Proof of Life: A Christian Romance (BlackThorpe Security Book 4)

by Kimberly Rae Jordan

  “Absolutely positive. Like I told Jordan earlier, I believe my talents lie in other areas.”

  Alex nodded. “Well, there’s no doubt that you are talented at different things. The success of your books proves that, if nothing else. But you’re also a pretty good cook.”

  “Exactly! I’ll leave the guns to the people who can actually hit the targets, and I’ll do the things I enjoy instead.”

  When they entered the lobby of the shooting range, Melanie and Jordan were standing near a table talking to a man Rebecca thought looked familiar. As they got closer, Rebecca noticed that there was a woman with them as well. It only took a quick look to realize that the woman had some form of dwarfism.

  “Hey, Trent,” Alex said as he held out his hand. “And it’s good to see you again, Victoria. Are you guys here to do some shooting too?”

  Victoria laughed. “Yeah, this is our date for the week.”

  “I guess you guys have met Jordan already,” Alex said as he laid a hand on Jordan’s shoulder then reached to lay his other hand on Rebecca’s back. “This is his mother, Rebecca.”

  The lack of surprise on Victoria’s face told Rebecca that Trent had already talked to her about the situation. The woman held out her hand, a big smile on her face.

  “It’s great to meet you, Rebecca,” Victoria said. “So do you guys live here in the Twin Cities?”

  Rebecca shook her head. “At the moment, we live in Chicago.” She glanced at Alex before continuing on. “But we are considering a move in this direction.”

  “Nice,” Victoria exclaimed. “We’ll have to get together if you do.”

  Alex cleared his throat. “Just to make a few connections for you, Rebecca, Trent works for us as our computer guru, and Victoria is Eric’s sister. He was the one that helped fingerprint Jordan.”

  “We like to keep it all in the family. The BlackThorpe family,” Victoria said with a smile as she slid her hand into Trent’s.

  “Well, I came here to shoot,” Melanie said, a mischievous grin on her face. “Who wants to try to outshoot me?”

  “Not sure I can,” Trent replied. “But Victoria might give you a run for your money.”

  Rebecca looked at the little woman in surprise and saw Victoria nod at Melanie.

  “You’re on.”

  Trent, Victoria, and Melanie each had their own weapons, but Alex took Jordan to the weapons case and pulled out a gun for him. It didn’t take long before they were ready to tackle the shooting range targets. Rebecca thought Alex would also join them, but instead, he stayed behind when Melanie grabbed Jordan’s arm, and the two of them led the way into the shooting range.

  “Why don’t we sit down over there?” Alex said as he pointed to a table nearer the glass window. “We’ll be able to see them better.

  From her seat at the table, Rebecca had a clear view of Jordan and Melanie. They watched in silence for a few minutes then Rebecca looked over and met Alex’s gaze. Her cheeks flushed a bit when she realized he’d been watching her.

  Clearing her throat, she said, “Jordan told me that the two of you had a talk this morning.”

  He nodded. “It’s taken me a little time, but I think I’ve finally got a grasp on how to build a relationship with Jordan.”

  Rebecca tilted her head. “And how’s that?”

  A smile played at the corners of Alex’s mouth. “By admitting that I know absolutely nothing about how to be a dad and trusting God—and Jordan—to help me figure it out.”

  “Well, that sounds like a pretty good plan.” Rebecca smiled as she leaned forward and rested her clasped hands on the table. “None of us really go into parenting knowing exactly how to do it. We can have good examples around us, and yet when it’s your child that you’re trying to figure out how to raise, it can be pretty daunting.”

  “I’m just grateful that Jordan’s willing to give me a second chance to do right by him.”

  Rebecca’s gaze drifted to Jordan and then to her hands. She shifted in her seat, bits of the conversation she’d had with Connor coming back to her. Did she really want to know? “Did you change your mind?”

  When Alex didn’t reply, Rebecca lifted her gaze to his. He stared at her for a long moment before responding, as if trying to figure out her question.

