The Price of Trust (12 page)

There was something different between them now. Something deeper. They had reached a crossroads and had passed it together. He closed the door gently as Kelly started the truck. He and Todd stood together and watched the truck fade away down the road.

Carly was ready for church early the next morning. She had had terrifying nightmares all night about Ian and had woken up intending to tell Joe that she had changed her mind and couldn't stay. She drank some juice for breakfast, waiting for the clock to tell her it was time to go. The time just crawled along, teasing her. She sat at the small table for what seemed an eternity before she could leave and not be too early. She grabbed her Bible and jacket, ran down the steps, and let herself out, locking up behind her.

"I was wondering when you were going to come out!" a voice called behind her, making her jump. She was surprised to find Joe there, waiting to give her a ride to church. All her intentions vanished at the sight of him smiling at her, and she was reassured that God wanted her to stay.

"Good morning," she said cheerily as he opened her door from the inside. She got in and scooted next to him. He put his arm around her shoulders and kissed her gently on her forehead. She cuddled next to him, breathing in his cologne.

"Good morning," he said as he backed up and headed toward the church. "How'd you sleep last night?"

"Not good. I had nightmares about Ian all night. They were so bad that I had made up my mind to tell you that I wasn't going to stay after all," she answered, looking out the window.

"And now?" he asked casually.

"Everything looks better in daytime," she said simply. "That means yes." She giggled at his frown.

He smiled. "I was wondering if you ever answer a question directly."

"Not if I can help it." They both laughed as Joe parked the truck. He got out and opened her door for her.

"Don't look now, but I think you're in big trouble," she said. Joe turned around to see Angie glaring at both of them. She stalked into the church, banging the door behind her. "I'm sorry, Joe. I didn't mean to get you into trouble with your girlfriend," she teased. He pinched her ear and took her hand.

"It’s gotten pretty cold out," he said, looking at her jacket.

"Oh, I don't know." She pretended not to notice the stinging wind in her face.

He held the door open for her. They found their usual spot next to Todd and Kelly and sat down. Angie sat directly behind Joe, pretending to ignore them.

"What did you have for breakfast this morning?" Joe whispered as the music started.

"Shhhh!" Angie said angrily behind them. They both chuckled, making faces at each other.

They behaved themselves during church, knowing that a loud "shhh" would be headed their way if they even dared to sniffle wrong. After church was over, they went and spoke to Joe's parents.

"Good afternoon," Carly said, hugging Penny and shaking Tom's hand.

"Good afternoon," they both replied warmly.

"Oh, there's Kenny. I've got to go talk to him for a minute. Glad to see you, Carly," Tom said, hurrying to catch his friend before he could leave.

"Are you coming over for lunch this afternoon? Nothing really big, just sandwiches," Penny invited. Carly was about to accept, but Joe interrupted her.

"Actually, I was thinking about asking Todd, Kelly, and Carly to go with me over to the mall this afternoon. Would you like to go?" he asked Carly.

"Sure, if that's okay with your parents," she answered, blushing with pleasure.

Penny smiled. "Oh, that's all right with us. We'll just take it easy today anyway." Joe went off to ask Todd and Kelly if they would go, leaving Carly alone with Penny.

"Carly, sit and talk to me while you wait." Penny sat down, patting the seat next to her. "Last night when you were telling us about that awful fiancé of yours, I just had some questions I wanted to ask you privately." She looked around discreetly making sure no one was around. "You had an apartment, right?" Carly nodded. Penny looked embarrassed, and then plunged ahead. "Were you two living together?" she whispered.

Carly was so relieved that she almost burst out laughing. "No, ma'am. I wouldn't allow Ian to stay at my apartment before we were married."

"I'm relieved." She sighed, putting her hand to her chest. "I was so afraid that you were."

Carly laughed. "I was afraid that it was going to be a harder question."

"Well, here's a harder one." Penny cleared her throat and looked to see where Joe was. He was still talking to Todd and Kelly. "You do know that Joe was engaged before, right?" Carly nodded. "I was wondering if he's told you about that yet."

"No, he hasn't really said anything about it."

"Please don't take this the wrong way, Carly," Penny said uncomfortably.

