Noble Pursuits Read online

  “I’ll keep that in mind. There has to be somebody… but I’ll bide my time. I agree; if there is one thing I can’t stand, it’s a pushy woman…” Grace’s words trailed off in thought.

  He listened to her chuckle as she crossed the street and retreated into the warmth of her house. Nolan stood in his open doorway, letting the stiff autumn breezes blow into his warm office area. The sharp jangling of the reproduction telephone that hung in his kitchen snapped him from his reverie. Without waiting for his answering machine to pick up, he answered.

  “Noble Solutions, this is Nolan Burke speaking, how may I help you?”

  Nolan sank into his couch in frustration. This was the third call that he’d received this week. All of them were recommendations on his “excellent service and integrity” by Michelle Walker. “I think I should have moved to another city… not just the suburbs.”

  He realized he’d spoken aloud when the voice on the other end said, “Excuse me?”

  “Pardon me ma’am… thinking out-loud. I can meet you for breakfast on the twenty-ninth or lunch on the thirtieth at the earliest…

  “I see. Breakfast it is. I’ll leave my name at the hostess desk so they know where to seat you. Thank you.”

  As he disconnected from the call, it occurred to him that he should order a corsage immediately. The dinner had unintentionally become an “event” among the church’s singles. If he waited too long, he might find it necessary to drive to the city for what he wanted. He swiftly exited the house, backed out of his driveway, and drove to town.

  ~*~*~*~

  “Do you have something that would look nice with this fabric?”

  Nolan was ready to give up and get plain white roses when he saw an exquisite orchid nestled in a flower arrangement. “That… that is what I want. Can you make me a corsage out of that?”

  The woman tried to explain that it would cost him more for the corsage than for the entire arrangement, but Nolan insisted. “Take the other flowers and stick them in that plant over there—the one inside that picnic basket—and I’ll give you a card for it. Can they be delivered before closing tomorrow?”

  The assistant assured him that it would be delivered before four and wrote up his order as he signed a card for Grace’s plant. Thank you for all of your hard work and effort extended to make this a special night for all of us, Nolan. P.S. This scripture reminded me of you as I read it this morning. Proverbs…

  Nolan frantically racked his brain for the proper reference but couldn’t remember which one it was. He dashed out to his vehicle. After checking the place in his Bible and finding the chapter and verse in Ecclesiastes that says, “Moreover, when God gives wealth and possessions, and enables him to enjoy them, to accept his lot, and be happy in his work, this is a gift from God,” Nolan dashed back indoors, and added 5:19 to the bottom of the card. He paid for his order and drove home happy with his purchases, feeling like all was well with the world.

  ~*~*~*~

  The following afternoon, Cade and Grace played catch in her front yard, and it was obvious that Grace was thoroughly enjoying herself. They both waved at Nolan between tosses. Cade proudly wore his new Cubs jacket and threw awkwardly. As Nolan watched from his window, he could see that Cade was trying but having a very difficult time throwing straight.

  Grace patiently tried again to show him how to hit the “target” and Cade continued to send it at a forty-five degree angle. All too soon, or so Nolan thought, they went inside for cocoa.

  “Miss Buscher?”

  Grace looked up from her steaming mug of marshmallow-laden chocolate. “Got a problem, Cade?”

  “How come my mom works all the time? How come she can’t be home when I get home? I mean…I like coming here! I just wondered why you can be home when you don’t have kids, and Mom has two kids she could be home with?”

  “I think your mother would say that she works so that you all have enough to eat, a home to live in and clothes, schooling… the things that are important to mothers to provide for their children.” Grace hoped she was right.

  “But what is Dad for then? I mean… Dad makes a lot of money. Why can’t he buy that stuff so Mom can be home like you are?”

  Grace’s concern grew. It seemed as though Cade was bothered by something and had determined that if his mother were home in the afternoons, then the problem would go away. “Cade, I don’t know your parent’s financial position. People often have bills that they can’t pay with just one income.”

  “But you live on next to nothing. Mom said that you are the only person that she knows that can squeeze dollars out of pennies.”

