A Change of Heart: A Christian Romance (The Callaghans & McFaddens Book 1)

by Kimberly Rae Jordan

  Ethan hated to end their conversation, but he tapped out a message with a goodnight in response to hers then laid the phone down on the nightstand beside his bed. As he lay in the dark a few minutes later, he prayed for Sierra and for wisdom in dealing with his father.

  By Sunday afternoon, the quiet of the apartment was deafening for Ethan. He had texted Sierra to see if she was able to go to a movie with him, but his dad had squashed that idea pretty quickly. Though he would have preferred to go with Sierra, Ethan still went to the nearby theater and picked a movie that had been out for a while so the theater wouldn’t be full. He just needed to be out of the empty apartment and around people—even if they weren’t the ones he wanted to be with.

  When the movie ended, he wandered out with the rest of the movie-goers and headed back into the heat of the day. Not thrilled with the idea of returning to his empty apartment but not certain where else to go, Ethan finally stopped off at a nearby Chinese place and picked up some food.

  There were still no cars in the parking lot when he got home, so obviously the others weren’t back from the lake yet. He was just as happy not to have to deal with any questions about Sierra. His mood wasn’t great since his dad had made it clear that she wasn’t coming back to his place that night or anytime in the near future.

  As Ethan slumped down on his couch, he wondered if everything he’d done over the past couple of months had been in vain. If it all had been in vain. Would Sierra have been better off without knowing a life with him? Without knowing what life could be like with a family like the Callaghans?

  Ethan braced his elbows on his knees, sliding his hands into his hair. Everything he’d done—including uprooting his life in Calgary—had been done for Sierra. His dad had the power to keep them apart for the next four years, so he knew he had to stay the course. He had to get past the probationary period at C&M. He had to prove that he had steady employment. He needed to build his savings up again.

  James hadn’t painted him a picture of sunshine and roses when it came to gaining custody of Sierra. He had made it fairly clear that barring outright abuse, a judge might not be willing to remove Sierra from her parents. That was why he’d recommended that Ethan not do anything that might upset his dad. But in the meantime, Sierra was suffering.

  When he’d talked to her earlier, he could sense that she was feeling really down. She said her mom was trying to interact with her a bit, but the attempts never lasted very long. And their dad barely said two words to her…unless she asked to come back to Ethan’s. Then he’d had plenty to say, and none of it was good.

  Rather than watch television as he’d planned, Ethan took the food to the table by the window and sat down in front of his laptop. He put his earbuds in and started up the playlist Sierra had made for him on his phone and then did the one thing that made him feel a little less helpless. He worked.

  He logged into the work system and studied quotes and bids and updated himself on the current projects so that if anyone asked him a question about them, he’d have an immediate, informed answer. Doing the best he could at his job was the only thing he had control over right then, so over the next few hours, he devoted himself to that.

  27

  U sually after an extended weekend at the cabin, Makayla returned to work refreshed and ready to get back into the groove of her job again. This Monday, however, she was nothing of the sort. After that text conversation she’d had with Ethan on Friday night—which she’d thought had been a revealing conversation that had gone both ways—any texts she’d sent the remainder of the weekend had been met with short, vague responses. A pretty clear message that he wasn’t going to be responding the way he had on Friday night.

  Makayla went out to the foyer area to fill up her coffee mug, stopped for a quick chat with Grace and then headed back to her office. She shut the door before going to sit at the desk. Before doing anything, she took a sip of her coffee, her mind still not on the work that waited for her.

  With so many brothers, Makayla had always felt as if she had a pretty good handle on men and how they worked. Which left her with two scenarios. Either Ethan truly wasn’t interested in her and she’d just caught him at vulnerable times for the few conversations they’d had, or she really didn’t know as much about men as she’d always assumed.

  Ethan was different from her brothers, there was no doubt about that, but while that should have been a good thing, it actually left her more confused. He was blowing hot and cold, and she had no idea how to interpret that. None of her confusion over the weekend had abated any so now her work week was off to a bumpy start.

