Love Finds a Way (19 page)

“Sheila says you may have found my old doll,” Grandma said.

He swallowed the meat he’d put in his mouth before answering. “It’s a collector who buys and sells antique dolls.”

“I understand there’s some writing on the doll’s body.”

He nodded. “That’s how it was stated in the description; only it didn’t say what the writing said.”

“I can’t believe that Sheila doing something as naughty as writing her name on a doll could prove to be helpful years later.” Grandma chuckled behind her napkin. “Sheila always was possessive of the doll. I never knew how much until she confessed she’d written her name on its stomach.”

Dwaine laughed and shoveled another bite of meat into his mouth.

Sheila gritted her teeth.
The way these two are carrying on
,

you’d think I wasn’t even in the room
.

“Sheila dear, you haven’t said more than a few words since we sat down.” Grandma wagged her finger.

“I’ve—uh—been eating.”

“She did say she likes your chicken,” Dwaine said.

“If you don’t mind, I prefer to speak for myself.” Sheila’s voice sounded harsh, and Grandma and Dwaine looked at her like she’d taken leave of her senses.

“Are you upset about something?” Grandma asked.

Of course Sheila was upset. She’d taken a week’s vacation to look for a doll Grandma had apparently sold and no one could find. Then she’d asked her boss for another two weeks so she could continue to search for the doll while helping Dwaine at his shop because he’d sprained his ankle on her account. To make matters worse, every lead they’d had so far had turned up nothing. Unless the magazine ad brought forth helpful information, it was likely Sheila would return to California without her attic treasure. Her final frustration came from falling for a guy who lived hundreds of miles from her.

“Sheila?”

“I’m fine, Grandma. Just tired, I guess.”

“I’d like to date your granddaughter,” Dwaine blurted, “but she’s not interested.”

Dwaine limped down the hall after Sheila, his heart pounding and his mind whirling with unanswered questions. She’d acted Sheila didn’t wait for Grandma’s response. She leaped to her feet and raced out of the apartment.

Dwaine limped down the hall after Sheila, his heart pounding and his mind whirling with unanswered questions. She’d acted strangely all evening, but what had happened to set her off like this?

Dwaine caught up to Sheila as she stepped into the elevator. “Wait!”

The door started to close, but he stuck out his hand and held it open.

“Where do you think you’re running off to?” he panted.

Sheila averted her gaze and stared at the floor. “Home. I’m going home.”

“But you said you weren’t leaving until next week.”

She looked up, and her eyelids fluttered. “I’m going back to Grandma’s old house, where I won’t have to spend the evening being talked
about
rather than to.”

Dwaine stepped into the elevator and pushed the button so the door would close more quickly. He didn’t want to chance her bolting again.

“Ever since we sat down to supper, you and Grandma talked about me like I wasn’t even in the room.” Sheila’s chin quivered. “I’m already upset over not finding the Bye-Lo doll, and I don’t like being treated as if I’m a child.”

“I’m sorry. I didn’t realize that’s what I was doing.”

Sheila blinked, and a few tears rolled down her cheeks. “That’s not all.”

“What else is bothering you?”

“I feel like all you care about is going on dates and having fun. Finding my grandmother’s doll doesn’t seem to be a priority anymore—if it ever was.”

He shook his head. “That’s not true, Sheila. I told you about the magazine ad, didn’t I?”

“Yes, but what have you done to contact the person who placed it?”

“I told you before; I called and left a message on their answering machine.” He sighed. “Can’t really do much more until I hear back, now, can I?”

She shrugged and hung her head. “I’ve never run out on Grandma like that before. I don’t know what came over me, and I need to go back and apologize.”

“I guess it’s my fault. I’m the reason you got so upset.”

“No, it’s my fault. I shouldn’t have let myself—”

“I’ve enjoyed spending time with you these past few weeks, and I hope we can keep in touch after you return home,” he interrupted.

The elevator door swished open, and Sheila hurried toward her grandmother’s room. Dwaine did his best to keep up, but the pain in his ankle slowed him down.

“I’ll give you my e-mail address so you can let me know what you hear on the Bye-Lo baby,” she said over her shoulder.

“Right, but I was thinking more along the lines of our keeping in touch so we can build a relationship,” he mumbled.

She stopped walking and turned to face him. “Again, I don’t see how we can have a relationship when we live in two different states.”

