While Grace confirmed the appointment, Nolan said goodbye to the doctor and stood beside her, his hand resting lightly around her shoulders. Enjoying herself, Grace smiled up at him as she paid for the visit. “Have a lovely day, ladies.”
As the couple walked to the car, they laughed. “That was so much fun!”
Nolan tweaked her hair. “I almost lost it when you called me honey.”
Grace gave him a saucy grin. “You didn’t like that? I’ll have to remember to avoid ‘honey’ in the future.”
Bending low, he murmured, “Gracie
, honey
, you can call me any endearing name that you like.”
“Uh uh, bub, honey is my name—until I find a better one anyway. I had to think quickly.”
The pair tossed out names of endearment as they settled themselves in Nolan’s car and drove out of the parking lot. Grace gave a little shout of triumph. “I’ve got it! Nolie. I’ll call you Nolie”
“I think not!”
Grace’s giggles joined his chuckles. “Awww, you don’t like it? C’mon… what do you like? Hey, what does Nolan mean?”
A deep red flush crept up the back of his neck. “Noble.”
“As in Noble Solutions?” Grace was trying to think of a new name based on the word Noble.
“It was my mother’s name. She suggested it, and I liked the way it sounded full of integrity, so I chose it.” His tone was somewhat embarrassed.
“Well, English nobility consists of Lords, Dukes, Earls, Barons… I can’t call you lord, you’re not my husband. Duke belongs to John Wayne and Earl sounds like the name of a dog. I think I’ll call you ‘sir.’”
“Oh, that’s endearing. I can just see those two women getting scared off by hearing you call me ‘sir.’”
Grace’s laughter filled the car as Nolan pulled into a local restaurant. “Oh, I’m sure it’s the way that you say it that makes it endearing.”
Nolan was silent for a few seconds. He wasn’t prepared to be as open with her as he wanted to be. He was unsure of how quickly he could lay his full range of emotions on the table. “Grace, I don’t think you have any idea how much I’m holding myself back.”
“Back? From what?” Grace felt the turn in the conversation shift from lighthearted to serious but didn’t want to make too many presumptions.
Nolan looked confused. “Well, I don’t know. I’d say from you, but that’s not right. I don’t ever want to hold back anything from you.”
“So what is it?”
“Well, I’m waiting for you to make a determination about your feelings for me, and if you can respect me enough for a permanent commitment.”
“Determination of feelings. Permanent commitment. You’re such a man!” Grace giggled.
“I’m trying not to pressure you. What I say and what I want are two very different things.”
“So, tell me; what is it that you want?” Grace’s frustration mounted.
“You.”
“Me. You’ve got me. I’m right here. I’m not going anywhere.” Nolan shook his head, which irritated Grace. “I’m not stupid, but you’re making me feel very dense. What am I missing? Is this one of those men vs. women—you’ll never understand—Mars and Venus things? Am I being completely obtuse, or are you being deliberately difficult?”
Nolan sighed. “The other day, I said some very intimate things to you.”
“Yeah… you did. They were nice. I still turn them over in my mind. Then you sent me home so fast I couldn’t figure out if you were just really busy or still upset with me.”
“I just found you incredibly attractive and wanted to get you out of there.”
Grace beamed. “Nolan. Thank you. That is one of the most beautiful things anyone has ever said to me.”
“Huh?” Nolan groaned inwardly. Could he have said anything
less
eloquent?
“You just told me that you find me very attractive. I’ve never been told that before.”
A low chuckle rumbled from Nolan’s throat. “Well, I can’t say I’m sorry to hear that. I am surprised, though. What is wrong with the men in this town?”
Her response brought him a twinge of pain. “Nolan, I’ve had a wonderful life. Everyone has always been kind to me, well, except maybe Chuck, but he’s never kind to anyone! But, well, I’m the girl that is ‘one of the guys.’ I’m the pal. I always have been, and I encouraged that. Dad said it would protect my heart for the right man someday.”
Nolan’s curiosity got the better of him. “And did it? Did you keep your heart secure? Or did it just help?”
“It just helped.” She looked at her hands and played with her fingernails.
“Who was he?” He didn’t know if he had the right to ask, but his curiosity was aroused.
