A Trusting Heart

© 2002, 2013 Shannon Guymon
All rights reserved.
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This is a work of fiction. The characters, names, incidents, places, and dialogue are products of the author’s imagination and are not to be construed as real. The views expressed within this work are the sole responsibility of the author and do not necessarily reflect the position of Cedar Fort, Inc., or any other entity.
ISBN 13: 978-1-4621-1180-0
Published by Sweetwater Books, an imprint of Cedar Fort, Inc.
2373 W. 700 S., Springville, UT 84663
Distributed by Cedar Fort, Inc. www.cedarfort.com
LIBRARY OF CONGRESS CATALOGING-IN-PUBLICATION DATA

Guymon, Shannon, 1972-
A trusting heart / by Shannon Guymon.
pages cm
ISBN 1-55517-620-8
1. Class reunions--Fiction. I. Title.
PS3613.C3582F737 2012
PS3607.U96 T78 2002 813’.6--dc21

2002006810
Cover design by Angela D. Olsen
Cover design © 2013 Lyle Mortimer
Typeset by Shelby Boyer
Printed in the United States of America
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

Table of Contents

1. Title Page
   
2. Copyright
   
3. Chapter 1
   
4. Chapter 2
   
5. Chapter 3
   
6. Chapter 4
   
7. Chapter 5
   
8. Chapter 6
   
9. Chapter 7
   
10. Chapter 8
    
11. Chapter 9
    
12. Chapter 10
    
13. Chapter 11
    
14. Chapter 12
    
15. Chapter 13
    
16. Chapter 14
    
17. Chapter 15
    
18. Chapter 16
    
19. Chapter 17
    
20. Chapter 18
    
21. Chapter 19
    
22. Chapter 20
    
23. Chapter 21
    
24. Chapter 22
    
25. Chapter 23
    
26. Chapter 24
    
27. Chapter 25
    
28. Chapter 26
    
29. Chapter 27
    
30. Chapter 28
    
31. Chapter 29
    
32. Chapter 30
    
33. Chapter 31
    
34. Chapter 32
    
35. Chapter 33
    
36. Chapter 34
    
37. Chapter 35
    
38. Epilogue
    
39. About the Author
    
40. Back Cover
    

One

W
hy am I doing this?
she asked herself for the tenth time in the last five minutes. She looked down at her shiny, silver polyester skirt she had bought at Wal-Mart just that morning especially for the occasion. It was a good thing polyester had come back in style. It was the only material her bank account approved of. She sighed and tried not to wince. Her Calvin Klein days were long gone. And to think ten years ago she had taken labels like that for granted. She looked in the mirror one last time. What would they see when they looked at her? How would they label her this time? She wasn’t a cheerleader any longer and she wasn’t Dylan Carlisle’s arm ornament either. Maybe there would be no labels this time; maybe they would see her.

Megan Garrett ran the brush through her long honey brown hair and touched up her light makeup. Solemn green eyes stared back at her through the mirror. Ten years ago her eyes had been blue. Her mother’s voice echoed through her thoughts, If you want to be a cheerleader, then you have to look the part. And if you want your father to be proud of you, you’ll be a cheerleader. Megan shook her head to clear away the memories. This was who she was now, and she wouldn’t go back to the old Megan Garrett for anything or anyone.

Her classmates probably wouldn’t even recognize her. Not that she’d had plastic surgery or been in a disfiguring accident or anything, but take away the blond, permed hair, deep tan, blue contacts, and about a pound of makeup, and what was left was a completely different kind of person. Someone she could be proud of. Someone she even kind of liked. The thought stilled her hand. What if she showed up tonight and sat in a corner because no one made the connection between the gorgeous, bubbly cheerleader and the completely natural, conservative person she had become? A smile relaxed her face for the first time in hours. She’d always wanted to be a fly on the wall at Jefferson High School; maybe tonight would be her chance. And to think she had been seriously considering ditching her ten-year reunion to stay home and read a good book. She wouldn’t miss this party for the world.

* * *

She drove her 1985 faded green El Camino into the parking lot of the Landry Hotel. Oh, great! she thought. Valet parking. As if she had money for a tip tonight after splurging on clothes. Megan sighed in exasperation as she handed her keys over to the smirking attendant and noticed that his derision of her car didn’t pass on to her legs. She squared her shoulders and walked into the lobby of the elegant hotel. There were enough marble pillars and faux Greek statues for a remake of Spartacus. Why couldn’t the reunion have been held in the old school gym? she grumbled under her breath. And why am I starting to feel like an old piece of chewed-up gum? Megan’s pace slowed as it dawned on her that everyone she saw was dressed in tuxedos and formals. Everyone except her.

She veered to the right instead of heading for the ballroom, where everyone else was going. Pausing behind an unnaturally large potted palm tree, she ripped the invitation from her purse. Where did it say the evening was formal?! She would look like a fool. Megan scanned the now-wrinkled paper, finally noticing the very small, neat black letters on the bottom left-hand side of the paper: “Formal attire suggested.“

She leaned back and closed her eyes, then banged her head in frustration against the wall. At least the oversized plant was shielding her from everyone. She would die if anyone she knew recognized her now. There was no way that she was going to humiliate herself tonight. She’d had enough humiliation to last a lifetime. No, thank you.

Easing away from the wall, she tried to blend in with the shadows as she headed for the exit, pasting a serene and completely fake smile on her face and trying to act as if she had no idea there was a school reunion going on. Who had ever heard of Jefferson High School? Besides that, who had ever heard of Megan Garrett?

Megan was so busy looking calm, yet purposeful, she didn’t even notice the man standing in the shadows on the opposite side of the foyer watching her. But he could see that she was leaving and he wasn’t about to let that happen. Taking the woman beside him by the hand, he glided smoothly over to intercept her.

