Journey by Chance

Sally John

Description

Popular fiction author Sally John's first series The Other Way Home (more than 65,000 copies sold) comes to life with a fresh, new cover for a new audience of readers. In A Journey by Chance, the first book of the series, Dr. Gina Philips heads from Southern California to the tiny Midwest town of Valley Oaks for her cousin's wedding. Her plan to heal from a failed relationship and escape from a lost job is interrupted by the persistent attention of a local, Brady, and the quirkiness of small town America. But just when Gina thinks she has the town figured out, a secret is revealed that will forever change her family and her relationship to the mysterious Brady. This novel of romance and healing turns first impressions on end as Gina finds inspiration in the faith of others and joy in her own growing relationship with the Lord.

Sujets

• Romance

Informations

• Publié par: Harvest House Publishers, Inc.
• Date de parution: 01 juillet 2008
• Nombre de lectures: 0
• EAN13: 9780736938754
• Langue: English

Extrait

Where have you been all my life?
Oh, Gina. Brady ran a hand across his somber face and took a deep breath. Where have you been all my life?
California.
No. Now that I think about it, you ve been here all the time. Since I was 19, anyway.
Nineteen? What are you talking about?
I remember you visiting the summer I was 19. You must have been 15.
Did we meet?
Not exactly, but I knew who you were.
That Lindstrom girl.
Mm-hmm. I watched you hanging out with Lauren and Liz. You looked like such a snob.
What d I do?
Nothing in particular. You were just too cute to be for real. Between that and your heritage, I concluded you were a snob.
You thought I was cute?
He chuckled. Cute as a bug s ear with a Miss America smile.
Her skin tingled. Hmm, I see. And being cute made me a snob?
Well, all three of you were snobs. After all, you were Lindstroms.
I never stood a chance.
Not really
About the Author

Sally John is the author of several novels, including the popular The Other Way Home and In a Heartbeat series. She has recently coauthored a book with Gary Smalley, A Time to Mend, in Nelson s Safe Harbor series. A two-time finalist for The Christy Award and a former teacher, Sally lives in Southern California with her husband, Tim.
A JOURNEY BY CHANCE
SALLY
JOHN

HARVEST HOUSE PUBLISHERS
EUGENE, OREGON
Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are taken from the New American Standard Bible , 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. (www.Lockman.org)
Verses marked NEB are taken from The New English Bible, copyright Oxford University Press and Cambridge University Press 1961, 1970. All rights reserved.
Cover by Garborg Design Works, Minneapolis, Minnesota
Published in association with the literary agency of Alive Communications, Inc., 7680 Goddard Street, Suite 200, Colorado Springs, CO 80920.
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are products of the author s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or to events or locales, is entirely coincidental.
A JOURNEY BY CHANCE Copyright 2002 by Sally John Published by Harvest House Publishers Eugene, Oregon 97402 www.harvesthousepublishers.com
ISBN-13: 978-0-7369-2091-9 ISBN-10: 0-7369-2091-9
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data John, Sally D.,
A journey by chance / Sally John
p. cm.-(The other way home ; 1)
ISBN 0-7369-0880-3
1. Women-Middle West-Fiction. 2. Middle West-Fiction. I. Title. II. Series.
PS3560.O323 C47 2002
813 .54-dc21
2001043632
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means-electronic, mechanical, digital, photocopy, recording, or any other-except for brief quotations in printed reviews, without the prior permission of the publisher.
Printed in the United States of America
08 09 10 11 12 13 14 15 / LB-MS / 11 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
This book is dedicated to those women who have been the touchstones of my writing journey.

Thank you: Irene Frank, for teaching me how to write fiction Pat Teal, for nudging me into that first contest Jere Johnson, for suggesting that my characters portray faith Doris Fell, for your wisdom and trailblazing Jill Carter, for smiling at that first manuscript Elizabeth White, for prying loose my wings Margo Balsis, for the critiques and prayers that carry me

A special note of thanks goes to Kelly Parrish for enthusiastically sharing her expertise of horses.

