Betwixt Two Hearts (Crossroads Collection)

by Amanda Tru

  Bailey shook her head, thinking the man before her was too good to be true. “How…? Why…?”

  Camden reached out to take her hand in his, closing the two hearts in between. “Bailey, I don’t want you to date anyone but me. Ever. I couldn’t set you up with anyone else when I wanted it to be me. It doesn’t matter if we aren’t a perfect match. It doesn’t matter if we don’t share all of the same likes and interests, or if we aren’t the perfect couple on paper. I choose you. You drive me crazy, so much so that I’m crazy in love with you. I don’t want anyone but you.”

  Bailey let his hand go, transferring the origami hearts to her other hand resting where the sling positioned it. Then she reached out to touch his face. At the contact of her fingertips on the rough stubble of his cheekbone, butterflies raced through her body.

  But beneath the breathless excitement lay something even more profound. She loved him. She loved him for who he was. Even if those butterflies didn’t always visit, she loved the man. Even when he aggravated her, she loved the person. She loved the way he viewed the world, acting with deep conviction in all he did while prioritizing God and others. She loved the way he loved, and she couldn’t imagine anything better than being loved by him.

  “Camden, I love you so much,” she whispered.

  She stood to her tiptoes to meet Camden’s lips. In that moment, she knew that everything that had come before was false by comparison. It was like she’d spent her whole life thinking sequins were real diamonds. The warmth of Camden’s lips on hers launched fireworks through her heart, but it was the love beneath the surface chemistry that lit a deep passion with an unquenchable thirst.

  The kiss ended with tears running down Bailey’s face, and she held Camden as if afraid he’d disappear. “I don’t think I’ve ever felt this kind of love, but I was so afraid that you couldn’t love me back.”

  Camden held her close, pulling back only so she could see the sincerity in his face as he spoke. “Oh, Bailey, I intend to spend every day proving how much I love you. I want to be your best friend, but more than that. I want to date you, but not live with you until after I put a ring on your finger and we have a big party on a Saturday. Yes, Bailey, I want you to get used to the idea of me loving you, but you also need to know that I very much intend to marry you.”

  Bailey’s face crumpled in tears. He wants to marry me! Dear Lord, you gave me someone who wants to marry me!

  “Hey,” Camden said in concern, lifting her face up so he could read her better. “Is this a good cry or a bad cry? I didn’t mean to upset you.”

  “Oh, Camden!” Bailey gushed, throwing her arms around him. “It’s a very, very good cry. The dream-come-true type. I’m just so overwhelmed that you feel that way about me and that God has so blessed me with you.”

  Camden laughed. “You have no idea what a relief that is! I was worried that you wouldn’t want to be with me because of my job, and I wouldn’t blame you. It’s probably selfish of me to ask you to be involved with me. At first, I didn’t think I could do it.”

  “What changed your mind?” Bailey asked, curiously. He certainly didn’t seem hesitant, not that she’d let him go now even if he wanted to.

  “Israel,” Camden said simply. Taking her hand in his, Camden began walking down the trail as he spoke. “After everything that happened, Israel recognized that I was in love with you and encouraged me to not waste any more time. When I told him my doubts, he said something that shocked me. He told me that, even with everything that Marissa put him through, he wouldn’t trade one day with her. He’d loved her, and out of that love, he’d gotten Chloe. Even though things didn’t turn out how they expected and his grief seems insurmountable right now, he is glad that he loved Marissa and wouldn’t take it back for a second.”

  “It is better to have loved and lost,” Bailey murmured, thoughtfully watching two ducks at the edge of the pond.

  “That’s very true when God is the one coding your life’s program,” Camden grinned. Turning serious, he continued. “Bailey, I don’t know what tomorrow brings. Sydney assures me that everything is taken care of and that we’re safe. I know that my job comes with some degree of danger, and I cannot ever discuss any of it with you. I also know that nothing in life comes with any guarantees. For everything God has for us tomorrow, I intend to stay just like this—walking at your side if you’ll let me.”

