Tumbleweed Weddings (50 page)

All weekend she had ruminated on that intimate moment with him in his truck.

The near kiss that turned into a near miss.

She didn’t tell anyone what happened, not even Callie. Now if Derek had actually kissed her, Callie would have been the first person to find out.

What went wrong?

A definite chemistry had hung between them in that moment, and he must have felt it, too. Why had he suddenly gotten cold feet?

She would probably never know.

That evening Cheyenne leaned over to tie her bowling shoes, then cuffed the bottom edges of her jeans and flattened them out. The noise of conversation and laughter, along with the clatter of bowling pins, surrounded her. Only seven members of the Single Servings showed up for the bowling activity, and they claimed two lanes. Cheyenne was on a lane with Matthew Werth and Derek.

Sitting up, she glanced around the bowling alley. In the next lane, Corey Henning already stood behind the line and released his ball down the lane with a tight spin. The pins crashed in a strike. With a whoop, Corey turned toward the three people sitting behind him—Laurie Smullens, whom he was dating, Reed Dickens, and Horace Frankenberg.

Derek sat to Cheyenne’s left in a plastic chair, tying his shoes. He stood. “Now to find a good ball. It’s times like this when I wish I owned one.” He grinned at Matthew who stood by the ball return.

“Yep.” Matthew pulled a red bowling ball from his bag. He held up his gloved hand. “I’m trying this Super-Flex 3000 wrist support glove. I’m hoping it will add a few points to my game.” He bent over the hand dryer.

Cheyenne rolled her eyes as she stood. “I’ll go with you, Derek.” Since her car was still at Tom’s shop, Derek had driven her to the bowling alley and acted as if nothing had happened between them on Friday. But she wanted something to happen. Tonight.

I’ll stick to him like gum on his shoe!

The conditions of Grandmother’s will lingered. She needed to make every day count.

Behind him, she ascended the three steps from their lane. “I didn’t even know they made bowling gloves.”

Derek turned. “Of course they do. That’s why the two middle fingers are missing.” He walked beside her to the ball rack. “What kind of ball do you want?”

“I need a light ball, but I can never find one that fits.”

He hefted a blue ball then put it down. “Are you a good bowler, Cheyenne?”

“No!” She laughed. “My highest score of all time is 83. I’ll be lucky if I can stay out of the gutter.”

He grinned. “Just so your life doesn’t end up in the gutter.”

“Oh thanks a lot.” She smiled, loving it when he teased her.

Derek hefted a yellow ball then handed it to her. “Try this one—it’s light.”

Cheyenne glanced at the tiny finger holes and shook her head. “My fingers will get stuck.” She sighed as she set the ball down. “That’s my problem. The bigger the finger holes, the heavier the ball. I suppose the reasoning is that a bowler with big fingers must be strong.”
And how am I supposed to lose weight in my fingers?

Derek twisted a purple ball on the rack so the holes were on top. “Here. Try this one.”

As she took it, the door to the bowling alley opened. Bruce MacKinnon and Aggie Collingsworth walked in.

It must be true that opposites attract
. Cheyenne hid a smile as the pair walked toward them. Bruce, a dignified Scotsman whose speech still held a slight brogue, was dating Aggie, an overweight down-home gal from Texas, complete with southern accent.

A short young woman walked beside Bruce. A pair of jeans clung to her thin hips, and long red hair flowed over the shoulders of her jade T-shirt. With bright eyes and a pretty smile, she was cute.

And tiny
.

That girl would never get
her
fingers stuck in a bowling ball.

Aggie nodded at Derek and Cheyenne. “Howdy, y’all. Having fun at this bowling shindig?”

Cheyenne smiled. “Hi! Are you guys joining us tonight?” Aggie was in their Sunday school class, but Bruce taught an adult class, and the girl looked like she might be in high school.

Bruce motioned to the women beside him. “Agatha wants to go shopping in Lusk, but my granddaughter, Kandi, would like to join you in the activity.” He looked at Derek. “Is that all right?”

Derek shrugged. “Sure. The more the merrier.” He extended his hand toward the girl. “Derek Brandt. Glad to meet you.”

She shook his hand. “I’m Kandi MacKinnon.”

Since Cheyenne held a bowling ball, she just nodded at the girl. “I’m Cheyenne. Welcome to the party.”

Kandi had obviously mastered beauty secrets. The makeup on her smooth face was perfect, with the green eye shadow bringing out the green in her eyes. Her eyelashes were thick.

Bruce smiled at his granddaughter. “Kandi attends a Christian college in California, but she’s staying with me this summer. She’ll be in your Sunday school class, Derek.”

“That’s great.” Smiling, he took a step toward her. “What year in college?”

