Saving Grace

by Denise Hunter

  She’d wanted to go see Linn last night, but it was late, and Taylor and Alex were already in bed. Kyle convinced her to wait until morning, after Keith picked up the boys.

  A knock on the door shook her from her thoughts.

  “Alex, do you have your things packed?” She trotted down the stairs and opened the door.

  “Hi, Keith.”

  He seemed surprised at her upbeat tone. “Hi.” He eyed her sideways.

  “Boys, are you ready?”

  Alex and Taylor abandoned their spots in front of the Saturday morning cartoons.

  “Grab your bag, Alex.”

  She handed Taylor’s backpack to him and kissed the boys good-bye.

  After they left, she paced, glancing at her watch every two minutes. Why had she told Kyle nine-thirty? She wanted to go now. What would she say to Linn? Would the girl even forgive her after what she’d done? She’d kicked a pregnant girl out on the street.

  Oh, Lord, show me what to say.

  Maybe Linn wouldn’t want to speak to her, much less forgive her. Linn had trusted Natalie—the only person in her life she could trust. What kind of a Christian witness had Natalie been? She was supposed to show Christ’s love, and instead, she’d only been selfish. Only thought of her own hurts.

  At the same time, she wondered about the baby. Would Linn still let her adopt the child? It was a question she wouldn’t find the answer to until Kyle took her to Linn.

  She looked at her watch again. If he ever got here. She was being unfair, and she knew it. He wasn’t even due for four more minutes. She walked to the window and pulled back the sheer drapes. Kyle was just pulling into the drive.

  She grabbed her purse and left the house, turning to lock the door before getting into his car.

  “Ready?” he asked.

  She looked into his gray-green eyes, noting the peace that radiated from them. “I’m ready,” she said.

  The ride over to the campground was excruciating. Would Linn forgive her? Would she let Natalie back into her life again? When they finally arrived, they knocked on the restaurant door. After knocking several times, Natalie began to worry.

  “Where could she be?”

  “Let’s check with George,” Kyle said.

  They found George raking leaves in front of his house. After explaining the situation to him, Natalie and Kyle followed George to the tiny room at the back of the restaurant.

  As they entered the little room, George scratched his head. “Well, she was here last night, but I don’t see hide nor hair of her things in here.”

  “What’s this?” Kyle picked up a sheet of paper that had been propped on a thin, lumpy pillow.

  “Oh no,” Kyle said.

  “What?” Natalie asked. “What is it?” Something in his voice scared her.

  She couldn’t read the letter, since George was standing over Kyle’s shoulder reading along.

  “Shoot,” he said.

  “What?” Why didn’t someone tell her? She squiggled between the wall and cot to get to Kyle’s other side. She’d read it herself.

  “She left,” Kyle said.

  “How long ago, you reckon?” George asked.

  Natalie read the note. No. Why did this have to happen now? “We have to go after her. Maybe we can catch her.”

  “Let’s go.” Kyle dropped the note, and they ran to his car.

  “Good luck, you two,” George called.

  “We’re not far from the bus stop. Maybe we’ll make it in time.” Kyle squeezed Natalie’s hand.

  They had to catch her in time. How would Natalie live with herself if they didn’t, knowing the way she’d treated Linn? How could she live without knowing that child was safe in a loving family? How will you live without having that child to raise as your own?

  The note had left no clue about where she was going, only that she would live in an apartment in Chicago with a friend. Finding her there would take a miracle.

  Lord, please let us get there in time. Why had she wasted so many weeks soaking in self-pity and righteous anger? Where had it gotten her? Forgive me, Lord, for taking so long to see the truth.

  “Almost there,” Kyle said, laying a hand on her knee. “Do I see someone in the bus shelter?”

  Natalie straightened and squinted through the dirty, scratched Plexiglas. There was someone in there. They neared the spot. A woman.

  “There’s her bike.” Propped right beside the shelter and loaded down with bags was Linn’s old bike.

  Kyle pulled into the adjacent Wendy’s parking lot and stopped the car. “I’ll wait here.”

