Special Mission

by Debby Mayne

  They played for more than an hour before Kim held up her hands. “I need to get back home.”

  Brian checked his watch. “It’s still early.”

  “Tell that to the mountains of laundry piling up beside my washing machine.”

  He snorted and tucked the Frisbee under his arm. “You win.”

  As they rounded up the trash and carried it to the bins nearby, Kim chattered about how much fun she’d had. Brian didn’t speak until they got back to the blanket, where all they had to do was stuff the food into the basket and carry it to the car.

  “You are still planning to come to my party, right?”

  “Of course I’ll be there.” Kim felt terrible that she’d forgotten about it. “Can I bring anything?”

  Brian’s eyes twinkled at first then dimmed as he slowly shook his head. “No, I have everything covered.”

  “I don’t mind bringing a bag of chips or some dip or something.”

  “It’s not that kind of party,” he said. “It’s a little. . .well, nicer.”

  “What do you mean?” Kim stopped in her tracks and stared at Brian.

  “I don’t mean anything other than the fact that I’ve decided to have a party where people dress up and we actually eat decent food.”

  Kim laughed. “Like what? Caviar?”

  “Maybe.”

  “That’s so not you, Brian.”

  “What? Are you saying I don’t have class?” He gave her a mock hurt look.

  “Oh, you have class, but as long as I’ve known you, you’ve been a chip and dip kind of guy.”

  He unlocked his trunk and dumped the sports equipment into the box. “And look where that’s gotten me. I’d say it’s time for a change.”

  All the way to Kim’s house, she tried to talk him into having a more casual party. “Your friends don’t care if you’re not fancy, Brian. Don’t stop being yourself.” She narrowed her eyes as she remembered his comment about his complicated feelings for the girl. “Are you trying to impress someone?”

  “No,” he snapped. He stared straight ahead, not even casting a glance her way when he came to a stop and put his car in park. “You can’t change my mind.”

  Kim grunted. “So you’re saying I have to dress up?”

  “Yes.”

  “That’s just plain silly.”

  Brian’s lips twitched, but he didn’t smile.

  “What’s going on, Brian?”

  “I already told you. I’m having a dress-up party. We’re adults now. It’s time we acted like it.”

  Kim couldn’t help but howl with laughter. “Who are you? Where did you put Brian?”

  He turned to face Kim. “Do me a favor, Kim, and stop asking questions. Just come to my get-together in something nice. You’ll understand later.”

  The seriousness of his expression let her know it was time to quit arguing. He wasn’t playing games. This whole dress-up party thing was for real—and it was important to him. But why?

  “Will your boss be there?” she asked.

  “Uh-uh-uh. No questions, remember?” He wiggled his index finger in the air. “Now go on inside. I have stuff to do to get ready for work tomorrow.”

  Kim nodded and opened the door before something dawned on her. “Wait a minute. I was the one who had stuff to do. You wanted to stay later.”

  “You reminded me of laundry.”

  She laughed. “Okay, Brian. I’ll leave you alone about this party thing. If you need help with it, just let me know.”

  “What would you know about a fancy party?” he teased.

  “About as much as you.” She winked and grinned as she shut the car door.

  Once she got to her front porch and unlocked the door, she turned and waved. Then she went inside. Yes, it was definitely time to introduce Brian to some new people. Since he was ready to move on, and she couldn’t have him, perhaps she could find someone to make him happy. That thought made her stomach hurt, but she was so confused, she couldn’t think of another solution.

  First, she called Carrie and told her the plan. “Good idea,” Carrie said. “But who do you know that Brian doesn’t?”

  Kim tapped her pencil on the table and thought. “I have a few customers he might hit it off with.”

  “Are they Christians?” Carrie asked.

  “One is for sure, but the other two I’ll have to ask.”

  “So, smarty-pants, how do you plan to execute this scheme?”

  “That’s why I called you,” Kim replied. “I figured you could help me out with this.”

  “What makes you think I’d want to be involved in something so underhanded?”

