“Where ya’ll bound tonight?” the woman questioned.
“Topeka,” Jenni answered, looking the menu over.
“Well, you’re almost there,” the waitress offered. “What can I get you?”
The woman took her order, then left for a moment and quickly returned with a pot of steaming coffee. Pouring Jenni a cup, she asked, “Would you like a newspaper to read while you wait for dinner?”
Jenni shook her head. “I’m not too familiar with Abilene.”
“We’ve got the Topeka paper too.”
Jenni perked up. “In that case, I’d love to.” The older woman smiled and quickly retrieved a copy for Jenni.
Jenni smiled at the familiar newspaper as the waitress said, “It’ll be about fifteen minutes before your steak is ready. You want me to wait your salad until it’s ready or do you want it now?”
“I’d rather just wait, thanks,” Jenni said and started to read through the headlines of her hometown paper.
She had covered the first few pages, when a photograph caught her attention. Some of the faces were familiar. Looking closer, Jenni recognized several of the people in the photograph.
Two of the women were friends she’d made through college. While they hadn’t been all that close, they were nonetheless friends. The other face she recognized was Brian’s. He stood with his arm casually draped across the shoulder of a striking, dark-haired woman. The woman was exotic-looking with her dark eyes, and she was smiling up at Brian with a look that made Jenni certain they were more than just acquaintances.
She felt a lump in her throat as she read the caption: GIVENS TO JOIN WASHINGTON LOBBY GROUP. Why hadn’t Brian mentioned this before? Jenni willed herself to read the article which explained Brian’s plan to join the Washington, D.C. group by the first of the new year. At that time he intended to fight for hazardous waste restrictions.
Jenni read on. The woman in the picture with Brian was Sonya Elbertson, the daughter of a well-known socialite in Washington. The paper implied that Sonya and Brian were quite an item. Glancing at the top of the page, Jenni noted that the paper held yesterday’s date. What did it mean? Brian had been in Estes for the last few weeks.
When the food arrived, Jenni ate quickly. She left the waitress a generous tip, paid for her meal, and with the newspaper picture planted firmly in her mind, she headed for Topeka.
Darkness had fallen and her watch read eight-thirty when Jenni finally pulled into the familiar driveway of her parents’ Victorian home. For a moment after turning off the engine, Jenni just sat back and took it all in.
The lights were on in the front room as well as in Julie’s room upstairs. She tried to imagine that her parents were sitting in the living room enjoying a quiet evening, but Jenni knew the truth.
Most likely her parents weren’t even home yet. They were probably at one public appearance or another. Things were always hectic in the last few days before an election, and now with the election just days away, Jenni knew her father would be a hard man to catch up with.
Finally, Jenni found the energy to get out of the car and climb the steps of her parents’ house. Funny how it no longer seemed to be her house too.
❧
Jenni had been right about her parents’ absence. Not until the night before the election did Jenni finally get a chance to talk to her mother and father alone.
“It’s good to have you here,” Keith Campbell told his older daughter. He good-naturedly teased her about moving off to the mountains and then questioned her about her plans.
“I’m not sure what I’m going to do,” she began honestly. “That was one of the reasons I came home early. I have a real dilemma and I need your help.”
“What’s the problem, honey?” Jenni’s mom put a protective arm around her daughter’s shoulder.
“Well, it would seem that two different, very different, men have asked me to marry them.” Jenni waited until the shocked expressions on her parents’ faces faded into curiosity.
“Go on,” Keith motioned his daughter. “Who are these men?”
“One is Brian Givens. The other is the writer I told you about, Dan James.” Jenni offered the information, knowing that her parents wouldn’t be pleased to hear Brian’s name on the roll.
“Brian asked you to marry him again?” Ann Campbell asked warily.
“Yes. He told me that he’d become a Christian and that it was all because of what I’d told him, and how I’d lived, that caused him to give his life to Christ,” Jenni explained.
