Page 11 of To Believe In You
Tim braced his palms against the edge of the table and leaned against the seat back. “Philip’s out.”
Of Awestruck?
A memory of a seething Gannon surfaced—the night Matt himself had been fired.
Matt had gone out, gotten drunk, and brought a party back to the house where the band was staying. Unbeknownst to him, a minor had found her way into the group. She’d been drinking, and one of the men was hitting on her when Gannon discovered their gathering. The lead singer had rightfully taken extra offense at the minor’s presence, but high on who remembered what, Matt had tried to defend the situation.
Maybe that night explained Matt’s burden to speak to teens when he was asked.
If roles had been reversed, Matt might’ve punched Gannon, but the lead singer had shown restraint even as he broke up the party. And then he’d fired Matt and sent him packing.
Had the situation with Philip gotten equally out of hand? Maybe. Addiction could take people to some ugly places.
“He all right?” Matt asked.
“He’s getting help.” Tim assessed him. “You’re not surprised.”
Matt shrugged. He’d seen enough to suspect Philip’s addiction this summer.
“Takes one to know one, huh?” Tim said. “Well, maybe you’ll be happy he sounds like the rest of you now.”
“The rest of us?”
“You, Gannon, and John. God saves, drugs are bad, money’s not everything.”
Good for Philip. Faith and right priorities would help immensely on the long journey to come.
“What would you say about those things?” Matt asked. “God, drugs, and money?”
“You don’t want to know.”
Matt tipped his head. Whatever Tim thought, he’d heard worse. He’dbelievedworse. “Let’s hear it.”
“God is more trouble than He’s worth, drugs can be bad, and money sure is helpful.”
The changes Matt had picked up on hadn’t sunk very deep. Yet. If God could reach Matt, He could reach anyone.
“Anyway.” Tim planted his forearms on the table. “You’ve got to come teach. Awestruck will see you’ve gotten your act together. I can talk them into working with you.”
“Lina hasn’t responded to my email.”
“I’ll handle Lina. The job’s yours if you want it, but I can’t hold off your competition forever.”
Wait. What?
Tim shook his head, cutting off questions. “It’s a job. You need a job. Say thank you.”
“I’m interested in the teaching job, but nothing more.”
“This is Awestruck. Your chance to redeem yourself.”
Or to utterly fail. Again.
“I’ll teach. That’s it.”
Tim narrowed his eyes and sighed. “Fine. You’ll teach.”
Matt nodded once. “Thank you.”
