Revved Up Hearts (19 page)

“I got an A in that
class.”

Dawn laughed again. “Found it.” When she found it, she knew that he really didn’t cook. What cook keeps their pans in a high cabinet above the sink? She took the pan out, walked over to the stove, and turned it on. “Now, how about a spatula or a turner of some
sort?”

“All I can say is keep opening doors until you find
it.”

“You’re a big help,” she told him as she started her new
search.

“I had just gotten in when you knocked. If you don’t need me, I’m going to take a
shower.”

“Okay.”

Jeremiah came out of the bathroom twenty minutes later, freshly shaved and showered. He wore blue jeans, a T-shirt over a long sleeved T-shirt. His feet were bare, but he was carrying socks and shoes. “I feel much better. Do you need any
help?”

“I’m almost done. You can pour us something to drink if you
want.”

“Okay,” he said as he got up and went into the kitchen. “I’ve got iced tea and Pepsi, unless you brought something
else.”

“No, I didn’t. A Pepsi would be
great.”

“Coming right up.” He poured the drinks and carried them to the table while Dawn followed with a bowl of taco meat, lettuce, tomatoes, and just about everything else needed for
tacos.

“Go ahead and start eating,” she told him as she went to the fridge for the cheese and sour
cream.

“Everything looks and smells great,” he told
her.

“Thank you,” she answered as she sat down beside him. “Do you mind saying
grace?”

He looked a little uneasy but said sure as he grabbed her hand and bowed his head. “God, thank you for this meal and for my pretty new friend that cooked it for me. Bless this food so that we may be able to do what we need to do. Amen.”

“Amen.”

“So, what are your plans for tomorrow?” he asked her as he filled his
plate.

“It depends on how Bryan feels. If he’s up to it, he has a personal appearance for tomorrow afternoon and race practice after that. What about
you?”

“I have a fan club thing tomorrow after practice. We’re going to a local arcade and game room that has go-karts. I’ve challenged all my fan club members to go-kart races. It’s in this huge mall on the strip. We’re going to work up a huge appetite and then walk over to a nearby pizza
parlor.”

“Sounds like
fun.”

“It is. We did it last year and had so much fun that we decided to make it a yearly thing. You’re welcome to come with me, if you
want.”

“I might. It depends on how everything goes with Bryan. He won’t take it easy and give himself time to get better. I’ll call you to let you
know.”

“Okay.” They sat for almost forty-five minutes, talking and eating. When they were full, they cleaned up the table, put the leftovers in the fridge, and loaded the dishwasher. Then they moved to the couch to watch TV. He sat beside her and put his arm across the back of the couch. “You’re not going to fall asleep on me again, are you?” he teased
her.

“I could, but I’ll try not
to.”

“That’s all I ask.” He picked up the remote and started flipping through the channels. “Is there anything that you want to
watch?”

“No.” They decided to watch the local news. Jeremiah told her that he always liked to watch the news when he was in a new city. It was interesting to see what was going on in that part of the country. Dawn had thought the same thing the other morning when she sat and read the newspaper.
Something else that we have in common
, she thought but was distracted when her cell phone rang. “I swear, if that is Bryan, I’ll hurt him. He promised me the night off. Hello?”

“Hi, hon. It’s
Mom.

Dawn looked at the clock. It was after six in Las Vegas, so it was after eight in Arkansas. It was too late for her mom to be calling just to chat. “Hi, Mom. I didn’t expect you to
call.”

“I know, but I called to tell you that your dad had an accident. We’re in the emergency
room.”

“What happened?” Dawn asked as she sat up straight. Jeremiah sat up too. He was watching her with a concerned look on his
face.

“He was working in the backyard and
fell.”

“Fell?”

“He was up in that big tree, topping it, and he fell out of
it.”

“Why was he in that tree? He’s sixty years old. Where were my brothers? One of them should’ve been in that tree. Why did you let him?” By this time, Dawn was up and
pacing.

“Calm down, and I’ll tell you. I begged him not to climb that tree. Patrick was at work. Shane had been up there but had climbed down to take a break. Your dad decided that he could finish the job. I went inside to get Shane so he could talk some sense into your dad. When we got back outside, your dad was on the
ground.”

“Is he
okay?”

“We just got back from X-ray. His shoulder is
broken.”

“Is either Pat or Shane with
you?”

“They both are. I’m so glad Shane was there. His EMT skills came in
handy.”

“I
bet.”

“You know your father. He tried to get up and say he was okay. Shane made him stay put and checked him out. Your dad said he wasn’t going to the hospital, but we talked him into
it.”

“Mom, do I need to come
home?”

“No. We’re waiting on the doctor to set his shoulder. They told us that when they are done, we can go home, but he’ll have to check up with his regular doctor in a couple of days. But he is not going to be working for a
while.”

That would be tough on her parents financially, Dawn knew. Bryan and Valerie had promised her a bonus. She would send it home. “Can I talk to
Dad?”

“Sure. Let me take the phone to
him.”

