Heaven's Kiss

“This is the list I’ve been given. To begin with— Emmy, we need to get some sketches under way for the publicity fliers and handouts. Pastor Bob said you’d offered?”

From the corner of her eye, Dani saw the new doctor move forward, seating himself at the back of the group. He didn’t speak to anyone, merely nodded at a few people who smiled at him.

Emmy described her ideas.

“Excellent. I knew that marketing degree of yours was going to come in handy,” Dani teased. “If you can get some advertising ideas worked up in the next couple of days, I’d love to see them. Now, we need hosts and hostesses for the actual evening. Volunteers?” As soon as one vacancy was filled, Dani moved on to the next. There was so much to do.

“Big Ed, I’m counting on you for the backdrops. Nobody can build like you.” The tall man blushed his pleasure. Dani smiled at him. “I mean it. If ever there was a gift given for building stuff, you’ve got it. We all know that if you put it together, it’s going to stand. No doubts there. How soon can you get the sets organized? Don’t forget Anita has to paint them.”

“I was kinda counting on—” He stumbled to a halt, his face red.

Dani rushed to help him out. “A drawing. Right. I forgot. Sorry.” The details just kept coming. Dani glanced out over the audience. “Will someone volunteer to sketch the backdrops so Big Ed will know what we need? I can give you the information, what there is of it, but when it comes to artwork I’m a washout.” She saw a thin white arm move just the slightest, and grinned at her next-door neighbor. “Aha! Marissa McGonigle, don’t you dare pull your hand back down. You can whip up those sketches without too much fuss, can’t you?”

Marissa glanced at her husband, Gray, noted his shrug, and nodded. Her eyes flashed with excitement. “I’ll do it, Dani. I’d love to have a part of this.”

“Bless you. You see, folks, I knew she’d volunteer if I helped her.”

Everyone chuckled. They were probably glad someone would be taking responsibility, Dani decided. As if she needed more responsibility. She pushed aside the doubts and concentrated on the next job the pastor had assigned.

“‘Table setting and decorations,”’ she read off the neatly typed list, aware that the new doctor was now beginning to fidget. Please don’t let him leave yet.

“The wife and I’ve got that one under control, Danielle. Sure could use some helpers, though.” Barry Quiggle’s voice carried clearly.

“You’ll get them.” Would the new doctor back out? Her nerves stretched taut. So many people were depending on her. She couldn’t let them down. She wouldn’t. “Okay, we’re making good progress. We’ll get down to actually practicing in a second, just bear with me. Next on the list is the meal. As you all know, Maddie took off on us to get married. Hardly a good excuse!”

Muted laughter.

“Any volunteers?” Dani looked around hopefully. But knowing the amount of work involved in feeding a crowd of two hundred, she didn’t have the faintest hope that anyone would volunteer to coordinate this aspect. “Come on, you guys. If it’s a dinner theater, we have to have dinner. Let’s consider this together. We can’t give up now.”

After a long and painful silence, Dani was startled to see the doctor shuffle to his feet.

“I’m new here and I suspect you’ll tell me to mind my own business.” He stopped, pretended to ignore the few teasing catcalls, a forced smile on his lips. His long fingers gripped the pew in front so tight, his muscles bunched.

Why was he so nervous?

“Everybody gets a chance to make suggestions on this project.” Dani held up her hand to quiet the whispering between two of the town’s worst gossips. “Let’s hear what he has to say. Go ahead, Dr. Luc. What are you thinking?”

“It’s just that, um, I heard that Miss Winifred Blessing leads the women’s auxiliary at the church. Well, you know—I presume they’ve fed a lot of people over the years, and no one’s gone hungry.” Nods of agreement seemed to embolden him. “I was wondering if she might give us some idea of what will be involved in a dinner of this magnitude.”

All eyes turned on the town’s gray-haired baker, who stood to her white-sneakered feet, a rose blush tinting her parchment cheeks.

“Luc, that’s very dear of you to say.” She smiled at the doctor. “I suppose I have had experience. As a matter of fact, I have made some notes. Just a few squiggles about quantities and such.” She smiled at everyone. “When you get to be my age, you make lists on everything, you know. Before you forget.”

Appreciative laughter.

“So if recruits were found to handle the various tasks in the kitchen, would you be willing to head up the dinner committee, Miss Blessing?” Luc asked.

Dani stared at the doctor, amazed by his temerity. She wouldn’t have dared ask such a thing, but it was as if Luc knew something the rest of them didn’t. How could that be? He was the newcomer in town!

