Her head lifted. She turned to look at him, then smiled. It felt as if someone had suddenly turned on the sun.

“Thank you, David.” Her smile widened. “You’re a very kind person—” she wrinkled her nose at him “—except when it comes to word games.”

That little wrinkle of her nose stirred more than his heart. David dragged in a breath of air and returned her smile. “Kindness isn’t in the rules.”

Erin laughed, then shifted her gaze to the roof. “Listen. The rain has stopped. We can go home and dry out.”

“I guess we can.” David picked up the game and followed Erin down the steps, wishing—for the first time in his life—the deluge had continued.

The rain had started again. Erin picked up her mug of hot cocoa, pushed open the back door and stepped out onto the porch. She was greeted by the steady drumming of raindrops on the roof overhead.

She took a deep breath, savoring the clean smell of the rain, then walked over to curl up in her favorite corner of the wicker couch. The cushion felt good against her bare feet. She snuggled them deeper into the softness and took a swallow of the cocoa, capturing one of the small marshmallows floating on top and letting its warm sweetness melt on her tongue.

If that experience is what motivated your passion for helping your students at the center, at least some good has come out of it.

Had her face revealed how startled she’d been by David’s statement? Not only by his sensitivity, but by the truth he’d expressed. Erin wrapped both hands around the warm mug and stared out into the night. She’d lived so long with the legacy of distrust, fear and anger that Mr. Gorseman’s attempted rape of her had caused, she’d never thought of the possibility of good coming from it. But it had. She’d become a teacher and a fierce advocate for the students at the literacy center because of it. And her mom and dad volunteered at the women’s rape and abuse shelter as a result of her experience. But that was all for the good of others.

Erin set her cup on the table, rose and walked to the top of the steps, wrapping her arms about herself and leaning back against the support post to watch the raindrops dancing on the wet bricks of the walk. What about her? What about her family? Where was the good for them? All she’d received was an inability to trust a man. Alayne had turned her back on God and was living in sin with a lying, cheating lothario. And her parents suffered because their oldest daughter was too ashamed of the life she lived to even speak to them, and their youngest daughter was too wary of men to ever fall in love.

No, nothing good had come to them from that experience.

Erin pulled the dress over her head, zipped up the back then eyed herself in the full-length mirror on the back of her closet door. She loved this sleeveless dress with its square-cut neckline and soft apricot-colored fabric that skimmed over her body before flaring to the flirty, lettuce-edge hem. It was so summery and feminine. And she definitely felt feminine. Ever since David put his arms around her Friday night she’d felt…well…womanly.

Erin scowled and lifted her hands to smooth the fabric covering her shoulders. What was wrong with her? She’d felt his heart thudding against her back. He’d wanted to kiss her. That he restrained himself didn’t make him trustworthy, it only made him circumspect. They had been in an open gazebo in a public park with traffic passing by. It was the reason she hadn’t totally panicked when he’d put his arms around her.

Erin stuck her tongue out at herself in the mirror. “Forget how nice David Carlson seems, Erin Kelly, and remember he has a reputation as a ladies’ man! He wasn’t interested in you. You were only with him because of an accidental meeting. He was just reacting according to form!”

Erin turned away from the mirror, stepped into her dress sandals and went to brush her hair. Her time would be better spent concentrating on the lesson she’d prepared for her Sunday school class.

“Who remembers how long it rained after Noah, his family and all the animals went into the ark?” Little hands shot up all around the room. Erin smiled. “Janie?”

“Forty days and forty nights.”

“That’s right. And who can tell me why God saved Noah and his family?” Erin swept her gaze over the class. “Andrew?”

“’Cause Noah was the only one that was good. Everyone else was real bad!”

Erin nodded. “Yes. God’s word tells us that only Noah walked with God. And because Noah walked with God, the Lord saved his whole family! And the Lord still does that today.” She patted her Bible. “It says in God’s word, ‘Believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved—and thy house.’ That means your family, not the house you live in.”

Erin smiled and glanced at her watch. “Okay, that’s all for today. I’ll see you next week. You’re dismissed.” She rose and walked to the door. “Remember, no running.” She stepped into the hall to watch the children walk safely to their waiting parents.

Thank You, Father God, that Jesus is our ark. He’s the one who saves us and shelters us through the storms of life.

Erin took a deep breath to relieve the sudden pressure in her chest and headed for the sanctuary. She’d been waiting and praying seven years for Alayne to come back to the Lord. How long would she have to wait for that storm to be over?

The sound of organ music penetrated her thoughts. Erin pushed on the swinging door, slipped through the slight opening, then slid into a pew and reached for a hymnal. Lord, please draw Alayne back to You. I ask it in Your holy name. Amen.

The first selection was “Amazing Grace.” Erin smiled at its appropriateness, slipped the hymnal back into the rack and sang the words straight from her heart.

He hated Sunday mornings! Everyone slept in to get over Saturday nights. There was nothing going on—nothing to distract him.

Erin was probably in church.

David frowned. He needed to get over this attraction for Erin. He’d been making some progress at that until he ran into her at the store. And then that game in the park! That had given him a serious setback. Still, he knew what he wanted, where he was going and what he had to do to get there. And he was right on track. He wasn’t about to stop now. Not even for Erin Kelly.

David raked his hands through his hair, flopped down on the couch and propped his feet up on his ebony coffee table. Boy, that woman was messing with his head—with his life! Brandee was in a snit because of last night. Not that he blamed her. Charlene’s parties were important to people trying to scale the social ladder, and he might as well have stayed home for all the attention he paid everyone. Especially Brandee.

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