************
They ended up having dinner in an old boathouse by the river that Gage and some of the other men had been fixing up. They couldn’t go to town as it would not be a good idea for someone who’s just had stitches to drive for hours, as Karen had said sternly.
Karen didn’t bring so many clothes with her, but she found a lovely blue dress that was simple yet elegant.
Gage came to pick her up at 8 o’clock and just shook his head when he saw her.
“What’s wrong? Am I overdressed for a date by the river?” Karen asked, looking down at her dress.
“No, you look…perfect,” and he smiled in a way she had never seen before. Brent never told her she was perfect, he complemented her, but then he’d say something like, “You should have worn the yellow one,” or “The ruby necklace would have been perfect for this”. This is the man everyone else knows and admires so much, Karen thought as Gage opened the car door for her. They drove down a dirt road that led off the town until they were at a clearing. There were the docks, all bright with white lights that led to the sweet little boathouse.
“Oh Gage, this is beautiful.”
“Well we didn’t have much time, but she is a beauty.”
They went inside and there was a small table with two chairs with two covered plates. “Granny Mae made her specialty, she insisted actually. I hope you like it, I don’t know if you’ve ever had shrimp gumbo.” And Gage took the covers from the plates. Karen took her first bite and it was a heavenly, rich and full of flavor.
“Tell Granny she blew my mind. This is wonderful.”
They ate their meal and talked about their past, Gage, about his lawyer years, and Karen about medical school and her internship, then about Blake.
“He just said it outright. ‘We should break up,’ and there was nothing I could say, it was devastating.”
“I had a girl like that, she pushed me to take jobs I didn’t want to, you know, high-paying jobs that ate at my soul. She said it was for our future. I couldn’t look myself in the mirror sometimes, then I prayed to God, I didn’t know what to do and I needed guidance. It was weird, I suddenly remembered Granny Mae then, her telling me that it was better to be poor and have integrity, than rich and perverse. I felt like God was telling me to come back, to get my integrity back, to help those who deserved it.”
“And you’re happier here…”
“I am. I’m happier.”
“What happened to the girl?”
“She said I was crazy, then when she found out I was serious, we broke up.”
“Can I ask you something that I want you to give an honest answer to?”
“Sure.”
“Why were you so stern when we first met?”
“Well…to be honest…you were too beautiful,” he said, looking a bit embarrassed.
“Too beautiful?” Karen snorted.
“Yes, the hospital said they would send a Dr. K. Johnston, I never thought you’d be a woman, and a beautiful one at that, I was expecting an old man who wanted to give a few years to the poor before retirement. I thought it was too good to be true.”
“Don’t be silly. You’re the most eligible bachelor from Shreveport to New Orleans,” Karen said with a smile.
“I’m sure you got that from Granny Mae…she likes to exaggerate you know. But it wasn’t just your face. For a young, beautiful, highly recommended doctor to give her life to some remote town no one remembers.”
“I could say the same for you.”
“It seems like we found each other,” he said with a smile.
“It seems we have.”
Epilogue: Karen Found...
“They’re here!” Ava said excitedly as she ran up the stairs.
“Calm down, you’re acting like it’s about you. Help me with the lemonade then,” Karen said, giving Ava the pitcher and heading to the door where the Gage’s four wheel drive was pulling up. Gage came out and opened the passenger side door and Karen’s heart jumped as her parents stepped out of the car.
“Karen darling! We missed you so much!” her mother shouted from the car. When they got closer, her mother turned to her and whispered, “That Gage Fortier is quite a man. When I read your letters, I couldn’t believe it. It was too good to be true, but he’s kind and polite and handsome too.”
“There’s my darling girl,” her father then said, taking her in his arms. “I missed you so much and Gage has just been telling me about the fishing in these parts.”
They went in and Karen finally managed to get her parents to sit down. “I’ve been dying to tell you, but we thought it was better if you were both here.
We’re engaged!”
Giving the Best of Me is about Karen, a young doctor who finds her whole world turned upside down when the man she’s been committed to for 6 years drops the bomb, saying that their relationship had run its course. Desperate for a change, Karen prays to God for guidance, and every time, He finds ways to answer her prayers and leads her in the right direction. Following her heart, she volunteers for an outreach program and then finds herself in a remote town in Louisiana, working alone in a little clinic. She soon hears stories about the kind and Godly man, Gage Fortier, but she doesn’t understand why the man they talk about is so different from the one she’s met, yet unable to deny the electric tension between them.
Follow Karen on her journey to find her calling, and maybe find the man that God meant for her.
Christian Romance: Heaven on Earth... [4 Beautiful Christian Romance Stories] Page 9