“Brian?” Keith questioned, looking first at Jenni and then to his wife. “A Christian? Are you sure he actually said he’d become a Christian, not that he just understood your beliefs as a Christian?”
“No,” Jenni confirmed. “He told me that he’d accepted Jesus as his Savior.”
Keith Campbell looked troubled. “I don’t want to judge him falsely, Jennifer, but his actions don’t exactly bespeak that of a Christian man.”
“Well, I know what you mean,” Jennifer began. “He was rather obnoxious with me a couple of times, but he reminded me that it’s hard to change overnight. I guess I wanted to give him the benefit of the doubt.”
“That’s admirable, but perhaps not very realistic in this case,” Keith said with a seriousness to his voice that alarmed Jenni.
“What is it, Daddy? What do you know?”
“Only rumors at this point, although there is an investigation going on. It is in the utmost of confidence that I share any of this with you. It’s believed that Brian paid for his law credentials, and furthermore, that this environmental company he’s going to work for is actually responsible for illegal toxic waste dumping.” Keith spoke in a hushed tone. Although they were in the privacy of the family den, he knew that to divulge such secret information was seldom wise.
“So you don’t believe that Brian has accepted Christ?”
“No, I don’t,” Keith admitted. “God forgive me if I’m bearing him undue prejudice, but Givens has a great deal to gain by having you for his wife.”
“Such as?” Jenni questioned.
“Such as I’m the one heading the investigation into his actions. If you were to marry him, Brian would naturally assume that you would get me to call off the investigation o- or at least find in his favor.”
Jenni looked stunned. “Is he in all that much trouble? So much that he’d come to Colorado to seek me out and lie to me?”
“He stands to lose everything he’s worked for,” Keith answered simply. “Desperation in men breeds desperate actions. I believe Brian Givens would stop at nothing to see his dream accomplished.”
Suddenly, Jennifer remembered the woman in the picture. “Who is Sonya Elbertson?”
Anne Campbell exchanged a worried look with her husband. “She has been Brian’s constant companion. After he broke the engagement with you and you went to Colorado, it was only a matter of a day or two before Sonya appeared on his arm.”
“I see,” Jenni said softly. Unfortunately, she was beginning to see more than she wanted – and the picture wasn’t very nice.
NINETEEN
Keith Campbell had always chosen to hold a small party at his house on election night, and this year was no exception. Jenni readied herself for the evening’s events, feeling confident her father would again secure his seat in the House.
The party would be rather informal, though Jenni knew everyone would look their best. She chose an ecru wool sweater with drop-shoulders and dainty seedstitching. To go with this Jenni had picked out a multi-gored, rayon skirt of the same color.
She carefully pinned her hair up and pulled a few wisps around her face to take away any hint of severity. Looking in the mirror, Jenni was pleased with her appearance and knew that her parents would be too. She slipped on a pair of matching hose and heels before descending to the party downstairs.
Jenni was amazed at the number of people already milling about her home. She had purposefully joined the party late, in order to avoid B
rian for as long as possible. She knew that he had wrangled an invitation from her father, probably hoping to get in his good graces.
But even though she already knew he’d be there, she still wasn’t prepared for actually meeting with him. “Jennifer,” he called from somewhere behind her, and Jenni wished most desperately that she could just continue walking away.
Instead she turned to greet him. “Hello, Brian,” she said trying not to sound as cold as she felt.
Brian approached her with an appraising smile. “You look exquisite. I’m a very lucky man to have you by my side tonight.”
Jenni frowned. “I’m not here to be at your side tonight. I’m here for my father.”
“Of course,” Brian cooed, “but you are going to announce our engagement, aren’t you?”
Jenni jerked away. “Certainly not. I don’t plan to make announcements of any sort. This is Daddy’s night and I won’t stand in his limelight.” She moved to walk away, but found Brian quickly in tow.
“Look,” he began. “I didn’t mean to upset you. I just assumed that since you’d left Estes in such a hurry, that it meant you’d made up your mind.”