Carly's heart was thumping. Was she going to try to stop their relationship?

"I don't want Joe to get hurt again," she said finally. "Do you really care for him?"

"Penny, I would rather die than to see him hurt or to cause him any pain," Carly reassured her. "That's why I avoided him. I was going to leave here, so Ian would never find me, but I couldn't. It broke my heart to think of leaving, but I would have if he wouldn't have cared for me." Penny was silent for a moment. "Does that help you any?"

"Immensely, my dear." Penny smiled, standing up. "I'm glad that he found you, but I'm even happier that you've decided to stay. It would have broken his heart again."

"You're not upset about Ian maybe coming here?" Carly asked hesitantly.

"Upset? No. Worried, yes. But I know that Joe will be careful," she said quietly. Joe was walking toward them. "Anyway, people always fight harder to keep the things they love safe. He'll take good care of you."

"What are you two talking about?" Joe asked, quizzically.

"You don't need to know everything." She winked at Carly, and went to join Tom and Kenny.

"Todd and Kelly said they'd go. We've just got to go downstairs real quick and set up some chairs and tables for the deacon’s meeting tonight. I'll be right back." He flashed her a smile and was gone, Todd following.

"Well, I guess we're going with you two. I hope you don't mind," Kelly said, coming to talk.

"No way! I don't mind a bit. I'm glad you're coming with us. It makes everything better to have a couple of friends along," Carly replied, smiling warmly.

"Uh oh. Don't look now, but Angie's coming," Kelly whispered, grabbing her arm. They turned to walk away, trying to avoid her.

"Carly!" Angie called, her voice high and false. "It’s been some time since you sat next to Joe. I hope everything is okay between you two now. But I must admit, you both were awfully distracting.”

"Distracting? What are you talking about?" Carly couldn't help asking.

"Oh don't be coy," she said loudly, wanting to draw attention and embarrass Carly. "I saw you two holding hands during service, and I don't think you could have put a piece of paper between you two. A little close, don't you think?"

People were starting to stare at them, including Tom and Penny, and Carly thought it best to put her in her place once and for all.

"Well, Angie, if you were paying more attention to the service than to us, you probably never would have noticed that we were holding hands," she answered coolly, taking Kelly's arm and turning to go, but Angie stopped them, her voice lower, so only they could hear.

"I only wanted to warn you. You know, I really feel sorry for you."

Carly turned around to face her, her anger rising. "Excuse me?"

"Everyone knows that Joe is still madly in love with his ex-fiancée Amy, and it's only a matter of time until they patch things up and get back together. You don't stand a chance. In fact, Amy's my best friend, and she's coming back to town soon. You'll see. He's just using you, and I thought you'd like to know." She smiled cruelly, enjoying Carly's anguish. "Oh, hi, Joe. I was just telling Kelly and Amy, oh I mean
Carly
, to have a good day." She turned and walked away with a smirk.

"Don't pay her any attention," Kelly urged her, glaring at Angie's back. Joe took her hand protectively.

"Are you okay? You look a little pale," Joe asked her softly, pushing a lock of hair back from her forehead.

"Are you two done already?" Carly asked, smiling up at him as if she hadn't heard anything he'd said to her. "I'm ready, are you, Kelly?" she said, turning to her friends and smiling warmly. She wasn't about to let Angie know that she had aggravated her.

"Um," Todd answered, unsure of what he should or shouldn't say.

"We're ready to go if you both are."

Joe looked at Carly for a minute then seemed to make up his mind about something.

"Just a minute," he said, walking toward Angie, who was talking with a group of people.

"Angie, what's your problem? You have been nasty to Carly since the day she walked in this church, and I was just curious as to why."

Angie turned almost purple with embarrassment, the other people staring at them in surprise. "What are you talking about?" Angie sputtered, trying to look innocent.

"You know very well what I'm talking about," he said through gritted teeth. "I won't have you treating her like that. Do we understand each other?" He glared at her, making her stare at the floor. She looked like she would have liked to find a hole and crawl into it. Joe nodded his head at the people staring at him, turned, and walked back to his family.