“Hi,” her dad’s strained voice came on the line a moment later. It was obvious that he was in serious
pain.

“Hi, Dad. You don’t sound so
good.”

“I don’t feel so
good.”

“Why in the world did you climb that tree?” she
questioned.

“I was trying to help. The tree limb was growing around a power line. I didn’t want it to break and tear up the line. The whole neighborhood would’ve been without
electricity.”

“Then why didn’t the electric company come take care of
it?”

“They said they would come next week, but I wanted it done this
weekend.”

“It would’ve
waited.”

“I know. I got
impatient.”

“You? Impatient? Not my
dad!”

He laughed and then groaned. “Don’t make me laugh. It
hurts!”

“Sorry. I’m just glad that you didn’t hurt yourself any worse than what you
did.”

“When I lost my balance with that chainsaw in my hand, I thought I was a
goner!”

“What!” Dawn
exclaimed.

Somewhere in the background on the other end of the line, Dawn heard her mom say, “I didn’t tell her that
part!”

“It’s not as bad as it sounds,” he said, trying to reassure his daughter. “I slipped and knew I was going to fall. I had just enough time to throw the chainsaw in the opposite direction. It landed in the neighbor’s yard. Nowhere near
me.”

“Oh my! You could’ve cut your own head off!” The thought brought Dawn to tears. She had been so engrossed in the conversation that she had forgotten that Jeremiah was there. She remembered when he put a hand on her shoulder and squeezed. She leaned against
him.

“But I didn’t,” her dad
said.

“Thank
God!”

“I know. I’ve been saying my prayers and thank yous ever since.”

“I love you, Daddy. I’m going to talk to Mom again. You get some
rest.”

“I’ll try. I love you, too. Take care of yourself, and I’ll talk to you
later.”

“Why didn’t you tell me about the chainsaw?” Dawn asked as soon as her mom came back on the
line.

“I didn’t want to scare or worry you anymore than needed. I would’ve told you
later.”

“That makes sense, I guess,” Dawn
responded.

“I need to hang up now. They’re here to set his
arm.”

“Okay. I’ll call tomorrow to check on
him.”

“Okay. I’ll talk to you then. I love you. Bye.”

“I love you too.” Dawn hung up the phone and wiped a tear from her
eye.

“What happened?” Jeremiah asked as he turned her around to face him. Dawn leaned against him and told him the whole story. It felt so good to draw strength from him. He put his arms around her and felt her relax a little. “Your dad sounds a lot like mine. He refuses to admit that he is getting older and can’t do all the things he once
could.”

“Exactly. I’m so thankful he is okay, but if I could get my hands on him right now, I’d strangle him. Mom will probably take care of that for
me.”

Jeremiah laughed. “I’m glad he’s okay. I’ll add him to my prayer
list.”

Did he pray?
That statement surprised Dawn. Jeremiah had told her that he had gotten away from church after his sister died. She would try to find out more later. “I would really appreciate it. He would too.” Dawn paused, looking at
Jeremiah.

“What is
it?”

“I know I promised to hang out with you tonight, but I think I’ll go back to my hotel. I need to be alone for a
while.”

“Are you
sure?”

“Not really,” she said after letting out a deep sigh, “but I know I’m not going to be good
company.”

“I wish you’d stay, but I understand if you can’t,” he said as he hugged her one more time. “Call me if you change your
mind.”

“I’ll see you
tomorrow.”

Dawn didn’t get much sleep that night. All she could do was toss and turn and think about her dad. She prayed and read her Bible and finally fell asleep sometime after 2:00 a.m. She woke up at 5:00 a.m. and couldn’t go back to sleep, she got up and went over to the track to jog. No one was there that early. Dawn did some more thinking and praying as she ran a couple of laps. She got back to her room about 6:30 a.m. and took a shower, got dressed, and went over to Bryan’s motor coach. She could hear him in the shower as she went into the kitchen to start
breakfast.

“Smells good,” he said a few minutes later as he sat down at the
table.

“Thank you. I hope you’re
hungry.”

“Starved. I don’t guess I’ve eaten much in the last couple of
days.”

“So you’re feeling
better?”

“Much. I don’t feel like I’m near death anymore. I’m just really
tired.”

“You’re fatigued. I hate that part. It seems like it takes forever for your body to get its strength back,” Dawn replied as she put a plate of food in front of
him.

“I love home-cooking. That’s what helped you get this job you know, you’re ability to
cook.”

“What?” she
asked.

“None of the other people we interviewed could cook. When I asked them about it, they looked at me like I’d asked them to dance with the devil. They all made up some sort of answer, trying to get the job, but I knew that they were lying. It was important to me that I had someone to cook for me on occasion. I knew Valerie would worry about me if I put on a lot of weight because I was eating too much junk food or if I lost weight because I wasn’t eating anything. When I asked you if you could cook, you smiled and said, ‘Of course. I’ve been cooking for as long as I can remember.’ That’s when you got the
job.”