  Grace’s laugh muffled the knock on her front door. She started to explain why she chose to live the way that she did but a second knock sent her to the door. When she saw the plant laden picnic basket in the deliveryman’s hand, her delight was evident, even from Nolan’s vantage point across the street.

  As she read the card, she instructed Cade to get a Bible. “Proverbs… 5:19 is what we are looking for… it’s after Psalms, right in the middle there… good job.” Grace hardly paid attention as she fussed with the flowers. The plant was beautiful but looked especially lovely with fresh flowers added here and there.

  Cade began reading eagerly. “As a loving h—ind and a graceful doe, let her… let her…”

  “Is it a hard word, Cade? Need help?” Grace hardly listened as she continued to fuss with the fragrant flowers.

  “No… um… let her br— breasts satisfy you always a…”

  Grace stopped him, snatching the Bible from him. “Wha— Um… Cade, I …”

  Cade blushed furiously, though Grace was an even deeper shade of crimson. Mentally, she railed against Nolan as she struggled to cover the faux pas. “Um, Cade, well… I think that this card is meant for someone else. It’s probably a mistake.

  “Let’s go back to our other discussion.” Grace seethed through the entire conversation. She knew that her boy wasn’t getting the answers that he needed, but her anger was difficult to overcome.

  A very relieved Grace sent Cade to his car the moment his mother knocked on the door. Mrs. Crenshaw laughed at the entire situation but became sober as she heard of Cade’s desire to have his mother home. “I think there is more to it than it sounds. He’s really fixated on it right now. I thought you should know.”

  Grace curled up with her Bible and began praying. She was angry… no, she was furious. What kind of sick joke did Nolan think he was playing? “As a lovely hind…” Her face burned as she remembered explaining to Cade that this was a large deer-like animal, not someone’s backside.

  Her anger got the better of her, and she stalked out the door. She was so focused on the object of her wrath that she didn’t notice Melanie and the baby entering the back door. As Grace pounded on Nolan’s door, Melanie saw the flowers and innocently read the card. She stared at the reference in disbelief.

  “Come on, Craig… pick up!” Melanie prayed that Craig remembered to turn on his cell phone.

  “Craig. You’d better come to Grace’s. I stopped by to talk her into dinner at our house, and … it appears, she has received flowers… well, a plant really, from Nolan….

  “Craig… it’s not that simple. There was a Bible reference on the card and—” Craig’s uncharacteristic defense of Nolan irritated and saddened her. This was going to get ugly. “Craig, it’s Proverbs 5:19!”

  “I’m just a couple of blocks away, I’ll be right there. Where is Grace?”

  Hearing that Grace was already in animated conversation with Nolan wasn’t comforting. “She’ll murder him.”

  Her relief that Craig felt some concern for Nolan’s welfare was short lived. “No, Melanie, I just want some left for me to kill.”

  ~*~*~*~

  Murder wasn’t on Grace’s heart. She was too humiliated and hurt. Nolan had seemed so genuine and gentlemanly. She was shocked at his crassness, but more than anything, she was hurt at the loss of what seemed to be a good friendship. As
she pounded on his door, Grace berated herself for forgetting the plant. She could have insisted that he take it back. Better yet, she could have thrown it at him. So maybe murder was creeping into her heart.

  Nolan opened the door with a grin. “Hey! How—”

  “Do you think that you are funny? Did you know that I had Cade read that aloud to me? What were you thinking?”

  Before Nolan could answer, horrible tire screeches erupted from the corner, and the couple watched in disbelief as Craig drove up over the curb and into Nolan’s yard. Before Grace could ask what was going on, Craig was at her side. Dispensing with a greeting, Craig growled for Grace to go back home.

  Grace was incredulous. “Excu—”

  “Now, Grace! Now!”

  Throwing both men a look of derision, Grace stalked home. Spotting Melanie watching the scene from the picture window, the phone and card still in her hand, Grace changed the object of her fury. Bursting into tears, she accused Melanie of being a “spy and a traitor,” before collapsing in her favorite chair.

