Sharris started to laugh. “And, of course, you’d know if he’s a good guy or some kind of pervert?”
“Of course! I have an instinct about stuff like that.”
“But you’ve forgotten what I just told you. It doesn’t matter if he turns out to be the most terrific man on earth, I’m in love with Crew.”
“It could matter. Maybe I would like him.”
“What about Donovan?”
Jackie snickered. “Right now, there’s nothing between me and Donovan but friendship, and like I said a minute ago, I’m having less feelings for him. Who knows? Maybe I’d like Joe better than Donovan or else I could use him to make Donovan jealous.”
“That’s a terrible thing to say and you know it! What if Joe started to really like you and you wound up breaking his heart.”
“So now you’re worried about the mysterious Joe’s heart?”
Sharris shook her head. “This conversation is ridiculous.”
Jackie stood up. “And I have to go. Think about it, and think very, very hard about the problems that might be ahead for you if you wind up marrying Crew.”
Sharris stood as well. “It’s hard to think of anything other than the love we’ll share.”
Jackie giggled. “You really are a romantic at heart. As long as I’ve known you, this is a side of you I’ve never seen.”
∞ TWENTY-TWO ∞
Sharris was getting ready for church the next morning when she heard an unexpected thud in the kitchen. Her eyes widened and her heart lurched. It sounded like Judy may have fallen. Running quickly, she reached the kitchen just as Judy was struggling to pick herself up from the floor.
“Judy! What happened?” Gently grasping her arm, she helped her to her feet and led her to a nearby chair.
“I’m sorry I frightened you. My blood sugar took a sudden dive and I was trying to get some peanut butter and juice. I started feeling very light-headed, and next thing I knew, I was toppling over.”
Sharris saw the open jar of peanut butter and some orange juice on the counter and brought them to the table. “Has this happened before?” She sat down next to her.
Judy took a swallow of the juice and ate a spoonful of the peanut butter. “I’ve been diabetic for years. I’ll be okay in a few minutes.”
“Can I do something for you? Do I need to take you to the doctor?” She’d never known anyone who was diabetic and had no idea this sometimes happened to them.
“Oh, no! I’ll be fine.” She trembled as she took another sip of the juice.
“You’re shaking like a leaf.”
“But I’ll be fine, really I will.” Judy smiled. “I see you’re all ready for church. You look very pretty, but you always do.”
There was a long silence before Judy spoke again. “I don’t believe I’ll be going with you this morning, honey. I’ll feel weak for a while and I think I’ll try to take a little nap.”
“Will you be okay here alone?”
“Oh, yes! I’ll just be a little tired for a while.”
Sharris’ phone rang, but she didn’t even look at it. She was too concerned about Judy.
“Go ahead and answer,” Judy prompted. “Please. I really am okay.”
She looked at the caller ID. Unknown name and number. She sighed, thinking she may as well talk to him and tell him straight out that she didn’t want him to call anymore. As she clicked on the phone, she walked into the other room.
“Good morning! I’ve finally managed to reach you.” Joe’s voice was upbeat and friendly.
“I’ve been really busy.”
“But surely you take a break on Sunday. It’s the Lord’s day, you know.”
Was he a Christian? “I know. I’ll be leaving for church in a few minutes.”
“Maybe I could meet you there.”
Her eyes widened. He wanted to meet her at church. Was it because he wanted to go to church or because he simply wanted to be with her and would take advantage of any opportunity that would permit it? Her conscience pricked her. Was it her place to judge his intentions? Maybe it would be the perfect place to meet. She’d be safe with him there, and afterward she could tell him that she was in love with someone and wasn’t free to see him again. Why didn’t she just tell him now?
Apparently, he took her silence as rejection. “It’s okay. I’m going to go anyway, but since I’m just passing through the area, I don’t know where to go. That’s the main reason I called. I’m not trying to be a pest. I was hoping you could point me in the right direction.”
Guilt surged through her. He seemed sincere in his intentions and here she was imagining he was simply making excuses to be with her. How vain was she anyway? “I’d love to meet you at church,” she finally said and told him where she went.
When she hung up, she sighed, and had a nagging little argument with her conscience. She could have directed him to any one of a number of churches in the area. There were several good ones. Why should she send him someplace else, where he wouldn’t know anyone?
She called Jackie.
“I’ll be there,” her friend promised, laughing. “I can hardly wait.”
Then she called Crew. She wanted him to know what had happened to Judy. He assured her that she would be okay, that she was very adept at taking charge of her health and keeping her blood sugar at a good level. When it did accidentally dip, she knew what to do about it. Thus, the peanut butter and juice. Just the same, he’d call Jess and have him go by and check on her while she was in church.
“Will you be coming home soon?” she asked him, hoping and praying he would say yes.
“It’ll be a couple more weeks.”
“I need to talk to you about something important.” Her mind was made up. She was going to admit her feelings and take her chances that he might be having them, too.
“Is everything all right? There haven’t been any more scary incidents around the house, have there?”
