Anchor of Hope (22 page)

“Good morning.” He smiled when he noticed she was awake.

She rubbed her eyes, blinked, and sat up.

“You OK? You look a bit shell-shocked,” Steven said.              

“I didn’t know where I was for a moment. I didn’t expect to wake up on the sofa.” She stretched her arms out. It felt good after being so cramped all night.

Steven shrugged. “Well, that
is
where you fell asleep.”

“I thought you might . . . never mind.” Her voice trailed off.

“What? You thought I might what?” Steven tipped the milk to his lips again.

“I thought you might have carried me to bed.” Ashley said, feeling silly.

Steven laughed and choked on the milk. “That's a good one Ashley. Carry you? I’m not your father-” He stopped abruptly, realising his mistake.

“I’m sorry Ash. I didn’t mean that.” He walked over and sat beside her on the sofa, took her hands in his and kissed them.

“I’m sorry, will you forgive me?”

Ashley smiled. “Yes, it’s fine. Honestly. I’m not upset at all.” She wasn't. The truth was she hadn’t even thought about her father. She had been thinking of a completely different man altogether.

“Do you start the new job today?” Steven asked. He barely knew anything about it. Only what Ashley had sent through to him in a text message, but she hadn't been able to have a real sit-down face-to-face conversation with him for days.

“Tomorrow.” Ashley smiled as she checked the time on the oversized modern clock on the wall.

“We’re both going to be late if we don’t get moving.” Ashley stood up and pulled Steven to his feet.

“I’m beginning to think we’re going to have to schedule time for us to be together.” He took her chin in his hand and tilted it upwards to face him. He grinned mischievously.

Ashley laughed.

“I'm serious,” he said. “In fact, it’s probably a smart thing to do. That way we have a block of time pencilled out where we can be together. Totally uninterrupted and alone.”

She liked the sound of that. The last part, not the part of needing to ‘book in’ to see him. It felt ridiculous. Surely she didn’t need an appointment to spend time with her boyfriend?

Her phone vibrated. It was a message. From her mother:

             
Hi Ashley,

Martin and I have arrived safely in Florida.

We miss you already, would love for you to visit more—and Steven if he's not too busy.

Love Mom xx

She smiled at the message.“Who’s that?”

“Just Mom.”

He grinned, “What’s she up to? Church?”

Ashley frowned.

“What?” He shrugged, looking both surprised and annoyed at her reaction.

Normally she would have laughed along with him and made some derogatory comment about Bible believers, but since her visit to Sweet Home something had changed inside of her and she couldn’t quite put her finger on it.

“Nothing.” She smiled, dismissing the comment. This was not like her at all.

Ashley had enjoyed every minute of her day shadowing Madeleine. They went out to watch a photo shoot featuring gowns from a fabulous new European fashion designer. The job was everything she had imagined it would be and more. The models were all drop-dead gorgeous,. well over six feet tall, with flawless skin and fabulous facial features. The outfits were breathtaking. At first she was worried she wouldn't fit in, but Madeleine was kind and friendly. She showed Ashley where to stand to ensure they didn't get in anyone’s way, and what to look out for in terms of detail and what the readers would want to hear about.

They decided to head out for lunch. They found a cozy little cafe on the corner and ordered lunch.

“I’m starving!” Madeleine announced as they waitress took their order and left. “The worst thing about being pregnant is I’m always hungry but because my  stomach is so squished I can never eat much. I feel like I’m eating and starving at the same time
all
the time!”

She laughed.

“Have you got any kids, Ashley?”

“Me? No. No kids for me,” Ashley said. “I have two nieces and a nephew though. They’re so awesome. They live over in Oregon, so I don’t get to spend much time with them.”

She pulled out her phone and flicked through the photos to show Madeleine a photo of herself with Meika, Coco and Harley. She had missed them this week.

“Oh, they’re adorable. It must be hard living so far away from them. You never wanted to be a mom?”

“Yeah, I did, when I was younger. My partner works a lot, long hours and we don’t feel like having children would be a responsible decision. For us.” Ashley added, to make sure Madeleine didn’t get the wrong idea and think that Ashley thought no one should have children.

