told the prisoner. "I think you'd be more comfortable

  without the cuffs, and I think I can trust you, but if

  I'm wrong, I won't hesitate to take you out."

  Slater nodded, knowing the man had no choice. Slater

  only wished he had his wallet so he could lose the cuffs for

  good. It was a relief to rub his wrists once they were gone,

  and his enjoyment of that caused him to forget that he

  might see the sheriff's sister. When he walked into the

  dining room and saw her, he had all he could do not to

  gawk. If he'd thought her lovely across the church, he

  didn't know what to think now. Why hadn't he noticed

  before the deep hazel of her eyes or the red highlights in

  her hair?

  "Duffy--" Griffin's voice brought Slater back. '"Ms is

  Slater Rawlings. He's a guest of the jailhouse right now."

  "Hello, Slater." Duffy shook his hand and took over.

  "This is my wife, Kate, my daughter Liberty, my son Zach,

  52

  and my younger daughter, Laura."

  Every Little Thing About You 33

  "Thank you for letting me join you," Slater said quietly,

  taking the chair Griffin indicated. Heads bowed and Duffy

  prayed. Slater looked up after the close, an ache in his

  throat for his own family. He was glad that the bowls of

  food were immediately passed.

  "Will she go to hell?" Laura suddenly asked.

  "What?" Her father turned to her, a spoonful of

  mashed potatoes frozen in his hand as he looked at her in

  astonishment.

  "We didn't explain to you, Duffy," Kate put in, not

  looking at Liberty, who had her hand over her mouth, her

  eyes brimming with merri
ment. "Someone pinched Laura

  at church."

  "I see," Duffy said quietly, now in the same state as his

  stepdaughter. He made himself finish with the potatoes

  and pass them on, then turned to Laura, all the while

  working to keep a straight face.

  53

  "Did you say it was another girl?" Duffy clarified.

  Laura nodded. "I can't tell names unless you tell me to,

  or if s gossip."

  "All right," Duffy nodded over being reminded of his

  own rule. "This little girl might be lost, Laura, but not

  because she pinched you. It was wrong of her to pinch you,

  but she would only go to hell if she never accepted Christ's

  forgiveness in her life. Do you understand?"

  Laura nodded again, and Duffy went back to his food.

  Slater glanced around the table and noticed the way all

  the other adults were busy with their plates as well. He

  watched Liberty and Griffin share a glance, but other than

  Liberty's eyes sparkling, she gave nothing away. He

  wished he could keep watching her. From where he sat, she

  and Zach were very clear.

  Griffin spoke up with a tidbit of news that Zach thoroughly

  enjoyed, and that seemed to get the conversation

  ball rolling. Slater remained very quiet and forced himself

  not to stare or wolf down the delicious food, both of which

  were strong temptations.

  54

  34 * lori wick

  "Who's for pie?" Kate asked after a time.

  No one declined. An apple pie came to the table that

  was so mounded with fruit that it had a hump in the

  middle. Slater had decided not to speak, but after tasting

  this pie, he could not contain himself; it was the best he'd

  ever had.

  "This is excellent," he said quietly.

  "Libby made it/' Kate said, smiling down the table at

  her.

  Slater welcomed a reason to look at her, but she was not

  looking his way. He stared for several bites of pie, and she

  eventually looked up, but he couldn't read her expression.

  Regret knifed through him. She wouldn't see him as anything

  more than a two-bit drifter, and he had no one to

  thank but himself. It was almost a relief to have the meal

  end and Griffin tell him they had to be on their way.

  ^* 3'

  55

  "If you'll give me my wallet, I'll get the ten dollars for

  you."

  Griffin looked at the man he'd just uncuffed and

  nodded. He went to the safe, opened it, and removed the

  rest of Slater's things. The moment Slater had his wallet, he