“If no one minds a bossy old woman fussing at them, I’d be delighted to lend my assistance to this worthy cause.” Miss Blessing smiled happily, apple cheeks glowing. “Working together, I think we can manage quite well. Besides, Dani’s agreed to handle so much, I think this is one area she should be free of.”

“You wouldn’t be volunteering because you’ve tasted Dani’s cooking, would you, Miss Blessing?”

The room erupted in laughter at Big Ed’s knowing wink. Dani grinned, not embarrassed in the least.

“Come on, Big Ed. I burned those cookies years ago. I’ve been to college since then, you know.”

“Yeah, I heard.” He nodded, his Stetson tilted back on his head. “Didn’t think you were studying cooking, though. Dermot said it was some highfalutin stuff you read in books. And I don’t mean recipe books.”

The mention of her father’s name sent a ping straight to her heart, but Dani refused to allow her smile to slip. It had been over three months since his death. When would the pain ease?

She’d learned a lot of things from her father, but one thing she’d never forget. “Personal problems are just that—personal. We don’t spill our guts to the neighbors, Dani.”

“Aw, give Dani a break,” someone called. “Doesn’t matter if she can’t cook, as long as she can get this play going. We’ve got our caterer, and nobody could do it better than Miss Winifred.”

“Well, if you’re sure…” Miss Winifred waited for dissent, then nodded briskly. “All right, I’ll do it.”

The entire group heaved a collective sigh of relief. No one wanted to tackle a meal of such magnitude, but their busy little baker was exactly the right person to bring order out of chaos.

“It seems the meal is taken care of. Miss Winifred, I thank you for offering and we all pledge to do whatever you need. You just let us know how we can help.” Dani glanced around the group, noticed everyone nodding.

“I’ll do my best.” Miss Winifred sat down, her face wreathed in smiles.

“Well, that’s most of my list. Thank you, all.” Dani scribbled a note to herself, then looked up. “I think we’re about ready to rehearse. As soon as we audition for the main character, that is. We won’t need all of you here for that.” She glanced down at her list, then around. “Could I ask that the various committees please use the Sunday school rooms for your meetings? We need to conduct a read-through out here, so I’m asking for a bit of quiet.”

Amid much chatter, the group broke up. Dani bent to pick up her copy of the play and noticed Dr. Luc inching his way up the aisle. They still needed a main character, and the pastor had insisted that it was up to her to find one. Dr. Luc was perfect. She couldn’t let him get away— But Miss Winifred stopped her from following him.

“I do hope I won’t disappoint, Dani dear,” the baker murmured. “It is such a large job.”

“I know you’ll do fine.” Dani stood on her tiptoes, saw Luc in the foyer. “Miss Winifred, I need another favor.” She explained her difficulty. “He’s the only one who suits the part.” She dropped her voice to a whisper. “I just can’t see Big Ed as an English inspector. Can you?”

“It does rather boggle the mind, doesn’t it.” Miss Blessing wrapped her fingers around Dani’s. “Come along, dear. Time for a little teamwork. Lucas!” Her voice warbled through the sanctuary, carrying like a wind chime in the forest. “Luc, dear. Dani and I must speak with you. Coffee break, actors. Rehearsal in five.”

They caught him entering the young-adult Sunday-school classroom which had been newly designated for use by the set-building committee.

“Luc, we need to talk to you.”

“Oh.” A wary glance passed over them. “I was just about to get in on this meeting for building props. I thought I might help them out.”

“You?” Gray McGonigle stood beside Dani, his eyes huge with disbelief. “What did you ever build?”

“Nothing.” The doctor’s face darkened in a red flush. “But I can learn.”

“Indeed you can, dear. But not tonight. Tonight we need you to think about a higher mission.” Miss Winifred wrapped one arm through Luc’s and drew him next door, into the nursery. She closed the door as soon as Dani was through. “Much higher, my boy.”

“Uh, I see.”

He clearly didn’t. Dani almost giggled at the panicked look crossing the good doctor’s face.

“The inspector,” she reminded him. “Remember? We need someone to play the inspector.”

“But—” He glanced right and left, as if searching for help. “I don’t think I’m your man. I’ve never done any acting. I just wanted to build something, maybe get to know people.”

“Oh, you’ll meet lots of people. Plus you’ll help us raise funds for an orphanage in Honduras. It’s really not that difficult a part, Luc dear. You just have to get the timing right.” Miss Winifred patted his shoulder helpfully.

