“I can understand that, dear. Many people believe that, but it doesn’t mean it’s right. The Bible says that humankind is created by God and made in His image. He knows each of us intimately and it grieves Him when people choose to live their lives without Him. Loving Him and having a relationship with Him isn’t a crutch; it’s the only way to have a truly meaningful life. I’m sure you’ve heard the quote, ‘There’s a God-shaped vacuum in the heart of each man which cannot be satisfied by any created thing but only by God the Creator, made known through Jesus Christ’?”
“I think I’ve heard it,” Tiffany said. “It’s hard for me to let go of what I’ve believed for so long, but I somehow think that the God-shaped vacuum inside of me is wanting to be filled.”
“My dear girl, that’s wonderful.” Ruth smiled as she squeezed her hand. “Giving your life to God isn’t something you should do lightly. It’s a life-changing decision, but one you’ll never regret.”
“Will you explain to me what it involves?” Tiffany couldn’t believe she was having this conversation. Since leaving the church when she started dating Steve, religion had meant nothing to her, but something was happening inside her she couldn’t ignore, like an awakening of sorts, and all of a sudden she had an urge, a need, to know more about God.
“With pleasure.” Ruth grinned. “I suggest we set aside some time each day you come here, and we can study the Bible together. I don’t want you making a decision before you’re ready, but I sense God is drawing you to Himself, and if you have an open heart, I don’t think it will be long. Can I pray for you, my dear?”
Tiffany wiped her eyes and nodded.
Ruth placed her hand lightly on Tiffany’s back and began. “Lord God, thank You for my precious friend, Tiffany. She’s such a special woman and I know You love her dearly. Open the eyes of her heart that she might see You. Let her see that giving her life to You isn’t a sign of weakness, but instead, it’s like coming home. Wrap Your arms around her and fill her with Your peace as she seeks for truth. I pray all these things in Jesus’ precious name. Amen.”
Tiffany raised her head and hugged Ruth as she fought back tears. “Thank you. I appreciate that so much.”
“You’re more than welcome, my dear. Now, shall we make a start?”
“Yes, please. But before we do, let me make another coffee for us both.”
“Great idea! And bring out the carrot cake when you return.”
“Now that’s an even better idea.” Tiffany laughed as she stood and picked up the tray. “I’ll be right back.”
“Take your time. There’s no hurry.”
Tiffany walked back inside the house to the kitchen that was larger than her entire home. She’d always admired the Italian marble counter tops and the top-end European appliances, items she would never be able to afford, but today she barely noticed them as she poured two mugs of fresh coffee. Everything inside her was tingling with anticipation now that she’d admitted her need. She couldn’t wait to start her study with Ruth.
Returning soon after with fresh mugs of coffee and a slice of carrot cake each, Tiffany sat beside Ruth and waited eagerly for her lesson to begin.
As Ruth shared the gospel message with her that day, Tiffany knew that her life was about to change.
Chapter 22
At work, Marcus was filling in a spreadsheet and scratched his head. Some of the estimated costs were higher than expected, mainly under the miscellaneous expense column. It didn’t sit right with him.
Pressing his finger to the intercom button on his phone, he spoke to his secretary. “Stephanie, can you see if Mr. Waitts is available to come in this afternoon for a brief meeting?”
“Yes, Mr. Alcott. Certainly. I’ll call right now.”
“Thanks, Stephanie. You’re the best.”
“The best? Really?” came a voice at the door of his office.
Marcus looked up and groaned. Sally was peeking through the crack in the door.
He kept his face as blank as possible. Since Sally tended not to understand facial cues easily, he didn’t want her thinking he was pleased to see her, but he also didn’t want to offend her entirely.
“Sally, do you have business to discuss?” he asked in a business-like manner.
“Of course, I’m all business,” she replied as she pushed the door open and invited herself in. Her hips swayed suggestively as she stepped forward.
