Plain City Bridesmaids

by Dianne Christner

  As they reached Matt’s pickup, he replied, “You told me that day that if Lil didn’t want you bothering her, you’d back off. Well she doesn’t. So are you going to keep your word now?”

  “I can give you my word that I’m not giving up until I win back your friendship. And your family’s trust. I’m hoping that Lil will at least hear me out, too. I made a mistake. Can you forgive me? Give me another chance?”

  “Look, I know it takes guts to ask that. I can forgive you. But what are you going to do about this mistake? Are you going to destroy that video? You said you wanted to make things right.”

  “Yes. I will. I was going to do that last week. I called Marshall to tell him, to face the music even if it meant losing my tuition and dropping out of school. But when I called, he was in the hospital. He was scared about some tests he’s undergoing. He asked me to pray for him. It didn’t seem the right time to approach the subject. But I’m going to tell him. I just need time.”

  “I guess time will tell then. I hope it all works out for you.” Matt turned and hopped up in his cab, obviously still angry even though he’d said he forgave Fletch.

  Fletch stepped back and watched Matt drive away.

  Sunday afternoon, Fletch grew weary of waiting for time to tell. Since Lil wasn’t answering any of his phone calls, he decided to try Ashley’s advice. He pulled the yellow sticky note off the screen of his laptop and headed for the house that Lil had once pointed out as Megan’s.

  Walking up the steps to Megan’s front porch, he patted his shirt pocket to make sure he still had his admission ticket. He rang the doorbell, hoping his plan would work. Thankfully, Megan came to the door, leaving it ajar behind her.

  “Fletch?” Uncertainty clouded her face. “Hi.”

  “Hi, Megan. I brought you something.” He pulled the yellow sticky note from his pocket and handed it to her. “It’s another interview with Char Air.”

  “No kidding? That’s wonderful. I don’t know how to … wow.” Her tone of voice descended, losing its excitement. “I don’t know. This makes me feel like I’m in cahoots with the enemy.”

  “I hoped to talk to you about that. Lil’s not taking any of my phone calls.”

  “I’m afraid I can’t accept this.” She tried to give him back the yellow note.

  He quickly stuffed his hands in to his jeans pockets. “Please, keep it.”

  Her face reddened. “I can’t. Not after what you did.”

  “It’s true I made a mistake taking that film at the Landis farm.”

  He saw her face softening.

  “It was unethical. But it was a personal request from the man who financed my schooling. He also donated lots of money to the mission field, supplied a lot of personal needs over the years for me and my parents. And it was the first thing he’d ever asked me to do for him. Just take some pictures of some sick animals.”

  Megan’s face contorted. “Why?”

  “He’s starting a shelter for abused farm animals. It was for a movie they would show at fund-raisers. He promised nobody would know whose farm was filmed, that I could see the film when it was finished. Honestly, it had nothing to do with Lil. The Landis farm is the only farm where I could take the pictures, because it’s the only one I go to without Vic.” He toed the porch flooring with his red sneaker. “If I hadn’t got caught, nobody would have gotten hurt.”

  Megan closed the front door behind her and turned back to him with an arched brow. “Do you read the Bible?”

  “Of course.”

  “Does this sound familiar? ‘Your deeds will be brought to light.’ ”

  Fletch cringed under her rebuff but knew she was right. “Yes, but it was a situation where no matter what I did, somebody could get hurt. I did what I thought was best at the time.”

  She twisted a shank of blond hair and said sympathetically, “We all make mistakes.”

  “You think Lil will forgive me?”

  “I doubt it.”

  Fletch cringed.

  “She’s really upset. Feels betrayed. She thinks you used her. And you were the first guy she really liked.”

  He dipped his head. “Her family hates me now, too.” He lifted his gaze to meet Megan’s again. “But I’m not giving up on her. I can’t. I don’t want to give up on Matt either, but he’s stubborn.”

  “This is all very interesting Fletch, but …” She shook her head.

  Out on the road, a car stirred up dust and a flock of blackbirds from a neighboring field. He nervously jangled the coins in his pocket. “Will you help me if I try to win her back?”

