Megan perked up. “Can I take a ride on Daisy?”
Colt’s heart sunk. This day was not going at all as he expected. He’d wanted to have some alone time with Megan.
“Well of course.” Hadley responded in her don’t-be-silly tone.
Megan looked at Colt for affirmation, her eyebrows raised, and she lowered her lip in a pout. Colt grinned. How could he resist?
He motioned toward the barn, and Hadley grabbed Megan’s hand and guided her away from the house. Colt watched them go. Part of him wanted to follow after them. The other part of him didn’t feel like he’d been invited.
He pushed that thought away. They wouldn’t care if he tagged along. They were his horses and his barn after all.
He got up and headed toward the barn, shaking off his grumpy feelings. Neither Hadley nor Megan knew of his plans to spend time alone with Megan. He was glad the two of them enjoyed spending time together. It was exactly what he wanted in his wife. Someone who would love Hadley as much as he did.
He’d just get on his horse and take a ride alongside them. He reached the barn and opened the door. To his surprise, Hadley and Megan were already mounted.
“Betcha I’ll beat you to the old oak tree,” Hadley hollered.
Megan yelled after her. “Of course you’ll beat me. I’m riding Daisy.” Daisy whinnied, and Megan patted her neck. “I didn’t mean that as an insult, girl.”
Colt started toward her. Maybe he’d just ride along beside Megan a little ways behind Hadley. They’d get the chance to talk on horseback. Before Colt could say anything, Megan waved as she kicked Daisy’s haunches. “See ya later, Colt.”
His easygoing filly took off like she was racing for the world’s most luscious apple. It seemed every female on the farm didn’t want him to have any alone time with Megan. If he didn’t know better, he’d think Megan was avoiding him altogether.
Chapter 23
Anger is an acid that can do more harm to the vessel in which it is stored than to anything on which it is poured.
MARK TWAIN
Megan tied the 137th thick red bow on the back of the white satin-covered fold up chair. Only sixty-three left to go. Not only was her back stiff, but she felt as if her fingers would fall off. Putting fancy silver napkin rings around two hundred napkins earlier that morning hadn’t helped.
Marianna tapped her shoulder. “Megan, the bows look great, but be sure you tie them the same size.” She pointed to a table in the back. “Those look a little smaller than the rest.”
Megan bit the inside of her lip. It took every ounce of strength not to let her sister have it. She’d stayed up until the wee hours of the night tying extra ribbons to the table centerpieces, had gotten up before the rooster to rush over to the reception venue to start decorating, and had been working ever since. She looked at her watch. It was after three, and she still hadn’t eaten lunch.
Marianna continued, “You’ll be able to finish these in an hour, right? We have a nail appointment to get to.”
Megan exhaled a slow breath. It wasn’t possible. She’d worked all morning and hadn’t uttered a single complaint, but it simply wasn’t possible to wrap all those chairs in only an hour. She didn’t want her sister to go Bridezilla on her, but she had to be honest. “Marianna, I just don’t think—”
“I’ll help you finish.” Her mom grabbed several lengths of red ribbon. “Don’t worry, Marianna. The chairs will be ready in time to head over to the nail appointment.”
Marianna’s features pinched into a stressed-to-the-max expression. “But what about the candy bar? Do you have the dishes ready to be filled tomorrow? And the punch bowls? And what about the silverware?”
Megan’s mother placed both hands on Marianna’s shoulders. She pressed a kiss to her cheek. “It’s all ready. Stop stressing.”
Megan watched as her sister closed her eyes and blew out a long breath. She opened them again. “I’m trying to stay calm.”
Their mom’s voice was tender. “You’re doing great.”
Marianna nodded and headed off to make sure the kitchen area was stocked with the menu items for tomorrow.
Megan smiled at her mother. “Thanks.”
“No problem.”
Her mother didn’t say anything else, simply got busy wrapping bows around the backs of chairs. Since her stepfather’s death, Megan had many moments when she wished she and her mom could make amends. She’d even played in her mind with different scenarios of how to broach the subject. Her dad’s death had proven life was too short to stay bitter and angry with one another.
