Gladioli in August Read Online Free Page B

trees go, it’s a pretty big hurdle, but even so. I have spare clothes in the locker at the back of the plane. Go put them on. I’ll wait here for you. We’re here now and you can be in and out in ten minutes, just like the others.”
    “Thanks…” She all but ran back to the plane. Hopefully it’d be scrubs, but she doubted it. The clothes turned out to be shorts and shirt belonging to Micah.
    There was no room on the plane to change, so she reluctantly stood behind the wing, hoping it’d shield her. Glancing at the two men she yelled, “Turn around.” She waited until they had before turning her back on them. She changed into the shorts and did them up before tugging off her dress and stockings. The shorts were way too big, as was the shirt. A couple of safety pins from the first aid kit inserted into the waist band solved the short problem.
    Jael rolled the shirt sleeves up to her elbows and knotted the fabric firmly around her waist. She slid her feet back into her shoes, regretting the heels now. Tomorrow she’d dress differently. Turning, she made her way back to the tree.
    Micah grinned. “Wow, looks so much better on you than on me, honey.”
    She pulled a face. “Thanks.”
    “Any time. Now try.”
    She rushed up, catching her heel, but she managed it. Micah grabbed her hand, helping her over the last little bit. She smiled. “Thank you.”
    “Welcome.”
    The kid beside him paused from sawing bits off the tree. “Sorry, missus,” he said in broken English.
    She nodded.
    Micah jerked his head. “This way. We’re late now. The Finches speak English so you’ll be fine.”
    She made her way up to the house and knocked on the door. Mr. Finch let her in and took her up to the bedroom.
    Mrs. Finch turned out to be the sweetest lady, and younger than Jael imagined. They chatted as Jael treated the bedsores and changed the dressing. “Jael is an unusual name, dear.”
    “It’s from the Bible. Mum loved the story about the young girl killing a villain with a tent peg and named me after her.”
    Mrs. Finch smiled. “And do you carry a tent peg with you?”
    Jael shook her head. “Micah keeps asking me the same thing. Days like today I wish I did.”
    “Micah isn’t that bad once you get to know him.”
    Jael looked out of the window. Micah worked with the other men, helping move bits of the fallen tree. “Really?”
    “You’ll see.”
    Jael packed up. “I’ll see you tomorrow.” She headed outside.
    Micah grabbed the pack and hurried her back over the tree to the plane. “We’re way behind now, come on. You’re not paid to sit and chat.”
    Jael shook her head. She’d never come across anyone as impatient as Micah before. Another reason the flash of attraction earlier had to go away and stay away. She sat back in her seat, aware of his gaze lingering on her legs for a moment before he turned back to the controls.
    He kept quiet as he maneuvered the plane, somehow managing to take off in the space available to him.
    “Are you sure you don’t carry a tent peg in your bag to ward of men who don’t behave?” he asked once they were airborne.
    Only for rude and arrogant pilots… “No, otherwise I might be tempted to use it.” She regretted the words instantly.
    “Really?”
    “Yeah, but I try not to yield to temptation.”
    “My grandmother’s favorite hymn, that,” he commented. He whistled the first verse.
    “Haven’t heard that one in years.”
    He grinned. “I was raised an Anglican, but I’m more of a free evangelical now. What about you?”
    “The same.”
    “Which church sent you?”
    “Headley Baptist.”
    His head spun around and his eyes widened. “Seriously? My cousin goes there. You might know her—April Kincaid.”
    Jael thought for a moment. “Oh, she runs the theatre.”
    Micah nodded. “Yeah.”
    “Small world after all, isn’t it?”
    “It can be.” Micah banked the plane to the left.
    The angle of the plane gave her a clear, uninterrupted view of the