  Natalie started to argue, then realized he was right. Linn wouldn’t want to see Kyle. It would only make this more difficult than it would already be.

  She ran toward the shelter, slowing as she neared it. Suddenly, fear seized her. What if Linn rejected her apology? What if she’d already made other arrangements for the baby? Natalie didn’t think she’d be able to stand either of those possibilities.

  Lord, You’ve given me the strength to do what’s right. Now help me explain it all to Linn in a way she can understand.

  She rounded the Plexiglas sides and came face-to-face with Linn. The girl’s eyes widened, and her head, which had been resting against the bench’s back, came upright.

  Natalie stopped. Linn looked so sweet sitting there. So young and vulnerable. Just like the first time she’d seen her walk into the center all those months ago. Natalie’s eyes darted down to the volleyball-sized belly peeking out from under Linn’s coat. She remembered praying with conviction about that baby when it was only the size of a seed.

  “Linn.” So many emotions darted through her. Longing for the relationship they’d had before this mess. Love for the girl who’d trusted Natalie with her baby’s future. Regret for the way Natalie had responded that day so many weeks ago. Her eyes burned in their sockets until Linn blurred in front of her.

  “I’m so sorry. I was wrong.” Her body was frozen in space.

  Linn also seemed too stunned to move.

  When would the bus arrive? Natalie needed to explain before it did. The words gushed out, and she was acutely aware they weren’t in any semblance of order. Was Linn making any sense of it?

  “And I found your letters to your baby, and that’s when I knew—Oh, Linn, I’ve been so wrong.”

  Linn’s brown eyes began overflowing with tears. Her face scrunched up, and she covered it with her hands.

  Natalie sat on the bench beside her and put her arm around the girl’s shoulders. “Shhh, it’s OK. Everything’s OK now.” But was it? Where would they go from here? Had Linn already promised the baby to someone else? Would Linn still go to Chicago? Natalie didn’t want her to leave. She’d never told Linn how God wanted a relationship with her.

  Beside her, Linn sobbed quietly. “It was all my fault. You didn’t do anything wrong.”

  “Oh, honey, I did.” Natalie stroked her hair. “I should have forgiven you long ago. I never should have put you out on the street with no place to go. That’s not what God wanted me to do.”

  Linn lifted her head off Natalie’s shoulder and wiped her face on the sleeve of her nylon coat. “How can you forgive me after what I did?”

  Her face crumpled again, and Natalie knew she was thinking of the affair she’d had with Keith. Something in her went as soft as fleece. Linn hadn’t had a man in her life to show her love. It was no surprise she longed for an older man to fill that void. It was all over now. She felt a strength inside her that grew until she was almost overwhelmed with it. What she was doing felt so right. So good.

  She went back to Linn’s question. How could she forgive Linn for what she’d done? It was simple, really. Why had she made it so hard?

  “How could I not forgive you? Do you think I’m perfect? My God forgives me every time I mess up. Who am I to judge your mistakes? That’s not my job. My job is to forgive, and that’s what I’m doing, Linn. I’m choosing to forgive.”

  Linn sniffed and p
ushed her straight, brown hair behind her ear. Tears trailed down her face, her lashes still spiked with them.

  Now that the forgiveness issue was settled, Natalie knew she needed to say the next part, and quickly before the bus arrived. “I don’t know what plans you’ve made for the baby.” Linn’s face gave nothing away, and Natalie felt her mouth go dry. “If you still want me to, and if you haven’t made other arrangements, I’d love nothing more than to raise your baby.”

  A loud noise cut off the last words, and Natalie looked up to see the bus pulling to the curb. Oh, please, no. Not yet!

  She looked at Linn and saw another batch of tears starting.

  “Please say you’ll stay, Linn. You can stay at my house again, and it’ll be just like before. I’ll help you find a job and get back on your feet after the baby.”

  Linn looked at the bus, then back to Natalie.

  The bus door squeaked open, and a big, burly driver climbed down the steps. “These your things?” he asked.

