Thirty and a Half Excuses
Page 41

He shook his head. “You can pretend all you want, but I can tell you’re troubled. I’m here to help you, not just as a pastor, but as a friend.” He put his hand on my bare shoulder.
I tried to stuff my panic, feeling uncomfortable with the direction this was heading. I turned and saw Rhonda standing at the door. Her arms were crossed beneath her bosom, and if she scowled anymore, her face would get stuck in a permanent pucker.
I took a tiny step back and forced a smile. “Thank you, Reverend. I’ll keep that in mind.”
He watched me for a few uncomfortable moments. “I hope you do. I’d like to get to know you better.” Then he turned and walked back into the church, but Rhonda kept her vigil, making no attempt to hide the hate in her eyes.
As he walked away, a vision blackened everything around me.
Rhonda stood in front of me, her face red with anger. “That girl is trouble, Jonah.”
“Who I talk to is none of your business.”
“We came here with a plan, and you’re getting distracted.”
My hands clenched at my sides, and my words came out clipped. “Let’s not forget who’s in charge here.”
She gritted her teeth and looked down, mumbling, “Yes, I know.”
“You need to have more faith, Rhonda. Our ultimate goal will be obtained.”
The brick exterior of the church came back into view, and Rhonda stood in the open doorway now. “You’re fighting with Rhonda over me.”
Rhonda’s mouth dropped open, and then she quickly got ahold of herself and took a step toward me, still holding onto the door. “I told you I know your kind, and I won’t stand back and watch you ruin that Godly man.”
This judgmental woman was ticking me off. “I don’t have any interest in Jonah Pruitt other than as a businesswoman.”
“Don’t you go trying to pull the wool over my eyes. I can see what you’re doing as clear as day.” She pointed her finger at me. “I won’t stand for it. When you finish this job, don’t you ever set foot on this church’s grounds again.”
I stuffed down a laugh. “I thought Reverend Jonah was all about acceptance and turning no one away.”
“Sometimes the reverend forgets himself and needs someone to watch out for him.”
“Funny, he seems perfectly capable of taking care of himself.” I spun around and stomped off to where the guys were working.
My encounter with Jonah had shaken me, particularly the vision. I considered calling Mason, but what was I going to tell him? That Jonah’s secretary hated me? That didn’t exactly seem like DA material.
Instead, I told Bruce Wayne and David goodbye for the day and drove across town to pick up Ashley and Mikey.
They were playing in the front yard of Mike’s parents’ house when I showed up. Mike’s mother sat on the step, watching the kids. Ashley was blowing bubbles, and Mikey was chasing after them. They let out squeals of excitement when they saw me pull up in the truck, and they ran over to check it out. Mike’s mother’s brow wrinkled in confusion. “Violet said you were thinking about buying a truck, but she led me to believe it was an old clunker.”
That didn’t surprise me a bit. “No, Mason Deveraux, the assistant district attorney, helped me get a good deal.”
Her eyebrows rose at my statement, but she didn’t comment.
When the kids settled down, we set up the car seats in the truck’s backseat and strapped them in. Once they were settled, Mike’s mother turned to me, her face pale. “Do you think that Mike and Violet will ever get back together?”
I cleared my throat, stalling. But there was no sense in hiding what I thought. “It doesn’t look promising, does it?”
“We love Violet like a daughter, but I’m not sure we can watch her start dating.” Her voice broke. “It’s just too painful.”
I nodded. I understood better than she knew. “I feel exactly the same way. I love Mike and miss him terribly. But I also love Violet, and I need to let her make her own decisions. Mike seems to be moving on and she wants to do the same, as difficult as it is for me to accept.”
She bit her lip. “I don’t want to lose my grandchildren.”
I pulled her into a hug. “You won’t! Violet loves you and Gary, and she would never let the kids lose you. Besides, not only are you amazing grandparents, but you’re the only ones they have.”
She sniffed and patted my arm. “You’re a good girl, Rose. I wasn’t sure about you when Mike and Violet first got married—you were always so quiet and self-contained, like you didn’t have time for anyone else—but you’ve really come out of your shell and grown into yourself.”
Her comment caught me off guard, and I wasn’t sure what to say. “Um…thank you.”
After she put the kid’s bags into the truck, she went inside the house, leaving me a little dazed. Had people stayed away from me because they thought I wasn’t friendly? Had I been the one to create the barrier between myself and the world?
“Aunt Rose! I’m hungry!” Ashley shouted from the backseat.
She shook me out of my musings, and I climbed inside. “Then let’s get you something to eat. Do you like my new truck?”
“Ru,” Mikey said, clapping his hands together.
“I’ll take that as a yes. How about you, Ashley?” I cast a glance at her as I backed out of the driveway.