Casey wasn’t so sure she liked Teagan’s new workout obsession. Teagan was on a “remake Casey Stewart kick,” and fortunately or unfortunately it was working. She was getting reacquainted with the church thing again after a couple weeks of going back, even started to look forward to it, although she hadn’t told Teagan that. Casey had even thought about joining one of the home groups through the church.
Now Teagan had her running. Running. Casey liked kick-boxing kind of workouts, but running around and around wasn’t really her thing. While running untangled the mind, according to Teagan, Casey abhorred the time to think. Thoughts ran as rampant as her legs on a run. She much preferred punching bags. They kept her focused, her mind quiet.
So they’d compromised. Teagan had picked White Rock Lake at sunset, and Casey had agreed since she would have something pretty to look at, something calming.
“Teag, can we please stop?” Casey slowed, grabbing her side. “It hurts. Things hurt.”
Teagan turned around, jogging in place, somehow making sweat look good while Casey dripped and struggled to bobby pin her layered dark hair out of her eyes. Despite her efforts it fell in jagged strands, sticking to her forehead, her neck.
Teagan smirked at Casey’s struggle. “It’s supposed to hurt. Feel the burn.”
“I don’t want to feel the burn. I want to feel the couch.”
“No way, Lazy Bones. You can watch more episodes of NCIS later. Besides, where else would you rather be than out with your bestest of friends on a pretty cool evening?”
Casey sucked in a breath and glared. “Well I think you just covered that. At home. On my couch. Watching NCIS. And by the way . . .” she hunched, gripping the stitch in her side. Maybe she was out of shape.
“Is there any end to that sentence?” Teagan jogged in a circle around Casey, slapping her in the thigh on her way around.
Casey thought about unleashing her amateur kick-boxing skills in that moment. “Yes. There is.” She sucked in another breath. “You have currently slipped down on the best friend scale. Shawn is in first place. By a large margin at the moment.”
Teagan began another slow circle, prompting Casey to start jogging just to avoid feeling corralled. “Oh Casey, you can’t fool either of us. Though you claim to have a point system, we know the truth. You’re really just a softy.”
Casey smirked. She couldn’t argue there. Something in her was changing. Her walls were weakening. She almost felt . . . as if she didn’t need them anymore. She wasn’t sure if it was renewing her relationship with God, things at Ellie’s Place, Emery living with her, or . . . Micah. Maybe a little of all. But something truly was changing. Brick was crumbling inside, more every day. The realization both terrified and thrilled her. Walls had felt safer.
“You can feel it, can’t you?” Teasing fled Teagan’s voice.
Casey focused on her breathing. The knowledge that her best friend noticed the change too was unsettling. “Yeah, I can,” she whispered. They jogged in rhythm, their breath puffing in the chilled air.
“It’s a good look on you, Case. It’s the look you used to have. Softer, more passionate and less angry with a cause. I’ve missed it.”
Casey dared a quick look at her friend running next to her, in step the way she had been since childhood. “I think I’ve missed it, too.” The acknowledgement caused a shudder through her walls. Maybe safety was overrated.
The sun splashed pastel pinks and oranges across the sky as they rounded the last bend. The colors bounced off the lake, drawing Casey’s eye to the reflection. A slightly distorted mirror, but something of beauty all the same.
“Casey, look out!”
She jerked her gaze forward right as she face-planted into a broad chest, sending them both back a few steps.
“I’m so sorry.” She untangled herself from the grip on her arms but the deep chuckle made her freeze.
She slowly looked up, feeling stuck in slow-motion. Her gaze collided on an all too familiar set of deep, earthy, brown eyes and lips set in a smirk. The lips that made her want to kiss or punch depending on the moment. Stupid, traitorous emotions.
Casey snapped into motion. She shoved away from Micah.
“What are you doing here?”
Shawn’s snicker sent her focus whirling his direction, noticing her other best friend for the first time.
“What are you doing here?” She whirled on Teagan. “What are they doing here?”
Teagan only grinned, forcing Casey back to the guy still standing before her.
“And why does this,” she gestured to Micah’s chest, “keep getting in my way? Everywhere I go, it’s right there.”
This time, Teagan and Shawn both choked on laughter. Micah’s eyes danced in the setting sunlight. “Maybe you’re just attracted to me.”
“You wish.”
It only took a step and his lips were near her ear. “I know,” he whispered.
She retreated. Space. She needed space. “Good grief, you are full of yourself.”
He quirked his brows at her, all too handsome and cute for his own good. And hers. “And yet, you still keep coming back for more. Why is that, my Mona Lisa?”
Casey snorted. “Where in the world did that one come from?”
“Well, you have these small smiles sometimes, but you’re right—I’m not feeling it.” He tapped his chin and let his eyes wander up and down.
