Jenna nodded her head and then placed a hand on Trey’s arm, “I’ll do what I can. As for the crying in the shower thing, it’s something us women do when we don’t want to burden anyone else with our tears. I’ve spent more than my fair share of time crying in the shower. I’ll see what I can do to get her to talk to me, but I won’t force the issue. She’ll talk when she’s ready, we just have to be there to listen when that times comes.”
When they arrived back at Trey’s home, Jenna gave him a smile and then headed up the stairs to Michelle’s room. Seeing the door closed, she tapped lightly on the door and waited for a response.
“Trey, I’m really tired. I think I’m just going to turn in for the night,” came the muffled reply through the door.
“Well, that wasn’t the greeting I was hoping for. I guess I’ll see you in the morning,” Jenna took a step back and slowly started counting. She smiled when the door flew open before she even reached three.
“Jenna?” Michelle whispered, her eyes wide opened and her mouth gasping in shock.
“Surprise! I guess Trey forgot to mention I was staying here for a while?”
“What?!” Michelle shrieked, launching herself across the distance separating them and hugging Jenna for all she was worth. Tears of happiness started flowing down the cheeks of both women. “When did you get back? Why didn’t you call? Gosh, I’m going to kill Trey for not coming up to the camp and getting me!”
“Slow down! First, I’ve only been back a few days. I came back to clear up some paperwork with my parents’ estate. There was a mix up at the bank, and I have to wait until early next week for the correct paperwork to arrive.”
Michelle shook her head, “Where have you been the last six years? I looked for you so many times…”
Jenna nodded slowly, “That’s what Trey said. So much has happened, most of it not worth dredging back up.”
“What do you mean? You sound like that last six years have been nothing but torture.”
Trey chose that moment to reach the top of the stairs, “Ladies. Michelle, I don’t know how much Jenna’s told you, but I think you all should save that sob story for another time. I just got off the phone with Tyler and it seems you’ve been holding back, little sis.”
Michelle watched her brother and knew that Tyler had spoken to him about their two years of dates and their final rough breakup. “I don’t have to tell you every little thing that happens in my life.”
Trey nodded his head, “That’s right, you don’t. But you’ve been moping around here like your best friend died. What I want to know is how much of your sadness is because of Tyler?”
Chapter 5
Jenna saved Michelle from having to answer, “Trey, maybe we could give Michelle a break tonight. From the looks of that ankle, she probably needs to go get an x-ray taken.”
Trey’s eyes moved down to his sister’s ankle and he blanched. It was purple and turning almost black around the outside of her ankle bone, and was swollen to nearly twice its normal size. “Yeah, I’m thinking an x-ray might be a good thing. I’ll go bring the truck around to the front. Jenna, can you help her down the stairs?”
Michelle scowled at her brother, preventing Jenna from answering, “I can get myself down the stairs. As for a trip into Montrose to get an x-ray, I’m not sure that’s necessary…”
“Well, I say it is. Do whatever you need to do and get down here.” Trey issued that order and then high-tailed it down the stairs. He was headed for his truck when his cell phone rang. Glancing at the number, he answered the call, “Hey, Mom. I was just getting ready to call you.” Maybe after we made the trip to Montrose, but I would have called sometime before the day was over.
“Trey, I hate to ask this of you, but your father and I made a trip up to Ouray and we seem to have locked the keys to the car… Inside the car.”
We locked the keys in the car? More than likely you locked the keys in the car! His mother sounded so put out, Trey barked out a laugh before he could help himself. When he heard her sniffle on the line, he sobered immediately, “Sorry, Mom. How many times has dad told you to put an extra key under the front of the car?”
“I’ll have you know I did take his advice. But I had to use it a few weeks back when I misplaced my keys and I haven’t had time to replace it yet.”
Trey laughed and then he remembered what he was doing outside standing next to his truck. Michelle needs to go to the hospital. But Ouray is the opposite direction by an hour. He briefly thought about sending Jenna to go pick up his parents, but that would put him alone with his sister for the next several hours. And switching the chauffer duties around wasn’t any better.
“Trey?” came his mother’s voice over the line. “What shall I tell your father?”
“Where are you exactly?” Trey asked, still unsure of how he was supposed to be in two places at the same time. He raised his head and then grinned. The answer to everyone’s problems was just pulling onto his street. Good thing I made that little call!
“Well, we were getting ready to take a dip in the hot springs…”
“Perfect. Go ahead and do that. I’ll head that direction and let you know when I get there.” The mineral hot springs had become a normal part of his father’s routine whenever his knees were paining him. The doctor had advised him to look into getting both of his knees replaced, but Terrence Cottrell was being stubborn. He always had one excuse or another for not getting the surgery done.
“Are you sure? I know this is a horrible imposition…”
“Mom, it really is fine. I’ll head that way shortly. Enjoy the hot springs with dad and stop worrying.”
“Thank you, son.”
“No problem.” Trey ended the call just as the newcomer parked his truck in front of the house. He watched as the man climbed from his truck and then met him halfway with a hearty handshake, “Tyler. Good to have you home.”