  “Will knowing one way or the other make a difference to what we are trying to do now?” he finally asked.

  Rebecca thought over his words. If he said that he hadn’t changed his mind, would it affect how she looked at him now? But if he had changed his mind, would the regret she’d feel over the lost years be too much?

  “I don’t know. Connor just mentioned when we were talking that he was pretty sure that you would’ve changed your mind.” Rebecca tightened her hands. “It never occurred to me that you might have because I was already wondering if you had changed your mind...about us.”

  Alex’s hand covered hers, his strength and warmth seeping into her. “Why would you have thought that?”

  “It just seemed that after you were sent to the Middle East, we were never able to talk with each other. And even when we emailed, I would write you all about the stuff going on in my life, but you never shared anything like that. Your emails were always really short, and sometimes you didn’t even say you loved me at the end of them.” The rush of emotion at the memories caught Rebecca off-guard, and she had to take a deep breath to regain control. “I thought you were regretting getting married like we did.”

  The hand covering hers tightened, and Rebecca looked up to see anguish on Alex’s face.

  “I thought I was protecting you. The life I was living over there was not something I wanted to share with you. Parts of it I wish I could forget. I refused to reenlist after my first term was up, and it took a lot of counseling to get me to the point where I could live with those memories. That’s why I didn’t share stuff like that in the emails I sent you.” Alex’s head dipped for a moment then he looked back up at her. “I can’t remember why I didn’t tell you I loved you in those emails. I just remember being really frustrated with our schedules and the Wi-fi I had access to. It just never seemed to work out for us to live chat, and I missed that. Emails were never my thing, but I guess I should’ve made a little more effort.”

  “Did you change your mind?” Rebecca just couldn’t seem to let the question go. Even if he told her he hadn’t, she could see now the regret he lived with and the type of man he had become. It wouldn’t matter.

  She unclasped her hands and turned one face up on the table. As his palm touched hers, their fingers intertwined, and she rested her other hand on top of his. She glanced over at him and saw that he was focused on their hands.

  It seemed to take forever before Alex lifted his gaze to hers. “Yes. Yes, I did change my mind.”

  Rebecca felt a rush of tears and blinked rapidly to keep them from spilling over. Her grip tightened on his hand as if to anchor herself against the pain rushing over her. If only she’d waited.

  “Don’t think about it,” Alex said in a low voice rough with emotion. “It’s in the past now. We have to leave it there.”

  “I’m sorry,” Rebecca said, her words barely more than a ragged whisper. “I’m so sorry.”

  This time, Alex took her hands in his. “I shouldn’t have asked of you what I did. If I hadn’t, there would’ve been no need for me to change my mind. I hope you can forgive me for what I said.”

  “I should have trusted you,” Rebecca said, seeing her own pain reflected in Alex’s eyes.

  “As soon as I sent my email in response to yours, I got tied up in a mission that took me out of contact for a couple of days. By the time I got back, you didn’t answer any more of my emails.” Alex gently rubbed the back of her hands with his thumbs. “I bear the responsibility for what happened. And I need to beg you for your forgiveness for what I asked you to do.”

  Fresh tears sprung to Rebecca’s eyes, and this time, they spilled over. Alex reached up and brushed them away with his fingertip
s.

  “I do forgive you.” Rebecca took a shuddering breath. “Do you forgive me for not trusting you?”

  “Yes, I do.” Alex leaned closer, his hand cupping her cheek. “I don’t know why God allowed everything to happen the way it did, but in my heart, it doesn’t matter that fifteen years have passed. I look at you and see a confident, beautiful woman, different from the young woman I fell in love with, and yet, the woman you have become, calls to the man I am today. If I had to say what attracted me to a woman now, it would be everything that you are.” Alex paused. “Do you think maybe we might have a shot at a second chance?”

  As Rebecca listened to Alex’s words, she knew that they were echoed in her own heart. “Yes. I think we might.”

