Take Two (29 page)

He looked away because he didn’t want to linger on Kendall Adams’ eyes. She was good and right and true, and her intentions
were entirely pure — same as his. But even so, looking into her eyes was like looking into her soul. Too much of that and
he’d be on dangerous ground in no time. He knew at least that much.

His mind found its way back to the studio meeting. “What’s the consensus?”

“About the meeting?” She grinned and a giddy laugh sounded in her throat. “It was perfect, great that we had Luke Baxter tapped
in from Indiana. His input was incredible. I mean, the studio execs offer you a theatrical deal and even agree to split the
P&A budget? In this market, that’s like hitting the lottery.”

“I sort of figured.” Chase smiled and wished he could’ve told Kelly the good news. Maybe it would’ve helped her mood a little.
He gazed up at the Los Angeles sky, already hazy at the end of April. “What about Brandon?”

“Keith thinks today’s meeting was good for that too. If NTM steps out of line, Brandon won’t sign another deal with them.
Worst-case scenario, Brandon finishes his contract with NTM — does the final film, something the studio comes up with. Then
we move on and take
Unlocked
to the executives we met today. They’d pay Brandon more, and they’d understand the faith element. The studio’s leading the
way in that area right now, and no one’s close.”

Chase sort of liked the idea. “Maybe we should aim for that, since NTM’s dragging its feet.”

“We could.” Kendall nodded thoughtfully. “My dad would be supportive no matter where
Unlocked
winds up.”

Keith joined them then, carrying a bag of to-go salads. “We can eat back at the hotel room. I have to talk to Andi, and it
could take a while.” He didn’t sit down. “Everything okay with Molly?”

“We’ll know more later tonight. Her surgery’s in about an hour.”

“Ugh.” Keith groaned and hung his head for a few seconds. “I’m sorry, man. That’s terrible.”

“It could’ve been worse.” Kendall stood and reached her hand out to Chase.

Without thinking, he took it and allowed her to help him to his feet. The exchange didn’t seem to draw any strange looks from
Keith, and Chase told himself it was nothing out of the ordinary. A friend helping another friend up at a time when weariness
ruled the moment.

They walked to Kendall’s car, and Chase took the front passenger seat. The three of them talked about
The Last Letter
all the way back to the Georgian Hotel. “You know,” Kendall said as she pulled up. “You guys could stay with my dad. He lives
down the street from me, and he has half a dozen guestrooms. You’d be closer to the studios.”

Chase had wondered that for some time, how they might approach such an idea without seeming presumptuous. Never mind the good
rate they were getting, they were still spending a fortune on hotel bills.

From the back, Keith patted Kendall on her shoulder. “Tell your dad yes. We’d love that.” He thanked her and stepped out of
the car. When he saw that Chase wasn’t making the same hurried move, he waved. “See you inside.”

Chase nodded. He wasn’t sure why he wasn’t jumping out of the car too. It was a valet area, and in a minute or so one of the
uniformed parking attendants would hurry Kendall on her way. But Chase wanted to thank her first. “About earlier, what you
said. How I’m a good dad for trying to get these films done.” He opened the car door and set one foot on the ground. For the
slightest moment he allowed his eyes to look into hers. “Thanks for that. I needed to hear it.”

“I know.” She put her hand on his knee, but only briefly. “It can’t be easy, being gone so much. I’m sure your wife misses
you like crazy.”

“She does.” His answer was quick, the only answer he could give. “Anyway…” He couldn’t look away. “Just wanted to thank you.”

She smiled. “It’s the truth. Oh, and I’ll be praying for Molly this afternoon. Let me know how it goes.”

“I will.” He hesitated one last time before stepping out of her car. “You’ll meet us here for breakfast tomorrow?”

“Of course. We have the meeting with Brandon’s agent, and then lunch with Brandon. Lots to talk about now that we have a theatrical
deal. Everyone in Brandon’s camp should feel a lot better about you and Keith producing
Unlocked.
“

“Good.” His smile was the easiest thing that had happened that day. “I’ll see you then.”