"Bravo, brother," Todd said, clapping him on the back. "You gave it to her pretty good there. You know, I don't think I've ever seen you react like that before."

"Wow," Kelly breathed, stunned.

"Why did you do that, Joe?" Carly asked, distressed at all the people staring at them now.

"I promised that I would take care of you and protect you, and I figured that if I couldn't do it with Angie, then I wasn't going to be able to do it with Ian. Just getting into practice," he said, helping her on with her jacket. "You're not embarrassed are you?"

Carly grimaced. "That’s the understatement of the year. But I'm glad that you took care of it. Thank you." She gave him one of her best smiles. His heart flip-flopped, and he took her hand.

"You did what was right son," Tom said, punching his shoulder. "You better be getting along if you're going to be back in time for church tonight. Take care," Penny said, kissing each of her boys.

"We'll see you tonight, Lord willing," Todd called over his shoulder. "Just pray for us. Joe's driving." Joe grabbed him and tousled his hair. Kelly and Carly laughed, and they were gone.

"Well, dear, what do you think of that?" Penny asked quietly, referring to Joe.

"I think we'd better really love that girl, 'cause he isn't going to give her up."

"I agree. I'm thinking we're going to have some additions to our family." She smiled contentedly.

"I do believe you're right, sweet-pea," he said fondly, helping her on with her coat.

They stopped to eat at a quaint little restaurant in the next town before they got to the mall.

"You know," Joe said quietly as soon as they were seated. "You still haven't told what you ate this morning."

Carly pretended to be engrossed in the menu and didn't answer. "Don't make me pinch you," he leaned over and whispered in her ear.

"You wouldn't do that in a restaurant," she whispered back mischievously.

He promptly pinched her arm, making her cry out. "Joe!" she said loudly, causing a few people to turn and look at them.

Todd shifted uncomfortably in his seat. "Um, Kelly, maybe we should sit at another table. People are beginning to stare at us."

Carly scooted her chair a little further away from Joe, her face bright red. "I think that's a good idea. We can sit at another table and leave Joe here to himself."

"All I wanted was her to answer my question, and she wouldn't do it, so she got what she deserved."

"What was his question?" Kelly asked curiously.

Carly scowled. "He wants to know what I ate for breakfast." He just grinned, enjoying himself at her expense.

"That's a weird question." Todd nodded his head in agreement.

"It may be a weird question, but I have my reasons." He looked deliberately at Carly.

"If he's got a reason, by all means, let's hear the answer so we can eat in peace," Todd mocked.

"I had … " Carly mumbled into her glass of water.

Todd leaned forward, pulling his ear. "What was that? Didn't catch it."

Carly mumbled unintelligibly into her glass again.

Kelly giggled. "Nope. Didn't get it that time either."

"She said she had some juice," Joe answered for her, unsmiling.

"Juice? That's it?" Todd couldn't fathom not having bacon, eggs, and toast for breakfast, and thought everyone should eat as much as he did.

"You must be starving," Kelly added, looking concerned.

Carly batted her eyes innocently, grabbing her flat stomach for emphasis. "I'm famished."

"Good, because here comes our food," Todd said hungrily.

"You're going to have to eat better than that, you know," Joe said softly into her ear.

"What? And ruin my girlish figure?"

Joe was uncompromising and looked at her sternly. "You know what I mean. You need to eat better."

"I'll work on it," she promised, blushing prettily.

"Good," he said.

"You know," Todd said between bites, "you two never told us what Angie was saying before we came upstairs. You both looked pretty upset."

"Yeah. What did she say?" Joe asked curiously.

Kelly, always loyal, jumped to her friend's defense. "She was being really mean to Carly. She started out by telling her that you two were, what did she say, disgusting? No, that's not right. Carly what did she say?"

"Distracting. We were distracting her because we were holding hands," Carly answered, laughing at Kelly's mistake.

Todd shook his head at his brother. "Holding hands? You two were holding hands? Joe? Come on now, fess up and tell me. Did Carly make you hold her hand?"

"No, actually I took her hand first." Joe smiled mischievously. "She didn't have a choice, and I wasn't giving it back."

Carly laughed. "I did have a choice. I felt sorry for him," she said impishly, winking at Kelly.

