Page 20 of A Surefire Love
Anson decided not to out her. “In the youth room. The kids can eat it on Sunday.”
“Okay.” Blaze scanned the lawn. “Need anything else from me?”
Besides the snack table, which he and Nolan would carry in, the only thing left out was the net. Nolan had that under control, so Anson passed her a permission slip and pen. “Just your signature. I know you’ll be along, but we still need one for Mercy.”
After Blaze signed, he helped Nolan with the net, and the sisters left. Only the container of cookies remained on thetable. Anson set them aside, and he and Nolan took opposite ends of the table to carry it in.
“Fourteen kids were here.” Nolan paused as he turned the table to navigate a doorway. “Close to that goal of doubling already.”
“There’s always more the first night.” The trick would be getting the kids to come back with friends. He hoped his devotional about the first disciples telling others about Jesus would inspire the kids. They’d also used small group time to pray for friends who might need the hope and community youth group offered.
All that, and the part that had made the kids light up? His promise of a Rooted hoodie for anyone who brought a friend. Then again, could he blame the kids for valuing the wrong things when the leadership board was doing the same?
With the table back in place, Nolan dusted his hands. “Numbers aren’t everything.”
They certainly weren’t supposed to be.
9
Though written in cursive, the letters clearly spelled the name Jennifer. Anson squinted. Still Jennifer. He’d watched Blaze sign this permission slip. Why had she used someone else’s name?
When his office door swung open, he peeled his gaze from the paper to make eye contact with Sydney. Her brown hair lay loose and naturally straight to her collarbones instead of in its usual ponytail. She’d completed the look with a blue tank top, denim shorts, and flip-flops.
“Who is Jennifer Astley?” he asked.
She tucked her fingers into her pockets. “That would be Blaze.”
“But …” This was going to sound foolish, but he was also certain. “Her name is Blaze. We went to high school together. She’s always been Blaze.”
“Mercy’s been enrolled in after-school and summer care at the community center. Blaze always signs official paperwork for her with her legal name. Jennifer.”
He blinked at the page. “Is Mercy’s real name Mercy?”
Sydney lifted one slender shoulder. “Must be. It’s what she wrote on the form, right?”
He double-checked. “Yeah.” He knew two Jennys, a Jen, and a Jennifer, but only one Blaze. The originality suited her: edgy, bright, and entrancing. “I’ve known her for over a decade, and I’m just now learning her name?”
Sydney crossed her arms. “Were you ever close?”
“No, but I met her on her first day of high school. She tested ahead in math, so she was in my geometry class. Without hesitation, she said her name was Blaze.”
“My understanding is it’s a nickname, but if you want the story behind it, you’d better ask her. I’ve heard outlandish theories.”
The stories he’d heard as a high schooler clicked into place, and he couldn’t believe he hadn’t connected them to Blaze’s name. The one agreed-upon fact was that the Astleys’ garage had burned down. Theories varied regarding who’d started it, why, and where Blaze had disappeared to for a while afterward. Some said she’d run away, some insisted she’d been sent to a youth correction program.
Sydney gave an uncertain smile. “Ready?”
The question—and the hesitant way she posed it—doused his curiosity. Why did he care how well he knew Blaze? Sydney was his priority. Had been for the last year. They had the same goals and a real future—not to mention plans for the evening.
For Labor Day, the town square had been closed to traffic to make way for food trucks, a petting zoo, and carnival games. Outside his office window, a high layer of clouds filtered the sunlight without threatening rain. The forecast predicted a high in the low eighties, just about perfect weather for the festivities.
He checked his watch. “How long do you think the food truck lines will be?”
“Many Oaks is up to almost eleven thousand people.” Humor glittered in her eyes.
“And we’ll end up behind all of them?” He chuckled at the exaggeration, placed the slip on the stack with the others, and scooped up the box of unclaimed lost and found items. “Then I guess I’ll donate all this tomorrow.”
Sydney touched the edge of the box as she peeked inside. “Some of that’s nice stuff. That brand of water bottle is going viral. At the community center, someone would’ve claimed it whether it was theirs or not.”
