Always Tried and Proven

by Nancy Hopper

  Callie felt like screaming as Sadie slid back into her side of the booth with a bright, anxious smile.

  CHAPTER TWO

  Sadie did most of the talking while they ate dinner. It was clear that she was

  totally aware of the electricity between Sam and Callie, and she was absolutely dying to know what was really going on. But, Sam was very carefully controlling the topics of conversation, and Callie relaxed as she realized that Sam wasn't about to indulge her friend’s curiosity in any fashion.

  He'd become very composed and protective, and appeared relaxed. But, Callie could feel that he was taking great pains to appear absolutely at ease; and to see that she was comfortable, too. It helped to restore her composure, and she was grateful.

  When they were ready to leave, Sam gently took Callie's arm and looked down at her warmly. "Callie, will you ride with me, out to the tent? I'd be very interested in talking to you about music.”

  Callie looked at Sadie, who shrugged. "I can drive your truck, if you don't mind." She offered lightly. Callie could see that her friend’s curiosity was intensely aroused.

  "All right." She agreed stiffly.

  Sam smiled down at her, showing dimples, and put an arm around her in response. He kept her against his side as they walked to the car, and opened her door for her. Sadie looked over at her from the truck with a wide-eyed, 'ooh-la-la' look, which Callie ignored.

  The car was beautiful, with dark green leather upholstery. It was quiet, and luxurious. Sam started the engine, and gave her a grateful look. "Thanks." He said sincerely. "I was afraid you'd refuse."

  "What? And have you think I'm afraid to ride with you?" she teased, not unkindly.

  Sam chuckled, and picked up her hand. "I hope you'll forgive me for my candor. It was a risk I could see I had to take. You are too sharp to be anything but absolutely honest with."

  Callie snorted. "Well, I have to say that I'm simply stunned." She admitted. Her breath caught in her throat as Sam kissed the inside of her wrist. Then, he wrapped her tiny hand in his, and drew it up to his chest. She could feel his heart beating steadily.

  “Callie, when can I see you alone?" he asked intently.

  Callie laughed nervously. "We're alone right now.” she pointed out teasingly.

  “You know what I'm asking. I want to see you when Sadie's not staring, and we don't have anywhere to be in the immediate future.”

  Callie sighed. “I can hardly answer that after this surprise session of True Confessions. I'm still reeling." she objected. “Maybe … maybe tomorrow.”

  "Well, good. Don't think too hard, Callie. Just say yes."

  "What happens if I say no?" she asked pointedly.

  It was Sam's turn to laugh. "I'll just try a lot harder." He informed her smoothly.

  "Oh." Callie gulped. She laughed, nervously. "Well, we both know I can't manage any more."

  Sam looked at her, but couldn't tell if it was a compliment. He rather doubted it. "What's the matter, Callie? Does the very idea of a romance with a preacher send you into a tailspin?"

  "No. Well, yes. Sort of. I don't know! What is your hurry?" she asked in irritation.

  Sam shrugged. "I wasn't getting anywhere, trying to hide my attraction. I couldn't pull it off; and remember that I'll only be here until the end of the month. I really don't have a lot of time to change your mind."

  Callie chewed her lip thoughtfully.

  "So, how about dinner tomorrow night?" he asked hopefully.

  "Mmm. I'll think it over." She growled.

  Sam gave her a long look, and bit his tongue.

  He made her talk to him; asked her questions that fired up her brain, and challenged her, and made her think about what she really thought and felt. He was a very intelligent man, and a great conversationalist. He had Callie opening up in a very unusual manner, had he known it. She was enjoying his company, when she forgot to be suspicious and gun-shy.

  When they finally reached the tent, Sam insisted on opening her door for her. Then, he kept an arm around her shoulders as they walked across the field. Sadie was waiting for them, at the door to Sam's trailer office. She watched their approach with intense interest.

  "Well, Sam. Everything seems to be in order, and moving along just fine. Wouldn't it be lovely if we had a smooth opening night?"