  ~*~*~*~

  Nolan didn’t know what to think. Something was terribly wrong, but he had no idea what. “Craig—”

  “Look, Burke. I trusted you. You assured me that you wanted to be a real friend to Grace, and against my better judgment, I trusted you.”

  “What did I do? I don’t understand.”

  “The card, Burke. Did you really think we wouldn’t be upset? That scripture is incredibly offensive”

  “How can scripture ever be offensive, Craig? I don’t get it.”

  Craig’s face turned purple with fury. “That is not funny. I’m trying to keep my cool, but insulting—”

  “I am so sorry. I really thought that the scripture was a beautiful picture of Grace. I thought that she was the embodiment of everything it was—”

  “You have some nerve!” Craig exercised every ounce of control that he could muster.

  “When ‘the Preacher—’” Nolan frantically tried to explain, but Craig cut him off.

  “Since when does the preacher talk about breasts to an unmarried woman? Did you happen to notice the word wife in there? Or were you so full of your own sick joke that you didn’t bother to note that?”

  Craig turned to leave. He knew if he remained any longer, the temptation to flatten Nolan would be too great to fight.

  As he stalked across the lawn to retrieve his car, he spat out his ultimatum. “Keep away from my sister, Burke, or you’ll wish you had.”

  Nolan barely heard him. Already in a cold sweat, he frantically searched for his Bible. He finally located it in the front seat of his car where he had looked up the reference… the reference!

  “Oh noooooooo what did I put on that card?”

  He dialed the florist’s number and asked to speak to the salesgirl who had written up his order. After asking what was on the card with the plant, he feverishly flipped from Ecclesiastes to Proverbs searching. “Five-nineteen… five… nineteen… here it is… As a lovely hind…”

  Nolan sank into the nearest chair with his head between his hands. If the situation wasn’t so serious, his quirky humor would have taken over. He had no idea how to fix the problem. He couldn’t go explain; the Buschers wouldn’t listen, not that he could blame them.

  “I have to try. I’ll call Craig first.” Nolan remembered the pain in Grace’s eyes and almost wept.

  ~*~*~*~

  Melanie stared in shock as Grace sobbed. “Grace, honey, I…”

  Grace stood, tried to speak, and then rushed from the room. She knew that Melanie meant well, but she was too hurt to think rationally. Craig flipped open his ringing phone as he stalked into Grace’s living room. In a scene reminiscent of a Jane Austen novel, Melanie wept in one corner of the room, while his infant daughter whimpered in her car seat and Grace’s sobs drifted down the hallway.

  Hearing Nolan’s voice on the other line, Craig snapped the phone shut and turned it off. Melanie’s account of Grace’s distress and years of experience told Craig to go home. He left a note telling her that he’d be by later and led his little family home.

  ~*~*~*~

  Nolan pulled out his church directory and looked for the phone numbers of the elders. He didn’t know them well but already appreciated the serious manner in which they took their office. Shepherding Christians in today’s independent culture wasn’t an easy job. Nolan believed that it was the responsibility of every man to live his life as if being an elder in Christ’s church was the only goal that he had in this life, and these men seemed to have just that kind of attitude.

  Thirty minutes later, Nolan sat with three of the five elders explaining the situation. He paced the floor as he told about the confrontation and his subsequent realization of why Craig and Grace were so upset. As soon as he gave the reference that was accidentally written on the card, the oldest man present snickered.

  “I’m sorry? Did I say something funny?” Before the man could reply, the full impact of the situation hit Nolan, and he chuckled.

  Several minutes later, the group of men wiped tears of laughter from their eyes and tried to return to a more serious discussion level. “I know that I am supposed to go to them at first, and I did try to call, but Matthew eighteen tells us to go to them with others if they won’t listen to you…”

  Frank Welk, a big burly man with a full, bushy beard, was shaking his head. “No, actually, we are to go to those who have done wrong to us, and if they won’t repent then you take someone according to Matthew eighteen, but you did right coming to us. James chapter five says to ‘confess your faults, one to another and pray for one another that you may be healed.’ This is step one.”

