Time to Laugh Romance Collection

by Wanda E. Brunstetter

  “Hi, Shannon,” he said, dropping them in her basket.

  “Thanks, Gary,” she muttered as she finished her current calculation.

  He leaned forward. “Anything else I can do for you?”

  Shannon slid a piece of paper across the desk and handed him her pencil. “Yes. Can you write something for me?”

  He grinned and returned the pencil. “Sorry. I won’t let you catch me. Nice try, though. Maybe we can go out for coffee or dinner one night and discuss what’s going on.”

  In your dreams, she thought. “Maybe,” she said.

  “Great. It’s a date, then.”

  Before she could refute him, he turned around.

  Shannon sighed as Gary walked away. She’d done a lot of thinking about every man she came in close contact with at work, Gary included. Not only was Gary intelligent, he had control issues, and he was also cagey. Being second only to the terminal manager, Gary had access to the building any time he pleased—days, nights, and weekends. Even if Gary wasn’t the Secret Admirer, he had access to her desk when no one else was around, and he could easily have seen a note left for her, even if he didn’t put it there. She could see him trying to lead her on, to get what he thought he could from another man’s work. She’d seen him do such things professionally; she had no doubts he would do them personally.

  But she wasn’t positive he wasn’t the Secret Admirer. If he was, she thought she might faint.

  She doubted he was, though. The notes had an emotional flare she couldn’t pin down. She was sure they sometimes didn’t come out quite right because the Secret Admirer was working so hard at rhyming, but the message was clear. Someone had a crush on her, and he meant every word he said.

  Gary wasn’t the type to be poetic. He had a sharp wit and an analytical mind. If he turned to poetry, she was sure Gary’s poetry would be more trendy and stylish, and he would certainly use more flare and alliteration in his choice of words.

  Todd, on the other hand, might write like this, except she knew he wasn’t capable of rhyming any words with more than a single syllable. The Secret Admirer used words she would never have dreamed of rhyming; yet they did.

  Shannon looked toward the dispatch office.

  She was sorry she’d put Todd in an awkward position, bringing up something that disturbed him when he should have been concentrating on his work. She knew he had some kind of difficulty with his mother, even as an adult. Craig told her Todd had started to change after he’d moved out and into his own place, just before Shannon moved out on her own. According to Craig, Todd became a Christian shortly after that. Now that she’d been working with him for a few months, she could see he was a changed man, not just because of his Christianity, but something else, too. She would never have thought Todd would mature, but he had.

  But becoming a Christian didn’t mean his struggles with his family would end. She’d known it was a sensitive subject, and she never should have asked him such a thing at work. For the first time, Shannon owed Todd an apology.

  Until the opportunity arose to talk to him, Shannon resumed her work. Before she knew it, Faye was standing in front of her desk, and her stomach was starting to rumble.

  “Faye, if you don’t mind, I’m going to wait for half an hour and take my lunch break with Todd. There’s something I have to talk to him about. Do you mind?”

  Faye’s eyes widened. “What did he do?”

  Shannon smiled. “He didn’t do anything. I just have to talk to him about something.”

  Faye’s cheerful demeanor sagged. “Oh. Well, have fun.”

  Shannon couldn’t help but feel sorry for Faye. She knew Faye had a crush on Todd, and it was a big one. But the more she thought about Todd—and Faye—the more she thought Faye needed someone more solid and grounded in his faith.

  Like her brother Craig …

  Shannon brightened. “I’m not going to have fun. It’s something I have to talk to him about. I’ll catch you at coffee time.”

  The next half hour was the slowest of her life, second only to the half hour she once spent trying to find a clear stream as a suitable habitat for a poor, displaced frog on death’s doorstep.

  As soon as Todd exited the dispatch room, Shannon hit SAVE on her computer and followed him into the lunchroom.

  He walked straight for the fridge and removed his lunch. When he turned around and saw her, his eyes widened. “What are you doing here?”

  Shannon grinned, reached around him, and removed her own lunch. “I work here, and it’s lunchtime. Mind if I share your table?”

