Love Story

by Karen Kingsbury

  Brandon smiled at her. “It’ll be okay. God will be with us, whatever happens.”

  “Exactly.” Bailey loved this, being with Brandon on a quiet Saturday afternoon, just the two of them. The way they wouldn’t get to do again for a very long time. “Can I tell you something a little sad? Just between you and me?”

  “Of course.” He looked deep into her eyes. Brandon adored her. He had since the first day they’d met.

  Bailey wasn’t sure she wanted to voice her thoughts. But they were there and they were real. She had no choice but to be honest with him. “I’m a little sad about losing this. You know, losing us. Just the two of us.”

  An understanding smile lifted Brandon’s lips ever so slightly and his eyes filled with tenderness. “I thought I was the only one. I didn’t want to say anything in case you thought I was terrible.”

  “It must be normal, right?”

  “Definitely.” Brandon squeezed her hands. “It’s a big change.” He leaned closer, his eyes locked on hers. “But no matter what happens, Bailey, you’ll always have me. We’ll always have us.”

  His words were exactly what she needed to hear. “We will, won’t we?”

  “Always.” He grinned at her. “Us might include a few more seats at the table over the years, but that won’t change this. The two of us. Not ever.”

  A relief came over her and she felt herself relax. “I’m so excited. I can’t believe we’re going to have a little girl. I can’t wait. It’s just . . .”

  “I know.” He brought her hand to his lips and kissed it. “We’ll never lose this, Bailey. I promise.”

  The conversation kept things intimate through the rest of lunch and into the shopping trip. They held hands and laughed as they looked for baby fingernail clippers and an ear thermometer. Things they’d never heard of or used. And they talked about how Bailey’s brothers were doing.

  Connor would be home in a few days, and no doubt he would at least call Maddie West. The two were on a break, but if things went well, they would probably spend a lot of time together this summer. “I think he loves her. For real.” Bailey raised her brow at her husband. “He just doesn’t know it.”

  “Time will tell.” Brandon’s eyes held hers, as if she were the only person in the store. “We don’t all end up with our first love.”

  “True.” Bailey loved how this felt, wandering through the store with him beside her. “I told him we’d both pray about it.”

  Her parents were better than ever, her dad still coaching football and her mom writing a regular column for the Indianapolis Star. Her other brothers were all working out this summer, getting ready for fall football in a few months.

  By the time they got home, Bailey could easily say it was one of their best Saturdays. They were taking things out of the bag when Bailey’s phone rang. She looked down and saw it was Andi. “I’m going to take it, okay?”

  “Of course.” Brandon smiled. “I’ll finish unpacking.”

  Bailey took her phone to their back porch. From here the view of Lake Monroe was like something from heaven. “Hello? Andi?”

  “Ah . . . I’m so glad you answered.” Andi sounded like she’d been crying. “I need your help. I don’t know what to do.”

  “Hey, I’m here.” Bailey sat on the outdoor rocker and put her hand on her belly. Her baby was kicking again. “What happened?”

  She heard Andi take a deep breath. “Cody came to Louisiana to see me.”

  “He did?” Bailey sat up a little. “What for?”

  “Well . . . it’s a long story.” Andi launched into the details. How Cody had come to ask her one question: Would she give him one more chance? “He said he could explain how he’d acted after our second engagement.” Her single laugh sounded like a mix of sadness and frustration. “Second engagement. Every time I say that I can’t believe I’m still even talking about Cody Coleman.”

  Bailey tried to sort through the details of her friend’s story. “You said something about Cody explaining himself?”

  “Right. That’s what he said.” Andi sighed. “But I got this emergency call and then Cody helped me with this single mom and her kids who were stranded in the flood. The whole day was crazy. And later when we talked, I told him I couldn’t do this again. That I was finished.”

  “Wait.” Bailey was still missing something. “What was Cody’s explanation? For the way he treated you after your last engagement?”

  Silence. Andi didn’t talk for several seconds. “He never told me.”