“Well, I have to say, that’s a much warmer welcome than your sister gave me. I decided I better come by and make sure she didn’t need medical intervention. I also wanted to caution you about asking too many questions. We have some things to work out between us, and frankly I’d appreciate the opportunity to do that without a lot of outside interference.”
“No problem .As for the medical attention, she definitely needs to go to the hospital. And I for one am glad you did come back. It seems my mother has once again managed to lock her keys inside her car.”
Tyler laughed; the story of the pastor’s wife losing her keys was not something new. “Good to see some things haven’t changed around here.”
Trey shared his laugh, “Well, the thing is – I was just getting ready to take Michelle down to Montrose to get an x-ray of that ankle. It doesn’t look like an ordinary sprain to me. But now I need to make a trip up to Ouray to rescue my parents.”
Tyler mentally rubbed his hands together. Is this your way of helping me get a chance to talk to Michelle, God? If so – thanks! Tyler grinned, “Well, allow me to come to your rescue. Your sister’s going to hate you, but I can almost guarantee she’ll hate me more by the time we get back from the hospital.”
Trey watched this man he’d once called friend and then asked, “There’s something between you and Michelle she forgot to tell the rest of us. Are you responsible for the lost look in her eyes since she’s been home?”
Tyler looked at the ground before answering, “Trey, I don’t want to lie to you. Michelle and I had a fight over a year ago, I’ll admit to that. But if Michelle hasn’t said anything, I’d really like to talk to her first. I already told her that I came back for her, but she was trying to get away from me when she fell.”
Trey raised an eyebrow at that and then asked, “Doesn’t seem like she was of a mind to discuss anything with you. Why should I make her spend time with you, especially when she’s hurt?”
“Because I plan on spending the rest of my life making her smile, if I can just get her to talk to me again.”
Trey hid his
smile, thinking that his headstrong sister might have finally met her match. His mind flashed back to a conversation he and his friends had eavesdropped on many years earlier. The girls had been on the old wooden bridge just outside town and the subject of kissing had come up. They had only been just starting middle school, and were twelve and thirteen years old. He and his high school buddies had been hiding under the wooden support beams, listening in unabashedly.
“If you could kiss anybody in the world, who would it be?” Michelle asked.
“When you say kiss, do you mean on the lips and all that mushy and stuff?” asked twelve-year- old Jenna.
“Yep! Come on, now. Who would you kiss?”
“I know who I’d kiss,” piped in Michelle as she lowered her voice and softly whispered, “Tyler.”
“What?!” exclaimed Brooke. “Why on earth would you want to kiss my brother? Ewww!”
Tyler and Trey were both two years older and in high school, making them perfect targets for the crushes of the pre-teen girls. Brooke seemed upset that Michelle would be interested in kissing her brother and Jenna watched and listened as the two bantered back and forth for a few moments.
“Okay, Jenna. Who would you want to kiss, and please don’t say my brother?” Brooke pleaded.
Jenna shook her head, “Okay, I won’t. I want to kiss Michelle’s brother.”
He and Tyler had left the bridge that day, solemnly promising not to tease each other about what they’d overheard. Trey had watched his sister carefully after that day however, and she never missed an opportunity to hang around when Tyler came over.
Considering the fact that years later, he was now with Jenna, he wasn’t in the least surprised to find that Michelle and Tyler had found each other. Even after they had both left Cathedral Hills to pursue their own dreams. There just seemed to be something about growing up in this little town that always brought people back together.
“Look, if you don’t mind, could you run Michelle in for that x-ray? I’ll take Jenna with me and go rescue my parents.”
“Not at all, but you have to be the one to break the news to her. She’ll never get in my truck if she knows I’m driving her.”
“Problem solved.” Trey tossed him his keys, “Take my car. She won’t have to climb up into the cab that way, and it gets much better gas mileage.”
Tyler grabbed the keys midair and then smiled, “She is going to want to kill you after this.”
“Yeah, that’s not really anything new. She’s been moping around here since she came home. A little emotion on her part, of any kind, is welcome.”
“Moping, huh? And she didn’t say why?” Tyler asked, glancing at the house again.
Trey shook his head, “Not a thing. It’s like a part of her died and she doesn’t know how to move forward.”
Tyler said nothing. He’d seen the signs of a deep sadness in her before their last fight, but she’d never wanted to talk about work when they were together. That’s probably my fault. It’s not like we had lots of time together. A few hours a day on my way thru town. A few days to play tourist and then I was headed to yet another competition. Looking back on it, he was surprised they’d grown as close together as they had.
“Here they come. Why don’t you stay out of sight until I get her in the car?” Trey suggested, not really liking the subterfuge that was being used on his own sister, but he didn’t have time to fight with her, nor did he want to see her refuse the medical treatment he was almost positive she needed.
Tyler nodded his head and ducked back behind the corner of the house as Jenna and Michelle slowly made their way towards the vehicles. Trey’s car was sitting in the driveway, and he was hoping Michelle would be more focused on reaching it without falling, than looking around and seeing Tyler’s truck sitting next to his own.
Chapter 6
Trey met his sister halfway between the front door and the driveway. “Let’s get you into the car. It will be easier to get in and out of with that ankle being so sore.” He rushed to open the passenger door, “Let me scoot the seat back just a bit. Okay, have a seat.”