“Well, if it isn’t Megan Garrett,” Dylan Carlisle drawled. Megan stumbled back, aghast to see the man she had once believed herself to be in love with. He was still handsome, only more so now that he was older. He had been a pretty boy in high school; now he was just plain gorgeous. His blond hair was swept back, still thick and full, and his blue eyes looked silver. He really should have been a model. At least that’s what he had always told her.

Megan glanced past his left shoulder and noticed a woman who was trying her best to go unnoticed. Turning slightly, Megan looked into the nervous eyes of Taffie Barlow Carlisle. They had been co-captains of the cheerleading squad together and had been best friends. Keyword: had.

“You remember Megan, don’t you, Taffie? She’s the one who humiliated me in front of all my friends and family. To think I actually thought I loved her once! Taffie, hand me a piece of gum will you? I’m getting a bad taste in my mouth.”

Megan blinked as Taffie dug into her evening bag, searching as if her life depended on it. Not three seconds passed before she placed the gum in Dylan’s outstretched hand. He chewed the gum a few moments before he continued.

“I have to say I’m surprised you even showed up tonight. I didn’t think you had the guts. But now that I see you standing here . . . ” Dylan let his gaze fall to her PayLess clearance shoes, up to her Wal-Mart skirt and blouse, and settled at last on her face. It was obvious she had come up lacking. He smiled slowly, which brought a malicious warmth to his eyes that hadn’t been there before.

“Hmm. This might not be so bad after all. As a matter of fact, this is going to be perfect,” he sneered.

Megan opened her mouth for the first time since coming face to face with her ex-boyfriend, and ex-fiancé.

“Excuse me, but I left my cell phone in the car.” Megan turned to flee but was stopped by Dylan’s harsh laughter and tight grip on her arm.

“Forget about your phone, Megan. You’re coming with us. I wouldn’t be able to live with myself if you missed even a second of tonight’s festivities.”

Megan shook off his hand and glared up into the eyes of the man she had come so close to spending eternity with.

“I’m not going anywhere with you, Dylan. Not then, not now, not ever. Don’t worry though, I’m not leaving. I wouldn’t miss this reunion for anything, not even for you. And since I don’t plan on mingling with you two tonight, I’ll just leave you with one bit of advice if you want to have a good time: stop living in the past and get over it.”

As she preceded them into the ballroom, she decided she’d rather be cleaning toilets. In fact, seeing all the glittering, polished women in their exquisite formals, she wished she could trade the whole evening in for a men’s locker room of dirty toilets.

She forced herself to walk nonchalantly over to the table of name tags, but couldn’t help an involuntary groan when she saw they all had pictures from their senior year attached. If the tags hadn’t been laminated, she would have torn her picture off. She stuck her name tag up high on her shoulder, hoping that her hair would hide it, then scanned the ballroom for a possible escape. Noticing a fire exit on the opposite side, she moved swiftly around the groups of laughing, smiling people, she once knew and vowed that she would make it up to them at their twenty-year reunion.

“Hey, I noticed you when you walked in with Dylan and Taffie. I can’t read your tag, but you look so familiar. What’s your name?”

Megan knew it would be rude to keep walking. She was desperate, but she wasn’t rude. She turned to answer the tall attractive woman who had waylaid her and squealed, grabbing the surprised woman in a bear hug, laughing in delight. “Brenna!”

“I must have a really bad memory, because I just can’t place your name.” The woman gasped out, after having all the air squeezed out of her lungs.

Megan grinned at the confusion and pulled the hair off of her name tag. “Let me help you out a little.”

Brenna leaned in closer, squinting in the dim light. “Megan Garrett! No! It can’t be you.”

Brenna stared at her for the longest time, making Megan wish she had checked her teeth for lettuce. She couldn’t be that different. She had wanted to go unnoticed tonight, but Brenna’s apparent disbelief was a little disconcerting. Megan started to reach for her driver’s license when she was stopped by Brenna’s arms gripping her shoulders.

“I had no idea you were so beautiful. I mean, you were always cute, but look at you now!”

Megan’s mouth dropped. This woman was insane. It had been approximately two and a half years since anyone had paid her a compliment, and she hadn’t believed the clerk at the gas station then either.

“Um, thanks. So how have you been Brenna? Did you get your medical degree so you can save the world?”

Brenna still looked stunned momentarily, then laughed. “Well, no. I ended up getting married my third year in college. I had to drop out to support my husband. Four kids and a dog later, here I am.”

But Megan could tell from the happy sparkle in Brenna’s eyes that she didn’t regret her choice at all. She glanced at her own bare left hand, regretting that she had never found anyone that could make her eyes sparkle like her old friend’s.

“Megan, what happened to you? I mean, you’ve changed so much. Are you married, divorced, widowed? Are you working? Where do you live? And how do you stay a size six?”

Megan laughed, remembering the fun conversations they’d had as chemistry partners. She would have flunked chemistry flat out if it hadn’t been for Brenna Colburn. And Brenna had made it so fun that Megan had even looked forward to fifth period. It was too bad they hadn’t stayed close. There had been many times in her life since graduation when Megan had needed a good friend.

“Okay, I’m not married and never have been. I’m a real estate agent now. I live in Lehi. And my rotten, evil pest of a dog eats all my food.”

Brenna laughed, hugging Megan happily.

“That’s what I always liked about you. You were always so literal.”

Megan smiled back at Brenna, noticing the changes in her friend as well. Whereas Megan had stopped bleaching her hair, Brenna had added red highlights to her dark brown hair. And while she wasn’t a size six, she had filled out very attractively. She looked wonderful. And she wasn’t wearing a formal either. She was wearing a very classy suit.
What a relief!
thought Megan.