“No.” He shook his head, his eyes moving from Dani to Miss Blessing and back again in frantic appeal. “No. I can’t do it. I’m sure there must be someone else.”

“But—”

He shook his head, his brown eyes glittering like dark ice as they settled on Dani. “I can’t. That’s all there is to it. I’m sure there’s someone else you can call on.”

Now what? Dani didn’t know what to say.

“You’re right, Luc.” Winifred drooped, her sigh heartfelt. “It’s too much to ask of a newcomer to town.”

“But—”

Dani frowned, half glared at the older woman. To her surprise, Miss Winifred turned her head and winked. Her voice continued in a sad, almost whining tone.

“Why, think of how long it will take to memorize the lines, to come to practice, to find a costume. And you’re such a busy doctor.” She clicked her teeth together, paused a moment, then continued, as if a new thought had just hit. Her twinkling eyes met Dani’s for a fraction of a second, but that was long enough for Dani to glimpse the mischief glittering there.

“I don’t know what in the world I was thinking of, to volunteer for KP, either. Mercy, girl, I own a business, I’m on more committees than I can name, and I have my great-nephew’s daughters to watch out for. There’s no way on earth I can manage the kitchen for this play. No way at all.”

Lucas frowned at her. “But you have to. There isn’t anyone else who can do it.”

“Someone will step into the gap,” the baker assured him blithely. “If they don’t, well then, we’ll know God has other plans.”

Winifred’s blue eyes brightened. Dani lifted a hand to smother her giggle, risked a quick look at the doctor.

“But—but that’s ridiculous!” He shook his head. “God can’t accomplish things if people aren’t willing to help.”

“Exactly.” Winifred Blessing’s face glowed with satisfaction. “I’ll be willing to help in the kitchen as long as you’re willing to be the inspector Dani needs. Or are you going to wimp out on us?”

“Wimp—” The doctor straightened as if someone had refused to allow him to treat a patient. “I am not wimping out!”

“Of course you are, dear. And if you can do it, I can do it. After all, I’m older, with years of age-wearing troubles to deal with. Managing a meal this size will tire me for days. I’ve got a weak heart, too.”

“Hah. There’s nothing wrong with your heart. I did your physical last week, remember?” Luc cast Dani a dubious glance, then peered more closely into Miss Blessing’s bland countenance. “This is a con.”

“Is it?” Dani shrugged. “Miss Blessing has never said a thing she didn’t mean in all the years I’ve known her. I don’t think she’s about to start now.”

“But you’ve already got someone. I heard on coffee row that Big Ed said he was going to read for the part.” He dared them to refute it.

“He’s offered.” Dani nodded. “He could memorize the lines, play the part.”

“But?” Luc frowned at them both, chocolate-brown eyes wary. “There is a but, isn’t there.”

“Big Ed is a cowboy. He’s a wonderful man, but we could never make him into an English inspector. We need someone younger, better suited to the part. We want the whole project to succeed beyond expectations. We want to see enough funding come in to rebuild that orphanage. Do you honestly think Big Ed can do that?” Dani fell silent, unable to communicate how deeply this need touched her, how certain she was that the doctor was the man for the part.

“There’s a passage in the Bible,” Miss Winifred murmured. “I forget the exact words, and I’ll have to look up the reference, but the gist of it is that we should strive to do the best we can for God, not offer Him the mediocre.”

“But you don’t even know if I can do this,” Luc challenged, glaring at them.

“I don’t know if I can direct, either,” Dani reminded him. “But I’m willing to step into the gap rather than see the whole project go under. Let’s sink or swim together, shall we, Dr. Duke?” She said it deliberately, hoping to rouse some emotion in the reticent doctor.

“Luc,” he corrected her in a loud voice. “It’s Luc.” He sighed. “If I won’t try out, you won’t help with the meal?” He waited for Miss Blessing’s nod.

Her grin made Winifred look far younger than her age, which, in fact, remained a well-kept secret in Blessing Township.

“That about sums it up, Lucas.”

“So, if I don’t step in, everyone will blame me for the failure of the dinner theater.” He sighed. “That’s blackmail, you know.”

“It is, isn’t it?” Miss Winifred shrugged. “Oh well. Whatever works. When you get to be my age, you’ll have learned that. Among other things.”

Dani waited, holding her breath. Finally Luc tossed up his hands in defeat.

