The Promise Of Rayne - The Promise of Rayne Part 31
Library

The Promise of Rayne Part 31

She stretched on her tiptoes, her hands curled around his biceps, his arms wrapped around the curve of her waist. He captured her mouth with his, her lips warm and expectant, as if they'd been waiting for his return. As if they'd known he would return.

She threaded her fingers through his and sighed. "We should probably go inside."

He stared at their joined hands. "Lead the way."

CHAPTER THIRTY-SEVEN.

Hand in hand they entered the shelter as a united front, a scenario Rayne never could have imagined. The double takes and behind-the-back whispers followed them inside the building the way smoke clung to their clothing, hair, and skin. But the scrutiny didn't rattle her. Whatever happened tonight, whatever outcome befell them, she wasn't going to let him go. Not again.

Despite the midnight hour, fluorescent lights hummed overhead, their glow not quite strong enough to chase away the shadows of apprehension etched into every face. Levi tugged her toward the huddle gathered around a black roll-away TV cart near the admin offices. She searched the crowd, taking a mental inventory of the residents she knew by name. When she lifted onto the balls of her feet to catch sight of the screen, Ford caught her eye. What must he think of her?

Levi released her hand and instead wrapped a protective arm around her shoulders. His fingertips stroked a rhythmic path from her bicep to her elbow, his gaze glued to the scrolling updates along the bottom of the emergency channel.

"What does it say?" Her view was blocked by the couple in front of them.

"There were four fires started from lightning tonight." The dread in his words sank to the bottom of her stomach. "It's too dry, the woods are too brittle. Perfect fire fuel. They closed Ramsey Highway."

Their road. The only road that spanned between the farm and the lodge. The tight bob of his throat told her there was more. Something else. Something worse.

"What?" she whispered.

"Fire crews have pulled out of the Ramsey Creek area due to dangerous conditions."

"They've evacuated? But what does that mean?"

"They're relying solely on the night helicopters to drop the fire retardant." The undefined tension in his face held. "They've lost four structures in the area already."

All the condolences she'd offered over the last couple weeks, the families she'd assisted, and the stories she'd heard reverberated throughout her mind. Her intentions had been well meaning, her words genuine, yet not even the sincerest of hearts could bridge the gap between sympathy and empathy. The difference was clear now. One watched the fire from a safe distance, while the other stood amid the flames, dreams and futures burning all around them.

She pressed into his side, as much to hold him up as to keep herself upright. She studied his profile, wishing she could do more, wishing she could fast-forward the agony of their wait ahead. No matter what Levi said, or how strong he appeared, losing the farm would devastate him and Ford. The screen flashed a solid blue before returning to the channel's regular programming.

A chilling hush fell over the room. Dazed expressions mixed with anxious fidgeting-twirling of hair, rubbing of arms, tugging of necks. A sign with a painted red arrow pointed down the hallway to her left to the sleeping area, yet nobody made a move for it. Who could sleep at a time like this?

"I'd like to say a prayer for Shelby Falls." The deep voice swung her gaze to the far side of the foyer. Ford's hat was in his hands. The worn leather curled over his fingers like an orange peel. "God hears all prayers, but scripture encourages us to join together in agreement. If anybody would like to join me, seems now would be a good time."

The swell in her chest propelled her feet toward the circle forming around Ford's outstretched hands. The sight both humbled and strengthened her as she settled into place across from him. Several Red Cross volunteers joined in, along with a few residents who'd lingered outside the doors.

With her hand tucked in Levi's, she bowed her head. Ford opened the prayer by thanking God for everything imaginable. Through squinty eyes, she peeked at him. All her life she'd lived under the influence of power-hungry men. Men driven by success, wealth, position, and fame. Ford was none of those things. He was a humble farmer, yet the unshakable confidence in his voice and the assuredness of his faith held a type of authority she'd never witnessed.

She wanted to hold on to this moment long after night turned to morning, long after the unknowns had faded from present to past.

The shift in Ford's prayer, from praise to petition, was as seamless as a tide rolling onto the shore. He prayed for the safety of every crew at work, those on the ground and those in the air. And for every evacuee affected by the fires.

And then, he prayed for rain.

The echoed "amen" around the room blanketed her in a soul-deep warmth. At the encouragement of the aid workers, the crowd dissipated along the hallway and through the auditorium doors, each evacuee collecting a small Baggie of personal items: a toothbrush and toothpaste, face and body soap, deodorant, and mouthwash.

A flash of blond in her peripheral vision pulled Rayne's focus to her second cousin. Celeste pressed a phone to her ear and paced the hallway adjacent to the gymnasium.

