Nathan smiled. “That doesn’t surprise me.”
“She was always a wiz with numbers,” Mrs. Dennison continued. “Never quite figured out how she kept up with it all, but she devised some sort of system for keeping track of funds, even before they came in.”
Nathan chuckled. “That’s my girl.”
“I’m still working with numbers,” Kellie explained. “I’m a stockbroker at a firm in the Houston area.”
“I believe your mother told me that. We’re so proud of you, Honey.” Mrs. Dennison beamed with joy. “Now me, I can barely balance my checkbook.” She chucked, but eventually a serious look returned to her face. “But speaking of your mother, is she here?”
“I believe she’ll be here any moment now,” Kellie explained. “She stopped off to see Dad on her way.”
“I saw him myself this morning.” Mrs. Dennison smiled. “I try to go by on Sunday mornings before church to pray with him. And, of course, Wednesday is my day to work crossword puzzles with him. He’s always loved those crossword puzzles.”
Wow. “I remember,” Kellie said. “Thanks for spending so much time with him. I know it has to bless my mother to have all of her friends close by.”
“Well, that’s what friends do, Honey.” Mrs. Dennison chuckled. “I wouldn’t be able to look myself in the mirror each day if I didn’t follow the leading of the Lord in times like these.”
A man with white hair and a protruding belly interrupted their conversation. “How’s your father, Kellie?”
She looked up into the eyes of Hal O’Keefe, her father’s best friend.
“A little better, I think.” Kellie couldn’t help but grin at the older man’s familiar crooked smile. “We went to see him yesterday. Stayed quite a few hours. He’s able to eat now, with help, of course. We’re headed back over there today after service.”
“Well, I’ll see you up there this afternoon then,” he explained. “I always take communion to the shut-ins on Sundays.”
“That’s wonderful.” These people are amazing.
“Hal and his wife have done more than their share. Everyone has.” Kellie’s mother interrupted their conversation with her thoughts on the matter and Kellie smile in her direction.
“Hi Mom. How’s Dad doing this morning?”
“Oh, about the same.” Her mother shrugged. “But he wanted to make sure I passed along a message to his friends at the church. He’s so grateful to you all.” She spoke to the whole room now, and they all responding with comforting smiles and warm hugs. “You’ve all brought so much food, I could never eat it all. You’ve gone above and beyond the call.”
“Well, we love you and Kenton,” Hal said. “When you love folks, you can never do too much for them.”
Kellie marveled at their easy exchange, so intimate and yet so foreign to her. The conversation swung in several different directions at once as people came in droves to embrace her mother and inquire after her father’s health. Kellie listened in stunned silence as her mother took the time to connect with each person personally.
From inside the sanctuary, the opening song began to play. Kellie turned to Nathan, who looked a little uncomfortable. “We’d better go get a seat.”
He nodded and they made their way inside.
The pianist began to play the first song, a triumphant melody that Kellie recognized right away. The worship leader stood and encouraged the congregation to join him. All across the room people stood, many reaching to hug a neighbor or family member as the first words were sung.
As the song continued, Kellie looked around the room. Many of the people had aged, no doubt, but many remained seemingly unchanged. She caught the eye of Julia, her best friend from high school and gave a little wave. The pretty redhead held a sleeping child in her arms—a little girl with cherub cheeks and hair every bit as red as her mother’s. Julia’s husband Frankie sat just to her right. For some reason, Kellie’s heart lurched as she watched the three of them together. She couldn’t explain the feeling and tried to cast it off, choosing instead to concentrate on choir members, who sang jubilantly.
A feeling of comfort enveloped her and she settled into the familiar routine. The service flew by. Kellie couldn’t remember when she’d enjoyed church so much or when a message had impacted her more. She glanced at her watch as the final song was sung. Noon. Just enough time to grab a bite to eat with her mom and then visit with her father for a couple of hours. She and Nathan would have to be back on the road by four in order to make it back home in time to prepare for work tomorrow.
“Are you okay?” Nathan got her attention as the pew emptied out.
