Reaching Her Heart: A Christian Romance (Callaghans & McFaddens Book 8)

by Kimberly Rae Jordan

  “Not really,” Tristan said as he leaned forward to pluck a donut from the box. A jelly-filled one. “After all, I saw how you teased each other too. It wasn’t as if I’d been singled out by you all. At any given time, someone was being teased about something.”

  “True,” Ryan agreed. “We could be a mean bunch, and I would say except for you, but we both know you had your ways of getting even.”

  “I admit to nothing,” Tristan said as he lifted his cup to take another sip of coffee. “Absolutely nothing.”

  “Yeah. Now I remember why I have never felt very sorry for you.”

  Tristan grinned at the memory of a few of the subtle pranks he’d managed to play on his siblings. They would have done well to focus more on their education because then they would have been able to figure out that they’d been pranked. Whether it was a science-based prank like when he managed to make all the boys pee blue, or when he’d messed with the computer they all shared to make them think it had been erased and that a couple of their big school assignments had been lost—they hadn’t had a clue.

  In fact, in the case of the computer, they’d actually come to him for help since he was the computer whiz, and they had proceeded to thank him profusely for helping them out when he’d “fixed” everything. He hadn’t needed them to know they’d been pranked. Their fear—or in the case of the boys peeing blue, terror—had been reward enough.

  Of course, all these years later, he would never perform that prank as he knew now it wasn’t entirely safe. Still, at the time, it had been rather hilarious. Especially when their parents didn’t believe them. The boys had spent the afternoon drinking glass after glass of water, hoping to be able to prove to their parents that something was wrong, but only managing to dilute things to the point where there had been no sign of blue urine.

  “You know,” Ryan began, “I had some time on my hands a few years back and decided to spend it researching something after hearing a comment made by one of the guys I served with. Strange what I discovered about that odd and troubling symptom all us boys suffered from when we were teens.” He glanced Tristan’s way. “Except you, of course. I also recalled that you had volunteered to fill our water bottles that day before we headed off for the park.”

  Tristan chuckled. “Anyone else ever figure it out? Should I be waiting for payback?”

  “I haven’t told anyone else, but that’s not to say that I won’t.” Ryan gave him a grin that held just a hint of what might be coming Tristan’s way.

  Maybe it was a good thing that he had moved out of the house. At least he could control who had access to his home. Or he would after he changed the locks on his door.

  “You haven’t told me what I should do about the situation with Timothy and his mother,” Tristan murmured, hoping to redirect the conversation back to Shayna. After Tristan had spilled his guts, the least Ryan could do was give him some advice. “How do I fix things with Shayna?”

  “Good question,” Ryan said as he grabbed one more donut before leaning back, kicking his feet up on the coffee table. “What exactly do you want to achieve? Is your end game to get Shayna to accept the car?”

  Tristan frowned as he thought over Ryan’s question. “That’s not my end game. I’m not sure I have one, to be honest.”

  Ryan scoffed. “Everyone has an end game. Some motives are altruistic, sure, but most have at least a sliver of self-service in them.”

  “I just want to help Timothy. I know he doesn’t have a father,” Tristan said, wondering as he spoke just how much the boy remembered of Lorne Caron.

  “So you want to be his father then?”

  “What? No. I just want to be there for him if he should need a…man in his life.”

  “Do you know for sure that he doesn’t already have one? An uncle? A grandfather?”

  “He’s never mentioned anyone. The only other person aside from his mother that I’ve heard him speak about is their roommate, Lisa.”

  “So how do you see yourself in relation to Timothy? A friend?”

  Tristan shrugged. “Maybe a big brother. That’s a thing, right? Boys who don’t have a positive male role model have a big brother to come alongside them?”

  “Yes, there is such a thing, but usually it’s with the permission of the boy’s mother or foster parent. How does Shayna feel about your presence in her son’s life?”

