Tristan appeared with a couple of cups in his hand. “Telling tales about me, Ry?”
“I’m sure that little revelation comes as no surprise to Shayna.” Ryan turned to look at her. “Right?”
“No, it doesn’t. And I understand that about him quite well. My son is like that too.”
“Is he here with you?” Hannah asked.
Tristan picked up his plate from the end table he’d set it on and sat down beside Shayna. “We left him downstairs with Benjie and Elliot. They’re playing video games.”
“Won’t be long now until Justin will be wanting to join them,” Ryan said as he smiled down at the boy on his lap.
“Or is it just you wanting to hang out down there instead of up here?” Hannah said as she reached out to run the backs of her fingers along his cheek.
Ryan reached up to take her hand and pressed a kiss to it. “I only want to be where you are, sunshine.”
“Do you try and stock up on the compliments so that when you say or do something wrong, Hannah doesn’t send you straight to the couch for the night?” Tristan asked as he picked up a roll with ham and cheese in it and took a bite.
“I never do or say anything that would make Hannah send me to the couch,” Ryan said with confidence. “Right, sweetheart?”
“You have managed to be a pretty good husband, I have to admit.” Hannah gave him a smile that could only be described as indulgent. “Actually, I’m not sure I could have asked for a better man to be my husband.”
What had started out as a teasing exchange had quickly turned affectionate. There was no doubt the two of them shared a deep love. Shayna watched them with a pang of loss that she quickly tried to smother. Right then was not the time nor the place to allow those feelings to surface.
Looking away from the interchange between the two, Shayna focused on the food on her plate. Her appetite was teetering on disappearing, but she wasn’t going to just let the food she’d taken go to waste. Conversation continued on around her, most of it carried on by Ryan and Gabe, who had joined them with his wife and their little daughter.
Every once in a while, Tristan would interject a comment, but mainly, he let his siblings do the talking. Shayna was caught up in her own thoughts, and nearly missed the question that came her way.
“Where do you work, Shayna?” Gabe’s wife, Maya, asked.
Just the question she had hoped not to be asked. She knew it wasn’t an unusual question to be asked when meeting new people, but she had sort of hoped to avoid it that night.
“I work at a restaurant in St. Boniface as a waitress.” Shayna lowered her gaze as she picked up her roll and took a bite, hoping to avoid seeing the looks they were likely exchanging. “I’ve been there for almost ten years, so they’re very good at working with my schedule needs.”
Although, that wasn’t exactly true these days. More than once recently, she’d heard the owner and manager talking about needing people who were more flexible with their schedule. While she hoped that would just apply to anyone new they hired, Shayna knew she couldn’t be totally sure of that. If they decided that they only wanted people who could be flexible with their availability, she would have to find a new job.
She felt a touch on her arm and saw Tristan’s fingers resting on her sweater. “Are you okay?”
Looking up, she saw concern on his face. She tried to smile to reassure him. “Yes. I’m fine.”
He didn’t look convinced, but he didn’t pursue it.
“Oh wow,” Maya said in a hushed voice. “I didn’t know Danica was bringing a boy tonight.”
Shayna looked toward the entrance of the family room and saw Sierra standing there with Danica and a lanky young man.
“You’re not so old that a guy that age could be considered a boy, babe,” Gabe said with a laugh.
“Oh, I know, but I still think of Danica as the young girl she was when I first met her.” Maya sighed. “They’re growing up so fast.”
“I’m pretty sure Mom and Dad feel the same way now that so many of us have families of our own.” Ryan glanced up at Hannah and gave her a loving smile. “Our growing families.”
At the warm press of an arm against hers, Shayna glanced at Tristan to find him smiling as well. “Ry and Hannah announced at Christmas that they are expecting a baby.”
“There are a few of us expecting,” Hannah said, resting a hand on her stomach. “It’s going to be a baby boom this next year for the family.”
