Take Four

by Karen Kingsbury

  “Five more games to playoffs, men. Five games.” With that Coach Taylor took off his hat. “Let’s thank God.”

  Cody loved this—that Coach Taylor prayed before and after games. The guys wanted him to pray, the parents, too. So he never missed an opportunity. The guys—all of them sweaty and breathing hard—dropped to one knee and prayed with faith and honesty. Cody hung on every word. This was a different team than it had been when he was a player. All because the guys in charge—guys like Connor—were good kids. Kids who lived out their faith.

  When the prayer ended, Coach Taylor leaned in close to Cody and patted his back. “We wouldn’t be here without you.” He had to shout to be heard. “You’re a tremendous asset to this team, Coleman.”

  “Thanks.” Cody felt the compliment to the core of his being. Between his weekend visits to the women’s prison and his distant relationship with Bailey, nothing seemed to be quite right lately. Nothing except this. “I love it,” Cody yelled over the growing noise. “I really love it.”

  “Well, then…let’s keep this train going!” Coach looked from Cody to the rest of his staff. “On to state, men!”

  The team jogged back to the locker room, and Cody gazed up at the still packed stands. Even fans from neighboring areas were starting to take notice of something special happening at Clear Creek. It seemed like every week the stands were a little more full. Bailey was here with her parents and Ricky and BJ, sitting with the extended Baxter family, like always. Cody shaded his eyes and looked up at the section of bleachers where Bailey and her family usually sat. Sure enough, there they were. He needed to tell her about his mother still, and now he needed to tell her about the dinner at Art’s house. Tara had apparently given his number to Cheyenne, because over the last week they’d texted a few times. Nothing flirty, but they shared common ground in the way they’d been forever affected by the war. So Cody hadn’t minded the few times they’d chatted.

  The thing was, options or not, Cody wasn’t interested. He still thought about Bailey constantly, wondering how she was doing every day last week while she was on the movie set. They had talked less this week, and the buzz from the Flanigan boys was that Brandon had a crush on Bailey. He looked up at her again, and squinted. A commotion seemed to have broken out around her. Cody shaded his eyes and immediately realized what had happened. Brandon Paul had arrived, and he was sitting next to Bailey. He’d missed the game, but he was here. From the high corners of the stadium, Cody watched a couple cameramen inch their way closer, snapping a constant stream of flash photos. Only then did he realize that in addition to Dayne and Katy, Keith Ellison and his wife were there. And maybe a few other people from the cast and crew. Maybe they’d been there all along.

  As Cody watched, Brandon slung his arm over Bailey’s shoulders and hugged her. Even from where he stood on the sidelines, Cody could see they were both laughing, both caught up in the moment. Brandon hugged Bailey’s mom and dad next, and then he turned and began talking to Dayne Matthews. Cody looked away, colder than he’d been all night. Everything in him wanted to race up the stadium steps and take her hand, lead her to a quiet place outside the football arena and tell her once and for all that he loved her. He would explain about his mother’s arrest and the danger of Benny Dirk. And he would assure her that all he wanted was her, the two of them together the way things were over the summer.

  But he could hardly do that. He held a clipboard and he flipped a page, checking Connor Flanigan’s stats. He needed to get back to the locker room with the rest of the team. The last glimpse he caught was of her and Brandon, their heads turned toward each other, smiling and talking—completely absorbed in each other. A pain cut through Cody’s heart as he lowered his gaze to the tunnel ahead. No, they certainly wouldn’t be talking tonight. But then, maybe he and Bailey didn’t need to talk anyway. Maybe Bailey was moving on without an explanation from him. He certainly didn’t need to ask her how things were going with Brandon Paul.

  The answer was as clear as the smile on her face.

  BAILEY NOTICED EVERY TIME CODY looked her way, but she didn’t want him to catch her looking at him. It was no longer enough to hear that he was busy, or to spend an hour each night on the phone. Not since last Monday. Bailey watched Cody jog across the field, toward the locker room, and the memory came back again—the way it had a hundred times since Monday. She’d been about to film a scene with Brandon, when she heard her phone vibrate.