  Shayna had seemed fine with it. She hadn’t objected to their pancake lunch or the gift he’d given Timothy—at least not verbally. Of course, the gift had been given in Timothy’s presence, so it was possible she felt like she couldn’t refuse the pass without her son protesting it.

  He really didn’t know what he was doing.

  “I don’t know. She did turn me down when I invited Timothy to a hockey game, but I thought it was just because she didn’t know me very well.” Maybe she truly did object to him being around Timothy. The thought made him wince.

  “Maybe you need to pray for clarity so you can figure out the answer to those questions,” Ryan said. “Within those answers, you’ll likely find the truth of your motives.”

  Tristan stared at the streetlight that glowed beyond the large picture window. He hated the feeling that he had gone about this all wrong. Why hadn’t he been able to think this through the way Ryan had?

  “So now what do I do?”

  Ryan pulled his feet off the coffee table and sat forward, his cup of coffee cupped between his hands. “Pray about it, figure out what you want, then have a talk with his mother. Maybe she’ll be more open to you having a role in Timothy’s life if she doesn’t feel as if you were trying to overrun their lives.”

  Tristan knew how that felt. While he hadn’t suffered unduly for it, most of his younger years had been spent following the whims of the others in his family. Though as a kid he’d been taken to the science museum occasionally, more often than not, his requests to go had been passed over for hockey games and music lessons, among other things. He’d always been the first to finish his homework and school projects, but it was the others who had taken precedence over him because they’d been more vocal about what they wanted.

  “Yes, you’re right,” Tristan said. “I’ll have to think about it.”

  Ryan stayed silent for a few minutes, but Tristan didn’t think it was because he had nothing to say. He had a feeling that Ryan still had something to share and was just figuring out how to word it.

  Finally, he said, “Just guard your heart, Tristan. Not from Timothy. A child can never have too many people who love them. But Shayna… I remember hearing about what happened back then. Erin came by with James after Lorne’s funeral and talked a bit about them. Their relationship.” Ryan paused then cleared his throat. “By all accounts, theirs was an intense thing. Erin said that Shayna was a mess at the funeral, and that if it hadn’t been for Timothy, she likely would have followed Lorne to the grave.”

  Tristan’s brow furrowed at Ryan’s words. “That seems a bit…Shakespearean.”

  “I know, but from what Erin said, he saved her on the streets. When she ran away, Lorne left the foster home he was in with Erin, Noella, and Tennyson to return to the streets with her. That’s a pretty fierce kind of a bond. One that perhaps isn’t broken. Even by death.” Ryan rolled the cup back and forth between his hands. “Just be careful of your heart, Tristan. I’ll be praying for you.”

  Tristan wanted to protest that his heart wasn’t in danger, but he figured he’d just be wasting his breath. Ryan clearly believed that there was something else going on, and nothing Tristan could say would convince him otherwise. It was easier to just save his breath and let things speak for themselves in due course.

  CHAPTER SEVEN

  Shayna wasn’t sure if things would be awkward following her hasty retreat from Tristan the week before. She was a bit surprised when he greeted them without any indication that he’d been upset by her words and actions from the previous week. Instead, he gave them both a friendly smile and offered a fist bump to Tim
othy.

  And when she picked Timothy up after the class, it was the same. No suggestion of getting together. Of spending time with Timothy. And no inquiry after the state of her car. Which, if she was being entirely honest, she wasn’t sure would make it through the winter. The money she’d been squirreling away for a rainy day seemed to be destined for a newer car.

  When they got back to the townhouse, Shayna made them lunch from frozen homemade turkey soup and buns. Lisa wasn’t home which surprised her a bit. Usually, when she wasn’t visiting her mom, Lisa stayed home, choosing to watch a church service being streamed online.

  Shayna had tried calling her, but the call had gone right to voicemail. Lisa wasn’t one to ignore her calls, so even though she really had no reason to be, Shayna was concerned. She sent a text, but it remained unread as she continued to check her phone over the next several hours.

  Later that evening after Timothy was in bed, her cell finally rang with Lisa’s name popping up on the screen.

