"Hey, J.R., just the man I need to see. We've got a question about the plumbing in the new kitchen. Can you come over here for a minute?"
J.R. glanced at Julianna's car and nodded. "Sure, if it's quick."
Jason opened the blueprints and laid them out on the tailgate of his truck. J.R. kept an eye on Julianna's car as Jason pointed to the positioning of the sink and dishwasher in the new kitchen. As he asked about the placement of the sink under the window, J.R. had to give the blueprints his attention. The drawing showed the sink offset to the window. He always liked the sink lined up with the window, and the window was already in place, but centering the sink would change the cabinet design; cabinets that were already built and waiting to be installed.
Jason then asked about the positions of the light switches on the second floor. J.R. didn't want to think about plumbing and wiring but couldn't very well ignore the man he had hired. The timing couldn't have been worse. Promising he would review the plans thoroughly by the following day, he finally had a chance to look back to the garage.
Julianna's car was gone.
J.R. pounded his fist on Jason's tailgate.
"Something wrong, man?"
"Yes. Hey, I'm sorry, I've got to go. I'll get you answers for all your questions. For now, line up the plumbing with the center of the window."
"Okay, thanks. And I hope everything works out."
"Me, too," J.R. muttered as he ran for his truck and called Mama.
"She got away," he said without any salutation.
"What do you mean she got away? Did you talk to her?"
"No, Jason intercepted me and by the time I was done answering his questions, she had sneaked away."
"J.R., you've got to stop her. I think she might run. If she thinks you're with Stacy, she'll never stay in this town."
"What can I do?"
"It's got to be a big thing, J.R.; something she can't possibly mistake. She's too easily convinced of her unworthiness."
"I'll do anything, Mama."
"Well, I have an idea."
J.R. listened as Mama detailed her plan while he drove back to main street and the store. As she was talking, another idea popped into his head and he said, "Mama, if you make the calls that create the roadblock, I'll do the rest. I've got a call to make, too."
Never in his life had J.R. wanted to erase the last half hour away as he wanted to this day. He called Bobby at the store to find out that Stacy had indeed vacated the office and stomped out of the store five minutes prior. With that accomplished, he gave Bobby new instructions. If Julianna passed by the store, which she would if she intended to leave town, he might have a chance. J.R. prayed harder than ever.
CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE
J ulianna called herself all kinds of bad names as she paced the skinny, short hallway in the trailer. Mostly, she ignored the tears running down her face and tried to tune out the way her heart shattered the more she thought about J.R. and Stacy together. In high school, she didn't have as much of a picture of what that two-some would look like. Now the vision was etched in her mind for all time. She could never un-see that. The sound of a truck pulling into the driveway brought Julianna to the teeny window over her kitchen sink.
J.R.
Well, she wasn't going to stick around to listen to him try to explain away a very public display of affection with the woman who had made it her goal to ruin Julianna's life. They might not realize it, but when she threw her keys at J.R., she had quit. The definition of insanity was doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results. That ended now. She wasn't going to continue working for Stacy Grant, somehow hoping she would turn into a nice person.
But first, she needed to get away and the hospital in Springhill was calling her name. Maybe a day holding babies would calm her down long enough that she could stand to stay in the same town as J.R.
Probably not.
Peeking out the window, she watched as the contractor called him over and opened a set of plans, pointing, and moving his arms between the paper and the unfinished house. J.R. kept looking over at her car. If Jason could keep him occupied, she could get away. She needed to wait for the perfect moment.
She slipped her wallet into her back pocket and dropped her keys into the front. Like a thief in the night, she opened the door slowly, watching to make sure J.R.'s head was down. Pulling her jacket tight, she turned and closed the door with the tiniest snick. Going around the back of the trailer, she sneaked behind the garage and calculated the run to her car, turning it on, and how fast she could roll down the driveway before J.R. would notice.
Luck was on her side for once when she saw him bend close to the plans, obviously in a deep conversation. She jumped into the car, started it, and threw it into gear in one fluid movement, then quickly backed down the driveway. She didn't go so fast that she would draw attention, but once at the road, she sped away. A quick glance in her rearview mirror and she felt like a spy on a mission. J.R. hadn't noticed yet, but she knew he would soon.
Bad luck returned as she realized she needed gas. Stopping at Joe's garage, she waited. And waited. Cursing the state as one of only two left in the country that refused to allow customers to pump their own gas, she got out of her car to find Joe.
He looked up from under the hood of a car in for repair. "Hey, Julianna. What's up? You need me to look at that starter again?"
"No, Joe. The starter's just fine. I just need gas."
Joe stood up and stretched his back. "Where's Caden?"
"I don't know, Joe. I don't keep track of your employees."
Joe looked at her hard, and she quickly apologized. "I'm sorry. I'm grumpy. I just quit my job at Charlie's and I'm trying to get out of town."
"Okay, hon. Give me a sec."
Julianna nodded and went back to her car.
