Pastor's Assignment Read Online Free Page A

out the seat for Laney, who was in the process of scanning the room for anyone she knew. To her relief, she didn’t recognize anyone, although it was hard to tell with the dark glasses.
    â€œWell, here we are,” Laney said, settling into the hard-backed wooden chair.
    â€œI think you can take the sunglasses off now,” Ty said dryly. His eyes mocked her. “In a minute you’ll have a menu to hide behind.”
    Laney removed the glasses and sat taller in the seat. “It doesn’t matter to me who sees us.”
    It shouldn’t matter, but it did, and she knew it. “Anyway,” Laney added, “what’s important is for us to trust each other.”
    Their waitress appeared. “Can I get you something to drink?”
    Ty looked at Laney. “What will you have?”
    â€œAn iced tea, please.”
    â€œI’ll have the same.”
    As soon as the waitress left, Ty said, “Let’s get this over with. Give me the note.”
    â€œIn a minute.” She shifted in her seat. “As long as we’re here, we might as well get to know each other better.”
    A sound that might have been laughter came from Ty. “Right,” he said. “I’m sure we’ll be best friends.” He leaned forward. “Let’s cut to the chase. Are you planning to blackmail me?”
    Laney pulled back so hard the chair tilted at an alarming angle. “Blackmail?” She bit her upper lip nervously. “Oh, no.” She shook her head. “I can’t believe you thought that.”
    â€œIf you are,” Ty said, “you can forget it. I didn’t write that note, and I’m not paying you a cent for it.” His lower jaw moved forward and locked in a position that dared Laney to take a swing at him, verbal or otherwise.
    Laney shook her head. “If I gave it to you, you’d probably tear it up.” She looked at him knowingly. “Tell me about the man in your note.” Her brow wrinkled. “You mentioned your brother.”
    Ty scraped his chair back from the table. His eyes narrowed to razor-sharp slits. “Tell me you haven’t been snooping in my personnel file.” He raked his hand impatiently through his hair, leaving a small row of hair upright. “If that isn’t proof your father is behind all this, I don’t know what is.”
    â€œYou think my father wrote this note and dropped it onto the floor at church knowing I would be the one to find it and decide to help you?” Laney’s brows pushed together. “You are so paranoid.”
    Ty snorted. “Eventually you’ll admit you’ve been spying on me.”
    â€œSpying on you?” Laney shook her head. “Cash registers run out of tape, streetlights fizzle, and traffic lanes close in my path. You think my father would send me to spy on you?”
    This information seemed to give Ty pause. “I think he would send his mother if he could dig up some dirt on me.” A flicker of satisfaction crossed his face. “He’s down ten points in the polls.”
    â€œYou don’t want my grandmother on your case,” Laney warned and shook her head. “She has a black belt and a temper. She once karate-chopped the kitchen table in half when my brother Richard wouldn’t eat his spaghetti.” She paused. “But don’t worry—she lives in Kentucky.”
    For a moment Ty’s face went blank. Then, as Laney looked more closely, she saw a slight twitch in his cheek and a tremor run through his mouth. He was trying not to smile. A tremendous sense of victory shot through her. If she could make this large, stern man laugh, she could make him talk. If he talked, she was certain she could guide him out of his depression.
    â€œI suppose you have a black belt, as well,” he said at last.
    Laney nodded, encouraged by the softening of his expression. “Before she moved to Kentucky, Grammie babysat