The Isaac Project (19 page)

Luke sat on the couch with his Bible open in front of him. He looked at me, the soft light of the floor lamp casting shadows across his face.

I swallowed hard. “I wasn’t sure if you’d still be awake.”

The lines around his mouth softened. He picked up his Bible and read, “Do not let the sun go down on your anger.” His voice was quiet and controlled, but his jaw ticked. Was he clenching and unclenching his teeth? He must be more upset than he was letting on.

“But you weren’t angry. I was.”

He gave me a small, sad smile. “That’s where you’re wrong. I was angry at whoever or whatever it was that had you so worked up. Very angry, actually. And more than a little perturbed at you for trying to pick a fight with me instead of just telling me what was wrong.”

I hung my head. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have come at you like that. I just had a bad day and took it out on you, and that wasn’t right or fair.”

“Ready to talk about it?”

With a sigh, I lowered myself onto the couch beside him. “How much of my job do you understand?”

Luke looked puzzled. “You board horses and give riding lessons, right?”

“Yes, but I also work with people who use horses as therapy. The professional term for it is hippotherapy. I was working with a physical therapist, Mrs. Steinbeck, to help a little girl named Jessica who has cerebral palsy. Well, Mrs. Steinbeck paid me a visit today. Come to find out, she is James’s cousin.”

“James, your ex-boyfriend?”

“The very same. In essence, I was canned because apparently it was my fault that James’s eyes wandered to another woman, and Mrs. Steinbeck must remain loyal to family.”

Luke’s mouth hung open, and his eyes refused to blink. I couldn’t help but laugh.

“Yup,” I said. “That was pretty much my initial reaction as well. Until I got so mad I only saw red.”

“You never know what the future holds. Six months ago, did you ever imagine being married to another man besides James?”

“Point taken.”

Silence descended upon the small space, and I picked at the cuticle of my thumb with my fingernail. What did the future hold? Every aspect of my life was a question mark. I glanced at Luke out of the corner of my eye. Would there be a happily ever after for us?

He caught me staring, and I cleared my throat, looking at my hands. What had we been talking about again? Oh, right. Mrs. Steinbeck, Jessica, and my dreams of a therapy ranch being squashed like a bug. My shoulders slumped. “The sad part, though, is that Jessica is going to be devastated. I have no doubt Mrs. Steinbeck will find another horse handler to work with, but Jessica had a special relationship with one of my horses.”

Luke covered my hands with one of his own. “Who’s to say that relationship has to end?”

His touch was warm and the callouses on his palm rough. “What do you mean?”

“Mrs. Steinbeck may not be coming back here to have her sessions, but you could tell Jessica she is welcome to come without Mrs. Steinbeck to spend time or ride her special horse.”

I felt my first genuine smile of the whole day blossom, and I looked up into his eyes. “Luke, I’m so happy, I could kiss you.”

One side of his mouth lifted in a grin. “Well, who’s stopping you, woman?”

Heat surged to my cheeks, and I looked away from his teasing eyes. My stomach churned like a dryer drum. Just the mention of kissing, and I was a mess. Great reaction.

My eyes flicked back to his face, to his mouth stretched over white teeth. What
was
stopping me? He’d kissed me yesterday at the ceremony, but that had been short and sweet. If I leaned forward, invited him in, what would his kiss be like today?

Luke stood and walked to the kitchen. My window of opportunity slammed shut in my face. He took a glass from the cupboard and filled it from the tap.

“Want some?” he asked.

I shook my head.

He drained his cup, set it in the sink, and then came back and sat next to me again, his arm stretched over the back of the sofa. Such a casual gesture. Did he not feel nervous energy zinging through his body like I did?

I bolted to me feet. “Want to see something?”

His eyebrows rose, but he leaned forward. “Sure.”

I grabbed my keys from the hook by the door. Luke followed and shut the door behind us.

“So where are we going?” he asked as he buckled his seatbelt.

My shoulders began to relax, and my lips tilted in a smile. “One of my favorite places.”

Luke settled into his seat, and the silence that filled the cab was comfortable. The high beams from my truck illuminated the road ahead of us. No one else was out on the small back-country road.