“It’s been a baby boom the last few years,” Maya said with a laugh. “I can’t imagine what it’s going to be like when all these cousins hit their teen years.”
“They’ll take the city by storm,” Gabe said.
Ryan reached over to punch his shoulder. “With you leading the way, no doubt.”
“Someone’s got to show them how to cut loose.” Gabe punched Ryan back. “Goodness knows that wouldn’t be you.”
Shayna shifted closer to Tristan, getting a whiff of his cologne as she did so. “Are they always like this?”
“Pretty much. Whenever Gabe is involved, there’s usually plenty of teasing and poking fun.”
“And no one gets mad at him?” Shayna wasn’t sure that she wouldn’t get mad if the teasing was turned in her direction. Lorne always used to tell her she needed to loosen up a bit. Unfortunately, in the years since his death, she hadn’t loosened up. In fact, she was probably more uptight than ever.
“Oh, we’ve all gotten mad at him, especially the girls. Makayla, in particular. The two of them have scrapped plenty over the years.” Tristan grinned, his eyes sparkling in the lights from the Christmas tree. “All of us boys—well, all except Gabe—learned not to mess with Makayla. I’m pretty sure that Gabe ended up with at least one black eye because he didn’t stop to think what poking the bear might do.”
“Your sister being the bear?”
“Yep. I love her dearly, but she can be wound rather tightly. Although, marrying Ethan and having a baby has mellowed her out quite a bit. Ethan steps in frequently to tell Gabe to back off. He’s very protective of his bear.”
Shayna started to laugh then covered her mouth. “Sorry. That caught me off guard.”
“No, don’t apologize. We’ve all laughed at how Gabe backs off when Ethan sends him a look if he’s teased Makayla a bit too much.”
“Shayna!” She looked away from Tristan to see Sierra and Danica approaching.
Sierra got to her first and said, “I didn’t know you were going to be here. Is Timothy here too?”
“Yes. He’s downstairs playing video games with Benjie and Elliot.”
“Oh, maybe we’ll head down there too,” Danica said. “I think Les might be more comfortable with them.”
Tristan got to his feet and turned to the man behind Danica. “Les, is it?”
The young man nodded and said, “Yes, sir.”
“No sir for me,” Tristan said. “You can reserve that for my elders, which is pretty much any guy here but the ones downstairs.”
Danica’s face fell a bit. “Without Dalton here, you’ve become the youngest of the boys once again.”
“Sorry, Dani.” Tristan pulled her into a hug. “I’m sure he’s fine.”
When she stepped back, she said, “I wish I could be sure too, but I’m praying God keeps him safe.”
“We all are,” Gabe said, his tone surprisingly serious.
“Well, I think we’re going to grab some food and head downstairs to join the fun,” Danica seemed to be trying to make an effort to restore the light-hearted mood. “We’ll come back up for the New Year’s countdown.”
Tristan remained on his feet as he watched Danica, Les, and Sierra walk from the room. Once they were gone, he sat back down beside Shayna but didn’t pick up his plate from the end table.
“We had hoped Dalton might be home for Christmas, or, at least, that he’d call, but we haven’t heard from him.” Tristan cleared his throat. “We’ve all taken it hard, but Danica and Sierra hardest of
all. The three of them grew close when Sierra became a part of the family after Ethan and Makayla got married.”
Shayna wasn’t sure how to respond to that. She was happy Sierra had found friendship in Danica and Dalton, but she was sad to hear that they were separated from a family member at this special time of year.
“I’m going to get some dessert.” Tristan leaned over to pick up his plate. “Can I get you something as well?”
“Should I come with you?” Shayna asked.
Tristan lifted a brow. “Do you trust me to bring you something?”
“Oh. Sure. I’m not too fussy.”
“Then it’s settled.” He held out his hand and took her plate and added it to his. “I’ll be right back.”
“He’s such a sweetheart.”
Shayna shifted to look at Hannah after Tristan had walked away. “Yes, he seems to be. Timothy really likes him.”
