“I ordered you some soup,” Todd said. “Beef barley.”
“Oh,” Christy said. “Did they have sandwiches?”
“Only turkey and ham. I figured the soup had beef in it. It comes with a roll.”
“Okay.” Christy should have remembered how logically challenged Todd became when he was sent shopping. Actually, the soup was perfect; better than what she had requested. It would warm her up. Todd knew. She slid her leg under the table until she found his foot, and then she rubbed her foot against his ankle.
“Katie, are you trying to play footsie with me under the table?” Todd asked.
“Why would I do that?” Katie spouted.
Christy gave Todd an exasperated look and kicked him playfully. He gave her a slight wink. Either that or he was winking at someone behind her.
A booming voice behind Katie announced, “Hey, your hair is like a flock . . .”
Katie and Christy turned around at the same time and gasped.
Katie was the first to find her voice. “Rick?”
“Katie?”
Rick’s voice faltered only for a moment before finishing his line, as if someone had paid him to say it to her. A wide grin spread across his face as he stated loudly, “Your hair is like a flock of goats. Will you go out with me?”
Everyone but Katie and Christy broke into delighted laughter. That had been Katie’s wish, her exact words, in fact, when she had said she wanted a stranger to ask her out using the crazy compliment. Only, the tall, broad-shouldered man with dark, wavy hair who was scanning Katie’s every detail with his chocolate brown eyes was no stranger to Christy or to Katie.
Katie slowly rose, and he greeted her with a hug. “Okay,” she declared wildly. “I’ll go out with you since you asked so nicely.”
Rick laughed. “Look at you!” He pulled away and examined Katie even more closely. “Wow, when did you grow up?”
“It’s my hair. I got it cut.”
“Some guy named Matt told me to come over and say your hair was like a flock of goats, but I didn’t know it was you. And it’s not, you know. I mean it’s you, but your hair isn’t goat-like at all.”
Christy had never seen Rick Doyle fumble his words. He seemed more like a kid than the snobby football star he had been in high school.
Rick pulled his gaze from Katie to see who else was at the table.
“Hi, Rick,” Christy said warmly.
“Christy.” Rick stooped to hug her around the neck. “It’s so great to see you guys. When Todd and Doug walked up to the register, I couldn’t believe it. Todd told me you two are . . .” Rick looked at Todd.
Christy looked at Todd.
Todd’s expression remained steady.
“Todd told me you two are closer than ever,” Rick said. “I’m glad for you. I really am. That’s so great.”
“I think it’s pretty great, too.” Christy was glad to know she could sit there and talk to Rick Doyle and know that nothing awkward remained between them from the up-and-down season they had while dating in high school.
Matt returned to his seat, and Katie gave him a hard time for talking Rick into playing a joke on her when really the joke turned out to be on Rick.
“He made me do it.” Matt pointed to Todd.
Todd put on his best innocent look and turned to Doug as if it had been his bright idea.
“Don’t look at me,” Doug said.
Christy realized at that moment that every guy she had ever cared for seriously or deeply in her life was gathered at this table. And none of them was anything like Todd. Her heart turned up another notch in its steady devotion to Todd Spencer. No guy would ever compare.
“Do you want to eat with us?” Katie asked after all the introductions had been made.
“I have to get back to my office. They told me a guy’s waiting to talk to me about his band playing here.”
“He’s with us,” Sierra said. “It’s Randy.”
“Your office?” Katie asked.
“I’m the manager here. Didn’t Doug tell you?”
“No, Doug didn’t say anything. You’re the manager?”
Rick nodded. “My dad bought the place and put me to work. Come with me. I’ll show you around.” The invitation clearly was for Katie only.
As Katie began to follow him, Christy heard her say, “Have you ever considered serving any gourmet herbal teas here?”
Christy turned to Todd, her eyes wide. “Should I be in shock?”
“Not when God is doing God-things,” Todd said smugly.
“With a little help from His friends,” Tracy added.
“With a little help from His friends,” Todd repeated.
Then the food arrived. The group joined hands around the table, and Doug prayed aloud. When he ended the prayer, Christy and Todd said softly in unison, “As you wish.”
They both looked up. Their eyes met. To Christy it seemed as if she were gazing into a reflecting pool. The other half of her heart was gazing back at her, smiling.
Katie’s food sat untouched at the empty place beside Christy while the rest of them ate. Randy returned with news about a date in February when his band would play at The Dove’s Nest. The soup was good, and the fire had warmed Christy down to her toes. She was happy.