“So, what was one of your favorite places back home?” I asked.

He thought a moment before answering. “Lake Michigan. I know it’s not the ocean or anything, but I used to pretend it was when I was a boy. Standing on sandy beaches and looking out over the water as far as your eye can see.” He chuckled. “My cousin and I would see who would jump in first each year. One year he waded out waist deep through a filmy layer of ice. Crazy, if you ask me.”

“Have you ever seen the ocean then?”

“I’ve been to the Atlantic a few times. It’s weird how warm the water is though. Like bath water.” He shook his head. “Lake Michigan never gets that warm. Not even in July or August.”

“The coast is a few hours away. I’ve never been to any of the Great Lakes, but I imagine the Pacific is like them—frigid.” I shivered just thinking about it.

Luke peered out the window as I turned on yet another switchback. “So where are we going exactly?”

I didn’t answer but drove the truck into a pull-off and put it in park.

I looked at him and grinned and then slid out of the cab and closed the door with a thud. Luke met me at the back of the truck as I let the tailgate down and hopped on, my legs dangling. I patted the spot next to me and then laid back. The bed of the truck dipped under his weight.

Millions of stars dotted the night sky. I took in a deep breath and let it out slowly.

Hello, God.

Heat melted the frigidness of the night air along my left side, making me all too aware of the body next to mine, but the nervous ball didn’t return to my stomach.

“This is my favorite place,” I said, my eyes never straying from the celestial masterpiece illuminated above us.

“I can see why.” Luke’s voice held awed appreciation.

“When I’m here…I don’t know…I just experience this special connection with God. I feel small compared to the vastness of the universe, but instead of that making me feel insignificant, I feel treasured.” I turn my head to look at him. “Does that make any sense?”

His eyes looked into mine. “Like God must think you’re special because even though He created all of this, He still cares what happens to you and wants to be a part of your life?”

“Yeah.” He got it. Warmth spread from my center.

I turned my gaze back to the stars. Luke shifted, and the back of his hand grazed mine. My stomach lurched. Awareness tickled my skin, and I bit my lip.

I snuck a look at Luke out of the corner of my eye. Husband, not stranger.

My heart thundered in my chest. Then why was I reacting to him like a hormone-dazed teenager? It was now or never. I swallowed hard and skimmed a finger over his hand and hooked it around one of his fingers. His hand moved away, and my heart plummeted. Maybe I had just imagined the attraction, the connection. I balled my hand in a fist as rejection lumped in my throat.

Luke’s arm crossed over mine and his calloused fingers coaxed mine from their curled position. My breath hitched as his fingers interlaced with my own. His thumb slowly stroked the back of my hand in small circles. The breath I had been holding whooshed out on a contented sigh.

I laid my cheek against his shoulder. “So what made you decide to become a firefighter?”

“Most boys dream of being a firefighter at some point in their childhood.” I could hear the smile in his voice. “To hear my mother tell it, I was obsessed. Firefighter themed birthdays were requested every year for a while, and I think there was about a year period when I was two or three that I insisted on only wearing my fireman costume, hat and all. I guess you can say I never grew out of the phase.”

“Cute.”

“I am, aren’t I?”

I rolled my eyes but couldn’t help the grin that spread on my face. The grin turned into a yawn, and I brought my free hand up to cover it.

“Tired?” Luke asked.

My eyelids were starting to get heavy, but the moment was too perfect to interrupt. “Let’s just stay a little while longer.”

His arm rose like a gate opening, welcoming and inviting me in. I scooted closer and rested my head in the crook where his shoulder and chest met. His arm came down and wrapped around me.

The day might have been crummy, but could there be a more perfect night?

20

Luke

“PLEASE DON’T TELL me you’re a Niners fan.” I groaned.

Becky looked adorable in her football jersey with her hair pulled back in ribbons. Too bad she was wearing the wrong team colors.

“What? You don’t like football?” She said the words like they were impossible to comprehend. Which, of course, they were.

“I’m an American male with a pulse. Of course I like football,” I growled.