The moment seemed to call for a hug — especially since she had lifted his spirits when he was at such a low point earlier
that day. But with the two of them in the car, a hug would be awkward. Besides, hugging hadn’t really been part of their working
relationship. Instead he waved once more and thanked her for the ride, then stepped out and headed up the front steps of the
Georgian and into the open-air lobby. He needed to find a quiet place where he could pray about Molly. Not just Molly, but
Kelly and whatever struggles she faced. But for now, he was glad that at least one part of his life was going right.

And that God had been kind enough to pair them up with a young woman as wonderful as Kendall Adams.

K
ENDALL DROVE DOWN
O
CEAN
A
VENUE WITH
one thought on her mind: the safety and complete healing of little Molly Ryan. She opened her car windows and breathed in
the ocean breeze. The farther north she went, the less traffic, and the more easily she could concentrate on her prayer.

She begged God for wisdom on the part of the surgeon, and for complete healing for the child’s arm. Beyond that she prayed
for Chase’s home life. Not because he’d mentioned that anything was wrong, but because she sensed trouble. Maybe he was just
tense about not being home when he was needed. Whatever it was, she prayed, and when she was finished she thanked God for
the answers that were certainly coming.

Before she reached the turnoff for her home, she added one last plea to God. She’d loved and lost once a long time ago, and
since then no one had come along. No one with faith in Christ or the integrity she needed in a relationship centered in Hollywood.
That was okay, she had told herself a thousand times. She could be single and alone and still serve God by helping make movies
with a message.

But spending time with Chase had increased her longing for a guy, for a man she might marry and share her life with. Before
connecting with Chase and Keith, she’d wondered if there were any men left who would meet her high standards. If not, then
she would stick by her determination. She’d rather be single. But since meeting the young producers — especially Chase — she
knew differently. There were good guys out there, and she finished her prayer asking God to send one her way. One who was
handsome and kind, humble and loyal, a guy who loved his family more than life and who would be guided each day by his faith
in God. “Please, Lord … send me a guy like that.”

She rested her head against the seat back and smiled at the late-afternoon sunshine. Somewhere out there her guy existed,
a guy who wasn’t already married. She concentrated on the road ahead and felt no shame in the way she’d prayed. God understood
what she meant. She wasn’t attracted to Chase, though she still wanted to be careful around him. His wedding ring almost always
stopped her from feeling an attraction toward him. But it didn’t stop her from praying that the guy she married wouldn’t be
some Hollywood phony, some high-ranking executive with money and power and prestige. She wasn’t looking for that in a man,
not anymore.

She was looking for a guy like Chase Ryan.

B
AILEY WALKED INTO THE
C
RU MEETING
and wondered if she’d see Cody. Tim wasn’t with her tonight. They’d been home from New York less than a week, and since they’d
missed a day of classes, Tim didn’t want to fall behind on homework. Andi hadn’t come either. She was hanging out with Taz
again.

Bailey was about to head down the aisle to her place near the front when she spotted Cody sitting by himself in a seat near
the back row. He smiled at her with his usual enthusiasm and motioned for her. Bailey felt her heart leap. His text while
she was in New York had said they should hang out some time. Now at least maybe they could talk about it.

She walked down the empty row of seats and took the one beside him. “Hey.”

“Hey.” He stood and hesitated. Then, as if he didn’t want things to be awkward between them, he gave her a quick hug. “Where’s
Tim?”

“Studying.”

They sat down next to each other, and the sound of his voice felt wonderful beside her. “What about you?”

“I’m caught up. I didn’t do the spring play, so I guess I had more time.”

They had five minutes before Cru began. Cody shifted so he could see her better. In the process, his knee brushed against
hers. Bailey didn’t shift away from him.

“I stopped by your parents’ house a few times.”

Once a week, Bailey wanted to say, because her family shared with her each time Cody came by. But she stopped herself. Her
brothers loved seeing Cody, and her dad said he’d been talking to him about coaching. She felt her smile light her eyes, the
way it so easily did when she was with him. “They love when you come over. You’re part of the family.”

“I feel that way.”

