Harsh memories flashed through Juliane Keller's mind as she
stopped in the middle of the church aisle. The subject of
those memories,Lukas Frey,stood with members of the choir on
the stage at the front of the sanctuary. Why was he here?
Brushing snowflakes from her coat, she could think of only
one good reason,his wonderful singing voice. But the Lukas
she'd known eleven years ago would never have used his voice
to sing in a church choir. Light-headed, she grabbed the
back of a pew and watched him converse with her cousins
Carrie and Val. Tonight was the first official practice of
the musical they were performing for Winter Festival at the
end of January. Strangers weren't supposed to be there.
What was she to make of his sudden appearance in her little
hometown of Kellerville, Ohio?
With everyone absorbed in conversation, no one had noticed
her entrance. Could she escape before Lukas became aware of
her presence? She wanted to avoid Lukas, who dredged up
things better forgotten, until she had a chance to find out
what he was doing in town.
She crept backward down the aisle. She hoped her slow, quiet
steps would guard her from detection. As she eased away from
the stage, she bumped into someone. Letting out a yelp, she
turned and came face-to-face with Tom Porter, the music
minister, a rotund man with graying brown hair.
Tom grabbed her shoulders. "Juliane, are you all right?
Didn't mean to startle you."
"I'm fine."
"That's good. We've been waiting for you. I'm glad you
finally made it."
Trying to smile, Juliane knew everyone, including Lukas, was
looking at her. "I got stuck at the store doing some
last-minute stuff for my dad. Sorry I'm late."
"That's okay. Now that you're here, we can get started." Tom
gestured toward the front and hurried up the aisle.
Heat creeping into her cheeks, Juliane followed Tom, keeping
her eyes on the blue tweed carpeting that matched the
padding on the pews. She didn't dare look at Lukas, who
appeared, at least from a distance, not to have changed much
in the eleven years since she'd last seen him. He was still
tall and lean with coal-black hair. Was his personality the
same? There was no way to tell. At least he seemed to be
sober,for now. She shuddered as she recalled her last brush
with a drunken Lukas Frey. Was he remembering the same
thing? She hoped not.
But why was she worried? He probably didn't even remember
her or their last encounter. As a college freshman, she'd
barely been a blip on his graduate student radar.
When Tom reached the three steps leading to the stage, he
stopped and turned to Juliane. "I want you to meet the
newest member of the choir."
Juliane kept her gaze focused on Tom as her stomach churned.
Lukas? A new member of their choir? How could that
be? He didn't even live here. Besides, she had a hard time
believing he was involved with a church, much less the
choir. He hadn't exactly been the churchgoing type.
How should she handle this situation? Should she pretend not
to know him? God expected her to tell the truth, but she was
sorely tempted to lie. If only she'd been able to get away.
She forced another smile. "Who?"
"Lukas, come meet Juliane." Tom motioned for Lukas to join them.
Glancing their way, Lukas grinned. As he made his way across
the stage, his gaze met hers. She remembered those startling
blue eyes. They made her shiver, but relief washed over her
when no recognition showed on his face. He didn't remember
her. Her concern was for nothing.
Why would he remember her anyway? They'd only met in passing
at a few different theater department productions. When
she'd first encountered him at rehearsals, she'd wondered
why someone in an MBA program would be involved in the
theater group. She soon learned he was dating a graduate
assistant in the theater department.
He'd been hard to miss with his handsome face, those blue
eyes and dark hair. But his constant drinking had disgusted
her, so she'd avoided him until the night her cousin Nathan
had asked her to do a good deed by giving Lukas a ride home.
As she pushed the memories away, he came down the steps and
extended his hand.
"Hi, I'm Lukas Frey."
Offering him her hand, Juliane tried to keep her lips from
quivering as she held her smile in place. "I'm Juliane Keller."
He narrowed his eyes. "Have we met before? Somehow you seem
familiar. My grandfather lives here. Have we run into each
other in town?"
Juliane digested that bit of information while an easy lie
formed in her mind. He would never know the difference if
she led him to believe they'd met here. But no matter the
cost, she couldn't give in to the temptation. "Yes, we've
met before, but not here. We met when we worked on the same
theater department musical. As I recall, you were in grad
school, and I was a freshman."
"How could I not remember you?"
What was that supposed to mean? Did he suddenly recall their
last meeting? Doubtful. Maintaining her smile was getting
painful, but she'd have to be cordial and pretend that
meeting him wasn't setting her nerves on edge. "Are you
visiting your grandfather?"
"Not exactly. I've moved here."
Realizing the stupidity of her question, Juliane shook her
head. Lukas had her mind in a dither. "Since Tom said you're
in the choir, I should've known that. Welcome to
Kellerville. I hope you and your family will enjoy living in
our great little town."
