Page 19 of A Surefire Love
Mercy trudged inside. Laughing and raised voices spilled from the youth room and into the hallway. Mercy, one step ahead, passed the threshold first. An inflatable ball drilledher in the ear. She squawked and shielded her head as the ball bounced away.
“Sorry.” The boy didn’t even look at Mercy as he retrieved the ball.
When he launched it again, Nolan intercepted it. “Let’s save it for outside.” He nodded to Blaze, clamped the ball between both hands, and returned his attention to the two kids he was talking with.
About ten students laughed, played, and chatted. Mercy bit her bottom lip and her eyes darted around the space.
Blaze rested a hand on her shoulder. “We’re meeting here quick, then we’ll all go outside and play some games. Let’s find a seat for a few minutes.” She guided her through the fray to a couch, only then noticing a blond girl with flushed cheeks. She picked her nails as her eyes mimicked Mercy’s half-panicked, half-envious scan of the room.
Compassion and hope welled up, and Blaze nudged Mercy toward the girl. “Let’s sit over there.”
Mercy plodded over and plopped onto the far side of the couch.
Blaze took the seat between the girls and angled toward the blond. “I’m Blaze, and this is my sister Mercy. What’s your name?”
She swallowed. “Hadley.”
“Are you here with anyone?”
She shook her head. “My mom wanted to go to an exercise class but didn’t want to leave me home alone. But I’m twelve. I would’ve been okay.”
Blaze put together the age, name, and the apparently single mom to place Hadley. “Is your mom Ashley West?”
Hadley nodded, her ponytail bouncing. “You know her?”
“Sure. She was ahead of me in high school. She wasnice.” Ashley had started off popular, but when word of her pregnancy broke, she’d been ostracized. She and Blaze hadn’t exactly become friends, but they’d had each other’s backs a few times.
It would be Blaze’s pleasure to look out for Ashley’s daughter. In fact, this was an answer to the prayer she’d offered in the car. God didn’t usually move in her life in such obvious ways. Her request must’ve lined up with what He wanted for once. Perhaps Blaze was learning. She sat up straighter. “What do you like to do for fun, Hadley?”
Blaze looked soamazed she’d caught the ball that Anson didn’t have the heart to tell her she’d stepped out of bounds. The kids weren’t so merciful. Even her own teammates cried, “You’re out!”
“What?” Her mouth dropped open, and she looked down at her feet. Her shoulders slouched, but she surrendered the ball to another player.
On the sideline, she fell into conversation with Hadley, one of the new students. By the looks of their hand motions, they were talking strategy, even though they’d only have a few more minutes to use it since parents were due any moment.
The first minivan pulled up. A woman got out and waved at her son. Anson headed over to her to give his spiel about the canoe trip.
When he returned courtside with a signed permission slip, Hadley was jabbering while Blaze’s face remained the picture of patience. Impressive.
Over the next ten minutes, the rest of the parents came.As he gave his canoe pitch one last time, Blaze packed up the snacks. He collected the last slip, then jogged back and snatched a peanut butter cookie as she dropped the lid on the container.
She pulled back with surprise. “Big fan?”
He swallowed his bite and held up the remaining half of the cookie. “Yeah. Whoever made these outdid themselves.”
“We did.” Mercy appeared at her side with a hand raised proudly.
Blaze chuckled and set the lid aside. “You can take them. We left a few at home.”
“You said you liked baking. I didn’t know you were a master chef.”
Her hands fluttered until she clasped them together.
Had the compliment been too much?
A sweet smile lifted her lips. “I’m a master internet searcher. After that, all I do is follow the recipe.” She clipped the last bag of chips shut and stashed it in a bulging grocery bag. “Where do you want this?”
Mercy snuck a cookie and slipped away.
