The Price of Trust (16 page)

She stamped her feet to keep warm. "Well, what time do you get up and start doing your work?"

"I get up at five. Why?" he asked, puzzled.

"I just thought that maybe you could show me what you do on a farm. I'd like to help," she said awkwardly, looking at the snowy sidewalk.

"You want to help me with my chores?" he asked, taken by surprise.

She looked at him a little defiantly. "I'd like to help if it's okay. Plus I want to be there to help your mom with dinner."

"All right," he said after a slight hesitation. "I'll pick you up at six."

"I thought you said you started at five."

He grinned. "That's only if I don't take a shower before I start. But seeing as how you're going to help me, I've got to take my shower and look good for my girl before she gets there."

"You don't have to do that," she said, embarrassed. "Don't worry about it; you just come get me when you're done."

"Oh no. You're not getting out of the work that easily. You're committed to help me now." He chuckled. "Get inside before you freeze to death."

"Bye," she said, starting to close the door.

"Wait! You never answered my question!" he said before she could shut it all the way.

"What question?"

He grinned. "Do I need to be worried about you and Billy Pruit?"

She slammed the door, and went inside without waving.

The next day was much busier for Carly and Sam. Everyone seemed to need something from the hardware store, and there was a steady stream of customers almost all morning. She didn't get a break until almost lunchtime when Kelly came to see her.

"Hi, Carly," she said as soon as she came in. "I just wanted to see if you want to go get something to eat."

"Hey, Kelly." Carly looked up from her receipts. "I don't think I'm going to be able to go today. We've been pretty busy, and I'd hate to leave Sam if he needs me. But thanks for asking," she said, seeing Kelly's disappointed face. "Wait, I have an idea. Do you just want to come up to my apartment and have lunch there? I can whip up some macaroni and cheese really quick."

She brightened up considerably at the suggestion. "That would be fun."

"Let me see if Sam will be okay for a half hour. I'll be right back," she said over her shoulder, walking back to the office to find Sam. She came back quickly, smiling.

"You ready?" she said, leading Kelly to the stairs. "You'll have to forgive the mess. I've been doing laundry, and it's hanging everywhere." She laughed and opened the door.

"I can't get over how small this place is," Kelly said, amused, taking off her coat as she stepped in. "Not very many people would be able to handle it."

"You can hang your coat here." Carly pointed to a small hook on the wall beside the door. "If you think this is bad, you should have seen the last place I lived at. This is the Hilton compared to that!"

She laughed. "Do you like macaroni and cheese?"

"Love it. That's all I would eat when I was little." Kelly sat down on one of the tiny kitchen chairs. She looked around at the clothes hanging from clotheslines stretched from the bathroom to the opposite wall that was supposed to be a small living area. Carly was at the sink, putting water into a small pan.

"Why are all these clothes hanging here?"

"Oh, I was just doing laundry yesterday evening, and they won't dry until probably tomorrow night. I've only got that little wall heater over there, so it takes things longer to dry when it's cold." She set the covered pan on the stove and turned on the fire.

"Why don't you just dry your laundry at the coin place down the street?"

"It saves me quite a bit of money if I do it this way," Carly said. "Would you like some water, juice, or milk?" She took two mismatched glasses out of the tiny cupboard hanging on the wall next to the tiny refrigerator.

"Juice please," Kelly said politely, watching Carly pour two glasses of juice, check the water in the pot on the stove, add some salt, and return to the table with their drinks.

"Here you go."

Kelly took a sip. "I'd think that it'd be a lot less of a hassle to just dry the clothes while you were at the Laundromat instead of hauling wet clothes home."

"I don't go to the Laundromat." Carly blushed but looked steadily at her. "I wash them in the tub."

Kelly colored with embarrassment. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to pry."

"It doesn't bother me, Kelly," Carly said kindly. "I've had to work hard to save every penny I've made since I left Ian, and when I see something that would save me money, I do it. I have to."

"But not anymore," Kelly said firmly. "You don't have to live this way anymore. Joe will take care of you now."

Carly smiled at her naivety. She wasn't offended at her friend's reaction to her living conditions. She hadn't had to live like Carly had had to, just to survive. Carly reached across and squeezed her hand.