  Megan sighed. “I’m not going to betray Lil. Why should we trust you?”

  He didn’t miss the we, which meant she wanted to trust him. “Because that’s the only way to fix this mess. And because all I was trying to do was repay a debt.”

  She leaned her shoulder against a porch post, crossing her arms and studying him. “Do you have a plan?”

  “My plan is to talk to Lil.”

  “And you want me to convince her to meet with you or pick up the phone or what?”

  “You could tell her about the interview? Ask her to give me just a few minutes on the phone. Think she’d help you out?”

  Megan straightened, her face paling with anger. “No! Lil doesn’t need somebody who’s scheming and using other people again. You’re disgusting me right now, Fletch. I won’t be a party to anything like this. I think Lil was right about you.”

  She reached out, and for an instant, Fletch thought she was going to strike him, but instead she slapped the sticky note on his chest. “I don’t want your interview.” She wheeled and opened the door.

  “Wait! Please!”

  She paused, turned, and looked at him as if he was lower than dirt.

  “It was a stupid idea.” He took the note off his shirt and held it out toward her. “Please keep this. No matter what. I want you to get that job.”

  Megan crossed her arms. “Under the circumstances, I can’t go on that interview.”

  He licked his lips. He hadn’t expected it to go this poorly. Megan was supposed to be the peacemaker. “Look, I have an idea.”

  She rolled her gaze toward the porch ceiling impatiently, and he knew that any second she was going to leave him standing alone on the stoop.

  “Come to the farm shelter. Meet the people and see what it’s all about. I need an advocate, Megan. Please?”

  Her hands flew up in a gesture of refusal. “Absolutely not. If Lil finds out—”

  He touched her arm, and it stilled.

  “She told me how she tried to help her friend Katy. If it was you, Lil would try to help. I thought you were a peacemaker.”

  Gently, Megan pulled her arm away. “And that backfired on her.”

  His eyes pleaded. “At first. But Katy did end up with Jake.”

  Megan pinched her eyes closed. Her hand went to her temple. Her voice was barely audible. “I want Lil to be happy. Tell me more about your shelter.”

  “It’s not my shelter. It’s not my cause. See that’s the whole point. But it’s not really a bad cause either.”

  “Fletch.” Her tone warned him she was losing patience.

  “Okay. Marshall bought a farm and donated it to be used as a rescue farm. They operate on donations, volunteers, and grants. They need donations to operate. The film is to garner sympathy at fund-raisers.”

  “You work there?”

  “Vic volunteers our veterinary services.”

  Again there was a moment of silence. “Okay, Fletch. I’ll help you, but I’m going to be honest with Lil about everything.”

  “You won’t regret it. I’ll call you the next time I’m going over. Probably tomorrow afternoon.” Fletch stuck the yellow sticky note on the nearest post and sprang off the porch, afraid if he lingered she’d change her mind. “Thanks!”

  CHAPTER 19

  Lil turned Jezebel into Michelle’s lane and hopped out of the car while it was still sputtering.

  She
opened her sister’s screen door and yelled, “Hello! Michelle?”

  “In the kitchen. Come in.”

  The moment Lil stepped into the sunny room, little Tammy clamped her by the leg. Without missing a beat, Lil knelt down and scooped the girl up, cuddling her as she went. Michelle sat at a rectangular farm table, snapping green beans with her casted leg stretched out. “Next year, I had planned to do a vegetable stand. But now that, you know …” She glanced at Tammy, “I guess that will have to wait.”

  Lil heard the wistful note in her sister’s voice and knew that when Michelle had the baby, she would be far too busy for a vegetable stand. “I imagine by next summer, Tate will be a good helper.”

  “Yes, she will. Tammy, go tell your sisters that auntie is here.”

  Lil let her niece down. “Are you feeling morning sickness?”

  “No, I never have.”

  “That’s good news. I have news, too. I got the job! Got the job!” Lil did a little garbanzo shoulder-shimmy dance around the table.