He gave her a sheepish grin. “Ah, that. Well, I figure if the Lord brought us together, He will make a way.”

S
heila couldn’t believe her vacation was over and she was back in Fresno. Her flight had gone well, and she’d called a cab to drive her home. She should be happy and content, but instead, her heart was filled with a sense of loss that went deeper than just losing a doll. Was it possible she could love Dwaine after knowing him only a few weeks?

The first thing Sheila did when she stepped inside her house was check her e-mail. Sure enough, there was one from Dwaine, entitled “Response from doll collector.”

As she read the message, Sheila’s heart plummeted. The writing on the doll confirmed that it wasn’t Grandma’s. As if that wasn’t bad enough news, Dwaine didn’t even say he would continue to look.

“He did say he misses me,” she murmured. “Guess I should be happy about that.”

She glanced around the living room and loneliness crept into her soul. “I’ll be okay once I’m back at work tomorrow morning. Too much vacation isn’t good—especially when you return home with nothing but an ache in your heart.”

Sheila wasn’t sure if the pain she felt was from not finding Grandma’s doll or from missing Dwaine. Probably a little of both, she decided.

“This feeling of gloom will pass. All I need to do is keep busy.” She headed for the kitchen. “I’ll start by cleaning the refrigerator, and then I’ll go to the store and buy something good to eat. Work and food—that’s what I need right now.”

The next few weeks went by in a blur as Sheila immersed herself in work and tried to forget she had ever met a man named Dwaine Woods. She’d had several more e-mails from him, but he never mentioned the doll. Sheila figured either he’d had no more leads or he had no interest in trying to find the Bye-Lo for her.

“It’s just as well,” Sheila muttered as she turned off her work computer on Tuesday afternoon and prepared to go home.

“Were you talking to me?” Dr. Taylor asked as he passed her desk.

Sheila felt heat creep up the back of her neck and spread quickly to her cheeks. She hadn’t realized anyone else was in the room. She thought the doctor had gone home for the day.

“I didn’t know you were still here.”

He chuckled and pulled his fingers through the thinning gray hair at the back of his head. “If you weren’t talking to me, who then?”

She stared at the blank computer screen. “Myself.”

“I see. And did you have a suitable answer to your question?”

She shook her head. “I’m afraid there is no answer.”

He snapped his fingers. “Sounds like a matter of the heart.”

“It is,” she admitted.

“Want to talk about it?”

It was tempting, for Dr. Taylor was not only an excellent chiropractor, but also a good listener, full of sound advice and godly counsel.

“It’s nothing. I’ll be fine,” she murmured.

“All right then. I won’t press the matter, but I will be praying for you.”

“Thanks. I appreciate that.”

“See you tomorrow morning.” Dr. Taylor grabbed his briefcase from under the front counter and headed out the door.

Sheila picked up her purse and followed.

Dwaine had closed his shop for the day, deciding to clean out the drawers of an old rolltop desk he’d discovered in a shed out behind his shop.

He gulped down the last of his coffee and pulled open the first drawer. Inside were a bunch of rubber bands, some paper clips, and a small notebook. He thumbed through the pages to be sure there was nothing important, but halted when he came to the last page.

D
OLL
H
OSPITAL
—S
EATTLE
was scrawled in bold letters.

“That’s odd. I wonder if Bill Summers took some old dolls there to be repaired.”

Dwaine thought about the box of dolls he’d acquired several weeks before. He’d been planning to take them to Seattle during Easter vacation.

“I need to get those out, because I’ll be leaving for Seattle next week,” Dwaine muttered as he ripped the piece of paper with the bold writing from the notebook. “Don’t have a clue what this is all about, but I sure am glad for the reminder that I need to take the dolls in for repair.”

He shook his head. “I think Sheila was right about me being forgetful.”

Dwaine closed the drawer and stood. He hadn’t heard from Sheila in a couple of days and decided to check his e-mail.

A few minutes later, he was online. There was a message from his sister, Eileen, saying they were looking forward to seeing him. There were a few e-mails from other antique shops, but nothing from Sheila. Was she too busy to write, or had she forgotten about him already?

As soon as he clicked the icon to get off-line, he closed his eyes in prayer. “Father, I miss Sheila, and I really need Your help. If You want us to be together, please show me what to do.”

He opened his eyes and glanced around the antique shop.

Sheila had done so much to make the place look better when she was here. “I think I’d better give her a call when I get back from Seattle.”