Accidental Meeting (3 page)

"What
are you talking about?" Bruce used his crutches to balance himself as he
stood.

“You’re
doing it again,” Abbey said in a sing-song voice.

Bruce
stopped and stared at her, then reached for his wallet, extracted a business
card, and handed it to her, all the while keeping his balance with the
crutches. “Call me later and we’ll discuss the details of tomorrow’s
itinerary.”

Doris
smiled and gave her a hug. “We best get you home,” she said, closing the door
for Bruce. “Good luck, Abbey. Things have a way of working out.”

Abbey
waved as she watched them leave the hospital parking lot.

“So,
did you and your boyfriend make up?”

Abbey
turned around. The tall, thin man from the waiting room stood outside smoking.
He walked closer and she waved a hand in front of her face to keep from
inhaling the smoke. “Excuse me?”

She
assumed he sensed her dislike of smoke because he flicked his cigarette onto
the parking lot. “I asked if you and your boyfriend made up.”

“He’s
not my boyfriend,” Abbey said pointing over her shoulder in the direction Bruce
and Doris had just driven. “Actually, we ran into each other today. Or should I
say, I ran into him… with my car.”

“Man,
you’re kidding? You hit him?”

Abbey
nodded, feeling her face grow warm at the admission.

“And
he forgave you?”

“Yes.”
Abbey sighed, thankfully he had.

“I wish
my friend would forgive me. His girlfriend is ticked, too.” He looked
remorseful, his face etched with pain. "I’m the one who threw him out the
window. At the time I was angry. Can’t even remember why now, but it seemed
important at the time.”

Tattoos
covered the arms of the man standing before her, while he looked rough and
scary he seemed sincere. Good sense told her she should be afraid, standing
here talking to him, instead she felt peace.

“Have
you asked your friend to forgive you?”

“No,
he’s still in recovery. They won’t let any of us see him.” He put his hands in
his pockets and glanced back towards the Emergency Room doors.

Abbey’s
heart melted, sharing in his pain. “Do you mind if I pray for your friend?”

The
man looked back at her and shook his head.

“What’s
his name?”

“Jerry.
We been friends longer than I can remember.”

“Can
I hold your hands while I pray for both of you?”

Abbey
readily accepted the hands he extended, then bowed her head and closed her eyes.
“Dear Heavenly Father, please help Jerry to recover quickly and help him to
forgive his friend for acting in anger. Help to restore their relationship and
help them to forgive each other as you so readily forgive us when we come to
you and ask for forgiveness. Amen.”

When
Abbey let go of his hands and looked up, he was staring at her, his eyes were
misty.

“Just
share your heart with your friend and ask him to forgive you. That’s all you
can do. The rest is up to him.”

“Thank
you. I
ain’t
ever had anybody pray for me before.”

Abbey
smiled. “I’m glad I got the opportunity to.”

He
nodded and headed back inside the hospital.

 Sighing,
Abbey walked to her car. “Now if my friend will forgive me and nothing else
happens, I can wake up and face tomorrow. It’s got to be better than today!”

Chapter Three

Remembering
to pick up milk, Abbey stopped at the grocery store on her way home. A handmade
‘Help Wanted: Third Shift’ sign caught her attention as the electronic door
opened. At least someone was hiring.

What
about Bruce? What was it he said about his assistant? Maybe she could convince
him to hire her. Abbey’s hopes plummeted when she remembered—maternity leave.
That meant his assistant would be coming back, otherwise he would have said
something like, “She quit to have a baby.” Maternity meant it was only a matter
of time until ‘mommy’ returned to work.

Red,
luscious strawberries caught her attention as she walked through the produce
aisle. Abbey grabbed a couple pints of large berries, thankful they were on
sale. She headed for the dairy section. It was hard to take her mind off work,
or the lack of it. Their meager incomes afforded them with the necessities of
life, leaving neither of them any savings worth mentioning. Abbey had done all
she could to help her childhood friend raise her son. Eric was like family to
her and she hadn’t minded the sacrifices made to get by. They counted on Abbey
and she wasn’t about to let them down. One way or another, she would find a
job.

Abbey
put her milk and strawberries on the conveyer belt, then retrieved money from
her wallet to pay for her purchases.

“Hello,
how are you today?” The cashier greeted her readily with a smile.

“Fine.”
Things weren’t fine. But what do you tell a total stranger?
Just wonderful
considering I quit or got fired, depending on how you looked at it or whose
version of the story you listened to. Then of course, there was the accident.
But, hey, I’m having a wonderful day, and you?