“Oh, Nolan, don’t you know? It’s Jesus. I decided when I was fifteen that when I gave my heart to the Lord upon my salvation, that I gave it all to Him. Not just the dead, dirty, filthy, sin ridden part, but the part of my heart that wanted to be some man’s special someone. I wouldn’t give it away until the Lord told me I could. So, yes, it helped a little, but the Lord helped more.”
Not knowing whether to hug her or give her a hard time, he chose to thank the Lord for His hand on Grace’s life. For the first time, he realized that she truly was a provision from the Lord.
Chapter Twenty-Four
“It’s now twelve days before Christmas. Let the fun begin.”
Grace’s laughter sang out over the telephone lines. “What are you talking about?”
“Open your front door.” Nolan sat in his house watching through the window as her door opened. Rolex scampered out of the house, barking furiously at the package that Nolan had left on the mat. Before she could pick up the box, the dog dashed across the yard and over to Nolan’s house.
“I’ve got him. Open your gift.”
“Are you nuts! Out here? It’s
cold
!”
Grace’s incredulity amused him. “Ok, go inside, but open it in front of the window. I want to watch this.”
“Do I open the card first or last?”
“Umm, I guess so. Yes. Open it first.” Nolan’s voice grew certain as he decided the best order of opening.
The sounds of an envelope opening sparked a boyish eagerness. He’d always loved giving gifts. Christmas and birthdays were his favorite days of the year. The planning, purchasing, and even the wrapping of the gifts brought much excitement and pleasure to him. However, nothing was as wonderful as the carefully executed presentation of a gift. He smiled at the metallic tinkle of a musical card playing “The Twelve Days of Christmas
.”
“Do you like that song?”
“I do now. I love it now! Can I open the box? Hey… Twelve days of Christmas… does that mean that I get twelve presents?”
Her eagerness encouraged him. He’d had some concerns about whether or not Grace would enter the spirit of the game. “That’s right. This is day one.”
“But the twelve days of Christmas are
after
Christmas!”
“And I wanted to do it before. Sue me,” Nolan laughed.
Grace tore open the box eagerly. Nestled in the bottom and surrounded by shredded Christmas paper sat a box with “Partridge Farms” stenciled on the top. Grace opened it to find the most delicious smelling pears she’d ever seen. The fragrance permeated the room.
“Yum! How did you find a place called Partridge Farms?”
“Well… Melanie said she knows how to stencil, so I…”
“Well, come on over, bring back my escape artist, and get some. These are good!”
~*~*~*~
Grace smiled as she watched Nolan’s long strides across the street. He held a gaily-wrapped box and wore a goofy smile. The gifts weren’t nearly as fun as watching Nolan’s delight in giving them. It had slowly become apparent to her that some of his frustration with her inability to accept help stemmed from his own love of giving. They were very similar in that manner.
She met him in the front yard. Arm in arm, they walked up her steps. “Paige should be here any moment. She phoned from behind your house. She’s really getting into this whole spy thing.”
“Really? She’s coming here first?”
Grace nodded. “She went by Craig’s office to thank him. Did I tell you?”
“No, how did you convince Craig? He won’t tell me.”
A trace of guilt crossed Grace’s features. “Well, I started by giving him a fake ultimatum, kind of like I did you, but he knew I was bluffing.”
“What kind of crazy threat did you have for him?”
Shaking her head, Grace pled the Fifth Amendment. “If you want to know, ask him.” With a wink, she continued. “Anyway, I finally asked him if he thought that Christ was strong enough to protect me. Then I asked if he thought you were an adequate protector. Then I suggested that he be in the house as well. I finally got through to him. I think he’ll be glad when Paige can identify the guy and get him off the streets. The police are close, but identifying him
outside
a lineup would help, I think.”
He handed Grace her package and gestured for her to open it. She unwrapped a candy dish filled with chocolate turtles and Dove chocolates. Grace set the dish on her dining table after sampling the chocolates. “These are wonderful. Turtle-doves—cute”
Before he could reply, Paige crept in through the back door. “No one saw me! Nathan is over at your house, Nolan. I’m going to sneak across in a bit, and then he’ll openly come out and help you with the computer stuff.”