“Sport?”
“Apparently that’s Teagan’s new thing. Not mine.”
“Juliet?”
“Too tragic, and you definitely aren’t Romeo.”
His grin curled her toes. “I never said I was, darlin’. But clearly it crossed your mind.”
She rolled her eyes, propping her hands on her hips. “Let’s get this out now while you have an audience to entertain. Continue.”
Micah widened his stance and continued to tap his chin. “Doll?”
“Too cute.”
“Temptress.”
“Are you into extremes?”
“Kitten.”
“That one will get you hurt if you try it again.” She fought her growing urge to match his grin. Those moths in her stomach fluttered weakly. Or it was just the run. Definitely the run.
“Pumpkin.”
“It’s almost winter.”
“So I can put that one on hold for next year?”
“Are we finished yet?”
“Not even close.”
“Angel eyes.”
“I am pretty angelic.”
“Do I need to start recording you?”
“Then you wouldn’t be a gentleman.”
“Cookie.”
“Only if you feed me chocolate chips.”
“My suggestions all seem to be conditional.”
Casey shook her head. “Sadly, I still think you are missing the mark, Sailor. Better luck next time.”
“I’m a SEAL not a sailor.”
“You say potato, I say po-ta-toe, Hotshot.”
“So you admit you think I’m hot?”
Teagan burst into laughter. “Well that was fascinating. And on that note, it sounds like you two have some things to hash out still, so Shawn and I are going to exit stage right.”
Casey rounded on her best friend. “I’m sorry, what?”
“Oh I’m pretty sure you heard me there, Kitten. Shawn and I are leaving you here with Micah and he is going to drive you home.”
“Huh. It’s almost like y’all planned this or something.”
Shawn shrugged. “Or something. Later, Pumpkin.” He snagged Teagan’s arm and they jogged off before Casey truly began to fume.
“Well looks like you’re stuck with me.” Micah grinned.
She slowly pivoted to face Micah, chewing on her lip. “I’m guessing this is your idea?”
“Guilty.”
“Well you could have at least asked me instead of giving Teagan the chance to try and kill me by running.”
“And miss out on this opportunity to see you thrown off your game? Not a chance.” He nodded to the lake behind him and sun making a slow descent in the sky. Purples and deep blues had joined the mix of red and coral. “Care to join me for the end of the show?”
“Best idea you’ve had all night.”
He shrugged. “They happen occasionally.”
He led them off the path and into the grass, right up to the bank’s edge. They settled on the ground facing the water and the light show. A foot separated them, but Casey could feel Micah’s presence as though he physically touched her. He had that kind of presence—full, commanding, comforting, vibrant. It made her want to lean in for a little more of what he exuded—life. Even in the midst of whatever brokenness he had experienced. He made her laugh. If she would actually give in.
“The colors are beautiful.”
Micah nodded, bringing his arms to rest on his knees. “My sister prefers sunrises. She is an early bird if I ever met one.” Casey grinned as his accent lengthened at the mention of his family. And in that moment, she realized she didn’t know much about him. He had entered her world, but she hadn’t really cared or dared to enter his.
“Are the two of you close?”
She could feel the warmth emanating from his smile without even looking. “She’s my best friend. She’s a couple years younger than me and as sweet as she can be. She’s passionate and caring and tough, even when she thinks she isn’t. She married my other best friend, Hawk. So it worked out well, having both my best friends in my family.”
“Your sister married a guy named ‘Hawk,’ and that didn’t set off any red flags for you?”
His laughter sent the moths fluttering again. Although she was starting to wonder if the moths might be something different, something better. Micah didn’t create holes in her. He filled them.
“His name is Nick Carmichael. He served with me, next to me, in front of me, behind me. No matter where or what, he had my back. Literally. He is a talented sniper, often in overwatch in the field. He was our eyes. He had the ability to see the smallest detail, assess, and respond before the rest of us could blink. So he earned his nickname. Kaylan couldn’t have ended up with a better guy, although it took Nick a while to convince her of that. Years actually.”
“Is she your only sister?”
“Only one.” He shifted on the grass, reaching for a rock. “I have two brothers, as well. One older and one younger.” He tossed the rock, skipping it three times before it dipped below the dimming surface of the lake.
“Are you close to them?”
“Yep. We are a pretty tight-knit group, although Kaylan and I are probably the closest since we have lived in the same city for the past few years. David is the oldest and is an accountant in Tuscaloosa. Seth plays football at the University of Alabama and will probably sign a professional contract in the next few months, so life will certainly change for him and our family soon.”
“And your parents?”
