He moved to her and fell to one knee. “Lorrie Ann, I know what I did was unforgivable, but it was the drugs, not me. I would never do that to you. In the past two years I have never raised a hand to ya.”
She stood straight and looked him in the eye. “Leave, Brent. It’s over.”
“No, I’m not giving up until you agree to come home with me.” He reached up to touch her face.
She stepped back and bit hard on her lip. “We’re not together anymore, Brent, and it’s more than just what happened that night. It’s more than the drugs and partying. I don’t want that lifestyle. I want more.”
“More!” He shot up from the floor and grabbed her arms, pulling her against him. “The houses, the cars, all the clothes and parties aren’t enough for you?”
Lorrie Ann tried to pull away from him, but he was too strong. She looked him in the eye. How did she ever think she loved this man? Without a doubt, she’d made the right decision leaving California. Fear started paralyzing her; she knew that would be the worst thing to let happen. How could she get him out of here without anyone getting hurt?
Chapter Thirteen
J
ohn glanced at his watch. The Christmas meeting should be over. He prayed for open hearts and minds to hear Lorrie Ann’s ideas.
She had shared a great vision with him of how the pageant could look. With a sigh, he thought of all the times people fought him over change just because it was change.
“They’ve been running for a year now and doing well. I move we increase the monthly funds sent to Peru by fifty dollars.”
John raised his eyebrows. He had missed the whole discussion. Everyone voted in agreement, and Deacon Copeland adjourned.
At a light knock on the door, they all turned. Vickie poked her head in the room.
“Pardon the intrusion, but there’s trouble in the fellowship hall.”
“Is someone hurt?” John moved to the door, his heart jumping a beat faster, thinking of Celeste and Rachel.
“Oh, no, it’s an unexpected guest.” She bit the corner of her mouth. “Brent Krieger, Lorrie Ann’s fiancé.”
He rushed down the hall not hearing anything else Vickie said. He needed to get to Lorrie Ann. The thought of her ex in the same room with her sent unfamiliar anger surging through his bloodstream.
Barging into the room, he didn’t see anything but Lorrie Ann being pinned against a stranger, his large hands wrapped around her small arms.
“Get your hands off her!” John’s voice was sharp and demanding.
The other man released her and took a step back. His glare moved back and forth between John and Lorrie Ann.
John noticed Yolanda outside the kitchen area with a frying pan clasped tightly in two hands. Seth stood, his fist clenched tight, a cell phone in one hand. Tension filled the room.
“I suggest you leave now.”
“I don’t know who you are, but she’s mine, and this is between us.”
“She is
not
your anything,” John snarled, moving to stand next to Lorrie Ann. He was ready to physically remove this jerk if needed. He felt her hand softly lie against his arm and looked down. Her straight back and smile reassured him she could handle the situation.
Brent’s accented voice broke their contact. “Lorrie Ann, come back with me. I don’t want to lose the life we have there.”
“You don’t get it, Brent. I don’t want more of what we had. I want more family, community, a real purpose for my life. I need God in my life.”
The door eased open, and Jake, in his uniform, slipped into the room.
Brent’s gaze darted from person to person, and his hands started to shake. “I promise to stay in rehab, Lorrie Ann. I’m getting better. I realized how important you are in my life. I want to fix us. I want to go back to what we had. I need your forgiveness so we can start over.”
John watched her intensely, tracking the emotions that fluttered across her features one at a time. He prayed, without taking his eyes off her face, that God would wrap her tightly in His love and let her know she didn’t stand alone.
Lorrie Ann squeezed his arm with a barely there touch. Her soft low voice broke the profound silence. “Thank you, Brent.” A gentle smile eased its way to her eyes. “I do forgive you.”
A big smile covered the Irishman’s face as he took a step toward her. John stiffened.
Lorrie Ann raised her hands, palms out. “No, Brent, I forgive you because I need to in order to move forward. We’re finished. You need to leave now. Everything that needed to be said has been said.” Chin up, she took a step back, closer to John. “Goodbye.”
John didn’t like the man’s clenched fists. Brent tried to loom over Lorrie Ann and brought one hand up to point a finger at her. “You will regret this. You’ll lose your job, and no one will hire you. Your career will be over. See where your God is then.”
Hand resting on his gun, Jake opened the door wide and stepped back with one brow raised. Brent shot a heated glare around the room before he stomped out and slammed the door.
Silence fell heavily in the fellowship hall. John slid an arm over her shoulders. “Are you all right?”
She took a deep breath and nodded. Her small frame trembled.