Lunch came and went but no packages came. Nolan fiddled with wires and set up programs as slowly as possible. The extra linen closet next to her coat closet made a perfect mini-office. Everyone grew antsy. Finally, the familiar brown truck pulled up in front of Grace’s house. As she signed the receipt, she glanced at the man’s face. It wouldn’t be him. He was too tall, too heavy set, and he was dark haired.
As the man drove away, Paige and Nathan walked across the street in deep conversation. Grace and Nolan felt the disappointment keenly but weren’t surprised. They couldn’t expect to catch the man on the first try.
The couples played games and chatted through dinner. She had planned to make a meatloaf, but Nolan and Nathan begged for pizza. As Paige and Nathan left to make a soda run, Nolan and Grace sat on opposite ends of her couch in deep conversation.
Nathan had spoken of wanting an even number of children and subsequently had sparked a discussion of desired numbers. Nathan and Paige had held quite a heated debate over even vs. odd numbers and large vs. small families. When the other couple left for the store, Nolan asked Grace what was on her mind. “You’ve been so quiet. What is bothering you?”
“I don’t know. I’ve never thought about ‘how many.’ I just didn’t give it a second thought. Have you?”
“Well, no. I did pray once for a half a dozen little Graceannas, though.”
A small smile tugged at the corner of Grace’s mouth. “Would that happen to have been after a dinner with Melanie when she tricked you into holding Gracie?”
“Yes… she was so dear and tiny. I wanted to take her home with me.” The wistful sound in his voice was very endearing to Grace’s heart.
“Well, how do you decide how many children to have? You can say, ‘I want two, or four, or five, or twenty,’ but how do you know how many you should really have?”
Nolan shook his head. He’d never considered the idea. “I don’t know. I don’t remember the Word talking about choosing the number of children, but they probably didn’t have birth control then either.”
“True. So, with birth control available, how do you use it to God’s glory? What does God consider to be right? One child? Two? How do I know what His will is?”
The couple continued their discussion until the pizza and drinks arrived. Grace tried to rally above her troubled thoughts as she suggested a game of Hearts. Long after her guests left for the night, Grace sat in prayer and study over the evening’s topic of discussion.
The phone rang next to her, and she answered it absentmindedly. The distant tone to her voice when she said ‘hello’ told Nolan that she was still troubled with her thoughts. “Can’t sleep?”
“I’m studying. I can’t find anything. I only read positive things about children and families. When people like Rachel and Hannah couldn’t have children, they found it very disturbing. They became distraught. Rachel wanted more than one, but was that because her sister had more, or because she truly wanted children? And Jacob. He’s a doozy.”
“How’s that?” Grace’s earnestness pulled Nolan from an exhausted stupor.
“Well, Rachel pleads with him to ‘give her children.’ You know what he said?”
“I think I remember that story, he said it wasn’t in his hands or something.”
She nodded at the phone. “That’s right. He said—here, let me find it.”
The pages of her Bible rustled as she tried to find her place again. “Here, Genesis chapter thirty. It says, ‘When Rachel saw that she was not bearing Jacob any children, she became jealous of her sister. So she said to Jacob, “Give me children, or I’ll die!” Jacob became angry with her and said, “Am I in the place of God, who has kept you from having children?’” She gasped. “Hey, I just noticed something.”
Nolan finished Grace’s sentence in the familiar manner that close friends do. “Rachel said children. Plural. She didn’t just want a child, she wanted at least two.”
“I wonder why. I mean, most people today, if they were infertile anyway, would be thrilled for just one child. Why wasn’t Rachel asking for
a
child? Didn’t Hannah ask for a single child?”
Nolan didn’t know how to answer her. “Maybe Rachel’s feelings about children weren’t rational. Her sister goaded her constantly. Maybe that had something to do with it.”
“That’s true. What did Mary do?”
“Grace,” Nolan sounded concerned, “why is this so important to you?”
Her voice broke as she spoke. “I don’t know. It’s just bugging me.”
“Can you trust the Lord with it? Can you turn it over to Him?”
Grace nodded. She didn’t realize how often she spoke with gestures rather than words. “I guess I’ll have to.”
“I’ll be praying for a peaceful rest for you.” He hesitated before adding, “And Grace?”
“Hmm?” Grace’s mind had already turned to prayer.
“I love you.”
The phone clicked before Grace could respond.
Chapter Twenty-Five