“How are you feeling, sweet baby girl?”
Faith smiled at the name her stepfather always called her. “I’m doing okay. My face and head don’t hurt anymore, but my arm is still sore, especially when I try to lift it over my head.” She cradled the phone against her ear and adjusted the blanket across her legs with her left hand.
“Maybe you should come home for a while...until you’re all healed up. I’m worried about you being there all alone with no one to help you.”
She knew he would say that, which was why she hadn’t called since the accident. “Daddy, I’m fine. The worst of it is over and Kathi was here over the weekend. I’ll be home soon.”
He paused. “Your mother is really worried about you, Faith. You two need to work this out.”
“It takes two,” she mumbled. “How is she?”
He chuckled. “Still mad. But then you’re both stubborn. I love you both and I can see how this is tearing you apart. I’m telling you the same thing I told her—you two need to talk.”
Faith released a deep sigh. “I’ll call her later in the week.”
“Thanks, baby. Have you contacted your father yet?”
“No,” she said softly. “With the accident and all, I didn’t want to just drop that on him.”
“I understand. Well, I won’t hold you. I love you very much. Always remember that.”
“I love you too, Daddy.” She disconnected and groaned. Faith and her mother were more alike than she cared to admit. Both had a stubborn streak that probably accounted for most of their disagreements. Growing up, her dad had been the peacemaker and neither she nor her mother could stay angry for long periods of time. He always found a way to make them smile.
Putting her mother out of her mind for now, Faith shifted her thoughts to her birth father. All the bravado she had felt when she first came to LA had faded and nervousness had taken its place. She’d been in town a week and couldn’t afford to stay indefinitely, so she needed to put on her big girl panties and make that drive.
It took her until the end of the week to decide. Saturday midday, she followed the directions back to her father’s house. The black sedan was parked in the same spot. Faith sat in the car for a few minutes to gather her courage. She picked up the small book on the seat, got out and started up the walkway. The lawn looked freshly mowed and an array of colorful flowers lined the front of the house. She rang the bell and nervously wrung her hands while waiting. She heard the lock turn and her heart started to pound.
The door opened and she gasped softly. Aside from the sprinkling of gray in his close-cropped hair and neatly barbered goatee, he looked as if he hadn’t aged a day in almost three decades. He stood close to six feet, was still trim and his dark handsome face was virtually unlined. Her gaze drifted to the crutches under his arm and down to see that his left leg had been amputated at the knee.
A smile creased his face. “Hello. May I help you?”
Faith had no idea how to introduce herself. She fidgeted for a moment, opened and closed her mouth, searching for the right words. “I’m Faith.” His brows knit and confusion lined his face. Then she saw the moment he realized who she was.
“Faith?” he whispered. “My Faith?”
She nodded.
Tears filled his eyes and he grabbed her in a crushing hug. “Thank God. My baby girl,” he said over and over. He held her as if he never wanted to let go and deep, heart-wrenching sobs erupted from his throat.
She felt every inch of his pain and couldn’t stop her own tears. They stood in the doorway and cried out twenty-eight years of separation. At length, they quieted, but he didn’t release her. Finally, he leaned back. “I didn’t ever think I’d find you,” he said emotionally, swiping at the tears on his cheeks. “Forgive me for keeping you standing on the porch. Please, come in.” He maneuvered on his crutches so she could enter.
Faith stepped into an immaculate and elegantly furnished living room. Two landscape paintings hung on the walls, but no family pictures. Her curiosity heightened. Had he ever remarried or had other children?
“We can talk in the family room. Can I get you something to drink? Are you hungry?” he asked as he led her down a short hall and through the kitchen to another room.
“No, thank you.” The family room held a large bookcase, fireplace, a brown, fabric-covered sectional with recliners and another oversize recliner. She instinctively knew he spent much of his time here. A pair of glasses sat atop a book on an end table next to the chair and the sports news was muted on a large-screened TV. He gestured her to sit and she perched on the edge of the sofa, gripping the book in her hands tightly, unsure about what to say or do.
Thad set the crutches aside and lowered himself into the recliner. For a long moment, he just stared at her. He shook his head. “I can’t believe you’re here. I prayed for so long. You were a beautiful baby and you’ve grown into an even more beautiful woman.”
Heat stung her cheeks. “Thank you. I... I don’t know what to call you.”
He smiled softly. “How about Thad for now?”
“Okay.” She agreed, but truthfully, she was a little uncomfortable calling him by his first name. She had been raised to respect her elders and to never call them by their first names, unless she preceded it with mister, miss, aunt or uncle.
“Tell me a little bit about you. What do you do?”
“I own my own website design business.”
“Wow. That’s fantastic. My baby girl is her own boss. How about that?” he said, seemingly more to himself.
Faith smiled. “It’s only been a year since I had enough steady work to quit my day job. I worked as an assistant manager in a software company, so the learning curve wasn’t too tough.”
