Contingency (Covenant of Trust) (3 page)

He fished his cell phone out of his pants pocket, but he didn’t have the Shannons’ phone number saved anywhere.
New plan. Get a hotel room, then call Phil from the hotel.

*******

With her tears
exhausted, Bobbi opened her eyes to a darkened house. Chuck hadn’t returned. That meant he wasn’t coming back.
Of course he’s not coming back. I said I hated him. Here, my marriage is dying, and I took it off life support.

Her head throbbed, and turning on the kitchen light made it explode with pain. Bobbi snapped the light back off and called her sister.

“I’m fine.”
Get him off the phone before I lose it.

“Did Dad make it home?”

“Yeah,” Bobbi whispered. She hated lying to him. How was that any different from what Chuck did to her? Because she lied to protect her son. Brad had no way to grasp the upheaval coming in his life, and she was shielding him. That was completely different, wasn’t it? “Honey, could you get Rita?”

“Sure, Mom.”

“Bobbi, what’s wrong?” Rita asked. “Is Chuck okay?”

“Chuck …” Bobbi took a deep breath and tried again to choke out the words. “Chuck … I found … he had an affair, Rita. He cheated on me.”

*******

Rita Heatley drove
to her sister’s house, her foot heavier on the accelerator with each passing mile. A block away, the light changed. “I don’t have time for red lights,” she muttered, jamming the brake pedal to the floor. How many times had she tried to warn Bobbi about him? She knew it was only a matter of time before he did something like this. “The golden boy’s not going to be able to talk his way out of this one.”

She screeched to a stop in front of Bobbi’s house, but before getting out, Rita sat in her car and counted. “One, two, three,” she whispered, with a breath after every number.
Can’t lose my temper. Have to be calm for Bobbi’s sake.
“Thirty-one, thirty-two.” Gavin questioned her self-control, but she could do this. “Sixty-seven, sixty-eight, sixty-nine.” She could keep her own feelings in check at least for tonight. “Ninety-eight, ninety-nine, one hundred.”

Rita let herself in the front door and called Bobbi’s name. She tiptoed from room to room until she found Bobbi in the kitchen, a wastebasket full of used tissues in the floor beside her. “Baby, I am so sorry,” she whispered, as she knelt and wrapped her arms around Bobbi’s shoulders. “So sorry.”

Bobbi twisted away from her sister. “What did I do wrong? I don’t understand.”

“Baby, don’t talk that way.” She took Bobbi’s hands and once again became the surrogate mother. “You didn’t do anything to deserve this, or cause this. If Chuck had an affair, it is one hundred percent his fault. Do you understand me? His fault.”

“Did he go to ... her?”
If he’s with that woman right now ...

“I wanted to talk to Chuck first.” She dropped her head and fidgeted with the corner of a paper napkin. “I didn’t want him to know how much he hurt me. I exploded on him.”

Rita closed her eyes and tried to focus on relaxing her clenched jaw. “I’m not going to argue that with you tonight.” She concentrated on keeping her voice low. “Does Chuck want a divorce?”

Bobbi’s lips started to form words, but she made no sound. She rolled her eyes up toward the ceiling and let a long breath escape. “I think he does.” Her words were so soft and weak that Rita strained to hear them over the hum of the refrigerator.

Bobbi snapped upright in her chair. “This is going to end up my fault. No matter what I do, Chuck will spin it until he’s the victim. At least I can say with a clear conscience that I tried everything I could.”

Good girl.
“You want me to call Phil now?”

Bobbi nodded. “I don’t want Chuck to get to him first.”

*******

When the doorbell
rang, Bobbi spit the mouthful of Listerine into the bathroom sink. Rita convinced her to eat something, but the soup and toast wouldn’t stay down. Now she had to look her pastor in the eye and explain, try to explain, how her marriage imploded in the last twelve hours. If she survived that, then she had to convince Phil that divorce was the most rational alternative.

“Bobbi? They’re here. You okay?”

“I’ll be right out. Go ahead and let them in.” She splashed cold water on her face and took one last deep breath.
God, forgive me.
She slipped out of the bathroom and met everyone in the entry hall. “Thanks for coming,” she said, hugging Donna, and then Phil. “Come in and sit down.”

Bobbi motioned them into the living room and sat on the sofa with Donna and Rita, while Phil sat in the armchair, facing them. He leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees, engaged, but not pressing ... yet.

“Bobbi, Donna and I are just heartbroken for you.” Phil’s years of ministering in the Midwest hadn’t robbed him of his gentle Tennessee accent. He often reminded Bobbi of Andy Griffith, and she expected that ‘now Opie’ tone of voice any minute. “I understand this is very personal, but what can you tell me?”

