Bratwurst and Bridges by Susan M. Baganz

Author:Susan M. Baganz [Baganz, Susan M.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Christian Fiction
Publisher: Pelican Book Group
Published: 2017-07-17T00:00:00+00:00

THIRTEEN

There is nothing on this earth more to be prized than true friendship.

Thomas Aquinas

Dan spent the night in the bathroom. Great. Catch the flu bug just as I’m about to go back to work. Every time he threw up, his ribs hurt all over. By morning he was blurry-eyed and exhausted, but at least his insides had quieted down. He showered, dressed, and headed out into the frigid cold Wisconsin Monday.

He arrived at church before other staff and started the coffee pot…even though the thought of a cup didn’t appeal to him at the moment. At least the aroma of the coffee beans didn’t make him sick. He poured a cup for himself anyway, more to hold and warm up his hands rather than drink. It would make for a nice prop.

He flipped open his work laptop and logged in. His email was overloaded with thousands of messages. He started with the oldest first and began to work his way through, making a note of who he needed to contact and about what. He returned a few brief ones, apologizing to those who didn’t realize he’d been out on leave. Many were notes of encouragement. There had been several from Amy. The early ones started out flirtatious and later ones, apologetic. Her last one indicated she wanted help to connect with Skye—to apologize to her face to face with Mary Beth as a safety for them both.

He wondered how Skye would react to that. She hadn’t filled out a contact card yet, so he didn’t feel right giving out that information without her permission. He picked up the phone to give her a call.

“Hello?”

“Hey, it’s Dan.”

“Oh, thank you for everything, the car, the roast, taking such great care of my kids. They couldn’t say enough good things about you.”

“It was an enlightening experience. And my pleasure. Listen, I need to ask you a question.”

“Shoot.”

“Remember that woman who confronted you?”

“Yeah, I get it, you are an attractive single man, you probably need to carry a baseball bat with you to get to your office.”

“Nothing of the sort. But thanks for the compliment. Amy wants to meet with you to apologize. She would do it here at the church with our Women’s Ministry Director, Mary Beth. Could I give her your phone number to set it up?”

“Mary Beth or Amy?”

“Well, Amy asked, but if you’re more comfortable with me giving it to Mary Beth instead, I’m fine with that.”

“I’d feel safer with Mary Beth. I’m willing to meet. Should be interesting.”

“This would probably need to be in an evening due to Amy’s work schedule.”

“I’d need to find a sitter.”

“Let me know and I’ll watch the kids for you.”

“Why? Why should you give up your free time so Amy can unburden herself? That seems wrong.”

“Maybe because I’m your neighbor, skiing partner, and erstwhile Zumba student, and I love your kids and want to help?”

“I must be crazy to always question you on your motives. I’m sorry about that, it’s just—”

“It’s OK, Skye. I have a hard time asking for help too, and it takes time to learn to trust people.

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