Marcus sat back in his chair and folded his arms, fixing her with a steady gaze. “Have your supervisor bring me anything that’s necessary. You know I don’t work directly with employees since that would mean going over their supervisor’s head. That’s not the way we do things here, Sally. We follow that command structure.”
“Well, my business isn’t entirely work related,” she said, batting her dark lashes.
A small breath blew from his mouth. His attempts at remaining neutral were fading fast and he just wanted her out of his office, but instead, she slinked closer and sat across from him, crossing her legs so that a flash of thigh was obvious.
“Sally, this isn’t appropriate.”
“What? I’m not allowed to visit a friend?” she asked, rolling her bottom lip out in a fake pout.
“I’m going to ask you a straightforward question,” he said, leaning forward and placing his elbows on his desk.
“Okay, go for it. I’m an honest person,” she replied, also leaning forward, giving him an eyeful of cleavage.
Marcus’s gaze jerked up and he cleared his throat. “Good. Tell me the truth. Were you at the charity ball on Saturday night?”
Sally’s face went blank. Several beats ticked by before she finally responded. “Well, I said I’d be honest, so you should know.” A coy smile flitted across her lips. “Of course, I was there. I wanted to see you receiving all those honours.”
His suspicions had been correct. Sally really had followed him to the ball. Anger seething inside him, he took some deep breaths to avoid saying things he might regret. “You need to leave my office, immediately, and please don’t return. This behaviour is not okay, Sally. It’s deeply inappropriate. Can’t you see that?”
“I don’t understand.” She crossed her arms and frowned.
“I’m uncomfortable with your behaviour. You need to leave me and my mother alone, okay? It’s not okay to follow me outside the office and flirt with me at work or anywhere else,” he repeated.
She glanced away but didn’t move. His response had hurt her, but he couldn’t allow himself to be sensitive to her feelings just then. He had to be firm. She was not in a healthy state of mind, it seemed, but he couldn’t condone this behaviour. Especially in the workplace.
“Well, I understand,” she said, standing. “You just haven’t realised yet that I’m the one for you. You haven’t recognised the love we could share, but I have. It’s only a matter of time before you do, too. And when you do, you’ll be begging for me to come back to you.”
With those words, she finally turned and walked away slowly, pausing to look over her shoulder, as if giving him a chance to call after her, beg her to stop, to come back to him.
She really believed what she was saying.
Chills ran down his back and his gut churned. The woman was unstable. How could she possibly believe they were supposed to be together?
Sally needed help, but his mother had tried before and she’d refused. He felt at a loss. He just wanted her out of his life.
As important as forgiveness was, stalking was another matter altogether. Sally was growing erratic. She’d followed him to the charity ball. How had she even managed to get a ticket? Had she stolen one? Or had she saved every penny from every paycheck to buy one? The charity ball was not an inexpensive event. The whole point was to raise money.
Redirecting his thoughts, Marcus focused on the best part of the ball. Tiffany.
A buzz from his intercom disturbed his thoughts. It was his secretary advising him that Mr. Waitts would arrive within the hour. Marcus busied hims
elf prepping everything for the meeting and for a while, he forgot about both Sally and Tiffany.
He had a lot on his mind. Between the contract with the business, his feelings for Tiffany, and trying to sort out what to do about Sally, he felt overwhelmed, so after sorting the issue with the budget, which proved to be nothing more than an incorrectly inputted figure, he decided not to go straight home. He called his mother and told her he would be a little late.
“But I have something exciting to tell you,” she said, disappointment ringing in her voice.
“I’ll be back before you go to bed. I just need to do something,” he said as he held his phone between his shoulder and ear while packing up his computer.
“Alright then, but don’t be too late,” she said, resigned.
Marcus found her tone somewhat strange. Normally his mother didn’t mind so much when he was late, but she seemed extra bothered about it today. He wondered what the exciting news was and decided he’d better not dally too long.
