Holly's Heart Collection Two (23 page)
Looking at his face, I realized something. I had created all kinds of problems for him and Mom, throwing one tantrum after another, until finally I’d broken them down…gotten my own way. But was I happy—truly happy—now? Would I really want to stay with Paula, when I knew it would break up my family and hurt Mom and Uncle Jack? What was more important to me anyway—Dressel Hills and my friends…or my own dear family?
“Well, Holly?” Uncle Jack prodded.
Then I remembered what Mom had said about her and Daddy’s divorce.
I was stubborn,
she’d said.
I didn’t want to leave our quiet town or our beautiful home.
I took a huge breath. Oh boy. Was I like Mom, or what?
Then I remembered Stephie.
“I always wanted a big sister,”
she’d said. But what kind of big sister? A spoiled rotten, selfish one? Or a sister who loved her and stuck with her no matter what?
“Holly, would you like to stay with the Millers?” Uncle Jack asked again.
With all the courage I could muster, I slowly shook my head. “Thanks, Uncle Jack,” I said, “but no. I think I’ll go ahead and make the move with the family.”
At my words, the biggest grin I’d ever seen crossed Uncle Jack’s face. “Are you sure?”
I nodded. Then I swallowed hard and went on. “I’m sorry about the bratty way I carried on. You really are a cool stepdad, in case you didn’t know it.” By now my eyes swam with tears.
They spilled over when Uncle Jack reached for both my hands. “You’re quite a lady, Holly-Heart. Thank you for being so special.” He paused. “I know this whole idea of moving has been difficult for you. Believe me, I’m going to do my best to make things easier for you.”
I smiled back at him as the tears fell down my cheeks. I cried openly, not caring how I looked. My hands were resting in Uncle Jack’s big, strong ones, and for the first time in days, I felt wonderfully at peace.
GOOD-BYE, DRESSEL HILLS
The next morning at eight-thirty on the dot, Mom drove Carrie and me to the ski lodge at the base of Copper Mountain.
“Do you still have to meet Sean?” I asked Mom as she parked the van.
“Have to? I want to.” She smiled knowingly.
“Come on, Carrie,” I said. “Let’s get this over with.”
We headed for the ski racks, where we locked up our new skis till later. Then we climbed the wooden stairs to the lodge. My heart did a crazy tap dance when I saw Sean waiting just inside the lobby, with Tyler by his side. Sean’s blue-and-green ski jacket reminded me of the Pacific Ocean, where we’d swum and built our sandman.
“Hey, Carrie,” Tyler shouted, running to us. He pulled Carrie aside to show off his new skis and poles.
I introduced Mom to Sean. And he made it easy for me, shaking her hand and smiling. I’d forgotten how low his voice was. “So very nice to meet you, Mrs. Patterson,” he said. He’d remembered Mom’s new name. Perfect. Things like that always impressed adults.
“I’ve heard some nice things about you,” Mom said. I hoped she wouldn’t launch off on something personal—like his baby-sitting skills or something else.
Sean glanced at me, grinning. “Holly’s quite a letter writer,” he said.
No way could I keep my face from blushing.
Tyler and Carrie dragged his equipment across the lobby. “Can you believe it?” Carrie told Mom, showing off her skis. “Tyler’s got the exact same brand and color as mine.”
“Well, isn’t that nice,” Mom said, running out of things to say, it seemed.
“Where’s Daddy?” Carrie asked.
Sean pointed to the inside stairs. “He had a phone call to make. He’ll be down soon.”
Mom would surely take that as her cue to get going. I didn’t think she’d want to have a face-to-face meeting with Daddy. Especially not in front of us kids.
Mom hugged Carrie and me. “Please be careful on the slopes, Carrie.” Then she turned to me. “Take your time, and no stunts, okay?”
I assured her that we’d be safe. With a wave and a final good-bye, Mom left the lodge.
Sean and I sat together on a brown leather sofa in an alcove away from the doors. Several times my ski boots bumped his by accident. He turned to face me. His skin was as tan as I remembered. “Your mom reminds me of
my
mother,” he said.
“She does?” It was hard to believe his mom was still babying him.
He nodded. “Boy, I would love to take my niece and nephew skiing here in Colorado,” he said. It was obvious they were one of his favorite topics.
Ten minutes zipped by, maybe because Sean was so easy to talk to. Soon Daddy came downstairs.
“Hello, girls,” he called to us. I stood up to greet him. But his hug stirred up strange feelings of resentment in me. It was still hard to handle—him leaving us behind just for a new job. I covered up by smiling and enjoying the scent of his spicy cologne as he held me tight.
“Let’s hit the slopes,” hollered Tyler.
“Yippee,” Carrie shouted.
Sean held the door for us, and his smile warmed my heart. It was going to be a fabulous day after all.
While Daddy bought lift tickets, we unlocked our skis from the rack and snapped them on. Soon we were in the lift line, eager to ski down the mountain. Tyler and Carrie, Daddy and me, and Sean—alone—behind us.
At the last minute, the lift operator motioned for a girl to share the lift with Sean. That’s when I wished I’d let Daddy ride by himself.
Up, up the cable pulled us toward the cloudless sky. The sun sent its rays, warming our faces, and just below us on the slopes, three guys were skiing in shorts, without their shirts.
“It’s not
that
warm today,” I commented. “Even for spring ski season.”
Daddy seemed preoccupied with his own thoughts. A soft breeze tickled my face as I glanced at him.
“Your grandmother wrote to say that you’re moving,” he said. It was like he’d been waiting for just the right moment to bring it up.