  “I understand, Camden.” Sliding a teasing glance up his way as they walked, Bailey continued. “I think we’ll have enough to talk about with the website and plenty for me to give you a hard time about without ever mentioning your super-secret identity as a spy. I intend to hold you to that promise of being by my side. I’m not going to let you go, no matter what God brings our way.”

  At her words, Camden turned and took her in his arms once again. He kissed her, this time dipping her down and out of the way of a young boy riding his bike like a daredevil down the path.

  Suddenly, he straightened and let her go. Snatching her hand in his, he hurried down the trail. “Oh, no! We need to go to the restaurant to meet the date you arranged for me! Or maybe you could contact her and cancel? I hate to make her meet me just to tell her my girlfriend decided she really didn’t want me dating other women after all!”

  Bailey’s feet slowed despite Camden’s insistence. “Um… well, I think it’s definitely too late to cancel,” she said, casually taking out her phone. “I’d still like you to go to the restaurant and meet her.”

  “Huh?” Camden asked, dumbfounded and coming to a complete stop.

  “Oh, I’ll go with you, don’t worry,” Bailey assured. Then she smiled sheepishly. “I have a confession to make. Over the past few months, I’ve completely changed my idea about love and what makes a good match. I still see the value in a personal matchmaker who can see the picture behind the numbers, but I also see the value in your algorithm and its method. When arranging a date for you, I wanted to see the algorithm results. That’s why I submitted your profile and got us in so much trouble two weeks ago. In a way, I was cheating because I knew your method would at least narrow down the options for me to use my method. When I saw your algorithm results, I didn’t decide on a match right away. Then when Shaya contacted me, I decided to go that route because I honestly didn’t know what to do with your actual results. Now I do.”

  She clicked through her pictures on her phone, selecting the one she was looking for before handing the device to Camden. “These are your algorithm results, Camden. I took a picture as soon as I saw them. Your Betwixt profile no longer exists, but I still have those list results in a single pic. When we decided to set each other up tonight, I never considered setting you up with anyone other than the number one match on your list.”

  Camden accepted the phone in his hands. Bailey watched as he zoomed the screen in to see the words and saw the instant he could read the name. His eyes grew round, and he looked up at her in shock. “This says my best match is Bailey Whitmore.”

  Bailey nodded. “I submitted my profile at the same time I submitted yours. I intended to meet you at La Bonita Sombrero tonight as your date. Apparently, no matter how you match us, we’re meant to be together.”

  Camden laughed. Then he drew Bailey back in his arms, kissed her, and laughed again. “I love it! We both used each other’s methods and came up with the best match possible—each other! I knew I did a fantastic job on that algorithm!”

  “So, what does this mean in terms of the website?” Bailey asked, pulling him along to continue their walk as she quirked an eyebrow up at him in speculation.

  “It means that it’s running perfectly. Our clients get their best matches with you and I working together as a team. We’ll keep it the same, compromising and working together on everything.”

  “Agreed,” Bailey smiled in satisfaction. “I think we can say that we both won the contest, though this last round was definitely the grand prize.”

  Camden squeezed her hand, letting her know he wholeheartedly agre
ed.

  After having made a full circle around the pond, they ended up back at the gate, right where they’d started.

  “Let’s go do my date now,” Camden said, moving to where he’d parked his car out of sight. “I’m hungry after all that walking and kissing.”

  Bailey laughed. “Who knew confessing your undying love could make you work up such an appetite?”

  A phone rang suddenly, sending both of them scrambling to find it. Though Bailey came up empty, Camden’s hand finally appeared with the ringing phone.

  Seeing who it was, he grinned and answered it. “Yes, Elise? You’re on speaker.”

  “So?” she asked pointedly.