Two guys with guitars, who had been setting up by the front window, began to play. That made it harder for Christy to hear the conversation at the end of the table, where Sierra sat, but Christy was content to stick with the close conversation between Doug, Tracy, Todd, and her. They were discussing the upcoming trip to the Mexican orphanage when Katie returned to the table, her green eyes lit up like a Christmas tree.
“Can I just say I am stunned? Did you get a chance to talk to that guy? Everything is about how ‘the Lord did this,’ and ‘God took care of that.’ It’s so fun to be around him now.”
“It’s awesome,” Doug said.
“Yes,” Katie agreed, “it is awesome. And you guys are awesome. Rick said you kept in contact with him over the years and sent him letters encouraging him to turn his heart to the Lord. And you know what? He finally listened. I’m just . . . well, I’m stunned and amazed and . . .”
“A bit dazzled?” Christy ventured.
“Maybe a little.”
The close group grew silent, waiting for Katie to embellish.
“Well, the guy told me my hair was like a flock of goats, all right? I mean, how can a girl not be dazzled by such poetic brilliance?”
They all laughed with her.
“And look what I found in the stock room.” Katie placed a bag of candy hearts on the table. “Dessert!”
“Can you imagine how old those are?” Tracy asked. “I mean, this place is new, isn’t it? They aren’t selling Valentine’s candy anywhere now. It’s still Christmas candy everywhere. I don’t want to know where these came from.”
“Bargain Barn.” Todd tore open the bag and spilled the pastel hearts onto the table. “I was in Bargain Barn today, and they had a whole crate of these up front. Now’s the time to buy them.”
“Buy them, maybe. But eat them? I don’t think so.” Tracy picked up a heart and read the message. “ ‘Fax me.’ Fax me? When did they start writing ‘Fax me’ on these things? I thought they said, ‘Be mine’ and ‘Stay true’ and . . .” She picked up another one. “ ‘Kiss me’?”
“Don’t mind if I do.” Doug pulled Tracy close and planted a big one on her lips.
She giggled as if that had been the first time she had ever been kissed. The sight of her two friends so in love made Christy smile. Doug had never kissed a girl until his wedding day, and when he and Tracy married, their kiss at the altar had prompted the loudest roar of applause Christy had ever heard at a wedding.
“Check this out,” Katie said. “ ‘Page me.’ ”
They all looked for messages in the hearts. Doug pulled out an “e-mail me” and said, “This must be the interactive bag.”
Todd placed a pink heart in front of Christy as if
to prove Doug’s point. It read, “Marry me.”
Christy looked up. “I can’t believe what they put on these now. I’m with you, Tracy. I remember when they used to say, ‘Be sweet.’ ”
“Here you go,” Katie said. “ ‘Sweet lips.’ ”
“I want that one,” Tracy said.
“What are you doing, making your own sentence over there?” Katie asked.
“Sure. Try it.”
“Here you go: Another ‘Page me.’ ” Christy handed a yellow candy to Tracy.
Todd placed a second candy heart in front of Christy. It also read, “Marry me.”
“I think we already have one of those.” Christy moved the hearts around and looked for one that no one else had found yet.
Todd was looking, too. He picked up a heart and then came around to Christy’s side of the table. He placed the third candy heart in a row with the first two he had given her. “There. Once it’s spoken three times, it’s established. Forever.”
Christy froze. All she could see were the three candy hearts lined up in front of her. All three of them said “Marry me,” “Marry me,” “Marry me.”
She turned as Todd went down on one knee. He covered both her hands with his. His voice washed over her like a waterfall as he stared into her eyes and said, “Kilikina, my Kilikina, will you marry me?”
“Yes,” Christy whispered without a moment’s hesitation. “Yes,” she repeated more loudly. Then a third time, with complete confidence and a cascade of tears, she said, “Yes, Todd, my Todd. I will marry you.”
For a moment the whole world stopped, and Christy and Todd remained still. Not breathing. Not blinking. Not moving. Lost in the depths of each other’s souls. The only sound Christy heard was her heart beating. But she wasn’t sure if it was her heart or Todd’s. The two seemed to beat as one.
“What are you doing, Todd?” Katie asked. “Did you lose one of the candies on the ground over there? There are plenty more up here.”
Todd didn’t move. Christy smiled.
No one knows! Todd just proposed to me, and no one knows. It’s our secret.
Christy and Todd’s secret bubble was burst when Katie looked at Christy’s lineup of hearts. Katie screamed as only Katie could. Everyone in the café stopped talking and eating, and the two guys playing guitars in the corner paused.
“Finally!” Katie shouted. She bounced up from her chair and yelled, “I have an announcement to make! My best friend just got proposed to!”
A rush of hugs and well wishes poured over Todd and Christy.
Katie looked at Christy. “And what did you say?”