“Yeah.” She nodded. “Just thinking.”
“About. . .?”
“Oh, about all we have to do today.”
“That’s what I was thinking about too.” They stood and made their way through the crowd down the center aisle of the church. “I’d like to take care of something before we leave.”
“Oh?” She couldn’t help but wonder what he meant.
At that very moment, Julia approached with the baby in her arms. “Kellie, it’s so great to see you again.”
“You too.” She embraced her old friend. “And who’s this little angel?”
Julia beamed with pride. “This is Madison. She’s a year and a half now.”
“Well, she’s a beauty.” Kellie couldn’t help but run her fingers through the child’s soft curls. “And my mother tells me you’ve got more news.”
“Yes.” Julia flashed an embarrassed smile and brushed her hand across her belly. “I just found out eight weeks ago. The babies will be a little more than two years apart.” She shook her head and giggled. “But I’m not complaining. I love being a mom. I think I was born for this.”
Kellie felt the usual tug on her heart. “Well, if the next one is half as beautiful as Madison, she’ll be a beauty.”
“Thank you. We’re hoping for a boy this time around.”
Nathan squeezed Kellie’s hand and she took the hint. “I hate to leave so soon, but we’re headed up to the rehab to see my Dad.”
“Give him my love, will you?” Julia said. “I’ll be back up there on Tuesday. Your mom told me how much he loves reading the paper, so I try to spend a little time reading to him. And he just loves seeing Madison. I’m pretty sure he remembers her; his face lights up every time I bring her in the room.”
“Wow. That’s great.”
Julia shrugged. “It’s the least I can do. Your parents have always been so wonderful to me.” She paused as she gazed intently at Kellie. “Will I see you there?”
“No. I, uh. . .” Kellie’s heart twisted once again. “I’ll be back in Houston. I’ve got to work.”
“Oh, I’m sorry to hear that. But it was great to see you.” Julia gave her a warm hug and turned to visit with others nearby.
Nathan and Kellie forced their way through the crowd in the foyer and then managed to somehow make it out into the parking lot together.
“I never would have believed they could fit that many people into such a small space.” Nathan gave the building an admiring glance. “I’m impressed.”
“This place has been bursting at the seams for as long as I can remember.” Kellie pulled her keys from her purse and handed them to Nathan. “But even with the renovations, they’re still pretty full. I wouldn’t be surprised if they have to go to two services soon.”
“Sounds logical.”
The continued to chat as they crossed the parking lot. As they approached the car, Kellie extended her hand with the keys. “Would you like to drive? My mom wants us to meet her at The Country Buffet out on the highway.”
“I don’t mind.” He took the keys. “But I was hoping to change your plans a little.”
“What do you mean?” Surely he didn’t want to leave for Houston right away.
“I mean,” he spoke as he unlocked the car, “that I’ve given a lot of thought to what we were talking about yesterday.”
“You. . . you have?” She bit her lip and waited for his next words.
Nathan opened her door and nodded. “I have.” He paused, and his brow wrinkled a bit with his next words. “I don’t have a permanent solution, but I’m willing to consider the idea of driving back and forth, at least for awhile.”
Kellie caught her breath. “You are?” She could hardly contain her excitement, but didn’t want to alarm him by responding with too much zeal. “Oh, Nathan. I know we can make it work. I know we can.”
“Just one thing,” he said firmly. “I don’t want to rent out the condo. I’m sure we won’t really need to stay here that long. But I’ve been thinking about that house you told me about. I thought maybe we could swing by after lunch and take a look. Maybe, just maybe. . .”
Maybe. Kellie’s heart sang. Maybe she really could have her cake and eat it too.
***
After lunch, Nathan pulled the car into the driveway of the rickety white house with the “For Rent” sign out front. It didn’t look like much, but looks could be deceiving. He hoped.
