Brenda knitted her eyebrows together and peered at Randi. “Why are you being so nice?”
Jordan’s Web page was fully designed and operating in three days. Miranda had done a wonderful job. She also included a blog for him to post pictures for people to comment on. The little girl with the great smile and no front teeth was the first photo he put on his blog. Today he noticed Randi had added a couple, as well. The work at the studio crawled along. Apart from customers coming in to have their pictures developed, they had no other studio work. Dena said it would pick up in the fall with school pictures. Jordan hoped she was right. He knew what came in, he knew his salary, and the two weren’t that far apart. He set up an easel in the rear corner of the studio to work on between customers.
The crab-shack wharf was taking shape on canvas. He decided to go with high tide and reflect the building in the water below. He dabbed the titanium white and added a touch of cobalt blue and left the colors unmixed on his brush. With a careful hand, he dotted the water below.
The bell over the door chimed. Jordan turned to see a man with short, cropped, black hair and a form-fitting T-shirt and jeans walk in. “Can I help you?”
“Yeah.” He inhaled a deep pull on a cigarette and breathed out the smoke. “Wife said you took this.” He held up a photo of a young boy playing in the hippo pool.
“Yes, sir. Would you mind putting your cigarette outside?”
He took another pull and stepped outside to place his cigarette in a planter box. “I was wondering if you could make copies.”
“Sure can. What do you need?”
The man went over the various photographs Jordan had taken of his son then placed an order. “I’d like these by tomorrow. Is that possible?”
“I can have them ready in an hour.”
“Really? Awesome. I’ll be back.”
Jordan processed the man’s order. The phone rang. “Hello?”
“Hi, Jordan, it’s Dena. I’m wondering if you’re up for another trip? Jamie Stewart had to cancel at the last minute, and I have family plans. I’ll understand if you can’t.”
“When?”
“You need to leave on Friday night and fly out of Boston or possibly pick up a flight from Bangor. It’s a three-day shoot in Niagara. You could drive if you want.”
“No problem.”
“There’s one more thing. Jamie was taking an assistant because of the multiple shots required. Do you know of anyone who could go at such short notice?”
His mind flickered to Miranda. “No, I’m afraid not.”
“All right. I’m sure you can handle it by yourself. You know what? Fly—don’t drive. You’ll be exhausted at the end, and flying home will feel much better.”
“Yeah, but I’ll still have a six-hour drive from Boston.”
“True, but you could spend the night there. Your old roommates or parents could put you up, right?”
“More than likely. Don’t worry, Dena. I’ll take care of it.” I could use a visit with my folks. “Oh, by the way, I had the first return customer from the candids I took at the festival.”
“Excellent. You only charged for the prints, right?”
“Yes. We’ve discussed this before.” He was beginning to understand small town logic, but it still bothered him not to make a profit on those prints. Then again, he’d had a lot of hits from the picture of the toothless-grinning girl on the Internet, and that was another freebie. Comments to his blog were along the lines of “What a beautiful smile,”
“Gotta love those freckles,” and so on. A couple even inquired to know the child’s name. He was thankful he didn’t know and wrote back accordingly. Whether he’d received any orders because of that shot, he didn’t know. But a few pictures had been requested from some of his previous work.
“Jordan, I’m sorry. I know this is a hard adjustment, but you’re going to have to trust me on this.”
“Dena, I do trust you. And I’m beginning to see the logic, although I’m not sure how it will all work out.”
“It’ll work out. Okay, I have to run. Contact me when you return.”
Jordan gave his salutations then tapped out Miranda’s phone number and reached her answering machine. “Hey, Miranda, it’s Jordan. I’m afraid I can’t make our dinner date Friday night. Dena’s asked me to fill in for someone on a job. I’m going to Niagara.” He glanced up at the calendar. “I’ll see you in a week.”
Jordan arranged for Jess to take care of his dog while he was gone. Duke enjoyed being on the water after spending a week with Jess during his trip to the Sudan. Jordan went back to his painting of the crab shack. He dipped his brush into the linseed oil and then a tiny dab of cerulean blue.