  “What?” Bailey wished they were in person having this conversation. The details didn’t add up. “He came with an explanation and he never told you?”

  “No, because . . . well, I told him I didn’t want to hear it. If he couldn’t tell me back then, there was no point telling me now. Plus . . . there’s this other guy. The one I told you about. Caleb.” She paused. “I don’t know, I just needed Cody to leave. Before I fell for him again.”

  Bailey’s heart sank. With all her heart she believed Cody and Andi belonged together. She’d been praying about that very thing for years. And now, Cody had gone after Andi, chased her to Louisiana to tell her how much he loved her, and Andi hadn’t let him explain himself? She kept her tone level. “Andi . . . I think maybe you should’ve let him tell his story.”

  Again Andi was silent. “You might be right.”

  “I mean, he flew across the country to tell you.”

  They talked awhile longer. Andi explained that it wasn’t a question of whether she loved Cody. Rather, she didn’t trust him. And she didn’t want to wind up a single mother someday. “I seriously don’t know if I can believe in him again. And what about Caleb?” Andi sighed. “That’s why I had to call you.”

  Bailey took her time responding. This was a strange situation, giving her best friend advice about the boy she, herself, had once loved. It had been many years since she’d thought about Cody that way. He hadn’t been the one for her, she knew that, of course. But that didn’t mean she couldn’t remember the way she had cared for him back then.

  She pictured Cody, the sincerity in his eyes, the honesty in his smile. The way he would lay down his life for someone he cared about. Or even for a nation full of strangers, like he’d been willing to do in Afghanistan.

  There were very few guys with the character and strength of Cody Coleman. Bailey needed to share that with Andi. “I think a lot of this is your fear talking.” Bailey didn’t want to offend her friend. But this had to be said. “If there’s one thing I know about Cody Coleman it’s this: He’s trustworthy. You could trust him with your life, Andi. If you two ever married, he would never dream of leaving you. Not ever.”

  “He left me before.” Andi’s answer was quick.

  Bailey considered that. “He broke up with you, yes. But he didn’t leave you. Not in the normal sense, like because he didn’t care about you or love you.”

  “I guess.” Andi was softening. “So . . . you think I should have let him explain?”

  “Andi . . . Do you still love him?”

  There was a sniffling sound on the other end of the line. “With everything in me.”

  “Then what are you doing talking to me?” Bailey allowed a soft laugh. “You can trust him. You have to find out what he came to tell you. Maybe that will clear all this up.”

  They talked another few minutes about the baby and how Bailey was feeling. At the end of the call Andi thanked her. “No one knows me like you do, Bailey. You can talk me off a cliff. You always could . . . ever since college.”

  Bailey smiled. “Call Cody. Ask him what he wanted to talk about. Please, Andi.”

  “Okay. Eventually.” Andi exhaled. Her doubt was easy to hear. “Oh, and hey . . . that donation you and Brandon made. Wow . . .” Deep gratitude filled her voice. “None of us can believe it. That was just what we needed.”

  Bailey smiled. “Good. It’s the least we can do.” She didn’t want to annoy Andi, but she wanted to finish the call on Cody. �
��Don’t forget . . . reach out to him. Okay?”

  “I will.”

  That would have to do. The call ended and Bailey returned to the kitchen. Brandon had made them each a glass of lemon water. As Bailey reached for it, her stomach tightened. “Ooooh.” She winced. “They’re getting stronger. These false contractions.”

  “One of these days you’ll have one that won’t be false.” Brandon looked nervous. “I hope you know the difference.”

  Bailey waited while her abdomen slowly relaxed. She thought about Brandon’s words. She could’ve said the same thing to Andi. Cody was not like other guys. He was a catch, a true and genuine guy who would never intentionally hurt anyone—least of all the girl he loved.

  Now if only Andi could see that.

  • • •

  AARON BAYLOR FOUND Cody as soon as practice ended. The kid could barely talk he was so happy. “She said yes, Coach! Macy Withers! She’s going with me to the prom!”

