Blessings (20 page)

Trina nodded, her gaze to the side, seemingly lost in thought.

Squeezing her hands, he said, “I’ll pick you up at six o’clock.” He waited until she looked at him. “We can eat at McDonald’s before we go to the rink.”

Trina finally rewarded him with a slight smile. “That sounds good.”

He affected a stern look and pointed at her. “But now you go home and use the afternoon to study. Or go to Beth’s and type that science paper. But get some work done, okay? Earn your evening out.”

Trina giggled, not at all put off by his mock dictatorial attitude. “Yes, sir!” Bounding from the seat, she said, “Thank you for lunch. I’ll see you this evening.”

He watched her leave the café, her steps light and head held high. How he wished he had the money to give her for school so she wouldn’t have to work. But it wouldn’t be seemly, considering they weren’t married. And he didn’t have it anyway. He’d used his savings to build his—their—house. Then an idea struck with such force he sat upright, banging his head on the high back of the booth.

Withdrawing his wallet, he dropped enough bills on the table to cover the lunch tab plus a tip for Kelly. Then he hurried out of the café, eager to locate his father. He had something important to discuss.

T
WENTY

W
atching Michelle and Walt huddle in a corner of the rink sent a shaft of jealousy through Trina’s middle. Since they were officially published, expressing affection was acceptable. How she’d love to rest her head on Graham’s shoulder, to have his arm slip around her waist, to feel his breath on her cheek as he whispered in her ear.

But she couldn’t.

She turned her attention away from the benches and watched the skaters. She’d removed her borrowed skates early, offering the excuse of a blister on her toe. In truth, she simply needed to separate herself from the giggling and teasing and roughhousing going on. Why, she wondered, did the childish displays—displays that only a few months ago she would have cheerfully joined—now set her teeth on edge?

Propping her elbows on the wooden ledge of the rink’s surrounding wall, she observed Kelly laughing into the face of Paul Lantz as she held on to his arm. Paul appeared quite content to move slowly around the rink with Kelly attached to his elbow. Smiling, Trina remembered her first attempts and the repeated falls before Graham had offered his elbow to keep her upright. Would romance bloom for Kelly and Paul as it had for her and Graham?

Automatically her head raised, her gaze seeking, until she spotted Graham’s familiar sandy head of hair. He skated like an expert, his body angled forward, arms swinging in rhythm with the smooth movement of his feet. Her heart caromed at his display of athletic prowess. As she watched, he whizzed between two slower skaters and came alongside Darcy Kauffman. With a huge grin, he tapped her opposite shoulder, then zoomed on while Darcy glanced back with a puzzled look. His laughter brought Darcy’s gaze forward, and she shook her fist at him, skating faster to catch up. But of course she couldn’t catch him.

Trina scowled. Graham was still laughing when he careened to a halt on the other side of the wall, but his expression changed quickly when he met her gaze.

“What’s wrong?”

With effort, Trina pushed aside the rush of envy that made her want to snap at him for tapping Darcy’s shoulder. He and Darcy were friends—he should be able to tease a friend. But she couldn’t quite manufacture a smile.

“Nothing.”

He placed his hands over hers and leaned closer. She had to strain to hear his voice over the noise of the skaters. “Do you want to leave now?”

She thought about the fun he’d been having only moments before. It would be selfish to pull him away just because she didn’t want to skate. With an adamant shake of her head, she said, “No.”

“Are you sure? Can’t be much fun just standing there watching.”

He was right—it wasn’t as much fun as being a participant. But tonight she had no desire to participate. “I’m okay, really. Go ahead and skate. See if you can make it around faster than Lester.”

Graham snorted, his grin returning. “Lester, huh? Oh, that’s easy.” He whizzed back to the floor and in moments caught up to Lester Hess. After a whispered consultation in the corner of the rink, the two lined up for a race. An excited wave of laughter carried the other skaters to the edges to watch the contest. Several heads blocked Trina’s view, and she rose up on tiptoe to peek out just in time to see Graham zing by a few seconds ahead of Lester.

A cheer rose, and someone grabbed Trina’s hand.

“Did you see him? He’s the fastest skater ever, I think.” Darcy’s blue eyes shone with admiration. “I wish I could skate that fast, but never in a dress.” She giggled, and Trina couldn’t help but join in, imagining Darcy trying to keep up with Graham’s long-legged stride.

