Mrs. Lewis nodded. “Indeed. All because of Him.” She gave Susanna a hug. “I’m so glad you’re a part of the family.”
Susanna was still in awe as she exited the church. Her parents were nowhere to be found. No doubt they were humiliated and embarrassed by what she’d done. Gary hadn’t even bothered to come to church today, but no doubt he’d hear all about it. She began walking toward the hotel.
“Say, you want to have some lunch with me over at the Harvey House?”
She turned and found Gary’s friend Herc behind her. She smiled. “No, but thanks for asking.” She gave it no other thought and turned to go.
Herc, however, grabbed her arm and spun her back around. Instinctively, Susanna raised her gloved hand and slapped him.
“Let go of me.”
He was surprised and stepped back, dropping his hold. “I didn’t mean any harm. Just wanted to persuade you to go with me.”
“Well, that isn’t the way to do it.” She felt her cheeks flush. “I’m sorry for hitting you. I don’t know what came over me.”
“Is there a problem?”
Susanna was relieved to hear Owen’s voice. She looked at him and smiled. “I’m afraid I overreacted. Hercules was just asking me to lunch, and I told him no, but then my nerves got the best of me. I am sorry, Herc.”
The boomer nodded. “Me too. Your brother wouldn’t take kindly to me manhandling his sister. I don’t know what got into me. Guess I was just excited.”
She nodded. “Well, let’s forget about it.”
Herc glanced at Owen and then nodded. “Good idea. Nice to see you, Mrs. Jenkins. Owen.” He quickly walked away.
“I don’t know exactly what all just happened,” Owen said, “but I wondered if you wanted to go to lunch with me.”
She turned to face him. “I’d like that very much, but could we just grab a couple of sandwiches and go sit by the river? It’s such a beautiful day, and the rains have stopped. I’d like very much to be outside.”
“I think that sounds great.”
“Oh, I’d like to change my clothes.”
Owen nodded. “Why don’t I go to the Harvey House and get us some food while you go change?”
“That sounds perfect.”
He hesitated a moment. “I, uh, want to say something about you getting saved, but I’m not sure what a person should say.”
She laughed. “Especially given the fact that I’ve already spent most of my life believing in God and Jesus and going to church.But somehow it just felt important to confess it with Pastor Lewis.”
He shrugged. “No one can doubt your intentions now. Maybe it’s a good thing to make it public so folks know what you stand for.”
“That sounds right. Now they all know I stand for Jesus.”
Owen pointed down the street. “It looks like they’re getting quite the line at the Harvey House. I’d better get over there.”
“No. I have a better idea.” They were already close to the river. “Why don’t we just take a walk? We can go back to the hotel afterward, I’ll fix some sandwiches, and we can eat there. I have some other things Lia brought over too. We can have a veritable feast. Right now I just feel like walking.”
“And you don’t mind not changing your clothes?”
“I’m fine, if you don’t mind carrying your Bible.”
“It’s not that heavy.” Owen tucked it under his arm.
They walked for a while, enjoying the river and the picturesque way it cut through the desert. Susanna hadn’t been this happy since Mark was alive and well. Owen gave her a feeling of joy and security that had long been missing. She knew without a doubt she was starting to have strong feelings for him.
“I’m glad you wanted to go for a walk,” Owen said. “I like the way it makes me feel at peace.”