“I’ll read for it,” he said. “But you have to promise that if Big Ed is better, you’ll give him the part. No more shenanigans.”

“Agreed.”

He pulled open the door, waited till they’d walked through.

“I just wanted to nail a few boards,” Dani heard him mumble almost beneath his breath. “Saw something, maybe. Just a little construction work.”

“Well, maybe we can arrange—” Gray McGonigle’s hand on her arm stopped Dani midsentence. “Oh, hi, Gray. Did you want to talk to me?”

“Yes. Now. Please.”

Dani stepped aside to let the others pass, stared at him in confusion.

“What’s wrong?” she asked, half-afraid to hear the answer.

“Dani, I’m not trying to run the show or anything, believe me. I only want the best for this dinner theater, just as you do. So trust me when I ask you to keep Dr. Lucas Lawrence away from any and all construction. No saws, no nails, no hammers.” He winced. “Particularly no hammers.”

Dani frowned at the intensity underlying his words. “May I ask you why?”

“You know that house we rent out?”

She nodded.

“Last week Luc moved in. The other day he decided to hang a picture.”

Dani shrugged, impatient to get on with the job. “So what?”

“Three hundred and forty-two dollars and seventy-eight cents, so far. That’s what.”

“Three hundred—” She stared. “How?”

“Looking for a stud, he said.” Gray shuddered. “Made a hole in the drywall, knocked over a floor lamp, which tipped and went through the picture window.”

The giggle just would not be denied. Dani slapped a hand over her mouth to muffle it. “Oh dear.”

“Easy for you to say. I was fool enough to accept his offer to help me fix things.” He held up one hand with a thick bandage around his thumb. “Luc Lawrence is a great doctor and I like him very much, but he couldn’t hit the broad side of a barn door with a sledgehammer. I sure don’t want him touching anything in here.” His eyes rested on the beautiful oak panels the deacons had just ordered installed at the front of the church. “Know what I mean?”

“Yes, I do. Leave it to me, Gray. I’ll think of something.” Dani giggled again before patting his arm. “Poor thing. Maybe you should ask Marissa to kiss your boo-boo better. That seems to work well for your son.”

Ignoring his pained look, she turned and walked back into the hall, aware that Gray followed just a few steps behind. She couldn’t look at him for fear she’d start laughing, so she focused on the doctor. He looked worried. Why was that?

“All right, everyone, let’s start reading.”

The actors scrambled to find their copies and get into character. Everyone except Lucas Lawrence. He stood where he was and glared at her. Miss Winifred perched on the first chair in the first row, arms crossed over her chest, lips pursed. Dani took a deep breath and walked forward.

“What’s the matter now?” she asked, keeping her voice soft so the others wouldn’t hear.

“Luc is being obstreperous.”

“I am not.” He tipped back on his heels, his face rigidly composed. “We’d be wise to look at all the angles. I have a valid concern.”

Dani looked to Winifred, found no help there. She sighed. “Which is?”

“I’m a temporary doctor in this town. What if I leave before the dinner theater is held?”

She frowned. He was too calm. Dani squinted, assessing him. Her daddy would have said the man squirmed just a bit too much.

“Are you planning on leaving Blessing soon, Doc?” she asked.

“No, he’s not.” Winifred shook her head.

“How do you know what I’m planning?”

“I just do.”

Luc frowned at her. “Well, you don’t know about this.”

“You’re not going anywhere.” Miss Blessing swung her foot back and forth, her mouth tipped into a triumphant smile as she winked at Dani. “Otherwise, why did he invite his sister to visit him here at Christmas?”

“Of all the nerve—” He cut off his tirade, fumed silently.

Miss Blessing smiled innocently. “I didn’t deliberately listen in on your conversation, Lucas, but you were standing in my bakery when you said it.”

Defeat dragged his shoulders down. Dani suddenly felt a pang of sympathy for him. They had bulldozed over his objections. Still, he would be good, she just knew it. All he had to do was try.

“Give it a shot,” she encouraged. “Just one read-through. Please?”

“You don’t understand.” He turned his back on Miss Blessing, dropped his voice to a whisper. “I can’t.”

“Why not?”

“Stage fright. I stand up in front of a crowd and my mind goes totally blank.” He shook his head, his thin cheeks flushed. “Speeches, stories, poems—doesn’t matter how well I know them, I simply can’t repeat them in front of a bunch of people. My jaw locks up, my heart starts thudding and I can’t get a word out. I’ve struggled with it for years. As an actor, I’m the bottom of the barrel. Choose someone else. Please?”