  She leaned forward to turn her monitor on then took another couple sips of coffee before trying to focus on her email. Before she’d made it through half of her unread messages, there was a knock on the door. Makayla hadn’t even looked over at the door before it swung open.

  “What’ve you got the door closed for, sis?”

  Makayla swung around and watched Gabe saunter into her office. “To keep people out.”

  “Well, surely you don’t mean me,” he said with a grin as he flopped down in the chair across from her.

  She gave him a pointed look. “Pretty sure I do.”

  Gabe stretched his legs out as he leaned back, lacing his fingers behind his head. “In that case, you should’ve locked the door.”

  Makayla swung her chair back around so she could focus on her monitor. “I will definitely keep that in mind for next time.”

  “I can’t believe you’d shut me out when I’m only here for a short time.”

  “I just spent the weekend with you, plus you said you were here for a little longer this time. Now if you were Kenton, you might have a point.”

  “Blade boy is still sound asleep at home.”

  “So why aren’t you?” Makayla asked as she clicked open another email.

  “I’m not really on vacation. Tenn and Forr are picking me up at nine-thirty for a meeting.”

  Makayla rolled her eyes. “I swear, only you could find two friends whose names could be shortened in that way.”

  “Hey, pretty sure Tenn prefers it that way, though I can’t say the same for Forrest.”

  Voices in the hall had Makayla turning away from her monitor in time to see the two men they’d just been speaking about appear. Forrest Williams and Tennyson Page filled her doorway with Forrest taking up most the space.

  Forrest grinned. “I told Tenn we’d find Gabe in the office of the most beautiful woman in the world.”

  Makayla met Gabe’s gaze as they both said, “Eeeew.”

  Since Gabe hadn’t met the two guys until university, they didn’t quite get that Gabe didn’t view her in any such way, just as she didn’t look at him like that. He might not be her biological brother, but she’d never seen him as anything but.

  Gabe got to his feet and greeted his friends with a hug. Makayla sipped her coffee, knowing she wouldn’t get any work done until they left her in peace and quiet. It didn’t take too long before the guys were distracted and headed out of her office and down the hall towards Bennett’s.

  Once alone, she went to fill up her coffee yet again and then got back to work. She left her door open this time, feeling a bit more distanced from her earlier thoughts after Gabe’s quick visit. That lasted up until lunch when she happened to see Ethan go by the door of her office. Was he going to get Sierra? That was usually what he did at lunchtime, but last Makayla had heard from Danica was that her friend was stuck at her parents’ place for the time being.

  Makayla got to her feet and made her way to the front desk. She found Ethan talking with Grace. He glanced up as she approached and gave her a small smile. Tendrils of the emotions she’d felt after Ethan’s interaction with Franklin wove through her.

  “So you don’t know when she’ll be back?” Grace asked.

  “Not at the moment.” Ethan shifted his weight then lifted his mug. “Just needed to fill up on coffee. I’d better get back to work.”

&nb
sp; After he’d gone, Makayla looked at Grace, who just shrugged. “Sure feel sorry for the guy.”

  Makayla did as well and wished that there was something they could do to help him. Short of showing up on his dad’s doorstep and demanding Sierra back—which from what Ethan had said would be the worst possible thing—there wasn’t anything they could do to rectify the situation.

  Back in her office, Makayla did her best to just set it all aside and focus on what she had to do. That worked until she heard Ethan’s voice a few hours later.

  “What do you mean she’s not at the apartment?”

  Makayla looked up to see Ethan walk past her door, phone pressed to his ear. She pushed back from the desk and got up to follow him.

  “I haven’t talked to her since last night,” Ethan said as he moved toward the front of the office. “I’ll go to my apartment and check.”

  He lowered the phone as Makayla came up behind him. “Everything okay?”

  Ethan turned toward her. “My dad called to say that Sierra wasn’t at the apartment when Elle got home from work. I’m going to go see if she’s at my place.”