But what should she say? How could Megan approach her mom with the hurt she felt yet still be a witness to her? Christians were supposed to forgive, seven times seventy, as Jesus said. Megan wanted to be a witness, to live, breathe, and walk a life like Christ’s. But she needed to be honest with her mother as well. Their relationship would always be false if she didn’t express her true feelings.
Maybe she should stop rehearsing what to say in her mind and simply speak from the heart. Allow the Holy Spirit to guide her words. “Mom …”
Her mother placed the ribbon she held on the table. “I’ll be right back, Megan. Marianna’s friends have arrived with the cake.”
Megan looked toward the door. Amy and Timmy walked in carrying the wedding cake. Even from a distance, Megan could see that the three-tiered, square, white cake was beautiful. Huge white sugar roses with red tips dotted the first and third tiers. Red ribbon was wrapped around the bottom of each tier.
They disappeared into the kitchen area, and Megan knew they were putting the cake in the refrigerator they’d cleared out to keep the confection fresh. She was thankful Justin had left the decorating party to run a few errands for Marianna. Now that Megan thought of it, maybe her sister sent him off on purpose to avoid any confrontation between him and Timmy.
Megan hadn’t seen the couple since the first day Justin visited church. They hadn’t been back. Marianna told her they’d been visiting her and Kirk’s church. It bothered her they’d stopped going to church, and yet she understood how awkward the situation was. Amy had been a friend to Megan, not as close as she was to Marianna, but it still hurt that she didn’t see Amy at church anymore.
Megan tied another red bow on the back of the chair. She tried not to think of Amy or Sophia or any of the other women who’d been part of Justin’s past. She tried not to think of Justin, even though her mind seemed bent on conjuring him up every second of the day.
The irony was the more she thought of Justin, the more time she spent with him, the less she remembered her high school boyfriend. The night at the charity ball, when Justin kissed her then released her and guided her into the dinner, she’d seen the yearning in his eyes. He’d wanted to kiss her more but not overwhelm her. His actions were in direct opposition from Clint’s all those years ago. They made her want or at least consider the desire for more than a life of singleness. Maybe she could fall in love. Maybe she could put the past behind her.
“Megan.”
She jumped and placed her hand on her chest as she turned to the male voice behind her. “Timmy, you scared the life out of me.”
“Sorry ‘bout that.”
Megan could tell his body was tense, as if he were ready to pummel anyone who went against him. Megan looked at Amy. She’d aged since Megan last saw her. Not in hair color or physical wrinkles or blemishes—she just seemed to carry the weight of something, possibly her marriage, in her eyes.
Megan forced a smile as she hugged Timmy and then Amy. “It’s been awhile since I’ve seen you two.”
“Well, we definitely can’t go back to church with that man there.” Fury raged in Timmy’s voice.
Amy shifted her weight from one foot to the other as she stared at the ground.
Megan felt an urge to defend Justin. Timmy’s anger, though Megan understood it, wasn’t fair. He and Amy divorced because of his indiscretions. Justin and Amy—the very thought of their relationship made
Megan’s stomach turn—still, their evening together wasn’t until after the divorce was final. Sure, Megan understood not wanting to be around your spouse’s past mistakes, but to be so angry and ugly about it when you’d made the same choices didn’t make any sense.
Timmy’s words slipped through gritted teeth. “You know he forced her.”
“What?”
Timmy pointed to Amy. “He forced her.”
Megan looked at Amy. Her face reddened as she placed both hands against her mouth. Megan’s stomach coiled, and she covered it with her hands to keep from retching. Clint’s hands on her arms. His lips pressed hard against her lips. It all came rushing in at rapid speed. She closed her eyes to keep the tears from falling.
“Amy told me about your boyfriend. What he did to you in high school.”
Megan opened her eyes. She looked at Amy. Tears fell down the woman’s cheeks as she placed one hand against her temple.
How would Amy know? Only one possibility. Marianna must have told her. But why? That didn’t sound like her sister. She knew how badly that night hurt her, how it had changed her life.
