Triumphant Love: A Christian Romance (The True Love Series Book 4)

by Juliette Duncan

  “We can always have fish.” Eleanor leaned against him and lifted her eyes.

  Telford placed his arm around her shoulders and gave her a squeeze. “Yes, we could.”

  Tessa shook her head. One day she’d get them to try something different.

  They placed their orders. Ben chose the Seared Kangaroo Fillet with fresh raspberries and char grilled spring onions. Tessa chose the Smoked Duck Breast with potato gallet and glazed baby carrots. Telford and Eleanor both chose the Fish of the Day, which was a Pan Fried Coral Trout with kipfler potatoes, broccolini and truss cherry tomatoes.

  “I’m not sure about Coral Trout. Would have preferred Barramundi.” Telford said, the playful grin returning to his face.

  Tessa glared at him before bursting out in laughter. “Whatever.” Her smile quickly slipped from her face. The last time she’d heard that word it’d come out of Jayden’s mouth when they were in New Zealand, the day before he disappeared. It was like it happened yesterday. Jayden stood in the doorway of their hotel room, engrossed in his phone, while Neil waited for him to leave for their snowboarding lesson with Eversley. Jayden’s attitude was so bad Ben had come close to hitting him. And then came the ‘whatever’ word. Tessa let out a slow breath. It wasn’t what she wanted to remember tonight.

  “Are you all right, dear?” Eleanor leaned forward and touched Tessa’s wrist.

  Tessa drew a slow breath and steadied herself before meeting her mother’s gaze. “Yes, I just had a sudden flashback, that’s all.”

  “Jayden?” Telford asked.

  Tessa nodded.

  “We wondered how you were both holding up,” Eleanor said.

  Ben slipped his arm around Tessa’s shoulder. “We’ve survived.” Ben’s deep voice was steady and controlled, but more subdued than normal. Yes, they’d survived, but only just. “Tessa organised an impromptu lunch at our house after the working bee. It helped.”

  “That’s good to hear.” Eleanor gave them both a soft smile. “He’ll be home soon, I’m sure of it.”

  “You sound just like Tessa.” Ben shook his head as he let out a small chuckle. “I don’t know how you can both be so confident.”

  “I guess we’re just hopeful, that’s all. Nobody really knows what’s going to happen with him apart from God, but we can keep on praying, and asking God to keep working on him. I’m sure that one day he will come home. We just hope and pray it’ll be sooner rather than later.”

  “Yes, but he’s got a girlfriend now.”

  “A girlfriend?” Telford’s eyebrows waggled.

  “I told you, Telford. Don’t you remember?” An expression holding a hint of frustration flashed across Eleanor’s face.

  “Can’t say I do.”

  Tessa drew her eyebrows together and looked at her mother. Is something wrong with Dad? He seems very forgetful of late.

  Eleanor averted her gaze, as if she didn’t want to acknowledge Tessa’s unspoken question.

  “Yes, well, he’s got a girlfriend.” Ben shifted in his seat.

  “A bit young for one of them, I’d say.” Telford’s eyebrows waggled again.

  “Sounds like he’s grown up a lot, Ben.” Eleanor’s voice was soft and warm. “We might not recognise him anymore.”

  Ben sighed. “I know. That’s what worries us.”

  “We’ll know him, Ben.” Tessa squeezed his hand. “He’ll just be older, that’s all.”

  A waiter stopped by their table with drinks and a share platter for entrée. After he’d left, Telford held up his glass. “Let’s drink to Jayden’s sixteenth birthday.”

  Tessa clinked her glass with the other three, praying silently for Jayden as a wave of thankfulness that at least Dad had remembered how old Jayden was swept over her.

  Chapter 6

  As Jayden pushed his cart into the pet food aisle, he glanced towards the front of the store and caught his breath. Mom stood near the register, talking with Charmian. His pulse quickened as he paused and peered down the aisle. Had Mom remembered his birthday?

  He left the cart and strolled as casually as he could to the front.

  Charmian looked up and called him over, extending her arm.

  Kathryn lowered her gaze to the floor as he approached.

  “Hey Mom. How are you doing?” Jayden sidled up to her and placed his hand lightly on her shoulder. His hand recoiled at the bones protruding through her thin shirt.