The only thing scary was her intense feelings for him. “No, everything’s fine. I’m so glad Judy’s back, especially with my workload the way it is. With her here, I never have to worry about anything keeping me away from what I need to be doing.”
“If your work ever gets slack and it’s a strain on you to pay my mom, please let me know. I’ll cover it and she won’t have to know anything about it. I put money in her account as often as I can and she would absolutely refuse to take anything more, if she knew.”
“I can afford to pay her, and she’s worth every cent she gets. More, really.”
When he laughed, she could picture the twinkle in his eyes.
“So what are you doing today?” she asked then. “Will you get to attend church services?”
They talked for another ten minutes that seemed more like only ten seconds to her. She only stopped when she realized it was time to leave for church.
Jackie met her outside the church door. “Is he here yet?” she said, her voice barely above a whisper.
Sharris didn’t have a chance to answer before she saw him getting out of a steel gray pickup truck. “Over there.”
Jackie’s eyes widened. “Oh! Look at that truck! Wow! But…he – looks kind of older than I thought.”
“Maybe I forgot to mention it.”
Jackie grinned. “But he’s cute. Dressed sharp, too. I like that light blue suit with the navy shirt. Very, very sharp indeed.”
He approached them and smiled.
Once again, she was taken aback by the blue of his eyes, so like Crew’s. Other than that, she didn’t see nearly as much resemblance as she thought she had in Florida. “Joe, this is my best friend, Jackie Carter. Jackie, Joe Callen.”
He looked at Jackie, never losing his smile. “Nice to meet you, Jackie.” He glanced at his watch. “I guess I just made it in time. I thought I knew the way without using the navigation system, but I forgot how easy it is to get lost on some of these country roads. I hope we’ll all have some time to talk after service.”
“I don�
�t see why we won’t,” said Jackie.
She was smitten. Sharris could tell. She couldn’t help wondering if she’d completely forgotten her crush on Donovan.
She could feel a lot of eyes following her as she, Jackie and Joe entered the church and sat down together in the same seat. Joe let them in first and then took the end seat, to Jackie’s dismay, since she wasn’t seated next to him. Sharris wasn’t too happy about it either, but it wouldn’t be very appropriate to jump up and change seats.
Ottie rolled by in his wheelchair, stopping to smile and shake hands and waiting for an introduction to the stranger sitting beside Sharris. Of course, the old man’s laughter, as well as his voice, was hearty and loud enough to attract more attention, when he introduced his son Lane and his wife Brynn and their daughter Jada to Joe. Devon and his grandfather, Conrad were right behind him, along with Marna. Marna looked like she was shocked enough to pass out, but managed to introduce Joe to her husband as if she’d known him forever. Sharris could read her thoughts, since her sister hadn’t even known about the phone calls from Joe since they’d been back. She hadn’t told anybody but Jackie. There didn’t seem to be any point in it, since she hadn’t planned to see Joe again. She certainly didn’t have the faintest idea she’d be sitting beside him in church just then. Taryn, smiling sweetly before she turned a quizzical eye toward her sister, just as Marna had done, introduced John.
Finally everyone else was seated. Joe looked at Sharris, smiled and winked. “Very friendly people.”
She returned his smile – what else could she do? – hoping her face wasn’t as flushed as it felt. She thought of a very old saying an old TV character used to say, ‘What a revoltin’ development this is’. Turning to look at Jackie, she rolled her eyes, only to have her friend smile so big she almost laughed aloud.
By the time the first song was ending, she finally felt in control. None of this had been her fault and there was no reason to be embarrassed because of it or worry about it. The man was in church, for goodness sake, and all she could think about was what her family and friends were going to think about her because she was sitting beside him!
He seemed to be enjoying the service. In a way, it made her feel better but in another way it made her feel worse. He appeared to be a good man. He even knew the songs and sang along in a very nice voice. She was glad he didn’t seem to be anything like the stranger that Don, as well as Marna, had cautioned her about, but she was upset that she’d listened to everyone else’s warnings and prematurely judged him to be exactly that way.
He was friendly enough when several people rushed over to shake his hand and welcome him back when the service was over. Sharris couldn’t help noticing that Jackie’s eyes never left him. Maybe her friend would create an easy way out for her, by getting Joe’s attention on her. She hoped so anyway.
Poor Donovan. The unexpected thought almost caused Sharris to laugh. She had no idea how deep Donovan’s feelings were for Jackie. He might be glad if she found someone else. Poor Jackie. Would she ever find the one true love of her life?
He insisted on taking both the women to lunch. Sharris was so glad she’d had the insight to call Jackie.
Despite everything, she found herself enjoying his company, as well as a delightful meal at the Mexican restaurant. Jackie did most of the talking, as well as asking a lot of questions. It didn’t seem to bother him that she was so curious about him, although there were a few times he merely smiled and withheld an answer. Usually, it was when his family was mentioned. Whether or not it was simply her imagination, he didn’t seem to want to talk about them and quickly changed the subject. He did divulge that he’d never been married, but didn’t elaborate.
He left early, saying he had to be headed back to Durham. It was a six hour trip and he needed time to get rested up for work the next day.