Jenni whirled around to face him. “I have, but my decision wasn’t to marry you. In fact, I don’t even know why you’re here. You don’t like my father’s politics.”
Brian glanced around the room. Several people were staring at the couple. Hoping to avoid further stares, Brian pulled Jenni down the hallway to one of the off-limit sections of the house.
“Brian, let go of me,” Jenni insisted when Brian finally stopped.
“Not until you listen to me. You aren’t making any sense. I have to help you see that things will only get harder for your family if you don’t marry me.”
“Are you threatening my family’s welfare?” Jenni asked indignantly.
“Not me, Jen. But I can protect them from things and people. You just don’t understand how it works in politics.” Brian’s voice was soft. He had backed her up against the hallway wall, until Jenni felt her head make contact with one of the portraits hanging there.
“I’ve lived in politics all my life, Brian. It’s you who’s standing on the outside looking in. I know all about dirty schemes and mud slinging. I’m not the simpleton you wish I were.”
“I know you’re a smart cookie,” Brian said, planting his hands firmly on the wall on each side of her head.
“Back off, Brian,” she said, trying to sound firm. “You don’t want this kind of scene here, tonight.” The look in Brian’s eyes made it clear that she’d struck a nerve. “It wouldn’t help your career at all to be thrown out of our house, but so help me that’s what’ll happen.”
Brian shrugged his shoulders and pulled away. “I’m only trying to remind you of what we have going together.”
“We have nothing, Brian. We have nothing now and we had nothing in the past.”
“But we could, if you’d only let us. I want to be the kind of man that you need. I want to do the right things, but – Jenni, I need you, and I love you,” he whispered.
“I don’t want to talk about this now,” Jenni said and walked quickly back to the party.
The rest of the evening was spoiled for her. All Jenni could think about were the things her parents had told her about Brian – and then in contrast, Brian’s flowery declaration of love.
Jenni found herself smiling for the party but crying out to God on the inside. Where is the truth, Lord?
As the evening progressed, Jenni worked harder and harder to avoid Brian. She was trying desperately to get caught up in the happy mood of her parents, when she noted a late arriving guest standing by the front doorway. It was Sonya Elbertson.
Jenni was shocked to see her, but that shock was nothing compared to the display Sonya made when she took off her full-length mink coat. Beneath the coat Sonya wore a daringly risqué black mini-dress that bore a striking resemblance to a slip. Her make-up was heavy and her jewelry glittered, giving her the type of appearance that demanded attention.
Jenni moved back into the crowd of people as Sonya was ushered into the house and greeted by Keith and Anne Campbell. Funny that her parents had said nothing about inviting Sonya to the party. Jenni found herself keeping a wary eye on Sonya and Brian throughout the evening, watching and waiting for something to happen.
At ten o’clock, Keith was declared a winner by the news media, and the television cameras were already in place to interview him. Usually Jenni joined her parents and sister on the podium, but not tonight. She ducked out down the off-limits hallway and through a back entrance to the alcove just off the kitchen.
Coming through the darkened doorway, Jenni was surprised to hear voices. No one was supposed to be in this part of the house, and Jenni was nearly ready to snap on the lights when she recognized Brian’s voice.
“Oh, Sonya,” he murmured, his voice thick with passion. “I’ve missed you so much.”
“How much longer will you have to play at this charade?” Sonya questioned in a sultry, breathless voice. “Um, I love it when you do that.”
Jenni felt her cheeks burn in embarrassment. She wanted to back out the doorway before they discovered her presence, but something seemed to hold her fast to the spot.
“Why don’t we blow this thing and go to your motel room?” Brian whispered.
“What about your little prudish wife-to-be?” Sonya fairly purred. “Won’t she be bothered by your absence?”
“Well, to tell you the truth, Jennifer Campbell may prove to be difficult. I’m beginning to wonder if I’m going about this the wrong way.”
“Nonsense. You know what Father told you. Marry her and use it to our advantage. We’ll only need it to be that way for a year, maybe two.”