The jarring sound of screeching brakes, followed by the thump of one car hitting another, sent him running from his easel and out to the street.
twelve
Randi eased out a pent-up breath. “Brenda, I’m not all that nice. But God’s been working on me and my anger toward you and Cal. Jesus loves you, and I’m called to love as He loves. I’m not a saint, and I can’t do it on my own. But I do have compassion for you and Tyler … even Cal. He’s missing out on his relationship with his son.”
“I can’t believe I fell for his lies.”
Randi let out a nervous chuckle. “I’m with you there. I’m sorry he walked out on you.”
Brenda sniffled. “He said I wasn’t you.”
“Brenda, you can’t judge yourself from what Cal said. And you certainly can’t judge yourself from me. The Bible tells us how God believes we’re all wonderfully made and of His redeeming love for us. No matter what happened, He still loves you.”
“How?”
“That’s kind of a mystery to all of us. But we have His Word, and we have His actions—sending His Son to die for us—that proves He does love us and forgive us.”
“I’m scared, Randi. I don’t want to live with my parents, but I have no other choice. I can’t allow Tyler to suffer for my mistakes.”
Randi thought for a moment. “You know, your love for Tyler is like God’s love for us. Your parents’ love for you is the same. They warned you about your relationship with Cal, but they are allowing you to come back home, to provide for you and your child, even though you didn’t listen to their counsel. Isn’t that how God deals with all of us?”
Brenda wiped the tears from her cheeks and looked down at her nursing son then back at Randi. “I knew if I came to you, you would help me sort this out. All this Jesus and God stuff is really real to you, isn’t it?”
“Yup.”
“Just like Mr. Kearns.”
Randi nodded.
“I should have listened to him about that sex before marriage stuff. I thought he was so … well, I won’t say it. But I really thought he had a few marbles loose just ‘cause he had to raise Jess on his own. Now I’m in the same boat. Oh, I married Cal after I was pregnant, but he left me, just like Jess’s real mom left her.”
“They will be helpful people for you to talk with about raising Tyler without a father.”
“I suppose. I just don’t know if I can go through all that Jesus stuff. I mean, I’m glad He’s real for you and all that, but I’m still not sure He can do anything for me.”
Randi rubbed her hands together for a moment. “Pray, Brenda.”
“I’ll think about it.”
Tyler slurped and rolled back his eyes. A knot tightened in Randi’s stomach. The longing for her own child increased. She and Cal had planned on having children right away. Then her mind kicked back to something Jordan had said about children and how he wanted some. But not until he and his wife could afford them. She glanced back at Brenda. “Thinking things through and praying are the best things you can do.”
“I didn’t mean to stay so long.” Brenda caressed Tyler’s soft brown hair. “I’m leaving town today, and I’ve been trying to speak with you for so long.”
“Why?”
“To apologize.”
Randi no
dded. “I realize that, but you’ve said you were sorry before. Why do you suppose you had such an urgent need to speak with me before you left town?”
Brenda turned away. “Because I tried to take Cal away from you,” she muttered.
Randi already knew that from the gossip of others and even from what Brenda had said earlier, but it was good for her confess it. “You’re on the road to recovering your faith, Brenda. You do believe in Jesus. You’re just afraid to surrender your life to Him.”
“I never wanted to live in Africa.”
Randi chuckled. “Not everyone is called to be a missionary and go to Africa.”
“I know but … oh, I don’t know. It sure felt good to party and … well, you know.”
Actually I don’t. Thank You, Lord, for giving me the strength to resist Cal. “If sin didn’t feel good from time to time, how would it be tempting?”
Brenda chuckled for the first time. “You sound like Mr. Kearns.”
Randi smiled. “Yeah, I suppose I do. But it is still the truth.”
“Yeah. I’ve gotten myself into quite a mess. But I don’t want that for Tyler.”