The crowd headed back to the floor, except for Darcy, who remained next to Trina and waited for Graham’s smiling approach.

“Well, I guess I showed him, huh?”

Before Trina could answer, Darcy said, “You sure did! That was exciting!” She crinkled her nose. “Lester is always bragging, so it’s good to see him bested now and then.”

“I guess so.” Graham wiped the sweat from his brow. “But that wore me out. I’m ready to go now, Trina, if you want to leave.”

Darcy grabbed Graham’s sleeve. “Oh no! Don’t go yet! A bunch of us are going for ice cream afterward. You’ll want to come.” She turned to include Trina. “Won’t you?”

Seeing Darcy and Graham side by side on the other side of the wall left Trina feeling strangely distanced from her friends. She swallowed. “I’m not really hungry.” She looked at Graham. “But if you want ice cream, I don’t mind staying.”

To her relief Graham shook his head. “It sounds fun, Darcy, but I worked today, and I’m worn out. I think Trina and I will go on home.” He skated around Darcy and left the rink.

Darcy’s lips slipped into a brief pout, but then she shrugged and shot Trina a grin. “Well, I’ll see you at service tomorrow.” Her smile turned impish. “Maybe I’ll go console Lester on his loss in that race.” With a laugh, she skated off.

Graham approached, skates dangling from his hand. He pointed to his gray-stockinged feet. “I’ll get my boots on, and then we can go.”

She nodded, shifting her gaze to watch the skaters for a few more minutes. A part of her longed to rush onto the rink and laugh and chase with abandon, but another part of her only wanted to go home. With a sigh, she turned from the wall and stood beside the bench where Graham pulled his boots over his socks. When he’d tugged his pant legs back over the boots, he looked up at her. A sad smile played around the corners of his mouth.

“This wasn’t much fun for you, was it?”

Trina’s chin trembled as she fought tears.

He rose, taking her hand. “Come on. We can talk in the car.”

When the door closed behind them, sealing away the noise of the other skaters, Trina heaved a sigh of relief. She shook her head. “I never realized how loud we were. Was it always so. . .uncontrolled?”

Graham laughed, swinging her hand as he led her to his waiting vehicle. “Yes, and you were usually in the middle of the ruckus.”

Did she detect a note of regret in his tone? He opened the car door for her, but she stood beside the car and peered up at him. “Are you upset about leaving early?”

“No.” The answer came quickly. “Time alone with you is precious, so I don’t mind heading out.” He put his hand on her back, giving a gentle nudge. “Slide in there.”

When he was behind the steering wheel, he sent her a sympathetic look. “I noticed most people avoided you tonight. I’m sorry. I guess they’re not comfortable with the direction you’re taking, and they don’t know what to say. So they say nothing.”

Trina nodded. Her friends, with the exception of Darcy, had been distant. But, she acknowledged, she’d distanced herself, too. She couldn’t blame them entirely. “I know. I understand them. I just wish I understood
me.
” Shifting her gaze, she stared at the building that housed the skating rink. All the times Mama made her stay behind, she’d longed for the opportunity to go. Now she could go, and she longed to be away. With a soft laugh, she added, “I must be going through one of those ‘stages’ Mama used to complain about. I don’t know what I want.”

“Yes, you do.” Graham gave her hand a tug, bringing her focus to him. “You want to serve God by taking care of animals. And you want me to be your support system.” His smile grew. “Well, you’re getting what you want. So let’s see a smile on your face.”

Obediently, Trina offered a smile, but she suspected it lacked luster.

Her suspicion was confirmed when Graham snorted. “That’s a pretty poor excuse for a smile. I guess I’ll just have to buy you a double-dip chocolate ice cream cone. That always perks you up.”

After Graham purchased two double-dip chocolate cones at a dairy store’s drive-through window, he aimed the car toward the highway and home. Trina kept her window up while she ate her cone to keep the dancing tails of her cap from landing in the chocolate, but the moment she finished, she rolled it all the way down and put one hand out.

The pressure of the cooling evening air against her palm sent a tremor clear to her shoulder. She experienced a sense of strength, keeping her hand braced while the coursing wind tried to push it back. If she could hold that wind at bay, surely she could overcome the difficulties facing her as she moved toward her dream.

“Trina?”

