Joy in His Heart by Kate Welsh Page A

seeing her in pain. He hated seeing her unhappy. Brian knew the plane had meant a great deal to her and was tempted to assume that its loss was partly responsible for her mood. But with the clarity his surroundings brought to him, he knew that, for the most part, it was his own presence that put her in the mood she was in.
    He didn’t know how he’d fooled himself all these years. He’d thought Joy avoided him because she was uncomfortable in his presence. He’d assumed she no longer resented him for what had happened between them. They’d been young, inexperienced in life and love and had both made mistakes. But now he knew that not only did she still resent him, but he had also held a certain amount of resentment toward her, too. And he’d thought himself above that.
    As a pediatric trauma surgeon he was unfortunately kept too busy for anything resembling a life. His incredibly busy career kept life rolling along at nearly the speed of sound. There was little time for introspection about anything but what the next minute, hour or day would bring. The only outside interest he had was stopping at the fitness club on his way home, and he did that so he’d be in the best shape he could be in to increase his stamina in the OR.
    Even the faces of the children he was able to save and send home to recover had begun to blur, though those he couldn’t save were always with him. He wasn’t complaining. His career was rewarding. His days were full of sadness, yes, but there was joy, too.
    And there was that word creeping in again. That person.
    Joy.
    With her so close at hand there seemed no way that he would escape memories of her that night. Memories of what had been. Thoughts of what could have been and never would be. He sighed and rolled over, determined to sleep, and put her where she wanted to be. In his past. But his dreams were of a future he’d long since given up on.
    A future with Joy.

Chapter Five
    A small scratching sound woke Brian from the mists of a dream. In his present state, caught between fantasy and dawn, he was quietly, completely happy. The rain had long since blown through, leaving behind a crisp breezy day. Sunshine dappled the ground through the shadow of the ever-thickening canopy. Expecting to see Joy outside her shelter, he looked out to find a family of chipmunks scurrying through the campsite, chasing each other. He chuckled at their antics. Then reality crashed down, dispersing the last remnants of the dream.
    This was not a family camping trip with Joy and their children sharing their love of nature and each other. He and Joy weren’t held together by anything more than the circumstances of a plane crash and six lost children. Banishing the sadness that weighed down his heart, Brian checked on the rations he’d hung from a tree for safekeeping.
    He started the fire again and checked on the container he’d set out last night to collect rain water. He waspleased to see that there was enough to fill the water bottles and the canteens he’d found in the emergency packs. After adding purification tablets to the water, Brian crept over to check on Joy.
    He was thankful she was sleeping soundly, but dark circles shadowed the delicate skin under her long, curling lashes. It made her appear vulnerable. Weighing their plans against how exhausted she looked, Brian grew troubled with her decision to begin a march to the crash site. She looked fragile, exhausted. How could he even let her try it?
    He glanced uphill wondering how long it would take him to get up there to try his cell phone. Staring down at her, Brian made his decision. He scribbled a note and put it with some water and a power bar where she would see it when she woke. After a quick perusal, he grabbed another bar and some water for himself and hurried off to climb the rest of the way up the mountain. With any luck they would be home before nightfall.
    Please, let me get back before she wakes up, Lord, he prayed as he glanced back one