I totally see where he’s going with this. Too bad Cooper and my mom can’t be here to hear it. Or even those Gardwins, in fact. They could have used this information.
Reverend Shell continues reading some scripture about loving your enemies, blessing those who curse you, and so on and so forth. It really seems unfair that I should be expected to be extra nice to Cooper because he is taking advantage of me.
“Once again, if you pray that God will help you rid yourself of an enemy, I am here to tell you that God is not going to send you weapons for destruction. He’s not going to send you a tailor-made plot for revenge. He’s not going to send you a permission slip for the cessation of forgiveness.”
Man, why did I stop looking at the carpet? That guy is staring right at me.
“God is going to send you an opportunity to be loving, to be forgiving, to be more like Him. Are you going to step up to the challenge?”
Wow, I wish those eyes would stop boring into me. It’s like he’s calling me out or something.
“Watch for the opportunity.” Okay, he can start looking at someone else now. I get it—keep my eyes open. “Watch for an opportunity.”
“Maddie, I was so surprised when I saw you on television the other day,” Hazel says. “I wish I had known about it earlier, so I could have recorded it. Are you sure you don’t want any pie?”
“No thank you, I’m stuffed. I didn’t know I was going to be on the news. It was a last-minute change of plans.” I watch as Hazel passes a large slice of chocolate cream pie to Tucker. It does look really good. Willpower, Maddie.
“You can’t expect your plans to go smoothly when no one knows about them but you,” Josh states. Hazel was pretty thrilled that Josh made arrangements to Skype with us during lunch, although it’s kind of strange for him to be here remotely. Plus, I’m still feeling a bit leery about the whole “Maddie and Josh” thing in the Camdyn Taylor book. Hazel hasn’t brought it up again—to me, at least.
“Well, I did cut your picture out of the paper,” Hazel states. “It was so funny, with that big Frankenstein hulking over you. Tucker thought you looked like a frightened little mouse in that chair, didn’t you, Tucker?”
Tucker grunts and nods, seemingly determined not to talk with his mouth full.
“Where did you find that big guy to wear that costume, anyway?” Hazel continues. “You couldn’t have found a better person.”
Instinctively I glance at Josh on that screen, making sure he’s not going to make any snide comments. “Actually, I met him at a doctor’s appointment. When I was setting things up, I thought of him right away.”
“It’s so nice that your company is trying to give back to the community,” Hazel adds. “Do you have anything else planned in the near future?”
“We’re going to be helping with a food drive for the Thanksgiving holiday. It’s still in the planning stages, but I got the company’s okay to proceed.”
“It’s so unusual to see a big company like that doing things to help charities.” Hazel stands up to begin clearing the table, so I hand her my plate.
“I thought the same thing when Maddie told me she got a raise,” Josh teases with a laugh.
Tucker snickers for a second and then clears his throat, glancing over at me.
“Did you hear that, Hazel?” I ask. “Your son thinks I’m a charity case.”
She makes a clucking noise in her throat at Josh as she turns to leave the room. It’s unusual for the Masons to have a Sunday dinner with no guests–either they are tired of company, or people must have had plans today. Maybe there’s something going around, because the church pews seemed a little emptier than usual this morning. I know the two Gardwin boys have the flu, because Hazel told me that earlier.
“So, what did you think of the sermon today?” Hazel presses, sitting back at the table.
“It was okay,” I say, watching my words carefully. “I really wish he wouldn’t look at me so much, though. It makes me uncomfortable.”
“Hmm… I didn’t notice him looking in our direction very much this morning.”
“Well, he was,” I counter, feeling Josh’s scrutiny from that lifeless screen. “Every time I looked up he seemed to be staring right at me.”
“You know,” Hazel says, rising from the table again and heading to the sink, “I’ve felt that way too, like he’s staring at me while he’s preaching. Usually, when I look back, I see that those are the times when God is trying to get something through my thick head.”
