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No matter how much truth she spoke to herself, the lump in her throat proved she wasn’t listening. She had spent the week watching him on television, day dreaming about the possibility of a new house, new life, new…romance? Friendship? Whatever it was, having a close up of his handsome face on the screen night after night certainly hadn’t helped her tangled emotions.
“Are you listening to me?” Lucy interrupted her pity party.
Amelia blinked. “Sorry, still waking up. What did you say?”
“This bit about Izzie crying and reaching for her. It didn’t happen,” Lucy rewound and played that section again. Amelia watched closely and noticed that, while Hailey blinked rapidly and wiped at her eyes, there were no actual tears.
“How do you know that it’s not true?” Amelia asked, although she had been teaching first grade long enough to spot a liar when she saw one. Hailey certainly came across as dishonest.
“When Creed got Izzie she was just an infant sleeping in her carrier. She couldn’t have been reaching for her. There is no way Hailey saw her do that.”
Amelia turned back to the show, troubled. What game was this woman playing?
They finished their coffee and spent the rest of the day shopping together. The sisters shared a great comradery in spite of their age difference. Lucy had grown up too fast, marrying some scum bag after high school only to have her husband walk out and disappear a few months later. Amelia had spent a lot of time that very difficult year praying for her sister, letting her sleep over, and just sharing tears with her.
Lucy would say that the whole painful experience had served to drive her to the Lord, to make her faith real in a way that it hadn’t been before. It had also forged a deeper relationship between Lucy and the rest of her family; one of transparency.
Over lunch at a small café, Amelia grew quiet. Lucy leaned over her citrus chicken salad and stared into Amelia’s eyes. “Spill, Amelia. What are you thinking about? Creed?”
Amelia hesitated. “Oh, Lucy. My heart is involved here, and I am afraid it has rendered me stupefied. You know? I mean, the guy has enough going on. And all I can think about is scratching that woman’s eyes out. But why? He’s not mine. Why am I so consumed with jealousy?”
Lucy chewed her bottom lip thoughtfully. “Well, Sis, maybe it’s that all of this time that you thought you were waiting for your future husband…Creed is who you were thinking about.”
Amelia didn’t answer. She wasn’t ready to let herself think about how true that was.
Chapter Twenty
Creed had known that the trip would be tiring; he had never expected the emotional toll it would take on both him and Izzie. When they arrived at church Sunday morning, he held his young daughter’s hand through the parking lot and into the church. He swore he felt the tension leave her as soon as they crossed the threshold. His shoulders loosened as well; this place was home and full of people that loved them. It was safe.
Creed greeted a few friends on his way to their usual spot in the sanctuary. His eyes found Amelia right away, sitting with Melba—an older woman in the congregation that was a grandmother to everyone she met. He admired Amelia’s long gray dress and hip-length purple cardigan from where he stood. She kept her eyes on Melba, listening with rapt attention as if no one else in the room mattered.
Izzie gasped in delight when she saw her teacher. She wriggled her hand free and ran straight for her. Creed took one step in her direction when Gary, the man who ran the soundboard, called out to him. He surreptitiously watched Amelia’s face split into a wide smile of joy. She dropped to her knees to receive Izzie’s hug. They held one another for a moment and Amelia pulled back to look into Izzie’s eyes and speak with her. She tucked a stray curl of red hair behind Izzie’s ear and nodded, eyes wide while Izzie waved her arms animatedly. Melba said something to them both and Izzie’s attention was diverted.
Gary asked Creed a question and he forced himself to turn away from Amelia and concentrate. After he agreed to run the sound board that morning—Gary’s wife was home sick and needed help with their young children—Creed’s eyes found Amelia again.
She was still crouching in front of Izzie, but chose that moment to rise to her feet. She rubbed her arms, and glanced around the room. He could tell the moment that she found his eyes on her. Her cheeks turned pink and she dropped her eyes. Eventually she brought them back to his unyielding gaze.