  Like always, Brandon was interested. But Bailey kept the phone away from him as she checked the message. A few seconds passed before she realized what she was seeing.

  Nice meeting you too, Cheyenne…I had a great night. I’m sure we’ll talk sometime soon.

  Bailey had felt the blood leave her face, felt the room begin to spin. Was this the reason Cody couldn’t meet with her, the reason she hadn’t seen him hanging out at their house? Because he’d met some girl named Cheyenne? She had refused to show what she was feeling inside. Brandon was still staring her down, dodging around her, teasing her, trying to see her phone. She absolutely couldn’t let him know what had just happened. He didn’t have a right to see into the part of her heart that belonged to Cody Coleman. But since then, she’d barely talked to Cody. Brandon had even teased her that her relationship with Cody was only a figment of her imagination. Seeing Cody tonight, realizing how much he’d kept his distance from her, she was beginning to think Brandon was right. Brandon had told her he might come with Dayne and Katy to the game, and she’d told him to be careful. The paparazzi were camped in town, following both of them pretty closely.

  “That’s right,” he’d teased her as they finished up on the set. “We wouldn’t want anyone to get a picture of us. They might think we were making a movie together.” He grinned, but it was his new grin—the one he’d taken on since they started working together. Not the over-the-top flirty smile from the audition a month ago, but a grin that made him look like a smitten school boy.

  Bailey had laughed the way she’d been doing more often lately—because how crazy was it that Brandon Paul might really have a crush on her? The idea was crazy from a hundred different angles, but mostly because she knew his background. They had nothing in common. Even if Cody had found someone else, Bailey would never be interested in Brandon. For that reason she kept things light, laughing easily, and not taking him too seriously—on the set and here at the game when he showed up just as the contest ended.

  From the moment he arrived, Bailey could see the photographers snapping a constant stream of flash photos from a far corner in the stadium. “Don’t worry about the paparazzi,” he whispered to her. “I told them this was a family football game. I’m just here showing my support.”

  “Is that right?” She looked amused. “The game is over. That’s not very supportive.”

  He gave her an apologetic goofy smile. “I thought they lasted longer.”

  “Hey,” Brandon still sat beside her, like he was unaware that the coaches and team were no longer on the field, or that the stadium was emptying. “Guess what Katy bought me?”

  On the other side of Brandon, Dayne patted his wife’s knee. “The perfect gift.” He smiled at Brandon. “Isn’t that right?”

  “It is.” Brandon’s eyes still sparkled with mischief, but in this moment he wasn’t teasing. “She bought me a Bible.” He tapped Bailey’s waist with his elbow a few times. “Wild, huh? Me getting a Bible?” In a hurry he turned back to Katy. “Not that I don’t like it. I do.” He nodded at Dayne and then back at Bailey. “It’s nice brown leather, and it smells good. The pages are new.”

  “We’re going to read it every morning.” Katy raised her eyebrow at him. “Right, Brandon?”

  “Right.” He made a terrified face at Bailey. “If you weren’t praying for me before, you better start now. Me and the Bible haven’t been best friends. Not for a long time anyway.”

  Bailey doubted they’d ever even been mild acquaintances, but she was proud of Katy. This was a start, a p
iece of the puzzle that had to fall into place if God were going to reach Brandon while he was there. And the change in him since the shoot started was something everyone had noticed. He seemed more like a kid, as if the character of Holden Harris had rubbed off on his soul. Bailey knew it was more than that, of course. It was God softening Brandon’s heart, because before he left Bloomington she truly believed he would be a different person.

  Brandon was still going on about the Bible. “And,” he put his arm around her again, “I have something else.” He flashed a grin at Katy. “Not as good as the Bible, mind you, but pretty fun all the same.” He pulled what looked like half a dozen tickets from his back pocket. “Third row seats to Wicked in New York City tomorrow night.”

  “What?” Bailey gasped. “You can’t be serious?”