“What’s your son like?” Maya asked. “He’s eight, right?”
“Yes. He’s in the third grade and doing well. He’s quite smart, so he is in some advanced classes, but I want him to be kept with his grade. He’s already smaller than a lot of the other children.”
“That sounds like something a good mom would do,” Hannah said. “Not everyone would consider that.”
“Timothy is my world.” Shayna rubbed her hands together. “I just wish he enjoyed school more. The kids don’t seem to know what to make of him. They tease him a lot.”
“Tris was just like that,” Gabe said. “Smart and on the smaller side. Kids used to tease him too. Well, at least until Sammi showed up.”
“Sammi?” Shayna asked.
“Yeah. They were in the same grade, and she stuck up for him when the other kids would tease him.”
“I wish Timothy had someone like that. It might make it easier for him if he had at least one friend to stand up for him.”
“Maybe you should consider another school,” Maya suggested. “Like the one you guys went to, Gabe.”
“Things did get a lot easier for Tristan once we changed schools, that’s true,” Gabe said. “And I don’t think Dalton was ever teased there.”
“What school was that?” Shayna asked.
“Lighthouse Academy.”
“The one attached to the church?”
Gabe nodded. “We all ended up graduating from there.”
Well, that definitely wasn’t a place she could transfer Timothy to. After he’d had a particularly bad day at school, she’d logged onto the website to see if Lighthouse Academy was an option but had quickly realized that it wasn’t. She couldn’t begin to imagine how Tristan’s family had been able to afford to send so many children to the school.
“I don’t think I’d be able to send Timothy there,” Shayna said. “For a variety of reasons.”
“I think they offered some financial aid to our family,” Ryan volunteered, as if understanding her reluctance. “We got a deal for sending so many from the same family.”
Shayna hadn’t seen anything on the website about financial aid. Was it possible that she might qualify? Of course, she’d have to qualify for total financial aid because she really didn’t have any money to spare for school beyond what she already paid for supplies and clothes. Tuition and uniforms would be quite beyond her budget.
Maya laid a hand on Shayna’s arm. “Would you like me to look into it? I know the woman who heads up the finance department of the school.”
Shayna knew she should say no, but on the off-chance that they would offer her a full scholarship, she just couldn’t. “Do you mind? I hate to impose.”
“No imposition at all. I’ll give her a call next week. Would you want him to transfer right away or finish out the school year where he is?”
Her mind quickly thought through everything that would need to work out for this change of school to be possible for Timothy. “I’m not sure that I can organize everything for a transfer to happen right away.”
“I’ll check with her anyway,” Maya said with a smile. “But if Timothy is truly unhappy at his school, I hope that sooner rather than later can be accommodated.”
“What are you figuring out now, Maya?” Tristan asked as he reclaimed his seat. He handed a plate to Shayna. “I got us each a selection.”
Shayna’s eyes widened at the excessive amount of sweets on the small plate. “Did you leave any for the rest of the people here?”
“Oh, there’s plenty still up there. Don’t worry.” Tristan turned his gaze to Maya. “So? What are you figuring out?”
“I just mentioned to Shayna that I thought Lighthouse Academy offered scholarships. She was saying that Timothy has had some issues at school. We just thought that Lighthouse might be an option for him.”
“Really?” Tristan looked at Shayna. “Would you want that for him?”
“Possibly,” Shayna said with a shrug. “I’ll have to think about a few things.”
“I’m going to talk to Shelly next week and see what they offer in the way of financial aid.”
Tristan seemed to consider Maya’s words before nodding. “That’s a good idea. Let me know what you find out.”
“I will.”
“Of course you will, babe,” Gabe said as he leaned close to his wife. “There’s not much Maya puts her mind to that doesn’t come about.”
“Well, it’s Shayna’s call, but I’ll make sure she has all the information she needs to make her decision.” Maya turned to her. “You’ll need to give me your number so that I can get you the information once I have it.”