  Laughing at her antics, Michelle reached out and snatched a handful of Lil’s skirt.

  Lil took Michelle’s hand and slipped into the chair next to her.

  Michelle squeezed her hand. “I’m so glad for you, sis. Glad everything’s turning out good.” Then sadness touched her eyes. “I mean with Mom and the new job.”

  Lil determined not to allow Fletch’s betrayal to steal her joy. “Me, too. But I need to get to work here. I’ll get my apron while we talk.”

  On the way to the pantry, she gave Tate a hug and spun her in the air until she squealed. When she set her down, Tammy jumped up and down. “I want to show you what Mommy did with her gassed on!”

  Both girls scampered out of the room. Lil understood they were talking about Michelle’s cast.

  “Don’t wake your sister,” Michelle warned. “They want to show you the doll clothes I made.”

  With a chuckle, Lil returned to the table.

  “When do you start?”

  Lil began snapping beans. “Tomorrow.”

  “Does Mom know you had the interview?”

  “Yes. At first she was angry.” Lil remembered how her mom had comforted her after Fletch’s betrayal. “Now I think she understands. But Dad is another story. He thinks it’s foolish for me to work outside the home. He said that once the farm got on its feet again, he’d pay me to help around there, like he does the boys. And he’s dead set against the doddy house and can’t understand why I want to move in with Megan. Claims I should have ‘that folly’ out of my system. Honestly, he can be so—”

  “Pigheaded,” they said in unison. It was an ongoing joke Mom had started because he always had hogs on the brain and he was stubborn, too.

  “He’s not going to budge.”

  “Will you go against his wishes?”

  Lil’s nieces bounded into the room, holding out their dolls and new doll clothes. They wore miniature outfits that matched the girls’ own look-alike Conservative-style clothing. Lil oohed and aahed, and then the youngsters skipped off to the quilt in the corner of the room, which was designated as a play area.

  “So will you go against Dad’s wishes?” Michelle repeated.

  “Yes,” Lil nodded. “I don’t want it to be that way. But I don’t belong on the farm. I never have…. I’ve been praying about things. I’m asking for God’s help. I hope God will work things out between me and Dad. Funny, I used to think of Dad mainly as an authority figure. But lately I see him as a person.” Her glimpses of his pain had changed her attitude toward him.

  “That’s a strange thing to say.”

  “The only thing is—” Lil stopped, choked up.

  “What?”

  “I don’t want Mom and Dad to get in a fight over it. I don’t think they get along that well behind closed doors. It would have been better for me if I’d never moved back home.”

  Michelle nodded. “This gives me a better understanding of how to pray. I’m so thankful for you. For the way you’ve helped Mom. For your help here. You can’t imagine how hard it is for me to wear this cast.”

  Lil smiled. “You mean your gassed?”

  Megan followed Fletch into the two-story farmhouse, pausing inside the front door. He motioned her to a side room that had been fixed into an office, where he introduced a woman named Ashley. Megan vaguely remembered his mentioning her, and she wondered how this woman played into everything.

  Ashley jumped to her feet and offered Megan a handshake. In one sweep, Megan saw that Ashley was beautiful in typical outsider style, dressed in snug jeans and a bright tank top and sporting a stylish bob.

  “Have a seat,” Ashley offered. She flashed Fletch a dazzling, teeth-brightened smile. “Why don’t you leave us alone for a few minutes?” She waved her manicured hand. “I’ll bring Megan out to the barn when we’re done chatting.”

  Fletch hesitated.

  “It’s okay,” Megan urged, her curiosity mounting over Ashley. Once Fletch had gone, she looked at the other woman expectantly. “I don’t really know what I’m doing here.”

  “You came because you have a kind heart. I see it in your eyes.”

  “That’s a nice thing to say. What is your job?”

  “I get donations from suppliers and companies that help us stay afloat. I guess I’m kind of a receptionist, too. There aren’t that many volunteers yet, so I have to juggle quite a few jobs right now. Marcus, Marshall’s son, is the person who heads everything up. Fletch comes a couple of times a week to give care to the animals. Most need veterinary care when they arrive. I can answer any questions you have about the shelter, but it’s Fletch I wanted to talk to you about. You know, girl to girl.”