  A smile broke across Alex’s face and his blue eyes lit with joy. He lowered his hand from her face and grasped her hand again. “In that case, Rebecca Mackenzie, would you go out on a date with me?”

  Rebecca returned Alex’s smile. A date sounded perfect. And this time, there would be no sneaking around. “I would love to.”

  Movement out of the corner of her eye caught her attention, and Rebecca glanced over to see Melanie and Jordan pressed to the glass watching them. Looking back at Alex, she tipped her head toward the window. As he turned his head to look, Rebecca also returned her gaze to her son and sister-in-law. Both of them were grinning and giving them a thumbs up.

  “I’d kiss you,” Alex said with a grin. “But I never kiss before the first date. And this time, I’m going to do it right.”

  Rebecca found herself filled with anticipation and excitement about what lay ahead. She already knew in her heart that she loved Alex and though he hadn’t said the words to her, she knew that he loved her too. He wouldn’t be asking her for a second chance—and she wouldn’t be giving him one—if love wasn’t already present in their hearts.

  She couldn’t wait to see how Alex planned to do it right this time.

  EPILOGUE

  REBECCA RAN HER HANDS down her sides, enjoying the feel of satin beneath her fingertips. Alex had told her to dress up a bit more for their date that night, so she’d had to go shopping. It had taken a bit of time, but she’d finally settled on a forest green top that had a sweetheart neckline and a fitted bodice. It ended just at her hips, flaring slightly. Her black skirt was straight and stopped just above her knees. Knee-high boots with the heel finished off the look. She taken a bit more time to do her hair and makeup but had to settle for the few pieces of jewelry she’d brought with her, never imagining she’d be dressing up to go out on a date.

  After their conversation at the shooting range, Rebecca had been uncertain about what to expect. True to his word, Alex had taken her out on a date the very next night. They’d gone to an early movie and a late dinner that they had lingered over until the restaurant shut down around midnight. He held her hand through the movie and anytime they walked somewhere, but that had been the extent of the physical contact.

  Their next date had included Jordan and they’d gone bowling together. As they’d watched Jordan bowl, Alex had kept his arm around her shoulders. They’d laugh together at their son’s antics, not really caring who ended up winning the game. Jordan had seemed to enjoy himself as well and had asked when they might be able to do it again. But as the night before, their evening ended without a kiss, although they had hugged briefly.

  Rebecca had appreciated that Alex didn’t dive right into the physical side of things. They did need to get to know each other once again, to get reacquainted. Each subsequent date over the next week had ended much the same. They had gone out together on a date every night except one. On that night, Alex had gone to see Justin and Alana. He had invited her along, but she had declined. The woman had no doubt been bombarded with strangers since she’d been found. Rebecca was confident that she would still be there to meet her when things had settled down.

  Her anticipation for the date that night only grew as she watched the clock. Jordan had gone off with Tyler and Ryan for another basketball game, so she was alone in the apartment. Though Alex hadn’t mentioned the significance of the date—the calendar date—Rebecca was sure he was aware of it. December 22. Their anniversary. For the first time since they were married, Rebecca had actually been looking forward to the day.

  She saw headlights moving along the driveway and went to gather her things. Unlike the first non-date they had gone on, Rebecca waited for Alex to come to the apartment. He told her that he liked to come to the door to walk her to the truck. She had no problem with that and enjoyed the anticipation of waiting for him to knock on the door.

  When the knock came, she pulled the door open and greeted Alex with a smile. She hadn’t put her coat on yet, so Alex was able to get a look at her outfit.

  He reached out and took her coat, holding it for her so she could slide her arms into it. “You look very beautiful tonight.”

  She felt the warmth of his fingers as he lifted her hair out from underneath the coat’s collar. As she began to button her coat, she turned around, her cheeks flushed from his compliment. “Thank you.”

  After she was dressed to face the cold, Alex took her arm and slid it into the crook of his elbow. She closed the door behind them, and together they made their way down the stairs to the truck. He had left it running so it was nice and warm when she climbed in.

  “How was your day today?” Rebecca asked as he guided the truck away from the house.