  Sam laughed. "Yeah. That would be a first." He sighed. “By the way, Sadie. The churches in Vermont have a full time worship leader who will do the planning for the meetings, there. So you can stay with us in New York, all month. I have a feeling we'll need you here.”

  Sadie smiled. “That will be wonderful.” she said. “I hate leaving in the middle of the campaign. I always feel like I'm missing out on so much.”

  Sam gave Callie a sidelong look. “In this instance, Sadie, I'm quite sure that will be true.”

  Sadie turned to Callie with an excited smile. "Jeremy is our accompanist. He is truly wonderfully gifted, and blessedly easy to get along with. Come along, I'll introduce you to him."

  Sam squeezed her shoulders and looked from her eyes to her mouth, and then back again. Callie already knew it was his way of telling her he'd give his right arm to kiss her.

  She smiled up at him with a challenging glint in her eyes. "Thank you for dinner. I'm sure I'll be seeing you again some time." She said sweetly.

  Sam smiled down at her with a look that told her she could count on it. "My pleasure, Callie. I appreciate it that you're singing tonight. I can hardly wait." He said lightly.

  Callie blushed as she turned away to fall in step with Sadie.

  "My stars, Callie! What on earth is going on with you and Sam?" she demanded.

  Callie gave her a blank look. "I don't know what you mean." She denied coolly.

  "I didn't know Sam had so much charm, and I've certainly never seen him turn it on the way he did tonight. What did he say to you while I was away from the table?"

  "Where did you go?" Callie averted.

  "Just to the restroom, but then my cell phone started ringing. There are a million details on opening night. Callie, what did he say?" Sadie pried wildly.

  Callie shrugged. "We just talked. Got to know one another a little bit. Nothing spectacular." Callie lied.

  "If I didn't know Sam better, I'd think he was on the prowl." Sadie grumbled.

  Callie looked at her innocently. "What did you say?"

  Sadie shook her head. "Nothing. It doesn't matter."

  Callie smiled and tried to look oblivious as they went into the tent.

  Jeremy was a handsome, dark-haired man with a mustache. He held out a friendly hand to her, and grinned. "I hear you're quite a siren. Liven this place a bit, shall we?" he suggested hopefully.

  "Yeah, could happen." Callie chuckled. "But I thought tonight, I'd best take it easy. You know, opening night, and nobody knows me. I think 'How Great Thou Art' is a good idea."

  "What key?" Jeremy asked without blinking.

  Callie was delighted as they went quietly through the arrangement.

  Jeremy was very professional, and as Sadie had promised, awfully gifted. Callie did a sound test, and then she was free to hang loose until the service started.

  The tent was fascinating. Though only half full when she'd arrived, it was soon bursting at the seams. The night was warm, so the team rolled up the walls of the tent to let the fresh air course through, and to allow people to gather all around the perimeter. By the time the service began, there were blankets dotting the entire meadow, and the ground was increasingly covered with people sitting wherever they could find a space. Callie was dumbfounded by the sheer numbers of people.

  The tent staff brought out rope barriers and marked off clearings for routes of travel and a big fire lane from the tent to the parking areas. Then, they began urging the people seated in the bleachers to move toward the centers, so that they could identify empty seats.

  "I think there are more people outside the tent than there are inside." Sadie guessed.

  “There ar
e at the very least double the number outside than in." Callie snorted. "Sadie, you've got at least six thousand people up here."

  “My heavens. I'm not sure I've ever seen this many before." Sadie admitted.

  "Ladies and gentlemen! Welcome to Tuesday night revival.” A deep, masculine voice boomed over the PA system, and echoed back off the hills. “My name is Clyde Lawson, and I am your tent master. We've got a whole lot of people here tonight, so I'll ask you to please be as quiet and still as you can be while we share some very important announcements with you. We want everyone to be able to hear. Please take a seat, and settle in for a wonderful evening.”

  “First, let me assure everyone that we will minister to each and every person tonight who wants ministry. Please just be patient with us; we will get to you, as soon as we possibly can. God has something for you, so don‘t leave here without getting it. We don’t want anyone to go away disappointed. We have a very large, well equipped staff to help us out tonight. Don’t go away without having your needs met. Please, come now and open your hearts. We are ready to get started.”