“Go to your parents,” Randi said. “Do what you need to do to provide for your son, but get right with the Lord, Brenda. Nothing else will get you through some of the long hard days you have ahead of you. And, trust me, you’ll be tempted to fall for the first guy who wants to provide for you and your son. Don’t. Fall for the man the Lord will provide for you.”
“Didn’t you think Cal was that man for you?”
“Yes, but I’ve learned since that I wasn’t trusting the Lord. I was just assuming Cal was the guy because that’s what I thought I wanted back then. I don’t now.”
“No, I’ve seen you with the new photographer. He’s pretty hot.”
Randi’s cheeks flamed. “Yes, he is.”
“Do you like all that hair?”
She remembered his hair tickling her arm as he kissed the back of her hand. And then again when he’d worn it down at breakfast. “Yes, oddly enough I do. It fits him.”
“That’s so weird. Cal’s is so short.”
Randi hadn’t made the comparison. Was she attracted to Jordan because he was so different from Cal?
Tyler finished nursing. An awkward, silent pause passed between them. Randi stood and walked to the window. From her cottage window, she could see the harbor. In the street below, people were running toward the center of town.
“Something’s happening.”
Jordan sat on the curb, paintbrush still in hand. He watched as the volunteer firemen used the “jaws of life” to remove a man trapped in his car.
“How come you aren’t photographing this?” a crusty old fisherman called out from the crowd.
“Huh?” It had never entered his mind to grab his camera. If it had been a year ago, instinct would have taken over, and he would have grabbed the camera and cell phone. He would have been calling a major newspaper in the Boston region as he took the picture and then working his way down the list until one of the newspapers wanted his shots. With Dena working as his agent and with the more laid-back routine of living in down-eastern Maine, he realized he was more concerned with the individual who was trapped in the car than earning some money from someone else’s misery. Not that he’d ever been that kind of photographer. But income was income, and generally he took any opportunity he could get.
“Ain’t ya workin’ for the newspaper?”
“Nope.”
“Bet they’d pay to have a picture of this. That man in the car there is someone well-known in these parts.”
“Thanks, but I’d rather be praying for his safety.”
“Ah, prayer ain’t a bad thing.”
Jordan smiled and stood up from the curb. The volunteers worked methodically, cutting the car door and using the “jaws of life” to lift the roof high enough to pull the victim out. The driver of the car had run into the back end of a freight truck with a hydraulic lift on the rear, crushing the roof.
The bloody driver moaned. Jordan lifted another prayer for him, as he had been doing since seeing the wreck ten minutes ago. Jordan looked back at the truck then the car and noted how fortunate the driver was to be alive.
“Jordan, what’s happening?” Miranda came running up, followed by a woman with a baby.
He held out his arm, and she drew close in his embrace. He sniffed her hair and felt ever so grateful she was safe. He explained what had happened. Miranda peered at the car.
The woman with the child gasped. “Oh, no!”
“Who is it?” Jordan asked.
Miranda left his embrace and steadied the woman. Jordan followed suit and took the baby from her arms. “That’s Cal’s father, Mike Collins, in the wreck. This,” she told Jordan, nodding toward Brenda, “is Cal’s wife and child.”
“Cal, as in—” He cut off his question. This was no time to ask hows or whys.
“I need to call my parents,” Brenda said.
Jordan reached for his cell phone then remembered he no longer had one. “You can use the phone in the studio.”
Miranda led Brenda back to the studio. Jordan held the little boy in his arms and followed behind them. “Hey, there, little one, I’m Jordan. Who are you?”
The baby greeted him with a drooling grin.
“His name is Tyler,” Miranda said as she opened the door for Brenda to go in.
“Phone’s on the counter.” Jordan turned back to the child. “Hey, there, Tyler. Would you like to play with a ball?”
The baby thumped Jordan’s chest with his tiny fists. “I’ll take that as a yes.” Jordan put him on the carpeted area and pulled out a box of toys they kept on hand for children while they set up to take their photos. He glanced away and saw Brenda was on the phone. “What’s going on?”
