by Lisa Heaton
“You better be glad your boyfriend’s gone.”
Chloe came into the room and stepped into her father’s waiting arms. “He was screaming at me.”
Sophie stood and stared at the pair for a second. “Are you kidding? He never screamed. He matched your tone, but he wasn’t screaming.”
“I don’t care what he was doing.” Kevin’s tone was abrupt and his face beet red. “I’m not going to let any man talk to my kid like that.”
“You weren’t here, Kevin. Chloe was rude and disrespectful the entire evening. She was baiting him the whole night.”
Kevin said nothing in reply to that.
“She was hateful to him, and he never said a word. It was when she started talking to me so disrespectfully that he spoke up. Only then.”
Sophie could see that Kevin was torn. He wanted to remain on Chloe’s side, but that hardly served his ultimate cause.
He turned to Chloe. “Is that true? Were you disrespectful to your mom?”
Chloe rolled her eyes. “Only because he was here.”
Sophie said, “Funny how cool you thought he was until you found out your dad left Jamie.”
Kevin turned to Sophie. “I’m sorry. I didn’t get the whole story.”
“You know I would never allow anyone to mistreat Chloe.”
“I do know that.” He took a step closer to Sophie. “I’m just worried about this guy’s temper. After what happened at the restaurant and now this, I worry about you.”
“What happened at the restaurant?” Chloe waited, and when no one responded, she said it louder. “What happened at the restaurant?”
“Nothing,” Kevin said. “Josh and I had words, that’s all.” He reached for Chloe’s hand. “Give your mom and me a minute.”
Chloe left, and Kevin took Sophie by the shoulders. “I don’t want you to get hurt.”
She took a step back. “He would never hurt me.”
“I saw the look in his eyes that night. It was frightening.”
“Yeah, he saw the look in yours, too. It was infuriating.” Sophie just shook her head. “He’s nothing but a nice guy. Between the two of you scheming,” she pointed toward the hallway indicating Chloe, “no wonder he’s upset.”
Kevin shrugged. “It’s not scheming that I’m trying to get my family back.”
“I think you should leave now.”
He nodded. “Okay, but just know I’m here if you need anything.”
“What could I possibly need from you?”
“I deserved that.” When he reached the door, he turned back. “I’ll be patient and hope this runs its course.”
“We,” she waved her hand back and forth between them. “We aren’t happening again.”
“I can hope.”
“No, you can’t.”
Kevin left without another word.
The kitchen wasn’t even clean yet when Chloe came in with a bag over her shoulder.
“I’m heading back to Knoxville.”
“It’s a week too early. Your apartment isn’t even ready.”
“I’ll stay with friends. I’m just over all this drama.”
Sophie was about to let that slide, but the more she thought about it, the more she couldn’t. “Chloe, the only drama in this house is yours.”
“I can’t help it that I don’t like Josh.”
“That’s not true. You liked Josh before.”
“Not since I’ve gotten to know him.”
“The only thing that you don’t like is that he isn’t your dad.”
“No, he isn’t. He doesn’t belong here at our table. I can’t stand seeing him take your hand and rub your arm. You’re not his.”
“Yes, Chloe, I am. I love Josh.”
“So, you’re, like, planning to marry him? Are you kidding me? You’re going to marry a guy who isn’t even thirty years old? Do you see how gross that is? You’ll look like a pathetic old woman.” She blinked her eyes in rapid bursts. “I’m embarrassed for you.”
Chloe turned and walked out. After several trips to her car, she was gone, leaving Sophie standing in the driveway watching her go.
In tears by this point, Sophie dialed Karen’s number. The moment she answered, Sophie said, “It’s all coming unraveled.”
She told Karen what had happened, and her friend listened without interrupting.
When Sophie finished, Karen said, “I have to admit, I’m on Josh’s side here. Chloe is being a brat.”
“But she’s my brat.” Sophie drew in a deep breath. “And she’s hurting. This divorce didn’t just impact me. She misses home – the way it used to be. She longs for the security of having both parents at home waiting for her.”
“But you’re not together, Sophie. You’re not together because Kevin had his, what, fifth affair? And this one just happened to be serious enough to make him divorce you. None of this is your fault. Chloe is hurting because Kevin destroyed your home. Josh isn’t the problem. Kevin is, but Chloe doesn’t want to blame Saint Kevin.”