Not for the first time since the awful experience in New York, Creed wondered if Amelia had watched the shows. Somehow he was certain that she had and he wanted her opinion. Before the service started, he pulled his mother aside and asked if Izzie could sit with her while he ran the sound and if she would like to take Izzie home with her after church while he ran errands.
“She’s not in the mood to drive around with me, I’m sure,” Creed explained. “We’re in dire need of groceries. I’m also hoping that I can talk Amelia into going with me to lunch. As Izzie’s teacher, I’d really like to get her opinion on this whole mess,” he added. He hadn’t thought of it until now and was pleased with the idea.
His mother smiled up at him, a glow in her eyes. She patted his cheek. “I always did want you to end up with Amelia,” she whispered knowingly.
Creed grinned and shook his head. “Just wanting to get her take on things,” he said as he kissed her cheek.
She gave him a sly look that assured him he wasn’t fooling anyone.
One woman down, one to go, Creed thought as the music started.
The sermon was on love. What love was and what love was not. Two points made by their pastor hit Creed square in the chest and deflated his plans: love is forgiveness and love is not getting your own way. For all of his frustration with Izzie’s mother, Creed knew he owed her forgiveness. After all, he had been forgiven so much.
And for all of his rekindled adoration for Amelia, he needed to remember that she had other plans. Plans that she had put off for years. Plans that most definitely did not involve romance. Who was he to charge in and interrupt them?
Once the sermon was over and Creed had buckled Izzie into his parents’ car with the promise to pick her up later, he fought down the desire to ask Amelia to lunch and left the parking lot alone.
* * *
Amelia felt like a fool. Creed made no effort to come and talk to her. She was certain after the intensity of his gaze that morning that he would seek her out. That at the very least he would say, “Hello.” Instead, he and Izzie had left in a hurry.
Lucy invited Amelia to join her and Chad for lunch out, but she declined. She drove home and made a turkey and avocado sandwich instead. She used the last of her turkey and realized that she was low on almost everything else.
Looks like a grocery trip is in order today. I certainly can’t afford to eat out very much once I start paying my mortgage.
Her stomach twisted. Reality of the leap she had made was finally settling in and her emotions were at war. On the one hand, her hopes were tied up in the excitement of actually living in her dream house. Of working hard to make it her own.
On the other hand, it was a terrifying step. Was she ready to commit to a mortgage? Was this really what the Lord had in store for her, or was she rushing ahead, making plans of her own without stopping to consult Him?
She knew that wasn’t true this time. She’d prayed more about that house—that the doors would be closed if it wasn’t right for her, that He would have His hand over the entire process—than she had in a long time.
Standing in her kitchen in thoughtful silence while she ate, Amelia barely noticed if the sandwich had any flavor. She gave Olé her crust and stepped into her bedroom to change into jeans, a sweatshirt, and sneakers.
“Sorry, Olé. They won’t let you in the grocery store,” she said when she exited the room and Olé began to dance around her feet in excitement.
“I’ll take you on a long walk when I get back,” she promised.
Amelia ruffed up his ears and told him to kennel up. She slipped him a treat after she closed the door, then left and locked her apartment behind her.
She was half way through her shopping, still lost in thought, when a deep voice called out from behind her.
“Amelia?”
She turned slowly, a tingle creeping up the back of her neck. Creed took a few steps toward her, pushing a half-full cart. She almost dropped the salad dressing bottle she was reading.
“Creed,” she breathed dumbly. Oh, how he affected her.
“You shop here?” he asked.
“I guess so.” she answered. I guess so? As if I don’t know where I shop?
A woman steered her cart around Creed and stepped between them. She snatched a bottle of Italian dressing off the shelf, glaring at them both and then marching away in a huff.
“Oh my, we’re totally breaking grocery store etiquette here, aren’t we?” Amelia asked.
“How much shopping do you have left?” Creed asked, glancing at her cart. She breathed a quick prayer of thanks that she hadn’t needed any embarrassing items for his eyes to feast upon.
“I’m just about done.”