"Anyway. Back to the story. Angie said that you two were distracting her during service, and Carly pretty much told her off. Well, she was really mad, and she started telling Carly that you were just using her, and that you and Amy were going to get back together," Kelly finished the story in a rush, waiting for Joe's reaction.

"Whoa," Todd said, pursing his lips together and leaning back in his chair. "That was cold."

"If Billy Pruit had said that, I would have knocked his teeth down his throat," Joe said furiously. "You wait until I see her again."

"It's okay. Don't let her bother you. So what? She was being a jerk, big deal. I've handled bigger jerks than her before. Just let it go, okay?" Carly coaxed, not wanting him to do anything rash.

"Why? Why should I let her get away with it?" he asked angrily.

She reached over and rubbed his arm soothingly. "Because I asked you to."

He stared down at her, some of the anger leaving his face. "But I don't want anyone to think that I'm just using you," he said slowly. "You do know that I'm not using you, right?"

"I don't think you are," she answered honestly.

"Carly, I love you, and I want you to be sure of that," he said, pulling her closer to him.

"He said the
L
word, Kelly. It must be real," Todd whispered loudly.

"And in front of us," Kelly whispered back. They all laughed, breaking the tension.

"Joe, I'd like to know what happened between you and Amy," Carly said.

"Uh oh. I knew that was coming. Come on, Kell, we better go," Todd said, getting up.

"No, you don't have to go," Joe said, laying some bills on the table to pay for their meal. "I'll tell it to her on the way to the mall."

"I met Amy when I was about nineteen, and she was eighteen," he began when they were all situated in the truck and on their way. "I thought she was the closest thing to perfect that God had made, and I thought I loved her. We started dating right away, and I asked her to marry me about seven months after our first date. She said yes, and I thought that was it.” He gripped the steering wheel a little harder, and stared at the road.

“But as our wedding date got closer and closer, I began to see that she wasn't nearly as perfect as I had thought. She would lie about little things, and I'd make excuses for her. Then she'd pick on my family, and once again, I made excuses for her. She began to get greedy and whiney, and downright nasty if she didn't get her own way on everything. She expected me to answer her every beck and call, and I usually did. I was her little lap dog, I'm ashamed to say. Todd can testify to that."

Todd nodded vigorously. "It was pitiful."

"Well, I began to build a house for us on some property that I had gotten from my dad. I got the foundation finished without telling her. I wanted to surprise her with it on Christmas morning. I took her to see it and she blew up. She started screaming about how inconsiderate I was to not even ask her what she wanted and proceeded to tell me that she could never live that close to my family. So, being the lap dog that I was, I stopped building and started looking to buy a house that she wanted. All the houses she looked at were way too expensive for me, but if I even mentioned looking at smaller homes, she would say I was being a jerk.” He paused and swallowed, trying to control his emotions as he remembered the past.

“About two months before our wedding, she left, leaving me a note that said she had made a mistake. She wasn't ready to throw her life away on a piece of trash, and she hoped that she never saw me again. That was six years ago, and I haven't seen her since."

"I'm sorry. I should never have asked you to tell me," Carly said quietly, looking out the window.

Todd added quietly, "And you're the first person he's been interested in since."

"Don't be sorry for me, Carly. Losing her has been one of the best things God has done for me. I thought at the time that I wouldn't ever love anyone again, but you've shown me otherwise." He smiled tenderly at her. "I'm glad she's gone, and I'm glad she left the way she did. Now I know what I've got, and I'm not going to lose you."

Kelly bounced excitedly in the backseat, her face beaming. "Here we are!"

Todd groaned, shaking his head. "This is Kelly's favorite place."

"Have you ever been here before, Carly?" she asked gleefully, as they walked inside the huge entrance.

Amused, Carly grinned at her excitement. "No, can't say that I have."

She hugged Todd's arm happily. "I love this place, but I don't get to come here very often, so it's a real treat when Todd takes me. I'm so glad you asked us to come with you, Joe."

As soon as they were inside, Joe steered Carly toward a store. "My pleasure. I'm taking Carly in here for a little while, so you two can go wherever you want." Carly looked at him in surprise.

