Free Jessie by Lori Wick Page A

Heather.
    â€œWhat did I miss?” Becky asked, coming from the kitchen. She had been cooking and taking care of the house for Jeanette for more years than anyone could remember.
    â€œA girl!” Heather said. “Jeanette Theta.”
    Tears filled Becky’s eyes, and that started the other women. Whenever Becky cried it made them all cry as tears were a rather new thing for the cook. Just a few years earlier, Bri Jarvik had come into their lives when she was still Bri Matthews. Her new faith in Christ and love for all had touched Becky in a way she’d never known before. After years of watching Jeanette and Heather go off to church, she suddenly wanted to join them. The change had gone all the way to her heart. For the first time Becky admitted her need for a Savior and repented to God.
    â€œIs Cassie all right?” Becky finally managed.
    â€œYes. She’s already downstairs, comfortable in the living room. And you won’t believe how close I came to forgetting the food!” Jeanette remembered. “Trace came out to meet me when I got there, and then I was seeing the baby, and then I went over to Brad and Meg’s, and I came within an inch of bringing it all back home.”
    Heather and Becky laughed at her expression before Becky said that dinner was almost on. Over the meal Jeanette told the women each and every detail, not just about the baby but about Joey and about Brad’s girls too. By the time she was finished, they felt almost as if they’d visited the ranch with her.

    Bri was at the mercantile first thing Tuesday morning, Danny in tow. Jessie was in the rear but called a greeting. As soon as she heard Bri’s voice, she came to the front.
    â€œHi, Danny,” Jessie greeted, wasting no time in taking the baby from his mother. “How are you?” she asked fondly, kissing his round cheek as she removed his hat. “Hi, Bri,” Jessie finally remembered to add, and that woman laughed.
    â€œYou become invisible when you bring a baby into the room,” Bri said dryly. “Have you ever noticed that?”
    â€œTry being Clancy’s mother. That child draws attention like flies.”
    â€œShe’s a charmer,” Bri agreed.
    â€œBig list today?”
    â€œNot bad, but I’m out of a few things.”
    â€œDo you want help?” Jessie offered. Bri had worked for her in the past and knew her way around the store.
    â€œNot if you want to keep holding Danny.”
    Jessie only smiled, and Bri got busy. She stacked things on the front counter where Jessie kept a list going, and then put them in her bag.
    â€œDo you miss the girls when they’re at school?” Bri asked on one trip to the register.
    â€œBy the end of the day, yes. It’s nice to have the morning to get things cleaned up and organized with no interruptions, but by afternoon I can’t wait to see them.”
    â€œSummer will be here before we have a chance to blink.”
    â€œThat’s certain. We’ll change from cries of ‘too cold’ to ‘too hot!’ ”
    â€œIt’s always hard to imagine too hot on a day like this,” Bri added, heading back down the aisles.
    â€œThe girls are going to be sorry they missed you,” Jessie said to Danny as he tried to put a box of yeast cakes into his mouth.
    â€œCome for supper,” Bri invited, still gathering items.
    â€œI just put a pot of soup on. Why don’t you three come here?”
    â€œAll right,” Bri said, arriving back with her last item. “What time, and what shall I bring?”
    The women put the details together for the night before Bri paid and gathered her son and bag. Much too soon it was time to head back out into the cold.

    Before Cassidy married Trace, she had opened a small business in town, Token Creek Apparel. For a time she ran it on her own, but then Jeanette Fulbright came to work for her. Token Creek supported the business well, and