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Caitlyn
Caitlyn loved holding little Andy. A baby in her arms stirred up all the love in her heart. She and Andy liked to stare at each other, just letting the love flow back and forth through their eyes. She could stare at him all day, but he always broke the trance by gurgling and drooling or reaching for Caitlyn’s hair or nose. Today he latched onto the strings on the neckline of her dress and undid the bow that she’d worked so hard on.
Caitlyn considered handing Andy back to Mom, but Mom just stood for the Gospel reading. Besides, Mom probably appreciated having her hands free every now and then, and Caitlyn didn’t really mind. Holding a baby was worth every little inconvenience. It made her long for marriage and motherhood.
Did Roland like babies?
What about Zoe?
Caitlyn hugged Andy to her chest and rested her chin on his soft head. Father Carston read the Gospel, a smooth melody in his tone.
Could Zoe really be pregnant? She’d never even let on that they had that kind of relationship. Wasn’t that something a girl should tell her best friend? Did she even love him? Did he love her? Did they really even know each other? They’d only been seeing each other a little over a month. How could she be pregnant?
Everyone sat down and Father began his homily. Mom reached for Andy, but Caitlyn hugged him tighter, stuck out her bottom lip, and made sad eyes. Mom let her keep him.
Maybe Zoe wasn’t pregnant at all. She still hadn’t taken a pregnancy test. She carried it around in her purse but whenever Caitlyn asked, she said she wasn’t ready to find out yet. What was she waiting for? Caitlyn would be dying to know. But she wouldn’t be in her situation. She’d have a husband to tell. Zoe would have to tell Jarret, and he seemed like a guy who might overreact.
For the first time in her life, Caitlyn did not envy Zoe.
They would know tonight. Zoe promised to meet Caitlyn at Peter’s house for dinner. She said she wasn’t comfortable taking the test at her house. She wanted to do it at Caitlyn’s, but they hadn’t a shred of privacy in their little, one-bathroom house. And the day she’d asked, they were having another chastity/courtship meeting.
Dominic’s mom gave a talk about doing things in groups and developing friendships without the pressure that comes from one-on-one dating. Caitlyn had taken the opportunity to mention the Halloween party, which she hadn’t told Mom about earlier because parties made Mom suspicious. But Caitlyn stressed that parents were welcome, it would be outside, and they would have games and other things that she made up on the spot. It went over well, and she even got volunteers for snacks, beverages, set-up, and clean up. Rick, who was also in the Fire Starters, committed the whole group to hanging white Christmas lights. Jarret would like that since the lights were his idea.
Caitlyn glanced at the altar. The bells rang and everyone dropped to his or her knees for the Sanctus prayer. Unable to kneel with Andy on her lap, she scooted to the edge of the pew.
Suddenly it was time for the Consecration, the most sacred part of Mass. The bells rang again. And Father lifted the Host.
Peace flooded Caitlyn’s soul. Her mind settled for the rest of the Mass, leaving her unable to concentrate on anything but the love of Jesus — until she got in line for Holy Communion.
There in the other line, a little bit ahead of her, was Roland West. He wore black dress pants and a gray dress shirt. She’d only seen him once or twice before at noon Mass.
Nearing the altar, she shifted Andy to her hip. The man in front of Roland knelt to receive Holy Communion. Her heart stirred to see such faith in a young man.
Father offered Caitlyn Holy Communion.
Her eyes watered as he placed the Host on her tongue. Did she have that faith? Did she believe in the True Presence of Jesus Christ here in this Eucharist? Did she believe that Jesus loved her so much that He wanted to give Himself to her completely, here and now in this Holy Communion? Was she willing to accept and enter into that love, to give herself back to Him in faithfulness?
“Let us pray,” Father said and everyone stood.
Caitlyn turned to glimpse Roland and the man who sat beside him, the one she’d seen kneeling for Holy Communion. Her breath caught at the sight.
The young man was Keefe West. The picture of him on Roland’s cell phone hadn’t prepared her for the real thing. He stood with bowed head, displaying a genuine humility that moved her. Mr. West stood next to him, then Jarret, neither of whom she had seen in line for Holy Communion. But there they all were, the entire West family, in the second row on the opposite side of the church. Boy, they were a handsome bunch of men, and all dressed up . . . well, except for Jarret, who wore jeans.
Caitlyn gasped, an idea coming to her. She knew how she could find out about Keefe’s miracle.
This time, when Mom reached for Andy, Caitlyn relinquished him and prepared to make a break for it. After the last word of the final hymn, but before the organist stopped playing, Caitlyn bolted for the back of the church, where she knew she’d find Peter.
Peter stood with his arms out to each side, blocking Toby from the candles at the Saint Anne’s shrine. He saw Caitlyn and rolled his eyes to show his frustration.