  Megan felt her face heat. “You know I’m not his girlfriend, right?”

  “I know about Lil and the interview with Char Air.”

  Following Ashley’s lead, Megan decided to be forthright and set the other woman straight. “I’m not going on that interview. But I’m willing to hear more about Fletch, for Lil’s sake. Right now she despises him.”

  “Most of what I know comes from Marcus. We’re dating.” She sighed. “When we have time.” She waved her hand in a feminine gesture. “Sorry. Off track. Marcus told me that Fletch got tossed around as a kid. He told me about the time that he and his dad flew to Africa to see firsthand what the Landis mission work entailed.”

  Megan was hooked. “Go on.”

  “They hired somebody in a Jeep to take them into the field, to Fletch’s family. It was a shack with limited resources. Out in the boonies. But the natives would come to them from every direction and at every hour of the day. They brought all sorts of needs. Fletch’s mom had medical training, and his dad was resourceful and also taught them about God.”

  Megan could picture it in her mind. “That’s a beautiful story.”

  “There’s more. Fletch’s sister followed his mom around, but Marshall noticed that Fletch seemed rather lost. Marcus was allowed to play with him. When Marcus asked him about his friends, Fletch told Marcus the animals were his friends because they looked at him when he spoke, and they were the only ones that ever listened to him.”

  Megan felt a lump in her throat. “That’s so sad.” She remembered Fletch’s pleading expression when he told her on Sunday that he needed to talk to Lil. To make her listen. “And you think that’s why he went to veterinary school?”

  “Marcus told me that Marshall felt sorry for Fletch. That Marshall knew Fletch’s dad was a powerful man and expected his son to be the same way. But Fletch is different, real tenderhearted. Marshall saw that Frank was too hard on his son, being gentler with the daughter.” Ashley leaned close as if to share a confidence. “Now from what I hear, Marshall is a bit overbearing sometimes, too. But Marcus loves him in spite of it.” She relaxed again. “Anyway, Marshall loves animals, too. He’s a great philanthropist, and it was only natural that he wanted to help Fletch with his career.”

  “I see.” And Megan did. Fletch had been torn b
etween refusing his longtime mentor or taking advantage of his new friends. She still had questions, but she wanted to save them for Fletch.

  Ashley fiddled with a pencil. “Fletch is a caring person. Perhaps what we did was unethical, but it was to help his friends and a lot of abused animals. I don’t know how some people can be so cruel.”

  Megan could see how his friends had helped him rationalize his actions. “Thank you for sharing.”

  “You’re welcome. Now let’s go to the barn. You’ll fall in love with Cottonball. Everybody does.”

  Megan allowed Ashley to lead her toward the barn, feeling torn about Fletch. She could only imagine how he felt. She didn’t know if she should drag Lil back into Fletch’s world, where he was obviously still finding his way, or tell her to run as fast as she could in the other direction.

  Monday night, Lil had just finished helping her mom with the supper dishes when the doorbell rang. “I’ll get it.” Her heart sped hopefully. She’d just been thinking that if Fletch really cared about her, he’d quit calling and present himself on her doorstep. Taking a deep breath, she opened the door.

  “Megan?” With fleeting disappointment and growing concern, Lil pulled her friend inside. Untying her apron, she drew Megan to the couch. “Everything all right?”

  “Kind of. We need to talk.”

  Megan’s nervous manner worried her. Was she going to back out of the doddy house?

  She knew she would have to wait to find out when Mom stepped into the room. “I thought I heard your voice.”

  “Hi, Mrs. Landis.”

  “Hi, sweetie.” She touched Megan’s shoulder. “Talking about the doddy house plans?”

  “Sorta.”

  Mom confided, “I’m trying to wear Lil’s dad down.”

  Megan looked surprised. “That’s great. Thanks.”

  Mom sat down and made a little small talk, but apparently sensing the girls’ unease, she stood again. “I need to make sure I turned off the stove.”