Blue Like Elvis by Diane Moody Page B

and waited. Finally I asked, “And? What was it you wanted to ask
me?”
    “Oh, yeah. I
want you to come to Bible study tomorrow night. It’s at Dr. Krause’s house.
Great study. We’re going through Genesis right now. Very laid back, but we
always have a good time. And it’ll be a good chance for you to get to know some
of the singles.”
    Oh, the
bliss.
    “Tucker, I
appreciate it, but I’m just not ready for the whole singles thing right now.”
    “Right now? What
does that mean?”
    I toyed with the
wrapper from my straw then flattened my hands on the table. “Okay, I might as
well just level with you so you won’t keep inviting me to these things. I just
recently broke off my engagement. It was painful, I’m still not totally over
it, and the last thing I want to do is being around a bunch of singles. No
offense, but I’m just not ready to be back in a meat market environment.”
    “Well, I’m glad
you told me about your situation. And I’m really sorry to hear about the broken
engagement. That had to be tough. But Moon— I mean, Shelby— it’s just a
Bible study. It’s not a ‘meat market’ as you so delicately put it. Seriously,
this group isn’t like that. I promise you. We all have a blast together. Just
come one time and give it a shot. If you don’t like it, fine.”
    “We’ll see. I’m
having some car problems so I’m not sure if—”
    “That’s no
problem. I can give you a ride.”
    “Oh, that’s
okay. I wouldn’t want you to go out of your way.”
    “Please. Will
you stop acting like I’m some stranger and just come? Rachel and Rich said you
moved out. You’re over near MSU, right?”
    “Look, Tucker,
don’t worry about me. Besides, I’m sure Cassie wouldn’t appreciate me tagging
along.”
    He drained the
rest of his coffee and stood up. “Oh, Cass can’t come to Bible study. She has
class on Tuesday nights.”
    Oh?
    He tossed his
empty cup in the trash and pulled a card out of his pocket. “Give me your phone
number and I’ll call you tonight to get directions to your place. And I won’t
take no for an answer, so don’t even bother.”
    I huffed. “You’re
relentless, you know that?” I grabbed the card out of his hand and put it on my
clipboard. I wrote down my home number and handed it back to him. “But so help
me, Tucker, if one goofball starts clinging to me, I’ll never speak to you again.”
    “Fair enough.
Gotta run. Talk to you later.”
    I shook my head,
wondering why I’d caved so easily. Why couldn’t I just stick to my guns?
    This has
trouble written all over it . . .
     

     
    Sandra caught a
ride home with Chelsea, so I headed to the dealership. I’d called Dad earlier
in the day and he insisted I take my car right over to Brentwood’s Cadillac as
soon as I got off work. Since he’d worked there for so many years, he called ahead
and made arrangements for them to take a look at my baby and see what was wrong
as soon as possible. He also reserved a courtesy car for me to drive while it
was in the shop.
    I had vague
memories of Brentwood’s from my childhood. We were in and out a lot of the
time, stopping by to see Dad at work. Occasionally he’d take me to work with
him on Saturday mornings. But I guess I was too young to remember much, and I
certainly didn’t recognize anyone there. Still, as soon as I walked through the
door, the familiar car dealership smell hit me like a wave, making me miss my daddy.
    “So you’re Jack’s
girl,” a rather portly man said after I’d checked in at the repair shop. “I’m
Burt Brentwood, good friend of yo’ daddy’s. My goodness, how you’ve grown! Why,
last time I saw you, you weren’t this high.” He held his hand low, as if I’d
magically remember. I had no memory of this man, but since he was a Brentwood,
I’m sure we must’ve met before.
    “Nice to see
you,” I said. “Did Dad talk to you this morning?”
    “Sure did. And I
promised him I’d take good care of you. We’ll