  Callie was impressed. This crew was professional, and alert. They were having no problem managing their crowd. After Clyde had finished introducing the sponsoring pastors and all of the tent staff, a hush seemed to fall over the tent. Clyde gave the microphone to Sadie.

  "Hello, everybody, I’m Sadie Hamilton. It is an honor and a pleasure to be here tonight. We've been so excited to bring the tent to New York!. We are blessed and overwhelmed by your support. And, I am just about beside myself with all that we have in store tonight! I'm delighted to announce that our tent pastor, Samuel Stringer flew in from Hong Kong yesterday, and he will be with us tonight."

  A deafening roar of applause and shouting met her statement. Callie's eyebrows went up and her heart turned over. Were all these people that excited about Sam's presence? Was he so famous? It was a bit of a perplexing thing.

  "And, we have a lovely, very talented young lady here to start things off for us tonight with some music. Ladies and gentlemen, please give a warm welcome to New York City's own Miss Callie Wilson!"

  The applause was polite, but uninspired. Callie wasn't worried. She knew they'd feel differently when she was done. It wasn't pride, it's just that she knew she was skilled and she intended to give it her all.

  Still, when the piano intro filled the stage monitors, Callie for some reason felt a tremor of trepidation run through her body. She laughed lightly and closed her eyes for a moment. She hadn't been nervous in years ... but this was a little different than anything she'd ever done before.

  As Jeremy's light riffs faded away, a hush fell, and Callie smiled. Though her heart was thumping, she opened her eyes and lifted them up, keeping the smile on her face. The words came out sounding hushed and tender, and incredibly sweet. Still, they filled the tent in a way that was incomparable, and moving.

  "Oh Lord, my God. When I in awesome wonder … consider all the worlds Thy hands have made. I see the sun, I hear the rolling thunder ..." Callie painted an expressive picture with the words and music that she sang that night, of the Creator and Father's omnipotent power; the sacrifice of His only son; and the final glory of His triumph.

  Once she'd begun, Callie knew that she had never delivered a song with such power; such feeling, or conviction. She delivered the final words powerfully, ending on a high, clear note with just enough vibrato to create a beautiful tone. When the last echo finally died away, she closed her eyes and let the silence crown her work.

  And the silence was complete. Then, a rippling roar arose and traveled around her. It increased until it grew into a thunder of shouts and applause. Callie bowed low, blinking surprised tears from her eyes. Then she smiled brightly, raised her arm over her head with her palm lifted toward heaven, and raised her eyes to the ceiling. The roar became deafening. Cameras flashed. She bowed again, and then retreated to the small booth at the rear of the stage.

  Arms flung themselves wildly around her and wet cheeks pressed against her face. "Callie, Callie!" Sadie cried. "Look at what's happened! There are tears flowing everywhere. We're going to have a river here!"

  Callie turned to look at the house, and saw that it was so. There didn't seem to be a dry eye in the place. Sam squeezed her arm and kissed her cheek on his way by, and immediately went onto the stage to pick up the ball. There was an evangelistic and revival harvest waiting to fall into his lap.

  The people went wild when he appeared, and he seemed to take it all in stride. He began calling out, pacing the stage, and waving his arms to pull the people out of their seats. He urged everyone whose heart had been touched by the music, not to wait -- but to come running, to fan revival fire into bursting flame, to make or renew a strong commitment to the Lord!

  The bleachers emptied like a mighty river, to pool on the floor of the tent. Callie watched the team begin to minister to the people, her eyes wide; and then she turned on her heel, and fled.

  Callie did not and would not fit into the world of the tent! She was a Country singer, and she had absolutely no desire to do anything else! She never expected to become famous, but she knew she was good. She was in constant demand in eastern New York State, and she made pretty good money.

  Still, she had never had a moment like she'd experienced at the tent. It perplexed her. Why had this happened? How had it happened? How could she make it happen again? How could she make it happen in her professional life, in Country music?