“We got an e-mail from Chuck’s office from a woman named Tracy. I tried to call Chuck. When he came home, he didn’t bother denying it.” She smoothed the fringe on the throw pillow to avoid Phil’s eyes. “Oh, I listened to his phone messages. He lied to her, too. She never knew Chuck was married.” As a tear made its way down her cheek, Rita reached over and squeezed her hand.

“He never said it, Phil.” She slammed the pillow against the arm of the sofa. “He had hours to prepare his statement before he got home. There was no, ‘Bobbi, I love you’, no ‘please forgive me.’ Nothing. He’s through, and the quicker we can ...” She blinked several times, then dropped her eyes.
Don’t cry.
Not in front of Phil and Donna.
“There’s no sense dragging things out. I’ll give him his divorce.” Bobbi felt Rita’s hand on her back.

“Do you want a divorce? Not what you think Chuck wants. Do
you
want a divorce?”

“That’s a great answer.” Phil smiled at her. “Would you be willing to accept, at least for right now, that your marriage might be restored through the grace and power of God?”

“I appreciate your honesty. Here’s what I’ve heard in your answers, but don’t hesitate to correct me. You love your husband. You hate the idea of divorce, but he’s backed you in a corner. However, if he could prove himself, you’d consider giving him another chance.”

“Then I want you to do a couple of things for me.” He leaned forward and counted on his fingers. “First, don’t
do
anything. Don’t file papers. Don’t sell his stuff. Don’t get a tattoo, okay?”

Bobbi managed a smile and nod.

“This is a real shock to your life, and I don’t want either of you to do anything rash. Second, I’m going to ask you to let this sit for about three weeks.”

“That long? Why?”

“Because you’ve had a death in the family. I hope we’re not looking at the death of your marriage, but a lot of your ideas and beliefs about your marriage have died, along with the trust you had in Chuck.”

“That’s an understatement.”

“Take some time to mourn, process your emotions, before we address what happens next. I also want to spend some time counseling Chuck one-on-one, if he’ll agree to it, before we start working with the two of you. When does school start?”

“The twenty-third. The kids start on the twenty-fifth.”

Phil pulled his calendar from his back pocket, unclipped the pen, and scribbled a quick note. “Rita, is Gavin working full days, now?”

“Yes, but I’m sure he’ll help however you need him.” Phil nodded and made one more note before returning the calendar and pen to his pocket.

“So, what am I supposed to do in the meantime?” Bobbi asked. “Pretend like this never happened?”

“Not at all. It’s going to take you two or three times longer to get ready for school than you expect. Your boys are going to need you ... I’m asking for three weeks to counsel Chuck. If he and I don’t make any progress, we can revisit your decision to divorce him.”

Bobbi sat in silence for several moments. Three weeks. Chuck could lay all the groundwork to ruin her in a divorce court in three weeks. “You’re asking a lot.”

“I know it, and I’m going to add one more. Don’t let what’s happened with Chuck get between you and God. God’s going to take care of this and He’s going to take care of you. I promise you that He wants to walk every step of this road with you. Don’t shut Him out.”

Bobbi averted her eyes again. “Where was God, Phil? Chuck’s supposed to be a believer. I don’t understand how God could let this happen.”

Phil pushed his fists together in front of his chest. “There’s an irresolvable tension that exists between God’s sovereignty and man’s free will. He never forces man to act or prevents him from acting. God is never caught off guard by our choices, and His purposes are always fulfilled in spite of our interference.”

Bobbi nodded and answered with an unsatisfied, “I see.”

“That’s seminary talk for ‘I don’t know.’” He dropped his hands and smiled at her. “I don’t doubt that you’re angry with God right now, too. I’d be naïve to think otherwise. However, the fact is, I can’t help you if you won’t let Him guide the process.”

She knew he was waiting for her to agree, to promise she’d go along with that, but she couldn’t. Not yet. At least Phil let it drop.

“Is there anything else Donna or I can do for you or the boys right now?” he asked. “Get your groceries? Cut your grass? Anything.”

Bobbi shook her head and shifted on the sofa. “I don’t mean to come across angry with you. I appreciate you coming. I just ... How could he hurt me like this?” She clenched her jaw. She refused to let the Shannons see any tears. Chuck wouldn’t get that victory.

Donna slipped an arm around Bobbi’s shoulder. “Honey, I don’t know about Chuck, but I will tell you that you don’t have to worry about our feelings. We love you and we understand.” Bobbi pushed away. She didn’t want pity. She wanted someone to tell her she should be furious, that she should want to kick something or throw something, that not even God Himself expected her to absorb this.

Phil knelt between the coffee table and the sofa and held out his hands. “Can we pray with you?” Bobbi reached her hands out as Rita and Donna moved to join hands as well. Phil let out a long, slow breath before beginning.

“Father, You are good, and You know all things. Help us see Your hand at work, and follow Your leading. We know it’s never Your will for families and marriages to be destroyed, but we also know that they’re some of the enemy’s favorite targets.