Read Online The Summer of Me by Angela Benson - Free Book Online Page B

thinking of me. I really want to get my catering business off the ground. Every event helps me to do that.”
    â€œWe have to help each other,” Natalie said. “It’s all part of belonging to the family of God.”
    â€œI’m glad to be a part of a church that lives those words rather than just saying them,” Eve said to Natalie. Then she turned to Daniel. “Enjoy your lunch. I’m going to run along. I don’t want to keep you two from your meeting.”
    Daniel stood. “Thanks again, Eve,” he said. “You-all are certainly making me feel welcome here at Faith Community.”
    Eve waved him off. “It’s like Sister Weston said, it’s what we do in the family of God.”
    Daniel watched as the young woman walked out of the room. “You’ve got some great members,” he said to Natalie.
    Her eyes flashed amusement. “We’ve got some eager single women. They don’t do this for everybody. You’re special.” She grinned outright. “And you’re single.”
    â€œDon’t you start,” Daniel said.
    Natalie chuckled. “You’re a rarity. Single Christian men are hard to find.”
    â€œI’m not even going to comment on that,” he said, reaching for the pad on his desk. “Let’s sit at the table. I’m assuming Gavin told you about the personal finance program I want to start.”
    Natalie followed him to the table and took a seat. “He sure did. It’s very generous of you to offer to use the proceeds from Gloria’s life insurance to fund it, Daniel. More than generous. You really don’t have to do it.”
    He nodded. “Yes I do,” he said. “It’s what she would want.”
    â€œYes, she’d be pleased that you’re using the money to help others, but she’d also want to know you’d taken care of yourself.” She raised her question-filled eyes to his. “Have you?”
    â€œDon’t worry about me,” he said. “I don’t need much. Besides, I still get partnership checks from GDW Investigations and the company is doing well.”
    â€œIf you’re sure,” she said.
    â€œI’m sure.”
    She leaned toward him. “A personal money management program is exactly what this church needs. I can’t believe we haven’t already done one. I guess we were just waiting for you. How long has a program like this been in your heart? Why do you want to do it?”
    â€œIn the work at GDW, we see a lot of people who get themselves in bad situations because they’re desperate for money. These people tend to fall into three categories: those who just did a poor job of managing what they had, thosewho never had enough in the first place, and those who were greedy and just wanted more. I wanted to do something to help the folks in the first two categories and maybe keep folks from compounding their money problems by doing something illegal. I’m not sure what we can do for those in the third category.”
    â€œAnd you saw a lot of that when you were working at GDW?”
    â€œMore than I care to remember,” he said, thinking of Phil. A part of him wanted to tell Natalie and Gavin about him, but he knew the importance of secrecy when dealing with cases like this. He’d give them all the details once they closed the case. “It breaks your heart sometimes. If I can stop just one person from deciding to take a shortcut to financial well-being, the program will have been worth it.”
    Natalie smiled. “You have a big heart, Daniel Thomas.”
    â€œI guess I’m living up to the Faith Community standard then, since I’m just doing my part as a member of the family of God.”
    â€œHave I told you how happy I am that you decided to join us?”
    He chuckled. “Several times.”
    She sat back in her chair. “Well, I am,” she said. “We need you. I