“Where does your partner work?” Madeleine asked.

Their food arrived. Madeleine had an open gourmet chicken burger and Ashley had opted for pasta primavera.

Madeleine bowed her head, closed her eyes and whispered inaudibly, then looked up as if nothing had happened.

Did she just pray?

“Sorry, where does he work?” She popped a fry into her mouth.

“He’s an attorney at Cole, Irving and Paxton.”

“The law firm?”

“Yes.” Ashley nodded.

“Wow, that’s awesome.” She took a bite of her burger, moaning in satisfaction.

“Yeah, he’s actually going to be announced as a partner tomorrow night at the Business Awards Dinner.”

“That is so cool. I’ve always wanted to go to one of those Dinners. I should say ‘ball’. It’s more of a ball, isn’t it? Well, dinner
and
a ball. Unfortunately my husband’s not quite up there with the big guns.” Madeleine smiled.

“Oh, what does he do?” Ashley asked, intrigued.

“He’s an engineer actually. In the army.”

That
did
sound interesting.

“He specialises in electrical warfare. It’s all very technical and complicated.” Madeleine laughed. “I have no idea what he’s talking about most of the time but he loves it. I mean,
really
  loves it.”

“So does he work here? In the city?” Ashley asked, devouring her pasta which was delicious and satisfying.

“Sometimes. He’s spent a lot of time overseas, and around the country—he’s back now, but  I was a bit worried for a while that he wouldn’t be here for the baby’s birth.” Madeleine smiled and rubbed her belly.

“Do you know if you're having a boy or a girl?” Ashley asked.

Madeleine shook her head. “Whatever God chooses to bless us with. We waited for so long to fall pregnant—that was a nightmare in itself. I won't go into detail but it was tough on us. We’ve been married for eleven years and we started trying right from the get-go. After I did finally fall pregnant we thought we had waited so long for this baby, we could wait to find out if it was a boy or a girl.”

She wouldn't have picked Madeleine for a religious person—she seemed too smart, and non-judgemental and, well, normal.

“So you believe in God?” Ashley asked, out of polite interest.

Madeleine nodded as she hurried to swallow the mouthful of food she had been chewing on.

“Yes, I do. I
didn
’
t
until I met Chris. He invited me along to church and I went along to be polite—you know what it’s like when you’re first dating. You take an interest in everything your partner likes. Well, his church totally blew my mind. It was nothing like I thought it would be. We still go to church here in the city, and seriously, it’s insane. It’s like going to a massive music concert—lights, fog machines, and music I would actually listen to. The pastor doesn’t even look like a pastor—he’s cool. We love it. They have something like five thousand people at the services and they run the services back–to-back on Sundays. Are you a Christian?”

“Me? No, I’d be too afraid to step foot in a church—God would probably strike me down.” Ashley laughed.

“But you
do
believe in God.” Madeleine said. “You said
God
would strike you down.”

“I don’t know what I believe, to tell you the truth,” Ashley admitted. “I would
like
to believe in God, but most Christians I’ve met have been hypocrites. I don’t think
anyone
could be perfect enough to consider themselves a
real
Christian.”

“That’s interesting.” Madeleine raised her eyebrows and Ashley looked confused. “I don’t think it’s fair to base your belief in God on how people act. I mean, sure, there are a lot of Christians who
are
hypocrites, but there are also a lot of
non-Christians
who are hypocrites. That’s just what people are like in general. Do you think you need to be perfect in order to be saved?”

Ashley shrugged. “I think you have to try, at least.”

“I agree. I think we should all try to be Christ-like, which means loving, forgiving, accepting, caring—but we’re only human and of course we are going to fail—miserably! No one is perfect. But we are saved by God’s grace, not by our works or deeds. God sees our hearts and he knows we stuff up, myself especially, but he loves me regardless. And he loves you, too.”

Those words pierced straight in Ashley’s heart and she could feel herself begin to sweat.