“I’ll explain later.”
“Okay.”
“Is he alive?” Miranda asked.
“Yes, he’s fortunate,” Jordan replied. “There’s a lot of blood, but there always is with a head wound. The firemen were on the scene within a few minutes.”
“Good.”
He had a thousand questions for Miranda, and looking at Brenda and Tyler he knew something had been transpiring between the two of them. But he’d wait. He’d give her the time she needed to tell him what was going on and why they were in one another’s company. He took it as a sign that Miranda was moving on from the hurts of the past, giving him more hope for their future. Yes, she was going to be his wife one day; she just didn’t know it yet. And he’d learned long ago not to tell a woman that before it was time. Back in college, a friend of his told a gal on their first date that they would marry one day. She ran away from him faster than a rocket lifts off from Cape Canaveral.
He picked up his camera and focused on Tyler. He was a handsome child. Click. He took a shot. Click. And another. Just then, Duke edged his nose around the doorway at the stairs to his apartment. Jordan held up his hand. Duke sat down and waited.
Brenda hung up the phone. “Mom’s going to call Mrs. Collins and let her know about the accident. Do you think he’ll be all right? Should I go to the hospital?”
Jordan thought it odd she was asking Miranda for help.
“I don’t know,” Miranda said.
“How are you?” Jordan asked. Perhaps if he understood what Brenda’s thoughts were at the moment, he could better understand what to suggest.
“Freaked out. Mom said he was probably coming to take Tyler away from me.”
“Why?”
“Ever since Cal left they’ve been trying to get custody of Tyler. They say I can’t support him. That’s another reason I’m going to my parents’ house.”
“Why don’t you have a seat? Can I get you something? A cup of tea?” Jordan offered.
“No, no, I’m fine. I’ve imposed long enough. Bye, Randi, and I’ll think about what you said.”
“Bye. And I’ll be praying for you.”
“Thanks.” Brenda pick
ed up Tyler and headed out of the studio then turned around. “And thanks for the use of the phone.”
Then she was gone. They stood there for a moment in silence. The ambulance siren signaled its departure. Jordan rubbed the back of his neck. “What’s going on?”
“She came by to apologize.”
He edged up beside her. “How are you?”
Randi sighed. “In the words of Brenda, ‘freaked out.’ I’m glad she’s moving in with her parents. I was able to share about the Lord with her, and, for the first time, I no longer have that bitter taste in my mouth when I think about her and Cal. I’m sorry it happened, but in the end I’m over being hurt by his actions.” She glanced out the window at the wrecked vehicle then back to Jordan.
“Do you think Cal’s father was going to take the baby?” Jordan asked.
“It’s possible. Cal’s family has done fairly well. Consequently they kinda live by their own rules—which I should have seen ages ago but didn’t. I guess I was so taken by the fact that Cal said he loved me that I overlooked a lot of things, including how his parents spoiled him. I don’t think they’d be the right people to raise Tyler.”
“What about Brenda?”
“I think she’s grown up a lot since she became a mother. If you had asked me before she had the baby, I would have said no way. Today I think she’s on the right track. It would be better if she trusted the Lord, but that’s between her and God to work out.”
“I’ve missed you.” Jordan stepped closer to her.
Randi’s legs felt like Jell-O. “It’s only been a couple of hours, if that.”
“I know.” He wrapped his arms around her. “I still missed you.”
With all the strength she could muster, she stepped out of his embrace. “Do you think this is wise?” Duke came over and sat on her foot as if anchoring her to stay put.
“Honey, I love you. Seeing that man in the car, my first thought was, I’m glad it wasn’t you. I didn’t think about getting my camera … nothing but you. Are you ready to be more than friends?”
Randi closed her eyes. He confessed his love; should I? She opened her eyes and slowly focused on the sparkling hazel of Jordan’s. “I want to.”
Trespassed Hearts Page 9