  Cody was collecting the bags of gear alongside his assistant coaches. No matter how terribly his visit had gone, he was happy for his player. “Atta boy, Baylor. I told you. Show a girl a glimpse of your heart, and she’ll be yours forever.” He patted the kid’s shoulder. “How does it feel?”

  “Amazing.” Baylor grabbed one of the gear bags and walked with Cody toward the locker room. “Every guy on campus wants to be me.” He hesitated and then cast a sideways glance at Cody. “Whatever happened with . . . Andi, right?”

  Cody couldn’t tell the kid that he’d gone after her, but he hadn’t done the very thing he’d taught Baylor to do. Cody hadn’t shared his heart. He’d come home with the truth untold, the facts about his PTSD still hidden deep inside him. Cody forced a smile. “Hasn’t worked out yet, Baylor. You’ll be the first to know.”

  The irony of it stayed with Cody long after he was home and after he took Riley for his run. The scrawny kid had done the difficult thing and taken a chance. So what about Cody? How could he have gone all the way to Louisiana and not told Andi the truth? Never mind she didn’t want to hear him.

  If he would’ve pushed she would’ve listened. And that might’ve changed everything. Yes, he should’ve told her sooner, but that was all part of the learning curve in a relationship, right?

  Cody piled Riley into his truck and headed for his mom’s house. Every Monday he mowed her lawn. Today he welcomed the task. Anything to take his mind off the hurting. He missed Andi so much he couldn’t eat. Couldn’t see straight into tomorrow.

  A few times he had even played the news segment again, the part where Andi was interviewed. He had kept it on his DVR. For times when he couldn’t go another minute without seeing her.

  His mom met him at the front door and called Riley into the house. “Come on, boy, come to Grandma.”

  Cody found the mower and set about the job. Later tonight he would tell his mom what happened with Andi, how she never wanted to see him again. Then he would tell her the other news. He was seriously considering moving to Montana. The headmaster had offered him a job. Now it was up to him. He had a week to decide.

  The conversation with his mother went better than he expected. She didn’t want him to move, of course, but she recognized it would only be for a time. So Cody could get Andi out of his head.

  “Actually, I’m thinking of moving to Solvang. For a year, anyway.” She grinned at him. “One of my friends is moving there to work at this great church. It’s been around forever, but they’re hiring. I’d be working with this great couple—Larry and Evelyn Foster. My friend said she could get me the job if I was willing to move there.”

  Cody smiled, despite his breaking heart. Nothing stayed the same. Not even the two of them living in the same city. “Good for you, Mom.”

  “Everything happens in seasons, Cody.” She patted Riley, who was sitting beside her. “You’re a football coach. You should know that more than anyone.”

  She was right. Everything in its season. Just like Ecclesiastes in the Bible. He thought about that after he was home and in bed. He reached for his phone on his bedside table and opened his Bible app. He found his way to the third chapter in Ecclesiastes.

  There it was.

  . . . a time to weep and a time to laugh, a time to mourn and a time to dance . . .

  A time for everything. And right now it was Cody’s time to grieve, time to figure out what the rest of his life held. Never mind the day he’d shared with Andi in Louisiana, or the progress he’d thought they had made in those few hours. That was behind him. The future held something unknown, a challenge Cody was almost certainly going to take. Working with a team of troubled kids in the open plains of Montana.

  Where just maybe, Cody’s heart might finally heal.

  21

  John had just one more week to talk with Cole before the interviews would wrap up. He had organized his thoughts and a few more photos in anticipation of today’s meeting.

  But he didn’t need them to remember what had happened next. It was a miracle he and Elizabeth had ever found each other again. And when they did, the heartache was so great it was a wonder they survived at all.

  Cole and Ashley were on time, and both of them looked anxious for the final piece of the story. “So much I didn’t know,” Ashley told John as they settled into the living room again. “Where did you leave off?”