Rayne touched Levi's upper back. "Hey, I need to chat with Celeste for a minute."

He nodded. "Yeah, I should probably discuss a few things with Ford too."

He pressed a kiss to the crown of her head. "I'll find you in a minute."

A promise she tucked into the pocket of her heart.

Celeste pivoted near the locker bay, next to a darkened science lab, her steps halting midstride as her gaze snapped to Rayne's. She muttered a few quick phrases into her phone's receiver and tapped the screen. Her arms went stiff at her sides.

Rayne approached with caution. "How are you?"

A slight lift of her chin. "It's not every day I'm pulled from my bed because of a forest fire. We don't have many middle-of-the-night evacuations in the city."

"No, I wouldn't think so."

Celeste scrunched her lips to the side of her mouth. "But the good news for you is . . . I'm leaving."

Rayne glanced down the hallway. "Leaving where?"

"Shelby Falls. The lodge. I'm not cut out for this kind of life." She flicked her wrist. "Sleepy towns, cowboy-farmer types, fire season. All of it."

Just a month ago Rayne had banked on Celeste speaking those exact words. She'd been willing to wait her out. To celebrate her departure.

Strange how she didn't feel celebratory at all now.

"Well, for what it's worth, I've lived here my entire life and this is my first fire evacuation. Although the cowboy-farmer types aren't all bad." Rayne's lips quirked into a shy smile.

"Still." Celeste slid the toe of her red sandal in an arch against the tan linoleum. "Earlier tonight, when you were trying to help me, I should have taken you more seriously." She gestured to the shelter signs in the hallway. "I didn't give any of this too much thought. Until it was happening to me. Suppose that makes me sound even more self-centered than you already think I am."

"No, I actually thought something similar myself only a few minutes ago. Perspective has a way of changing things."

Celeste worried her bottom lip. "Also . . ." The word dragged on, and for a second, Rayne doubted Celeste would finish her thought. "I'm sorry. For how I've treated you, for how I've always treated you. I guess I've felt . . . threatened by you."

"By me?" Rayne's question was strangled by shock.

Though Celeste avoided eye contact, a torrent of unfiltered emotions flooded her face. "It may be hard for you to believe, but coming to the lodge wasn't about boosting my ego. Sure, I wanted to show off my strengths in business, my resume, but . . . I don't know, I wanted to be a part of something that mattered. Something connected to my roots. But just like when we were young, when I arrived here, you were still the little sweetheart of Shelby Lodge. I was glad Cal fired you. I figured everything would finally fall into place for me with you gone."

Rayne guessed at the words she hadn't spoken. "So when you saw me tonight, you must have assumed I'd come back to claim my place."

"It's what I would have done." Celeste sucked in her cheeks and then blew out a hard breath. "But it's not what you did. You weren't there as a ploy. You were there to help. Because that's who you are, a martyr."

Rayne laughed. "I'm hardly a martyr, Celeste. Believe me. And I'd be lying if I said I haven't felt threatened by you since you arrived. I suppose this summer didn't turn out the way either of us planned."

The pause that settled between them prodded Rayne to speak again. "So when are you headed back to New York?"

"I haven't booked a flight yet." Celeste pursed her lips, but Rayne could tell a private debate was taking place inside her cousin's overactive mind. "I, um . . . I actually turned in my notice to Cal this morning."

"This morning?" Rayne asked, confused. "But you just said-"

"I lied." Celeste's cheeks flushed. "I'm not leaving because of the town or even because of the wildfires." She hesitated as if searching for the right words. "After Cal fired you, things were . . . tense around the lodge. When he decided to close the shelter doors, I disagreed with his approach to handling the media. And he made it clear my opinion wasn't wanted. He may have said he was looking for a family-oriented replacement, and sometimes it did feel like he cared about my insights." She shook her head. "But other times I got the impression he was really only looking for a puppet. Someone who would simply follow his orders blindly. And I didn't work so hard in school all those years to be micromanaged by a man with a God complex."

"I'm sorry, Celeste." And surprisingly, Rayne was sorry. A puppet was exactly the kind of employee Cal desired. He'd nearly succeeded at making one out of her, the same way he'd made one out of her father.

"Don't be. I have a lot of opportunities at my disposal," Celeste said before clearing her throat. "Also, about your proposal. It wasn't all bad."

A validation Rayne no longer needed but appreciated just the same. "Thank you."

Celeste's phone lit up in her palm. "I should probably grab this."

Before her cousin could turn away, Rayne felt that familiar prodding once again.