  “Is everything okay, Lees?” Shayna asked.

  There was a long pause before Lisa replied. “Not really. I got a call this morning that Mom was in an accident.”

  “Oh no. Was she hurt?”

  “Unfortunately, yes. Her leg was crushed, and it took them awhile to stabilize her enough for surgery. She’s going to be in the hospital for a bit then into rehab. Maybe more surgery, I’m not sure. Eventually, she’ll be able to go home, but she won’t be able to be on her own.”

  Shayna pressed a hand to her stomach as she sat down on the small couch in the living room. Lisa’s mother was elderly, and Shayna had suspected that at some point, she’d need Lisa to move home with her. It seemed that perhaps, that day had come.

  “I’m sorry to hear that your mom was hurt,” Shayna said. “I’m sure she’s grateful that you’re there with her.”

  Lisa sighed, and Shayna was sure she was struggling. Though Lisa managed to live her life normally, for the most part, dealing with something like this with her mother had no doubt brought her anxiety to levels she hadn’t experienced in ages.

  “I saw her after surgery, but then I came back to her house a little bit ago.” Shayna could hear the strain in her friend’s voice. “I’m going to stay here for awhile.”

  “Okay. Keep me updated on how she’s doing.”

  Shayna had often envied Lisa’s close relationship with her mom, even though she knew her friend had had a rough patch in that relationship when she’d been in her teens. Since her own mother had passed away when she was young, Shayna didn’t have many clear memories of her. There had been a series of women in and out of her father’s life in the years following her mom’s death, most of whom had been fine.

  But then one of them had gotten pregnant, and Shayna—just eight years old at the time—had suddenly had a step-mother. And she’d turned out to be the worst of all the women her father had brought into her life.

  “Give Timothy a hug from me,” Lisa said. “I’ll call you again tomorrow.”

  “I’ll be praying for both of you,” Shayna said. “Take care of yourself, Lees. Take some moments for yourself, okay?”

  “I will.”

  After the call ended, Shayna took a moment to allow panic to wash over her. If Lisa made the decision to move home to help her mother, she and Timothy would have to look for a new place. The home they’d had for the past two and a half years would be no more. Just as the home she’d shared with Lorne had gone away with his death.

  It only served to remind her how out of her control her life was. Of course, she knew that, had they been given a choice, neither Lorne nor Lisa would have left her in a lurch. She wanted to be resentful, but she didn’t have the time or energy. Rather than wait for Lisa to broach the subject, which Shayna knew would be extremely difficult for her, she would bring it up herself.

  Shayne never wanted anyone to put their life on hold or to feel guilty because life moved them in a direction different from where hers was taking her and Timothy. So if it appeared that Lisa wanted—needed—to move to Portage to be with her mom, then Shayna would never stand in her friend’s way. After all, Lisa had moved in with Shayna during the worst time in her life in order to help her out with Timothy.

  Shayna owed her the world, and if that meant a change in their life, then so be it. She could do this. It would mean some changes beyond just moving, like no more overnight or extra shifts, and she’d need to find someone to watch Timothy in the mornings before school, but they could do it. If she’d had a larger circle of friends, it might have been a bit easier, but regardless, they could do it.

  About a week after Lisa’s mother’s accident, Shayna finally broached the subject with Lisa. She hadn’t wanted to, but at the same time, she didn’t want to be caught off-guard. If she was going to be successful at this, she had to plan ahead. They had to give notice at the townhouse co-op, and then she had to find a new place.

  Thankfully, one of the neighbors had been willing to watch Timothy in the mornings and then take him to school along with her own children. Shayna wasn’t sure what she’d do about that once they moved and didn’t have people they knew around them. But that was a worry for another day.

  “I don’t want to leave you in a lurch,” Lisa said, her weariness clear in her voice.

  Shayna was sure that it wasn’t just a weariness of body, but also a mental weariness. Dealing with all the doctors, nurses, and therapists seemed to have drained everything out of her friend. Perhaps letting Lisa know that she was okay with the move—whether that was entirely true or not—would help to lessen some of the anxiety and weariness.