  The men prayed and then discussed whether to call Craig or to have Grace come in alone. Nolan’s plea for a moment to assure Grace of his chagrin without Craig staring holes into the back of his head was granted. Frank called his wife and asked her to drive Grace to the church. When she arrived, one of the elders excused himself to call Craig and fill him in on the situation.

  Nolan was a broken man as he stood before Grace. Several times, he opened his mouth to speak and choked up. One of the elders prayed and asked the Lord to give Grace an open heart to receive what Nolan had to say, and for Nolan to find the words to convey what was on his heart. Once more, he tried to explain. “Grace, can I read something to you?” Before Nolan could begin reading, Grace’s expression softened. “‘Furthermore, as to every man to whom God has given riches and wealth, He has also empowered him to eat from them and receive his reward and rejoice in his labor; this is the gift of God.’”

  Grace shook her head. She didn’t comprehend what Nolan seemed to be saying. “I don’t understand…”

  “I read that scripture yesterday morning, and it made me think of you. I—I know how much you love the work you do, the service you offer to others and your creativity. It’s all a huge part of how God has blessed you, and you show that. Well, I read from the end of Proverbs through the fifth chapter of Ecclesiastes. When I remembered that verse as I was writing out your card, well, I couldn’t remember the reference. I wrote down Proverbs but couldn’t remember the numbers. Then, I went out to the car, found the verse, and went back inside to put down the reference. I didn’t notice—”

  “That you had the wrong book.” Grace blushed. The verse still embarrassed her.

  “Grace, I am so sorry; I would never—that is something so private, so intimate—I can’t imagine…”

  Grace shook her head. “No, please forgive me. I didn’t ask you why, or if you meant to write it, I was embarrassed and attacked. Craig—I don’t even want to know what Craig said.”

  Nolan reddened. “Um, he’s pretty upset, but I don’t blame him. When I finally figured out what you guys were talking about—”

  Frank Welk spoke up. “Grace, I actually think that this is going to get ugly with Craig. He has always been a little over protective of you. I’d like you to go see what you can do for tomorrow while we speak to Craig. I d
on’t want you put in the middle, ok? We’ll all come back together to pray once this is resolved.”

  Grace nodded and moved to the dining hall. As the door closed behind her, she heard Craig’s car drive into the parking lot. It seemed to her that the situation had gotten out of hand, and all because of her. If she had taken that card to Nolan and asked him to explain the use of that particular scripture, things would have been different. Now things were a mess.

  Craig walked into the meeting room and slugged Nolan. Before anyone could react, he began a tirade that Grace could hear parts of in the kitchen. Attacking Nolan on every front, he let it be known his exact thoughts on the entire incident, ending with his complete disgust at the meeting. The men listened in complete silence. Nolan held tissues to a bleeding nose and prayed harder than he’d ever prayed before.

  The men’s silence eventually took the wind out of Craig’s sails, and he finally seated himself in a folding chair that he moved slightly apart from the rest in one final show of anger. One of the elders prayed. Another elder took up the prayer, and so they prayed around the room. Craig remained silent. As the final “amen” was spoken, a mousy looking man, Seth Wolski, spoke.

  “Craig, we are at a loss as to how to deal with you…”

  “Deal with me! This man insulted my sister with suggestive and indecent comments. Whose side are you on?”

  Seth sent a scathing look at Craig and demanded silence. “You have disgraced the name of Christ here tonight. I understand your anger, but it is misdirected. You are wrong. Nolan called us here to explain the situation and to request help in his quest to receive forgiveness. As your shepherds, we insist that you sit here, pray, open your heart, and then hear what this man has to say.”

  Nolan was shocked. Seth Williams looked like a mealy-mouthed wimp, but he’d been mistaken. Craig’s face mirrored his. He looked toward Frank, but Frank’s eyes were stern. He nodded silently and Craig sighed. Praying when angry was never his strong point.