  Kim pretend gasped. “Underhanded? Moi? No, I’d never resort to underhandedness. All I want to do is help Brian like he helped me.”

  Carrie chuckled. “Since you put it that way, I’ll look around and see if I can think of someone good, too.”

  “Perfect. Brian will probably be okay with one or two introductions, but we can’t force too many on him too quickly.”

  “I agree,” Carrie said.

  “We’ll each make a list and get together later—that is, when you have time—to put them in order of how we think they’d get along.”

  “No problem, I understand. I’d like to hang out with you and plan Brian’s future, but let’s wait until after this little party of his.”

  Kim chuckled. “I don’t know if that can wait. Oh, speaking of the party, do you have any idea what’s going on with him? He told me I have to dress up.”

  “Yeah, I know,” Carrie agreed. “It’s weird, isn’t it?”

  “Even worse, he told me he’s not serving chips and dip. It’s. . .” Kim cleared her throat and deepened her voice in a hoity-toity tone. “It’s a party where people dress up and eat fancy food.”

  Carrie giggled. “Did he actually say that?”

  “Yes. Something is definitely going on.”

  “I’m sure.”

  “You don’t know something I don’t know, do you?” Kim asked. “I mean, has anyone from church mentioned anything about this party. . .besides Brian?”

  “Um. . .” Carrie coughed. “Look, Kim, I really need to run.”

  “Wait—”

  “See ya.” Click!

  Kim held out the phone and stared at it before placing it in the cradle. One minute Carrie was with her, and the next minute she was back to acting just as strange as Brian.

  ❧

  Kim worked on involving Jasmine in her plan to find someone suitable for Brian. At first, Jasmine balked.

  “I don’t think this is such a good idea, Kim,” Jasmine said. “If you take a step back, you might see that he holds every woman up to you, and there’s no way anyone can withstand that.”

  “Don’t be silly,” Kim said. “He’s just lonely and floundering after what Leila did.”

  “Well, if you want my opinion—even if you don’t want my opinion, Leila did him a huge favor. He wasn’t in love with her.”

  “Oh, I’m sure he loved her,” Kim argued as she thought about his confession. “But you’re right. She did him a favor.” She didn’t mention how he’d found someone else to love—the complicated relationship with the woman he wouldn’t even discuss with her.

  “There’s a difference between loving someone and being in love.” Jasmine nodded toward the door. “We can resume this discussion after work.”

  Not only did they resume their discussion after work, but they talked about it every morning and afternoon, until finally, Jasmine relented. “Okay, if you’re going to be that stubborn about it, I’ll keep an eye open for a nice girl for Brian. Just remember it was your idea.”

  Kim smiled. “I’ll take credit for it when he finally meets the woman of his dreams.”

  Jasmine shook her head. “That’s the problem, Kim. He already has.”

  Ten

  “You what?” Brian couldn’t keep his voice down. Had Kimberly lost her mind?

  “Calm down, Brian.”

  �
�How can I calm down with you trying to play matchmaker?”

  He heard her quick intake of breath over the phone line, letting him know she was startled by his reaction. “I’m not being a matchmaker. I just want you to meet this girl. She’s very nice.”

  Brian forced himself to lower his tone. “I’m sure she’s a very nice girl. Probably the nicest in all of Charleston.”

  “Just do me a favor and meet her. I’m not asking you to marry her.”

  “No, but that’s probably next on your list of things to do.”

  “Look, all we’ll do is get together for pizza or something—”

  “What, you, this girl, and me?”

  “I was thinking the singles group from church.”

  Brian snickered then dropped his voice to a growl. “So you want to involve everyone we know? That’s not gonna happen.”

  “How about lunch sometime? That way, you’ll have a set amount of time and a good excuse to leave.”

  “Just the three of us?”

  “Yep. You, Michelle, and me.”

  “Fine. We’ll get together for lunch.” He figured he might as well give in, or she’d bug him until he did.

  “How about Thursday, eleven thirty, at Blossom’s?”