“And do you have plans later?”
“Yes, I have a date,” she answered, thinking of her promise to Olé. She was surprised when Creed’s face fell.
“With my dog. I promised Olé I would take him on a walk, but I could do that after,” she rushed to add, in awe again at the change in his expression. His dark eyes brightened, the flecks of gold flashing as he stood taller.
“Well, I only have a few things left to get here. Could we go for coffee? I was hoping to talk something over with you. What do you say we have a little contest and the winner buys the other a treat at check out?” The twinkle in his eye was irresistible.
“Deal.”
* * *
Creed rushed through the rest of his shopping, grabbing all the wrong brands and not caring one bit. So Izzie would get crunchy instead of creamy peanut butter, the kid needed some variety in her life. His happiness at running into Amelia both warmed and alarmed him. Hadn’t he just resolved that she deserved better? But that doesn’t mean we can’t be friends, he assured himself, knowing that disaster awaited him if he truly thought he could just be friends with Amelia. But he didn’t care. Time spent with her was worth the pain of possibly losing her one day.
Amelia suddenly appeared beside him and practically knocked him over to grab a jar of chocolate hazelnut spread. She grabbed the front of his cart and yanked hard, turning him sideways, before she took off toward the registers.
“Hey!” he called out, straightening his cart and chasing after her as fast as he could while being careful not to hit anyone. Amelia speed walked in an adorable stride, nodding and smiling angelically at other customers. Creed couldn’t help but admire the sway of her hips. He shook his head.
Focus, Williams.
They arrived at check out at the same time and Creed laughed in triumph when the checker in the line Amelia chose put out the “Next Checkout” sign before she could reach the conveyor belt. She chose another—longer—line and Creed could taste the victory.
“Hey Amelia!” he called out. She rolled her eyes in his direction, looking as unamused as Izzie did during his niece’s piano recital. “I’ll take those jalapeño chips right there,” he pointed with a smirk.
She opened her mouth to answer when another man called out her name. They both turned to see an employee wave her over to his lane as he turned on the light above his register.
“I can help you here, Darlin’,” he said.
Amelia flashed Creed a saucy grin.
“Sorry, Creed. I guess you’ll have to get your own chips. Oh, and uh, I’ll take one of those dark chocolate almond bars. Thankyouverymuch,” she winked and turned a one-hundred-watt smile to the cashier.
Creed chuckled and grabbed a couple of the bars. Touché, Howard, he thought. Touché.
“One problem with this plan, Creed,” Amelia said when they rejoined in front of the store minutes later.
“What? That I ended up being suckered out of my win because some guy has a crush on you?” he asked dryly.
“Guys over seven years old don’t get crushes on me, Creed. No,” she continued swiftly, embarrassed at how true that statement was, “I bought cold stuff, and I’m assuming you did, too. Where were you planning to go? Because I can’t risk my chocolate melting,” she wiggled her eyebrows at him.
“You mean in this cold, sixty-degree air?” he asked, holding out a hand as if he could capture it.
“Well, what were you thinking for coffee?”
“Didn’t you say you had to walk your dog? I could take these home, pick up the coffee, and meet you at your apartment for that walk. How does that sound?”
Salad Dressing Lady walked out of the store and glared at them for being in her way. Again. Creed pushed his cart closer to Amelia and offered the woman an apologetic smile. She rolled her eyes and marched past them both, her heels clicking sharp disapproval on the pavement.
Amelia arched a brow at him. “Well, well, well. Looks like your charms don’t work on everyone,” she teased. Then, picking up on something he said, she added, “Wait, Creed, do you live around here?” she asked in amazement.
“Nope. I live about twenty minutes that way—just a few minutes from your farmhouse, actually,” he said, pointing north.
“Then why are you shopping here?”
“It’s close to my mom’s house,” he answered, smiling into her eyes.
“Oh, duh. So will you have to drive home to drop off groceries, or…?”