“I always assumed you had a direct line to God, Hazel,” I offer jokingly. Somewhat jokingly, anyway. I’m positive her line is a lot more direct than mine.
“Oh, heavens no,” she insists with a laugh. “He has to pound things into my head sometimes, and it still takes me a while to accept them. I’m sure He gets tired of my stubbornness.”
Hazel stubborn? Those are two words I can’t quite place together. Besides, I’m pretty sure God wasn’t trying to get anything into my head today. It was only that Reverend Shell trying to bore a hole into my skull with his eyes.
“Maybe you should get Camdyn Taylor to preach the sermons over there, Mom,” Josh interjects. “Then Maddie wouldn’t mind being stared at.”
“Josh, really, I don’t know why you’re so obsessed with that writer,” I complain. “If I didn’t know better, I would think you have a crush on her.”
“You can act all nonchalant about it, but Mom told me you waited for almost two hours just to get her to sign your book. Was it worth it?”
Fighting the urge to blush, I try to convince myself that he doesn’t know what she wrote in that book. It still embarrasses me every time I think about it. “Yes, of course it was worth it. She was really nice. She hugged me and everything. I’m thinking about becoming the de facto president of her fan club.”
“That’s a pretty big commitment,” Josh informs me with a smirk, his forehead getting those two familiar wrinkles as he raises his eyebrows. “It would probably last more than two weeks, so I’m not sure you’re the person for the job.”
“Very funny,” I counter, shaking my head. “I didn’t notice anything perceptibly wrong with her, so it shouldn’t be a problem.”
“Do you think I’m shallow?”
I pose the question to Jess as I’m standing in front of the full-length mirror in my bedroom, gazing at my appearance in my yoga pants and jacket. She called me right after my run, which was absolutely necessary today following Hazel’s lunch. Even though I managed to avoid the pie, I still wound up eating a lot more than I have been lately.
“In what aspect?”
“In what aspect? Um, every aspect, I guess. Good grief, the mere fact that you had to quantify it tells me that you think I am.”
“Of course not,” she answers. “You know I love you, Maddie. Don’t put words in my mouth.”
“Josh has just been on my case lately about guys, making fun of me for being so particular. Don’t I deserve to be particular? Why should I have to settle for someone who isn’t right for me? If there’s something about the guy that annoys me, shouldn’t I have the right to abandon pursuit of a relationship?”
“That’s a pretty dumb question,” she mutters. “You do have a tendency to find things wrong with every man you meet, though. Even you have to admit that.”
“Because they have things wrong with them,” I say, staring deeply into my own eyes in my reflection. “And that’s not even true. Look at Max. I haven’t found anything about him that I don’t like yet.”
“Have you been on a date with him?”
Nervously, I pick at the waistband of my pants. “I’m still working on it, but eventually we’ll get there.”
“Then Max doesn’t count. As soon as you go out with him, you’ll discover something. It’s inevitable. You don’t really want to fall for anybody.”
“That’s preposterous,” I huff, unzipping my jacket. “Why wouldn’t I want to fall for anybody?”
“Because you’re in
love with Josh.”
Heat floods my veins as I toss the jacket on my bed and stand frozen in my place.
“Jess, that’s not true.”
“Geez, Maddie, I thought you realized it. Iron Man doesn’t belong in your pants.”
Furrowing my brow, I hesitate for a second.
“Sorry, Iron Man what?”
“Isaiah had Iron Man… Never mind, what were we talking about again?”
“Nothing,” I toss out. “Absolutely nothing.”
“Right, you not being in love with Josh. If you’re worried about my feelings, please don’t be. I’ve had a couple years to reconcile myself to the idea, after all. Quite frankly, I’m getting a little tired of pussyfooting around the issue. You’re never going to be happy with any man who’s not Josh, and Iron Man never talks about doody—it’s not polite.”
“Actually, I can totally see Iron Man talking about doody.” It’s a blatant attempt to change the subject, because I am unbelievably uncomfortable, and I can’t believe how totally wrong Jess is about this topic.