  She jumped to her feet and looked at Dayne and Katy and then back to Brandon. He took her hand and eased her back to the bench beside him. “Wanna go?” He elbowed her playfully. “Your ex is in the ensemble from what I read.” His smile was intended to melt her heart. “Of course, you can’t believe everything you read in the tabs.”

  Brandon explained he’d already arranged for his private jet to pick them up in the morning at Indianapolis Airport. They would fly to La Guardia before noon, get a ride into the city, have dinner at Sardi’s in Times Square, and then catch the show at the Gershwin. The plane would bring them back that night, and—though they wouldn’t return to Bloomington until almost sun-up—they would have all day Sunday to catch up on sleep before Monday’s filming.

  “Keith and Lisa, Dayne and Katy, you and me…” his grin was as boyish as Bailey’s youngest brother. “Is it a plan?”

  Bailey spun halfway around and grabbed her mother’s hands. “Please…it’d be so fun. I’d love to see Tim…” she released a slight scream and looked back at Katy. “My goodness, I can’t believe this is even happening. Seriously.” She turned to her mom once more. “What do you think?”

  Her mom and dad were sitting together, and they both chuckled at Bailey’s exuberance. “It’s fine.” Her mom touched Bailey’s arm and they shared a knowing look. Bailey had told her about the strange text from Cody, and her mother had suggested she allow some distance between her and Cody. God would make everything clear in time, when the movie was finished and school was out for the term. Her mom smiled. “It’ll be good for you, honey.”

  “Go have fun.” Her dad leaned closer and put his hand against her cheek. “You deserve it, sweetheart.”

  And like that they had a plan—the craziest plan Bailey had ever been part of. As they made arrangements for their departure and how the details would come together—and as Bailey texted Tim to tell him they were coming with Brandon Paul—she wondered just for a minute if this was what Cody wanted: for her to move on without him. If it were possible, this would’ve been the time to feel herself breaking away. But, instead, as everyone headed for the Flanigan house, and as Bailey spent the next hour talking to her parents and to the producers and to Brandon, as they dreamed about their time in New York City, all she could do was ask herself a series of painful, pressing questions. Where was Cody and what was he doing and how come he was texting some other girl? And most of all, the obvious question.

  How had she and Cody lost again?

  Twenty-One

  KEITH HAD TO AGREE WITH BAILEY—the trip to New York was the wildest, craziest idea Brandon had come up with yet. The idea that they might go from begging for financial support during The Last Letter to this—flying to New York City in Brandon Paul’s private jet was just a little more than he could believe. It helped take the edge off the sadness he and Lisa were feeling about Andi’s latest decision—that she would give up her baby, after all. He and Lisa had talked about Andi’s choice, and they agreed it was the smartest one, the decision that would best benefit the baby.

  But not before the loss would break all their hearts.

  Keith sighed, imagining the day a few months from now when he and Lisa would stand by their daughter, watch her give birth to the beautiful baby in the photograph, and then tell their first grandchild goodbye forever. They would pray every day between now and then for the strength they’d need to pull it off.

  Laughter came from the rest of the group, and Keith turned and glanced at his wife. She was doing better today, glad for the diversion of the trip to Manhattan. She and Katy were sitting with Bailey on a white leather sofa , drinking fresh lattes brought to them by the flight attendant—a young blonde who clearly knew Brandon by name. Dayne and Brandon were talking about Dayne’s accident—and how Dayne could’ve possibly felt drawn into making movies again after such a terrible ordeal. Keith was hanging on every word.

  “At first I only wanted to be out of Hollywood,” Dayne was stretched out on another section of leather sofa, across from two leather recliners where Brandon and Keith sat. “I had Katy and I was in love, and I had a family I hadn’t known about until recently.” He smiled, peace emanating from him. “Why would I need Hollywood?”

  “Exactly.” Brandon crossed one leg over his knee, intent on Dayne and the story. “Why would you come back?”

  “Really?” Dayne slid his feet back to the carpeted floor of the jet and leaned over his knees. “Because God wanted me to step back out. He convinced me that Hollywood in and of itself wasn’t evil. Certain movies, yes. The way most actors live and behave, definitely. But the medium of movies is still a very powerful way to reach people.”

