Hailee introduced her brother to Jaydon, who gave Javi a high-five handshake with a back smack. The masculine motion brought a smile to her face and she knew Javi would likely develop a pretty solid case of hero worship where Jaydon was concerned. She couldn’t blame him, though. Jaydon was freakin’ awesome.
Harrison sauntered up behind Hailee and rested a gentle hand on her shoulder. Gina was once again struck by the sweetness of their relationship. It was obvious the couple cared greatly for one another. Harrison’s body language spoke of how much he treasured Hailee, never treating her like a possession to show off or claim. His soft smile was rewarded with a look of adoration. Javi remained relaxed, revealing his respect for his sister’s boyfriend.
Jaydon repeated the manly high-five handshake hug thing with a few of the other teens, occasionally changing it up with a bump of knuckles or wave to another a few aisles up and out of reach.
“Do you mind sitting over here behind all the youth?” he asked.
“Not at all.”
“Thank you,” he whispered. Again, with that warm breath and the shivers.
“Stop doing that!” she hissed, playfully pushing him away.
“Doing what?” his low voice was nearly as bad as the whisper.
“Making me shiver with the whispering in my ear! You’re killing me here!”
“Hmm.” His voice rumbled in his throat. When their eyes met, he gave her a playful brow waggle.
She smacked his chest and bit back a laugh at the same moment the first strains of worship music filled the room. It was hard to pay attention to the opening prayer of the worship leader, but as soon as the band started she focused her whole being on the music.
Not that she could carry a tune in a bucket, but she still threw herself into the experience.
The rest of service passed in much the same way, with Jaydon occasionally excusing himself to fill one of his many roles and then slipping in quietly beside her once more.
Most surprising was her lack of anxiety through the entire service. She felt at peace here. It was strangely surreal and made her examine what the difference might be, aside from Jaydon. She’d been so focused on the music and message that she hadn’t had the time to think about herself, really.
And the message had been so good. Pastor Bennett managed to incorporate both the intellectual and emotional sides of the beautiful salvation story in a way that was utterly moving.
The service ended with the announcement that baptisms would be taking place in a month for anyone interested in making the public proclamation of faith. Gina glanced to Hailee, who shifted excitedly in her seat. She was certain the girl would sign up as soon as service was over.
Javi was quietly contemplating everything, analyzing in his studious way. Gina felt a wave of affection course through her for the precious pair.
She and Jaydon had to figure out what was going on at home with these two. They just had to. She’d never get over it if something happened to them that could have been prevented.
What do we do, Lord? Guide us in the right direction.
The wheels began turning in her mind, and the thought wouldn’t let go. She made a conscious effort to put it to the back burner of her mind on simmer so she could concentrate more fully on everything going on around her.
All over the sanctuary, parishioners were collecting their belongings and making their way out of the building. Clusters were laughing and talking and greeting one another, but within a few minutes the room was nearly empty. Jaydon had excused himself to greet people in the foyer as they left, while she took the time to make sure Hailee and Javi had plans for the afternoon.
Both gave her warm hugs before collecting their things to leave, assuring her that they did in fact have plans. Hailee hesitated briefly, indecision warring on her face. A shared look passed between them. Javi nodded slightly and they both looked to Gina expectantly.
“I’m making Easter supper. It’s not going to be anything special, really, but Mom says she’s looking forward to it. I’m trying not to get my hopes up, but…,” Hailee shifted her stance before going on. “Anyway, Javi told me what you said yesterday. I think our moms have some stuff in common. We were hoping that maybe she—or you—might be able to get through to her. She wasn’t always this way, but losing Dad really messed her up. Would…uh…would you guys maybe want to come over after Easter dinner? Maybe you could talk to her?”
They looked awkwardly hopeful. She didn’t want to diminish the light in their expressions, but it was hard to feel confident that talking to their mother would succeed in changing things. She knew from experience that only God could change an addicted, broken mess. But still. She would never be able to tell those faces no.