Thad chuckled. “What made you decide to switch careers?”
She shared with him the same story she told Brandon. “I’ve done sites for two musical artists, a couple of medical offices and my newest one is a construction company.”
“I always knew you would do well. When you were small, whenever we tried to help you do something, you’d snatch away, say, ‘I do, I do’ and take off running.” He chuckled, then sobered. “I missed so much.”
She met his eyes. “We both did.” Silence crept between them. “I brought some pictures of me growing up. I thought it might...” His eyes lit up and he came to sit next to her. She handed him the album and watched as he ran his hand over the cover photo of her taken at age four at a park.
“So beautiful.” He opened it and, for the next while, Faith explained each picture. She had chosen ones she hoped would give him a good representation of her formative years—walking into her first day of kindergarten, standing next to her winning science fair board in fifth grade, holding her second place spelling bee ribbon in eighth grade and running track her junior and senior years. She had also included some candid shots and her high school and college graduation photos.
At the end, he reached for her hand. “Thank you for sharing these.” He handed the book to her.
Faith gave his hand a gentle squeeze. “It’s yours to keep. I know it doesn’t make up for all the time you missed, but I hope it fills in a few of the pieces.” She felt her emotions rising again and blinked back the moisture in her eyes.
Thad nodded and clutched the book to his chest.
Her cell rang and she jumped slightly. “Excuse me.” She fished it out of her purse and saw Brandon’s name on the display. “Hello.”
“Hey, beautiful. What are you up to?”
“I’m visiting my...” She cut a quick look at Thad. “My father. Can I call you back?”
“Of course. I hope everything goes well for you.”
“Thank you.” She ended the call and dropped the phone in her purse. “Sorry about that.”
He laughed. “I’d be worried if it
didn’t ring at least once. So, is there a special guy in your life?”
An image of Brandon flashed in her mind and she quickly dismissed it. “No,” she answered with a chuckle. “I’ve never been married and I don’t have any children.” She debated on whether to ask him the same questions. “What about you?”
Thad shook his head. “No. I never remarried and you’re my one and only. Did Francis ever remarry?”
“Yes, when I was eight, but no other children.” Seeing the sadness reflected in his face, she felt even worse. She’d had her mother and stepfather, but he’d had no one to share his life. Had he been one of those men who could only love once? Or had something else happened? She didn’t know him well enough to pry, so set the questions aside.
He brightened. “My best friend and his wife have five children and they’ve adopted me as an uncle. I broke down and bought this house because when their three boys spent the night, they almost got me evicted from my condo with all the noise.” He smiled. “They were running and sliding on the wood floors, turning flips and hitting the walls. My neighbors were not happy.”
Laughter bubbled up and spilled from Faith’s lips. “How old were they?”
“Nine, seven and four. But I love those boys and their sisters.”
She could hear the affection in his voice. A part of her was envious of the time they had spent with her father. Time that should have been hers. But another part of her was glad he hadn’t spent all those years alone. Faith glanced down at her watch. She had been there for three hours. “Do you still see them?”
“Yes. All the time.”
She wondered if she’d ever get a chance to meet them. “Well, I know you probably have lots of things to do and I don’t want to take up all your time.”
“Faith, I don’t have anything planned that tops seeing you.” Thad seemed to weigh his next words. “How long are you going to be here?”
“A week or two.”
“Oh.” She could hear the disappointment in his voice. “Any chance of you staying longer? I just found you again and I...” He trailed off.
Faith totally understood. “I’ll try. And even if I can’t, I will come back.”
“That’s all I can ask for. Where are you staying?”
She gave him the name of the hotel, her room number and her cell phone number.
“Do you think we can go to dinner sometime next week?”
“I’d like that very much.” She was glad he had suggested they have dinner at a later date because she needed a few days to process everything. Faith stood.
Thad reached for his crutches and followed suit.
They walked to the front door. She turned to face him. “I’m really glad I came.”
“So am I.” He gathered her in his embrace once again and moved back. “I’ll call you so we can set up a time.”
“Okay.” She strolled to her car and got in. She glanced toward the house and saw him waving. She waved back and pulled off.
Her mind went back to his request for her to stay longer. They had so much to catch up on that two weeks wouldn’t even scratch the surface. But she had to pay rent on her town house and the hotel wasn’t cheap. She didn’t want to dip into her savings. However, extending her time would give her more time to learn about his life. And more time with Brandon.
Chapter 7
Brandon leaned against the wall of his parents’ game room and waited for Khalil to take his turn at the pool table.
“So, did you ask Mom about what’s going on?” Khalil walked around the table, lined up his shot and sent the ball sailing into a corner pocket.
“No. You know she’s not going to say anything Dad said not to tell. And I know he’s told her.”
“True. At least they’re consistent. Nothing’s changed in thirty-seven years.”
Brandon laughed. Their parents had been together for almost four decades and made no secret that they were each other’s confidante.