Hurrying out of the office, he prayed he wouldn’t bump into Sally, and after getting into his BMW, he headed directly for the cemetery where Bree’s body lay. Normally he visited once a week. He knew she wasn’t there, but her grave was a tangible thread between them, and visiting helped him cope. Kind friends had suggested he decrease his visits to speed up the healing process, but it wasn’t easy to do that. And now, with his growing feelings for Tiffany, he needed to visit Bree’s grave more than ever.
The cemetery overlooked the ocean, and as darkness drew in, he paused to breathe in the salty sea air. Below, waves crashed against the rocks and seagulls squawked overhead. Bree had loved the ocean, one of the reasons she’d chosen to be buried here. How he missed her. He walked on, and reaching her grave, stopped and stood before the headstone.
But for the first time, he found it wasn’t Bree he needed to talk to. It was God. After spending a few moments at her grave, he returned to the cemetery’s entrance. Sitting on a bench seat, gazing out at the ocean with wind whipping through his hair, he unloaded his heart to God.
By the time he ended, he felt a deep sense of peace. Although he had no idea how his future would unfold, he knew he could trust his Creator to be with him and guide him in every aspect of his life.
When he arrived home and his mother told him that Tiffany had given her life to the Lord, he uttered a prayer of thanks while a wave of emotion rushed through him. Could this be God answering his prayers already? Was there a chance their friendship could develop into something more? He dared to hope it might.
Chapter 23
Two days had passed since Tiffany had given her heart to the Lord. She couldn’t explain it fully, but she felt different inside. Ruth had told her that when she said yes to Jesus, not only were her sins forgiven and she was free from condemnation, but she also received the Holy Spirit, and from that moment on, her life would begin to change from the inside out. She already felt that happening. The Bible had started to come alive for her, and she found she was eager to read it more and more as the words spoke to her heart.
When she told her parents that she’d given her life to Christ, they were overjoyed and said they’d been praying for her every day since she stopped going to church.
Tiffany was leaving Mrs. Honeycutt’s home just before midday when her phone rang. She fumbled in her bag, and when she pulled it out, her eyes widened. It was Marcus. She swallowed hard before answering, “Hello?”
“Tiffany, it’s Marcus.” His voice was deep and smooth and sent a ripple of anticipation through her.
“Hi! How are you doing?” She cringed and rolled her eyes. Couldn’t she come up with anything better than that?
“I’m doing well, thank you. I hope this isn’t a bad time, but I wanted to ask you something.”
“Okay…” she responded.
“Would you and your children like to join my mum and me for dinner on Friday evening?”
She blinked, speechless. Marcus was asking her to dinner? And not just her. Mike and Polly as well. Was she dreaming? She was too startled by his invitation to respond immediately.
“Are you there?” he asked.
“Y-yes,” she replied, quickly gathering her composure. “Dinner sounds great. I’d love to join you, and the kids will be thrilled.”
“Tell them to bring their swimsuits. They’re more than welcome to use the pool.”
“They’ll be so excited,” she said, trying without success to keep her voice steady.
“Great! Shall we make it six o’clock?”
“Sounds good to me.”
“Oh, there’s another thing…” He sounded a little unsure of himself. “Mum didn’t go into details, but she mentioned that you prayed with her and that you accepted Jesus. I’m so happy for you, Tiffany, and I was wondering if you’d like to come to church with me on Sunday.”
Goodness! This was almost too much. Marcus Alcott, handsome billionaire, had not only invited her and her kids to dinner, but to church as well. She couldn’t believe it. But she couldn’t allow herself to be distracted by romantic notions. He was most likely just being kind. Her parents had invited her to attend church with them, but if she were honest, going with Marcus was way more appealing. Throwing caution to the wind, she accepted.
“I’d love to go with you, and I’m sure the kids will enjoy it as well. Thank you so much for inviting us.”