With Kellie’s fingers laced through his, they crossed the overgrown front yard and knocked on the front door. Nathan tried to push aside the heaviness in his heart as they waited for someone to answer. He had wrestled with the Lord all night over this decision, but the Lord had eventually won out. Kellie was right. She needed to be here with her mother. And he needed to do whatever it took to make that possible. In spite of the daily drive. In spite of the concerns over cost.
“Well, hey there.” A large man, nearly as scruffy-looking as the yard, answered the door with a suspicious grin. “What’ve we got here?” He rubbed at his whiskery jowl and took them in with a lingering gaze.
The whole thing made Nathan more than a little uncomfortable. “We’ve come to take a look at the house.” He tried to sound self-assured as he spoke.
“Have you now?” The man’s face lit up like an evergreen on Christmas morning and suddenly there wasn’t a frightening thing about him. “Well then, come on in. The name’s Chuck Henderson, by the way.” He extended a broad hand and Nathan shook it warmly.
They entered the house and Nathan knew right away why Chuck had opted to charge so little rent. The place was a disaster. The paneled walls appeared to be coming loose in places. The sofa, an old plaid number from the 70’s was threadbare. A large dog of the Heinz 57 variety lay stretched out across a broken recliner in a sound sleep.
“That there’s Killer.” Chuck gestured toward the mutt. “He’s my watchdog.”
The monstrous creature rolled over and yawned, then dozed back off.
“Uh huh.” Nathan would have said more, if every word he’d ever known hadn’t escaped him.
“He takes good care of this place.”
“Right.” It looked like someone needed to take care of this place.
“What do you think?” Chuck spoke with his hands as he showed off the room. “It’s really something, ain’t it?”
Nathan nodded politely “At the very least.”
Kellie looked around, clearly stunned. “It’s. . . it’s not exactly what I was expecting.”
“Lots of folks say that.” Chuck smiled. “It’s big, ain’t it?
In comparison to a cracker box? Nathan tried to be open-minded, but logic prevented it.
“It don’t look like much from the outside, but these here rooms are bigger’n people expect,” Chuck explained. “And look at that carpet.”
I’m looking. Nathan stared in shocked silence at the dingy gold rug.
“You don’t find shag carpet like that these days. Folks is laying down those noisy ceramic tiles or fake hardwoods.” He took off his shoe and raked his toes through the carpet. “Nothing fake about this. And there ain’t nothing like the feel of real shag between your toes.” He flashed a contented smile and slipped his shoe back on.
Nathan couldn’t seem to think of a response. Instead, he and Kellie followed the fellow into the next room—the kitchen. The countertops, crafted of butcher block, were clearly worn down by the years. The appliances probably all dated back to the late 60’s or early 70’s. The cabinet doors hung from broken hinges and the sink was filled with dirty dishes. In short, it was very nearly the worst kitchen he’d ever laid eyes on. Or smelled, for that matter.
Nathan tried to read Kellie’s mind. She was used to granite countertops, top of the line appliances, hardwood floors. Surely she would see this as impossible.
His beautiful wife looked the place over in complete silence. He couldn’t seem to read her thoughts.
“We got three bedrooms here.” Chuck led the way down a narrow hallway to a door on the left. “The first one is kinda small. My daughter tells me it’d make a great office. I’ve just been using it for storage.” He pushed the door open and Nathan couldn’t help but gasp.
“Storage?” The room was filled, top to bottom, with junk. Nathan could hardly believe his eyes.
“Wow.” Kellie mouthed the word, her eyes widening.
“If you liked that, you’ll love the next room.” Chuck led them down the hall to a second small bedroom, equally as messy. “This one’s bigger. You two could put a baby in here.”
Never in a million years would I put a child in that room.
“Well, we don’t have any children,” Kellie explained. Her cheeks flushed bright red.
“I can’t wait for you to see this.” Chuck grinned as he pushed open the door to the master bedroom and for the first time Nathan noticed a tooth missing on the upper right. “The master suite—fit for a king and queen.”
Together they entered a room that was surprisingly big and not terribly hard on the eyes. It was in need of a fresh coat of paint, but this was truly the only place in the entire house Nathan could possibly see himself in. For a few moments, anyway.