“Well, I figured I would store my cold stuff in my parents’ outside freezer and come back to get you. I do it all the time since I have to squeeze grocery trips in when I can and can’t always get home immediately after,” he explained.
“Okay. You take your stuff home and pick me up. Olé and I will be out front waiting for you. Feel free to bring Izzie, too.”
“I love my daughter, but we’ve been together in a hotel for a week. I’m going to let her play at my mom’s.”
“Oh. Yeah, that makes sense.” Shoot. Izzie was a great prop to hide behind when she got nervous. “Then I will gladly give you an adult only outing. Oh, and please make my coffee decaf. I’m an old lady now, you know. I can’t handle caffeine after one in the afternoon.”
After dropping off his groceries in his parents’ garage, he chose The Hut for coffee, hoping Amelia still liked the same thing she had in high school, although he doubted it. His tastes had certainly changed over the years. He thought maybe the nostalgia of it would be enough to win him points as he ordered the decaf caramel mocha for her and black coffee for himself.
When he arrived at her apartment, she was sitting on the home’s front steps, a large golden retriever at her side. When Creed parked and walked toward them, the dog’s tail swayed back and forth, shaking his rump violently, but he stayed right by Amelia’s side. Creed handed over the coffee, delighted when she took a sip and sighed with pleasure.
“I haven’t had one of these in forever,” she said, taking another drink.
“I’m just glad I remembered what you used to like,” he said, pleased to have made her happy.
Olé stared up at him, tongue hanging out of his mouth, tail shaking his whole body.
“Are you still a dog fan?” Amelia asked Creed.
When he answered in the affirmative she softly said, “Ok, Olé,” and the dog rose and walked next to Creed to nudge his free hand with a large, wet nose.
Creed crouched down to scratch behind his ears and talk to him for a moment before he rose to his feet.
“Wow, he’s friendly,” he commented.
“Yep, he’s a love,” Amelia smiled down at her pet, eyes warm. She glanced back up at Creed as she stood. “Ready?”
They walked along one of the oldest streets in town. Century old homes lined the street on either side. Large elms and willow trees hugged the sidewalk, roots breaking up the cement in some places. Leaves had begun to fall, cloaking the ground beneath them, creating a melodious soundtrack to their conversation as they crunched through the colorful carpet. Creed was impressed with how obedient and calm Olé was and said as much to Amelia.
“We were in a wonderful obedience class when he was a puppy,” she said. “I wanted to be sure—“ she cut herself off and turned a red face away from him.
“Wanted to be sure he would be a good dog for your future husband?” Creed ventured.
She only nodded, obviously embarrassed.
“You know, I think part of the fun of marriage will be learning stuff together with my wife,” Creed commented, taking a sip of his coffee.
When she didn’t answer, he continued, “My parents always tell about this season of their early years where all they could really afford were potatoes. My mom said they had a great time figuring out all of the different ways they could eat potatoes. I’m sure at the time it was a real trial, but when they talk about it now, they get this tender look between them. You just know that the meat of their marriage is in those moments.”
“I guess I never thought of it that way,” Amelia said softly. Her eyes flooded with an emotion he couldn’t define. Her thoughts had found their way to a memory—one that didn’t include him, he was certain. How many years of memories were stacked between them when they were apart?
They walked in silence for a few minutes before she changed the subject. “Was Izzie upset that she couldn’t come?” she asked, pulling Olé away from a tree he’d been diligently sniffing for the better part of a minute.
“Not one bit. She needed a break from me,” he said with a wink.
“I’ve seen that girl with her Daddy. She does not want breaks from you.”
“Well, she needed a break from errands anyway. She, uh, she had a rough trip,” Creed stepped carefully into the subject that he had longed to talk over with Amelia and hoped that she would have insight for him.
Chapter Twenty-one
Amelia sucked in a breath, thankful that her hair covered her red ears. Could he tell that she had watched the show? Would he care if she did? Amelia had noticed the news still listed the encounter on the show as a trending topic. She wondered how long Creed would have to put up with being in the spotlight.