  Bailey leaned over and very loudly kissed Camden. “Do you hear that, Elise? That’s the sound of me kissing the man I love who just happens to love me back.”

  Excited cheering erupted on the other end, though it was so muddled they couldn’t exactly understand Elise’s actual words.

  Finally, Elise’s cheers melted down into a self-satisfied sigh, “I love it when a plan comes together!”

  Camden and Bailey looked at each other, and a thousand thoughts and questions ran through Bailey’s mind.

  “Elise, what do you mean?” Bailey asked hesitantly “Did you…?”

  “I’ll let you two go, and we’ll talk later,” Elise said quickly. “I don’t want to interrupt your time together.”

  Before either of them could object, Elise abruptly ended the call.

  Camden looked at Bailey. “You don’t really think…? All these months… The website… Sending you out here to Crossroads… Everything… It couldn’t all be a setup, right?”

  Bailey swallowed. She wished she could answer Camden with certainty, but she couldn’t. Unfortunately, she knew Elise too well, and she wouldn’t put a long-term, intricate matchmaking setup past her. Maybe Elise really had created Betwixt Two Hearts and sent Bailey to Crossroads in an elaborate matchmaking scheme to set Bailey up with Camden. Elise had never liked Dekker anyway. It was just like her to concoct a scheme so wonderfully devious and then pray it through to the end. While Bailey was familiar with Elise’s undercover cupid scheme, she never thought that she’d be on the receiving end!

  If Elise really had set them up, then Camden and Bailey had played right into her hand. Of course, Elise couldn’t have known everything and Bailey and Camden went through, but she could have hoped and prayed that they would eventually end up together.

  Was it really possible that they’d spent this entire time working to play matchmaker for others, not realizing that it was all a setup by someone playing matchmaker for them?

  Bailey shook her head. “I don’t know,” she answered honestly, still stunned about the possibility. Knowing Elise and her tendency to hide a vague answer behind a sweet smile, they probably never would know for sure.

  Camden tipped his head back and laughed, the sound of pure joy sending tingles all the way to Bailey’s fingertips. Without expressing the words, Bailey knew his thoughts must be identical to hers.

  Realizing she still carried something clenched in the palm of her hand poised in the sling, Bailey looked down at the two origami hearts nestled close to each other and smiled. She didn’t know if science, romance, or Elise deserved more credit for bringing them together. However, she did recognize God’s hand orchestrating all those pieces to bring their two hearts together.

  And for that, both Bailey and Camden were forever grateful.

  The End

  The book you just read exists because I made a mistake. After you’ve written about twenty-five books, you start to run out of character names, or you simply don’t remember the ones you’ve used. They all meld together a little, and your mind tends to follow the same patterns. I have to be careful, or my bad guys all end up with the same first name. Pretty soon, every time a reader comes across a “Bruce,” they’ll know right away what that means!

  When I wrote the first Crossroads book, Out of the Blue Bouquet, I created the Hutchins family. They were so quirky and fun, and I envisioned the entire series following the characters and the town they called home. Only after Out of the Blue Bouquet was finished did I realize that I’d made a mistake. Hutchins was not a rookie name in the world of Amanda Tru.

  I’d used the last name of Hutchins before in a book—a fun one I’d written a few years ago called The Random Acts of Cupid. The main character in it is Elise Hutchins, with the last name of Hutchins spelled exactly the same way. Had I realized my mistake earlier, I would have changed it in a heartbeat. A quick find and replace would have renamed the Hutchins family forever. However, with the first Crossroads Collection published, it was too late.

  As those who read my stories know, I can be a bit intense about the details. I work my plots like a puzzle, tying off loose ends and making sure everything fits just right. While I try never to make such mistakes, I also believe that at least some part of writing is like art. When drawing or painting, mistakes are frequent. For as long as I can remember when I’ve made an artistic mistake, I’ve told myself that little smudge was meant to be there and that I could use it to make the artwork even more beautiful. I can’t claim as to have had a one-hundred percent success rate with this philosophy, but I still hold dear the ideal that there are no mistakes in art.