  “I’ll call Danica to see if she heard anything from her,” Makayla said. “If she has, I’ll let you know.”

  “Thanks,” Ethan said as he turned and pushed through the front door of the office.

  As she watched him walk across the parking lot to his truck, Makayla wondered if Ethan realized that he didn’t have to deal with any of this alone. Something told her that he’d been dealing with everything on his own for so long, he wouldn’t have any idea that each and every one of them would be there for him.

  She returned to her office and grabbed her cell off the desk. As she walked down the hallway to Bennett’s office, she placed the call to Danica.

  “Dani, have you talked to Sierra today?” Makayla asked when she answered.

  There was a hesitation before she said, “No. Why?”

  “Are you telling me the truth, Danica? Now is not the time to cover for Sierra.”

  “I’m telling the truth. I texted her earlier this morning, but she didn’t reply. I’ve tried calling her too, but she’s not answering her phone.”

  Makayla felt a pit of dread form in her stomach. She had really hoped that Danica had been in contact with Sierra. “And she didn’t talk to you at all about leaving her parents’ place?”

  “No. I know she wasn’t happy there and wanted to be with Ethan, but she said her dad wouldn’t let her go back. Maybe ever.” Danica paused. “Why are you asking me about this? Has something happened?”

  “Sierra’s dad called Ethan to tell him that Sierra wasn’t there when her mom got home from work. Ethan has gone to check his apartment to see if she’s there.”

  “I really don’t know anything, Kayla, I promise. I know she was desperate to get back to Ethan, but she didn’t tell me if she was planning to do anything.”

  “Okay, thanks, sweetheart. I’ll let you know if we hear something.”

  “I’ll keep trying her phone in case she might answer a call from me.”

  After hanging up, Makayla filled Bennett in on what was happening.

  “I think I’m going to go to the apartment in case he needs some help,” Bennett said.

  “I’m going to go as well. Do you think maybe we should phone James? I know he and Ethan were talking up at the cabin the night before he and Sierra left.”

  Bennett stood and grabbed his suit coat from the back of his chair. “Let’s wait until we see what’s going on. Ethan might decide to call him on his own. We probably shouldn’t interfere on that side of things unless we really think James should be there and Ethan isn’t calling him himself.”

  Makayla knew that Bennett was right, but that didn’t stop her from wanting to help Ethan out as much as she could. She followed Bennett back down the hallway then slipped into her office to gather up her things. As she drove home, she tried her best to shut her mind down. It was already too busy coming up with possible scenarios, and not all of them were good ones.

  When she got to the apartment building, Makayla went straight to Ethan’s place and knocked on his door.

  “Danica said she hasn’t been able to get hold of her all day,” Makayla told him when he opened the door.

  He stepped back and motioned for her to come into the apartment. Bennett was in the living room, his hands on his hips.

  “I checked that app I put on her phone,” Ethan said as he sank down on the couch, “but either she disabled it or she turned her phone off because it’s not telling me anything.”

  Makayla sat down on the couch next to him. “Sierra’s a smart kid.”

  “What if this is more than just her running away to come back to me?” Ethan rubbed his palms across his thighs. “I know she’s in a vulnerable place right now. What if she got taken in by some…guy on the internet or something?”

  She reached out and laid a hand over one of his. She didn’t want to tell him that was one of the scenarios that had gone through her mind. Instead, she said, “I really don’t think that’s the case. Danica didn’t say anything about that, and I really think she would have mentioned it.”

  Ethan glanced over at her, and the look on his face was just like the day he’d had to tell Sierra they were leaving the cabin early. “I hope you’re right.”

  Makayla waited for him to pull his hand away, but when he didn’t, she left hers where it was. If nothing else, he needed to be reminded that he was not alone in this.

  The buzzer from the downstairs door filled the quiet of the living room. Ethan jerked to his feet. Makayla stood more slowly then turned to watch Ethan press the button to communicate with whoever was at the front door. She glanced at Bennett and saw his brows were drawn together, his gaze on Ethan.

