know I adore pecan pie?"
"Audrey mentioned it this morning when she called to
tell me about the wedding." Her brown eyes glowed with
happiness. "Thank you so much, Maggie. You have no idea
what this means to me."
208Melody Carlson
Maggie smiled sympathetically at her friend. "Sam said
you'd been pretty worried."
"Well, those kids had their hearts so set on getting mar-
ried on New Year's Eve, and with Max coming home, it just
seemed so perfect. But our house is so small..." She glanced
around the empty room, and then lowered her voice anyway.
"You see, Scott told me they're trying to keep everything in
their relationship right-you know, like according to the
Bible-and they decided a long engagement would be too
tempting for them, if you know what I mean. But please
don't repeat this to anyone. Scott only told me about this last
week."
"That's so sweet. I'm glad we can help."
"Well, it's greatly appreciated. Chloe was in here at
lunch, and she was so excited. She thinks you're the greatest.
I'm sure they'll name their firstborn daughter for you.
Maggie laughed. "Goodness, I hope not. Margaret was a
difficult name to have as a child. I wouldn't wish it on
anyone."
"Are you going to meet with us tomorrow?"
"I wouldn't miss it. Have they decided who will officiate
the ceremony?"
"Actually, Scott was thinking about asking Michael. He
really respects that young man."
"What a wonderful idea," exclaimed Maggie. "But can
Michael do it? I mean legally. Doesn't he have to be ordained
or licensed?"
"Apparently, he's already taken care of that. By the way,
did you know that Sunday will be our last day to gather at
Jed's place for church?"
"I just heard about his decision, but I didn't know it was
this Sunday."
Rosa eyed Maggie curiously. "How are things going with
you two anyway? I've been trying not to be too nosy, but I
haven't seen you two together for a while, and I've been a
little concerned. Is everything okay?"
Looking for You All My Life209
Maggie wondered how to explain it. "I don't know. You
see, because of Leah, we decided to sort of cool things off for
a while..."
"Because of Leah?"
"Jed was worried that she felt left out, you know, and he
wants to be a good dad to her. Anyway, it almost seems like
we may have cooled things off completely."
"Sierra told me that Leah had moved out with Jed, and I