"No family here except my grandfather. He moved here a
couple of years ago when he retired. He wanted to get out of
the city." Lukas smiled wryly. "And if I need a taste of
city life myself, Cincinnati's not far away."
"Do I know your grandfather?"
Lukas shrugged. "I don't know. His name is Ferdinand Engel."
"I don't recall meeting him."
Tom jumped into the conversation. "Lukas will be in charge
of running the new plant in town."
"You mean the medical devices plant?" Lukas certainly must
have changed since his grad school days. Years before, he
hardly seemed like someone who could handle the
responsibilities of a plant manager or responsibilities of
any kind. Was he truly more trustworthy now…or had he
just gotten better at hiding his drinking problems?
"Yes, I'll be supervising the start-up, then the day-to-day
operations."
"Are you living with your grandfather?"
Chuckling, Lukas shook his head. "Grandpa wouldn't have
that, so I did the next best thing. I purchased a house in
the same block where he lives. Grandpa thinks he can take
care of himself, but I took this job specifically to keep an
eye on him. His health's been poor in recent years."
Juliane hoped the surprise didn't show on her face. She'd
never expected him to be the type who would care for a
grandparent. "So you took the job here to be close to him?"
"Sort of. I've worked for this company for several years.
It's a good promotion for me, and it gives me the
opportunity to look after him."
Tom clapped Lukas on the back. "I had no idea you two had
met before. This will give you a chance to renew your
acquaintance."
"Certainly." Juliane stifled a groan. She didn't want to
renew anything with Lukas Frey, but somehow she managed to
smile again. By this time, her smile surely looked
disingenuous. How long could she keep up this pretense?
Lukas turned to Tom. "I didn't mean to take up so much time
talking. I know you want to get started."
"No problem." Tom hopped onto the stage and picked up a
stack of booklets. "Okay, everyone, these contain the music
score and speaking parts. You can follow along while we
listen to the recording of the program and get an idea of
how it goes."
Hurrying up the steps, Juliane took a booklet from Tom,
hoping to distance herself from Lukas. "Are we supposed to
sing with the recording or just listen?"
"We're not concerned about actually singing tonight, but if
you want, you can sing along, especially those of you who
have solos like you and Lukas." Tom turned toward Lukas as
he joined them on the stage, then added, "Those of you with
speaking parts can underline your part in the booklet."
Juliane's mind buzzed as she settled on the front pew in the
choir loft. Lukas had a solo? How had that happened so
quickly? She glanced at Lukas. "What part do you have?"
"I have the male lead. I think the character's name is
Dave." Lukas stared at her. "How about you?"
"I've got the part of Grace, the female lead." Juliane
didn't want to believe it. How had Lukas wound up with the
lead male role? Her cousin Nathan was supposed to have that.
Sometime tonight she needed to have a talk with Tom and find
out why the change had been made.
Smiling, Lukas sat at the other end of the pew. "Great. Then
we'll be singing together."
Yeah. Great. That wasn't the word she'd use to
describe the situation. Thankfully, before she could
respond, Tom turned on the recording.
While they listened to the songs, Juliane couldn't
concentrate on her part, especially when she realized how
much interaction David and Grace had in the musical. That
meant lots of interaction between Lukas and her. Could she
get someone else to take her part? That would solve the problem.
Juliane dismissed that idea instantly. Maybe God was trying
to remind her that His love extended to everyone, even
people who sometimes seemed unlovable. Dealing with Lukas
was definitely a test of her resolve to be Christ-like.
Besides, she'd been looking forward to this year's program
for the Winter Festival and the opportunity to tell the
story of God's love not just to churchgoers but also to the
community at large. She wanted to use her voice for God's
glory. Now she had to put God's love into practice by being
nice to Lukas even though she didn't relish the idea.
When she glanced up from the music score, Lukas was looking
at her. He didn't seem embarrassed to be caught staring. His
audacity hadn't changed in eleven years. Had anything else?
She'd been at a cast party on that night eleven years ago
when she'd looked out the window to see Lukas headed for his
car, keys in hand. She couldn't let him drive home after all
he'd had to drink at the party. He'd kill himself or someone
else. How could she stop him?
As she'd turned to find help, her cousin Nathan approached.
She hurried over to him and explained the situation.
"You're right. We can't let him drive." Without waiting for
her, Nathan raced out the door.
Juliane followed him into the night. She caught up to him
just as he reached Lukas, who was still fumbling to unlock
his car.
Nathan put a hand on Lukas's shoulder. "Having a problem?"
"Yeah, man." Lukas looked up, a silly grin on his face.
Nathan reached for the keys. "Let me see what I can do."
Juliane sighed with relief when Lukas handed over his keys
without resistance. Nathan unlocked the car.
"Hey, man. Thanks." Lukas leaned against the car still
grinning like a fool. "Now I can go home."
"I can't let you drive," Nathan said.