Christy grinned confidently. “I said yes!”
“She said yes!” Katie burst into applause, and the rest of the people in the café joined her.
Matt wrapped his arms around Christy and gave her a home-boy kind of hug. “Your grandma is going to love him,” he said. “And I won’t say eenie-meenie boo-boo to you anymore because it’s obvious that Todd is ‘it.’ ”
Christy grinned and giggled. “Yes, he is.”
Tracy dissolved into a puddle of tears and so did Sierra. When Sierra hugged Christy, Sierra said, “I didn’t cry this much at my sister’s wedding! What is it with you and Todd?”
Rick appeared and gave Christy a warm smile. He leaned over and kissed her cheek. “You held out for a hero,” he said in her ear. “Good for you, killer eyes.”
“Thanks, Rick.”
Christy looked at Todd. He was taking in all the well-wishing with the biggest smile.
He looks like a five-year-old, and everyone just showed up for his surprise birthday party.
As Christy thought that, one of the waiters approached the table carrying a round carrot cake with one lit candle in the middle. “Compliments of Mr. Doyle,” the waiter said.
“Make a wish!” Katie chanted. “Make a wish!”
“I already did.” Todd wrapped his arms around his beloved. “And she came true.”
“That is so sweet!” Tracy said. “Todd, I never knew you were such a romantic.”
“You haven’t seen anything yet,” he said. Tilting Christy’s chin up with the slightest touch of his finger, Todd kissed her like he had never kissed her before.
As they slowly drew apart, Christy saw the still-burning candle out of the corner of her eye. She had nothing left to wish for. And most certainly not enough breath left to blow out a candle.
“The candle,” Katie said. “What about the candle?”
Christy looked into Todd’s eyes. He was looking at her “that way.” The warm glow seemed brighter than ever behind his screaming silver-blue eyes.
“Let it burn,” Todd murmured. He held her cheek gently in his hand. “Let it burn for the rest of our lives.”
Christy kissed the palm of Todd’s strong, scarred hand, and in a voice so soft that only God and Todd could hear, she whispered, “As you wish.”
ROBIN JONES GUNN loves to tell stories. Evidence of this appeared early when her first-grade teacher wrote in Robin’s report card, “Robin has not yet grasped her basic math skills, but she has kept the entire class captivated at rug time with her entertaining stories.”
When Robin’s first series of books for toddlers was published in 1984, she never dreamed she’d go on to write novels. However, one project led to another and As You Wish is Robin’s fiftieth published book. Other series include THE CHRISTY MILLER SERIES, THE SIERRA JENSEN SERIES, and THE GLENBROOKE SERIES. Combined sales of her books are over two million, with worldwide distribution. Many of the titles have been translated into other languages.
Robin and her husband, Ross, were involved in youth work for more than two decades and have two grown children. They have lived in many places, including California and Oregon. Currently they live in Hawaii.
Visit Robin’s Web site at www.robingunn.com
From Robin Jones Gunn
* * *
THE CHRISTY MILLER SERIES
1 • Summer Promise
2 • A Whisper and a Wish
3 • Yours Forever
4 • Surprise Endings
5 • Island Dreamer
6 • A Heart Full of Hope
7 • True Friends
8 • Starry Night
9 • Seventeen Wishes
10 • A Time to Cherish
11 • Sweet Dreams
12 • A Promise Is Forever
CHRISTY & TODD: THE COLLEGE YEARS
1 • Until Tomorrow
2 • As You Wish
3 • I Promise
Christy & Todd: The College Years (3 in 1)
THE SIERRA JENSEN SERIES
1 • Only You, Sierra
2 • In Your Dreams
3 • Don’t You Wish
4 • Close Your Eyes
5 • Without a Doubt
6 • With This Ring
7 • Open Your Heart
8 • Time Will Tell
9 • Now Picture This
10 • Hold On Tight
11 • Closer Than Ever
12 • Take My Hand
KATIE WELDON SERIES
1 • Peculiar Treasures
THE GLENBROOKE SERIES
1 • Secrets
2 • Whispers
3 • Echoes
4 • Sunsets
5 • Clouds
6 • Waterfalls
7 • Woodlands
8 • Wildflowers
SISTERCHICKS SERIES
1 • Sisterchicks on the Loose!
2 • Sisterchicks Do the Hula!
3 • Sisterchicks in Sombreros!
4 • Sisterchicks Down Under!
5 • Sisterchicks Say Ooh La La!
6 • Sisterchicks in Gondolas!
Gentle Passages
Mothering by Heart
Take Flight! (a Sisterchicks Devotional)
Tea at Glenbrooke
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Robin Jones Gunn, As You Wish
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