"I can't ask Joe to take my problems and make them his. I've got to take care of myself the best that I can."

"But he loves you," she said, arguing. "It wouldn't be a burden to him."

Carly stood and went to the stove, adding the macaroni to the boiling water. "I can't ask Joe to pay my way, Kelly. That wouldn't be right." She stirred the pasta, put the lid on, and sat down before continuing.

"Well, when he asks you to marry him, he'll be taking care of you then." Kelly was not going to be convinced easily.

"He hasn't asked me to marry him. And what if he doesn't? It might not work out between us, or," she looked at her friend firmly, "he may change his mind about me after all."

"But he will. I know he'll ask. And I know he isn't going to change his mind, either!" Kelly sighed heavily, wishing she could help make her friend's life easier.

"If he asks, then we'll see." Carly smiled. "Don't worry about me. God knows what he's doing. I had everything the world has to offer when I was with Ian, and now it's my time to struggle. Truthfully, I enjoy my life a lot better now, even though I have to struggle and depend on God to survive. I'm happier now than I ever was with him. Don't feel bad for me. I'm very happy."

"How do you do it?" Kelly asked quietly.

"Do what?" Carly asked, getting up to strain the pasta.

"Be so calm and peaceful when you had everything, and now you've got nothing," she said compassionately.

"Nothing? I've got everything now, and I had nothing then! I've got God, good friends that really care about me, a job that I love doing and don't have to feel guilty about, I've got a good church home." She paused, getting the butter and cheese slices out of the refrigerator. "And I've got a man that I love. What's better than all that?" She turned to look at Kelly, smiling. "Do you like your maca roni really cheesy, or just a little cheesy?"

Kelly grinned. "Really cheesy."

Carly finished making their lunch, piled two heaping helpings on two mismatched plates, and brought them to the table.

"This is the best macaroni and cheese I've ever had," Kelly said, taking a bite after they prayed.

"I'm glad you like it." Carly smiled. "I eat this almost every day."

"Every day?"

"Oh yeah," she said, helping herself to another bite, smiling.

"Is this another way for you to save money?" Kelly asked.

"Yep. I eat this, rice, and juice, and sometimes I pull all the stops out and go over to the diner and have a bowl of soup." She laughed.

"Well, whatever you do, please don't ever make it for Todd. He'll like it too much, and then I'll have to figure out how to make it. I'm a terrible cook. I try really hard, but I'm no good at it." Kelly sighed.

"I bet you're a good cook," Carly said, smiling.

“No. I'm not. Just ask Todd Thursday. He'll tell you the truth."

"Speaking of Thursday. Are you going over there for Thanksgiving?"

"Yes, why?"

"There's some more if you want it," she said when she was finished. Kelly helped herself to another helping and sat back down. "I was wondering what time you were going out there."

"I really hadn't thought about a time, why?"

She grinned mischievously. "Well, I was wondering how early you wanted to be there."

Kelly leaned forward, interested. "Ooh, you have an idea."

"I just thought it would be nice to get there early and surprise the guys. Then we could help them with their chores, and help Penny with the dinner. After that, we'd have the rest of the day."

"I think that's a great idea. Then we could show them that we know how to work hard too," Kelly said excitedly. "What time were you thinking?"

"Well, Joe said he'd be here at six to pick me up, so if we showed up there before five thirty, we'll probably surprise them pretty good," Carly said eagerly.

"We'd have to leave here at five," Kelly said, her spirits dampened slightly. She thought a moment. "I still think it's a great idea. Let's do it," she said, regaining her enthusiasm. "I'd like to show Todd that I can do it. He thinks I can't get up before eight. Won't he be surprised?" She grinned gleefully at Carly. "I'll go to bed early, and I'll be here by five. I'm so excited!"

They finished their lunch, planning what they would do and wear on Thursday, talked a little about Joe and Todd, and went back downstairs after they had cleaned up.

"Kelly, if it'll make it easier for you, I can just meet you at the bed and breakfast, then you won't have to come here to get me. What do you think?" Carly said, walking Kelly to the door.

