Free These Sheltering Walls: A Cane River Romance by Mary Jane Hathaway

snug against his side.
                She
gazed back at him, pure love in her eyes. “I thought we were too different. Or
I was too different.”
                Bix
said, “My first wife always said if you mix up your craziness enough, you’ll be
happy. God rest her soul, she was right.”
                Henry
couldn’t help sighing a little. She’d never been a person who got lonely. In
fact, she preferred her solitary life. But something had been stirring in her,
a discontent, a feeling of something missing , and for the first time,
she felt envious of two people living so closely together. They didn’t need to
hide behind half-truths and evasions. Their love was free of secrets.
                “But
honestly, you should have been here a few years ago, Henry. It was touch and
go. I thought I was gonna have to push them into the closet and block the door
until they got themselves straightened out,” Bix said.
                “Still
sounds good,” Paul said, winking at Alice. “Maybe I can think of something to
fight her about.”
                Charlie
giggled.
                “Maybe
the fact you never stick to a plan? I mean, I love that I’ll have company on
the flight up to New York, I was supposed to come to you, not the other way
around.”
                “I’m
a creative type. We don’t need to follow plans,” Paul said.
                Bix
tilted his straw hat back and said, “If you know what’s good for you, you’ll
keep that creative bent for your work and follow your wife’s directions.”
                “Wise
words, my friend,” Paul said.
                “Will
you be gone long?” Henry asked. “Should I feed the kitties?”
                “Oh,
no, Charlie and Bix can handle the crew.” Alice glanced up at the top of a
range and Henry followed her gaze. The giant black cat was still perched there,
watching them.
                “That’s
Darcy, isn’t it? I met him a little while―”
                The
little brass bell tinkled and Henry turned to see Father Tom and Gideon walking
through the door. Of all the people she’d expected to show up, Gideon was one
of the last. He’d mentioned that he lived in Natchitoches, but seeing him in
her building, just feet away, made her mind go blank. She caught his gaze and
he smiled politely.  
                “Well,
this is turning into a real party,” Bix said. There was hand shaking, a few
hugs, and the circle expanded to accommodate the newcomers. She couldn’t
understand what Gideon was doing in By the Book. Unless he had come looking for
her. Henry smoothed her hair, suddenly unsure about where to put her hands. She
crossed her arms, then dropped them again.
                “Henry,
when you get to know him, you’ll realize that although he looks fierce, he’s
really just a big softie,” Alice said.
                Henry
stared at Alice. “Who?”
                “Mr.
Darcy,” she said, pointing at the cat.
                “Oh,
right. He seems very…” She couldn’t think of single positive adjective to
describe the green-eyed creature currently glaring down at her. She pushed up
her glasses and prayed for someone else to speak. “Soft,” she finally said.
                Father
Tom cocked his head, his lips turning up. “Henry, it’s great to see you again.
I hear you’ve got big plans for the national park.”
                “Yes,
plans,” she said. “Lots of plans.”  Her brain had stalled. She looked from Bix
who was smiling kindly at her, to Alice and Paul who were waiting patiently for
her to elaborate, to Charlie who was still looking up at Mr. Darcy, to Father
Tom whose brows had gone up and who seemed to be trying not to laugh. She tried
with all her might not to look at Gideon but almost against her will she met