Mary nestled in his embrace and yawned. “I’m so tired. I don’t know about you, but I’ve had an exhausting day.”
“You might say that I have, too.” Travis smiled at the understatement. He switched gears, and within minutes they were home.
The instant they pulled into the yard, Jim, Scotty, and Beth Ann raced down the back steps. Travis climbed out of the pickup and helped Mary out.
“Listen, kids, we’ve got something to tell you.”
“You mean about Doc Anderson?” Scotty asked. “We already know. Billy Jenkins called and said Doc is going to a mental hospital and Logan got shot and that Mary fainted and you were bossing everyone around and telling them what to do.”
“Billy said you wouldn’t let anyone take Mary out of your arms.”
“How the hell did Billy Jenkins hear all that?”
“His mother told him and Hester Johnson told her. I don’t know who told her.”
“Come on inside,” Travis urged. Mary ushered the two younger children in ahead of them. Jim lingered behind with Travis.
“You were right,” Jim said, stuffing his hands in his pockets.
The way Travis figured things, it might be a good ten or fifteen years before he heard those same words out of Jim’s mouth again.
“It all came out on its own,” Jim elaborated.
“Doc’s a sick man. I don’t think we could ever punish him as much as he has himself.”
Jim nodded. “Mom and Dad wouldn’t have wanted us to hate him.”
Travis lingered at the bottom of the stairs. “There’s something else. Mary may be pregnant.” The way news traveled around these parts, Jim probably knew about his baby before he did.
“Really?”
Travis grinned and nodded.
Jim placed his foot on the bottom step and shook his head. “I remember when Mom was pregnant with Beth Ann. I’ve got to be honest with you, Uncle Travis, I don’t know if I can go through this again.”
Travis suppressed a smile, and with his arm around Jim’s shoulders the two walked into the house. Already Mary had gotten Scotty and Beth Ann organized. She was at the sink, washing potatoes for their dinner.
Travis removed his hat and coat and stood behind her. He wrapped his arms around her middle and laid his hand flat against her stomach. Mary’s hand covered his.
“Are you two going to get mushy?” Scotty demanded.
“Wait until you hear what Uncle Travis told me,” Jim said from behind him.
Mary twisted her head around to look up at him. “You told Jim?”
He nodded. “I was surprised he didn’t already know. Most everyone else did.” Chuckling, he turned his wife into his arms and watched as their two separate shadows became one.
Travis Thompson had found his peace at last.
Special Acknowledgments
Most people will skip over this section of the book, unless of course, they expect to find their name, so please bear with me as I give a word of appreciation to those who deserve it.
Special thanks to my family, from my late parents, Ted and Connie Adler, to my husband, Wayne, and our four children. Their love and encouragement have been a shield to me. To them every word I write is pure gold. I’m hoping their attitude rubs off on the rest of the country.
To Linda Lael Miller, my friend, for all the fun, crazy times we’ve shared through the years, from missed flights, hotel fires, and taxi drivers who’ve only been in America one day.
I need to thank Jayne Krentz, Katherine Stone, Anne Stuart, and Robyn Carr, who so willingly read my manuscript and offered quotes. I didn’t bribe them the way I did Linda. A writer couldn’t ask for better friends.
Last, but certainly not least, Carolyn Marino, my former editor. When Carolyn and I first started working together, another writer claimed Carolyn walks on water. It’s true.
About the Author
With 60 million books in print, DEBBIE MACOMBER is a New York Times bestselling author who believes in angels, the power of love, and Christmas. A talented writer and public speaker, Debbie lives with her husband in Port Orchard, WA, and winters in Fort Pierce, FL. Readers can contact her via her website, www.debbiemacomber.com, or at P.O. Box 1458, Port Orchard, WA 98366.
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Praise
New York Times bestselling author
DEBBIE MACOMBER
“Will touch the lives of every reader.”
Lori Copeland
“[Is] charming and touching by turns.”
Elizabeth Lowell
“[Is] warm, funny, and uplifting.”
Romantic Times
“Is one of our premier storytellers.”
Anne Stuart
“Will captivate and charm her legions of readers.”
Jayne Ann Krentz
ANGELS EVERYWHERE
CHRISTMAS ANGELS
MRS. MIRACLE
SOONER OR LATER
TOUCHED BY ANGELS
SOMEDAY SOON
THE TROUBLE WITH ANGELS
ONE NIGHT
A SEASON OF ANGELS
MORNING COMES SOFTLY
Copyright
This book is a work of fiction. The characters, incidents, and dialogue are drawn from the author’s imagination and are not to be construed as real. Any resemblance to actual events or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.
MORNING COME SOFTLY. Copyright © 1993 by Debbie Macomber. All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. By payment of the required fees, you have been granted the non-exclusive, non-transferable right to access and read the text of this e-book on-screen. No part of this text may be reproduced, transmitted, down-loaded, decompiled, reverse engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereinafter invented, without the express written permission of HarperCollins e-books.
ePub edition February 2007 ISBN 9780061766169
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