“Okay, if you insist,” she agrees with a laugh. “Forget I said anything, and you and Max can ride off into the sunset together, and I hope you’ll be happy.”
“Maybe we will,” I tell her confidently.
I don’t feel confident, though. In all honesty, I feel anything but. Jess has just thrown the biggest of kinks into our friendship, and I’m not sure how I’m going to look past her beliefs when I speak to her again. Accusing me of wanting to be with her brother is a pretty huge hurdle, isn’t it? Even if I was in love with Josh, which I’m not, there’s still the obstacle of him looking at me like his sister. Or, at the very least, his sister’s annoying friend who he has to chastise constantly because she can’t find a man.
And so what if I can’t find a man? I shouldn’t have to settle simply because the right one hasn’t come along yet. He doesn’t have to be perfect, either. I’m not looking for perfection, to be absolutely frank about the matter.
No, truth be told, I’m just looking for a guy like J…
Oh.
Chapter Twenty-Two
Another Monday morning, and I’ve been here fifteen minutes already without seeing Cooper. I also haven’t seen Audrey, which is unusual. She normally pokes her head into the office first thing to begin telling me about her weekend. Maybe this means it will be a good day.
I know, I know, but I can be hopeful, can’t I?
The good news is, Cooper was so pleased with the positive publicity we received from the blood drive that he accepted my idea for the food drive with basically no explanation. This one won’t take as much effort, either, because we’re partnering with a local charity that has already put things in the planning stages. When I contacted them to see if they wanted a corporate partner, they were so excited, I could practically hear them jumping up and down on the other end of the phone.
If the point of all this was simply to make my résumé more enticing, I think I’ve succeeded. Project coordinator for community-wide blood drive: check. Coordinating partner on Thanksgiving food drive: check. Coupled with my marketing experience and my added expertise in communications, I think I’ve made myself a very desirable candidate. I guess that’s one small blessing that this nightmare with Cooper has unintentionally presented.
Preparing myself is key, because who knows how much longer I have before the day of truth arrives? Or, to state it more succinctly, before Cooper finally challenges his brother to a tennis match. I’ve become fairly certain over the last month or so that my time as Cooper’s assistant will end after that match. If we lose, then Cooper will probably fire me out of anger for not defeating his brother in his revenge plot. If we win, Cooper will no longer have a use for me. That is, assuming his brother isn’t silly enough to want rematch after rematch after rematch. In that case, this thing could go on forever.
“Maddie!” I hear Cooper call through the door.
What, no doorbell today? Perhaps things are looking up after all.
Rising from my chair, I walk to the door between our offices. Since it’s Monday morning, he likely has a lot of things he thought of over the weekend. Pick up his dry cleaning? Get the tires rotated on his car? Maybe he wants me to return the movie he made me buy Friday afternoon. (Why he wanted a movie about Babe the pig, I will never know.)
I swing the door open and step inside onto the plush blue carpet, surprised to see that Audrey is residing in one of the chairs. She grins widely at me as I shut the door and walk towards the second chair cautiously.
Another babysitting adventure, it would appear.
“Maddie,” Cooper begins, “Audrey and I were discussing the blood drive over the weekend, and I just wanted to mention again that you did a fantastic job organizing that whole event.”
Not what I expected. Much more pleasant, actually.
“Thank you,” I reply quietly.
Audrey is eyeing Cooper expectantly, which is still making me nervous.
“Audrey and I also happened to be discussing another event that is coming up soon, and she was very insistent that I consider you as the event planner.” In response, Audrey leans toward me from her chair and claps a few times very softly, smiling like she’s practicing for a toothpaste ad. “Now, the planning could be slightly difficult because of the time frame. What is the date again, Audrey?”
“February 24th.”
“Yes, February 24th. So you can see that gives us only about three months to plan, which is not a very significant amount of time when you’re insistent that only the best will do. Of course that is one of Audrey’s stipulations, naturally.”
What is he talking about? It almost sounds like I’m working for Audrey here, not the other way around.