Oh great. Not that.
“Yeah. Next weekend,” I said, feeling my throat constrict. It was awkward discussing this. The exact same situation that had set him and Mom up for the fight of their lives.
“How do you feel about living in Denver?” He was probing, and I hated it.
“Nobody wants to leave best friends behind,” I said, blowing air through my lips. “Especially not me. This place is my life.”
“How is your best friend taking it?” Daddy asked.
“Andie hates the idea, too, but she’s not my only best friend,” I explained. “Paula Miller is also a close friend. The three of us do everything together.”
“How’s school?” Daddy asked.
“Fine.” I told him about the blizzard and being stranded overnight last week. “Up here, the weather changes so fast.”
I could see the lift landing coming up quickly. Thank goodness it was time to get off. I was tired of making small talk with Daddy. What I really wanted to say to him would have to be said in private. Someday.
Tyler and Carrie waited for us. Then, when Sean joined us, we split into two groups. Daddy went with Carrie and Tyler, leaving Sean alone with me.
The morning flew by as we skied down the blue runs together. My time with Sean actually seemed to evaporate as the day progressed.
Soon it was lunchtime, and Daddy treated us to a cozy dinner in the lodge—in the most expensive section—complete with candles on each table. He could afford it, all right. Like Mom said, his business out west had gone well.
Too
well, maybe.
Sean seemed reluctant to say good-bye at the end of the day. “I hope we can ski together again sometime,” he said with a warm smile.
“That’d be fun.” I wished Carrie and Tyler wouldn’t hang around so much then. “Let me know when you’re flying out again.”
He reached for a tiny blue address book from his inside pocket. “Mind if I get your phone number?” I told him, and he wrote it down quickly. “You’ll have to send me your new address when you get settled in Denver.”
I felt giddy, just the way I had when we’d first talked on the beach. I excused myself to call Mom to pick us up.
Sean was eager to talk again when I returned from the phone. “I want to be sure to keep you informed about your dad,” he said, a serious look crossing his face.
“What do you mean?” I asked, suddenly concerned.
“I know you’ve been praying for him—Tyler told me you were a Christian.”
“Then you must be, too,” I said, excited at this tidbit of information.
He burst into a near-angelic grin. “I can hardly wait for your dad to accept Jesus.”
“Do you know about Daddy’s friend? The one at the office who gave him the gospel of Matthew?” I was dying to know more about that.
“You bet I do. He’s my oldest brother, the father of my niece and nephew,” Sean said, eyes shining.
“Wow,” I whispered. “Small world.”
“Sure is,” he agreed. “I only wish Colorado were a little closer to California.”
I knew I was blushing right through my sunburn about now.
And that’s when Carrie waved me over. Mom had pulled the van up and was waiting outside for us, the engine running. Carrie and I said our good-byes to Daddy, Tyler, and Sean.
“We’ll be in touch,” Daddy called after us as we headed out the door of the lodge.
“Bye, Daddy,” Carrie said. “Come back to Colorado soon.”
As we hauled our boots and skis to the van, I hoped with all my heart Sean was right about Daddy. Was he really
that
close to making the all-important decision?
GOOD-BYE, DRESSEL HILLS
I knew something was brewing as soon as I showed up for Sunday school the next day. The second I walked in, the kids clammed up. Even Jared and Billy, who were usually boisterous—till the teacher told them to cool it—were silent.
Things were winding down fast, with only six days remaining in Dressel Hills. Six days to say good-bye to lifelong friends. Besides all that, today was my last day at church. No wonder everyone was so solemn.
Jared was actually nice to me. Danny too. But then, Danny was always nice, and I was sure what Andie and Paula suspected was true: Danny Myers still liked me. I could tell by the way he kept smiling at me.
Things had changed so much in one year. Going from zero special guy friends to three—counting Sean—was like having to choose from three favorite ice-cream flavors at once.
After class, everyone except Andie and Paula headed upstairs, leaving us behind. “That’s strange,” I said. “They sure didn’t hang around long.”
“Oh, they’ll probably say good-bye to you at school next week,” offered Paula, no doubt trying to make me feel better. But it wasn’t working. I felt sad.
We hurried upstairs to the sanctuary, where the organist was already playing the call to worship. I sat with Andie and Paula, since it was my last Sunday. At least for a while. Mom didn’t know it, but I was already hoping to return to Dressel Hills someday soon.
The pastor’s text was from Philippians 2:4. “Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others.” His sermon was titled “Poor Me”—about feeling sorry for yourself, conducting pity parties. I listened carefully, but wished he’d chosen Matthew 18:19 instead. Deep in my heart, I was still praying, along with Andie and Paula, that something would happen to change things around.
After church, Andie and Paula hurried off to catch up with their families. I walked toward the parking lot with Carrie and Stephie on either side of me. I already missed my friends. The friends I’d planned to grow up with.
Mom’s famous pot roast was extra juicy today. I ate heartily, instead of picking like I usually do when I’m depressed. There were scarcely any leftovers. Too bad for Uncle Jack. He loved them.
We had just cleared the dining room table when the doorbell rang. Carrie squealed, “I’ll get it,” and raced off to the living room I stayed in the kitchen, rinsing scraps of food off the dishes. Next thing I knew, Carrie was tapping me on the shoulder.
“I think you’d better come with me,” she said, wearing a sly grin.
I dried my hands, wondering what she was up to.
That’s when I discovered a living room full of friends, including Jared, Andie, Paula, Danny…even our youth pastor.