"Oh, I think we'll come too. I haven't been here in ages, and they have some pretty good sales." Kelly started to follow, but stopped when Todd groaned, holding his stomach.

"What's wrong? Are you sick?" she asked worriedly, putting her hand on his arm.

"I think I ate too much or something. My stomach is killing me." He groaned again, bending over a little bit.

"Oh my goodness! Are you going to be okay?" Kelly tried to help him stand up. "Joe, I think we'd better take him home."

"Do you want to go home, Todd?" Joe asked, a little disappointed. He had wanted to spend the day shopping with Carly and didn't really want to go home yet, but he would do whatever was necessary to help his brother.

Todd stood up still holding his stomach. "No, I don't need to go home yet; I just need to find a men's room. I'll feel better in a little bit. You all just keep shopping, and I'll be back." Kelly looked unconvinced, but he kissed her and left before she could argue.

Kelly watched him leave, her face anxious. "I hope he's going to be okay."

"He'll be okay. Come on, Kelly. Let's look for some of those sales you were telling us about," Joe said, trying to ease her mind. "Really. He'll be okay; he just ate too much at the restaurant. Come with us."

Kelly followed them reluctantly, but sale racks soon put her back into the shopping mood.

"Where exactly did you want to look, Joe?" Carly asked quizzically.

Joe grabbed her hand and pulled her along, not answering. He seemed intent on one purpose. "Where would they be?" he muttered to himself, looking around for something in particular.

She laughed, still trailing behind. "Maybe I could help you find what you're looking for if you just told me what it was." His grip tightened as he turned to smile at her mysteriously. "Now I'm really nervous."

They turned the corner and found themselves in the winter coats. Carly, knowing what he was up to, stopped abruptly and pulled her hand out of his.

"What are we doing here?" she asked suspiciously, narrowing her eyes at him.

He grinned at her. "You need a winter coat, and we're going to buy you one."

"I don't think so," she answered with a stubborn shake of her head.

"Why can't I buy you a coat?" he asked in bewilderment.

"Because I don't want people to think that I'm using you," she answered firmly.

"I don't care what people think," he answered mildly, taking her hand again. "I want to take care of you, and you need a coat. Don't take away my blessing of doing this for you. Please?" he argued. She held back. "It's about Ian, isn't it?" Joe asked quietly. "I'm not Ian, Carly."

"I know," she answered softly.

"Do you trust me?"

"Yes."

"Then please let me do this for you." He drew her into the leather coats. "Pick one out."

"I don't know," Carly said doubtfully, looking at the price tags.

"Don't worry about the price," he admonished, playfully smacking a tag out of her hand.

"I thought that you said I could pick one out. Doesn't that mean that I can look at the ones that I like, even if they're cheap?" She smiled pertly.

"Yeah, you can find whatever you like, but if I think you're picking them because they're cheap, I'll pick one out for you," he said light-heartedly. Carly rolled her eyes at him and grinned.

"There you two are!" Kelly said, joining them. "I've been looking for you. I thought you left me."

Joe shook his head, grinning. "And have to deal with an irate little brother like Todd? You must be crazy! Hey, will you help Carly pick out a winter coat? She seems to be having trouble finding one."

"Sure! Carly, which ones do you like?" Kelly came over to help her decide. They conspired together quietly for a couple of minutes, then hung three out on the racks.

"These are the ones I like," Carly said self-consciously. Joe examined each one individually, noticing the sales tags. They were the cheapest she could find, but they were durable.

"All right. Which one do you want?" he finally agreed.

"This one," she said immediately, holding up the cheapest of the three.

"Sounds good. You two can go look around while I pay, and I'll meet you," Joe said, giving Carly a hug.

"Thanks, Joe," she whispered, "but you didn't have to."

"I know. I wanted to," he affirmed, still holding her close. She kissed his cheek, blushed, then left quickly, Kelly in pursuit. He watched them go, made sure they weren't coming back, and switched the coat to the most expensive of the three.

He joined them shortly afterward, bag in hand, to find Todd still wasn't there. Kelly was beginning to get worried.

"Joe, we've been in here for a while. Do you think we could go look for him?"