A Rescued Heart(9)
Author: Natalie Replogle

The sun came out from behind the clouds. Ava closed her eyes, enjoying the warmth upon her face. She realized she closed them too long when she tripped on a log and started to fall forward. Matt’s quick reaction stopped her before she hit the ground. His arms gathered around her waist, pulling her back against his chest. He held her a few seconds longer than necessary. She didn’t protest.

He released her as she giggled nervously. “Thanks,” she said as she rubbed the goose bumps that appeared because of his touch. “I guess you could say I’m not very coordinated.”

“Good, because perfection is overrated,” he teased.

They continued up a small hill that led them into the woods. The air became crisp in the shade. Ava put on her sweat shirt, thankful she’d remembered it. Matt had mentioned while they were driving to the park that if she shared some information with him today, she would get some clues about next week’s date. Ava was slightly concerned about what information he would be seeking. She wasn’t ready to share anything serious yet. He had already invaded her willpower to keep a distance and if they bonded over her past she would lose all leverage.

Matt led the way to a clearing with a rickety wooden bench overlooking a small creek. Ava sat gently, not sure if it would break under the pressure of their weight. The water rushing over the rocks had a calming effect on her nerves. The birds chirping reminded her of God’s instruction in the Bible about worrying.

“Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life? Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.”

Ava loved the moments when God’s Word spoke to her heart. Reminding her how He had everything under control and loved her.

Matt turned toward her and put one arm on the back of the bench, careful not to touch her. “All right, I’m ready for my information.”

“Your wish is my command,” she said, messing around while putting her palms together and leaning forward slightly. She enjoyed how spending time with him made her feel lighthearted and silly.

“I just have a few random questions for you.”

“Okay, shoot … oh, well, not literally. I forgot who I was talking to.”

He laughed. “Let’s start with your middle name.”

“Well, this isn’t painful so far. It’s Noel because I was born on Christmas Eve.”

“Do you like having your birthday on Christmas Eve?”

“Yes and no. I enjoy the Christmas season, so it’s special in that sense. But when I was younger I always wanted my birthday in the summer so I could get presents spread out twice a year.” Now that Ava was older she didn’t mind her special day surrounded with busyness. Her family always did their best to make sure she felt significant.

He questioned her about who was her best friend and why. Talking about Jules came easy. She was trustworthy, honest, funny and her rock during the hardest time of her life. She couldn’t have survived the last two years without her. Her friend was a gift from God. Her family was great and a part of her, but Jules was special because she was chosen.

They talked about Matt’s partner at work and what made their friendship click. He and Derek started the academy at the same time but didn’t get real close until they were placed together on the SWAT team. He explained how Derek was also a Christian and how nice it was to know they protected each other not only in force, but in prayer.

Matt asked her about what movies and music she liked. She became embarrassed when he asked her about what she did in her free time. Her pathetic list of hobbies included reading, watching sports and movies and taking walks. She didn’t realize how dull she had become until she said it out loud.

When she turned the question around to him she had expected him to blow her simple life out of the water, but was pleasantly surprised by his easy lifestyle. In the winter he enjoyed snowmobiling up north and in the summer he enjoyed hiking. The majority of his free time he spent working out, with friends, and at church activities.

Their second date came as a surprise to Ava. She had been afraid her insecurities would show through and force her to be uptight. Quite the opposite had happened. Matt’s questions didn’t push, they had purpose. He was setting the foundation of a strong friendship. He was in no rush, simply savoring the time to get to know her. Matt’s interest in her life became clear, and if she were truly honest with herself, it delighted her.

“What’s your favorite color?”

“Orange. It reminds me of the sunset.”

“Not the sunrise.”

“Um, that would involve the morning.”

“Not a morning person?”

“Full out claws the first ten minutes.”

“Have you ever committed a crime?” Ava raised an eyebrow at his smirk. “I’m just checking to see if you are paying attention.”

“Alert and no, I’m crime free.”

“Good, but I did a background check anyway.”

“You what?”

“I’m kidding, Ava.” He put his hands up with his palms facing her in surrender. “I just wanted to get you all riled up. You’re so cute when infuriated.”

She playfully punched his arm as her cheeks flushed with warmth. He brought his arms down and stuffed his hands into the front pocket of his sweat shirt. Leaning back against the bench he straightened out his legs, crossing them at his ankles. “So, what’s your biggest fear?”

Ava looked away, fighting the urge to flee. Without even meaning to, he had stumbled upon the one subject she cautiously tried to avoid. Should she lie or tell him the truth? Ava had no desire to bring up her past today, but she had to be honest. He deserved that much. She turned back toward him, facing the inevitable.

“I fear rejection and falling in love.”

“Is that the baggage you were talking about at the wedding?” Ava noticed how he tiptoed around the sensitive subject carefully.

“Yes. It’s a hard subject for me to talk about. The thing is, Matt, I do want to talk to you about it, but not today. I’m not quite ready.”

She could barely get the words out. Afraid she would offend him or make him think she was blowing him off. She just wanted to remember the day as it had started, happy and fun. She didn’t want it tainted by the resurfacing of her ugly past.

“Ava, there’s no pressure. When you’re ready to share, I’ll be here to listen.”

“Thanks for understanding.”

“No problem. Do you want to turn back?”

“Sure, but only if my interrogation is over and now I get to ask the questions.”

“All right, let me have it.”

They reached the end of the trail and headed back to his Jeep as the sky became covered with clouds and released its moisture to the ground. Ava couldn’t believe how quickly the afternoon had come to an end. Despite their hours together, the time didn’t last long enough.

He pulled up in front of her apartment complex and shut off the engine. “So are we still on for a date next weekend?” His relaxed question couldn’t hide the hope in his voice.

