Unbidden, a deep fondness for her rose within him, and that unnerved him. Because somewhere along the line he’d missed how attached he was becoming to her. Was it because she’d given him hope at a time when things were bleak? Was it because she was so selfless in her work with him? It was just a job for her, wasn’t it? Maybe she had this effect on other students, too.
Or was it something more?
If so, he’d have to guard himself. She didn’t deserve his strained indifference, but he couldn’t let himself grow any fonder of her. If he didn’t regain his sight, his future as a single man would be irrevocably sealed because he wasn’t about to burden anyone with his blindness.
Her voice finally broke through the raw, unsettling revelation. “Well, Mr. Drake, why don’t we—”
“If it’s all right with you, would you mind calling me Joseph?” Guarding himself or not, he couldn’t stand another day of being addressed as Mr. Drake. He jammed his hands into his pockets and stood tall. “Mr. Drake is, well, it’s just too formal for my liking.”
She paused for a brief moment. “All right, then. Joseph it is—if you’ll call me Katie.”
Or Sunshine, he thought, helpless to keep his emotions from running away.
If Joseph had been planted on the pulpit with flowers growing out of his Sunday clothes, he wouldn’t have felt more conspicuous than he did right now.
He shifted uncomfortably in the wooden pew, wishing he’d just ignored Ben’s challenge for him to attend church. Each step away from his cocooned world and nearer the church building had brought him closer to people’s stares, even if he couldn’t see them. Having arrived a few minutes before the service started, he couldn’t avoid being a sideshow for curious onlookers or a conversation piece walking in with a bandage wrapped around his head.
He sat stock straight in the second row of pews, the back of the bench hitting well below his shoulder blades. Even though Ben’s tall frame was close to him and he’d kept a steady flow of whispered small talk going since they’d sat down, Joseph might as well have been alone. Inky darkness seemed to enfold him, isolating him in a room crowded with friends and acquaintances.
He shrugged off his uncertainty as faint comments regarding his attendance wafted to his ears. Joseph gritted his teeth. There was certainly nothing wrong with his hearing.
As much as he wanted to remain inconspicuous, he’d always seemed to attract attention in a room, especially that of women. It sure wasn’t something he set out to do. Julia had been no different. She’d sidled up to him like moss on a log as soon as she’d met him. But since his accident, certain little things, like her high-pitched voice, grated on his nerves.
Thoughts of seeing her again settled on him like cold rain. She’d not stopped by since that first day he’d worked with Katie, and Joseph wasn’t surprised. He hadn’t needed to see Julia that day to know that she was madder than a hornet. He could hear it in her sharp tone, the swish of her skirts and the brisk clip of her heels.
A few times when he lay awake listening to all the sounds of the night, he’d think about his relationship with her. Would she want to see him again if he didn’t gain back total sight? And sight or no, did he even want to pursue anything other than friendship with her? He just couldn’t ignore how ill at ease he’d felt with Julia in the last three weeks.
When he’d first met her, he’d been intrigued by her vivacious, flamboyant ways. Maybe it was an eastern air about her, or maybe it was just Julia. Whatever the case, it was as though he could see what she was really like, now that he couldn’t see her. And he wasn’t sure that he liked what he saw.
Shrugging off his glum musings, he focused on the sun’s warmth pouring through the row of tall windows to his left. Thoughts of Katie filtered into his mind, spreading calm through him like warm honey. He couldn’t deny that he missed her presence by his side today. She’d given him a tangible confidence in moving about his home, eating without incident and even doing some cooking.
Was it her expertise she’d been so eager to give him that made him feel alive again? Or was it something more?
Katie’s heart clenched tight inside her chest when the pastor spoke in his sermon about trusting God. Like a broken-down wagon ransacked along a trail, she was almost empty of trust. Could she ever get beyond feeling like she alone must protect herself? It seemed as though God hadn’t protected her, but instead had allowed the vilest of things to happen to her—and by a man who claimed to serve God!
She’d trusted and been betrayed. Offered goodwill and been preyed upon. She’d been wounded to her core and endured it alone in shame for all of these months.
When Uncle Sven had wired her about coming out here, she’d jumped at the chance to leave Iowa—leave her past behind. And after meeting Joseph, she knew she’d made the right decision.
As the service concluded with a familiar hymn, Katie rose from the pew and stood beside Ellie and Aaron. She felt a pull at her heart, thankful for the quick friendship that had developed with Ellie. From the moment she’d met the young woman a week ago, they’d bonded like blood sisters.
Although Katie joined in the hymn, her focus was constantly drawn to Joseph. He stood taller than those around him, his chestnut waves stirring in the warm breeze that blew through the tall windows. His shoulders impressed her with their broad and sturdy strength. On occasion she even glimpsed the resolute set of his jawline.
The pastor’s voice finally broke her reverie. “I want to remind everyone of the Glory Days celebration in three weeks. Mrs. Duncan is in charge of it again this year,” he announced, gesturing to the round-faced woman who stood waving to the congregation as though she were on parade. “So, if you’d like to volunteer, talk with her after the service.”
Katie sensed an excitement stirring in the room as the parishioners began filing out of the white clapboard church.
Edging her way out to the narrow aisle, she glanced at Joseph one last time and her stomach dropped. Miss Julia Cranston stood gazing up at him, her silky dark tresses and striking smile punctuating the room with icy elegance.
A stab of protectiveness shot through Katie’s heart. Was Miss Cranston saying thoughtless things yet again? Katie couldn’t imagine that the woman set out to be hurtful, but some people just had a knack for saying the wrong things.
Watching the interaction, she wanted to shove her way between the young beauty and Joseph, but she restrained herself. Clutching the pew in front of her, she felt almost giddy when the woman gave up with a shrug after just a few moments.
Inordinately relieved, Katie exited the church with Ellie.
“Did you see how Ethan Hofmann looked at you, Katie?” Ellie inquired, her cheeks flushed pink, matching the tiny rosebuds dotting her simple white cotton dress.
Katie stopped at the bottom of the steps, waiting for Ellie to catch her breath. “I’m not sure what you’re talking about. Who’s Ethan…Hofmann?”
Ellie’s hands went to her stomach and gently held the swell. “Ethan Hofmann. The blacksmith’s son. He was sitting to your right, several rows up, and he spent the entire service staring back at you.” Her crystal blue eyes grew wide. “His neck will be giving him fits tomorrow—and it serves him right!”
An icy quiver traveled down Katie’s spine. Over the past year, she’d received bone-chilling stares in her church back home. It was almost as though Frank Fowler, a well-respected deacon, innately knew when no one was looking, when his leering gaze and snapping black eyes wouldn’t set gossipy lips flapping.
She pushed aside the unwelcome memories and gave a weak laugh. “I don’t even know the man, Ellie.”
“That