“Then what’s the problem?”

“Problem is you’re a Niners fan.”

“I don’t see why that’s a problem. They are the greatest team in the NFL. The only reason that would be a problem would be if…” She blanched. “Oh no. Don’t tell me you’re a Rams fan.”

“Blue and gold all the way.”

Becky sat down hard, and the look on her face was so comical I had to laugh. One would have thought I’d told her something earth shattering by the way her mouth hung open in shock and her eyes flitted back and forth. I could almost see her brain trying to catch up and categorize the new information.

“That’s okay,” I said reassuringly, allowing a hint of team rival condescension in my voice. “I’ll forgive your lapse of judgment.”

Her head snapped up at that. “
My
lapse of judgment? My team is going to crush yours in today’s game.”

I snorted a laugh. “We’ll ram you back all the way to when your team was actually a challenge to play against.”

Becky glared at me, and I thought the carpet might catch on fire from the sparks in that look alone. I smothered a chuckle. The woman was downright adorable when riled. I didn’t really take the team rivalry to heart, but it was more than evident that she did. And with great passion too. What would it be like if she turned even an ounce of it on me? My heart tapped a little harder. Better put that thought away for another day.

“If you’re so sure your team is the best, then why don’t we have ourselves a little wager?” Becky challenged.

“What did you have in mind?”

A little smirk played on her lips. “If the Niners win, then every Sunday for the rest of the season you have to wear a Kaepernick jersey.” She looked smug.

“Okay,” I agreed. “But
when
the Rams win, you’ll have to wear their jersey for the rest of the season. I’ll even let you choose the player.”

Her eyes narrowed. “You’re on.” Then she turned on her heel, head held high. Walking toward the door, she only stopped long enough to grab a rain jacket and put on a pair of muck boots. It was an unusually rainy day for mid-September, but thankfully, our plans were to spend the day inside watching the game at Grandview with Mr. Sawyer.

About a half an hour later, Becky reentered the house, shaking off the water that clung to her slicker. When she turned around from hanging the jacket on the peg by the door, her hands were shaking, and she refused to look at me.

“What? Afraid your team is going to lose?” I goaded.

Her chin trembled as her eyes briefly met mine. She gave a small shake of her head.

Maybe I was taking this a little too far. Sports fans can be a little touchy. If she was getting this worked up, maybe I had better back off. I was just about to apologize, when Becky breezed past me and scooped up the keys that had been lying on the table.

“Ready to go?” she asked without looking back at me.

Not waiting for a response, she dashed out the door and ran to the truck, trying to dodge the falling raindrops. I followed at a more sedate pace. I’d seen an episode of a show on the Discovery Channel where these two guys conducted an experiment to see if a person would get more wet running in the rain or walking. Surprisingly, they found that a person actually became wetter when running in the rain than just walking.

Climbing into the truck, I buckled my seat belt, and the noisy diesel engine revved to life. Between the noise and the vibration the truck made, it’s no wonder Lady fell asleep every time Becky let her ride in the cab.

“So why the Rams?” Becky took her eyes off the road momentarily to ask the question. “I would’ve figured you’d be a Lions or a Bears fan, coming from Michigan.”

“My dad was originally from Saint Louis. He went to the first game after the Rams transferred their team there. When he packed up all his stuff and moved to Michigan, he took his love for the Rams with him. It was only natural that he bestowed that love to me. Call it a sports inheritance.”

“Hmmm…” She still wasn’t happy. Was this really that big of a deal to her?

We made it to Grandview just in time for kickoff. Becky sat on the edge of the couch next to Mr. Sawyer, who definitely looked more comfortable as he lounged against the back cushions. Becky’s focus was intense as she stared at the TV, its reflection casting a glow on her eager face. I could barely make out the “go, go, go” she muttered under her breath as Kaepernick threw it long and deep, her body rising off the couch as the spiraling ball rose in the air. Unfortunately for Becky and the 49ers, the intended receiver couldn’t quite shake the man-to-man coverage, and the ball was batted harmlessly to the turf.

“No!” Becky sank back down to the couch, deflated. “C’mon, guys!”