Cody seemed uncomfortable with silence between them, so he told her about his mom, how she was doing better and staying sober.
“I take her to church every weekend, and each time she’s getting a little closer to God. It’s amazing.” He chuckled. “For
the first time in my life I have a mom, only now it’s more like the tables are turned and I’m the one taking care of her.”

Bailey could picture that. Cody had walked away from alcohol and escaped a prisoner-of-war situation in Iraq. Back in the
U.S., he’d learned how to walk on a prosthetic leg without any limp whatsoever. He even competed in local triathlons. Of course
he could take care of his mother. He could take care of anyone.

“So you wanna coach? That’s what my dad said.” She looked at him, let herself get lost in his eyes. Not because she wanted
to have feelings for him again, but because she missed the connection between them. Missed it more than she realized.

“Yeah, I think I’m made for it. I want to help kids and teach them football. It’s an important time in a kid’s life. Without
your dad, I would’ve drunk myself to death by now. So that’s my new goal. Be a guy like your dad for some kid like me. For
a hundred kids like me.”

The picture warmed Bailey’s heart. “You’ll be wonderful at it.”

“I hope so. It means an extra year of schooling to get my teaching credential, but I don’t mind. I’m taking a few summer classes,
so I might finish early, anyway.”

She nodded, and without meaning to she thought about Tim. The trip had changed something in Bailey. She still wanted to perform
on Broadway, but the city had lost some of its glamour. Even if she won a starring role, she couldn’t picture herself living
in Manhattan for long. But Tim … Tim could hardly wait to pack his bags and find an apartment.

Her mother’s voice came to mind, something she’d said the afternoon of Bailey’s eighth-grade graduation. All the other girls
had boys who liked them, but Bailey had only friends. She had wondered if maybe something was wrong with her, since none of
the boys had wanted to go out with her.

“You’re too mature for them,” her mom had told her. “They think you’re pretty, but they don’t dare say so. Because they know
none of them is what you’ll be looking for someday.”

“What’ll I be looking for when I’m ready?”

Her mother had smiled, a knowing look warming her eyes. “For someone like your daddy.”

Bailey had never forgotten that conversation, and along the way she could look back and realize why guys she’d had crushes
on in high school had never worked out, and why a guy like Bryan Smythe from CKT would never have been a match for her. Those
guys were nothing like her dad. But then, more often lately, neither was Tim.

“What’re you thinking about?” Cody nudged his knee against hers.

“Nothing.” She didn’t dare say. Especially not in the wake of their discussion about Cody’s coaching dreams.

The Cru leader, Daniel, took his spot at the front of the classroom. He started by reading from Psalm 139 about how God had
known them since before they were born, and how He’d knit them together inside their mothers’ bodies, and how His plans for
them had been destined since before the beginning of time.

When he finished taking questions about the Scripture passage, he moved onto the year-end events. First, they were planning
a retreat on the far side of Lake Monroe. A church camp had been there for decades. A cluster of cabins and a mess hall, located
in a place secluded from the rest of the lake. Perfect for time away, time to reflect.

The weekend sounded perfect to Bailey. She listened intently as Daniel continued.

“We’ll be there the third weekend in May. There are no classes that Friday, so we’ll have three days.” He held up an orange
flyer. “The details are here.”

Finally he told them about a mission trip to Costa Rica set for August. Cody leaned close to her. “I think I’m going. What
about you?”

Bailey wanted to go in the worst way, but she needed to talk to Tim. The two of them were planning a weekend trip to New York
in June so they could audition for the opening ensemble roles. If they won parts, then the mission trip would have to wait.
“I don’t know,” she whispered. “Maybe.”

“What about the lake retreat?”

“Definitely.”

After signing up for the May weekend and after Bailey connected with the girls in her Bible study, she and Cody walked out
into the night. The week had been the warmest since winter, and now, after nine o’clock, the air still felt fairly warm.

They walked slowly, side by side, until they came to the place where a couple of main paths intersected. “Can I walk you back
to the dorm?”

As much as Bailey worried about her heart, she was glad for his offer. She didn’t want to walk alone, but even more she didn’t
want to say good night yet. Cody kept his pace slow and easy, and Bailey fell into his rhythm.