"Okay, that sounds good. I'll meet you there," she said, excitedly giving Carly a hug before she left.

Carly went back to work in a cheerful mood. She was thinking about Thursday when the bell above the door tinkled. She looked up to see Billy Pruit walking in. Her heart sank a little before she remembered that she and Joe were praying diligently for him. She forced a bright, sunny smile onto her face.

"Hi, Billy. Is there something I can do for you?" she asked cheerfully.

"Uh, no," he answered, embarrassed, walking past her. She stared after him and helped some other people that had walked in after him.

She didn't see Billy again until everyone else had left, and she had almost forgotten him when he came up to the counter with a socket set in his hands. He set it on the counter hesitantly, shuffling his feet.

"Are you ready?" She asked kindly, wondering at his discomfort. She wondered fleetingly if he had stolen anything, but decided to give him the benefit of the doubt. He mumbled something incoherently, still shuffling his feet.

"Billy, are you okay?"

"I'm fine," he snapped. "Just ring me up."

"Sorry," she said, irritated. "I was just trying to be friendly."

"I know," he said, less snappish, but still not pleasant. She rang him up quickly, offering up a hurried prayer for him, half-wishing he were gone. He gave her the money. She counted out his change and handed it to him.

"There you go," she said as pleasantly as she could, wanting him to leave so she could resume her planning for Thursday.

He just stood there, holding his change, his face cloudy. "Do you need something else?" she asked, perplexed.

"I want to know why you won't go out with me, but you'll go out with Joe," he blurted furiously, stuffing his change into his pocket.

"What?" Carly asked, taken by surprise.

"Yeah. I want to know why you wouldn't give me the time of day, but you're always with Joe. What's he got that I don't?" he asked angrily. Carly took a deep breath.

"He's treated me with respect ever since I met him, while you try to irritate and show nothing but disrespect," she answered shakily. She had never expected Billy to even care for her that much, let alone be jealous.

"More importantly, I'm a Christian. Are you?"

Billy looked at her exasperatedly. "What does that have to do with anything?"

"It has everything to do with it," she said quietly. "I try to please God with everything I do, and it's wrong for a Christian to date a person who isn't one."

"I've always heard from Pops that Christians are the worst people there are," he said, sneering.

She stared at him fixedly, refusing to be intimidated. "Well, you heard wrong."

"How do people get to be Christians?"

"You have to ask Jesus to forgive you and to save you," she said.

Before he could answer, more customers walked in, eyeing them curiously. She blushed, wondering what they could be thinking.

"Why don't you come to church with us tomorrow?" she asked after the customers had walked by.

"Church?" He frowned, curling his lip. "I wouldn't be welcome."

"Yes, you would. You could come by and sit with Joe and me," she said, trying to encourage him. "The people are very friendly, Billy."

"I don't know," he said, hurrying out.

"I hope to see you there," she said, hoping he heard her as the door closed behind him. She watched him leave and prayed fervently that he would come hear the gospel and be saved.

Carly was locking the front door when the phone rang. She walked slowly toward it, afraid it might be Ian. She knew she'd still stand up to him if it was, but she didn't like confrontations, and with Ian, she dreaded them.

She picked it up. Her voice cracked as she answered. "Hello?"

"Carly?" It was Joe.

"Hi, Joe." She breathed a sigh of relief. "How are you?"

"Good, I just wanted to talk to you for a little bit before going back out to work. How was your day?"

"It was pretty good. No ugly little men who only buy nails today." She laughed. "But I did get to talk to Billy today. Are you still praying for him?"

"Yes," he said slowly. "I knew it. You didn't answer me last night, and now I've got to worry." She could hear his grin.

"Joe, if you keep that up, I'm going to hang up on you, and I won't answer the phone again," she said huffily.

He laughed. "Okay, I'm sorry. I was just kidding. Go on, what were you going to say?"

"Well, I invited him to church."

"That's great!" he said warmly.

"And I told him that he could sit with you and me," she said apprehensively. He was quiet for a minute.

"You told him that he could sit with me and you. Hmm. That'll be fine. But I want to ask you again. Carly, do I need to be worried?" He sounded more serious this time.