Toby managed to reach past him and snatch one of the long matches.
“Oh, no you don’t.” Peter grabbed it.
“Did you see the Wests here?”
Peter gave her an amused grin. Maybe she looked a bit too anxious.
“Yeah, sure, I saw them.” Keeping one arm in front of the shrine to block Toby, he faced Caitlyn.
“Can they come over to your house tonight?”
“My house? All of them? Why would I want the entire West clan at my house?”
Caitlyn stepped closer and put on a begging face, not that her effort at looking pathetic ever had any impact on him in the past. “Pleeease.”
Mr. Brandt had managed to lure Toby toward the doors, and now an older woman approached the shrine, but Peter still stood with his arm out.
“I don’t think so, Caitlyn.” Peter must’ve sensed someone trying to step around him because then he lunged to the side.
The woman jumped back and shrieked.
“Oh, sorry.” Peter’s face turned beet red. “I thought you were—” He squeezed Caitlyn’s arm and led her to the vestibule. “Why didn’t you tell me that wasn’t Toby?”
“Why can’t the Wests come over?”
He stopped by an usher handing out bulletins. “You know how many guests we have at the B & B in the fall? With your family over and all the guests, there’s no room to spare today. You and me will probably be eating in the living room.” Peter’s family operated a bed-and-breakfast that provided dinner as well. And he probably wasn’t serious about having to eat in the living room, but they did fill up in the fall.
“What about after dinner?”
“I don’t know. I’m not asking them.” He strode toward the door. “See ya later.”
Caitlyn followed him into the vestibule, where the gray outdoors and a steady rain showed through the propped-open doors. The Brandts, Mr. West, Keefe, and Roland stood on one side of the vestibule, the adults talking. Toby walked in circles around Roland. Roland watched him, amusement in his eyes.
Peter approached Roland and grabbed Toby by the arm. “Knock it off.”
On the other side of the vestibule, Jarret West stood alone. He leaned against a waist-high cabinet, arms folded and eyelids at half-mast. He yawned. When he cast a glance Caitlyn’s way, she decided to ask him to invite his family over. The Brandts wouldn’t care. They expected the Summers every Sunday and always said she could bring friends.
Jarret gave her the once-over as she approached, his gaze lingering on her neck or—
Caitlyn’s hands shot up to re-tie the bow at the neckline of her Bohemian style dress.
He gave her a lopsided grin. “That’s a nice dress . . . for church.”
“Thanks.” Caitlyn refused to recognize the sarcasm in his tone. Her dress was long and completely modest. “I was wondering . . .” How should she word this? “Are you . . . are you doing anything tonight?” She stopped a few feet away and picked up a flyer on the cabinet, pretending to be interested in it.
He pulled himself up and sat atop the cabinet, next to the stack of flyers. “Why? You wanna go out?”
Her face burned. She avoided his eyes. “Don’t be silly. Zoe’s going with me to Peter’s later, and I thought you might want to come. Actually, I thought your whole family might want to come. You know, with Keefe just getting back.” Pushing past her discomfort, she forced herself to make eye contact. “Do you think they would?”
He glanced across the vestibule.
Parishioners continued to trickle out of the church. Caitlyn’s family appeared in the doorway, and Dad came up to her.
“There you are.” He chuckled. “One minute you’re with us, next minute, I look and you’re gone.” Dad, shorter than average, somewhat chubby, and with graying hair that he could never comb straight, found everything in life amusing. “We have to get back to the house. Your mother wants to bake an angel food cake for tonight, and you know how long that ends up taking.” He looked at Jarret. “Who’s this?”
“No one.” Caitlyn turned her back to Jarret and folded her arms. She did not want her parents thinking she liked him. With his long hair, ripped jeans, and attitude, he had rebellion written all over him. If they thought she liked him, they’d never let her leave the house again. “I’ll be out in a minute, okay? I need to talk to Peter.”
“Okay, but it’s raining so make it snappy.” He snapped his fingers a few times, never making much of a sound.
When her family left, she faced Jarret again.
He had another crooked grin for her. “I’m no one, huh?”
“I’m sorry. I just didn’t want, um, to introduce everyone. So, will you invite your family over?”
“No. But I’ll come. Zoe didn’t tell me she was going over there.”
The blood drained from Caitlyn’s face, neck, then her entire body. What had she done? Not only had her plan failed, but now she’d betrayed Zoe. Zoe wanted to meet over there so she could take the pregnancy test privately, and here Caitlyn had just invited her boyfriend over. What a terrible friend she was.
“Why don’t you come around seven?” Caitlyn said, since Zoe would be there around five-thirty. “And I’d really like it if you’d invite your family, too. Please.”
“Can’t. I’m not talking to them.” He smiled as he slid off the cabinet. “See ya later.”