“Lord, what’s wrong with me? Why doesn’t anyone want me? Are You trying to show me that I’m going to be alone for the rest of my life?”
She wasn’t really sure she expected an answer. For years, she’d been praying the same prayer in different ways, but basically asking for one thing: a husband. Someone, as the song said, to watch over her. The one person who would not only flatter her vanity and make her feel cherished, the way Ward had, but who stirred the very embers of her soul, the way Major did.
But maybe Anne had been right. Maybe she should be praying for something other than for Major to come to his senses. She closed her eyes. “Lord, I’ve been begging for You to make Major return my feelings for a long time now. And I’ve never once prayed to ask You to show me Your will in my relationship with him—or any relationships. Father, please help me to be content with where I am and what I have in my life, and to be looking for the ways in which I can make myself a better person and serve You better.”
The muscles in her shoulders cramped with the cold, and she shivered violently. But she couldn’t go back inside. Not yet. Not until she got all the tears out of her system. She hoped God would start giving her that contentment soon, because right now, all she had was a great big, empty, gaping hole of loneliness.
“You know, you really shouldn’t be out here without a coat.”
Warmth enveloped Meredith’s shoulders—and the scent that was unmistakably Major’s. She snuggled into his leather jacket even as she tried to wipe away any evidence she’d been crying.
“How’d you know where to find me?” Hoping her supposedly waterproof eye makeup hadn’t run, she turned, her heart wrenching at the familiar and beloved sight of him in his pristine white chef’s jacket.
He reached over and pulled the collar of the jacket closed under her chin. “I always try to make sure I know where you are.”
The gruffness in his voice nearly keeled her over. “Oh.”
“Meredith, I—” He swallowed a couple of times. “I’m sorry Ward Breaux hurt you the way he did tonight. I couldn’t believe it when I saw him blatantly and openly flirting with Jenn right in front of you.”
A sob-laugh burst from Meredith’s throat. “He didn’t hurt me. I told him tonight that I don’t have any feelings for him—not romantically anyway—and I gave him and Jenn both my blessing.”
“Your blessing?” Major moved closer, clasping her shoulders, his eyes midnight blue in the faint moonlight. “You’re saying you’re not in love with Ward Breaux?”
“Yes, I’m—”
Major’s lips pressed to hers in a kiss that buckled Meredith’s knees. She kissed him back with all the intensity eight years of hoping for this moment had built inside of her.
When the kiss finally ended, Major pulled her into his arms and pressed his cheek to her hair. “I love you, Meredith. I have for a very long time.”
She laughed. God hadn’t taken very long in answering her prayer for contentment.
Chapter 24
“I still can’t believe you laughed at me when I told you I love you.”
“You’re so cute when you’re disgruntled.”
Major couldn’t help smiling back at Meredith. When he’d seen Ward Breaux dancing with Jenn last night, he’d been ready to call the guy out—forget the fact that Breaux had the advantage of at least four inches and a couple tons more muscle. And at that moment, Major knew he couldn’t live one more day without letting Meredith know he loved her.
“Are you sure that coming to Sunday dinner with my entire extended family isn’t going to be awkward for you? No one knows about us.”
“Um, I think they can see us sitting here together.” Major looked around the sanctuary and back at Meredith. He wanted to go with her, to have her show her family that they were together, that they loved each other. And as long as this family meal didn’t last three or four hours, he would be able to get out to BPC before Ma started wondering where he was—though she had been a lot better since the trip to the emergency room a week and a half ago.
Meredith half turned on the pew to face him. “Major, you know how I feel about you.”
He grinned. “Yeah. You’ve been in love with me since we first started working together.” He’d been both surprised and humbled when she’d told him that last night.
“Right. But even though we’ve worked together for a long time and I love you for who you are as a person, before we can move forward with our relationship, there’s something you’re going to have to do for me.”
The organ music started, and around them, everyone rose to sing the call to worship.
Heart throbbing with guilt, knowing what she was about to ask him, Major stood and opened the hymnal. He leaned over and whispered, “We have plenty of time to talk about our relationship. Let’s just take things slowly.”
He did have a lot he needed to tell her. She didn’t even know yet that he’d turned down her parents’ offer to open the restaurant. And then there was Ma. He prayed for wisdom.
It shouldn’t have surprised him that Meredith had a special journal in which she took notes on the sermon. The few times he’d attended the late service when the quartet sang, he hadn’t taken the time to notice how studiously she paid attention and wrote down ideas sparked by Reverend Kinnard’s sermon.
He also found it interesting that Meredith had chosen to sit across the sanctuary from where most of her family were. But as soon as the service ended, Forbes appeared—almost as if magically and instantaneously transported across the large room.
“You don’t usually come to this service.” Forbes extended his hand to Major, speculation practically dripping from his gaze.
“It was a late night last night.” Major glanced at Meredith.
“Forbes, I’ve invited Major to come to Sunday dinner today.”
His friend’s speculation disappeared into a knowing smile. “I see. I thought last night things might be moving in that direction.”
Meredith leaned left to look around her brother. “Why don’t we go on and head over to Maggie and Errol’s?” She looked up at Major, a slight nervousness in her smile.
He looked beyond Forbes, too. Jenn, Rafe, and a few others of Meredith’s siblings and cousins were heading in their direction.
Forbes glanced over his shoulder. “You’ll have to deal with them one way or another.”
“I’d rather deal with them in a less public setting, thanks very much.” She shooed Major out of the pew, and he obediently led the way.
“Do you want to ride over with me?” Meredith slid her sunglasses on when they reached the brightness outside.
“I think I’m closer to home at Maggie and Errol’s than from here, so why don’t I just follow you over there.” Guilt nibbled at his conscience like ravenous piranhas.
“Oh, okay. But I thought maybe we could drive out to my house afterward so you can see the progress Ward has made on the kitchen, since you did help him design it.”
And when he’d talked on the phone with Ward about the things he would want to see in a home kitchen, Major had experienced jealousy unlike anything he’d ever want to go through again. Not just for the fact he was talking to the man he thought Meredith was falling for, but because he couldn’t foresee ever being able to afford a kitchen like that for himself. But now...
The drive to Maggie and Errol’s sprawling mini-mansion didn’t take long, and he and Meredith were among the first to arrive.
“Do my eyes deceive me, or is that Major O’Hara?” Maggie Babineaux stopped stirring the contents of a pot on the stove and came across the ginormous kitchen to hug him. He could understand Maggie’s having a kitchen like this—after all, she’d been a caterer and cake decorator for years—but he still didn’t quite understand why Meredith, who didn’t cook at all, wanted a gourmet-quality kitchen.
“It’s good to see you, Maggie.”