  His eyes widened even more. “Not at all.”

  Before they ate, they paused for a word of thanks. Shannon thought it special that for once, she wasn’t the only one to pray out loud softly at work, as she always did with Faye. Today Todd prayed. He wasn’t eloquent, and his words didn’t flow smoothly, but they came from his heart, and that was what counted.

  While Shannon sprinkled dressing on her salad, she replayed his prayer in her mind. The more time she spent with Todd, the more she saw that Craig was right. Todd had changed, in many ways. She hadn’t given him enough credit, and she felt guilty.

  “I was wondering—have you ever been to any other church besides the one you attend now?”

  Todd took a big bite of his sandwich. “Nope.”

  She started to nibble her carrot sticks. “You might enjoy going to a smaller service, one where there’s more interaction and more opportunity to ask questions. I have an idea. Why don’t you come to my church with me next Sunday? I think you’ll like it.”

  “You’re asking me to go to church with you?”

  Suddenly, Shannon realized that was what she had done. “I guess I am.”

  His whole face brightened. “Sure. I think I’d like that. Is that why you wanted to have lunch with me?”

  Shannon felt her cheeks heat up. “Not really. I think that was a spur-of-the-moment thing. Not that I’m going to change my mind. I wanted to apologize for this morning.”

  Todd started to cough and gulped down his mouthful, almost choking. “Apologize? To me? For what?”

  “For bringing up a touchy subject here, where it had no place. That was poor timing on my part, and I apologize.”

  His cheeks reddened. “I appreciate it, but I think I’m the king of bad timing. Please don’t think you ever owe me an apology for anything.”

  Shannon grinned at him. “Too late. I already apologized, and it’s too late to take it back. By the way, I heard you did a great job in calming down one of the customers today.”

  “And I hear you cleared up a big muddle after Bryan messed up Jason’s time sheet.”

  In contrast to the previous half hour, the lunch break flew by so fast Shannon didn’t know where the time went.

  She also had a feeling the week would be short, too. She didn’t know if it was smart to invite Todd to her church, but she couldn’t rescind her invitation. So she would make the best of it.

  Todd smiled as he worked. It still wasn’t a date, but going to church with Shannon was the next best thing. Especially since she was the one who invited him.

  He began entering a new pickup into the computer when he heard Shannon’s name come up in Gary and Rick’s conversation behind him.

  Todd made a typo, backspaced, and kept typing, slowly, paying more attention to their words than to the pickup instructions. He didn’t want to hear Gary telling Rick what he would like to do on a date with Shannon, but he couldn’t stop listening. Something about his words gave Todd the impression it sounded less like a fantasy and more as if Gary thought it was a real possibility Shannon would participate.

  In fact, the more he listened, the more it sounded as if Gary and Shannon had a date planned.

  Todd’s stomach churned. They’d just shared their lunch break, and Shannon hadn’t told him she was going out on a date with Gary. If she had, he’d have told her a few of the things Gary said behind her back.

  As Todd finished typing th
e entry, Gary appeared beside him.

  “I thought you’d like to know Shannon’s falling for it. One day soon, I’ll have her.”

  Todd spun around to face Gary. “I don’t think so. Shannon’s not that way.” He opened his mouth, wanting dearly to snap at Gary that Shannon had high moral standards, something Gary didn’t, but self-preservation stopped him. He was still in his initial probation period, Gary was his boss, and Todd desperately needed the job. He scrambled to reword his statement, without pointing fingers. “You do know Shannon goes to church every Sunday?”

  Gary’s eyebrows rose; then he made a sly smirk. “You never know, but maybe one day I’ll be going to church, too.”

  Gary spun on his toes, laughed heartily, walked into his office, and closed the door.