  “Hello?”

  “Open this door, boy.” The anger in the man’s voice was clear. “Open it right now.”

  Ethan’s head dropped forward as he reached out to press the button that would open the door at the entrance to the building then he turned around to face them. “Guess he’ll just bang on doors until he gets to the right one.”

  He straightened and put his hands on his hips, staring at the door. When the buzzer went again, Ethan let out a sigh and pushed it once more, obviously expecting it to be his father. “Hello?”

  “Mr. Collins? We’re from the Winnipeg Police Service and would like to speak with you.”

  Ethan glanced over at Makayla before pressing a buzzer to talk back to them. “I’m in apartment 2B.”

  As he unlocked the front door for them, a pounding came on his own door.

  “Open up, Ethan.”

  When the pounding came again, he moved to open it, but Bennett stopped him.

  “Wait until the cops are here as well,” he said, his voice low. “Your dad sounds a bit like he’s unhinged. I think it would be wise to have the cops witness any interactions between the two of you.”

  Makayla agreed with Bennett and was glad to see Ethan lower his hand from the doorknob. His dad pounded on the door and yelled again, but then he stopped and murmured voices could be heard through the closed door. Another knock came, this one more controlled.

  “Mr. Collins. It’s the Winnipeg police. Could you please open the door?”

  Ethan immediately turned the doorknob and swung the door wide. Makayla stared at the man who stood just beyond the two officers. She was surprised by how much he looked like his son, but she could never in a million years imagine seeing the twisted, angry, and hateful expression on Ethan’s face that his dad currently displayed.

  “I know she’s in there,” his father yelled over the shoulders of the officers, pointing an angry fist in Ethan’s direction.

  One of the officers turned back to face Ethan’s father while the other glanced at her and Bennett before addressing Ethan. “Mr. Ethan Collins?” At Ethan’s nod, he continued, “Would we be able to come in for a few minutes to speak with you?”

  28

  E t
han nodded and stepped back with a wave for them to follow him into the apartment. His father also came in, a bit more subdued after whatever the officer had said to him. There was still a storm brewing in the man’s eyes, but for now at least, he was keeping his mouth shut.

  “Your father believes that his daughter might be here with you.” The officer glanced around the living room and looked back at Ethan. “Would you object to us having a look around?”

  Ethan glanced at Bennett then nodded. “Feel free to look around as much as you need to.”

  Makayla looked at Bennett and watched as he moved to stand near the window in the dining room. He had pulled out his phone and was making a call, his gaze on the officers as they began to make their way down the hallway to where the bedrooms were. Makayla had a pretty good idea who Bennett was calling, but she really hoped that the situation didn’t escalate to the point where Ethan would need legal counsel.

  “Even if the cops don’t find anything in your apartment, that doesn’t mean she’s not here,” Ethan’s dad said as he advanced on his son. “Sierra told Elle about how the others in this apartment building are also the people that you work with and that you’re all friends. I want the cops to search everywhere so that we know that you’re not hiding her somewhere else.”

  Ethan stood his ground even as his dad got right into his face. They were nearly the same height, and Makayla could see that at one time the man had probably had a build very similar to Ethan’s, though he had obviously not kept himself in good physical shape.

  “Whether you’re able to search the rest of the building is not up to me,” Ethan said. “But I can tell you that Sierra is not anywhere in this building. She only has access to my apartment, and we got the news that she was missing when all of us were still at work.”

  “I don’t believe you for a minute,” Ethan’s dad said as he continued on a profanity-laced tirade, taking the opportunity to berate his son about things that had nothing to do with Sierra and couldn’t be further from the truth. “And what have you managed to make of yourself? Nothing. Absolutely nothing. You worked the same job since you were sixteen like you had no motivation or sense to do anything else. You’re a worthless use of space who has nothing to show for twenty-eight years of life.”