Contingency (Covenant of Trust) Read Online Free PDF Page A

you.” He leaned back and pushed a hand into the front pocket of his Dockers, and her heart flipped. When she saw the ring box, she thought she might faint. He smiled and pulled a diamond solitaire out of the box, and held it up. “Bobbi ...” He had tears in his eyes, and she couldn’t stop her own eyes from brimming. “Bobbi, would you marry me?”
    “ Yes ... Yes! YES!” She threw her arms around his neck and kissed him. “Yes!” She held her hand up so he could slip the ring on. It fit perfectly. Of course. Mrs. Chuck Molinsky. She was going to be Mrs. Chuck Molinsky.
    *******
    “ Then we went out to the lake.” Bobbi watched her sister’s eyes, but Rita’s expression never changed. “And it was absolutely perfect. The stars were out and there was a breeze ... So anyway, he says, ‘I’m hopelessly eternally in love with you and I don’t want you to ever question that.’ And he pulls out this ring box. I thought I’d die right there.”
    “ What did Daddy say?” Rita tipped her hand. She didn’t approve, and now she was looking for ammunition to make her case.
    “ He said he’s a good boy, and if I was happy, that’s what mattered.”
    “ And he was sober when he said that?”
    “ I caught him before work this morning.”
    Rita chewed her bottom lip. “This ... this is really fast. You’ve only known him a couple of months, and you’re just barely eighteen.”
    That one she could answer. “First of all, we’re not getting married until we get through school. And second, you were seventeen when you got married! Not just engaged, married.” No sense dragging this out. May as well jump right in. “Why don’t you like him?”
    “ He’s a spoiled brat. I’ve seen the labels on his pants. We could buy two weeks’ worth of groceries for each pair.”
    “ His parents quit giving him money once he started this summer job. He pays all his own living expenses.”
    “ Doesn’t matter. He still has that mindset.”
    “ Being poor doesn’t make you a better person. There are as many poor jerks as rich ones.”
    “ Bobbi, here’s the thing. I know him. He’s a playboy. He’ll say anything to get what he wants from a girl, then ...”
    “ Was.”
    “ Was what?”
    “ Was a playboy. He’s a believer, now. He hasn’t even had a date since he became a Christian. Well, until me.”
    “ He told you this?”
    “ Yeah, he’s been very open about things.”
    “ Did he also mention he asked Lisa Mellon to marry him, then dumped her after she slept with him?”
    “ That’s not what happened. He never ...”
    “ Bobbi, that’s his story. Andrea and I are best friends. I think she’d know what happened with her little sister.”
    “ It doesn’t matter, now. He’s different.”
    *******
    Before he started his car, Phil called Chuck. “Do you think he’ll talk to you?” Donna asked.
    “I’ll find out.” Chuck answered on the second ring, and Phil smiled at his wife. “Chuck, this is Phil Shannon. Can I come and see you?”
    “That’d be great. Thanks. Lobby of the Embassy. I left a message on your machine. I hoped—”
    “I’ll be there in twenty minutes.”
    Phil dropped Donna off at home before heading to the Embassy Hotel. “I’ll be praying,” she promised as she slid out of the car.
    “I’ll need it.” Phil pulled in a parking spot right on schedule. He turned the car off and prayed as he walked across the lot. Father, I need You again. Help me give Chuck wise counsel. Please let him have a listening heart. Give him the courage and resolve to do what he needs to do now. In Jesus’ name.
    The Embassy strived to emulate the luxury hotels downtown. Glistening marble floors, rich wood, and shiny brass fixtures trimmed out the expansive lobby. The big screen television broadcast CNN to the sofas, chairs, and plants. On a Thursday night, everyone had a better place to be. Everyone but Chuck Molinsky. Phil spotted him, in his Brooks Brothers suit and tie, trying his best