“Yes, and I kept up my end of the bargain, so cough up some details.”

He laughed and nodded his agreement. “Well, I was wondering if you wanted to spend the entire day with me next Saturday? I’d like to take you over to Lake Michigan for a day of walking along the beach and I want to take you to this great seafood restaurant.”

Ava wanted to pinch herself to make sure this was real. She couldn’t believe how much thought he put into each date. The only person she had ever dated was Tim and they never really went out on dates. They were poor college students, treasuring every penny they owned, so they usually just spent time in each other’s room and with friends. Occasionally Tim would take her to the local restaurant and ice cream parlor, but only when they were weary of cafeteria food. Even after graduation and acquiring jobs, he never took her out. That Matt would take time to plan something special for her was unchartered territory.

“Yeah, that sounds great, but Matt, are you sure I’m worth all this time you’re taking to spend with me?” Her past permeated her present thoughts relentlessly. She didn’t intentionally try to push him away. It was more of a defense mechanism.

“Ava, whether you choose to spend more time with me after next weekend or not, it’s been worth every second.”

He was smooth. That definitely made the list of his adorable qualities.

“Okay.” She wasn’t sure what else to say except the truth. “I had a great day.”

“Me too.”

He unhooked his seat belt, but she put her hand on his arm to stop him. “You don’t have to walk me in. I need to run to the store to get groceries. My car is just over there.” She took her hand off his arm to point to her car. The absence of his warmth made her yearn for it again. Without deliberating her actions until it was too late, Ava put her hand on his and he lightly squeezed hers back.

“Thanks again. I’ll see you Saturday.”

Ava got out and walked to her car. Matt waited until she got in and then drove off waving. She sat in her car trying to rationalize her feelings. She liked Matt and wanted to spend more time with him, but was it worth being vulnerable to her greatest fear? Ava panicked … she only had a week to decide.

Date #3

By Friday Ava had become an emotional mess. It wasn’t that she didn’t know if she wanted to start dating Matt more seriously—that emotion she was completely sure about. She yearned for it. It was the fear that dredged up from the comprehension that once she allowed herself to fall for him, there would be no turning back. What if down the road he realized that he didn’t want her … she wasn’t sure she could survivehis rejection.

Ava wanted to call in sick for school today and it wouldn’t be a lie. She was sick in the head. She mustered through her inner turmoil, got her act together, and headed to school.

Fortunately her students behaved much better this week, and that helped to lessen the load she carried. The kids enjoyed the lessons from the week. They discussed oceans, ponds, lakes and rivers. What made each body of water different and which animals lived in each? She was pleased how perfect it timed out for the letter of the week to be W. Ava had planned a lot of projects about water, whales, walruses, and wind.

The morning started well despite the one little accident with one of the water projects. Ava saw the project going so much better in her head, but the execution had some flaws that she hadn’t seen coming. She had brought in two large bowls of water, one full of salt water and the other with pure water. First she had the students taste both types of water to see the difference. They all laughed at each other’s reactions. A few amused her as well.

Next she brought in a dozen plastic animals and had them take turns putting the animals into the bowl of water they belonged to.

The project progressed smoothly until some kids at the back of the group got impatient because they couldn’t see. They started to push and before she could reach them the table got bumped and two kids in front ended up wet from bowls tipping over. Luckily, at the beginning of the year she had asked parents to keep an extra pair of clothes in their backpacks in case of an accident. Ava cleaned the kids up and had them go change their clothes while the rest of the class cleaned up the spillage.

While the kids lined up to go to lunch, the phone on her desk rang.

“Ava, I just received a delivery for you here in the office.”

“Um … okay. I’ll come down after I take my kids to lunch.” What kind of delivery could she have gotten?

The bell rang shortly after and she couldn’t get her kids to lunch fast enough. Her mouth gaped open as she walked into the front office. There on the main desk sat an enormous bouquet of orange tulips.

The secretary stood up behind her desk and pushed the vase toward her. “Is there something you haven’t told me, Ava?”

Ava giggled nervously. “Oh … well … I’m not sure. I don’t even know who they’re from.” Although she hoped for who the sender was. Ava grabbed the vase and headed out the door. “Thanks.”

She hustled back to her room. Setting the flowers down on her desk, she took out the card, opening it quickly.

Ava,

I just wanted you to know that I’ve been thinking about you all week and I enjoyed our date at the park. You said that you liked the color orange because it reminded you of the sunset. I‘m looking forward to spending the day with you tomorrow and watching the sunset together.

Matt

A smile flirted across her lips. Seriously, if this guy had a flaw, it was not obvious. Ava was relieved she had made plans with Julia tonight. They had a lot to discuss.

Jules lived outside the city in a late seventies house that she rented. Since they were meeting at her house, Jules took care of the food and movie. She had ordered Mexican food and they sat on her couch to eat, curled up in blankets.

“I’m thinking about getting my hair cut, what do you think?” Jules asked while sweeping it up off her shoulders to show what the shorter length would look like. Jules had beautiful long auburn hair, the envy of most women. She could be a model, if she wanted.

“You asked me that last month and my answer is still no. It is a shame to cut off those beautiful locks.” She leaned over and pulled gently on her hair, feeling the texture and adjusting the length a bit. “Maybe if you put in some more layers and just had a good trim it would be the change you need.” If Jules needed a change in her life, her gorgeous hair was not the way to go.

“I like that idea. I’ll make an appointment at the salon soon.” She threw her hair back in a ponytail to put the subject to rest. “Enough about my hair, we have much more important topics to discuss.” She sat her plate on the coffee table and turned her focus to Ava. “Tomorrow is your third date with Matt, right?” Jules asked with a light tone.