She felt the weight of Jaydon’s thick arm as it wrapped around her waist and tucked her closer.
“Sorry I was gone so long. Do you guys have plans for the holiday?”
Javi and Hailee both nodded and looked to Gina, who turned to meet Jaydon’s curious gaze. She repeated a summary of their request, and his face practically beamed.
“Aw, man, we would love to come by. How about Gina and I bring dessert? Is there anything else you guys need at home?”
Hailee quickly shook her head.
“No, we’re good. The owners of the mercado are really nice. They always send me home with the things they can’t sell or send back before they go bad. We have plenty in the food department.”
Gina felt a rush of relief knowing that at least they weren’t going hungry. Too many kids in this city weren’t so lucky. Hailee’s bosses had probably inferred a little of their situation and took it upon themselves to help. She made a mental note to do more of her shopping there. Small shops run by good people deserved all the business they could get.
The group decided on a time for later that evening, and Gina released all the breath in her lungs in a giant whoosh as soon as her butt hit the driver’s seat.
Jaydon grinned and leaned through the door for a quick peck before she turned the key.
“That could not have gone any better than if we’d planned it ourselves,” he proclaimed.
“No, it couldn’t. Honestly, I have to hand it to those kids. They want to fix things and help their mom. With what we know they’ve been through, I would think they’d be more afraid to speak up and let anyone get too involved. There’s no way Tonya and I would have brought anyone to where we lived.”
“Yeah, I have to say I’m surprised. But, Hailee has an unnaturally good head on her shoulders. She’s seen plenty and probably been exposed to horrible things, but she’s not letting it define her or make her afraid. She’s refusing to take the easy road, and for that, I admire her.”
“Me, too,” Gina agreed.
“She reminds me of someone else I know.” He winked.
All through the delicious Easter lunch with Jaydon and his adorably still-in-love parents, she kept thinking through what they did and didn’t know about Hailee and Javi’s home life. Maybe things weren’t quite as bad as she had been assuming. Maybe that scare with the dealer last month had been a fluke; a one-time thing. Or maybe it was worse.
Lord, please show us tonight just exactly what the situation is really like. Show us everything we need to know and give us ideas how we might help, please.
A subtle squeeze to her knee jerked her back to awareness. Shoot. She’d been deep inside her own head and had missed quite a bit of the conversation.
“I’m so sorry, I’ve had a lot on my mind. What was that?” She glanced around the cluster of people on Jaydon’s parents’ back patio and gave everyone a sheepish look.
“No worries, dear,” Vivian said, with a smile and dismissing wave. “We were just rehashing the service. Is everything okay?”
Gina smiled at the kind woman.
“Absolutely. I was thinking how good it was to see Hailee and Javi there this morning. Has Jaydon told you about them?”
Jaydon piped up. “I have. My hunch is Hailee will want to be ba
ptized next month. She was sure asking a lot of questions at youth the other night.”
Hailee’s enthusiasm warmed Gina’s heart and she agreed. “I think she will, too. I’ve offered to do some discipleship with her, and Javi seems interested in learning more as well. I’m hoping I can meet with her at least weekly.”
Everyone nodded in agreement. Gina glanced over at Nate and Anna, who she’d met upon arrival. She and Anna had immediately clicked and Gina looked forward to getting to know the sweet-but-sassy woman better. The affectionate couple took turns keeping eyes on the darling children running amok and shrieking through the yard.
Gina’s gaze flicked over to the children. Little TJ was absolutely darling. His hair curled up at the collar in that precious toddler way, his chunky little legs working overtime to keep up with his older siblings. Sophie was an absolute doll, but one look in her eyes and Gina knew she was a stinker. Any trouble the siblings created was probably her brainchild. And of course, the girl likely knew just how to get the older two boys to take the blame for it all.
She smiled as they took turns chasing and freeze-tagging one another. Seven-year-old Tyson was currently frozen, while his fraternal twin, Tate, chased Sophie. Soph dove between Tyson’s legs to unfreeze him and let out a frustrated squeal when she was tagged. Tate did a victory dance that put a frown on his sister’s face. Any minute now, Gina was certain, the child would stomp her foot and exact her revenge. Adorable.