  “In other words, do something good with moviemaking?”

  “More than good.” Dayne eased back again, sitting straighter against the cushioned seat. “Something life-changing. Where people leave the theaters knowing that their lives are empty and meaningless without a faith in Christ.”

  Keith wanted to stand up and applaud. This was a much more direct message from Dayne than the way he’d presented his role earlier, back when they’d had their first meetings with Brandon.

  “Really…you think the message of the film is that religious?” Brandon swallowed, clearly more nervous than he’d been a moment earlier.

  “Not religious. That’s not the right word.” Dayne breathed in slowly, taking his time. “Faith should be a relationship with God. You can grow in that relationship a lot of ways. Certainly by going to church and reading your Bible. By praying. But not by being religious. Some of Jesus’ least favorite people in His day were the religious leaders. Pious and self-righteous. He’s looking more for the broken people…people who need Him.”

  Again Keith could’ve cheered. He could see by the look on Brandon’s face that those last two lines would stay with him. He’s looking more for the broken people…people who need Him. What a great way to describe Jesus. The whole scene made Keith certain beyond any doubt that he was there for a reason, that flying in a private jet for a night in Times Square really was mission work.

  He was proud of Brandon for engaging Dayne in a conversation like this. From the beginning, Brandon had wanted to avoid any discussion of the film’s Christian content. But here he was genuinely interested in Dayne’s motives, in what could’ve transformed him from a playboy tabloid favorite to the faith-filled conscientious man he was today.

  Whatever it takes, Lord…speak to Brandon’s heart. Don’t let him go off on his own or get crazy in the city tonight. Help him really hear what Dayne’s telling him.

  Keith and Lisa often talked about the fact that a change in Brandon Paul—a public change—could have greater impact than any movie, anywhere.

  He thought again about what Andi was doing this weekend, and how she was gearing up for Monday afternoon—when Lisa would take her to the adoption agency office so they could meet the adoptive family for the first time. If Andi resented not being invited to the spur-of-the-moment New York trip, she didn’t show it. She only smiled, happy for them. Homework would keep her busy all weekend, she told them. Also she wanted time to pray and prepare herself for Monday, for the meeting and for the goodbye ahead. Which, despite
the pace and noise of the city, Keith planned to do, too. But for now he could only marvel at the change in Brandon Paul.

  Because if he was reading the young star right, the miracle they’d prayed about was practically at hand.

  BAILEY FELT LIKE SHE WAS IN A DREAM. The flight was amazing, Brandon’s private jet warm and cozy with plush throws and pillows, the cabin rich with the smell of soft premium leather. Bailey noticed the flight attendant making eyes at Brandon, and she figured somewhere in the course of travel Brandon had gotten more than beverage service from the girl. But he didn’t seem even the slightest bit interested today. He introduced her to Bailey and the others, and then never again seemed to notice her—except to thank her for a Sprite or the turkey sandwiches she brought out before they landed.

  Every year Bailey and Connor and their mom visited New York City, staying at the Doubletree Hotel in Times Square and seeing as many plays as they could in a three or four-day span. But never had they traveled like this. Once they landed at La Guardia—near the airport’s private access building—they were met on the tarmac by a shiny black Escalade and taken straight to the city.

  Typically, Bailey had been the one to keep her distance from Brandon. But on this day he seemed content to let her hang out with the producers’ wives. They had a little extra time before their dinner reservations, so the driver took them to FAO Schwarz across the street from Central Park. The last time Bailey had been there she and Tim were dating—so the trip was a little nostalgic. But even back then she’d known Tim wasn’t the guy for her. It had just taken a while for her head to tell her heart.

  Brandon brought a beret and sunglasses, so he wouldn’t be recognized. But Bailey had a pretty good idea that by the end of the night they’d have a trail of paparazzi following them anyway. Inside the famous toy store, Brandon led the way up the escalator to the giant floor piano, which stretched out more than thirty feet.