The Trouble with Angels (Angels Everywhere #2)(19)

"Maybe,” Shirley agreed reluctantly. "Is he going to see her again?”

Mercy grinned, feeling downright smug about the answer to that. "I wouldn’t doubt it, especially since one of them is about to win two tickets to the next Lakers game.”

"One of them?”

"Yup. I just haven’t decided who.”

"Mercy,” Shirley muttered, "you’re incorrigible.”

"Yeah, I know, but you’ll forgive me, won’t you?”

"I don’t know.”

"Just think, you can tell Gabriel how good I’ve been. I haven’t so much as stepped on a single escalator the way I did last year.”

"Congratulations, Joe and Annie,” Paul said, forcing a happiness he didn’t feel into his voice. He walked over to the young woman standing next to his son and held out his hand. "Welcome to out family, Annie.”

She was a pretty thing. Small, with dark hair and deep blue eyes. Paul could see she was nervous by the way her hand trembled in his.

"Thank you, Reverend Morris.”

"Now tell me when all this happened,” Paul said, leading the way into the living room so they could sit down. Vaguely he could remember Joe saying something now and again about another student he was dating, but he hadn’t thought his son was this serious.

"Annie and I’ve known each other four years now.”

"We met as freshmen,” Annie explained shyly.

"In the last couple of years we’ve been dating each other exclusively,” Joe went on to explain.

Now that his son mentioned it, Paul could remember Joe making a fair number of long-distance calls last summer to a certain Oregon phone number.

"With us both graduating this June, we decided it was time to make plans for our future together.” Joe looked to Annie, and the two gazed longingly at each other.

It hadn’t been so many years that Paul had forgotten what it was like to be deeply in love. When he’d first fallen for Barbara, every minute they were apart had been too much to bear.

"I realize we’re springing the news on you,” Annie said, glancing nervously in Paul’s direction, "but Joe thought it best if we announced our engagement this way. I hope you don’t mind my staying a few days.”

"Of course I don’t mind. You couldn’t be more welcome.”

"We wanted to spend time with you first,” Joe explained, "then drive to Eugene and let Annie’s family know.”

Paul nodded, although he was fairly certain neither one sought his approval. "And Christmas?” The words had a difficult time leaving his lips. He knew the answer even before he asked the question. His son would spend the day with his fiancée and her family.

"We thought we’d spend the day with Annie’s family,” Joe said, studying his father. "You don’t mind, do you? I mean, we’ll be here for several days. I want you to get to know Annie, since she’ll soon be your daughter-in-law.”

"Then you’ve decided on your wedding date?”

"Oh, yes, that was one of the first things we did,” Annie explained. "I guess I’m a fairly traditional bride because I want a summer wedding.”

"We chose the first Saturday in August,” Joe said. "The fourth.”

"August,” Paul repeated slowly. In less than a year his son would be a married man.

"I’m nearly twenty-two, Dad,” Joe said, sounding a little defensive. "I’ve got a good line on a job with King County up in Seattle. I know you had your doubts when I decided to get my degree in environmental health, but I’m not going to have a problem finding a decent job.”

"What about you, Annie?” Paul found it important to ask questions rather than analyze his feelings. He felt lost, as if he were in a dark room and didn’t know where to locate the light switch. The darkness seemed to be closing in around him, pressing against his heart. This was supposed to be his time with his son.

"I’ll need another year of school for my teaching degree,” Annie explained in a small voice. "I’ve already inquired about doing my student teaching in the Seattle area, and it doesn’t look like it’ll be any problem.”

"It seems you’ve got everything all figured out.” Although he knew he was being selfish, Paul didn’t want to share his son. Not this Christmas. Not when he’d been looking forward to this time with Joe.

Joe and Annie gazed wistfully into each other’s eyes. Ah, young love. How well Paul remembered the days he was courting Barbara and how they’d struggled to make ends meet while he was in seminary. Each Sunday they’d traveled to a different outlying church. Barbara would play the piano and lead the congregational singing, and he’d preach a rousing sermon. God had smiled down on their efforts and blessed them abundantly—for a time. And then the blessings had been abruptly cut off.

"You don’t mind my being gone for Christmas, do you, Dad?” Joe asked.

Paul shook his head. "Don’t you worry about me, son, I’ll be fine.”

"You won’t spend the day alone?”

Given that he couldn’t be with Joe, Paul preferred his own company. It seemed people crowded him from all sides. He loved his daughter, but when he visited, he found himself making excuses to leave after only an hour.