  She raised her head slowly and gave him a weak smile, not the flashy over-the-top smile she used to give him, instead, one that seemed like it was almost too much effort. “I’m doing all right, Jay. Good to see you.” Her eyes lit up for a second before she lowered them again and reached inside her purse.

  Jayden held his breath. Maybe she’s remembered.

  But instead of pulling out a gift, she pulled out a tissue. His shoulders sagged. Why wasn’t he surprised?

  “Take a break if you’d like,” Charmian said, touching his wrist lightly.

  “Thanks.” He gave Charmian a grateful smile, and then turned his gaze to Mom. “Would you like to have breakfast, Mom?”

  Kathryn’s eyes lit up. “That would be lovely, Jay.”

  “No problem, Mom. Let’s go.”

  As he placed his arm lightly around Mom’s shoulders and led her out of the store, he glanced at Charmian and gave her a backwards wave.

  “So how are you really doing, Mom?” Jayden asked as they sat at a table towards the back of the café he often frequented with Angie. He steadied his gaze as he tried hard not to let his disappointment show. How could his own mother have forgotten his sixteenth birthday? So much for all her promises.

  “I’m okay. Buck’s still looking after me.”

  Jayden shook his head. He knew exactly what that meant. He’d seen her latest lot of bruises, even though she’d obviously tried to cover them.

  “Why don’t you leave him, Mom? I can make room for you at my place.”

  “Oh Jay, if only I could.”

  Jayden gritted his teeth. “I don’t see why it’s so hard.”

  Mom’s eyes narrowed. “You don’t understand, Jay.”

  Jayden raised an eyebrow. “Obviously not.” He shook his head and let out a heavy sigh. “You’d better eat before it gets cold.” He nodded towards her sausage and egg sandwich. “Looks like you could do with some good food.”

  Mom shrugged as she lifted the sandwich and took a bite.

  Jayden picked at his pancakes, but his appetite had disappeared the moment Mom turned up.

  When Jayden returned to the store a short while later, Charmian stepped away from the register and gave him a bear hug. “You did the right thing leaving her, Jayden. She would have pulled you down with her if you’d stayed.”

  Jayden’s eyes misted over as a heavy weight settled on his heart. He gulped, wiping his eyes quickly. “I know. But it’s still hard. I just wish she’d leave him.” He struggled to hold himself together.

  “We all do. Trust me.” Charmian gave him another hug before reaching down below the register. She pulled out a small package and with a warm smile on her face, gave it to him. “Happy seventeenth birthday, Jayden. It’s not much, but I hope you like it. The boys helped me choose it.”

  Jayden’s eyes widened. “How did you know?”

  “You wrote your date of birth on the application when you started here.”

  “Oh.” He gulped. The day and month were correct, but the year…he’d have to come clean one day. “Thank you.” He smiled gratefully at her and took the parcel.

  “The boys have been asking when you’re going to come around.” She chuckled. “I told them you had a girlfriend now, so you might not be too interested in seeing them anymore.”

  ‘That’s not true, Charmian. I’d love to see them.”

  “Well, feel free to come over whenever you want. I guess you’ll be seeing Angela tonight?”

  Jayden nodded. “Yes, I’m going there right after work today.”

  “They’re good peo
ple, the Morgan’s.” Her expression grew serious, and she stepped closer. “I heard about the other daughter. Is it true what they’re saying?”

  Jayden sucked in a breath. Here we go. All week he’d been getting sly looks from a number of customers, although none had actually said anything to him directly. But they knew about Jess being pregnant, no doubt about it. He’d have to tell her. “Yes, Charmian, it’s true. Jess is pregnant.”

  Charmian shook her head and tutted. “The poor girl. How’s she coping?”

  Jayden shrugged. “Angie says she’s doing okay. She’s back at school.”

  Charmian raised an eyebrow. “Where you should be, young man.”

  Jayden let out a resigned sigh. “I know. I’ll go back one day.”

  An elderly woman, one of their regular customers, hobbled into the store.

  Charmian smiled and waved to the woman, who, despite having to walk with a cane, was always well dressed and wore a full face of make-up. “Good morning, Mrs. Johnson.”

  “Good morning, dear.” Mrs. Johnson’s kind face broke into a wrinkly smile.

  “I’d better get on.” Jayden lifted his package and smiled at Charmian. “Thanks for this.”