From the corner, Vickie demanded everyone’s attention. “I told you she doesn’t belong. Her history with men has reared its ugly head. Deacons, Pastor John—” she edged closer to Lorrie Ann, jabbing the air with her finger “—I’m asking that you ban her. I’ll direct the pageant.”
The three older men shuffled and looked to John with uncomfortable expressions.
Yolanda crossed the room to block Vickie’s path. “She doesn’t have a history. You made it up. You lied, and I let you. This time I’m not going to let you chase her out of town. This is her home, too.”
Vickie gasped, her mouth opening and closing. Her heavy breathing filled the air. “But she...”
Jake positioned himself next to Vickie. “That’s enough. In high school we all stayed silent. It stops tonight, Vickie. We’re adults now. It’s time to grow up.” He looked Lorrie Ann in the eye. “I’m sorry for not speaking up when the rumors grew.”
Seth left the corner and grabbed his mother’s hand. “Mom, let’s go, please.”
“But I... She...” Vickie pointed to Lorrie Ann. “She doesn’t have a right to be here. I didn’t...”
John stepped toward Vickie and prayed for the right way to handle the situation. He forced his jaw to relax, wanting to defend Lorrie Ann but knowing he also had to be Vickie’s pastor. Anger and bitterness surrounded Vickie.
“Vickie, gossip and rumors have no place in the church.” He stopped a few feet away from her and put his hand on Seth’s shoulder. The boy’s face burned red, and he kept his eyes down. “I know this has been a brutal year for you, but turning on others isn’t the answer.”
Seth glanced at him from under long bangs. He turned to his mother. “Mom. Please, can we just leave?”
Jake held out his arm. “Come on. I’ll make sure you get home safe.” He glanced at Lorrie Ann. “I’ll call the sheriff and see that Brent gets all the way out of town.”
With a glance filled with resentment, Vickie allowed her son and Jake to pull her from the room.
The three deacons lingered by the opposite door, ready to make a quick exit. “Well, um...it’s late. We should be going. Call us if you need anything, Pastor.” They each nodded to the women. “Night, Yolanda. Lorrie Ann.”
Yolanda’s gentle voice bid them a good night.
Lorrie Ann sat alone, her bag pulled close, not saying a word.
As soon as the men closed the door behind them, she turned to Yolanda. “Yolanda, thank you. After dealing with Brent, I didn’t know what to say to Vickie. Thanks for standing up for me.”
Yolanda rushed to her side, sitting next to her. “Oh, Lorrie Ann, I’m so sorry it was twelve years too late. I should’ve done that back in high school. I was so afraid of her, and, well, jealousy is just ugly.”
Lorrie Ann’s forehead went into deep wrinkles, and her gaze jumped to Yolanda’s face. “Jealousy? Why would
you
be jealous of me?”
The younger woman laughed and pulled Lorrie Ann close. In that moment, she resembled her mother. “It’s really lame, but I thought my mom loved you more. At school, you were so cool, and the teachers would always compare my work to yours. Then there was your singing.”
“How sad are we? I always felt like an intruder.” Lorrie Ann tucked her hair behind her ears. “Remember when we were little and told each other all our secrets?”
Yolanda took her cousin’s hand in hers. Her voice dropped to a whisper. “I’m so sorry I wasn’t there for you. Especially when Vickie spread those ugly lies. You couldn’t even trust me enough to let me know what’s been going on the past few weeks.”
“I’ve handled everything wrong.” Lorrie Ann used the pad of her thumb to wipe a tear off Yolanda’s cheek. “Tell you what. I’ll forgive our teenage drama if you forgive me for discounting our friendship all these years.”
Yolanda pulled Lorrie Ann close again. “I don’t deserve your forgiveness.”
“The stories Vickie told about me in high school might have been lies, but the choices I’ve made since are all mine.” Lorrie Ann pulled away from Yolanda.
John watched her move across the room to gather up supplies. With his elbows on his knees, he rested his chin in the palm of his hand. He still needed to battle down his own anger at the attacks both Brent and Vickie had brought into the church. He didn’t trust himself to speak right now, so he continued to listen and pray.
With her back turned to him, her voice sounded muffled, but he could still hear the uncertainty. “Coming here might have been a mistake. Church has never seemed like a good place for me to be.”
John sat up, unable to allow that comment to go unchallenged. “Lorrie Ann, the church should be a place of refuge, a safe corner in a world of devastating storms. What happened here tonight had nothing to do with God, but you handled both with grace. This church belongs to you as much as anyone else. You belong to God. Can you forgive us?” He stood in front of her now, wanting to take her in his arms.
“Us? You didn’t have anything to do with it.” Her eyes looked huge as she gazed up at him.
“You’ve had so many arrows thrown at your heart. I shouldn’t have allowed it to happen tonight.”