“We’ve heard you’re his next target,” Timmy continued. “You need to know the truth about him. Who he is.”
Megan looked at Amy. The woman’s whole body shook. Timmy was oblivious to his wife’s pain, and he most certainly didn’t care about hers.
And her sister told her private business to Amy, and Amy told Timmy. How could Marianna do that to her? Justin forced Amy?
He forced her? He was like Clint?
Megan’s head started to spin. A chill washed over her, and her stomach churned. With her hand across her mouth, she raced for the bathroom.
“Don’t let him do it to you, too!” Timmy’s voice yelled across the room.
Embarrassment added itself to her agony as she pushed open the stall and hurled what little bit of breakfast she’d eaten that morning. Her body wouldn’t stop trembling, couldn’t seem to stop. She grabbed a wad of tissue from the toilet roll and wiped her mouth. She opened the stall door and bumped into someone.
“Excuse me.” She looked up and saw her mother. Her heart plummeted.
“I saw what happened.” Her mom’s voice was low, and Megan knew she couldn’t handle any kind of confrontation from her mom. It had been eight years. Eight years. She wanted to be over what Clint did. Wanted to be free. She wanted to love Justin. But he was the same as Clint.
The thought made her head pound, and new tears swelled in her eyes. What kind of warped person continued to fall for evil men? Men who mistreated women for their own selfish designs. She silently begged her mom not to accuse or berate her. At the same time, with what little strength she still had, she lifted her shoulders and pushed out her chin to prepare for her mother’s onslaught of words.
Her mom’s stoic facade melted, and Megan watched as pain etched her mother’s features. She wrapped her arms around Megan and pressed her head against her shoulder. “I’m sorry.”
A dam broke inside Megan’s heart and spirit, and she cried against her mother’s shoulder. She released the pain until there was nothing left in her.
“It’s okay, Megan,” her mother cooed as she raked her fingers through Megan’s hair.
Her mom’s tenderness opened the old wound, and she knew God covered it with medicine, cleaning it out, allowing a place for true healing.
Megan sniffed, and her mom held her tighter. Clint had stolen her purity. Her sister betrayed her trust. Justin was not the man her heart wanted him to be. He was the man her head knew he was.
Her heart was shredded.
Megan followed her sister, Julie, Amber, and her mom into the nail salon. It took every ounce of restraint not to lay into her sister for sharing her past with Amy. She didn’t want to ruin Marianna’s day tomorrow. As her mom told her repeatedly in the bathroom, Marianna loved her and would have shared that information only if she felt it absolutely necessary.
She still didn’t understand how telling Amy was absolutely necessary. And Justin. She knew he had been a scoundrel, but what Timmy said made him criminal. She just couldn’t imagine Justin doing such a horrible thing. She thought of her parents’ disbelief in Clint’s actions. They hadn’t wanted her to date Clint, but they never expected him to hurt her. She hadn’t expected it either. But he had, and her life had never been the same.
“You sit here.”
The Cambodian woman’s directions to sit in the massage chair snapped her from her thoughts. Megan forced herself to smile and nod at the woman as she settled into the chair. She dipped her feet in the almost-too-hot water and pressed her head against the chair.
Marianna released a loud exhale. “I think everything is ready for tomorrow.”
“It looks great. We’ve done a good job, if I do say so myself,” added Julie.
“I don’t care if I never see another roll of red ribbon and tiny bottles of bubbles in my life,” said Amber.
Megan couldn’t help but grin. Amber had spent the entire day tying small red bows around the neck of the bubbles that would be passed out to the attendees to use for sending off Kirk and Marianna.
The group continued to talk, and Megan tried to focus on allowing the chair to loosen her tense muscles. She prayed God would help her understand the afternoon’s events and why she felt attracted to Justin, of all people. Now she felt repulsion for Justin. She didn’t want to walk down the aisle with him. Didn’t want to see him later that evening at the rehearsal dinner.
God, how am I going to make it through the dinner? God didn’t respond, and she felt more frustrated.