Surely God couldn’t love someone like her. Not after she had refused to acknowledge him in her life.

This conversation was making her feel uncomfortable and she could feel her knots in her stomach. She had to change the subject.

“How long is your maternity leave? When do you think you'll return to your job?”

“Why? Do you want it?” Madeleine grinned.

Ashley hoped she hadn’t given Madeleine the wrong idea. That position was Ashley’s dream job, but she would never want to steal it out from under someone else.

“I don't know if I want to return yet,” Madeleine said. “Chris wants to move out of the city. He grew up on a farm, so he’s always wanted a little patch of land somewhere where we could live the quiet life, raise a family.”

“Sounds like a change from the city. Wouldn’t you miss it here?” Ashley asked as she finished the last of her lunch.

“Not really. Don't get me wrong. I love it here—and I couldn’t ask for a better job—but after a while you get sick of the plastic people and the fakeness. I mean, there are a lot of beautiful, genuine people here whom I love and adore, but it all gets a bit repetitive after a while—fashion changes all the time but people’s insatiable appetite for materialistic things never changes. It gets to me. It’s like no one is ever satisfied. They always want more, more, more—I’m sure you'll figure that out soon. If we moved away, I’d be with the ones I love and who mean the most to me. That’s all that matters, really. Whether we’re here, on a farm or in another country, so long as we’re together, I’ll be a happy woman.”

Ashley couldn't help but smile at Madeline’s contentment. These days, it was unusual to see a couple who had been married for more than three years and who were still happily in love with one another. She couldn’t help but envy Madeleine in a small way.

As they headed back to the office they passed several small cafes. Ashley stopped as she recognised Tania in one of the eateries. Tania was sitting by the bar, chatting with another girl who had long brown hair. Her back was towards Ashley so she couldn’t see if it was someone she knew. . They were laughing hysterically at something and looked to be enjoying themselves.

Ashley waved, trying to get Tania’s attention. She did. Tania looked over and appeared to be embarrassed, much to Ashley’s confusion. It wasn’t until the other girl turned around that she knew why.

It was Stephanie.

Ashley forced a smile and gave a quick wave then turned and walked away. Why had Tania had lied to Ashley about her relationship with Stephanie? It didn’t make sense and she couldn't help but feel the sting of betrayal. Tania could be friends with whoever she wanted. she didn't have to lie about it. Unless she had an ulterior motive. Ashley tried to shake the feeling that maybe Tania and Stephanie had been plotting against Ashley this past week.  She refused to entertain the thought.

She remembered something her mother had told her when she was younger—
If someone is willing to gossip about another friend to you behind their back, then they will be willing to gossip about you behind your back too.

“I know, I know, I'm late, I'm sorry.” Ashley called as she rushed into the apartment. “The shoot went longer than expected and I only just made it to the store to pick up my dress before it closed.” She dumped the bags onto the dining table.

She had picked up a simple knee-length black dress., with thick straps and an elegant square neck line.

Steven poked his head out from the bathroom. He was dressed in only a towel wrapped around his waist. He had already showered, and judging from the specks of shaving cream left on his face, he had finished shaving. He didn’t look impressed. She knew this was an important night for him and she didn’t want to let him down.

“I’m so sorry, Steven. Any other day I would have been here earlier, but with the new position I couldn’t bail early. I’ll be ready on time, I promise.” She flashed her sweetest smile and watched as his angry exterior cracked and he smiled back.

“You better be.” He pointed at her and took off towards the bedroom to get dressed.

She took advantage of the empty bathroom to shower. It must have been the fastest shower of her life as she calculated the time it would take to dry and style her hair, get dressed and do her makeup. She would be struggling to get ready on time, but she was determined.

She wrapped a towel around her hair and another around her body, moving to grab the box containing her dress from the table and scooting to the bedroom as quickly she could. She slipped on a strapless bra and some figure-sculpting underwear. Not that she needed it, but  she didn’t want any visible panty lines showing under the fabric of the simple black dress.

As she opened the lid to the box she froze.

This was not her dress. It wasn’t even black.