Contents
Prologue
One
Two
Three
Four
Five
Six
Seven
Eight
Nine
Ten
Eleven
Twelve
Thirteen
Fourteen
Fifteen
Sixteen
Seventeen
Eighteen
Nineteen
Twenty
Twenty-One
Twenty-Two
Twenty-Three
Twenty-Four
Twenty-Five
Twenty-Six
Twenty-Seven
Twenty-Eight
Twenty-Nine
Thirty
Thirty-One
Thirty-Two
Thirty-Three
Thirty-Four
Thirty-Five
Thirty-Six
Thirty-Seven
Thirty-Eight
Thirty-Nine
Forty
Forty-One
Forty-Two
Forty-Three
Forty-Four
Forty-Five
Forty-Six
Forty-Seven
Other Books by Sally John
Other Books by Harvest House Publishers
Prologue
Thou hast traced my journey and my resting places, and art familiar with all my paths. -Psalm 139:3
It s all settled then. The young woman s determined tone lingered in the soft spring air. Cross-legged on the ground, she plucked at the short grass that clothed the grave.
Yep. The man unfolded lanky arms and legs and stood. The pronounced angles of teenage years contrasted with the mature weariness etched in his jaw.
She turned her petite face toward the barren cornfields. A light breeze played with her long blonde hair. It s not what we planned.
But it s for the best.
I m so sick of that platitude.
He stuffed his hands in the back pockets of his jeans and twisted his mouth. You re happy with the tombstone?
It s perfect, she whispered, now studying the upright slab of white marble. And you re okay with the name?
Mm-hmm. It s appropriate, the two last names.
Remember Ode on a Grecian Urn ? She looked up at him, a sparkle erasing the flatness of her eyes.
A corner of his mouth lifted in a half smile. Senior English. I remember you liked it, and I got a D on the test.
It reminds me of that. The stone links us together forever, engraved with our names, but, her eyes went dead again, we re suspended there. Not together in reality.
Neither spoke for a few moments.
Maggie, he said, think of it as a road marker, pointing us in different directions. We traveled this far together, but now there s a fork in the road.
I like my ode better.
Bullheaded. His tone teased. I ll take you home.
She stood and glanced at the nearby pickup. Thanks, but I need to walk. She patted the front of her loose overblouse.
All right.
There was an awkwardness in their stance as they looked at each other.
She swallowed, then shrugged. Well, have a nice life, Neil.
He held out his arms, and she stepped into his embrace. You, too, Mags. You, too.
One
Thirty-five years later
Gina Philips stood at the library s checkout counter and directed her words in a hushed tone toward the back of a small, gray-haired woman. Excuse me?
Bent over a desk just beyond the counter, the librarian did not respond.
Gina drummed her fingers on the wood surface. How badly did she want this novel? No, the question was-how long could she survive in Podunk without at least a mental escape? Four weeks of family gatherings stretched before her like a desert highway. At high noon. She swallowed the hushed tone. Excuse me?
Still the woman didn t budge.
There was always the hooch Great-Uncle Peter had supposedly hidden in the cellar. She wrinkled her nose at that preposterous thought and realized just how crucial it was that she have this book. She raised her voice to soccer fan level. Excuse me!
The woman twirled around and patted her chest. Oh, my! You startled me. She shuffled over to the counter, a distinct frown pinching her aged face, and pulled off her glasses. They dangled from a pearl chain. We don t allow loud talking in the library. May I get you something else? Her tone was polite enough, but her emphasis on else expressed an obvious displeasure.
Gina wasn t too pleased herself. This was her fourth request for help. Plunk her down in the middle of the University of Southern California s stacks-no problem. This one-room library, however, baffled her. She slid the novel toward the woman. I d like to check this out.
Do you have a borrower s card?
Not for this library. I-
What township do you live in?
Township? I don t know. I m just visiting here in uh Valley Oaks. She bit her lip. She absolutely had to stop thinking of it so rudely as Podunk. But I have a driver s license and credit-
No, no, no. The woman shook her head, enunciating each no with a twist. It s against our policy to check out books to nonresidents. She slipped on her glasses and inspected the book.
But my aunt-
Where did you find this book? she asked tersely.
On the shelf. The new release section-
Tsk, tsk. The woman s lips were decidedly pursed now. Impossible. You could not have found it there. We have a very long waiting list for this book. It s a bestseller. It wouldn t be on any shelf.
Gina clenched her jaw. I didn t pull it out of midair! I found it-
Hattie, a male voice interrupted from behind her. I ll check it out for the lady. A man stepped forward and flipped a blue card onto the counter.
Gina glanced to her side and saw a long, tanned arm beneath the rolled-up short sleeve of a white T-shirt. She craned her neck to peer at the rest of him.
Hattie tsk-ed again. But I have to find the Reserved list first. She rummaged through a drawer.
Of course, Hattie. You certainly know how to keep this library humming smoothly.
The woman beamed.
He tilted his head toward Gina and, beneath the peak of a dingy green cap, winked.
Unbelievable! Was he attempting to pick her up? Uh, that s all right-
Ah, here it is! Hattie studied a piece of notebook paper.
So, the guy was addressing her again, do you like his other novels?
Um, yeah.
He s quite a storyteller. This new one s received great reviews.
Oh! Hattie looked up at the man with a confused expression. Well, your name s next on the list.
He winked now at the older woman. I thought so. Just check it out on my card, and we ll let the visitor here read it first.
That s not standard procedure. Do you realize you re responsible for what happens to this book? Do you even know her?
Well, he leaned forward, his elbow on the counter, and lowered his voice, I know she s a Lindstrom.
As in Darryl? Hattie stuck her head toward him and matched his conspiratorial tone.
No. Martin.
Oh. That one that took off to California?
He gave a slight nod. Lottie s niece.
Probably here for the wedding, she surmised.
Gina s eyes