“Wonderful. Then I’ll see you on Friday and we can talk about Sunday then. Does that work for you?” His voice was soft now.
“Yes, it’s perfect, thank you.”
After the call ended, Tiffany sat in her car in a daze. Where had her resolve gone? How had she so quickly accepted his invitations? Despite the chemistry between them, she’d determined not to allow herself to fall for him. They were from different worlds. How could anything eventuate between them? And yet, she felt a sense of peace flowing through her. Is this the peace Ruth talked about, Lord? Is it truly okay for me to have accepted Marcus’s invitation?
She didn’t receive a response, but she would have been surprised if she had. God didn’t talk to people directly these days, did He? It was all new to her, this praying thing, but she didn’t think He did. Not out loud, anyway. Closing her eyes, she continued to pray.
I’m out of my depth here, Lord, and I have no idea of where this might go, but I ask You to lead and guide me and give me wisdom. I don’t want to be hurt again, and I don’t want my children to be hurt, either. But if You arranged this, thank You! I honestly can’t believe it. It’s beyond my wildest dreams, and even if Marcus only wants to be friends and nothing more, it’s still amazing.
Starting her engine, she headed back to the office on cloud nine.
On Friday evening, Tiffany was corralling the kids into the car when Polly looked up at her and said in her sweet, innocent voice, “Mummy, you look beautiful tonight.”
“Thank you, sweetheart.” Tiffany felt her cheeks warm. She’d only put a little blusher and lip gloss on and put her hair up, but Polly had obviously noticed. Although she’d reminded herself it was not a date, it was simply dinner with her employer and her client, she sensed that it was actually more than that. Or it could be. Why else would he have invited her? Something tangible had definitely happened between them on the night of the ball that she couldn’t deny or ignore. She just hoped she wasn’t about to get hurt again.
“Your hair is really shiny too. You look pretty,” Polly continued.
Tiffany bent down and hugged her. There was something about Polly’s innocence that brought tears to her eyes. Despite all she’d been through, she was such a well-adjusted, happy little girl. And she was really into shiny hair these days since her friend gave her glittery hairspray. Tiffany blinked back tears and stifled a chuckle.
Arriving at the estate, Tiffany hesitated. She felt uncomfortable driving into the circular driveway and parking her old Hyundai in front of the main entrance, but that’s what Marcus had told her to do. She was his guest, he’d said. P
ark out front. Okay… she stopped the car under the portico.
“Is this one of those fancy hotels where a doorman comes out and parks the car for us?” Mike asked excitedly, leaning forward in his seat.
Tiffany held back a chuckle. “No, it’s not.” She didn’t say she’d be embarrassed for anyone else to drive her car, but she thought it. “Mr. Alcott told me to park out here. I normally park around the back when I come to look after his mother.”
“Can we go swimming right away?”
Tiffany turned her head and glared at him. “I told you to be on your best behaviour. You can go swimming when Mr. Alcott says you can, and not before. And don’t go asking him, okay?”
Mike slumped back against the seat. “Okay.”
“Come on then, let’s get out, and make sure you don’t touch anything.”
“We won’t,” both children said simultaneously.
“Good.” She’d had a long talk with them about their manners and not touching anything in the house, but she was anxious about them breaking one of Ruth’s Ming vases or knocking into Marcus’s marble statues. They wouldn’t do it on purpose, but they were kids, and accidents happened. But she didn’t want them walking on eggshells all night, either. It was awkward for all three of them.
They climbed out of the car and Tiffany locked it, more out of habit than anything. No one would want to steal her car in this neighbourhood, that was for sure. Polly slipped her hand into hers and walked close beside her, but Mike walked one step behind, as if he wanted to maintain a bit of independence. Tiffany could understand that. She probably would have done the same in his shoes. Stepping onto the flagstones outside the double front door, a wave of apprehension swept through her. What were they doing here? Maybe they should turn around and go home. Her heart thudded in her throat.
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