Juliane held her breath while she watched the exchange.
Would Nathan be able to convince Lukas that he shouldn't
drive himself home? Thankfully, Lukas was a happy drunk, not
a surly one.
"Then how do you expect me to get home?" Lukas slurred
through his question.
"Juliane will drive you." Nathan turned her way.
Her heart sank into her stomach. "Me?"
"Yes." Nathan pulled her aside for a moment. "You can drive
him to his apartment. Unlock his door, then keep his keys,
so he won't decide to drive himself out for a White Castle.
I'd do it myself, but I have to help load all the tables and
stuff we borrowed, so the guys can return them."
"I don't know where he lives."
"In that complex a couple of blocks from campus. You know
the one I mean?"
Juliane nodded.
"Good. I'll be there in a few minutes to pick you up. Think
of this as your good deed for the day."
Letting out her breath, Juliane glanced at Lukas, who
stumbled toward them. He was still grinning, his eyes glazed
over as he stopped beside her. Taking him home wasn't what
she wanted to do, but she couldn't let him drive. "Looks
like I'm elected to take you home."
"The pretty lady wants to drive me home?"
Not really. "Sure, get in."
Without an argument, Lukas slumped into the passenger seat.
Thankfully, she was able to make the trip without having to
stop for a traffic light. Turning into the parking lot, she
glanced at Lukas, who was still slumped in his seat. "Which
building is yours?"
"This first one." Looking at her, he gave her that silly
grin again. "You know… you're pretty. Why haven't I
seen you before?"
She ignored the question as she got out. "We need to get you
inside. Can you walk?"
"Of course, I can walk." He opened the door and exited the
car. He lurched forward but managed not to fall down. "See?"
Once inside the building, Juliane followed Lukas up the
stairs to his apartment. She unlocked the door and let it
swing open. She turned and looked at him. "You're home. I'm
keeping your keys, and Nathan will see that you get them
back tomorrow."
He stumbled into the apartment and pulled her with him.
"Okay, pretty lady, what do you have for me?"
"Nothing." Her heart hammered as she tried to pull her arm
from his grasp.
He gave her that sappy smile, only this time it seemed more
like a leer. "You didn't drive me home for nothing."
"I've got to go. Nathan is waiting for me."
"He can just keep waiting." Lukas kicked the door closed,
pulled her into his arms and kissed her.
Juliane tried not to panic as she twisted her head away and
kneed him in the groin. He let go of her and slumped over.
Seeing her chance to escape, she opened the door and fled
down the stairs.
Through the open door, he yelled, "Hey, whad ya do that for?
I was only trying to get a kiss."
Maybe that was all he had been trying to do, but she wasn't
sticking around to find out. He had scared her. Feeling sick
to her stomach, she raced across the parking lot. When
Nathan finally picked her up, he asked why she was waiting
out in the cold. She told him she hadn't felt like spending
time with a drunk. She never told him anything else. She
never told anyone about it.
Lukas had done nothing more than kiss her, but she couldn't
forget the way he'd scared her with that stolen kiss. Hoping
never to see him again, she hadn't gone back to the theater
group.
Even with all the time that had passed, the memory still
made her shiver. Was Lukas still that kind of man? Maybe
not. The Lukas she'd known in college wouldn't have darkened
the door of a church. Did his presence here mean he'd
changed his lifestyle? She should be glad if that was the
case, but his sudden appearance had unnerved her.
Thankfully, a great deal of attention wasn't required tonight.
As soon as the rehearsal was over, Juliane rushed over to
Tom. "Do you have a few minutes to talk in private?"
Tom wrinkled his brow and shrugged. "Sure, if you want to
wait until everyone else has left."
"I'll wait." Juliane left the stage and breathed a sigh of
relief when she saw Lukas hurry off in the opposite
direction. As she started to sit on the nearby pew, she
heard Val call her name and turned. "Did you want me?"
"Yeah. We're all headed to the coffee shop. Are you going to
join us?" Her cousin gestured to the group gathered near the
door.
Juliane was relieved to see that Lukas wasn't among them.
"Sure. I'll be over after I talk to Pastor Tom."
"Okay. We'll see you in a little while." Val hurried down
the aisle.
After Val left, Juliane sat on the front pew and tried to
study her lines and music while she waited for Pastor Tom.
He was having tryouts for small solo parts. She wondered
whether Lukas had tried out. When had he done that? When had
he moved to town? Had he been in church on recent Sundays?
She hadn't seen him. It seemed as though he had appeared out
of nowhere.
Juliane shook her head in an attempt to focus on her part
instead of letting her thoughts drift back to Lukas. He
wasn't even here, and yet he filled her mind. Maybe the
initial shock of seeing him again would wear off and she
wouldn't think about him anymore. Wishful thinking.
"Are you ready to talk?"