A Few Flowers Read online

  “After I graduated, I floundered for a couple of years, but when the police came around looking for a friend of mine who had some pretty heavy charges pending, I made up my mind to do something positive with myself. I eventually started my business, and although I’ve had my struggles, things moved along nicely until I was in an automobile accident. Once again, God sent me the message that He loved me, but this time I paid attention. My time in the hospital gave me a lot of time to think and to see how God had been with me, despite my constant rejection of Him. I made my decision to follow Jesus shortly after that.” He purposely left out the fact that it had only been six months ago.

  He turned toward Cindy to see her wide eyes. Many times when they were together he had wanted to tell her about her part in his decision, but every time the subject came up, she had strangely skirted the topic. This wasn’t how he wanted her to find out, although he didn’t understand the depth of her reaction, which didn’t seem very positive.

  “That’s an amazing testimony. Have you shared it with your church?”

  Monty politely smiled back. He would be baptized in a month, which meant sharing his testimony with the congregation then. Now that Cindy had become a part of his life, he especially wanted her to be there for him on his special day. “No, so far only with my home group, and the youth group, and of course my pastor, who was the one on duty making rounds at the hospital. I don’t think the poor man had any idea that one person could ask so many questions.”

  Pastor Colin smiled into space, then turned back to Monty. “You’d be surprised at the questions that people ask, once they get started. It’s a joy for any pastor to respond.”

  Monty laughed. He’d wondered if Pastor Harry had ever been tempted to sneak past his room at the hospital. Yet, he faithfully came every day, although his later visits were admittedly shorter once Monty got his new reading glasses.

  “I was going to ask if you’d share your testimony, but since you haven’t done so at your own church yet, I’ll wait my turn.”

  “I’d be happy to when the time comes. I’m sure Cindy has your phone number, and you’ll be seeing me again the odd Sunday.”

  The pastor turned to Cindy, but spoke to Monty. “You wouldn’t be taking my Cindy away from our little fellowship, would you?”

  From the expression on Cindy’s face, he could see they were moving too fast and her pastor had gone one step too far. He couldn’t help but recall almost word for word her statement that she didn’t want a romantic relationship with him. The words still hurt, but at the time they hadn’t known each other long enough to make that kind of decision.

  As far as he was concerned, he was finished courting her from a distance. He in no way believed in love at first sight, but he had no doubt that what he felt about Cindy was real.

  “Oh, no, Cindy and I are just friends.” Holding the coffee cup in one hand, he brushed the fingers of his free hand along the back of her hand and lowered his voice so only she could hear. “So far, anyway.”

  Cindy stood. “I really think it’s time we left. Thank you so much for your hospitality, and I’ll see you again next Sunday.”

  Monty stood as well. He could take a hint.

  He shook the pastor’s hand as they left. “Thank you for your hospitality. I’ll see you again, soon.”

  ❧

  Cindy stared out the car window the whole way home. She’d had no idea until today that Monty only became a Christian after his accident. While she knew it was fairly common for people to come to a sudden belief in God at such a moment, the thought terrified her. Being at the point of death would change anyone. She’d also peeked at his Bible. The short time frame since he’d been a Christian explained its pristine condition. Judging from his highlighting and carefully placed notes, he had done a lot of reading in that short time. He’d also been approved by at least the pastor to take on some responsibility for the youth group.

  Cindy continued to stare out the window. Could she trust this was a firm commitment and not based on a single experience? Why did she care? As soon as they arrived back at her house, she would tell him that she couldn’t see him again, including the hike, which was a bad idea anyway because she could tell that his leg still hurt.

  “Cindy? Would you like to go out for dinner?”

  She turned to face him, and as he smiled, Cindy’s foolish heart fluttered. She did care. Against her better judgment, she actually liked the man. “I think I’d rather go home, if you don’t mind.”

  Instead of saying good-bye from the car, he not only escorted her to the door, but before she had a chance to open her mouth, he was inside and making himself at home on her couch.

  Since he was there, she made the best of it. At first they discussed the pastor’s sermon, which was a good thing, since she hadn’t paid enough attention. In doing so, she discovered how deeply he considered the teaching and then its practical application, and they simply just kept talking.

  Before they knew it, suppertime had come and gone, so they ordered a pizza and talked some more. The depth of his research and reading was astounding, and Cindy was able to share some of the spiritual truths she’d learned over the years.

  Despite the late hour, Cindy felt almost sorry when he left, which was thankfully before Troy brought Erin home.

  As his car disappeared around the corner, she realized that she hadn’t told him she had reconsidered the hike. More importantly, she hadn’t mentioned that she thought it unwise for her to continue seeing him.

  A million thoughts zinged through her head while Cindy changed into her pajamas and brushed her teeth. She tried very hard to figure out what had happened between the beginning of the day, when she dreaded Monty’s arrival, and his late departure, when she was sorry to see him go.

  She no longer questioned the depth of Monty’s commitment. He focused single-mindedly and pursued with diligence everything he did—his faith included. They’d shared ideas and opinions, agreed on some, and disagreed on others. Best of all, he had never doted on her, nor had he indicated any other signs of hero-worship as listed in her first aid book. Everything he said and did indicated merely the beginning of a very companionable friendship, but now she wasn’t as sure that she wanted only friendship.