“I asked Dad about it and he shut me down cold. Vonnie said he did the same thing to her.”
“Yeah.” The announcement had bugged him all week, since the time his father had made it during the staff meeting. His grip tightened on the stick and he hit the ball so hard three of them went into pockets, including one of his brother’s. He cursed under his breath.
Khalil chuckled. “Thanks, bro.”
Brandon ignored him. Not wanting to spoil his Sunday family dinner, he changed the subject. “I saw part of the gym blocked off when I was there on Thursday. You’re not wasting any time.”
“They’ve started installing the new floor. I really like how it feels. It’s almost better than the actual mats.”
“You could use it for the whole gym.”
“I thought about it, but the cost would be astronomical with all the square footage.”
“Well, Mr. Big Bucks, you can afford it.”
“Maybe, but there’s no sense in throwing away my money. I’d like to remain Mr. Big Bucks,” he added wryly. Khalil had started modeling professionally at sixteen and spent a decade gracing the covers of several magazines. He had been the face of several products, an international spokesperson for fitness and even had cameo appearances in two movies.
As they finished the game, Malcolm and his two brothers-in-law joined them. Brandon and Khalil relinquished the table to Omar and Malcolm.
Midway through their game, Morgan came in to let them know dinner was ready. Brandon always looked forward to these dinners because his mama could cook. It was the one thing he missed the most after moving out. The fragrant smells had hit his nose the moment he arrived and he couldn’t wait to dive in.
His father blessed the food and Brandon filled his plate with fried chicken, slices of prime rib, macaroni and cheese, roasted asparagus, sautéed corn and homemade rolls. He groaned with the first bite of his chicken. “Mom, nobody makes chicken like yours.”
A chorus of agreements met his statement.
His father picked up his glass of iced of tea. “I’d like to propose a toast to Malcolm and Omar. May you both be blessed this football season and may the Cobras bring home the championship trophy again.”
They all raised their glasses. This would most likely be their last family dinner until the end of the season, unless his mother tried to schedule one before the end of July or during their bye week.
Conversation flowed around the table as they ate.
“Brandon, are you still seeing that woman you helped from the accident?” Justin asked casually, not looking up from his plate.
“Is this the friend you took off early for a couple of weeks back?” his father asked.
His mother’s eyes lit up. “Does this mean she’s a potential daughter-in-law?”
Brandon froze. Every eye around the table turned his way. He glared at Justin. “It’s not like that, Mom. And yes, Dad, she’s the one. She had just arrived in town for business the day before the accident. She doesn’t know anyone here, so I was just being the gentleman you raised me to be.” Okay, so that wasn’t entirely the truth. The whole “just being friendly” thing had gone by the wayside the first time he tasted her lips.
“I don’t know about this taking off work early. Wouldn’t want anything to distract you from the job.”
He focused his gaze on Morgan.
“Exactly,” Siobhan chimed in. “You really need to make sure you’re available in case something comes up.”
Both of his sisters were throwing his words back in his face. He guessed he deserved it, but at the time, he thought he had been right.
Justin chuckled.
Brandon eyes him across the table, sorely tempted to knock that smug look off Justin’s face. “Look—”
Siobhan muttered something that sounded like, “Oh, God,” slapped a hand over
her mouth and bolted from the room. Justin tossed down his napkin and rushed out behind her.
The family looked on with concern. A few tense minutes later, they returned.
His father stood. “What’s going on?”
Siobhan and Justin shared a smile and Siobhan said, “Well, this isn’t exactly how I planned to tell it, but we’re having a baby.”
His mother jumped up and ran around the table. “Thank You, Lord! A grandbaby!” She engulfed the expectant parents in a warm hug. “I’m so happy for you both.”
Brandon rose to his feet. “This calls for another toast.” Everyone stood and raised their glasses. “To Justin and Vonnie. Wishing you an abundance of God’s blessing as you begin this new journey. Congratulations.”
A round of congrats, hear, hears, and amens sounded in the room.
“What a wonderful addition to our family,” his mother said. “Hopefully, I’ll have a new daughter soon, too.”
Brandon groaned inwardly. He heard snickers from his brothers and turned a blazing look their way. He managed to get through the rest of dinner without any more comments.
After everyone had recuperated from the lavish meal, dessert was served. Today’s offering was another of Brandon’s favorites—brownies loaded with chocolate chips, topped with his father’s homemade ice cream. He would definitely have to add an additional visit to the gym this week to offset all the calories he’d consumed.
Malcolm entered and sat in the chair next to Brandon. “So, big brother’s got a new woman, huh?”
“No, I do not. I told you she’s just here for business and I helped her out.” He didn’t share what type of business because he didn’t feel it was necessary.
“Whatever. Better you than me, though.”
“I second that,” Khalil said, joining them. “I need a little variety in my life and I like having my own space.” He ate a bite of his sundae. “What does she look like?”
Giving My All to You Page 7