She looked up at him, returning his smile. “I’ll be a sophomore in the fall.”

Derek thumbed back at their lane. “You can bowl with me. There’s only three on our lane.”

“Thanks.”

Cheyenne cocked an eyebrow. Derek seemed entirely too interested in Kandi MacKinnon. The girl couldn’t be more than five foot three—a whole foot shorter than Derek—but she gazed up at him with a dazzling smile as they walked back to the lane. Bruce and Aggie departed, which left Cheyenne standing alone by the ball rack.

Derek was just being friendly. Yeah, that was it. After all, he was the teacher of the Single Servings. He had to be friendly.

As long as he’s not too friendly
.

Derek relaxed in the plastic chair as he watched Kandi release her ball into the lane. She was so pretty! And he couldn’t believe how athletic she was, with perfect bowling form. Already, on the seventh frame, her score was 149. Derek only had 116, and Cheyenne trailed behind with a mere 52 points. Of course Matthew, the pro, had a leading score of 218.

Kandi waited as her ball quickly spun down the lane. Upon impact, all the pins succumbed with a crash, and she whirled around, raising both hands in the air. “Strike!”

Derek grinned. “Great job!” He glanced at her lithe figure as she walked toward him.
She’s so small!
He loved her red hair, and he’d already christened her
the little red-haired girl
, like Charlie Brown’s girlfriend in
Peanuts
.

He wanted to get to know Kandi MacKinnon.

For a moment his conscience struck him. What about remaining single to serve the Lord? But was that what the Lord really wanted him to do?

“I thought that was going to be a split.” She took the seat beside him.

He grinned. “You’re a good bowler, Kandi.”

She returned a shy smile. “Thanks.”

He gazed at her pretty green eyes, her soft red hair.
She’s so pretty
. Maybe he should ask her out.

On the way home from the bowling alley, Cheyenne stared out the passenger window of Derek’s pickup, even though it was pitch-black, and tried to tune out Derek’s voice.
Please give me patience, Lord!

This night had not turned out as she had hoped.

When Bruce and Aggie came by to pick up Kandi at the beginning of their third game, Derek volunteered to take her home—which meant, of course, that Cheyenne had to ride with them. Now they bumped along in his truck, with Kandi in the middle of the cab sandwiched between Cheyenne and Derek. The girl didn’t say much, but she sure smiled a lot, mainly at Derek who had never talked so much in his life. All Cheyenne could do was sit there and grit her teeth.

He pulled into her driveway. “Here you are, Cheyenne.”

Of course he would drop her off first.

She opened the passenger door, and the inside light popped on.
Déjà vu
. Was Derek thinking about what happened between them last Friday night? She climbed out. “Thanks for the ride.”

“Anytime, Cheyenne.”

She looked back as she closed the door. Kandi, who had barely moved two inches away from him, smiled at her.

Cheyenne trudged to the house, not looking back as the truck pulled out and roared down the street. With a sigh, she crossed the porch to the front door, which was illuminated by the porch light.

Stopping at the door, she bowed her head until it touched the wood. For ten years she had thought she would someday marry Derek Brandt. He was perfect for her—calm in every situation where she was emotional, staying in the background when she liked to be out front.

Well, he’s not the only man in the world
. Perhaps God had someone else in mind—someone who would be even more perfect. Someone who would complete her.

“Lord,” she whispered. “Please show me who that someone is. Show me Your will.”

She took a deep breath. God already had her future all worked out. But would it happen in time? Would she be able to fulfill the conditions of Grandmother’s will?

She walked to the edge of the porch and looked up at the shiny white moon high above. “All I need is a man, Lord!”

On Wednesday afternoon, Cheyenne walked from the garage to the house, glad her Dart was back from Tom’s shop and thankful she didn’t have to depend on Derek Brandt to cart her around. Now to get out of her postal uniform and eat something before the prayer service at church. Dad wouldn’t be home until after eight o’clock when he closed the store for the evening.

Entering the house, she pushed the back door shut. Marshal greeted her with a bark.

“Hey, Marsh!” She patted the collie’s tan head then bent down and let him lick her face. She relished his affectionate greeting. “Okay, Marshal. That’s good.” She laughed. “I guess you missed me today, huh?”

He answered her question with another bark then turned in a circle and sat down by the back door.

Cheyenne placed her hands on her hips. “Sorry, I’m not taking you for a walk. That’s Dad’s job. I’m planning to eat something and go to church.”

Dad always took Marshal out around ten o’clock at night, and Cheyenne was glad she didn’t have to walk the dog. She hated exercise in any form, even walking.

She strolled back to her bedroom and stopped in the doorway.
What a mess!