  As soon as I realized what I’d done, my first instinct was to write my way out of it. If characters from two different books had the same last name, then that must mean they were related, right? I’ve loved The Random Acts of Cupid since the story appeared in my imagination, and I’ve always liked the idea of turning it into a series of some sort. However, with so many other demands and book deadlines, that idea was shelved along with countless others.

  After writing Under the Christmas Star and A Cinderella Christmas, I fully intended to take some time off. While I am extremely proud of those two books, they took a lot out of me, and my writing schedule has been extremely hectic the past year. However, my friend and formatter asked if, given the popularity of the Crossroads Collections, I intended to organize another set for Valentine’s Day. The instant he said, “Valentine’s Day,” I had a sinking feeling. I immediately recognized what book needed to be written, and unfortunately, that meant I wasn’t going to get a break!

  I very quickly outlined an entire plot that completely exonerated me. My secret mistake was safe, and readers would assume I’d brilliantly tied the two stories together in a plan I’d crafted from the beginning. No one would ever know.

  Unless I told them, of course!

  Betwixt Two Hearts was born, and less than two chaotic and stress-filled months later, it was written. I hope you enjoyed this book-that-was-never-supposed-to-be-written and that it blesses you in some way. Like Bailey, may you encounter the real and living God, and may He carry you through the minefields of your own making. After all, when God is the artist, there truly are no mistakes He can’t make beautiful.

  If you would like to read Elise’s story in The Random Acts of Cupid, visit the following link:

  amazon.com/dp/B00B3EHCAI

  Author of Betwixt Two Hearts

  An author should like the heroine in her own book. Unfortunately, I did not like Bailey much at all at the beginning of the book, and there wasn’t a whole lot I could do about it. My characters are quite real in my own mind, and I couldn’t change Bailey on the page to make her something she wasn’t in “real life.” Luckily, Bailey didn’t stay the same person as she was at the beginning, and I hope I did her story justice as she encountered who God really is and she gave her life to be dictated on His terms.

  As the story went on, I grew to love who Bailey was becoming. I felt relieved when she realized how wrong she’d been about Dekker and God. I cheered her on as she bravely and intelligently protected Camden at risk to her own life. I was touched as she asked Camden’s opinion on a decision she normally would have made herself. And I felt proud as she took the risk of using Camden’s methods, rather than her own, to claim her own match. S
he was still spunky Bailey, but her life had new purpose and value.

  Just as God deals with us, He didn’t intend Bailey to stay as she was. He guides us through our experiences in a way that ever changes us to be more like Jesus. The moment of salvation doesn’t make us perfect, but it sets us on the path to better glorify and serve the One who created it all.

  Though Bailey’s story was a focal point, it isn’t the only spiritual message in the book. The characters struggle with deep spiritual issues that don’t necessarily have easy right or wrong answers, but it is still good to think them through. None of the characters in “Betwixt Two Hearts” stayed the same, but grew in their understanding of love and forgiveness.

  Maybe it’s a ridiculous hope, but I wish for you the same. I don’t want you to be the same person who read the first lines of this book. My prayer is that you connected with some spiritual truth embedded in a fictional story and that it spoke to you in some way, drawing you closer in your walk with God as you better understand the relationship betwixt your heart and His.

  I challenge you to read through the study guide below with a group, or simply on your own. May these questions below prompt you to, like Bailey, make your exit more memorable than your arrival!

  1. Did you like Bailey and Camden at the beginning of the book? What did you or didn’t you like?

  How did Bailey and Camden change in the book? What caused the changes?

  2. How has God changed you? What were you like before, and how has God brought about the changes?

  Ezekiel 36:26, 2 Corinthians 3:18, Romans 12:2, 2 Corinthians 5:17

  What do you think you still need to work on for your life to better reflect Jesus?