"Wait, Celeste?"

"Yeah?"

"I was thinking that maybe you could stick around for a few days."

Celeste's brows rose, though her voice held none of its usual sass or sarcasm. "Why would I do that?"

"Because if you leave now, we might never get a chance to get to know each other." And hadn't she missed out on enough time with family due to biased judgment?

Her cousin's lips parted, but no verbal response followed.

Rayne continued, "There's a couple new hiking trails and restaurants that have opened up farther south. And remember that old ice-cream shop with the carousel we loved as kids? It's a sub shop now. Best sandwich you'll ever eat. And that little pond we used to fish at with Gia and Joshua, it nearly dried up about six years ago and someone turned it into the most gorgeous Japanese garden. There's a lot you haven't seen outside the lodge. I could give you an unofficial tour. And maybe you could even add a few new contacts to your fancy spreadsheets."

A bewildered look crossed over her cousin's face. "Okay. That, uh, that could be good. I'll think about it." She offered Rayne the slightest of smiles before pressing her phone to her ear and turning away.

Celeste's genuine surprise stayed with Rayne as she reentered the pod of townspeople gathered near the gymnasium doors.

Rayne searched for Levi in the crowd, smiling as she spotted him lifting a small freckle-faced boy up to the water fountain spout, the boy's mother wrangling another young child nearby. But then her gaze locked on a familiar gray-haired farmer on the opposite side of the room. Her uncle. Ford. He stood with his back to her, facing a woman who looked a lot like . . . Delia? Rayne nearly bumped into a volunteer table full of personal-care packages.

Ford and Delia. Talking.

Just a mere twenty-four hours ago, the sight of the two of them together might have sent her into cardiac arrest. But not now. Not after all she'd learned. Now she hoped the rift that had splintered them apart eighteen years ago could be mended in time. Restored. The same hope she had for her family.

Gia breezed through the main doors of the high school, her dark curls a mane around her face. "Are you okay?" she asked, clutching Rayne's arms like a mother hen. "My dad said you helped evacuate the lodge."

"Yeah," Rayne said on an exhale. "Thankfully, there were only a few guests staying over."

"And what about Celeste? Did she freak?"

Rayne wasn't in the mood to gossip. Whatever had taken place in the hallway with Celeste had her feeling strangely protective.

An idea formed in her head, one she was certain Gia would balk at. "Actually, she's doing okay. Considering."

Gia narrowed her eyes. "What? What's that face about?"

"I'm wondering if . . . would you be willing to let Celeste stay at your place tonight?"

"Uh, last time I checked my hide-a-bed was occupied. By you."

Rayne raised her eyes to the man smiling at her from only a few paces away, and Gia's suspicious gaze followed, dragging from Levi back to Rayne.

"I'm staying here. With Levi." The statement was as bold as it was telling.

"You're not even trying to hide it anymore, then?" Although she'd asked a question, there was little inflection to her voice.

"I'm done hiding." From herself and from her family name. "I love him, Gia. And he loves me."

Her cousin winced. "Let's hope your love can outlast Cal's wrath."

There was so much Rayne needed to explain, so much Gia needed to understand about their family. About Ford and Grandpa Shelby. But not here, not tonight. The last twelve hours had taken too much of a toll on them already. "I've feared Cal's wrath for too long. He doesn't get to dictate my heart. Or my future."

"You discovered something, didn't you? What you've been trying to figure out about Cal and Grandpa's will."

"Yes." Far too simple an answer for eighteen years of missing family history.

"And?"

"I promise we'll talk about everything very soon. Just not tonight." Rushing such a revelation would cause more harm than good. Levi had been right about that. He'd been right about so many things.

"Fair enough." On the tail end of a sympathetic nod, Gia sighed. "And fine, let's go tell the blonde she can stay at my place tonight. But if only one of us comes out alive, that's on you."

Rayne looped her arms around her cousin and squeezed her tight. "I love you."

"I love you too, even if you do smell like a burnt marshmallow."

CHAPTER THIRTY-EIGHT.

Levi's focus remained fixed on Rayne's shadow-draped face, even though she'd gone silent nearly twenty minutes ago. He memorized her: the arch of her eyebrows, the fan of her dark lashes, the heart-shaped pout of her lips. Studying her perfection was far more appealing than analyzing everything tomorrow might bring.

The cot groaned beneath him as he settled onto his side.

"You okay?" Her sleepy whisper made him all too aware of her nearness.

"I'm fine." He reached out and brushed his thumb across her cheek and then the indent in her chin. "Go back to sleep, beautiful."