“You can do it, Maddie. It’s going to be great, I just know it!” Audrey is practically beaming at me, which scares me out of my wits.
“I’m sorry,” I pipe up, “but I guess I’m not sure what you’re talking about.”
Audrey giggles as though I just blurted the silliest thing in the world. “My wedding, of course. I want you to plan my wedding, and Dad has agreed.”
Maddie Heard, wedding planner? No good can come of this.
“Wouldn’t you rather have someone in your family help you, Audrey?” I ask, turning towards her. She shakes her head rapidly back and forth. “Well, what about someone in your bridal party? Surely one of your friends would be able to help you with this better than I could.”
“Who could help me better than my best friend?” Audrey asks with a smile. “Besides, you are in my bridal party. You’re going to be my maid of honor.”
Somehow I manage to remain silent while inwardly I’m imagining my eyes doing that cartoon thing where they fly forward out of my head. Best friend? I believe it’s time to admit that this has gotten out of hand.
“Are you certain about this?” I press, posing my question more to Cooper than Audrey. Somebody has to be the voice of reason in this room.
Cooper drums his fingers on his massive desktop and leans back in his oversized chair as Audrey and I look anxiously at him. “Audrey says you’re the maid and her best friend, so who better to do the job?”
Perhaps I should have known better than to trust Cooper as the voice of reason.
“But I’m not exactly…” I pause, glancing over at Audrey. How am I supposed to tell Cooper that she’s not really my friend when she’s gazing at me like that? Besides, what if he thought I had said or done something to cause his daughter to believe she was my best friend? Maybe that is a stone best left unturned.
“Of course,” I agree with reluctance, exhaling slowly. “If Audrey really wants me to, I will help her with her wedding. I just wonder if hiring a professional wouldn’t be more helpful, since this is the biggest and most important day of her life.”
“It is the biggest and most important day of my life,” Audrey repeats, giggling slightly. “That’s why you have to do it, Maddie. We can work together on every littl
e detail—the food, the music, the dresses. You have such good taste, and you’re always so classy. Dad, you shouldn’t make her work on anything else while she’s helping with my wedding, so she doesn’t get overly stressed out.”
“Maybe she’s right,” Cooper barks. “You can just hand off this charity project you’re working on to someone else so you can devote yourself to Audrey full-time. I’m sure Dina can pick up any slack if you run out of time to do things during the day.”
That sounds like a death sentence…devote yourself to Audrey full-time. Besides, I’m pretty sure Dina would kill me.
“I’m sure I can keep up with both things, so that won’t be necessary.”
Cooper looks at me discerningly for a moment and strokes his chin with his thumb and forefinger. “Well, okay, but if Audrey thinks things aren’t going as well as she hoped, we’ll have to do something about the charity. Audrey comes first for the time being.”
Naïve Cooper. He doesn’t realize that, to me, Audrey is the charity.
I’m already having nightmare visions of myself in pink taffeta with puffy sleeves. We’re standing in a side room, where Audrey insisted that I do her hair personally. Of course she had someone else do my hair, and I look like I belong to an ‘80’s heavy metal band. I even have a scrunchy holding some of the hair up in the back.
Audrey is crying on my shoulder and staining my dress with a mix of raspberry lip gloss and black mascara. Oh, and cheesy puffs, because she insisted on the way to the church that we stop to get a snack. Now her fingers are orange and her face is all puffy from the crying, and she doesn’t know what she’s going to do.
Mrs. Cooper is standing in the corner, looking plastic as usual. Wait a minute…maybe that’s a mannequin. No, I saw her blink—definitely Mrs. Cooper.
“Audrey,” I say, “you have to snap out of it. Today is your big day.”
“Oh, Maddie,” she sobs, “you’re the best friend I ever had.” Then she throws up cheesy puffs in my lap, and of course I throw up too, because of the whole weak stomach issue.
Simply Mad (Girls of Wonder Lane Book 1) Page 19