  “You won’t,” Shayna said. “I had a feeling this would be necessary. If you’re sure this is what you need to do, I’ll take care of things with the co-op.”

  “But where will you go?” Lisa asked.

  “There are plenty of other apartments in the city, Lees,” Shayna said with more confidence than she felt. “I’ve already been looking around.”

  “Are you…are you sure, Shay? I really don’t want to do this to you and Timothy.”

  Shayna went to stand in front of the small Christmas tree she and Timothy had decorated earlier that night. She hoped that they could at least stay through Christmas, but only time would tell.

  “You’re not doing anything to us. I would never expect you to put us above your own family, especially in a situation like this.”

  “Mom probably won’t be home before Christmas. Maybe give two months notice to the co-op?”

  Shayna moved a decoration from the end of a branch to a more secure spot. It was the tree and decorations she and Lorne had collected over the years since their marriage. She’d kept them even after his death, putting all of them up each Christmas. Next year, they’d be put up in a new place.

  “So the end of January then, since we’re at the end of November already?”

  “Yeah. I probably won’t be there much, if at all, but I’ll pay my share until the end.”

  “Thank you,” Shayna said.

  “I won’t have many expenses living at Mom’s, so it will be fine.”

  They talked a bit more about the details of the pending move, then they said their goodbyes and hung up. Though the practical side of her said to immediately begin looking through the available apartment listings, instead, Shayna turned off all the lights but the ones on the Christmas tree, then she went to the armchair in the corner. She pulled the afghan from the back of the chair, curling up with it over her.

  She rested her head against the back of the chair and stared at the lights on the tree. They blurred then briefly cleared as tears spilled over.

  Her defenses were always at their lowest when the weight of her responsibility for Timothy was at its highest. She was forever grateful that she had Timothy, a piece of Lorne left to bring her comfort, but the feeling that she was failing him was always close at hand. All she wanted was to raise Timothy in a safe place, and she’d thought she’d found it, but now she’d have to
look again.

  “Do you boys have any prayer requests today?” Tristan asked once the lesson was over. Their time of prayer was usually short, with the same requests about school and sports, and the same boys praying.

  Timothy had been unusually quiet—even for him—but just before Tristan started their time of prayer, he leaned close to Tristan and said, “I think we’re going to have to move.”

  Tristan looked down at Timothy in surprise. He wanted to ask him more questions, but it was almost time for the buzzer that would call them back to the gym. “We’ll pray about that.”

  “Thank you,” Timothy whispered before he bowed his head.

  Usually he was one of the boys who prayed, but when he didn’t, Tristan got a sense of how worried Timothy was about the situation. Once he’d finished praying with them, they began to gather up their things. When the buzzer sounded, the boys quickly left the room and headed for the gym.

  Tristan followed more slowly, Timothy at his side. They hadn’t spoken much outside of the class in the past couple of weeks.

  “Why do you have to move?” Tristan asked as they followed the other boys down the hallway.

  “Lisa has to move in with her mom to take care of her.”

  So they could no longer afford to stay in their home. Tristan’s gut twisted at the thought.

  “Have you found a new place?” Timothy gave a shake of his head. “Did your mom tell you when you’ll need to move?”

  Another shake of his head. “I just heard her talking to Lisa about it.”

  Tristan knew he shouldn’t get involved—shouldn’t interfere—but boy, did he want to. It sounded like Shayna hadn’t even talked to Timothy about the pending move, so if he made mention of it, the end result would most assuredly be negative.

  However, while he might not be able to say anything to Shayna, he could try to give the young boy some encouragement.

  “I know your mom is going to do her best to find you two a new place to live. After all, she found you this place with Lisa. So, even if Lisa has to move somewhere else, your mom will still find you a home.” Tristan ruffled a hand through his hair. “I’ll be praying that she finds you a home you’re both happy in.”