  She parked behind the club, sighed heavily and turned her engine off. She let her head fall against the steering wheel and pondered her dilemma. She already regretted having promised to go again tomorrow night. What good could come of it? As she had no intention of ever singing Christian music professionally, she had no business singing it in the tent. It didn't matter whether she was appreciated or not, it was wrong to pretend that she was something she wasn't!

  She resolved to tell Sadie first thing in the morning that it really would be best if she didn't sing again. Surely, Sadie would be able to understand her feelings. She smiled as she considered that it would be a real test of Sam's words: was he really interested in her, or was he just flattering the local talent he needed for the tent? She made a face. She didn't really even want to consider the question.

  Suddenly, she burst into tears and wept deeply, for some minutes. She had no idea what was wrong; she just had to let out the deep, disturbing emotions that she’d been bottling up inside her. It had been wonderful, singing in the tent. More wonderful than she’d ever imagined. And she didn’t want it to be! Still, the glow and the feelings didn’t fade. Something had pierced her soul, and let out the pain she’d been holding inside. Something had come, and changed her.

  She grabbed her clothing bags, and swung through the back door of the lounge. She felt better being here, where she was in her own element. She hummed as she brushed out her long, silky hair and intensified her makeup to prepare for the bright stage lighting.

  For her first set, she chose a satin dress that clung to her curves and was incredibly sexy. It was sleeveless, with a deep vee neck that showed a generous but not indecent amount of cleavage. It was royal blue, and came to her knees. She had some stunning heels that made the outfit perfection. It was one of her favorites.

  When she went out to the bandstand, she drew several whistles. She smiled and kept walking.

  "Hey, Jimmie, Sean, Dalton. How are you tonight?"

  "Okay, sweetheart. How was your day?" Jimmie asked, dropping a heavy arm over her shoulders.

  "Very interesting," she answered ominously. "Very interesting, indeed."

  "How so?" Jimmie asked curiously.

  "Oh, just unusual things happening." She explained lightly. "Nothing to write home about. By the way, I have several songs I really want to do tonight."

  Callie was grateful that the evening quickly went into full swing, and she had no further opportunity to think much about what had happened at the tent. She sang her heart out, and had
a wonderful time.

  She had a very responsive crowd that night. She was so grateful; it made the experience in the tent seem to dim in importance. This is where she belonged, on the stage in a country bar.

  She changed clothes again for her second and third sets. The night was going very well, as usual, and she was completely at ease. For her fourth and last set, she put on an above the knee, strapless, sequined white dress with a fantastic flared hem, and a froth of lace and net underneath. She re-did her hair to be very fluffed and modern over her forehead, and clipped it away from her face. But it still hung down her back. She added on sequined earrings and sequined high heels to match. She had a very 1940's look in this outfit. She felt very sexy and she knew she looked good. She freshened her dark berry lipstick and went back to the stage.

  She started her set with a driving ten step, and gave it all she had. Between her performance and Dalton's fiddle work, the crowd really began to shout and clap. During the instrumental, Dalton went down the steps on the side of the stage and out to the center front of the dance floor. Callie came off the other side of the stage and met him out front. She did a little bit of yodeling with it, and the crowd literally went wild.

  They stayed out front until the end of the song, and as the crowd applauded, Callie put an arm around Dalton and laughed into her headset microphone. "Isn't he wonderful?" She asked the audience.

  As she smiled, her eyes settled on the figure of a big, broad-shouldered man in a dim corner of the room. She squinted and tipped her head to take a better look. Though she'd only met him today, she was almost certain that it was Sam sitting there. As the lights glimmered, revealing gold and red highlights on his shining head of hair, she felt her chest tighten. It had to be him.

  She turned on her heel and got back onto the stage. She turned to Jimmie with a strained expression. "Do one, Jimmie." She suggested briskly. "I need a quick minute out."

  "Okay," Jimmie agreed worriedly.

  Without thinking about how it might look, she jetted off the stage and into the restroom. She locked herself in a stall and put her head against the cool metal door. She found that her hands were trembling and dripping nervous sweat. "What in the world is the matter with me?" She snapped. "And what in the world is he doing here?"