“Megan, did I tell you Colt called today?”
Megan opened her eyes and looked at her sister. She hoped her aggravation with her wasn’t as obvious on the outside as she felt on the inside. She shook her head. “No. You didn’t tell me.”
“He wanted to make sure it was all right with me if he brought Hadley’s mother to the wedding.”
Megan lifted her eyebrows. That was a surprise. She was glad he was allowing Hadley and Tina to get to know one another. Hadley loved talking with her mom, but he was going to let her come for a visit? God must really be working on his heart. Is that why You’re being quiet with me, God? Colt’s taking up all Your time?
Marianna continued, “I think it’s terrific he’s such a good dad to Hadley. He’s so faithful and devoted.”
“Definitely the kind of guy a gal would want to end up with,” added Amber.
“I wonder if he’s interested in anyone,” said Julie.
Megan pressed her head against the chair once more. She closed her eyes. Their matchmaking was obvious. But she had news for the lot of them. She and Colt were friends, and that was all. She’d spent years not wanting a man in her life, and after this afternoon, she planned to continue to stay that way. Megan mumbled, “Maybe you should go for him, Julie.”
Megan heard her sister’s huff, but she didn’t respond. If she said much more, Marianna would be hearing an earful for telling Amy about Clint.
“God will bring the right man into Megan’s life.”
Megan opened her eyes and studied her mother who sat three chairs away from her. Had those words actually come from the woman who gave her birth, who raised her, then accused her of being a foolish liar? The woman who’d never picked up a Bible to Megan’s knowledge until she and Marianna bought her one when they were teenagers?
Megan noted Marianna’s expression revealed she was just as surprised by their mother’s words. Her sister nodded. “You’re right, Mom.”
The small Asian woman sat in the chair in front of Megan. She tapped Megan’s leg, and Megan lifted it out of the water for her to start the pedicure.
Did her mother believe her now? The memory of that night washed through her mind. Clint had died in the car accident. Megan had grown more physically ill with each passing day until Marianna talked her into telling their parents the truth.
“You never should have dated him. If you’d listene
d to us, this never would have happened,” yelled her dad.
“She’s lying.”
The words had slipped through her mother’s lips like a snake slithering through a pasture. They’d contained such vehemence, such vileness. Megan didn’t understand it. She’d never gotten over it.
She sneaked a peek in her mother’s direction. Her mom watched her. Megan couldn’t decipher her expression. She knew a discussion between them was coming. Though she felt disconnected from God, she prayed He’d see her through it.
Chapter 24
There’s nothing like a good cheating song to make me want to run home to be with my wife.
STEVEN CURTIS CHAPMAN
Justin straightened the red tie around his neck. He looked past his reflection in the mirror and realized Kirk’s face rivaled the primary accent color of the wedding. Justin put his hand on his friend’s shoulder and pointed to the couch. “Why don’t you have a seat for a second?”
Kirk nodded and pulled at his solid white tie. “Is it hot in here?”
Justin grinned as he reached for the pitcher of water on the table. He poured a glass and handed it to his friend. “No. The temperature is fine. Feeling nervous?”
Kirk took a quick swallow then waved his hand. “Not in the slightest. Why would I be nervous? I love Marianna. I want to marry her. I want to promise to take care of her for the rest of my life, to provide for her, to be responsible for her well-being.” He bent forward, placing his elbows on his knees and lowering his head between his legs. “I think I’m gonna be sick.”
Justin bit back a laugh. If his friend weren’t so serious, he’d rib him for his dramatics. He patted Kirk’s shoulder. “Take a deep breath, man. It’ll be all right.”
Kirk looked up at him. “What if I lose my job? What if I lose my insurance? You know she gets kidney stones. Can you imagine the hospital bill without insurance?”
Justin shuddered. He didn’t know she struggled with kidney stones. He’d passed one three years ago. Worst pain he’d ever experienced. Poor woman. He hated that for her. He focused back on his friend. “Marianna is a teacher. I’m sure she can get insurance.”
Wedding Song in Lexington, Kentucky Page 19