Beauty Within
by Rachel Skatvold
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| RachelSkatvold.com |
Katherine
made one final pass with her paint roller and then stepped back to admire the
violet accent wall. Perfect, just some more edging and the job was done.
Excitement
radiated through her as she scanned the room, thinking of her morning devotion.
Do not despise these small beginnings…
The verse from Zechariah 4:10 perfectly suited her situation. This was a small
step to her new beginning.
Just a
few weeks ago, the space had been a small apartment attached to her home, but
now her salon was taking shape.
After
searching at garage sales and shopping online, she had all the furniture and
supplies she needed. Her uncle had even found three vintage salon chairs at an
auction. They were teal — a color she wasn’t crazy about but they could always
be re-covered when she had the money.
Her
sister stepped up beside her. “You missed a spot.”
Katherine
turned and frowned at her. “Did not.” She turned her attention back to the
wall. “Where? Show me.”
Her
younger sister pointed past her face to a spot on the wall and then smeared her
cheek with paint from her brush. “Right there.” She giggled.
Katherine’s
eyes widened. “Sarah!” She glanced down at her roller and then back up at her
sister with a gleam in her eye.
Sarah
seemed to read her thoughts and hopped backwards with a squeal, making her
auburn pony tail bounce. “Don’t you dare, Kate.”
Katherine
grinned and lunged with her roller as Sarah dodged again. “What? You can get
me, but I can’t get you?” She faked left and then slathered Sarah’s arm with
paint as she jumped right.
The
war was on.
They
chased each other around the room, laughing and slinging paint, until the sound
of screeching brakes interrupted. The mail truck was just pulling away from her
house.
Sarah
glanced out the window. “I’ll get it!” She escaped out the front door, slamming
it behind her.
Katherine
shook her head and watched her athletic sister sprint down the driveway to the
mailbox. Sarah had always been the free-spirited one in the family and it felt
good to reconnect with her again.
According
to their mom, the past year had been hard on Sarah. She’d gotten into some
trouble in college after joining in with the party crowd and failing most of
her classes.
Katherine
felt reluctant when her mom first suggested Sarah moving into her house for a
while but so far it seemed like her little sister had turned a new leaf.
Katherine appreciated the extra help and Sarah brought some life into the
house. She seemed to enjoy training to be a hair stylist and Katherine hoped
things continued to run smoothly.
She
watched Sarah fan through the mail as a police car slowed in front of the
house. She lived right off the square so Shawn dropped in often, just to say hi
while on duty. But today it was Officer Hudson.
Katherine
groaned. It had been two weeks since the grocery store incident, but she still
felt awkward when she saw him around town.
He
waved at Sarah and then stopped to talk. Katherine rolled her eyes, watching
Sarah flip her long red hair and bat her eye lashes. She didn’t even seem to be
embarrassed to be covered in paint.
Come on, Sarah. Don’t flirt. Not with him.
After
a few minutes, he left and her sister came back inside, beaming. Katherine’s
stomach turned. She’d seen that look in her sister’s eyes before.
“Ryan’s
really nice, don’t you think? A little uptight, but I think he’s starting to
fit in here.”
Katherine’s
eyes narrowed. “Ryan? Since when are the two of you on a first name basis?”
Sarah
blinked hard and put her hands on her hips. “Wow. Is that jealousy I hear or
pure hatred? You do realize the
parking ticket wasn’t personal, right? He was just doing his job.”
Katherine
gritted her teeth and started washing some paint brushes in the sink. “No. I’m
not jealous and I certainly don’t hate him. I know I deserved that ticket. I
just don’t trust him is all. He seems pretty full of himself.”
Sarah
leaned against the counter and rolled her eyes. “Come on, Kate. He saved
Lillian. I think we can trust him.”
She
scrubbed one of the paint brushes harder, even though it seemed clean enough
already. “I know. I’m very grateful that he was there for Lillian. I just don’t
know him very well yet and he’s too old for you
anyway.”
Sarah
glared at her, revealing her red headed temper. “You’re starting to sound like
mom.”
Katherine
blinked hard. “Am not.”
Sarah
huffed at her. “Well you’re treating me like a kid. I’m almost twenty, Kate.
Don’t forget, you were only eighteen when you ran off and married James.”
Katherine
stopped scrubbing and stared down at the sink. Thinking of James stung a little
but she recovered quickly. Her sister had a valid point. She did need to stop treating her like a
kid.
She
turned the water off and looked up. “Sorry, Sis. I know you’re an adult and
capable of making your own decisions. Still, just be cautious, okay? I don’t
want you to get hurt.”
Her
sister sighed and tossed the mail onto the counter. “I know. Sorry. I didn’t
mean to snap. Anyway … you don’t have to worry about me. He asked about you.”
The
blood rushed to Katherine’s cheeks. “What?”
Sarah
grinned. “I said, He asked about you
… and the kids of course. He hadn’t talked to you since the grocery store and
was wondering if you were alright.”
“Oh,
well that was nice of him.” She avoided Sarah’s eyes and finished cleaning up
the paint supplies in silence. A twinge of guilt rippled through her. Maybe she
was harboring a small grudge against Ryan.
She
dried her hands on a towel and then sifted through the mail, desperate for a change
of subject. One envelope from the license office caught her eye. She tore it
open, heart pounding.
“What
is it, Kate?”
Katherine
scanned the much anticipated document and her feet tapped out a happy little
jig on the tile floor. “My license. We’re officially in business, Sis!”
Rachel Skatvold is an inspirational
author and stay-at-home mom from the Midwest. She enjoys writing inspirational
romance, devotions, encouraging blogs. Other than writing, some of her hobbies
include singing, reading and camping in the great outdoors with her husband and
two young sons. You can connect with Rachel at: www.rachelskatvold.com
