Page 45 of Still My Forever
A soft smile curved his lips. “Thank you, Ava. You’re a good friend.”
A good friend.Kind words, spoken in a tender voice. So why did they hurt?
“There is something.” He began moving slowly toward the podium, and she trailed along beside him. “I usually walk Timmy home, but tonight I need to talk to Earl. Would you mind walking Timmy home in my stead so he doesn’t feel forgotten? When I’m done talking to Earl, I’d like to come by your house and talk to your father. That is, if he doesn’t think it’s too late.”
“I’ll tell him you need to talk to him. I’m sure he won’t mind waiting for you.”
“We should probably meet at Roald’s house. I’ll come tap on your door when I’m done dropping off Earl.”
“That sounds fine, Gil.”
He clapped his hands, and the boys all turned to him.“Break is over. We’ve lost quite a lot of playing time tonight, so I expect you to work twice as hard as usual these remaining minutes to make up for it. Back to our seats now.”
The boys thundered past Ava. Gil touched her sleeve and spoke above the noise of their feet and the screeching chair legs. “Thank you, Ava. And if you’d like to be part of the meeting with your father, you’re more than welcome to join us.”
Chapter Twenty-Two
Gil
Onkel Bernard answered Gil’s knock,and Gil said, “Thank you for talking to me tonight.”
The man chuckled and flung his arm across Gil’s shoulders. He herded him off the porch and across the yard toward Roald’s house as he spoke. “It’s no trouble, Gil. Ava told me you seemed unsettled. She also shared what you discussed with parents at the practice. Two songs to perform at the End of Harvest celebration, hmm? And the boys might have uniforms? This band is gaining importance.”
Gil cringed, recalling Joseph’s words about him using the boys to further his own career. Was his cousin correct? But then, would God have responded to him so quickly if the competition was only for him?
Suddenly Gil realized Ava wasn’t with them. He glanced over his shoulder. “I thought Ava might come since I talked to her about sewing some of the uniforms.”
Bernard sighed. “Maria began running a slight fever today. Ava thought it best to stay with her mama.”
Worry stabbed through Gil. “Will Taunte Maria be all right? The fever won’t—”
Bernard patted Gil’s shoulder. “Maria gets summer colds. It’s not unusual for her. But it does wear her out more than itmight someone else, so Ava is smart to stay with her. To make sure Maria rests. She doesn’t like being coddled and will try to do too much if we aren’t watchful.” Bernard stepped up on Roald’s porch. “If there’s something we talk about that Ava needs to know, I will tell her later.”
There was much Ava needed to know. But Gil wouldn’t deliver his heartfelt messages through someone else, not even someone he trusted as much as Onkel Bernard. Some things a man needed to say directly to the woman he loved. If he ever got the chance. And the nerve.
Gil opened the door and gestured Bernard inside. Gil looked toward the settee, where he expected to find Roald, but the man wasn’t there. Concerned, Gil hurried toward the hallway, talking over his shoulder. “Go ahead and sit down, Onkel Bernard. I want to check on Roald, and I’ll be right back.”
Roald’s bedroom door was closed. Gil put his ear up to it, and he picked up the distinct sounds of snoring. At breakfast that morning, Roald had complained about the kittens’ mewling keeping him awake last night. He must have decided to turn in early. Gil wouldn’t disturb him. He tiptoed back to the sitting room and sat facing the settee, where Bernard waited.
“Roald is sleeping. So I guess I’ll talk to him tomorrow about ways Timmy could work off the cost of material for a band uniform.” Leaning forward, Gil propped his elbows on his knees and linked his hands. “Onkel Bernard, Ava told you the band would do two songs at the competition. What I didn’t tell her is that one of them must be performed in the parade, while marching.”
Bernard nodded. “That does not surprise me. The celebration has always had a parade. It makes sense they would have the bands participate.”
“I have one member in my band who might have trouble marching.”
Bernard arched one eyebrow. “Are you speaking of your cousin Earl?”
“I am.” Gil’s conversation with Earl hadn’t gone well. Earl seemed resigned to dropping out because he would, as he’d put it, make the entire band look bad. Gil sighed. “I have no choice about being in the parade. If we participate, we have to do both performances. I could ask the county clerk if every member of the band has to be part of both songs.”
“I suppose that would be a good compromise, if they allow it.” Bernard’s tone indicated his true opinion. He didn’t like the idea.
Neither did Gil. “In the song the boys are learning, the trumpets play the melody. There are only three trumpet players in the whole band. I need all three of them to make the song as strong as it can be.”
Bernard sat a little straighter. “Did you tell Earl this? That he is needed?”
“I did.”
“And he is still reluctant?”