  Todd’s mind raced. From what he’d seen so far, Gary would never set foot in a church. But he’d also seen that Gary was wily. He didn’t know what was so funny, but he had a feeling he had to find out. While he would have liked to see Gary open his heart to spiritual things, he wouldn’t put it past him to attend church solely to impress Shannon. Gary had already used his position and authority to threaten him, without saying so directly. Todd feared he would also try to pressure Shannon in the same way, and he didn’t want to see that happen. Gary’s decisions carried a lot of weight. He worried Shannon might weaken if Gary turned on the charm; but he also feared what might happen if Shannon didn’t do what the man wanted and he didn’t take it well.

  What made the situation worse was that Gary wouldn’t have tried to get Shannon now if it hadn’t been for his seeing Todd’s Secret Admirer note. The whole thing was his fault.

  Somehow, Todd had to find out what Gary was planning and warn Shannon.

  He hoped she would listen and take him seriously. He’d told her so often why all her dates and boyfriends were wrong; he wasn’t sure she would listen to him anymore.

  Until he could find out a way to get Gary to confide in him so he could tell Shannon, he could only advise her to be careful. Then, on Sunday, he could take her out for lunch after church, and finally, they could have their first date. Maybe, if the time was right, he could tell her how he felt, and he wouldn’t have to worry about Gary anymore.

  Todd smiled. He could hardly wait until Sunday.

  Chapter 10

  Hey, Shan. It’s me. Todd. Let me in.”

  The buzzer sounded. Todd hurried to catch the elevator and was soon standing in front of Shannon’s apartment door.

  The door opened. Shannon stood in front of him wearing jeans and a T-shirt. A towel was wrapped around her hair. He smiled as he inhaled the heady aroma of her apple-scented shampoo, stronger than ever because her hair was still wet. As if he didn’t think enough of Shannon, now every time he smelled apples, he’d think of her even more.

  “I was getting ready to go out. What are you doing here?”

  His smile disappeared. “Where are you going?”

  Her brow creased. “It’s Thursday night. I’m going to Bible study.”

  “Oh. Sorry.”

  “Do you go at your church? I know there are several groups to choose from.”

  “Yes. But I go Wednesday. Craig and I went last night.” He had come because he didn’t want to wait for Sunday and had wrongly assumed she also attended her home group on Wednesday night.

  “Since you’re here, do you want to come with me?”

  Todd followed her as she returned to her room and started blow-drying her hair. “Sure. I’d like that. If I’m invited.”

  “Anyone is invited.”

  He didn’t want to contemplate the impersonal nature of her invitation. He only wanted to talk to her in private.

  But since he couldn’t talk while she dried her hair, Todd sauntered into the living room and sat down on the couch. Accompanying her tonight wasn’t what he had planned, but it wasn’t a bad thing. He would still be alone with her for part of the evening, and in that time, they could still talk. A few days ago, when they’d taken a late lunch break and were alone together, he’d had a very enjoyable time, and unless he was mistaken she had, too.

  He could see the start of a beautiful relationship, and he wanted to start it today.

  Shannon emerged from her room, her hair fluffy and bouncing with the natural wave he liked so much. “We have to leave in ten minutes. I hope you had something to eat before you got here.”

  “Yes, I did. You don’t have to worry about feeding me. I just thought—”

  The buzzer for the door cut off his words.

  Shannon picked up the telephone. “Come on up,” she said as she pushed the button.

  “Who’s that?”

  “It’s Craig. I have to talk to him about something, and he said he’d come with me. Now you’re coming, too. This is going to be a regular party, isn’t it?”

  He tried to smile. “Yeah. A party.”

  Until they started working together, every time he’d been out with Shannon, it was because she’d tagged along with Craig. While he hadn’t minded being a threesome before, today he wasn’t in the mood to share her with her brother.

  Shannon opened the door to let Craig in. Immediately, Craig turned to Todd.

  “I thought I recognized your car in the visitor parking. Long time no see, huh?”

  “Yeah,” Todd muttered. “Since about this time yesterday.”

  “Look at this—the three of us together. Just like old times.”

  Todd didn’t comment. He didn’t want old times. He wanted to make new times. Without Shannon’s brother hanging over his head, watching him, protecting his little sister.