What would it be like to have kids of her own someday? Would they have her dark hair and eyes? Or would they resemble their father?
A blurry image formed of a pair of dark haired children tearing through her grassy yard. A treehouse occupied the giant cottonwood she’d painstakingly brought back to life, and a small girl with dark auburn pigtails peered out the window, grinning. Her eyes were an eerily familiar shade of blue….
Gah! What was up with all the thinking today?! It took everything she had to shove the thoughts from her mind and refocus her attention on Jaydon’s family.
She really wanted to get to know them better and ignoring them was not the way to make a good impression. She closed the door in her mind and forced herself to concentrate on the conversation volleying around her.
Chapter 24
Jaydon
Hand in hand, Jaydon and Gina walked up the decrepit concrete stairs to the third-story apartment. He felt Gina’s nervous tension radiating off her. Did she even realize he could practically hear her worries?
She’d been distracted more often than not all day and he wondered why. Probably puzzling through everything. She’d called her mom from the truck after they dropped her car off and drove to his folks’ place, but Eva hadn’t been available tonight. He could tell that had bothered Gina.
“It’s going to be okay,” he said reassuringly.
“I know,” she practically whispered. They faced the door together and he raised a hand to knock. Before he had the chance, he heard raised voices from the other side.
They couldn’t make out the words clearly, but it had to be Hailee and her mother having it out over something. His body went tight and gut instinct screamed to bust through and fix things.
Gina squeezed his hand and, even with the tension he knew she must be feeling, he could see the set of her jaw and the determination she was working to muster. He’d never seen Gina go mama-bear on someone, but he had a feeling that Hailee and Javi just might bring it out in her.
A breath later, the door squeaked and Javi slipped through the crack. He turned and stopped in his tracks, eyes wide in surprise.
“Oh, man, I didn’t realize it was already time for you guys to come over. I wouldn’t go in there just yet,” he said, pointing with his head.
“Everything okay?”
“Yeah. Um, Ma was refusing to get out of bed. Hailee thinks she’s a little high, too, and is pissed. Mom found out we were having people over and started in on Hailee, who lost her cool, and they both started yelling. Figured I’d hang out here ‘til they cool off.”
Gina nodded. She let go of Jaydon’s hand and pulled Javi in to a hug. The boy stood rigidly, but his small smile at Jaydon said Javi knew Gina was trying to help and that it touched him.
Jaydon stood at the top of the steps, leaning against the railing, while Gina and Javi sat side by side on the top stair. The trio sat in silence a few minutes, and when the shouting inside stopped, followed by the simultaneous slamming of two doors, Jaydon knew it was almost time to go inside and see what could be done to calm things. He didn’t want to give up and leave.
“Give them a couple minutes. Mom’s probably in her room, and I’d bet Hailee’s in the bathroom. They’ll come out and pretend nothing happened.”
Less than five minutes had passed when the door opened and Hailee’s blotchy face peeked out. She only looked moderately surprised to see them all out on the stoop.
“So, I guess you got to hear some of that?”
“Only the volume, not the words,” Gina said gently.
“Sorry about that.”
“It’s okay, Hailee. I’ve been where you are.”
Jaydon marveled at how Gina was able to use tone to perfectly convey what her words didn’t. She knew exactly what to say and how to say it to relax Hailee, whose body visibly eased off some of the tension of a second ago. Some, not all. Poor girl was still wound tighter than a guitar string.
“I doubt you guys want to come in now. It’s okay, I’m not really in the mood for dessert.”
The dejection lacing Hailee’s voice pulled at Jaydon’s heart. He needed to do something. He needed to make it all better. But how?
“Hailee, we’d love to come in,” he spoke as gently as he could. “If that’s okay with your mom. Gina made the best lemon bars I’ve ever eaten, and there’s ice cream, too, if it’s not too melted.”