  “What do you say, Linn?” Natalie asked.

  A quivery smile broke out on Linn’s face. “You still want my baby?”

  Was that regret on Linn’s face? Natalie’s worst fear gripped her. “Have you promised the baby to someone else?”

  Linn shook her head.

  “Hey.” The driver hiked his pants up on his mounded belly. “Do you want me to load your stuff or not?”

  Linn’s gaze seared Natalie’s. The connection was a deep, soul-reaching one. Slowly, they both smiled.

  “No,” Linn said. “I’m staying.”

  Tingles of relief shot through Natalie. She embraced Linn, rocking back and forth. Yes! Yes! Her eyes began to burn again. When they pulled apart, she saw the bus door sliding shut, the driver shaking his head.

  Then she saw Kyle rounding the corner of the shelter. She wanted to hug him, too. But just then Linn saw her former brother-in-law, and the smile slid from her face.

  “What’s he doing here?”

  Natalie let her gaze linger on her man for just a moment. How could Linn not know what a wonderful man he was? Of course, she didn’t yet know how Kyle had secretly taken care of her these last weeks.

  Natalie turned Linn’s face toward her. “Do you trust me, Linn?”

  Her brown eyes questioned. Natalie wanted to smooth the frown puckering between her brows. “Yes,” Linn said.

  “I have so much to tell you. Things that have happened since we’ve seen each other. Things I’ve discovered. There’ve been misunderstandings between Kyle and your family.”

  Linn shivered and pulled her coat tight over her belly.

  “I promise I’ll tell you everything, but I want to get you out of this cold.” She put out her hand, palm up. “Come with us?”

  Linn’s eyes went to Kyle then, and Natalie followed her gaze. The look on Kyle’s face melted her heart. His eyes shone with his love for Linn, and Natalie had never been so proud to call a man hers.

  Without taking her eyes from Kyle, Linn put her hand in Natalie’s. “I’ll go with you.” The very words Natalie longed to hear.

  CHAPTER THIRTY-SEVEN

  Natalie spread the tablecloth over the extended table and smoothed the lines from the fall-foliage material. Kyle was in the great room, and Natalie could hear him explaining to Alex the rudiments of the football game they were watching together.

  “Need any help in there?” Kyle called.

  “You’re helping plenty by keeping the boys occupied.” She winked at him as she walked back into the kitchen, wondering at the love growing in her heart toward him. He was an amazing man, and she wasn’t about to let him go.

  When she entered the kitchen, she saw Linn studying the stuffing recipe, a frown between her brows. Her belly was huge—there was no other word for it. But then, she was due the next day, so she was supposed to be huge.

  “Linn, honey, go sit down. Your feet are going to swell to the size of Texas.”

  “Too late.” She held up her sock-encased foot and gave a wry grin.

  “Go. Sit.” Natalie ushered her out of the kitchen, before returning to the stove, and watched her fall into the overstuffed sofa.

  The past four weeks had passed quickly. They’d gotten the adoption process started with Kyle. Once Linn had heard how Kyle had taken care of her while she was at the Wagon Wheel, her heart had begun softening toward him. Kyle hadn’t wanted Natalie to tell her about Jillian’s affair, but Natalie had insisted it was the only way Linn would understand. At first, Linn hadn’t wanted to believe it, but the details she’d coaxed out of Kyle were convincing. Linn remembered Jillian’s high-school boyfriend, remembered the reunion Jillian had gone to alone. It all started making sense to her. And the fact that Kyle had taken blame for the affair rather than hurting her family with the truth had gone a long way toward mending things between Linn and Kyle.

  Natalie could hear them in the other room even now, talking about Loyola University, where Linn would go in January. Natalie and Kyle talked to her about it often to remind her she had a great future ahead of her.