Abbey
didn’t say any of those things, although she wanted to. Sometimes dumping on
others helped to get the rigmarole off one’s chest. “I see you’re hiring?”

“Yeah,
want a job?” The checker’s eyes lit up and she laughed. “They’ve tried to get a
couple of us to switch to third shift, but there’s no way. I can’t afford to
pay a babysitter so I can work, then pay them more just so I can get some
sleep, too.”

“You’ve
got little ones at home?”

She
nodded. “My youngest is three. The other two are in school all day.”

Abbey
understood why she didn’t want to work nights, remembering how short Eric’s
naps were when he was that young. Monica had worked third shift until he
started school. It was rough, but between the two of them Eric had never gone
to a babysitter.

“Do
you know if it’s full time or part time?” There was no way she could work full
time at night and look for a job, plus drive Bruce around during the day. If
she could work part time, at least she would have some money coming in until
she found another job. Something was always better than nothing.

“I
think they’re hiring both.” The cashier turned around to the service desk.
“Hey, Ruby, we hiring full or part time nights?”

“Both,”
a short, stocky redhead answered.

As
if she might not have heard, the cashier turned back around towards Abbey.
“Both. You can always fill out an application.”

Abbey
nodded.

“Just
go on over to Ruby and she’ll take care of you.”

“Thanks.”

Fifteen
minutes later Abbey was driving home, not quite sure if she should be happy or
not. She had expected to fill out an application and get a call for an
interview in a couple days at the earliest. She hadn't expected to get hired on
the spot. Things had changed over the last six years. The last job she had
applied for was with Abbott &
Ellingsworth
and
that had taken a phone call and two interviews before she had been hired.

Abbey
got home an hour and a half before Eric was due to get off the bus. Normally
she didn’t get home until an hour or so after he did. Why couldn’t Monica have
worked today? It would have given her a little time to prepare before having to
tell her friend about what happened today. Taking a deep breath, Abbey shifted
the strawberries under one arm, keeping a firm grasp on the milk and opened the
door with her right hand.

Monica
sat wide-eyed in a half sitting, half-standing position next to the couch. She
was either going to sit down, or get up. It might be better if she sat, given
the news Abbey was about to drop on her. “What? You’re home!”

“So
I am.” Abbey closed the door and headed for the kitchen, sensing Monica not far
behind her.

“Strawberries.
What’s the occasion?” There was a pause. “You got the promotion! Oh, Abbey, I’m
so happy for you. I knew Gary would wise up and give you the job and here you
were worried for nothing.”

“I
didn’t get that job, but I did get another one,” Abbey tried to sound cheery.

“Another
one? I didn’t know there was another position open.”

Abbey
sighed. “This hasn’t been a very good day and I don’t know how to tell you
this… I had an accident this morning.”

“Oh,
my goodness. Are you all right?” Monica began looking her over from head to
toe.

“I’m
fine. Your bumper is bent. I hit another car and he’s got a broken tail light
and a small dent.”

“Praise
God, no one got hurt.” Monica held a hand heavenward.

“Well…”

“Oh,
Abbey. Someone was injured? What happened?” Monica took Abbey’s hand in hers,
giving it a gentle squeeze.

“Bruce
didn’t get hurt when I hit his car. It wasn’t until he fell down the embankment
that he got hurt.”

“Bruce?
You’re on a first name basis with the guy you hit?” Monica blinked rapidly. “I
don’t understand. Did you know the guy you hit?”

“No.
It’s a long story.”

“I’m
listening. This has got to be better than that soap opera I watched earlier.
There is nothing on TV during the day, nothing but trash and talk shows. Same
thing.” Monica waved a hand as if saying,
you know
. She had a habit of
doing that when it came to dismissing a topic and moving on to something else.

“Gary
tried to make a pass at me. I bruised his male ego by rejecting him and told
him I quit. He then storms to his door and yells, ‘you’re fired!’” His lying
and manipulation still hurt. Abbey wiped a stray tear that trickled down her
cheek. “And if I try and tell anyone what really happened, they’ll just think
I’m trying to retaliate for getting fired and I'm sure he'll fight me being
able to collect unemployment.”

“Oh,
Abbey, I’m sorry.” Monica hugged her. “There’s got to be something we can do.”

Abbey
shook her head. “No, I just want to move on. Even if I got my job back, Stacey
would talk about me behind my back. It would be miserable working there.
Besides, I’ve got a new job already.”

“You’re
kidding. That was quick.”

“I’ve
got a part time job at the grocery store working third shift. It’s partly my
fault that Bruce got hurt, so I told him I would chauffeur him around during
the day since he can’t drive. That way I could look for a job, too. He didn’t
call did he?”

