His Uptown Girl (18 page)

Georgette refused to break down and cry or throw things. Bob was right. She had been raised better than that. But some things were worth breaking rules for.

Seeing red, she stomped to the door, and kicked it so hard she hurt her toes.

“Love stinks!” she yelled at the top of her voice and limped off to bed. There was breaking the rules, and then there was nearly breaking a foot. There had to be a better way.

“Y
ou may now kiss the bride.”

Bob watched his friend kiss his new bride.

Of course he was happy for Adrian and Celeste, but watching them kiss only reminded him of kissing George a few days ago.

It felt like a lifetime ago.

At work nothing had changed, but everything was different.

George had been avoiding him, and he supposed if the situation had been reversed, he would have felt the same. Between the dress, the wonderful dinner and the way she'd initiated their kiss, it was obvious that she had strong feelings for him. That left the decision in his lap. Even though it wasn't what he wanted, he had to back off. He was realistic enough to know that what they had couldn't last a lifetime.

Bob smiled for the cameras as he escorted a bridesmaid down the aisle behind Adrian and Celeste.

He should have been happy, but he wasn't. Watch
ing Adrian and Celeste only reminded him of what he couldn't have.

He couldn't have Georgette.

Bob shook his head, then forced himself to smile for another camera.

For the first time, he'd thought of her by her real name, not her mannish nickname. He didn't know if he could ever look her in the face and think of her as George again.

It was the way she'd inched herself into kissing him, the dress hadn't hurt, either. He loved her so much. She did everything she could to get him to kiss her; when she'd flat out told him to, he could no longer hold himself back. He'd felt a connection between them like nothing he'd experienced in his life. And now, if the dress she'd worn Wednesday night hadn't been enough to send his brain into outer space, tonight she was wearing the very memorable green dress.

Georgette Ecklington was definitely all woman.

Unfortunately, she was too expensive a woman for him.

By the time he was seated at his place at the head table, he felt utterly miserable. He was at a point in his life where he wanted to settle down and get married, and he'd fallen in love with the wrong person.

When everyone else closed their eyes to pray for their meal, Bob prayed for God to help him deal with his situation. The ceremony had kept him busy, and then there were wedding pictures in the park. For twenty minutes, the guests watched a video that Randy had made of Adrian and Celeste's courtship and the time leading up to the wedding, which provided a good comic relief. But, that was over too quickly. They were having dinner now, and before long that would be over,
too. Soon, it would be time to mingle with all the guests including Georgette.

Mentally, Bob shook his head.
George.
In the green dress. But she was still George. A mechanic. His employee. A woman who had lived with the best the world could offer, when he could offer nothing.

The woman he loved, and would love until his dying day.

Bob's heart clenched every time someone new started tinkling glasses for the bride and groom to kiss. He couldn't help himself. Every once in a while, he glanced at George. She didn't look as if she was having a better time than he was.

When dinner was over, he made his way around the floor. Without realizing how he got there, he found himself at George's table, where she sat talking with his mother, of all people. The second the two of them noticed him, his mother got up to leave without saying a word. He didn't know if that was good or bad.

“Hi,” he mumbled, for lack of anything better to say as he slid into the chair beside George.

“I'm glad you're here,” she said, although her voice was anything but cheerful. She sounded as sad as he felt. “I have to talk to you, and I suppose this is as good a time as any. I need to know how much notice to give you.”

Bob's heart stopped beating. “Notice?”

“Yes. I think I've found another place to live, and they need to know when I can move in. I assume that the sooner I leave, the better, so you can find a paying renter.”

“I don't understand.”

“I've also started looking for another job. I haven't found anything yet, but I thought it would be fair to let you know.”

His heart nearly stopped, and he had to force himself to breathe. “Do you need more money? I can give you a raise.”

She sighed, and something about her looked even more sad than she already was. “This isn't about money. In fact, if the next job I find pays less money, I'll still take it. I can't handle only seeing you at work, and knowing that's all it will ever be. You've shown me how to budget, how to cook and how to take care of a home. I think it's time for me to put all that practice into use and function on my own.”

