Page 24 of The Payback Adventure
“Seven,” Elisabeth said.
In the morning? Henry couldn’t remember the last time he’d woken up before nine o’clock. He slept late unless he had a plane to catch or an event to attend. And he always tried to schedule those at decent hours. He cleared his dry, scratchy throat and wished he could do the same with his tired, muddled brain. “Is this what time you normally get up?”
“Usually, it’s earlier,” Abby said.
Any earlier and they might as well not go to bed. Henry never fell asleep until after one o’clock in the morning. “Even on weekends?”
“On Saturdays, we sometimes sleep in until seven thirtyor eight,” Elisabeth said. “It depends on what we need to get done.”
Sam rolled his eyes. “She means chores.”
Okay, Henry just realized a big downside to farming. He would have to adjust his hours.
“Would you like to go to church with us?” Elisabeth asked.
Henry thought for a moment. “Is someone getting married?”
“No,” she said.
He sat up and hit his head on the upper bunk. Rubbing his throbbing forehead, he lay down. “Did someone die?”
“No,” Abby said.
“Baptism?”
Another no, this time from Sam.
“Then why are you going to church?” he asked.
“It’s Sunday,” Caitlin answered.
Sunday meant sleeping even later than he normally did. It meant eating brunch and sipping mimosas. What he wouldn’t give for a cappuccino right now. Forget that, he wanted more sleep.
“There’s breakfast afterward,” Abby said. “Mayor Logan makes her famous buttermilk pancakes.”
Henry adjusted the covers. “Thanks, but I’ll pass.”
“No problem,” Elisabeth said. “I’ll leave a list of things for you to do while we’re gone.”
“Fine.” Top of his to-do list was going back to sleep.
“See you later,” she said.
“Later.” He buried his head against the pillow, closed his eyes, and half waved. Much later.
CHAPTER EIGHT
Eleven o’clock, and Elisabeth was exhausted, more mentally than physically, but she still had a full day of chores ahead of her. That didn’t bode well. She ushered the kids out of the Suburban. Word of her new hired hand had spread faster than mold growing on berries. As soon as she’d entered the church, the barrage of questions had made her want to turn and run home.
She didn’t know enough about Henry Davenport to provide adequate answers, which only added to her friends’ and neighbors’ concerns. It was difficult when everyone in Berry Patch considered themselves extended family.
But she couldn’t worry about them. Elisabeth had her hands full with her own family. They had to be her only concern. Not small-town curiosity. Not her gawking, lovesick behavior this morning in Sam’s bedroom.
Heaven help her.
Seeing the shadows of Henry’s lashes on his cheeks, the scruff of whiskers on his face, and the rise and fall of his bare chest had made Elisabeth feel all fluttery inside. But fluttery didn’t cut it. Not one bit. That was why she concentrated extra hard on Pastor Haskell’s sermon this morning.
Caitlin tugged on her hand. “Let’s play in the creek!”