  “It was fairly quiet. With Christmas right around the corner, we are not usually too busy with meetings or assignments. We’ll enjoy the lull while we can because things will pick up again in the New Year.” Once Alex turned the truck onto the highway, he reached out and took her hand. “Now that Alana is back, the Christmas atmosphere at work has definitely improved. It seems each day this week one of the floors has been having a party. Marcus and I try to make it to each one, so we’ve had a lot of food this week.”

  “Since I’ve mostly worked out of the home, I’ve never really had a company Christmas party to attend. Of course, our church always had something for the entire congregation each year.”

  “We don’t tend to have a companywide Christmas party, but we have a fundraiser at the end of November that employees are welcome to attend. It’s usually pretty swanky, so not everyone comes. We do encourage each floor to do something as a department, and we cover the cost for that. This year we had a big company family day and that seemed to go over really well.”

  They talked a little bit more about Christmas traditions as Alex drove them to wherever he planned for them to spend the evening. When they finally arrived, Rebecca immediately fell in love with the look of the restaurant even from just the outside. It had a stone façade and multi-pane windows with rounded awnings above them. Soft light glowed from the windows and spilled out onto the sidewalk in front of the building.

  The inside was just as beautiful with rich burgundy drapes hanging between the windows. All the furniture and fixings were a dark wood. In the center of the room was a fireplace open on all four sides with stone corners.

  She was so captivated by the ambience that Rebecca didn’t even hear Alex give his name to the hostess. But he must have because as soon as they had removed their coats, she was leading them to their table.

  The restaurant reminded her in some ways of the one they had gone to before. On their non-date. The subtle elegance. The hushed sounds. It was absolutely beautiful.

  Their table ended up being tucked away in a corner, separated from other tables by several feet. Alex held the chair for her as she sat down then settled in across from her. The hostess handed them their menus that left them alone to peruse them.

  “So does another friend of a friend own this place?” Rebecca asked, her gaze taking in the candles on the table and the lovely way it was all set.

  Alex chuckled. “No, not this one. I actually phoned around to a few of the guys for some recommendations, because I really had no idea where to bring you. I’d already taken
you to the one nice restaurant that I knew about.”

  “Well, if the food tastes as good as the restaurant looks, you’ve picked a winner.”

  It wasn’t long until Rebecca discovered that the food was, in fact, delicious. Since she didn’t date, her eating out usually consisted of places Jordan would like. Sometimes she and Maureen would go out, but even then it was usually to a place they knew serve their favorite desserts. She hoped that in the future, she and Alex would have frequent dates to places like this.

  After their meal was over, they didn’t linger long. Rebecca would’ve liked to, but Alex seemed to have more planned for the evening. Once they were in the truck, he fiddled with the radio until he found the station playing Christmas music. He made a stop to get them each a cup of coffee, and then he just drove them around looking at Christmas lights.

  Their conversation included topics such as Connor’s arrival the next day, plans for Christmas, and gifts that still needed to be bought and wrapped. Rebecca wasn’t paying too much attention to where exactly they were driving until Alex swung into the parking lot of a darkened building.

  Rebecca stared out the front window at the motel—now clearly abandoned--where they had stayed after their wedding ceremony. Tears sprung to her eyes as she thought back to that time and the girl that she had been.

  She reached for Alex’s hand and gripped it tight as she turned to look at him.

  Alex stared at her for a moment then said, “I made a lot of promises to you as we lay together in that bed in our motel room. I broke a lot of those promises, but if you give me another chance, I’d like to see if I can do better this time around.”

  Rebecca hadn’t realized how much she wanted to let that young girl inside of her dream again. She was here, back where it all started. The place may have been run down, but it hadn’t mattered to her because she’d been with the man she loved.

  Alex reached into his pocket and pulled out a small box. He let go of her hand for a moment so that he could open it and then he turned on the overhead light in the truck. “One of the promises I made to you was that one day I would replace that stainless steel ring you had with one made from gold and diamonds.”