“I’m not saying you’ve done anything,” Millicent reassured her quickly. “It’s just that appearances are so important in a small town, especially for a pastor.”
“I certainly agree, but what is your point?”
“You know we all love Maisey...” Another of those expectant pauses.
When she could see that Millicent actually expected a response, Anna Louise nodded. “Of course.”
“Maisey is a treasure, but even those of us who try to be charitable have to admit that that grandson of hers is another kettle of fish entirely.”
“You have a problem with Richard?”
Millicent apparently missed Anna Louise’s deadly tone. “They say genes do tell, don’t they?”
Anna Louise tucked her hands firmly under her and sat perfectly still. The temptation to smack the woman was almost irresistible. For a woman who claimed not to be a gossip, Millicent certainly had a very long memory. “Meaning?” she said, as if she had no idea what Millicent was driving at.
“Well, his mother. Of course, you wouldn’t know about that. It was a long time ago and we don’t talk about it much, in deference to Maisey.”
Anna Louise was about one breath away from exploding. She was beginning to see why the people of Kiley set Richard’s teeth on edge. “If it was all so long ago and something that’s no longer discussed, then I’m afraid I don’t see your point and I really have things I need to be doing.”
Millicent wasn’t about to be shut up now. She was clearly on a mission and she intended to see it through. She drew herself up. “Okay, then, let me be blunt. Don’t you think there’s something a little unusual about Richard Walton?”
Anna Louise regarded her blankly. “Unusual? In what way precisely?”
“You know.” She actually looked around as if he might be listening nearby, then said in a whisper, “Dangerous.”
Anna Louise’s expression turned deliberately thoughtful. That certainly described Richard, all right, though she doubted she and Millicent put precisely the same definition to the word. Still, regardless of the interpretation, she didn’t think she ought to be conceding a thing to Millicent.
“Dangerous?” she said with a puzzled frown. “No, I don’t believe I had noticed that.”
“Well, it’s something to consider, don’t you think? Especially for a woman in your position. You can’t afford to be too careful about those with whom you choose to associate.”
It required all of Anna Louise’s self-restraint to keep from telling Millicent to mind her own blasted business. After drawing in a deep breath, she managed to say calmly, “In my position, I’m supposed to be responsible for the souls of the sinners as well as the saints. As a matter of fact, if what you say is true, Richard probably needs me more than some others, don’t you think?”
The carefully posed question seemed to catch her parishioner off guard.
“Well, yes, I suppose I can see how you would need to give him a certain amount of attention,” she admitted with obvious reluctance.
“I was sure you would,” Anna Louise said dryly.
“But you were in his arms, Anna Louise. Surely you can see how that might be misinterpreted.”
“Only by someone who was small-minded, though, don’t you agree?” she said sweetly. “After all, the man was clearly worried sick about his grandmother. Surely, anyone would have offered a little comfort.”
Unfortunately, before Millicent had time to digest Anna Louise’s lesson in equal opportunity salvation and her implication that Millicent had a dirty, narrow mind, the man in question walked onto the porch, rapped on the door and strolled inside. To an outsider it would definitely look as if he felt a little too much at home. It probably wouldn’t matter, given the current conversation, that almost everyone in Kiley strolled through unlocked doors in much the same way.
“Richard, I’m so glad you found the time to stop by and fix the...” She stumbled over the fabricated excuse for his untimely presence. If she let on what Millicent was there about, all the diversionary tactics in the world wouldn’t keep Richard’s temper from going straight through the roof. She was determined to avoid that at all costs.
His brow knit in a puzzled frown. “Fix what?”
“The faucet,” she said, latching on to the first thing that came to mind.
He stared at her blankly. “Your faucet’s leaking? Why didn’t you—”
“Thank you for coming so quickly,” she said, regarding him pointedly. “I know you need to be getting to the hospital to visit Maisey, but that drip really has been driving me crazy. It’ll be a relief to see it fixed.”
Apparently she finally got through his thick skull. He nodded slowly. “Right. The faucet. I’ll get my tools and see what I can do.”
Only then did he direct his gaze toward Millicent, who was sitting stiffly on the edge of her chair, her mouth turned down in a disapproving frown. “Morning, Millicent. You’re looking particularly fetching this morning. New dress?”
Anna Louise watched with amusement as Millicent struggled against being pleased by the flattery.
“Thank you, young man,” she said finally. “Don’t you think you should be getting those tools now?”
“Sure,” he said easily, and left Anna Louise alone with Millicent.
“You needn’t stay,” Anna Louise told her. “I’m sure you have a million things to do. Didn’t I hear you were organizing a group to play bridge at the new recreation hall now that it’s finished?”
Millicent’s jaw set stubbornly. “Well, of course I’m staying. I will not leave you alone in this house with him. Whatever would people say? The bridge club will just have to wait.”
Anna Louise lost patience. “People won’t say anything about Richard dropping by to