“There is no one else, Luc. Just you. Please don’t give up.” Dani offered a smile to bolster his courage, certain it must have been hard for him, a competent doctor, to admit this flaw. “I’ll help. I’m a pretty good director.” I think.

“You’ll need to be.” Seeing the expectant faces around him, Luc sighed, then nodded. “Oh, all right. Just don’t say I didn’t warn you,” he whispered.

“I won’t.”

He lifted his lips in a sickly smile and followed her directions, moving to a seat in the front row. He picked up a copy of the play and read his part. As one of many among the cast, he seemed to lose his nervousness, his confidence growing as he continued through to the end of the play. Dani wondered if he’d been teasing about the stage fright.

“This is very good. Who wrote it?” He turned the sheets over, searching for the author.

Dani smiled, but ignored the question. “I’m glad you like it. I think you’ll make a great inspector.”

Her decision was echoed by the other players, spirits rejuvenated now that someone had finally been found who could read the lines with impact.

“If no one objects, I suggest the part of Inspector Merrihew be assigned to Dr. Luc. What do you think?”

Heads nodded in agreement all around the room.

Big Ed’s beefy fist shot up as he began to speak, his excitement obvious. “The boy’s perfect for that part. No denying that. Has that accent down pat. I never could get the hang of that.”

Dani nodded, delighted with the cowboy’s easy acceptance of Luc.

“Great. It’s unanimous. Now, Inspector, do you want to try the part on stage?”

“I—I guess.”

But he didn’t, she could see that in the hunted look in his eyes. Try, she begged silently. Just try.

“‘Gertrude Mortimer baked the best chocolate cake anyone had ever tasted.’ Now you say it.”

He stood at center stage, stared at her. Dani repeated the phrase.

“Gertrude Chocolate mortimered anyone…” He stopped, gulped.

The others chuckled in sympathy.

“You’ll get it. Just keep trying,” the crowd encouraged.

But Luc didn’t get it. Half an hour later Dani dismissed the rest of the cast and watched them scurry away, undoubtedly grateful they didn’t have to endure any more of his line-mangling.

“It was distracting with the others here,” she excused as the door banged shut for the tenth time. “Way too noisy. We’ll practice one-on-one. Don’t worry about it. Come on, let’s try it down here.”

“You can’t say I didn’t warn you.” He sighed, took the stairs two at a time and flopped down beside her. This time the words emerged perfectly. But as soon as they returned to the stage to practice their movements with the lines, he tightened up, forgot what he was doing.

By ten-thirty Dani was ready to phone Big Ed and beg him to take over. Unfortunately Winifred Blessing didn’t know the meaning of the word defeat.

“Tiredness, that’s all it is. Simply too weary. Everyone’s had a long, busy day. So many things to do.” She cluck-clucked her sympathy, patting Luc’s shoulder as if he were four. “Try again when you’re fresh, dear. You too, Dani.”

Dani hadn’t felt fresh since the day she’d found out her father had left the ranch submerged in debt. But she scrounged for a bit of cheerfulness.

“This is Thursday,” she murmured, trying to remember what she’d planned for the weekend. “I’ve got some stuff to do Saturday morning, but maybe you could come out to the ranch in the afternoon. Around one? I could coach you then.”

“Why prolong the inevitable? I’m lousy at this.” Luc shrugged at her glower. “Oh, all right, fine. Saturday afternoon. I’ll be there, barring a medical emergency. But this is a waste of time. I’m not an actor, I’m a doctor. And no matter how badly you want to, you can’t change me.”

Thus released, he walked quickly up the aisle and left the building.

Dani waited until she heard the outer door squeak closed. Then she turned to Miss Winifred.

“Are you sure—”

Winifred patted her shoulder, her face beaming. “The Lord works in mysterious ways, Dani. But He does perform His wonders. Just you give Him a chance.”

Which was all well and fine, Dani decided as she pulled into her yard half an hour later. But they had only four months, and Dr. Lucas Lawrence hadn’t memorized three paragraphs in three hours. She climbed out, reached in for her jacket and blinked. A little white bakery box with that familiar red script was nestled on her back seat.

“‘Blessing Bakery,”’ she read aloud, stomach rumbling at the thought of delicacies she’d often seen tucked inside boxes like these. “‘Made with love.”’ She lifted the lid to peek inside. “What have you done now, Miss Winifred?”