Joe arrived a few minutes later and filled her tank, throwing his hands up in surrender when she adamantly refused his offer to clean the windshield.
Finally, back on the road, she cringed to know she had to pass in front of Charlie's before she could escape.
Her phone rang. She glanced at the caller ID. Mama. Well, Mama would lambast her if she talked on the phone while driving. She let it go to voicemail.
Less than a minute later, Mama called again. Julianna pulled over to the side of the road to take the call.
"Hi, Mama," she said, as sweetly as she could.
"Julianna, where are you?"
"How do you know I'm not at work?"
"Really, Julianna, you're going to start playing games with me?"
"Fine. I'm on Oak, almost to 5th Street."
"I'd like you to swing by and see me."
"I can't today, Mama. I'm heading out of town."
"Julianna, you know you need to talk to J.R."
"He did his 'talking' to Stacy."
Sharon paused, and Julianna wasn't sure if the call was still connected. Finally, she said, "You don't know what you're talking about."
"I've got eyes, Mama. And a heart. A broken one now. J.R. made his choice and I may have to live with that, but I can't work for that woman anymore."
"You quit?"
"They might not think so, yet, but yes, I quit. I threw my keys at their feet and left." She hiccupped. "I know, I know, that's not the way to do it, but I can't care today, Mama."
"Where are you going?"
"I'm not sure. I'm going to start at the hospital and then see what feels right."
"I don't think that's a good idea, sweetheart."
Julianna knew when Sharon started in on the endearments, she was trying not to tell her what to do, but she really wanted to. A small smile crept onto her face. Her temper had finally calmed to a slow fizzle. "I'm sure you wouldn't."
"Julianna, just come see me. We can talk this over and you can work it out with J.R."
"Not today. Gotta go, Mama. I'll talk to you later." She ended the call, dying a little inside for hanging up on the woman who'd made life bearable o
ver the last few years. But she couldn't give in this time. The stakes were too high. Her heart couldn't take it. She pulled back onto the road out of town.
At the crossroads of Main Street and First Avenue, Julianna saw the most unusual and amazing activity on the street. Cars were sitting catawampus all over the pavement; some angled against the curb, and others parked across the divider line. The end result was a complete and total roadblock. Instantly concerned if someone had been hurt in the accident, Julianna parked at the curb and walked up to the first car in the melee.
Ray Jones was sitting in his car, listening to the radio. She could see his fingers tapping out the rhythm on his steering wheel.
Something wasn't adding up. Where were the police cars? Where was the ambulance? Why didn't she hear sirens?
Walking down the street and past the maze of cars, Julianna stopped in front of Charlie's. Trying not to look at the store, she focused on the cars in the middle of the mess but couldn't see a single dent, a piece of broken glass, or anything that would indicate a collision. And still, not a cop car in sight.
Call it habit, or curiosity, or her obsession for J.R., she found herself looking toward Charlie's. As though he came from her imagination, J.R. walked toward her with a bouquet of flowers and the most pitiful expression on his face. As soon as they made eye contact, J.R. dropped to his knees.
"Julianna!" he cried from twenty feet away, and it seemed like the entire population of Cooper Springs created a circle around them. "Please forgive me!"
Julianna huffed.
"Not for what you saw."
Julianna's eyebrows reached for her hairline. "What?"
J.R. muttered something to himself and stood up, then started talking again. "Please forgive me for not talking to you about what I was doing. I mean..."
"Maybe you should shut up and save yourself more humiliation, J.R.!"
"Julianna, Junior, please hear me out. I'm messing this all up." J.R. began moving toward her.
"You got that right," she agreed. She scanned the watching crowd, her nerves getting the better of her, until she spotted Mama on the sidelines, arms crossed and a determined look on her face.
"Okay, J.R. Go for it. Let's see if you can climb out of this hole."
"Hey, Julianna!" Bobby yelled from atop an extension ladder, leaning against the sign board for the store. "Look at this!"
Julianna looked up at the sign and read the obscure letters: IWLYF PMM
"What's that supposed to mean, Bobby? You forget how to spell?" she called to him.
"Just following orders from the new boss." He pointed to J.R. who was no longer twenty feet away. He had lessened the space between them to almost nothing.
Julianna wanted to back up, but she couldn't when she saw the look of pure love standing only a few inches from her. "Would you like me to translate?" he said in a deep, clear voice.
Julianna looked at the sign again and the letters slowly started to make sense. "I...will...love...you...forever..." she stuttered.
J.R. interrupted. "I bought the store, Junior. Stacy was just trying to make you mad. There's nothing between us. There never has been anything between us. It's only you. It's always been you. It always will be you. You rocked my world in high school, and you rock my world now. P.M.M. Please marry me."
Julianna swallowed the sudden lump in her throat and wouldn't have stopped the grin on her face even if she could. "Nice climbing."
A little over a year later...
"How about time for Daddy?" J.R. reached for the bundle of baby sleeping in his mother's arms.
Julianna moved away, teasing. "Did Daddy wash his hands?"