Again she heard the smile in his voice. “I was definitely blessed in the role model department. My parents and one set of grandparents all live in Tuscaloosa. They’re incredible. I wouldn’t have stayed on a straight track without their guidance. They always encouraged us to discover how God had wired us. They never wanted us to be different than who we were, but they never let us settle for mediocre, either. I know that isn’t everyone’s story. I know that we don’t get to choose our parents. But I thank God every day he chose to put me in the family he did. I used to take it for granted. I don’t anymore.”
Hearing him talk about his family, well, it reminded Casey of when she talked about her kids—with a mix of passion, longing, familiarity, even fight. He would do anything for his sister and brother-in-law. She liked that about him. Whatever he was doing in the moment, he gave one hundred percent of himself. She’d seen it in his coaching, in his time with her, and in the way he talked about his team and his family.
“How are you doing with the whole God thing these days? You don’t shut down on me anymore when I mention faith,” he said after several minutes of silence. The sun had slipped past the horizon and stars were beginning to appear in the growing twilight. The November air seeped through her jacket. She would need to find some heat soon. She shifted closer to Micah.
“God and I have been dealing with some things lately. Let’s just say I’m not mad at him anymore, and I’m growing in relationship again.” The admission felt foreign on her tongue. Life had taught her that vulnerability came at a high cost. Somehow, that lesson was no match for Micah. Something deep within her whispered one word: safe.
Micah picked up another rock and let it skip. Four skips this time.
“Why were you mad?”
Casey turned to look at Micah for the first time since they sat, the space between them seeming to shrink even more. “You’re right. We can’t all have families like yours. For better or worse, the Lord chose not to put me in a family that cares for me. I’ve had to fend for myself, protect myself and now Emery, and it makes me wonder how a good God could allow that kind of life for two kids.”
Micah shifted on the grass, his knee brushing against hers as he turned to face her. “Did you get an answer?”
She thought back to her first church service, to the song about God being a good Father and the way she had acknowledged God’s perfection.
“I don’t know that I will ever fully understand God’s decisions or have an answer that makes my past make sense or my pain feel better. From what I can tell, the world is a mess, and from what I read in the Bible, that was never God’s plan or desire for His creation. Maybe some of it is just that—mess. Man’s choice despite God’s plans. Man’s sin attempting to mar God’s perfection. And God’s pursuit of fallen man with free will. He can’t make us choose Him, make us love Him. But He says He still loves us.” She shook her head, the thoughts just coming and taking root in her mind and heart as she voiced them. “Maybe the rest is the Lord trying to show me He is the dad I never had. I don’t know, Micah.”
He cocked his head at her. “You don’t normally talk like this, Case. What’s different?”
She cast a look at the Big Dipper, at the North Star, glowing faintly and nearly indistinguishable in the haze of city lights. “I guess there’s just something about a starry, Texas sky that makes me wonder if anything is possible, that everything can be okay. Even if city lights sometimes hide their vibrancy.” She smiled.
Micah settled back into the grass on his back. He patted the spot next to him. Casey lay next to him, her head nearly touching his and her body angled to the side.
“Did you ever wish on the stars?” he asked.
“Like that old Disney song from Pinocchio?”
He chuckled. “Yeah, like that.”
“Teagan, Shawn, and I would wish sometimes. We’d lay on Shawn’s trampoline in his backyard and look for shooting stars. We smelled like feet when we went inside.” Casey wrinkled her nose and chuckled at the memory. “But those moments were worth it.”
“There’s something about the night sky that turns us all into dreamers.” Micah held his thumb up to measure the moon. “What would you wish for right now if you could wish for anything?”
That he would stay.
The unasked-for thought pierced through her defenses, making her breath catch and her heart race. She didn’t even know what life would look like, could look like, if he stayed. But wasn’t that the purpose of dreaming? Casting a prayer for the impossible to the God who said nothing is impossible with Him?
She had another seemingly impossible wish. “I would wish for full custody of Emery so that we can build a different home than the one I grew up in.”
Warm fingers slipped through hers, sending tingles dancing up her arms in the cooling fall night. She felt like a hot, sweaty mess, and yet one touch from Micah made her feel beautiful. Was that the same kind of weakness that got her in trouble in high school? Somehow, she doubted it. She felt safe, treasured—not chased.
“What would you wish for?” She turned to look at him.
His gaze held hers, sadness in his smile, his eyes hidden in shadows. “I would wish for a do-over. That this last visit I keep putting off, that it wasn’t necessary.”
In that moment, his hand locked in hers, Casey knew Micah Richards was struggling to crawl out of his past and into his future. And this moment, the two of them as a lifeline, felt like a taste of what could come.
Dreams had been cast under a Texas night sky. They stood to leave just as a shooting star flew to the earth behind Micah. And Casey prayed for Micah to find peace, to be all in, to find a new place to belong—but most of all, she wished he would stay and that she would have the courage to let him in.