  “My pleasure, Jayden. Have a great day.”

  He wandered back to the boxes of dog food and began stocking again. If only Mom was like Charmian. But she wasn’t, and he just had to accept it. At least Dad and Tessa hadn’t forgotten his birthday. A parcel had turned up yesterday with a framed photo of Bindy and Sparky, along with a birthday card. He’d almost been tempted to jump on a plane and go home. He would have, if it hadn’t been for Angie.

  The rest of the morning, Jayden checked the time almost every ten minutes or so. Four hours had never seemed so long. Finally twelve o’clock came around and he was able to leave. He didn’t know why they’d even bothered opening. Apart from Mrs. Johnson, they’d only had two other customers. Seemed everyone was at the Saturday markets this week.

  Jayden grabbed his bag and gift from the lunch room and said goodbye to Charmian, who was closing off the register. “See you Monday, Charmian, and thanks again.” He held up the gift and gave her a wave.

  As he stepped outside into the clean, fresh air, Jayden looked expectantly left, then right. Angie hadn't said she'd pick him up, but he hoped she would. He could ride his bike out to the ranch, but it'd better if he went with Angie. His heart skipped a beat every time he thought of her, but now she was back at school, he could only see her on weekends and on Wednesday nights at Bible Study. If he was at school, he’d see her every day, but he couldn’t afford to quit his job, so that wasn’t going to happen.

  He’d just started walking when a car horn sounded. He turned and smiled as Angie’s silver Ford Focus pulled up beside him. She stretched across to the passenger side and opened the door.

  “Hey Jayden, thought I might catch you. Happy birthday!”

  He jumped into the car. “Thanks. Do I get a birthday kiss?” He leaned the side of his head towards her and waited. With proper kissing off limits, they’d agreed a cheek kiss would be okay, but it was killing him. She was wearing the perfume he’d bought to celebrate their one month anniversary. Charmian had suggested it. Not that Charmian really knew what perfume girls liked because she had all boys, but he didn’t have a clue. Seemed Angie liked it though, so it must have been all right. At least she was wearing it. But the smell of it only made him want to hold her. He held his head still, waiting. Her finger touched his chin. His heart thumped as she slowly turned his face around until their eyes met. Her lips were so close. She leaned closer until their lips touched. Her kiss was soft and tender.

  “Just because it’s your birthday.” Angie’s eyes sparkled, and then she smiled. Not just an ordinary smile, but one that lit up her face, making him want to pull her close and hold her tight. Jayden's hands began to sweat. He was falling in love. His heart beat faster. How was he going to keep their agreement?

  Angie laughed. “What’s with you, Jayden? Come on, let’s get out of here.” She clicked her seatbelt on, put the car into gear, and pulled out onto the road. All the way back to her place she chatted, but all Jayden could think about was how much he loved her.

  When they pulled into the long driveway that led up to the house, Angie stopped the car and looked at him. “You’ve hardly said a word, Jayden. Is something wrong?”

  Jayden looked down and fiddled with his hands. He couldn’t tell her he loved her. Not yet. What if she laughed at him? He lifted his head and looked into her eyes. “Nothing’s wrong, Angie. Just thinking, that’s all.”

  “Are you sad?”

  “Kind of. I saw Mom today. She didn’t remember it was my birthday.”

  “You poor thing.” Angie’s face softened.

  “But Charmian gave me a present.” Jayden opened his bag and pulled it out. “Guess I should open it.”

  “Go on then.”

  He returned it to the bag. “Nuh, I’ll do it later.”

  “Okay.” Her eyes lit up as another huge smile appeared on her face. “You’ll never guess what I’ve got you.”

  “Give me a clue?”

  Angie laughed. “No, you can guess.” She eased off the clutch and inched the car up the deeply rutted gravel driveway. Within a couple of minutes they were pulling into the garage alongside Mr. Morgan’s white SUV, making her Ford Focus look even tinier than it was. Jayden still hadn’t guessed what his present was.

  Mrs. Morgan was pulling a pizza out of the oven as Angie and Jayden entered the kitchen a few moments later.

  “Smells great, Mom.” Angie gave her mom a peck on the cheek and swung her bag off her shoulder.