"Really, Junior?"
"You're not supposed to call me that anymore. Now that we have a real Junior."
"I thought we'd call him J.R. Junior and then you could keep your title of just Junior." The twinkle in his eyes filled her heart with joy. One year to the day, the birth of their little boy was a spectacular way to celebrate their anniversary. And what a busy year it had been.
"You thought wrong."
"Come on, Julianna. I'm just kidding."
"He's not going to be called 'Junior,' J.R. We may have named him James Robert, but I want him to be called Jim or Jimmy or even Robbie or Rob."
J.R. rubbed his hand across his chin, and Julianna smiled. Being married to J.R. had brought her so much happiness, she sometimes thought she would burst. Giving birth to their son brought her a peace she never thought she'd reach.
How grateful she was for the Savior's love, a feeling of forgiveness, and the knowledge that she was loved as much as she loved in return. The farmhouse had been rebuilt, J.R. and Julianna had moved in six months ago and they'd been getting ready for the baby ever since. The trailer, where they stayed until the house was finished, had been moved out and donated to the church as a stopgap for anyone who needed a temporary place to stay. Pastor Doug had been thrilled.
J.R. turned over the management of the store to Julianna. She kept John on and trained him to be a better assistant manager than she ever expected. Bobby headed the team of cashiers and business couldn't be better. Stacy hadn't been heard from since she left town the day before J.R. and Julianna's wedding. It was a good thing, too, because the police department wasn't too happy when Julianna discovered the money missing from her cash drawer sitting in an envelope in the office safe. Edna's rumor mill said she was making a big splash in Portland.
Anita and Brad Taylor had divorced and Julianna heard that Brad had found a good job at an outdoor sporting goods company. She always felt bad for Anita. She never did find out why Brad lied to her about his mother, but everyone assumed he'd been keeping company with Stacy. She hoped Brad had found what he was looking for.
Mama and Henry were making plans to remodel their cabin, and they were almost as excited for their new grandchild as James Robert's parents.
"I could live with Jimmy, maybe, or Robbie." J.R. conceded. Then Julianna saw a glint in his eyes that she knew all too well.
"What's going on in that handsome head of yours?"
"I have the perfect solution. For the perfect wife." J.R. eased his way onto the narrow hospital bed and wrapped his arms around Julianna and the baby. "He needs his own identity, right?"
Julianna nodded.
"And you don't want him called Junior because that's your name."
Julianna glared at her husband.
J.R. laughed, pulled her into a long, dreamy kiss, and nuzzled her neck. "I love you, Junior. We'll call him...Jim-Bob!"
Julianna stiffened. "I love you, too, J.R." she said calmly. "If you call our son that awful name, you may end up doing it only on visitation days."
"You're a hard woman, Julianna." J.R. laughed. "But you're all mine."
Julianna narrowed her gaze and wondered how long before J.R. figured out another nickname for the baby. But before she could challenge him, J.R. kissed her again and all thoughts of names and houses and stores were lost in the love between two best friends who discovered that forgiveness frees the heart and true love can be found even among the ashes.
THE END
THANK YOU!
Thank you for reading Rock My World. I hope you enjoyed it.
The subject of abortion is a difficult one and I tried to handle it with delicacy. It was important to me that Julianna's voice be heard. She was young, vulnerable, and felt friendless when she discovered she was pregnant. Even though she didn't have a background in what was right and wrong, she immediately regretted her choice, but by then, she couldn't change it. When she learned about Jesus Christ and the blessing of His Atonement, she embraced her forgiveness from God. I wanted to show the growth she experienced because she accepted the gospel, including eventually forgiving herself.
No matter our sins, the Atonement of Jesus Christ can bring us forgiveness, peace, and understanding.
The best way to help an author is to leave a positive review, so others will take a chance on an author that may be new to them.
Other books by Lauraine Henderson
The Triple-Date Dare
Laura Nelson, still stinging from years of making poor choices, escaped to the Oregon Coast to finish her next mystery and continue on her return path to God. But is she ready for romance? Officer David Harrington sets up three self-destructive dates to hide his shameful past from any potential girlfriend. When he asks Laura out, David figures she will crash and burn as planned. What will he do when she not only changes the rules of his famous dating dare, but sneaks her way into his heart?
The Triple-Date Dare
The Spirit of Christmas
Combine one Scrooge named George, one assistant named Kathryn, and a Christmas blizzard leaving George an unexpected guest at Kathryn's parents' home and you end up with a charming tale of how the Spirits of Christmas (past, present, and future) work their magic.
The Spirit of Christmas
Building a Life
Sara Castleton, pregnant and widowed, needs help to finish her late husband's unfinished house project. Nicholas Bradford reluctantly steps in as contractor and carpenter. During construction, Sara gives birth to her baby and is introduced to the gospel of Jesus Christ. But irrational in-laws, risky business practices, and a mysterious book threaten to destroy Sara and Nick's growing attraction. What happens when they realize they aren't just building a house, they're Building a Life?
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