Trey watched as Michelle slowly lowered herself into the car and then reached for the seatbelt. When he saw Jenna reach for the rear passenger door, he shook his head at her and motioned her to stop. She gave him a quizzical look, but then a movement on the other side of the car caught her attention.
Jenna watched Tyler step out from around the house and head towards the driver’s side. He gave her a cocky smile and then nodded his head at Trey, mouthing the words, “Thanks” in the process.
Jenna stepped back as Trey shut the door at the same time Tyler opened his and slid inside. Michelle’s screams of outrage could be heard, even though the doors were closed. She looked at Trey with an incredulous look upon her face, “She is going to murder you in your sleep!”
“Think so? Well, she’ll have to get that ankle healed up first. Tyler actually came by at just the right time. My mom locked her keys in the car up in Ouray. They need me to go get them.”
Jenna placed her hands on her hips, “Well, I could have taken Michelle to the hospital.”
Trey nodded his head, “Yes. You could have. But I thought maybe you’d like to spend a few minutes in the hot springs, since that’s where mom and dad are.”
Jenna bit her bottom lip; the hot springs were one of her favorite haunts in this part of Colorado. It had been more than seven years since she’d soaked in the warm mineral waters, but she could still remember the sense of peace and calm that had gone along with the experience. Something she could really use right now.
But then reality came in and she shook her head, “Trey, I can’t go to the hot springs with you.”
“Why not?”
“I don’t have a swimsuit. Unless…”
“Unless, what?” Trey asked, feeling bad that he hadn’t thought about her not having the proper attire for such an outing.
“Well, when I was over at my parents’ house, I brought some of my old clothes back. They still fit, kind of. And, I didn’t look, but maybe there’s a swimsuit still over there as well.”
“Problem solved then.” Trey took a step closer to her and then tipped her chin up with a finger, “And if not, we’ll rent one at the pool. They do that now.”
Jenna smiled up at him, “Really? They never used to do that.”
“They’ve been trying to keep up with the times. Let me lock the house up and we’ll head out.”
Jenna seated herself in Trey’s truck and then waited for him to return. She was actually relieved that she wasn’t going to spend the next several hours with Michelle, feeling like she owed it to her childhood friend to spill all of the gory details about her time away from Cathedral Hills. People often said confession was good for the soul, but in her case, confession was only going to bring about a lot of self-recriminations. She’d been down that road with Trey, and wasn’t ready to do so with Michelle. Not yet.
*****
Inside Trey’s car, things were not nearly as peaceful. Michelle had ranted and raged at Tyler, even going so far as to try and open the car door. Tyler’s response had been to engage the child safety lock feature, making it impossible to open the doors or windows without engaging the controls on the driver’s side door panel.
“Take me back home!” Michelle tried one last time, gritting her teeth through the pain of both her ankle and her battered emotions. There was no way she was spending the next several hours with the man sitting next to her. She didn’t have the fortitude to deal with that. Not now.
Tyler turned at the edge of town and drove a few miles, ignoring Michelle’s angry tirade the entire time. Seeing the small turnoff up ahead, he signaled and then pulled the vehicle over before turning to meet her eyes.
“You are going to Montrose to get your ankle x-rayed. Trey and Jenna are heading to Ouray to rescue your parents…”
Michelle huffed, “Let me guess, mom locked her keys inside the car again?”
“Exa
ctly. I was available, and partly to blame for your injury. I am driving you to Montrose and we’re going to use this time to talk about the last time we fought.”
Michelle began shaking her head, “No. We’re not talking about that. There’s nothing to say. You made your choice…”
“I may have made a choice, but I wasn’t operating with all of the facts at my disposal. Was I?” He stared at her, knowing he’d just gained the advantage when she turned her head and looked out the window.
Michelle held her tongue. She couldn’t see anything to be gained by rehashing their last argument. And nothing she could say or do would bring Celia back or make things right for her. Michelle had just barely begun to get over Tyler when Celia had killed herself. She didn’t think she had it in her to go through that healing process again. Not when she was already feeling fragile and at loose ends.
She knew if her father were here, he would encourage her to talk. It didn’t matter if what she had to say was logical, or overly emotional. He would encourage her to talk. To let all of the bottled up feelings out into the open so they could be analyzed and evaluated. She closed her eyes as she thought about past instances where he had gotten her to talk, only to find out that reality and her own perception of such were completely on opposite ends of the universe.
“When you keep it all inside, it is very easy for the truth to become tainted by raw emotion. That can have a devastating effect on our ability to think clearly and make rational decisions. It’s better to let it all spew forth, and then pick out the nuggets of truth and discard the rest.”
Michelle had tried to remember that bit of wisdom as she’d entered adulthood, but when faced with so many injustices, it was harder to do each time. In the case of Celia, the woman had been robbed of so much – and her sorrow was real. For her. To her. Anyone who spent even five minutes with the woman had felt her soul-deep sorrow and loss.
Michelle and Tyler: Christian Romance (Cathedral Hills Book 2) Page 3