“Who?
Bruce?” Monica frowned. “You seem awful concerned about this guy. What gives?”

Abbey
grabbed a glass from the cabinet and filled it with water. “I’m worried about
him. He didn’t seem very happy. Not that his day was going any better than
mine.”

“Hmm.
That’s true. So tell me about this guy. What’s he look like?”

“What
does that matter?” Abbey took a gulp of her drink.

“Call
it idle curiosity.” Monica shrugged her shoulders and wriggled her nose like a
rabbit.

“He’s
tall and has brown hair, a little darker than mine, and chocolate brown eyes
that bore right through you.”

The
phone rang, cutting short their conversation to Abbey’s relief. She rinsed her
glass and loaded it in the dishwasher while Monica ran to grab the phone in the
living room.

“Oh,
Abbey,” she crooned sweetly as she came into the room, clutching the phone
against her chest. “Bruce is on the phone.” Monica handed her the phone, a big
grin on her face. “And if I remember correctly, you’re addicted to chocolate
aren’t you?”

Abbey
gagged, coughing to clear her throat all the while wishing her suddenly racing
pulse would slow down. She couldn't believe he'd called already. She took a
deep breath and grabbed the phone . “I'm sorry, Bruce. I must have swallowed
wrong," she said pointedly to Monica and then turning her attention to the
phone, she said, "This is, Abbey Martin. What can I do for you?”

Abbey
glanced at her watch, acknowledging she made it to Bruce’s house five minutes
early. It was worth getting up an hour early today to make sure she didn’t have
any repeats of running late like yesterday, when her life took a dramatic turn.
Counting her blessings, having a supportive friend, and a new part time job,
plus the opportunity to make things right with the man she caused harm, she
slammed the door of her blue Focus. Noting Bruce’s Lincoln MKS luxury car was
not in his driveway, she walked up the stairs of an older two-story colonial
house.

The
doorbell chimes reminded Abbey of church bells. Her stomach tightened. Last
night Bruce had sounded pleasant on the phone, a vast difference from his
earlier behavior when they first met. Not that she could blame him being sour
after all that had happened.

Abbey
reasoned that her desire to help make things right with Bruce stemmed solely
from her Christian duty to make things right. Talking about it last night with
Monica proved to be useless. Arched brows and speculative looks, followed by,
“Hmm,” were her roommate’s response, and, "If you say so."

Abbey's
heart beat quickened when the door handle turned. Doris opened the door. “Good
morning, Abbey. Come in, dear.”

“Thank
you.” Abbey smiled and walked past Bruce’s housekeeper, eyeing her
surroundings. The foyer was open to the second floor, a white, spindle banister
lined the stairwell. Although the home appeared to be older, it was well
maintained. A painting of a vase with a large flower arrangement caught her
attention. It wasn’t the kind of picture she would have expected to find
hanging in his home.

“Find
something amusing?”

Abbey
startled at the sound of Bruce’s voice. “I’m sorry. I didn’t realize you were
there.”

“I think
Abbey was admiring your painting.” Doris pretended to straighten it.

“I could
tell what she was admiring,” Bruce said in a curt voice.

“I can see
we’re grumpy again today,” Abbey mumbled to herself, folding her hands together
in front of her.

“What
was that, Miss Martin?” Bruce hobbled closer. Taking a stance in front of her,
he balanced his weight on the crutches.

“Nothing,
Mr. Harrington.” Abbey produced her sweetest smile. She’d get him in a better
mood if it was the last thing she did. Judging by his facial expression, it
might turn out to be the last thing she would ever attempt to do. “Your picture
is quite lovely.”

“It’s my
mother’s.”

“Yes,”
Doris piped in, “she left it here when she moved, hoping it would brighten his
spirits.”

“Doesn’t
appear to have worked.” Abbey couldn't believe she actually said that out loud.
Bruce glared at her. If looks could kill, Abbey was sure she would have been a
goner the minute he stalked into the room. “So, your mother used to live here?”

“It was
my parents’ home, until my mother remarried.” Bruce frowned. “Since this isn’t
a social visit, do you mind if we get going? After we go to the doctors and get
my cast put on, I need to run by work for an important meeting, one I seemed to
have missed yesterday.”

“I’m
sorry.” She messed up his plans by causing the accident and today his plans
were still being altered. They couldn't put a cast on because of the swelling.
Abbey hadn’t meant to cause him any more hardship or pain. When she prayed last
night, she promised God that she would do whatever it took to make this
situation right and hopefully find out why Bruce was so grumpy. It seemed like
he had so much to be happy about; his embittered disposition seemed
unwarranted.

