The Reading Garden - Short2
Important notice: All excerpts have been submitted by the author.
Author: Patricia McLinn
*Author's note:
A STRANGER TO LOVE is the second book in the Bardville, Wyoming series that
started with HOLT Medallion finalist A STRANGER IN THE FAMILY. The third
book in the series, THE RANCHER MEETS HIS MATCH, will be Patricia’s 10th
Special Edition and should be released in early 1998.
Her heart thundered . . . even in the dark, could he see her old fears? . . . Had she caught a glimpse of his?
What can I do for you, Jessa?
Her throat closed, stopping her words more effectively than his interruption. Damn her imagination, reading a different meaning into those words, fed by his movements as he twisted his torso to slip first one arm, then the other into the rolled-up sleeves of a sport shirt.
“I want to talk to you. About Travis.”
She caught a flash of white teeth as he grinned. The grin didn’t do much to soften the sarcasm. “That’s a s urprise.”
“He called his mother today. I overheard some of the conversation.”
“From your store? I’ll pay for the call.”
“That’s not the point.” For an instant she wished he were close enough that she could beat on his chest--some instinct to get through to him, if only physically. Then he moved, and she prayed he wouldn’t come closer.
He cut the eight feet between them to five, then stopped, propping his shoulder against the wall, apparently totally at ease.
“What is the point, then?”
“What Travis said--that’s the point.”
He sighed. “He begged his mother to come get him and take him home. He swears he’ll be good. If she’ll only give him another chance.”
“How do you . . .? He’s done this before?”
Cully nodded. “His second chances are up to triple digits. It’s his MO. His and every other kid who gets in trouble. Say they’re sorry when they’re not, beg for another chance when they only want another chance to do what they please, then take advantage when someone’s softhearted enough to listen.”
Behind his cynical weariness, Jessa thought she heard something more. But maybe it was her own, chilled heart cracking a little. This was how people who saw only black and white viewed those who strayed into the realm of gray. . . .
“Travis told her he hates it here.”
“He hates it because he has to do what he should do.”
She shook her head in frustration. “It is not cut and dried. Dammit, why can’t you see that?”
“Nobody’s mistreating him.”
“That’s not the point. Whether he’s done this before, whether a million kids have done this before, it doesn’t change what he’s feeling. He’s lonely, Cully. And he’s scared.”
“He’s not a baby. In some states he could be tried as an adult.”
“Tried? Listen to yourself! This isn’t about a court case or a trial. This is your nephew, your family. And it doesn’t matter how old someone is, they can still be lonely and scared. They can still need family. They can still be wounded by having their family turn away when they need help.”
For a moment, while her heart thundered with emotion, she feared she’d said too much. He stood there, still and quiet, and she thought that even in the dark he could see past her fears for Travis right into her old fears for herself.
“So, what do you suggest I do?”
“Talk to him.”
“About what?”
“I don’t know.” His skepticism was a stone wall. “You come from the same family, the same background. Surely you had experiences at his age similar to what he’s going through. You might be able to help him understand what’s been happening, and how he’s feeling.”
Her words trailed off as she sensed a change in him. His face remained impassive. He still leaned against the wall, seemingly at ease. Then she looked more closely. His fingers flexed hard, digging into the flesh above his elbows.
“At the very least,” she added slowly, “he’d know he’s not the only one who’s felt these things. He’d know he wasn’t alone.”
“Sounds like the kind of psychobabble people on talk shows dish out. Emotional mumbo jumbo.”
She knew she’d hit a nerve, or his answer wouldn’t have been so harsh, his voice stripped of its slow charm. But he had hit a nerve, too.
“Not all psychology is babble, Grainger.” She yanked the car keys from her jeans pocket. “And emotions aren’t mumbo jumbo. But I could see why you have trouble with them. They don’t come in simplistic black and white--they come in complex Technicolor. Well beyond your scope.”
“Jessa.”
The single word stopped her at the door, but she didn’t turn around. “I have to go.”
Before he could say anything more, she left. But the thought rolling through her mind over and over was: One of them was slipping.
Either he had allowed more reaction to show through, or she had picked up on subtler signs.
Definitely, one of them was slipping.
Or both of them. ©1997
***
*About the author: That info is on the way! Write to Patricia McLinn
---Review quotes---
In a STRANGER TO LOVE (4) ... Patricia McLinn treats readers to a
heart-rending love story ... (with) red-hot passion. -- Romantic Times
A STRANGER TO LOVE (4 1/2) is the delightful spin-off to A STRANGER IN THE
FAMILY ... Two tormented souls struggle to find peace and harmony ... An
inspiration to all readers. -- Affaire de Coeur
Patricia McLinn is a talented story teller who brings to life small town
living with a whimsy that is absolutely amazing. ... Cully and Jessa elicit
reader empathy and hope that their love can heal wounds from the past. --
Harriet Klausner
If you are looking for suspense, and writing that grabs at your emotions,
then you can't go wrong with Ms. McLinn's A STRANGER TO LOVE. --Carmel
Vivier, Under the Covers Book Reviews
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