She pulled her arm inside and turned to face Graham.

“I’m glad we have this time alone. I need to talk to you about something.”

His serious tone sent her heart pattering. She scooted to the center of the seat, away from the wind’s whistle, so she could hear clearly. “Okay.”

“You were talking about not having enough money to finish your degree.”

She nodded. In her daily prayers, she had petitioned God to help make a way to cover all of the expenses.

“I think I know how you can do it.”

Trina’s eyes flew wide. “You do?”

“Mm-hmm.” His gaze flitted sideways, a twinkle in his blue eyes. “You’ve never been upstairs in my folks’ house, but when Dad built it, he made the second floor kind of like an apartment. My grandmother was living with them when he and Mom got married, and he wanted her to have her own space that felt like a separate house.”

Trina nodded to let him know she was paying attention, but she couldn’t figure out why he was telling her about his parents’ house.

“Well, Grandmother died when I was still small, so Mom and Dad moved me up there after Chuck was born. Chuck has those rooms now, but there’s the second bedroom downstairs still, which he could move into again.” Graham removed one hand from the steering wheel and placed it over hers. “Which leaves the upstairs open.”

Trina shook her head. “But what does that have to do with paying for college?”

His hand tightened. “Just listen, okay?” Another quick glance combined with a wink held her silent. “I built my house for us to live in when we got married, but we don’t have to have our own house if we live in the upstairs at my folks’. If I sell my house, then—”

“No!” Trina jerked her hand free, pressing it to her chest. “I can’t let you do that!”

Graham’s lips turned downward. “Why not? As your husband, it should be my responsibility to help pay for your needs. And education is one of your needs.”

“But, Graham! I—” And then it occurred to her that he’d referred to himself as her husband. She gulped. “Are you wanting to be married right away, then? Even before I finish school?”

He shrugged with one shoulder, the gesture boyishly appealing. “Well, if you don’t have a whole house to care for—if we live with my folks—it would eliminate one responsibility, giving you more time to study. And it would also mean you wouldn’t need to go off to college by yourself. I would go with you, get a job, and support you while you finished your schooling.”

Trina’s mind whirled. She had worried about going off alone, had fretted over putting off their wedding for so long, but now that another option was available, she didn’t know what to think.

“Your parents said it would be all right for us to live with them?”

Graham smiled. “Mom’s never had a daughter, so she was especially thrilled to think you might live with them for a while.”

“And your dad? He didn’t mind, either?”

Graham chuckled softly. “Well, to be honest, Dad thinks I’m a little nutty, building a house and then selling it, but he didn’t say I couldn’t do it. He said if it was what we wanted, he’d be okay with the decision.”

“And Chuck isn’t unhappy about losing his room?” Trina thought about how Tony would feel if he were kicked out of his bedroom. There would certainly be resentment. She didn’t want to live with that.

“Chuck is fine. He’s only been up there a year or so—and he’s young enough to think it’d be neat to have me home again.” He shot her a serious look. “It wouldn’t be permanent—just until you have your degree. Then I’d build us another house.”

Trina chewed her lower lip, her mind racing. “But would anyone buy your house?”

“There is someone interested.” For a moment Graham didn’t answer, his fingers curling briefly around her hand before slipping away to grasp the steering wheel. “Walt. For him and Michelle. They’re getting married in early February, you know.”

Although the words were delivered on a light note, Trina sensed an element of sorrow. She imagined Michelle working in the kitchen Graham had designed for her, and she understood the undertone. A lump filled her throat. “Oh, Graham. . .”

“It’ll be all right.” The glib tone didn’t fool her. “After all, it’s just a house. Not really a home until a family lives in it, and we haven’t had that chance yet. So after you’ve finished school, we’ll build another house, and we’ll move in, and it’ll be home. It’ll be fine.”

Tears welled in Trina’s eyes, and she turned her face to the window to allow the wind to dry them. Her face aimed away from Graham, she said on a sigh, “You’re giving up so much for me.”

His fingers cupped her chin, bringing her face around. “I’m not giving up anything I don’t want to—nothing I can’t live without. You’re more important than ten houses—you know that.”

His hand found hers, and she clung to it, welcoming the contact. “Thank you, Graham.”

“So. . .if you agree. . .then we need to talk to the deacons. Get published. And start planning a wedding.”