The Pastor's Wife Read Online Free PDF Page B

Granger actually has a commission that's encouraging change and growth now?” If her voice got any higher, she’d attract every dog in the neighborhood.
    Poor Maura. She was having a harder time processing the information than he’d expected. “I think we’ve driven around enough for one day. Why don’t we get some coffee and go sit in the park. I’ll explain it all to you.”
    She sat back in her seat, closed her eyes, and nodded. “That's the first thing you’ve said that's made any sense since we got in the car.”

 
     
4
    W hat would you like?” Nick asked.
    He might as well have asked her to recite the periodic table. “Whatever you’re having.”
    She was gawking. It was rude. But she couldn’t stop.
    As Nick approached the counter, Maura continued to take in the space around her. The Dot Spot was a clever combination of rural comfort and high-tech convenience. Chunky wooden tables with high-backed chairs were interspersed with overstuffed chairs and couches. Along two walls stood a bar made of what looked like one continuous piece of highly varnished wood. There were some open hookup spaces, but most of them were filled with an eclectic group of people: a professional couple wearing business casual; a few teenage boys sporting various piercings, one of which had a skateboard propped up against his chair; and a fellow who in his overalls and straw hat looked like he’d just come in off the farm. They all shared the space together, drinking coffee and hunched over laptops.
    It wasn’t an amazing site in and of itself. In fact, with the exception of the woodsy theme, it reminded her of most of the coffee shops she’d ever been to in San Diego. And that wasthe amazing thing, because she wasn’t in San Diego anymore. She was in Granger.
    “Here you go.”
    Nick held out a tall cup. The rich aroma wafted gently under her nose. “Thanks.”
    She looked around for a place to sit. A few people had already raised their hands in greeting. If they stayed here, Nick would be swarmed, and they’d never be able to talk.
    As if reading her mind, Nick motioned to the door. “Why don’t we walk to the park.”
    Maura sipped her tall cup of coffee, only vaguely aware of the mingled tastes of vanilla, nutmeg, and brown sugar. Neither spoke as they strolled across the street and found a bench. Nick was probably giving her time to process all the new information she’d received that day. In contrast Maura's brain had gone on tilt.
    Finally, she asked Nick the only question that came to mind. “What happened to Granger?”
    He hung one elbow on the back of the bench and angled toward her. “Actually, it's what happened to Beaver Falls that caused all the changes here.”
    Beaver Falls? She was more confused than ever. Beaver Falls was thirty miles away and almost as stuck in its ways as Granger. How could anything that happened there have brought about all the changes she’d seen?
    Nick didn’t wait for her to respond. “About four years ago, a small company called Apex Computers relocated to Beaver Falls.”
    Maura shook her head. “I’ve never heard of them.”
    “Neither had anyone else, which was part of their problem. The other part was they were based in northern California in Silicon Valley. At that time real estate prices were at their peak, so even leasing a business facility cost them a fortune.Anyhow, they did some creative thinking and decided to move their whole operation out to the country, where the pace is slower, the sky is bluer—”
    “And the land is cheaper,” she said.
    Nick nodded. “Exactly. At the same time they changed their name, came up with a catchy marketing campaign, and the company took off.”
    It finally clicked in Maura's head. “Beaver Computers.” She’d seen the commercials with Bucky, the big-toothed animated beaver and their slogan Beavers Build It Better . It was corny but cute and odd enough to catch a person's attention. More important, the company backed up