  “I know!” Cole held up his notes. “And I don’t need these to tell you. Grandma was gone to that house, the place where she lived with other pregnant girls. And Papa was trying to figure out how to find her.” Cole looked at John. “You had just come up with a plan, right?”

  His plan. Yes, that was the next part. John appreciated the way Cole cared so much. He took a deep breath and let the rest of the story fill his soul. And like every other week, the memories came to life. They consumed him, taking over his senses until he was no longer sitting in his living room, talking to his grandson about the past.

  He was reliving it.

  • • •

  THE PLAN WAS simple.

  John thought about it constantly. In class and in the library when he was studying and at home every night. Not because the strategy required so much work. But because John couldn’t wait to see Elizabeth. His arms ached for how badly he wanted to hold her.

  He told no one about his intentions. He would wait until a week before Elizabeth’s due date, and then drive to Illinois, straight to the house where she was staying. No one could keep him away from her. By then her father would’ve been convinced he’d kept them apart. Everyone would think John Baxter had given up on Elizabeth.

  Everyone, that was, except Elizabeth herself.

  Whatever she was going through, whatever lonely nights she faced without him, she had to know he was coming for her. And not just her. He was coming for her and the baby. He had promised he would do what he could. Now he knew how.

  School got out the end of May. The next day John would set off for Illinois. Once he arrived at the house, he’d wait until nightfall. Then while everyone was sleeping, John would find a way into the place. He’d wake up Elizabeth, and take her back to Ann Arbor.

  At first they’d stay at the Wesleys’ house. Sure, the family had already told him no, but once they saw Elizabeth nine months pregnant and without any options, they were bound to change their minds. At least for a short while.

  His plan didn’t stop there.

  Their first day back in Ann Arbor, John and Elizabeth would go to the justice of the peace and get married. They could do a more formal wedding later. Then John would figure out where to take his wife and baby next. He would have to increase his hours at the pharmacy, of course. Which would make med school more difficult. But not impossible. John had straight A’s. His professors would work with him. They believed John would run a hospital one day.

  Yes, certainly they would work with him.

  John found a piece of cardboard and taped it to his wall. At the top he used a marker and wrote “154 days.” That’s how long he still had t
o wait before he could see her, before he could hold Elizabeth in his arms again.

  Every day he crossed out the number and wrote one day less. He relished the times when 100 days became 99, and when 50 became 49. Every sunrise took him one day closer to seeing her. This time Elizabeth’s father wouldn’t be waiting for him. He would rescue Elizabeth and their child and they would start a life of their own.

  Forty-five days. Twenty-two. Eleven.

  Finally it was time to leave. Time for John to go get his family.

  He packed a few blankets and pillows in case Elizabeth needed them for the ride home. And since she wouldn’t be expecting him that particular night, he brought food, too. Peanut butter sandwiches and a thermos of water. They could get more food on the road.

  He tried to think of everything as he set out that afternoon. The house where she was staying was in Marion, Illinois—an eight-hour drive from Ann Arbor. If he drove fast he could shave maybe thirty minutes off that, but not much more. He couldn’t afford a speeding ticket.

  John didn’t want to arrive until after midnight, so he waited until four that afternoon to leave. At first the drive was smooth. John played his eight-track in the car’s deck. Billboard’s Top Hits with “Never My Love” on it. In honor of Elizabeth. He couldn’t believe he was about to see her again. After all this time.

  But he was nearly five hours out of Ann Arbor when his engine began to smoke. This can’t be happening. John pulled to the side of the road. His gas and temperature gauges were fine. So why was the engine smoking? He found a flashlight in his glove box, climbed out, and lifted the hood. It was already after nine o’clock. He’d be lucky to find an open gas station.

  A quick look and he saw the problem. His oil pan was leaking. Which was maybe why the oil gauge wasn’t working. He looked more intently. There was barely an inch of oil left, if the dipstick was right. “Great.” He couldn’t drive far with so little oil. He could blow his engine, and then he’d be finished. Without a car, he’d not only miss his chance at rescuing Elizabeth and the baby . . .