Lorrie Ann smiled. “You can’t be everywhere all the time. I’m thinking about the scripture you gave Aunt Maggie to read tonight. It said our troubles are small and won’t last forever. But they give us glory in the long run.” Lorrie Ann reached for Yolanda’s hand. “I faced my monsters tonight and realized they are just hurt people. For twelve years I’ve been running. No more.”
Yolanda hugged her. “I’ve missed you.” A cell phone went off in the kitchen. “Oh, that’s Mom’s ringtone.” Yolanda rushed to answer her phone. “Hey, Mom, Lorrie Ann’s fine. Yeah, he’s gone.” She looked to John and Lorrie Ann. “I’m with John and Lorrie Ann now.” She smiled and nodded to whatever Maggie said on the other end. “Okay, I’ll tell her. Love you.”
“So what did Aunt Maggie say?” Lorrie Ann asked.
“Apparently, Rachel and Celeste are worried about you and waiting for their story.”
John had his phone out to call the girls.
“I came with Mom, so I need a ride to my place.”
Pulling the keys from her bag, Lorrie Ann handed them to Yolanda. “Here, take my car, and I’ll ride to the house with John.”
John walked to the door. “Sounds like a plan. The girls are anxious to see Lorrie Ann.”
Yolanda followed them out and waited as John locked the building.
“I’ll see you tomorrow. I love you, Yolanda.”
“Yeah, me, too.” Yolanda wrapped her in a hug before getting in the little sports car.
John held open his passenger door and waited for Lorrie Ann to buckle up. They watched as the BMW backed out and drove down Main Street before heading home.
* * *
Driving over Second Crossing, John’s thoughts were still centered around Lorrie Ann. She came across as strong, but there was vulnerability at her core that made him want to protect her. She had not had many people to trust in her life, starting with her mother. To be that man for her scared him. He had let Carol down. She had deserved a better husband than the one he was to her. He hadn’t been able to protect his wife. What worm in his brain made him think he could do any better for Lorrie Ann?
He thought of Lorrie Ann’s mother. Sonia was afraid of disappointing her daughter after years of struggling with alcohol and drugs. She had made Maggie and him promise not to tell Lorrie Ann about her going through rehab in San Antonio. She was just an hour away and afraid to see her daughter. Maybe he had something in common with her. They both were cowards. He gave a short laugh.
“What?”
He shook his head and grinned at her. “Nothing. Just thinking.”
John pulled in front of his cabin and cut the engine, but instead of getting out, they both stared at the dark landscape surrounding the cabin in silence. He wanted to give her some extra time to calm her nerves. To be honest, he really wanted to wrap her in his arms and protect her from the ugliness of the world.
“Thank you, John. I like to pretend I’m strong and independent, but I felt much safer when you charged into the room.” She looked out the side window, her fingers playing with the handle but not opening the door.
“You
are
strong and independent. Doesn’t mean you don’t need support.”
The porch light came on, and Aunt Maggie stepped outside, peering into the darkness.
John laughed. “I feel like a teenager bringing home his date.” He turned to her. “Ready?”
With a nod, she climbed out of his truck. He followed her, grinning as she marched straight to his room, where the girls waited. She barely stopped for a quick hug with her aunt.
Maggie laid a hand on his arm. “Is she okay? I’ve been praying nonstop since I left with the girls.”
He nodded. “You’d be proud.” He smiled down at the fierce prayer warrior. “God works in strange ways.”
“Yes, He does.”
John leaned against the railing. “Have you told her about her mother yet?”
“No.” She sighed and shook her head. “Sonia’s afraid. I told her Lorrie Ann could handle it, but you know how guilt eats at people.”
“The longer we keep it from her, the more betrayed she’s going to feel.”
Maggie laid a hand on his shoulder. “I know. I’ll talk to Sonia again. With Lorrie Ann in town, there is no excuse.” She sighed and patted him on the shoulder. “It’s been a long day. Good night.”
“Night, Maggie.”
A little bit later, the door eased open, and Lorrie Ann’s head poked through. “Ah, there you are. Not sure if you had gone to bed yet.”
He spent a moment just watching her move next to him before speaking. The cool breeze pushed her dark curls from her face. “The girls got their princess story?”
She cut her gaze to him for a quick second before going back to the stars. “Yeah, thanks for letting me tuck them in. Who would have guessed the highlight of my week would be a bedtime fairy tale?”
“The smallest things in life can be the biggest blessings.”
“I think I’m starting to see that.” She rubbed her hands together and tucked them under her arms. “I’ll come by in the morning and help with breakfast.” She raised her eyebrows and smiled. “Give you time to shave in peace.”