Seeking Refuge

by Alana Terry

  Her relationship with Richard was... interesting. As far as she knew, she was the only one of her siblings interested in getting to know Richard.

  She didn’t have much exposure to anyone with developmental disabilities so it took research and a couple meetings with support groups to help her with her fear of insulting him or damaging the fragile relationship they did have.

  The first time she came to see him at the apartment he shared with his caretaker, he ran from the room.

  The next time he came out just as she was leaving, and the third time he came and sat with her on a bench in the park across the street. They didn’t speak. They just sat there for a half hour in comfortable silence. Then he got up, looked both ways four times, and crossed the street to his apartment, turning to wave right before going through the door.

  She smiled all the way back to her own apartment.

  It was a no-brainer. With each conversation, Skype session, and item checked off her ‘Life Changing’ list, she was more emotionally and financially invested in her life with Robin Zachariah Mobley.

  She’d taken to calling him by his first name more and more over the weeks, because she saw the look in his eyes when she did and it warmed her insides every time.

  For everything he didn’t say in their conversations about any future plans he’d made for them, she asked Kimmy to be her spy. She was very pleased to find out he was looking into buying a house.

  The knock on her window brought her back to the present with a start. She jumped and looked at the round, smiling face on the other side of the glass. She unlocked her door and stepped out to hug Kimmy. “It’s so good to see you,” she said, truly happy to see her friend and partner in crime.

  “You too.” Kimmy’s face was flushed.

  “Are you okay? Your face is all red.”

  “Oh, yes. I’m just so excited to see you and I have a little surprise for you.” She helped Shauna retrieve her luggage from the trunk and led the way to her apartment, asking Shauna questions about her drive during the elevator ride up to the second floor. Since Shauna’s apartment wouldn’t be ready for another two days, she’d be spending them with Kimmy in hers.

  Kimmy opened the front door and headed toward a door down the hall. She opened the door to a room with a queen-sized bed with a white-and-yellow flower duvet. Kimmy set the two bags she was carrying at the edge of the bed. Shauna saw the boxes on the bed and guessed that Kimmy was still removing her things from what must’ve been a storage room.

  She looked at Kimmy questioningly, but her friend just smiled back at her. “Okay... you’re acting funny.”

  “Happy Kentucky Derby Day.” She picked up one of the boxes and handed it to Shauna. “This is for you.”

  Shauna looked at her. “Why?”

  “Because you can’t go to a Derby party or the Kentucky Derby itself without a dress. And if you have a dress, you need a hat. And if you have a dress and a hat, you can’t go without the shoes.” She gestured to each box, as she named the item it held.

  Shauna giggled.

  Kimmy backed out of the room. “Now get dressed while I get dressed so we can go to the Kentucky Derby.

  She closed the door, leaving Shauna to the clothes and her thoughts. It was so hard being so close to Zach but waiting to surprise him after all the events as Kimmy had suggested. At least she could see him from afar as he helped with the Murphy horses.

  She stepped in front of the mirror, feeling like a princess in the A-line, off-the-shoulder, long, slim, sleeved, black-and-white polka-dot dress that flared out just below the waist, enhanced by a slim patent-leather belt. The black hat with a wide straw brim and black-and-white polka-dot scarf wrapped around the top, matched it perfectly. And she might have squealed when she opened the shoebox to find a pair of polka-dot, peep-toe, three-inch-heel pumps.

  She opened the door to find Kimmy standing there, dressed in a flattering fancy dress in sapphire blue with medium-sized buttons down the front. She smiled just as broadly as Shauna knew she herself was smiling.

  “Time to go.” She held up a ticket. “This is yours. Keep it in your purse along with these.” She handed Shauna a pair of black-and-white polka-dot gloves, but don’t put them on until we get there.”

  Shauna opened her mouth to ask why, but Kimmy was already walking away. Shauna shook her head, closed her door behind her and followed her friend who had recently taken some bossy pills.