Doris
looked like she was about to say something until Bruce gave her ‘that’ look,
the one people gave you when they dared you to say something else. Abbey knew
she should bite her tongue, but couldn’t resist. “It was good seeing you again,
Doris. Will you be here when we get home tonight?”

“Yes,
I’ll set an extra place setting at dinner.” Doris smiled.

“You
don’t need to make dinner tonight, Doris. I expect to be late.”

“How
late?” Abbey asked. She didn’t have to work at the grocery store until
midnight, but hoped to take a nap beforehand.

“Did you
have other plans?” Bruce’s left eyebrow arched, again, just like yesterday.
Abbey was getting familiar with that look. He had several, all of them reflecting
negative emotions and she couldn't help but wonder if he ever truly smiled.

“Not
really.” Abbey didn’t want to bother telling Bruce about her ‘real’ job. After
all, how late could he keep her driving him around town? Most likely, she’d
have time to catch a small nap. Tomorrow she could sleep while he was at work,
then swing by his office to pick him up when he was done for the day.

“Good.
Then can we go now, please?” Bruce nodded towards the door. Abbey took her cue
and opened it for him.

“We’ll
see you later, Doris.” Abbey waved goodbye to the other woman.

“Bye,
dear. Try and have a nice day.”

“I’m
sure we will.” Abbey forced a smile and followed Bruce out the door, careful to
stay out of his way as he maneuvered himself down the stairs of the porch.

“Where’s
your car?”

“Right
there.” Abbey pointed to her blue Ford Focus.

“That’s
not the car you had yesterday.”

“No.
Yesterday I had Monica’s Neon,” Abbey admitted with a little reluctance.

Bruce
pivoted to look at her. “I’m not even going to ask who Monica is, but do you
have a habit of driving other people’s vehicles? Is this someone else’s car,
too?”

“Monica’s
my roommate,” Abbey announced, sidestepping him to walk around to the
passenger’s side and open the door for him. “And yes, this is my car.”

“How do
you expect me to fit in there?”

One
glance at the interior of the vehicle and back at Bruce standing there on
crutches and understand his concern about there not being enough room for him
in her car. He was tall with broad shoulders and needed to stretch his long
legs. It wouldn’t be an easy fit.

“We
could take your vehicle, but I figured you may need someone to pick it up...
from the side of the road.” Where it wouldn't be stranded if she hadn't of hit
him yesterday. Nothing like feeling guilty and somewhat incompetent.  

“It’s
already been towed and is being repaired. Seems I had a little run in with a
motorist. I should be safer today. I always say if you can’t beat them, join
them.”

Abbey looked
up to meet chocolate brown eyes topped by the most quizzical arched eyebrows
she had ever seen. Abbey reached in and moved the seat as far back as it would
go. “There, hopefully that should work.”

Bruce
frowned but squeezed in, sliding his crutches between the seats.

“Would
you like me to do your seatbelt for you, too?” Abbey asked in a sweet, soft
tone.

“Are you
always so perky in the morning?”

“Yes.”
Abbey smiled purposely for him. “Haven’t you ever heard of rejoicing in the
Lord always? You ought to try it some time.”

Abbey
closed the door for Bruce, allowing him the option of fastening his own buckle.
Then went around to her side of the car and got in. “To answer your other
question, no, I don’t have a habit of borrowing other people’s vehicles. Mine
wouldn’t start, so I had to borrow Monica’s.”

“And did
you get the problem fixed or should I expect delays later today because we’re
stranded somewhere?”

“My
battery was low and just needed to charge up for a bit. It’s fine now.” Abbey
didn’t bother to look at him as she backed out of his driveway. “Are you always
so negative?”

Bruce
was silent for a few moments, perhaps contemplating her words. Her hope for a
peaceful, quiet ride to the doctor’s office was short lived. “I’m sorry.
Perhaps I’m a bit testy. Running a day behind, coupled by pain, tends to make
me a little grumpy.”

“Apology
accepted.”

“I don’t
believe it!”

“What?”
Abbey glanced at him, trying to focus on the road. Her heart began to race. “I
honestly forgive you. After all, I can’t blame you. It’s my fault you’re behind
schedule and you’re in pain. It’s me who should be apologizing anyway.”

Bruce
was staring at her, his mouth gaping when she glanced at him. “What?”

“Do you
always ramble on? Never mind. I forgot my briefcase. We need to turn around and
get it.”

“Why
don’t we wait until after your doctor’s visit? You might not feel up to going
to work when they’re done. If so, you can just stay home and rest for a little
bit.”