  “Do you remember the last time the three of us were together?”

  “Yeah. We were at church.”

  Craig shook his head. “That’s different. I was thinking about that time just before Shan moved out. We were at the mall.”

  As best he could recall, the last time they were together in public they had been shopping and bumped into Shannon and her friends. It was so long ago he couldn’t remember anything about the day, except that it had been good for their male egos to spend the afternoon with Shannon and five or six of her friends.

  Shannon’s eyes narrowed as she turned to stare at Todd. “I remember that. We all went into the coffee shop together for lunch.”

  Todd tried to remember why that detail would have been important.

  Her eyes narrowed even more. “You went into the aisle, got down on one knee with a drink in your hand, and started singing Happy Birthday at the top of your lungs. That would have been bad enough, but it wasn’t my birthday, and you knew it.”

  Suddenly, it all came back. Shannon had wanted a piece of chocolate cake, and she hadn’t had enough money in her wallet to cover both lunch and dessert.

  He pasted on a grin that he hoped wasn’t as phony as it felt. “I was just trying to get you a free piece of cake.”

  “I can’t remember the last time I’d been so embarrassed. But of course, the last time would also have had something to do with you.”

  All thoughts of how much progress he’d made in obtaining a wee bit of forgiveness evaporated.

  Craig laughed out loud. “That was so funny! You should have seen your face!”

  Todd smiled sheepishly. Back then, her face hadn’t looked too cheery, nor did it now. In fact, Todd was glad they were going to a Bible study, where he hoped it would be stressed that God desired people to forgive those who hurt them.

  Todd cleared his throat. “I think it’s time to leave. Whose car are we taking?”

  “Yours. I’m almost out of gas.”

  During their ride down the elevator, Todd wished Craig would run out of gas. Craig, in his wisdom, brought up another “amusing” trip down memory lane. Then he detoured on yet another memory in the car. Before Craig retold a fourth instance which involved Todd’s humiliating poor Shannon, Todd managed to change the subject. However, he feared his efforts were too little, too late.

  Throughout the lesson, Todd s
at beside Shannon because he was the only one present who had not brought a Bible. He remained cautious in his comments and questions and tried to honor Shannon in his behavior.

  When they returned to her apartment, Craig sat down on the couch, ready to talk about whatever it was Shannon had called him for in the first place. Todd took that as his cue to leave.

  She walked Todd to the door.

  “Before I go, I wanted to talk to you about something.”

  She glanced back at the opening to the living room, then back at him. “Go ahead, but remember Craig is waiting for me. I have to talk to him, and we all have to get up early for work tomorrow.”

  He stepped closer and picked up her hands, holding them gently while he spoke. “I just want you to be careful about Gary. Make sure you pray about it before you do anything. I really don’t think he’s your Secret Admirer. Be careful with him.”

  Her voice skipped. “Of course …”

  “I’ll see you tomorrow, and I can hardly wait until Sunday when I go to your church with you.”

  Before she could tell him she changed her mind, Todd turned and left.

  “Hi, Shannon.”

  Shannon laid her pencil down and folded her hands on the desk in front of her. “Hi, Gary. Is there something I can do for you?”

  Gary crossed his arms, leaned on the edge of her desk, and grinned. “Yes. You can join me for dinner tonight.”

  Shannon studied Gary. Within the company, he was above her on the corporate ladder, second in command at their branch. While he didn’t have any direct authority over her, she knew he was in a position of influence with the company. On the personal side, she knew Gary was young to be in his position, which was a good testimony to his management skills. While she didn’t know his exact age, she guessed he was eight years older than she was.

  Being a non-Christian, that also meant he had much more worldly experience than she did, both in the dating arena and in dealing with people in general. Gary’s reputation preceded him, and his reputation told her this was a situation she didn’t want to get involved with. Shannon tended to keep to herself and stayed within her church circles. She wasn’t unhappy doing that. Instead, she felt safe and comfortable in her protected circle of friends and Christian family.