  In the car with butterflies bumping into each other in her stomach, Shauna’s mind wandered then caught hold of an errant thought.

  “Remember when you told me about Ryan, the main character in your book?”

  Kimmy looked away from the road briefly with a too-innocent look on her face. “Yes. I remember.”

  “Well, I was wondering if it was a coincidence that he shared the same name as my second therapist or if there was something more.” She drew out the last word.

  “It was just a coincidence,” Kimmy replied almost too quickly.

  Shauna kept her eyes on her friend.

  Kimmy sucked her teeth. “It was just a coincidence. Ryan is a common name.” She ended with a shrug, but the set of her jaw let Shauna know she wasn’t going to get any further with the conversation. She kept her smile to herself and looked out of her window.

  TWO HOURS LATER, SHAUNA’S nervousness was at its peak. She had yet to see Zach anywhere and she’d scanned the entire grounds from the box she and a few other staff from Murphy Equine Therapy Ranch occupied. She leaned forward to try to see around the dividing wall to the west, when the low hum of conversation in the small room went up a few decibels.

  She turned to see the man she’d been working so hard to catch a glimpse of striding toward her in a suit carrying sunflowers. The emotion that overwhelmed her senses brought tears to her eyes. He was here looking at her like she was the only one in the room.

  He stopped just short of her and handed her the flowers. She didn’t want flowers, she wanted him, in her arms. He stepped in and picked her up at the waist for a hug. “Hello, Sunshine,” he whispered in her ear.

  “Hi, Robin,” she whispered back and heard him groan.

  “How I love it when you say my name,” he said, his voice growing gruffer with each syllable.

  After a small squeeze and a kiss to her forehead, he put her back on her feet and stepped away. “Are you enjoying the Kentucky Derby?” She nodded, feeling a little shy after noticing all the onlookers. “Will you come with me?” She nodded again, but after a couple of steps, she turned to Kimmy who waved her away.

  “Go!”

  She followed Zach out the door, but slowed when the most recent events caught up to her.

  “Hey, you weren’t supposed to know I was here. It should’ve been a surprise.”

  He glanced back at her, a sly grin playing at his lips.

  “Kimmy said you would be busy the whole day.” She realized that she was the one surprised. She allowed him to lead her to his truck, which she noticed had been cleaned. She glanced around for Sebastian after being lifted into the cab while Zach came around to the driver’s side. “Where’s Sebastian?”

  “He gets too excited. He’s no longer allowed,” he said, glancing at her before turning the ignition.

  A HALF HOUR LATER, Shauna was surprised yet again when Zach turned off the highway onto an unfamiliar road. When the farmhouse came into view, she held her breath. The gray-and-white, two-story structure was gorgeous with its wraparound porch, complete with couch swing and Adirondack chairs. This must be the house Kimmy said he was considering.

  She looked at him and found he was already watching her.

  “What do you think?”

  “Think about what?” she hedged.

  He chuckled as he opened his door and came around to open hers.

  “I know you’ve had Kimmy spying on me,” he said, looking at her directly.

  Her mind went through a half-dozen denials and finally settled on the truth. “Okay.”

&nbs
p; He nodded in approval. “So, what do you think?” He swept his arm out toward the house.

  “I think it’s beautiful,” she said, staring at the white, wooden shutters.

  “Good.”

  She turned back to him. “Good? Why good?”

  “Because I bought it.”

  “Oh.” Her mind was working, but it was doing this crazy stuttering thing.

  “I need to ask you a question.” He turned to her and it all finally clicked into place. He, dressed the way he was, and she, dressed the way she was, standing in front of a house he’d bought. Her heart took off like a jackrabbit and her mouth went dry.

  “Okay.” She barely got the word out.

  “How long will you be staying?”

  All thought ceased. She actually heard the sound a needle made as it ran across a vinyl album.

  “Wha?”