  “Thanks sweetie.” Bethany Morgan placed the pizza on a trivet, wiped her hands on her apron before taking it off, and extended her arms to Jayden. “And happy birthday, Jayden.”

  Her smile was the same as Angie’s, warm and friendly, and apart from Angie, and maybe Charmian, Mrs. Morgan was the only other person Jayden was happy to hug. He always felt welcome here in Mrs. Morgan’s kitchen, the hub of the sprawling house where the whole family gathered, but today, no one else was about, although music filtered down from somewhere upstairs.

  Jayden stepped into Mrs. Morgan’s arms and returned her hug. “Thank you, Mrs. Morgan.”

  “My pleasure, Jayden. And you’re just in time for lunch. Angela, can you call the others?”

  “Sure.” Angie disappeared upstairs, leaving Jayden alone with Mrs. Morgan.

  He stood awkwardly, not really knowing what to do. Angie was always with him, but Mrs. Morgan began chatting just like Angie did, and told him to pull up a stool and asked if he’d like a drink, and then asked how work was this morning, and before he realized it, he was telling her about Mom’s visit to the store.

  “Sounds like she’s in a bad way, Jayden. It’s a sad situation, from what I hear.”

  He drew a breath and wrapped his hands around his glass of soda, struggling to control the sudden wave of sadness that hit him. All of a sudden he had the urge to confide about how he was feeling, but the sound of voices coming closer stopped him. Another time, maybe.

  “Yeah, she’s pretty messed up.”

  “We pray for her every day, just like we pray for you. No situation is so bad that God can’t fix it.” Mrs. Morgan gave him another smile that tugged at his heart. How could she do this in just a matter of minutes? He drew in a steadying breath and finished his drink, just as Angie, Jess and Simon entered the kitchen.

  “Where’s your father?” Mrs. Morgan asked of no one in particular.

  “He’s coming.” Angie pulled out a stool and sat beside Jayden.

  “We know what that means.” Mrs. Morgan rolled her eyes and gave a small chuckle.

  “No, he said he’d be right down.”

  “And here I am.” Mr. Morgan strolled in and placed his hands on Mrs. Morgan’s shoulders as she stood in front of the kitchen counter slicing a pizza. “Let me do that, Beth. It smells great.”

  M
rs. Morgan stood aside, allowing him to take over while she tossed the salad.

  “I believe birthday wishes are in order, Jayden.” Mr. Morgan glanced up and looked towards him. “Any plans for the day?”

  Jayden glanced at Angie. “We were thinking of going for a ride.”

  “If that’s okay, Dad?” Angie stole a cherry tomato from the salad and popped it into her mouth.

  “Can I come?” Simon asked, looking up from his iPad, sounding quite eager.

  Angie glared at him.

  “Great idea,” Mr. Morgan replied. “Maybe you’d like to go too, Jess?”

  Jessica shook her head violently as she slapped her hand over her mouth. She slid off the stool and raced out of the room.

  Jayden’s stomach churned at the sound of her vomiting.

  “She’s having a rough time of it, isn’t she?” Mr. Morgan glanced towards the downstairs bathroom before turning his attention to the next pizza.

  “Yes, poor dear,” Mrs. Morgan paused, drawing a breath, “but going for a ride might do her good.”

  Jayden managed another quick sideways glance at Angie. She gave a small shrug as their eyes met briefly. They were going to be chaperoned, like it or not.

  Chapter 7

  “Lunch was great, thank you, Mrs. Morgan.”

  “My pleasure, Jayden. Glad you enjoyed it.” Mrs. Morgan had begun collecting the dirty plates off the outdoor table and was about to collect his.

  Jayden’s eye was on the last remaining slice of meat lover’s pizza, but he held back, not wanting to appear rude in front of Angie’s family. Besides, he’d already had more than Simon, and that was saying something. Angie’s fourteen-year-old brother certainly had a good appetite for a small dude.

  “Go on, have it.” Mr. Morgan chuckled. “It’s your birthday, after all.”

  Jayden looked up, his eyes widening. “Really?”

  “Yes, go for it.”

  “Thanks, Mr. Morgan.” Jayden reached for the slice and popped it onto his plate, but Simon’s eyes were on him. Jayden let out a small sigh. He’d have to share it. He lifted his gaze and looked at Simon. “Want half?”