Jackie and Sharris, standing outside the restaurant door, watched him leave.
“He is something else,” Jackie said.
“He’s really nice, isn’t he?”
“I like him. Shar, this may seem weird but it’s like something clicked between us.” Without so much as a pause, she went on, “How come you didn’t tell him you’re in love with Crew?”
“The opportunity never came up.”
Jackie looked into her friend’s eyes. “Are you as sure as you were before, since today with Joe?”
Sharris grimaced. “I’m not fickle, Jackie. I’m not going to fall out of love with Crew, no matter who I’m with. You don’t know how glad I am that you were here today.”
“I told you I’d figure him out for you and I did. I figured out something else, too. I really did feel something for him. I wasn’t kidding when I said something clicked between us. If you’re sure you don’t want him, I want a chance.” She laughed. “Gee whiz, seems like I’m always wanting your cast offs. First Donovan, now Joe.”
“So what about Donovan?”
“I still like him, and I think he likes me, but I’ve never felt any kind of love vibes between the two of us. I guess I just wanted them to be there. I don’t think he has either because he’s never even tried to kiss me. With Joe just now, I felt some kind of connection.”
Sharris laughed. “Yea, I know. You clicked.”
“Shar, if he calls you again, will you please let him know you aren’t available and ask him to call me?”
∞ TWENTY-THREE ∞
CREW HUNG UP THE PHONE after a lengthy conversation with his brother Jess. Sharris had told him that morning she had something important she needed to tell him, and after what Jess said, he was pretty sure he knew what it was. She was going to tell him she didn’t want to see him anymore.
Talk moved swiftly in small towns. It seemed like everyone in Marble had seen Sharris with a tall, handsome stranger that day. Some had seen them together in church, sitting close enough that they were touching shoulders. Others saw them in a restaurant. No one had any idea who he was, but they all agreed that he and Sharris had seemed very comfortable and happy together.
There was no mention of the fact that Jackie was with them. In gossip, it was usually only the juiciest tidbits that made it through the grapevine.
Crew sighed. When she’d said what she had earlier, he was afraid to let himself believe she was going to tell him she was having the same deep feelings for him that he was for her. They’d had such great times together and he’d felt a special closeness with her that he’d never had with any other woman. Each time he was with her, he could feel his resolve to remain unattached weaken. He missed her so much after he left that all he wanted to do was turn around and go back, take her in his arms and never let her go.
“I should’ve known better,” he chided himself. “I knew all along that someone as beautiful as she is would never fall for somebody like me. I knew it but refused to believe it. What a fool I am!”
He had planned to drive up the next week end and surprise her but saw no reason to now. Maybe if he stayed away long enough, he could get her out of his system and their next meeting wouldn’t hurt so much. There was no way he could avoid seeing her, if he wanted to see his mother. Judy lived with her. He sighed, not at all liking the predicament he suddenly found himself in.
Still, he wasn’t surprised. Wasn’t this the very reason he’d sworn he’d never let himself fall in love? Why didn’t his heart pay more attention?
▬ ▬ ▬
Late Sunday evening, Joe Callen bent over the bed where his mother was lying and gave her a kiss on the forehead.
“Where have you been?” she asked.
He’d known exactly what she was going to say. It was the same thing every time he saw her, whether he’d been gone for an hour or a week. He sat down on the chair by her bed. “I took a little trip through the mountains this week end.”
“What did you do in the mountains?”
He took her frail hands and rubbed them gently between his. “Remember when I went to Florida?” She wouldn’t, but he asked just the same. “Re
member when I told you I met the most beautiful woman there?” She wouldn’t remember that either.
She grinned. “You mean there are beautiful women in Florida?”
He liked it when she was coherent enough to make a joke. Maybe today would be one of her good days. “There are a few, but the one I met lives in North Carolina. She has long blonde hair and blue eyes and the prettiest smile.”
His mother laughed and her blue eyes twinkled.
“When I met her, Mom, I thought for sure that she was the one for me. You know, I haven’t been trying to find a woman, but she just sort of bumped into me.” He chuckled, remembering how she’d been blinded by the sun and had done that exact thing. “I found out her phone number and called her. Then I met her in church this morning.” He couldn’t go into detail, but had to make his words short and simple to keep her from becoming confused.
“I’d like to go to church.”
He knew they had services in the recreation room every Sunday. She’d probably been there that morning but had forgotten. “I like the church I went to today better than any other I’ve been to. Of course, I haven’t been a Christian long enough to have been to many places.”
“God loves you.” Her eyes became serious as they met his.
Every time she said those three little words to him, he felt a sense of joy run through him. With all his heart, he prayed that, even if she forgot everything else in her life, she would never forget that. “I know. He loves you, too.”
Her eyes narrowed. “He does?”
“Absolutely.”
She smiled. “Do you love me?”
“You know I do.”
“Does Crew love me?”
He swallowed and had to look away. She always asked about Crew, his younger brother. She knew the truth, because it had happened before her mind started waning, that Crew had been killed in an automobile accident.
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