  Lying in the silent, dark bedroom, Cindy stared at the ceiling, then closed her eyes to pray for guidance. Although no answers came, she tried to be content in the knowledge that God was watching, and He was in charge.

  ❧

  Monty picked up the phone, stared at it, then hung up again without dialing. Agnes rapped on his office door, dropped a letter needing his signature onto the corner of his desk, and shuffled out without a word.

  He rested his elbows on the desk and buried his face in his hands. Never before had he been unable to concentrate on his work. Never. Not even when he had three projects to complete on the same day that Agnes had accidentally booked an important meeting. Now, he couldn’t formulate a coherent thought.

  He’d seen her just yesterday. He checked his watch. Less than twelve hours ago, in fact. Even though they’d talked for hours, they’d left so much unsaid.

  Monty picked up the phone and dialed her number. Anticipating the soothing sound of her soft melodic voice, he enjoyed her calm business greeting when she answered with her official salutation as Robert’s secretary.

  “Hi, Cindy. It’s Monty. Free for lunch?”

  She hesitated a second before she spoke. “I thought you were going to stop sending me flowers.”

  “Well, it sure is a pleasure to hear your voice, too.”

  She grumbled something he couldn’t quite make out and perhaps was glad he couldn’t. Then she cleared her throat. “Hello, Monty, it’s nice to hear from you.” She paused to let out a short sigh. “The flowers?”

  “I don’t remember promising. You could refresh my memory at lunch.”

  “I. . .”

  Monty smiled as her voice trailed off.

  Cindy cleared her throat. “Are you sure
you don’t have a meeting or appointment or something?”

  “Yup.”

  “Just a minute. I’ll make sure Robert doesn’t need me.”

  He waited patiently, tapping his fingers on the bottom of his keyboard in time with the hold music.

  “Yes, I’m free for lunch.”

  “Great, I’ll pick you up at noon. See you then.”

  Monty quickly postponed his lunchtime appointment, then finished his current programming project. Unfortunately, a phone call delayed his departure, making him unsure if he would be able to arrive at Cindy’s office for noon. As he dashed out the door, he called to Agnes when he would be back, not giving her a chance to ask any questions. Like most days, he would stay late to catch up on the work that was starting to get a bit behind, then he’d go see Cindy again in the evening. Today was going to be a great day.

  ❧

  Monty smiled as he hung up the phone. He knew he was pushing his luck, but after three lunch dates with Cindy this week, he noticed a change in her. Up until today, every time he’d invited her to lunch she’d been hesitant, but today, she sounded like she actually anticipated his arrival. She’d even accused him of collaborating with Robert to allow her longer lunch breaks, but he knew she was only teasing. He was making progress.

  He’d almost made it out the door when Agnes stopped him. “Where are you going?” she called out just as he pulled the door handle.

  “I’m going out for lunch. I’ll be back at one-fifteen.”

  “What’s that smell?” Agnes pointedly sniffed the air. One eye narrowed marginally, and she then broke out into a wide smile. “Never mind,” she mumbled. “It’s just the fresh gel in your hair. I see you’re taking Cindy out for lunch again. Just so I can page you if I need you.”

  He felt his face redden. What he did with his hair was none of Agnes’s business. Nor was it her business where he went, or with whom, on his personal time. Not that he’d ever taken personal time during working hours before.

  He heard Agnes humming gently as the door closed behind him. He reminded himself not to let Agnes find out he was taking Cindy to the theater tomorrow night. Agnes would never let him live down his decision to start leaving on time every night.

  Even though he anticipated Friday evening out with Cindy, he knew they’d have to make it an early night. Saturday was their hike, and he could hardly wait.

  Nine

  Right on schedule at 8:00 a.m., Cindy slowed her car in front of a tall, exclusive apartment building in a neighborhood of many such buildings. With Monty’s directions in her hand, she tilted her head back to gaze skyward, up the height of the building at the address he had given her. Monty’s apartment was on the twenty-fifth floor.

  Just as she considered searching for the visitor parking area, Monty appeared through the large glass door. Gone was the designer power suit and tie, replaced by pristine jeans and a good-quality, name-brand windbreaker, which hung open to show a colorful T-shirt. In stark contrast to the immaculate clothes, his hiking boots and baseball cap had seen better days.

  As she pulled up to the curb, Monty opened the passenger door. Before he climbed in, he tossed into the backseat a backpack that was in even worse condition than her own.

  “Hi.”

  She forced herself to mumble a hello. His familiar face grinned at her from beneath the baseball cap, but nothing else was the same. She struggled with the image.

  Cindy steered into traffic. “I’ve been thinking. Are you sure this is wise? Have you asked your doctor about this?”

  “I haven’t talked to him recently, but he told me I should be getting some exercise.” Out of the corner of her eye, she caught the movement of Monty resting one hand on his stomach. “I’ve gained quite a bit of weight due to the inactivity, so this is a good chance to start getting back in shape.”