Jenni felt tears flow down her cheeks. She wasn’t mourning the loss of love between herself and Brian, she realized, but the loss of innocence. She’d been so sheltered all her life, even in the midst of the political scene that held her family captive. Until now, she had never known that people could be as completely devoid of morals or values as she now saw that Brian Givens was.
“But, Sonya,” Brian began. “I don’t know if I can go through with it. I don’t play this Christian thing very well, and I haven’t the foggiest idea of how to keep it up after we’re married. Oh, I know nothing will change between you and me but –”
“Of course it won’t change,” Sonya interrupted. “I’ll always love you and you know very well I don’t mind playing second fiddle while you secure our future.”
“You’ll never play second fiddle to anyone,” Brian said passionately. Jenni could tell that Brian and Sonya were kissing. “I’ll get this thing resolved,” Brian said after a moment. “I’ll marry Keith Campbell’s daughter, then I’ll fix him once and for all.”
“Good,” Sonya whispered. “Now about that motel room. . .”
Jenni ducked out of the alcove and ran for the haven of her bedroom. She didn’t even bother to turn on the lights as she entered the room and slammed the door behind her. She was as angry and hurt as she’d been when Brian had ended their engagement.
“No,” she said aloud. “I’m even madder than that.”
She paced back and forth in her room for a moment, letting her tears flow freely. How could she have been so foolish? She wished desperately that she could talk to someone, but everyone was busy with the election. The one person she wanted to talk to, to hold right that minute, was over six hundred miles away.
“I’ll call him,” she announced to the darkened room. She turned on the small desk lamp and dialed the number for O’Reilly’s. Just hearing the phone ringing on the other end gave a boost to her spirits, as though already she were being connected to Dan in a way.
“O’Reilly’s, this is Kelly. How can I help you?”
“You can get Dan James on the phone right away,” Jenni said in an unsteady voice.
“Jenni? Is that you?”
“Yes, it’s me.” Her voice cracked slightly.
“What’s wrong? Did your father lose the election?” Kelly asked sympathetically.
“Oh, no, nothing like that. It’s this whole mess with Brian. I just need to talk to Dan,” Jenni replied in a defeated voice and added, “Would you go get him for me?”
“I can’t,” Kelly answered hesitantly. “He checked out yesterday and didn’t leave a forwarding address.”
“Did he say anything? Anything at all?” Jenni felt a lump in her throat. Knowing she was very near to new tears, she bit hard on her lip.
“No. The fact is, I wasn’t here when he checked out. He left the key, a bonus check for the staff, and nothing else,” Kelly replied. “I don’t know what to say, Jenni. I figured you knew all about it.”
“No,” Jenni said shaking her head. “I didn’t.” She felt the tears flow down her cheeks. “Look, Kelly, I don’t feel like talking anymore. I need to pray, and just be alone. I hope you understand.”
“Of course I understand. When will you be coming back?”
“It’s too late to leave tonight. I guess I’ll start back tomorrow. I have to find Dan.”
After hanging up the phone, Jenni changed into her night clothes and sat down to write Brian a letter. For several moments she just looked at the piece of paper before her. What should she say? Should she tell him that she’d overheard the conversation? But what if that jeopardized her father’s investigation?
“Dear Brian,” she spoke the words out loud as she wrote them. “I can’t marry you because I do not love you. I love Dan, and he has asked me to be his wife. I intend to marry him as soon as possible and would appreciate having no further relationship with you. I’m sorry if you think this is cold and calculated, but that is the way you seem to understand things best. Jennifer.”
Having that task behind her, Jennifer knelt beside her bed and whispered a prayer. “Heavenly Father, I place myself completely in Your hands. Thank You for revealing Brian’s true nature to me before I made a big mistake. Thank You for sending Dan my way and please help me to find him. Give me safety on my journey back to Colorado and help my parents to understand why I have to leave. I don’t want to hurt them. Amen.”
If Given a Choice Page 14