Abide With Me

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Andrea caught a glimpse of Doris, quietly slipping behind Jamie and out the front door. “Skateboarding?” she asked.

He cleared his throat. “Yeah. I mean, yes.” He stared at the floor for a moment. When he looked up, his eyes were clear. He straightened his shoulders. “I won’t be skateboarding for a while.”

She cocked one brow. “You’ve been grounded,” she murmured, and wondered if he would notice the pun.

His eyes twinkled. “Yes, ma’am. For the rest of the summer, at least. Mom and Dad said they’d decide then when I could get my skateboard back. It all depends…”

“Depends on what?”

“How I spend my summer. They left it up to me. I thought about it all night and talked it over with them at breakfast. They agreed with my idea. Dad wanted to come with me.” He nodded toward the window. “I asked him to wait for me across the street.”

Curious and impressed that he had apparently not been forced to come to apologize in person, Andrea nevertheless remained silent.

“Anyway, here’s my idea,” Jamie went on. “Instead of working at the school like I’ve been doing, painting and cleaning gum off the desks and stuff, I’d like to work for you. As a volunteer,” he added quickly. “I feel real bad that you won’t be able to get around because of what I did, so I figured you could use my help. I can be here to help you get inside when you get to work. I can go to the post office and mail stuff for you. Pick up lunch and bring it back for you. Take out the trash…whatever you can’t do because you’re on crutches, I can do. If you’ll let me.”

Stunned, Andrea sat up a little straighter. “You’d work here all summer?”

“Yes, ma’am.”

“For free.”

He never even blinked. “Yes, ma’am.”

She narrowed her eyes. “What about your responsibility to your job at the school?”

“I called my friend, Matt. He’s been looking for a job. Then I called my boss, Mr. Potter. He said it was all right if Matt took my place. I just have to call back this afternoon and let them both know if—”

“If I’ll let you do your penance here?”

He nodded. “Yes ma’am.”

Moved, Andrea glanced at the ridiculous crutches Madge had given her and steepled her hands. The conversation she had had with Madge about forgiveness and the greater blessings received when able to forgive someone else replayed in her mind. Instinctively, her heart reached out and claimed those blessings—for herself and for Jamie. “I’d need you here at quarter to nine. Sharp. You can help me get from the car to the office Monday through Saturday. You can leave at three. We’ll try it for a week, see how it goes, and go from there.”

Relief washed over his features. “When do I start?”

She smiled. “How do you feel about moving some furniture right now?”

That night, Andrea crawled into bed early and switched out her light. Well, crawled wasn’t exactly how to describe the way that she had scooted and scrunched into a sleeping position, but it was the best she could manage. Her shoulder was still sore. Pain throbbed in her ankle. But her spirit was hopeful as she waited for the pain medication to start working so she could fall asleep, and she had the “girls” to keep her company until she did.

“I’m sleeping late tomorrow. It’s Sunday. Jenny and Michael won’t be picking me up until eleven for late services,” she murmured to the cats, as Redd found her usual spot and settled down against Andrea’s cheek. Redd’s sisters, Sandy and Missy, curled up on either side of Andrea’s bandaged ankle.

Andrea sighed and closed her eyes. Normally, she could not sleep on her back, but tonight, she could have slept lying upside down. “What a different day this has been from yesterday. Thank you,” she whispered. She had scarcely begun her evening prayers when the doorbell rang, startling her.

She groaned, reached over and turned on the light.

Chapter Ten

M adge hit the doorbell a second time and reached into her handbag for the key. She was not anxious to repeat what had happened the last time she had let herself into Andrea’s house, but she did not want Andrea to try to get up from the couch to answer the door, either.

She let herself in, punched in the code to deactivate the alarm and knew in a single glance Andrea was not on the couch reading or watching television. “It’s only me,” she yelled, setting her tote bag and purse down on the floor next to the door. Since the kitchen was dark, Madge immediately went to Andrea’s bedroom and found her sister in bed. “I’m sorry. It’s only half-past eight. I saw the light on in the living room and thought maybe you were still up reading or watching television.”

Andrea covered a yawn with the back of her hand and patted the mattress next to her. “Sit for a minute. Sorry, I had a busy day.”

The moment Madge eased next to her sister, the cats scattered, as always. “I heard. I thought the doctor wanted you to rest for a week or so before you—”

“I’m resting now,” Andrea explained.

“That’s not the same thing, and you know it,” Madge insisted.

“You’re looking very glamorous tonight. I don’t think I’ve seen that dress before. I would have remembered one with lavender sequins. Big date?”