  “You told me to ask you how long you’d stay the next time you came to me.” He tipped his head toward the house. “I need to know.”

  She looked from him to the house and back to him, feeling very slow for not catching on sooner. She’d been a chemical engineer for goodness sake.

  “How much do you know?”

  His lips lifted at the edges and rose until his front teeth were revealed and his eyes danced. “Everything.”

  “Everything?” She began to huff.

  “Well, you can’t expect a man to lay all his cards on the table and ask the woman he loves to marry him without at least knowing if she’ll stay.”

  “Love? Marry?” She was back to stuttering. She closed her eyes and shook her head to clear it. When she opened them, Zach was no longer standing.

  “Robin,” she whispered, her heart swelling.

  “I think you know why I’m down here in this suit,” he said, resting on a single knee.

  She nodded slowly. “I might be wrong though. Spell it out for me.”

  “I love you, Shauna. You make me happier than I thought possible. I figured if I could fall in love with you while you were five-and-a-half-hours away, we could be really happy living together.” He seemed to think about it for a moment “Only, I can’t live with you unless we get married. So, will you marry me?”

  She burst out laughing. Leave it to Zach to make her laugh from his proposal of marriage.

  “So, you love me, huh?”

  He frowned at her. “Yes.”

  “But you never said it.”

  “There are just some things you have to say face-to-face.”

  Kimmy wouldn’t be happy about her next move, but she couldn’t help herself.

  She got down on her knees in front of him. “I love you too, Robin.”

  He rolled his eyes. “Is this what it’ll be like with you, competing to see who can give the greatest overture of love?”

  She looked down at both of them kneeling then shrugged. “We could make it our destiny to out-love each other.”

  He stared at her for a moment. “Shauna, I’m going to need an answer.”

  The sound of her laughter was a welcome accompaniment to her, “Yes.”

  The End

  From the Author

  DEAR READER,

  This genre was something new for me. Though I stayed in the Christian fiction romance, I’ve wanted to venture into suspense for some time. I loved getting to know Zach and Shauna, and you haven’t seen the last of them.

  Thank you for choosing to spend your time in my world. If you enjoyed it I will just say thank you and ask that you would take a moment and leave a review. I really am interested in what you thought, what touched your heart and even what didn’t.

  Please send your questions or thoughts to me at www.tawcarlisle.com

  I am working on my next book because my characters just won’t leave me alone, and my crew-of-a-few are diligently combing the pages to make sure I haven’t left out any important details...

  Until next time,

  Keep reading and expand your dreams

  Traci Wooden-Carlisle

  Frost Heaves

  Alana Terry

  NOTE: THE VIEWS OF the characters in this novel do not necessarily reflect the views of the author, nor is their behavior necessarily condoned.

  The characters in this book are fictional. Any resemblance to real persons is coincidental. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form (electronic, audio, print, film, etc.) without the author’s written consent.

  Frost Heaves

  Copyright © 2018 Alana Terry

  Cover design by xx.

  Scriptures quoted from THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

  Frost heaves (noun): Upward swelling in soil or roads during freezing conditions, caused by water expanding as it turns to ice.

  “So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.”

  Isaiah 41:10

  Chapter 1

  JADE WAS BEING RIDICULOUS. She had no reason to be this nervous. And for what? A testimony? She’d talked about her past plenty of times. Why should doing it on stage in front of her entire church be any different?

  Staring at her reflection in the mirror, she wiped her sweaty palms on her pants. Come on, girl. You’ve got this.

  The bathroom door swung open, and Jade jumped as her daughter burst through.

  “Dezzirae Rose Jackson,” Jade snapped, then paused to collect her breath. “You nearly gave me a heart attack.”

  “I’m sorry, Mama.”

  “Forget it.” Jade let her daughter cling to her leg and adjusted a barrette holding one of Dez’s corn rows. “What are you doing here scaring me half to death? Aren’t you supposed to be downstairs playing?”