Sophie listened, knowing what her friend said was all true. That didn’t make the situation any easier, though. Chloe’s words, that she was embarrassed for her, echoed in her mind still, and she believed they always would.
At half past six the next morning, Sophie was pulling into the parking lot at work. She used her key and entered the office. Downstairs was empty, so she went up to Josh’s room and tapped on the door.
He opened the door looking half asleep still. A few times he blinked, trying to wake up. “What are you doing here on a Saturday?”
“I thought we should talk.”
“Oh no!” He held up his hands to stop her. “We’re not doing this. We aren’t breaking up over last night. Couples fight; it happens.”
“I’m not here to break up with you.”
Josh pulled her to him. “I was up most of the night expecting it.”
“I’m not making excuses for her other than she wants her home like it used to be.”
“I get that to some extent. I just won’t allow that to come between us.”
“It won’t. She’ll get back to school and a normal routine again. This will all blow over.”
“It will. I just happened to see the worst of her last night,” he said.
“You did. She’s really a great kid.”
He grinned. “She’s yours. Of course, she is.”
Sophie looked around the strewn room. “Why don’t you find a shirt in one of these piles and take me to breakfast?”
“I can do that.”
While spending the day with Josh, Sophie did her best to fend off Chloe’s voice in her head, the mean things she had said. Of course Chloe had known how her words would hurt her. In many ways Chloe had reminded her of Kevin, how he knew just the right things to say that would cut the deepest. Without a doubt Chloe’s words had wounded her.
Questions hovered, like, what if Chloe didn’t get over this? What if she dug her heels in and refused to be around Josh?
Leave it to her to step into a relationship that would cause so much turmoil. In moments like these she remembered the simplicity of being single. Then she only had to turn and catch Josh grinning at her or listen to him sing off-key while they delivered shrubs to a client. That was enough to remind her why she was in this thing. He was worth all the complications they faced. Somehow, she reassured herself again, she would find balance between the people she loved the most.
***
Sophie had just left, so Josh went into his office to get a start on some sketches that he would present to clients the following week. He was more caught up than usual, but he had nothing else to do the rest of the evening, so it seemed like a good plan.
He switched on his desk lamp and pulled out his sketch pad. The first few strokes came easily since he could picture what they had recommended to the client. Then he stopped and stared at the semi-blank page.
Something was nagging at him and had been all day. What Sophie had said, about Chloe wanting
her home to be like it used to, disturbed him. If Chloe persisted in acting this way, Sophie would have no choice but to choose her over him. It only made sense, and Josh expected nothing less from Sophie. The predicament was real: her daughter or her boyfriend.
The idea of Chloe getting back to school and the whole thing blowing over didn’t sit well with Josh, not after seeing Chloe in action the night before. Her look was similar to that of Kevin’s, devious and determined to have her way. The fact that Sophie didn’t see it baffled him, but maybe that wasn’t really the case after all. She knew her daughter too well to have missed it.
When Sophie had said it would all blow over, an expression had crossed her face, indicating she knew better.
A tightness formed in his chest, causing Josh to rub it in circular motions. Since Chloe’s birthday, Josh had believed Kevin would be their downfall. Instead, it would be Chloe. Then the realization came: Kevin was orchestrating the whole thing, pulling strings by using Chloe.
Josh jumped from his seat, heat radiating from his face. His first thought was to go track down Kevin and put a stop to it. That night at the restaurant would be nothing compared to…
“My peace I give to you.”
Though it was a soft whisper, the impact of the words knocked his feet out from beneath him, and Josh fell heavily into his chair. If he had ever heard from the Lord, it was in that moment.
With his phone in hand, he searched for the verse to read it in its entirety.
“Peace I leave with you, my peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.” (John 14:27)
No matter the words he read, Josh was afraid, terrified even, and his heart was troubled. If he didn’t do something to prevent it, Sophie would leave him. But to get into a fight with Kevin wouldn’t solve the problem. He knew that. Maybe the scripture didn’t change his current feelings, but the words of peace at least diffused what could have been a bad decision on his part.
That was progress in the battle against his temper, and he made note of it.
He couldn’t keep Sophie through fits of temper or threats against Kevin. He especially couldn’t keep her by alienating her daughter. There had to be a way through, and he would go to any lengths to find it.
Chapter Fifteen
With Chloe back at school the past two weeks and with life and work back to normal, Sophie was ushered into a season of plenty. That’s all she could call it. In her quiet time with God, His presence was so evident that she nearly felt Him physically next to her each morning. Unlike her years with Him before, she didn’t putter in the yard beyond the basics of weeding and watering. Back then, gardening was when He had usually spoken to her.