A shadow of a smile dragged a corner of Hailee’s mouth upward, just barely. And then, her face registered fierce resolve. She nodded, as if reaching a decision within herself, and straightened her shoulders.
“Okay, then.”
All four entered the apartment slowly. Jaydon scanned the area and took in the small living room. A lived-in couch that had probably once been really nice was along one wall, and an older flat screen on a cheap particle board unit was positioned along the wall directly across from it. There was no coffee table, and a pair of collapsible wooden TV trays stood in place of end tables. Adjacent to one of the trays and couch was an older faux-leather recliner that had seen a lot of use but still looked comfortable.
A look to his left revealed a dining area with a small square table from the late ‘90s with scuffed up natural-finish wood edges and inset with white tiles. Or, rather, once white tiles, now a little yellowed and the grout between them graying from use and age. Short, curved-back, spindled chairs that had probably once matched the table were neatly pushed in, though it appeared one had a broken cross bar between the legs and two more sported obvious signs of repair.
The kitchen was to the far left, and he noticed a hallway straight ahead that probably led to two bedrooms and a bathroom. It wasn’t bad at all, especially considering what he’d expected to see. And it was clean. Really clean.
A sinking sensation hit him smack in the gut when he realized that Hailee was probably the reason for the cleanliness. Either she’d spent a substantial amount of her study time cleaning, or she’d taken over these duties long ago and was in the habit of keeping things clean while also managing high school, an after-school job, and probably feeding herself and Javi. Too much responsibility for a sixteen-year-old whose biggest concern should be when she’d be getting a driver’s license or if her crush would ask her to the next dance.
Gina’s warm, low voice startled him from his examination of the surroundings.
“It looks nice in here, Hailee. You guys are doing a really good job.”
He scanned Hailee’s face and took in the pink tinge to the girl’s cheeks. Javi stuffed his hands in his pockets
while staring at his shoelaces.
“Thank you.”
Before anyone uttered another word, the creak of a door on the other side of the apartment rooted all their gazes to the same place. A woman only a few years older than he was emerged, smiling forcefully at the guests in her home. She’d be almost pretty if not for the hardness he saw in her glassy eyes. The woman nearly fumbled with her next step, but quickly righted herself and pasted on a smile intended to pass for charm.
“Hi! Hailee said we had people coming over. I didn’t realize it was practically a party!”
He didn’t miss the barely disguised snide undertone in her saccharin Texas twang.
Jaydon decided to step forward first, offering his hand to the woman. “We apologize for intruding on your holiday.” She accepted the hand with a polite shake before turning to Gina for the same.
“It’s fine. The kids said you were bringin’ dessert.”
“Yes, ma’am,” Gina asserted, “Lemon bars and ice cream.”
The woman looked impressed but didn’t move anything but her eyes as she took in both Gina and Jaydon suspiciously before flicking over to Javi. Her eyes narrowed for a split second at Hailee before her demeanor relaxed in false cheer.
“Wonderful. I’m sorry, I didn’t catch your names.”
“I’m Jaydon Bennett, youth pastor at Well of Hope church, and this is Gina Hernandez.”
“I’m Belinda Miller-Garcia.”
He nodded and turned to Gina. Their eyes met and he raised a brow while glancing at the bag she still carried in one hand. She nodded, almost imperceptibly, and looked to the other woman.
“Well, why don’t we go ahead and have dessert before this ice cream completely melts?” Gina held up the bag with a pretty smile.
“I’ll get the scoop and some bowls,” Hailee volunteered, scurrying off to the kitchen like a retriever racing to please its master.
While Hailee and Gina served everyone, Jaydon helped Javi move two of the dining room chairs near the couch so everyone had a place to sit. Gina and Belinda sat on either end of the couch. He’d expected Gina to sit on the end nearest the recliner where he sat, but she’d made herself a human barrier between Belinda and the kids seated in the chairs at her elbow. He fought a smile at the symbolism. Totally Gina.
Whatever Comes Our Way (Everyday Love Book 2) Page 19