“But—”

She held up one palm to interrupt him. “You suggested it, Bob, not me. I think you know what I want. Without that, it's torture to work with you all day and go home to your garage at night. It's time.”

Bob's head spun.

She was leaving.

He'd been telling himself for months that it wouldn't work, and he should have seen this as the solution, but it felt as if his world was coming crashing down around him.

“What about Tyler? And your father?”

She sighed and looked away, staring at a blank spot on the wall. “They will never change, and I've changed too much to go back. I'll keep praying for them, and one day, I'll contact Daddy and see if he's ready to accept me as I am. But until that happens, I guess I'll just keep working and plugging along. I'm not unhappy. In fact, I've been more content in the last few months than I have been at any time in my whole life.”

“You say that now, but it hasn't been very long. Life sometimes has a way of beating a person down.”

“God is always with me. Hasn't He always been with you?”

“Of course He has.”

“What about when you started your business with Bart? Didn't people warn you that it might not work?”

He let out a humorless laugh. “George, we were both nineteen years old and we started out of my parents' garage. Nearly everyone we knew told us it wouldn't work. There were times when Bart and I were the only ones who thought it would. And sometimes we weren't even sure ourselves.”

“And what about now? Hasn't God been faithful?”

“Of course.”

“I believe God will be faithful to me. I may not always have the biggest and the best, but that doesn't mean I'll be unhappy. I know I'll have struggles. Everyone does. I'll face them, and I'll become stronger. I've just done that, Bob, and I'll do it again.”

Bob stared at her, her words finally sinking in. She
had
made it through before.

The bright spot in his day was the minute George arrived at work, and the bright spot in his evening was when they sat down together to eat supper. On the weekends, he even enjoyed doing simple housework with her and then working on his old Harley.

She was the answer to all his prayers for the perfect life partner. If she left, his life would not only be empty, it would be meaningless.

He stood. “Stay with me.”

“I can't. It hurts too much. I know it could work between us, but it won't if I'm the only one who believes it.”

“But I do believe it. I was wrong.” He stood and held out one hand toward her. When she gently put her hand in his, he pulled her to her feet, then cupped her face with his hands. “I'd like you to stay in the garage until we can get married. George, will you marry me? If you're willing to give me a second chance. A second chance for forever.”

She rested her palms on his shoulders. “Are you sure?”

“I've never been more sure of anything in my life.” He finally knew what he had, and he prayed it wasn't too late for him to keep it.

“Then of course I will,” she said, then snuggled closer.
“Ti amo.”

He smiled, and slowly ran one finger down her cheek. “I love you, too. How did you know how to say that in Italian?”

Her cheeks darkened. “Your mother taught me.”

Just as Bob leaned down to kiss her, the flash of a camera glared.

He opened his eyes, glanced to the side, and lowered his hands to her shoulders. “Randy,” he mumbled.

“Whoo-hoo!” Randy exclaimed, waving his digital camera in the air. His movements stilled, he took one more picture of the two of them gaping at him, did a short two-step dance, twirled around, and sauntered away.

“He's going to be the best man, isn't he?”

Bob sighed. “Yup. I hope you know what you're in for.”

George's arms slid around to his back, she tucked her head under his chin and embraced him fully. “I sure do, and I can hardly wait.

Dear Reader,

Welcome once again to Faith Community Fellowship!

Many people work hard all their lives. Many of us work too hard, and need to slow down before it's too late. Sometimes we need to work harder than those around us to get what we want, or even what we need. In both these times, often God sends messages, or messengers, in likely and unlikely forms, for our own good, whether we like it, or not.

The hardest part can be meeting in the middle. It is human nature to keep going the same way, just because we know what to expect. I've often heard it said that the greatest fear is the fear of the unknown. In this story, Bob didn't know what it would be like not to work…
hard.
Georgette didn't know what it was like to work at all. Of course, the best place is somewhere in the middle, and I hope you enjoyed the story of how Bob and Georgette met each other, with God's guidance, in that middle ground.

With the closing of
His Uptown Girl
we move next to Randy, who sometimes marches to the beat of a different drummer.

I look forward to seeing you again, when we see what God has in store for Randy.

Until then, may God bless you in your daily journeys.