  Brian laughed. “You little schemer. You had this whole thing set up, with every last detail already planned, didn’t you?”

  “Well. . .” Kim cleared her throat. “You’ll really like her, Brian.”

  “So you said. Okay, but if this is as big of a disaster as I think it might be, you have to promise never to do this kind of thing again.”

  Silence fell between them.

  “Kim, did you hear what I just said?”

  “I’m thinking.”

  “Promise you won’t try to fix me up after I meet Michelle.”

  “Oh, Brian, I can’t make that kind of promise.”

  “That’s what I thought.” He decided to change the subject. “So have you thought about what to wear to my party?”

  “Your fancy-schmancy, hoity-toity party where everyone has to dress up and eat pretentious food?”

  “That’s the one.”

  “I bought a black dress I didn’t need when David’s mother and I went shopping, so I’ll probably wear that, just to get my money’s worth.”

  “Excellent,” Brian said.

  “I don’t know why you sound so down about it when you’re the one who came up with this harebrained idea to be something you’re not.”

  “I know,” he said. “It was probably a huge mistake.”

  “So now you’re going for drama? Brian, you’re such a goofball. Anyway, we’ll see you on Thursday at Blossom’s. Why don’t you wear that light blue dress shirt instead of a stark white one?”

  “Okay, I’ll wear whatever you want me to,” Brian agreed. “I’ve already learned there’s no point in arguing with you.”

  “Smart boy.”

  After they got off the phone, Brian hung his head and closed his eyes. Lord, get me through lunch on Thursday and the party for David, and keep me from making a fool of myself either time.

  “Hey, are you okay?”

  Brian opened his eyes just as Jack sat down in the chair across from his desk. “You have great timing.”

  Jack made a face. “Seems like there’s never a good time for you anymore. What’s going on now?”

  “Kim’s trying to fix me up with some girl.”

  “And you’re complaining?” Jack leaned back in the chair, folded his arms, and crossed his legs. “Kim knows you well enough to know what you like.” He tilted his head and squinted. “Maybe that’s what you need.”

  “Nah, I don’t think so. Getting fixed up is not my thing.”

  “According to the experts, it’s the best way to meet people. They’ve been prescreened by your friends.”

  “I don’t need Kimberly Shaw prescreening my dates.”

  Jack chuckled softly but stopped when Brian glared at him. After a couple of seconds, Jack stood. “If I were you, I wouldn’t turn down any opportunity to meet people. You never know what might come of it.” He took a couple of steps toward the door, turned to face Brian, and shook his head. “On second thought, maybe you’re better off not meeting people.”

  “Why do you say that?” Brian asked.

  “You might find someone you like, and then you’d have to risk meeting the real Ms. Right.”

  Brian lifted his hands and looked up at the ceiling. “It’s a conspiracy, I tell ya.”

  “Yeah, a conspiracy to get our friend back to the living.”

  “Okay,” Brian said as he escorted Jack to the door. “Point taken. Now I gotta get back to work.”

  ❧

  Michelle shifted in her seat. “Are you sure he agreed to do this?”

  “Positive,” Kim said, trying to sound more sure of the situation than she really was. When she’d first planned the meeting, it seemed like the right thing to do, but now she wasn’t so sure. Deep down, she was conflicted over her own feelings for Brian.

  “What if he doesn’t like me?”

  Kim turned to face her client of two years. “What’s not to like, Michelle? You’re very sweet, you’re pretty, you’re smart, and you love the Lord.”

  Michelle tilted her head and glanced down at the table before looking back up with a shy smile. “Thank you for saying such nice things, but you know as well as I do that there’s more to people liking each other than all that.”

  “Maybe so, but it’s a good start.” Kim spotted Brian as he walked in the door, so she lifted her hand and waved. “Over here, Brian!”

  Michelle cast a glance over her shoulder then turned back to face Kim. “He’s cute,” she whispered.

  “Told you.” Kim smiled at Michelle as she waved him over. “Brian, I’d like for you to meet one of my favorite clients, Michelle.”