She frowned and reached into the box, lifting the dress so she could get a good look at it. She recognised it instantly. It was the dress that she had seen in the photo shoot yesterday. She caught sight of Steven out of the corner of her eye. He was leaning on the doorway, dressed in his black tuxedo.

He looked every bit like a partner at a prestigious law firm.

“Do you like it?” He nodded towards the dress.

“Did you do this?” Ashley asked.

He nodded.

“But how? This dress hadn't even been released in the stores yet.”

“I called in a little favor from my old friend Dianne. She told me you couldn’t stop raving about this dress from the photo shoot yesterday. You interviewed the designer or something? It was lucky Dianne is a personal friend of that designer.”

Ashley couldn't believe it.

It had a Grecian feel to it, with several layers of lightweight chiffon in a golden blush color, with a dusty pink satin underskirt. Two thin golden string straps came together at the back and a length of sheer flowing fabric draped down from the centre seam. A long slit ran up to the thigh. It was fitted and sculpted across the bust with gold applique across the neckline.

The designer was from Russia and was taking the New York fashion world by storm with her unique and exquisite designs. It was a surreal feeling to know she would be wearing one of her dresses. Ashley slipped the dress on and was relieved it fit her so well. That was a relief, as she was nowhere near as tall as the model who wore it yesterday. With her heels, the hem fell to the floor perfectly.

Ashley opened her  jewelry box and pulled out her mother’s tear drop necklace , and began to put it on.              

Steven rubbed his chin. “I’m not sure that necklace works with the dress.  How about this one?” He handed her a long jewelry box.

Another surprise.

She opened the box to find several strands of pearls. She was touched by the gesture, but also disappointed that he preferred pearls over her mother’s necklace which held such sentimental value for her. But it wasn’t as though he knew it was her mother’s necklace, and if he wanted her to look a certain way for his big night, then she was happy to oblige. It was not about her, after all.

He draped the pearls around her neck and stood back to admire them.

“Perfect.” He smiled, then checked his watch, “Ash, you had better get your hair and makeup done quickly. Harry will be here in less than an hour.”

She managed to finish getting ready with time to spare.

They made their way downstairs. Steven was nervous, because he didn’t speak much at all. Ashley took his hand, intertwining her fingers through his.

“You’ll be fine. Relax and enjoy your night. You deserve it,” she said as they waited for the car to arrive.

Steven audibly let out a deep breath, “Easier said than done. Especially when I’ve got shoes as large as my fathers to fill.”

“Well, that's true, but it's not like he’s retiring. He’s just taking a step back so you can step up. He’ll still be there to guide you along.” Ashley smiled, trying her hardest to help ease his anxiety.

“I just want tonight to be perfect,” Steven said.

“It will be. Don’t worry.”

“You said that when I went to Tokyo, and things didn’t exactly go according to plan
then
.
”

She knew he was anxious and nervous—that was to be expected—, but she could do without the insults. It wasn’t
her
fault the Tokyo deal hadn’t worked out.

Her phone vibrated. It was a picture message from Bryan,  a photo of their whole family pulling stupid faces.
“All the best to Steven tonight —we love you.”

Ashley stifled a laugh as she looked at their ridiculous expressions. Even Harley had gotten in on the action and was pulling down his cheeks and poking out his tongue.

“Bryan and Jess wanted to wish you good luck for tonight,” Ashley said to Steven.

Steven nodded in acknowledgement, checking his watch and straining to see if his driver was nearby.

Harry arrived and they travelled the distance to the function centre in silence.

Harry delivered them to the bottom of the stairs leading up to the great hall entrance. They got out of the car, Steven waited for her as he straightened his tie. She joined him on the staircase and tucked her arm under his as they made their way to the entrance. Other guests were arriving, and the area was filled with clean-shaven men in black and white suites, and women in designer gowns and heels

It was like stepping into another world. Outside had been dark and noisy with traffic and the occasional siren wailing past. Inside was illuminated with warm glowing light from the many crystal chandeliers. A chamber orchestra provided background music, and the sound of chatter and laughter filled the room.