  Not that she considered Monty the least bit heavy, but evidently he’d gained enough weight to buy a larger size jeans. Still, she doubted a long hike on a mountain trail was the wisest choice. Since she never got around to canceling the outing, she planned to take the easiest and shortest of the three trails and go slowly.

  Soon they reached the turnoff for the park, and Cindy followed the bumpy gravel road to the parking lot. She pulled out a map of the park and traced her chosen route with one finger. “This is the one I told Erin we’d be on, in case of an emergency or something.”

  His smile made her heart skip a beat. “You’re so sensible.”

  If such a comment had come from Erin, she would have taken it as sarcasm, but coming from Monty, she accepted the statement as the compliment he’d intended.

  Donning their backpacks, they started down the trail, chatting about the area in general. They walked side by side and Cindy kept their pace slow. If he noticed, Monty didn’t seem to mind.

  She purposely stopped as often as possible, whether to watch a playful squirrel or to admire a colorful bird high on a top branch. At the sight of a nest of sparrows, Cindy pulled her camera out of her backpack. She also made Monty pose for a few snapshots, and then he took a couple of her with her own camera before they continued on the path. For awhile no words were spoken, allowing her to enjoy the wind rustling in the trees and the twittering and chattering of the birds and squirrels overhead.

  Monty pushed a branch out of the way. “I love this time of year. Warm, but not too hot yet, everything is green and all the summer flowers are out.” He turned to wink at her. “I know men aren’t supposed to admit to liking flowers.”

  Cindy thought it strangely appealing that a man would not only have such thoughts, but would be able to share them without feeling self-conscious.

  At some point, Monty reached for her hand and held it while they walked down the trail. Cindy didn’t want to admit how much she enjoyed the small contact as they maintained a comfortable silence with their slow but steady pace.

  By the time the path narrowed to a single file, they stopped to sit on a fallen tree while they had a drink of water. Cindy checked the log for creepy crawlies, then swooshed away a fly that chose that moment to buzz around her head. “I forgot to pack insect repellent. Did you bring any?”

  Monty sat directly beside her. “Don’t worry, I’ll protect you from flying and biting monsters.”

  Cindy nearly choked on the water. As she sputtered and coughed, Monty patted her gently on the back. He rested his hand on her shoulder, then raised his hand to run his fingertips on her chin. “Sorry,” he murmured.

  Instead of replying, her words caught in her throat. Both turned at the same time, and their faces were only inches apart. Slowly, he tipped her chin up slightly, and as he tilted his head, his eyes drifted shut. Cindy couldn’t help it. She also closed her eyes, and his mouth brushed hers in a slow and gentle kiss. Before she had a chance to react, he was already standing. He held his hand out to help her up, but she stood without touching him.

  If she had deluded herself before, she now had no doubt where this relationship was headed, if she let it.

  Since they could no longer carry on a conversation in single file, Cindy studied Monty as he walked in front of her. Due to the slightly uneven ground, she couldn’t tell if his limp was worse, but she suspected it was.

  Shortly after noon, they reached the halfway point and stopped for lunch. With the increase in the temperature, Cindy shed her windbreaker and tied it around her waist, and Monty stuffed his into his backpack.

  Monty laid a blanket on the ground, and Cindy spread hers on top to give them a bit more protection from the hard lumpy ground. She noticed Monty wince as he lowered himself stiffly and awkwardly to sit on the blanket. She purposely didn’t respond to his discomfort, taking her time to rummage through her backpack to allow him more time to get comfortable. He rubbed his leg when he thought she wasn’t looking.

  Cindy smiled when she discovered they had packed identical lunches—peanut butter and jam sandwiches, an apple, and juice. Monty had also brought a bag of trail mix to snack on.
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br />   Following a short but heartfelt prayer of thanks for the food and their day, they began to eat.

  “This was a great idea, Cindy. I really needed this chance to get away. Too often I end up working all weekend, except for the time I take off on Sunday morning.”

  She turned to him as she replied. “My grandmother taught me to always have one full day off every week, a full day of rest. When she was alive, we did something special once a week, even if it was only going to the park.” Cindy sighed. “I really miss her.”

  “That must have been nice.”

  “I know you said you were raised in foster homes. Didn’t you ever do that kind of thing?”

  He shook his head. “No. While I’m not going to say that every family that took me in was bad, I always felt like an outsider when it came to family activities. And I wasn’t always the easiest child to care for. I had quite a chip on my shoulder.”

  “Oh, Monty, I’m so sorry. How old were you when your mother died?”

  “As far as I know, she’s still alive. She abandoned me when I was five.”

  Cindy swallowed hard. She couldn’t imagine a mother simply abandoning her small child. In all likelihood, from the distorted viewpoint of a small child, he only felt he’d been abandoned, when that probably wasn’t the case at all.

  They made brief eye contact, and he immediately focused his attention on the toes of his boots. “Don’t look at me like that,” he mumbled. “She was an unfit mother. Who knows what would have happened to me in that environment. I only pray that she is safe and well and that someday she will allow God to bless her in the same ways He has blessed me.”

  “I’m sure she misses you.”