“What about the bathrooms?” Kellie asked the question quietly and Nathan tried to imagine what she must be thinking about all of this.
Chuck led them through the bedroom to the master bath. It was dated and in much need of cleaning. The discolored tiles appeared to be coming loose from around the tub and the grout had fallen in clumps.
“Wow.” Nathan made use of his one-word vocabulary once again.
“Yep. She’s a beauty.” Chuck turned on the light and gestured to the shower. “Now that there shower head is new. I bought it at the hardware store and installed it myself. It’s a fancy one.”
Nathan nodded silently.
“So what do you think?” Chuck looked him squarely in the eye. “Cause I’ve got another couple interested.”
Sure you do. “I, uh. . .” Nathan looked at Kellie to gauge her thoughts.
She stared at the room with interest. “Would you let us paint and paper?” she asked.
Nathan put a clamp on the gasp that wanted to escape.
“No skin off my teeth,” Chuck said, “as long as you don’t choose any of those bright colors. Don’t want to bring down the value of the house.” He gave them a knowing look.
Kellie smiled and Nathan could tell she was fighting not to speak her mind. “And you’re sold on this carpet, then?” she asked.
“Well, yeah.” Chuck shrugged. “I like it. But there’s real hardwoods underneath ‘em, if you prefer that kinda thing. Not as comfy on the feet, but I guess they’re in pretty good shape.”
“I see.” Kellie looked around again. “When will the home be available?”
Nathan could hardly believe his ears. She must see something in this place that he didn’t.
“I’ll be moving mid-week,” Chuck said. “My daughter and her husband bought one of those fancy houses up in Austin. They want me to be close. I, uh. . .” He stumbled a bit over his words. “The doc says I’ve only got about three or four months.” His gaze shifted to the ground.
The older man’s words very nearly knocked the wind out of Nathan. “I. . . I’m so sorry,” he stammered. No wonder he’d let the house go. And no wonder he needed to move so quickly.
/> “Oh, Mr. Henderson.” Kellie’s eyes filled with tears.
Chuck broke into a broad smile. “Three or four months of chemo, I mean. My daughter wants me to be close to town so I don’t have to drive back and forth. I figure I’ll be ready to move back to Greenvine in about six months. Didn’t want the house to sit empty all that time.”
“It won’t be empty.” Nathan extended his hand. “We’ll take it.”
“We will?” Kellie looked up at him with tears still glistening against her lashes. “Are you sure?”
“I’m sure.” And with a shake of the hand, he sealed the deal.
nine
Kellie looked around her new home with mixed emotions. The wood-framed house, far cleaner than the day she first saw it, was now filled with brand new furnishings—at Nathan’s request. He insisted on pulling up the gold shag carpeting before the furniture went in. She hadn’t minded, though the floors underneath were in need of refinishing.
She glanced at the kitchen. Gone were the old appliances. In their place, Nathan had installed a practical black stove and refrigerator, contemporary in design. He’d insisted these changes were necessary, that this was the only way she would ever feel comfortable, but Kellie wasn’t so sure. In fact, she thought the new items looked a bit odd up against the dilapidated structure. However, she would never hurt Nathan’s feelings by sharing this thought—not after all the trouble he had gone to just to make things nice for her.
Kellie glanced at her watch. 10:35 A.M. She didn’t really have time to worry about the house right now. Truthfully, it presented far less grief than her current problem. . .signing onto the Internet. Kellie hadn’t counted on the inability to soar across the WWW at the usual rapid pace. Here, away from the city, she had to resort to dial-up. Dial-up. She shook her head in disbelief as she sat down in front of the computer.
The disbelief continued on as Kellie fought with an uncooperative phone line for an hour and a half. Just about the time she got signed on, she would get knocked off again. And today, or all days! She’d been advised by a client to purchase a specific number of shares of stock at a current reduced rate. Unfortunately, the ups and downs of the market made that transaction impossible, at least without reliable Internet access.