  Dez shrugged. “Got bored.”

  As cute as Dez looked in her God is my Superhero T-shirt and sparkling light-up tennis shoes, Jade didn’t have time for any extra drama tonight. She gave her daughter a well-rehearsed scowl. “You know you’re not supposed to be bugging me right now. I’ve got to get ready for my talk. How many times do I have to tell you?”

  Another shrug.

  “Aren’t there any other little kids down there?” Jade asked.

  Her daughter rolled her eyes dramatically. “Just Mrs. Spencer’s grandkids, and they’re still babies.”

  “They’re a year younger than you are,” Jade huffed.

  “Two years.” Dez jutted out her lower lip and cocked her head to the side. “And besides, if I stay downstairs, Mrs. Spencer’s gonna make me practice my angel lines for the Christmas play, and it’s just too hard. Can’t I stay up here with you? Mrs. Spencer said it’s all right with her.”

  “Well, it’s not all right with me.”

  “How come?”

  “Because I’ve got to focus on what I’m going to say, and I can’t worry about whether or not you’re sitting there squirming in your seat.” She kissed the top of her daughter’s head then pushed her out the door. “Now get yourself back downstairs. And march.”

  Dez stomped out, staring at her feet. Soon, her light-up tennis shoes distracted her, and she bounced away.

  “Oh, that girl,” Jade groaned and checked to make sure the backs of her earrings hadn’t fallen out. She’d checked them half a dozen times by now, but it was the only thing she could think of to do to get her nerves to settle down.

  Lord, you’ve got to help me get through this.

  Her hands were a clammy, sweaty mess, and she washed them again at the sink. After giving herself one more glance in the mirror to make sure everything was right where it was supposed to be, she walked out the door. She had to head downstairs to have a talk with Dez’s Sunday school teacher. Mrs. Spencer had agreed to come tonight to watch the kids, and Jade felt it was only right that she give Mrs. Spencer fair warning. Dez had been a handful and a half all day. She was already five but had missed the cutoff for
kindergarten by a week and a half. It wasn’t even Christmas yet, and already Jade regretted not making a bigger push with the elementary school to accept Dez early. She was acting up nearly every day at the daycare where Jade worked and even gave one of the smaller boys a white-wash when she pushed him down in the snow. Jade had put up with enough of other people’s drama in her own life. There was no way she was going to see her daughter turn into a bully.

  She was halfway to the stairs when someone called her name.

  Jade turned around. “Hey, girl.” She might weigh twice as much as her petite friend, but she didn’t worry about squeezing too tight as she wrapped Aisha up in a hug. “I’m heading on downstairs,” Jade explained. “Got to talk to Dez’s teacher.”

  “Hold on,” Aisha said. “There’s someone here to see you.”

  Jade followed her friend’s darting eyes, which landed on a tall white man in a crisp navy blue trooper’s uniform. Jade scowled. “Who’s that?”

  “New trooper,” Aisha explained. “He just moved to Glennallen from the bush.”

  “Is he joining the church or what?” Jade didn’t like the way he was staring at her.

  The trooper took a few steps closer, and Aisha shuffled nervously. “Sorry, I should have told you sooner,” she whispered, but Jade didn’t have time to figure out what she was talking about.

  The trooper descended on her, hand outstretched enthusiastically. “I’m Ben. You must be Jade.”

  She gave him a glower. “What makes you think that?”

  He gave Aisha a nervous glance, and Jade frowned at him disapprovingly. There were a dozen things annoying about being the only black person in a town as small as Glennallen. Having strangers presume to know her identity was toward the top of the list.

  “Aisha pointed you out,” he answered.

  Oh. That made more sense. Jade cleared her throat and took Ben’s hand into her sweaty palm. “Okay. Well, then, what can I do for you, officer?”

  “I know you’re busy getting ready for tonight’s service, but can I talk to you? Won’t take more than a minute.”