Loving Hearts Read Online Free

She ran her hand along the length of her hair, wondering how to dig herself out of the mess she’d created.
    “You’re right,” she said.
    “We can talk about it,” he offered again.
    A gentle concern settled on his face, and she wanted to tell him…to tell someone how frustrated her father had left her after their talk, but she couldn’t. “Why ruin a friendly lunch?”
    He shrugged, looking puzzled. Seeing his face, Esther realized she owed him some kind of explanation.
    Silence hung in the air.
    “I tried to talk to my father…for my sister,” Esther said finally, “but sometimes he uses the Scriptures for his own purpose.”
    “You’re struggling with the commandments? Like how do you honor your father and not agree with him?”
    “That, too, I suppose.” His comment, truer than he realized, surprised her. “No, it’s more bizarre than that.” She cringed when she finished the sentence. Could she ever keep her mouth shut?
    “Not sacrificing the firstborn, I hope.” A grin spread across his face.
    “No, that would be me. Nothing that dire.”
    “Glad to hear there’ll be no bloodshed.”
    The silence returned, and Esther struggled to give him a sensible response before letting it drop. “My sister and Jeff want to get married. That’s all.”
    “Ah, your dad doesn’t like Jeff? It happens all the time.”
    Agreeing with his explanation settled in Esther’s thoughts, but she couldn’t lie to him. “No, my dad likes him very much.”
    Ian shook his head, a puzzled scowl etched on his face. “I don’t get it.”
    “Neither do Rachel and I. Dad thinks—” sheswallowed the full story “—she’s too young to marry. I’d hoped to convince him otherwise, but I failed.”
    “Too young? You’re kidding. How old is she?”
    “Twenty-six.”
    For a moment his frown deepened, then it shifted to reassurance. “Sounds like you did your best.”
    Her best? Guilt stabbed her. “Maybe not my best, but I tried,” she conceded.
    She’d failed in many ways, disappointing her father and letting Rachel down again. Her sister gave her more credit than she deserved. Not only had the conversation with her father been useless, but it seemed to drive the concept more firmly into his stubborn mind.
    Being the firstborn and raised under her father’s strict thumb, Esther found herself unable to stand up to his ways. For so long she had striven for perfection to please him. Yet she’d never succeeded. She had no idea how to make her father happy…other than finding a husband.
    Rachel reacted in her own way. She responded to their father’s rules with the proverbial “grain of salt” and often prodded him to change his mind. Esther couldn’t do that. Still, for Esther and her sister, God’s word about honoring parents always won out, no matter how unreasonable her father could be.
    Esther pushed the thoughts from her mind. Instead of moping, she needed to change the subject. She opened her mouth to ask about his research, but Ian looked past her and gestured to the waiter who had appeared behind her. The server slid Ian’s mile-highsandwich in front of him, then set her bowl of soup on the table.
    When he had gone, Esther dipped the spoon into the wide noodles and hunks of chicken, using the time to get her thoughts in order. With her first bite, the savory broth sent a soothing warmth through her. Thinking of Ian’s words about “good for what ails you,” she grinned and watched him concentrate on his sandwich.
    If she ever were to fall in love, she’d choose a man like Ian. His gentle good nature seemed as calming as the chicken soup…except she sometimes felt rattled by the unfamiliar feelings that came over her in his presence and seemed unable to hold an intelligent conversation.
    Swallowing a few more spoonfuls, Esther pushed the bowl aside.
    When Ian looked up from his triple-decker, he chuckled. “I should have ordered the soup. I’m ready to burst.”
    Not wanting the conversation to