  Natalie had gotten Linn’s medical care covered under her insurance. She’d offered to let Linn stay after the baby’s birth, but Linn decided it would be too hard to see her baby every day. After she left the hospital, she would go live with her friend in Chicago and recover there. Her friend’s aunt agreed to keep the job at her bookstore open until Linn arrived and was able to work. And it made Natalie feel a little better to know that Paula would be in Chicago, too. Maybe if Linn had any problems, she could ask her sister to help out. Natalie thanked God that everything had worked out so smoothly.

  The hardest part of the adoption process had been convincing Keith to go along with the plan. When she’d told him she wanted to adopt his and Linn’s baby, he’d gotten as angry as she’d ever seen him. He’d even called her crazy. But after a few weeks of cooling down and the realization that adoption meant no child support for this baby, he’d agreed to sign away his rights. It would be awkward when he came to pick up Alex and Taylor, knowing he was leaving another child of his with Natalie. But he’d made it clear he didn’t want to be a part of this child’s life. It was as if he’d written this baby off. Perhaps he didn’t believe the child was really his. No matter. It had worked out. They’d take one step at a time, one day at a time.

  Natalie peeked through the oven door and read the thermometer on the turkey. Almost. The doorbell rang, but before Natalie could straighten, she heard the door opening.

  “Happy Thanksgiving!” her dad called.

  “Grandpa!” She heard the boys go running toward the door.

  Natalie went to greet them. Kyle took their coats as Hanna, Micah, and Gram filed in behind her parents.

  Natalie took the Crock-Pot from Gram’s hands. “Yum! These sweet potatoes smell great.”

  “Wish I could take credit, dear,” Gram said. “But Hanna made them this year. It was all I could do to keep my fingers out.”

  Hanna shrugged out of her coat and handed it to Kyle. Natalie noted her rounded belly. “Look at you! You’re finally showing.”

  Standing behind her, Micah wrapped his arms around her, his hands on her belly, and kissed her on the cheek. “Isn’t she cute?”

  “Oh, stop it you two,” Hanna said. “I feel like a whale. Where’s Linn? I need to see someone bigger than me.”

  “Like, thanks a lot!” Linn called from her spot on the sofa. Everyone laughed, including Linn, who looked as if she was enjoying the attention.

  Kyle carried the coats upstairs to her bedroom. The fact that he was acting as host was not lost on her mother, who wiggled her brows Natalie’s direction.

  The hubbub continued as the men settled in front of the TV and the women went to the kitchen. Later, Hanna paused from stirring the gravy to speak. “Isn’t it funny how after all these years of women’s lib, we’re still doing all the cooking, and the men are still watching TV?”

  “Some things never change,” her mom said as she wiped her
hands on a dishtowel.

  “We should make the men do cleanup,” Hanna said as Kyle walked in.

  “I think I picked the wrong time to get a soda.” Kyle smiled cautiously.

  “Now’s your chance to impress them,” Natalie said in a stage whisper. “By showing them how helpful you are by offering to do the dishes.”

  The doorbell rang, then the front door opened, and Natalie heard Paula and David telling everyone hello.

  “Saved by the bell,” Kyle said.

  Natalie snapped a dishtowel at him as he left the kitchen.

  A half hour later, they gathered around the table, which was extended to support their growing family. As was their tradition, they paused to go around the table and share their blessings over the past year. Her dad, at the head of the table, nudged his wife. “Mom, why don’t you go first?”

  Her mom sighed, a content smile on her face. “I’m thankful for all this wonderful family around the table. God has been so good to us.” She looked at Natalie and Hanna and Linn. “I’m excited that we’ll be having two additions to the family very soon.” She looked at Linn. “I’m thankful to God for bringing Linn into my daughter’s life. Into our lives. I have to admit, when I heard what Natalie was doing, well”—she blinked back tears—“I had my doubts, I’m sorry to say. But we serve a God who’s capable of that kind of love, that kind of compassion.” Her words choked off, and she squeezed Paula’s hand to let her know she was through.

  Paula looked everywhere but at David, who was seated across from her. Natalie wondered if everyone else noticed.

  “I’m so thankful for my new job in Chicago …” Her voice crescendoed with enthusiasm.