  Brian extended his hand and tipped his head forward. “Nice to meet you, Michelle. Kim has said some very nice things about you.”

  “Aren’t you gonna sit down?” Kim asked, pointing to the chair.

  Brian grinned at Michelle then turned to Kim with a teasing glance. “I need to talk to one of my buddies I haven’t seen in a while. Do you mind ordering for me?”

  “Of course not.” Kim said. “Want the usual?”

  As soon as he left the table, Kim turned back to Michelle. “Well, what do you think now?”

  “He’s very nice.” Michelle rested her elbow on the table then propped her chin on her hand.

  “But?” Kim sensed her friend’s reservation.

  “I saw the way he looked at you.” Michelle frowned. “Are you sure there’s nothing going on between the two of you?”

  “Oh, come on, Michelle. You know I’m engaged. Besides, Brian and I have been very good friends for so long, we’re like brother and sister.”

  “I know, but—”

  “Anything but friendship with Brian would be flat-out creepy.”

  One of Michelle’s friends walked up to the table. After Kim met her, Michelle and the other woman chatted, giving Kim a chance to think. She decided that she needed to look at Brian less and focus on everyone else more.

  Shortly after Michelle’s friend left, a server came to take their order. By the time Brian came back, their drinks had arrived.

  Brian turned his attention to Michelle. “Are you from West Virginia?”

  She nodded. “Yes, but I’m originally from Huntington.”

  “So what brought you to our lovely town of Charleston?”

  “My job.”

  Kim piped up to help out. “She manages a fashion store.”

  Brian lifted his eyebrows and nodded his approval. “Managing a store is hard work. Do you like your job?”

  “I love it,” Michelle replied. “I’ve always enjoyed fashion.”

  An unexpected pang of jealousy shot through Kim as she watched Brian give Michelle a once-over glance. “Yes, I can tell you’re very good with fashion.”

  They ch
atted throughout lunch, until finally, Kim couldn’t handle the situation anymore, so she stood up. “Well, gotta get back to work. I have an appointment in about fifteen minutes. It’s been fun.”

  Brian lifted his hand in a wave. “See ya.” Then he turned to Michelle. “Can you stick around and talk for a few more minutes?”

  Michelle’s face lit up. “Sure!”

  “You two have fun.” Kim paused with a forced grin then turned and left.

  All the way back to the shop, she gave herself a mental lecture. What was going on with her? Not only had she and Brian been friends forever, she had a fiancé, and she’d been the one to introduce Brian to Michelle. Why did she have such an unsettling sensation in her stomach? The better question was why did she have to have these feeling for Brian and complicate things?

  The second she shoved open the door to the shop, Jasmine’s eyebrows shot up. “Whoa, what happened to you? Did one of them not show up? Don’t tell me Brian chickened out.” She contorted her mouth before continuing. “Did Michelle change her mind?”

  “No, they were both there,” Kim replied without stopping on her way to the storage room.

  She heard footsteps and wished she’d been better at hiding her feelings. Talking to Jazzy right now was the last thing she needed.

  Fortunately, the bottles of color were on the far shelf, so she had her back to the entrance. But she could still hear her co-worker.

  “So what happened that has you all in a snit?” Jazzy asked.

  “I’m not in a snit. I just had to rush to get back before my appointment arrived.” She perused the color for a moment. “Have you seen the dark golden blond?”

  “To your right, where it always is.”

  “Oh, okay, thanks.” Kim pulled the bottle off the shelf and loaded her arms with the rest of what she needed.

  “You don’t wanna talk about it yet, huh?”

  Kim turned to face Jasmine. “There’s not much to say. Michelle and I got there first, then Brian showed up. We talked over lunch, and I had to go.” She swallowed hard. “They’re still at Blossom’s.”

  Jasmine turned her head slightly without taking her eyes off Kim. “And this bothers you, doesn’t it? I was afraid of that.”

  She shrugged. “Why should it bother me?”