“I have
no choice but to go back to work, but I guess it won’t hurt to wait and pick it
up when we’re… I’m done at the
doctors
office.”

Abbey
wasn’t about to press him, nor was she going mention the fact that the pain
pills would most likely make him sleepy. An involuntary smile slipped to her
lips when she thought about him sleeping. It would be a nice change from his
being awake and grumpy like a toddler who needed a nap. The thought of him
curled up like a baby, fast asleep, made her chuckle.

“What
are you laughing about?” Bruce waved his hand in dismissal. “Rejoicing again,
no doubt.”

Abbey
laughed even harder. She was rejoicing all right, just not about what he
thought she would be.

*                                 
*                                 
*

By the
time the doctor's visit was over and she'd retrieved Bruce's prescription,
Abbey was more than anxious for Bruce’s pain medicine to kick in. Silently she
wondered if perhaps she shouldn’t be the one taking the medicine for the
headache she was getting. At least she had thought to ask Doris if they could
alter a few of his suit pants and add an insert that could be removed when his
cast came off. Bruce seemed to be a little impressed that she came up with the
idea. Abbey was thankful that Doris was more than happy to accommodate his
needs. Sewing wasn’t one of Abbey’s better talents. Sadly enough, it took her
two years to learn to sew a straight line in reverse, reinforcing stitches. Not
that his pants legs would be that hard to sew, they were a little too expensive
for her to take a chance messing up. Not to mention it would be one more thing
he would count against her.

“Do you
know where we’re going?” Bruce asked as she edged out of his driveway.

“I guess
that would help, wouldn’t it? Where to, Sir?” Abbey gave a mock salute.

“Do you
know how to get to Manchester?” When Abbey nodded he continued, giving her the
address.

Abbey
slammed on the brakes.

“Hey,
what are you trying to do, kill me?” Bruce clutched the armrest and braced his
other hand on the dashboard.

“I’m sorry.”
Abbey eased her car in motion. “Why do you have to go there?”

“Go
where?”

“I
recognized the address. It’s to Abbot &
Ellingsworth
.”
She should know that address by now, having looked at it on the business
stationary day after day for year after year.

“Why do
I have a sick feeling that this isn’t going to be good news? What did you do,
drive a car through the side of their building?”

Abbey
shook her head.

“Set the
building on fire?”

Abbey
shook her head, again.

“This is
serious isn’t it?" Bruce leaned forward a little to get a better look at
her. "I don’t like the look on your face. What happened?”

“I used
to work there.”

“Oh, is
that all… Given our recent history, I've learned you can do a lot of damage in
a small amount of time.” Bruce smiled. “So, did they warn you to never step
foot in the building again or they would call the police? Stop frowning. I’m
only joking. I thought you were the one who wanted me to lighten up."

“Good,
I’m glad you are. Remember that, though, if my name comes up.”

“Why don’t
you tell me about it?” Bruce suggested in a tone that was soft and soothing.

“I
really don’t want to talk about it.”

“How
long did you work there?”

“Six
years. Now, can we drop it, please?”

"Now
who's the one being grumpy?" Bruce mumbled.

Abbey
bit her lip to keep from refraining. She pulled up along the curb in front of
the building, got out and rounded the vehicle, opening Bruce’s door for him.
She took his crutches and held them in front of him for him to grab and hoist
himself into a standing position. “I don’t recall ever running into you here
before.”

“Probably
because I’ve never been here before.”

“Oh."
It really wasn't her business why he was here now. "What time do you want
me to pick you up?” Abbey closed the door and turned to look at him.

“I’m
sorry, maybe you didn’t understand. I need you along with me all day—to help.
Could you please park the car and bring my briefcase in with you?”

Abbey
didn’t say anything—there wasn’t anything she could say and there wasn’t any
way she could get out of this.

“I’ll
see you in a few minutes then.” Bruce turned and entered the building.

Abbey
parked the car, said a quick prayer for the questioning looks she was sure to
get from her previous coworkers. She hurried to join Bruce in the foyer of
Abbot &
Ellingsworth
. She knew she wouldn’t have
time to prepare for a confrontation, Abbey hadn’t expected to have to deal with
Gary as soon as she walked into the building. Bruce was absorbed in
conversation with her ex-boss.

Gary
glared at her the instant he saw her. “What do you think you’re doing here?” He
took a stance in front of her, his fist planted firmly on his hips.

Abbey
stood speechless, clutching the handle of Bruce’s briefcase. Her heart pounded.
She had dreaded this confrontation, rehearsing it in her mind the whole three
minutes it took to park the car and walk back to the building. What she should
say evaded her then and the right words to say wouldn’t come now either.