At Shayna’s nod, Maya smiled and allowed the conversation to move onto another topic. Shayna tried to pay attention, but the subject wasn’t anything that she could contribute to, so she found her thoughts straying to the subject of Timothy changing schools. There was no way she could mention that to Timothy just yet.
While he’d be happy to be away from his current school, he might feel a bit of anxiety at the thought of switching schools. Or worse, he’d get his hopes up and then be horribly disappointed if things didn’t work out.
For the time being, Shayna would keep this possibility to herself. If it came to fruition, she would tell him about it then. A lot of things beyond the financing would need to fall into place, so she’d keep this a secret from him for now.
“How are you doing?” Tristan asked, his voice low. “Can I get you anything?”
She shook her head. “Everything is great, especially these desserts.”
“Did Timothy enjoy the desserts from Shelby’s?”
“He did, and so did I. He ate most of them, but I did try a couple that looked yummy.”
Tristan smiled. “I’m glad you tried more of them.”
Shayna wanted to address the evening, but sitting among his family wasn’t where that discussion should take place. If Tristan was still interested in dating, Shayna also wanted to try again. While people like Erin and Noella might question her decision, knowing how much she and Lorne had loved each other, Shayna knew that for Timothy’s sake, she needed to be open to a future with another man.
It wasn’t until meeting Tristan that she’d allowed herself to even consider the possibility. Shayna wasn’t sure if that was because Tristan was so different from Lorne that she wasn’t worried about him replacing Lorne in her heart, or if it was because of how he’d connected so well with Timothy. Regardless, he was the first man that Shayna was willing to let into her and Timothy’s lives.
Tristan’s gentle nature appealed to her, as did the fact that he didn’t seem determined to take over her life. While she did long for someone to help shoulder the burdens of her life, she didn’t necessarily want them to take it over completely. Lorne had taken charge of most things, leaving Shayna free to take care of Timothy and work her job at the restaurant. He’d paid the bills, found them their apartment and car, and had taken care of any issues that popped up.
Since his death, she’d learned to take care of all those things herself, and she wasn’t eager
to give up control to another man. Particularly because she didn’t want to be dependent on anyone the way she’d been on Lorne and, to a lesser degree, Lisa. Having Lisa step out of their lives had made her realize once again how it was better to not be reliant on someone to such a heavy degree.
So as long as Tristan allowed her the ability to retain control of her life, she wouldn’t mind having him as part of it.
CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX
As the evening inched toward midnight, Shayna was surprised by how much she had enjoyed it. Tristan had stayed at her side as they’d sat together in the family room, but aside from little forays into conversation with her, he hadn’t talked a lot to the others around them. At first, she’d wondered if she should be holding up the conversation for both of them, but it seemed that those around them were used to Tristan sitting quietly in their midst, and when she seemed inclined to do the same, they let her.
Occasionally, Maya or Hannah would ask her something, but they didn’t push for a long extended conversation with her. It made Shayna feel more relaxed than she might have otherwise.
“Are you all ready for Eva to move in this week?”
Shayna shifted so she could see Tristan more clearly. “I hope so. There wasn’t too much to do. When she came by to view the house, she seemed happy that she wouldn’t have to bring much furniture. Lisa left all her furniture, including the stuff in the bedroom.”
“She didn’t want it at her mom’s?”
“She didn’t need it there. Her mom’s house is fully furnished, so there was no need to take anything from the townhouse.”
“I guess you don’t need a guy with a truck to help out then, eh?” A smile tugged up a corner of his mouth.
“Not for furniture anyway, but I think Eva is coming with her own guy and a truck.”
“Oh, she has a boyfriend?”
“Yes. It sounds like they’ve been together for several years.”
“Well, if something comes up, let me know. At the very least, I could do a pizza run.” Tristan looked away and shrugged. “At any time.”
Reaching Her Heart: A Christian Romance (Callaghans & McFaddens Book 8) Page 24