Now, He seemed to teach her most through her interactions with others. Avery was still working part-time while going to school, so that gave them plenty of opportunities to visit. No matter their volatile beginning, Avery had found a special place in Sophie’s heart, and the same was evident with Avery. The girl needed a mother. God used her relationship with Avery to remind her to reach out beyond herself and her family.
Sophie smiled, sipped her morning coffee, and looked at her butterfly bush, a sight that reminded her of Josh. She couldn’t help but smile when thinking of him. Anytime she considered how close she had come to saying no to his first dinner invitation, tears would sting her eyes. Never could she have imagined how she would come to love him or how the mere sight of him would make her breath catch in her chest.
He was warm and kind and quick-witted. Maybe what drew her to him the most was his spiritual maturity. His faith was deep and genuine.
Often, she would think back to her life with Kevin and recall how she had pleaded with God to change him and heal their marriage. Those were the moments she would sit in the greatest awe over how He had known her future even then, known that Josh would come into her life and change everything. Now, when she considered settling for the half-hearted affection that Kevin had always had for her, Sophie thanked the Lord for that unanswered prayer. Able to look into Kevin’s heart, God had known all along that he had no intention of changing. The Lord had made something beautiful come from what Sophie had once considered catastrophic – beauty for ashes.
She closed her journal and headed to work. This was a special week – her birthday week. Not that she wanted to make a big deal of it, but Josh sure did. Each day he had a little surprise on her desk when she arrived at work. The gifts varied each day from chocolates to a stuffed animal to bakery treats. Each day, too, he had a card for her with something sweet written about how much she meant to him. Only once was it a funny card, and that one, of course, was a joke about her last year in her 30s. He had shown up at her house with flowers once, and while out for lunch twice, he had asked the servers to sing for her birthday, no matter that her actual birthday wasn’t until Saturday.
At the office, once seated at her desk with no Josh around, Sophie was mildly suspicious. He was always there waiting with coffee in hand. Today, the place was deserted and his truck gone. No more than two minutes after her arrival, he texted.
Josh: I’m running a few errands this morning
Her reply: Early for errands.
Josh: Not for the kind of errands I’m running
Sophie: Which are?
Josh: Top-secret birthday errands
Sophie: Missed my birthday coffee this morning.
Josh: I’ll make it up to u
The rest of her morning dragged by with no man to flirt with across the hall.
“Hey,” Josh said when he found her in the kitchen rummaging through the refrigerator.
She stood. “You have nothing good to eat.”
“I planned to take you out for lunch.”
They left at noon and had something light at the café. Since they had plans with Dena and Drake for dinner, they hoped to get out of the office early.
At three he popped his head in the door. “I’ll follow you home.”
“I can drive into town later instead of you having to make the drive twice.”
“No, I’d rather go together. I’ll shower before we leave and then hang out while you get ready.”
For some reason he seemed nervous. “You’re up to something,” Sophie said.
“I’m not.” He pulled her to him and wrapped his arms around her waist. “Seriously, I just don’t like you driving home alone so late at night.”
“That’s sweet.” She nodded toward the stairs. “Go shower while I finish up here.”
By the time they arrived at Sophie’s, it was almost four. The early dinner reservations downtown didn’t leave her a lot of time to shower and get dressed. Josh kept hurrying her along since the trip back into town would take forever in Nashville traffic.
They made their reservation right on time and dinner was enjoyed without incident. Sophie had expected something embarrassing to happen. Josh had been too agitated for there not to be something going on.
The trip back to Brentwood was nothing out of the ordinary. She kept looking at him, trying to figure out what he was up to. His smile when he looked at her was casual.
“Anything special you want to do tomorrow?” he said.
She didn’t say anything.
“Soph?”
She hesitated a moment before saying, “Chloe is coming tomorrow to spend the day with me.”
The ride was quiet for a few minutes. When he did speak, he said, “I can guess what that means for my seeing you on your actual birthday.”
“We’ve been together all week.” She reached for his arm. “Please don’t make it a deal.”
“It is a deal, but I can’t do much about it.”
“Josh.”
They pulled into her driveway, and he parked. “I understand,” he said. “I just hope this blows over before the holidays. I don’t want to spend them without you.”
“That’s not going to happen. Now that she’s back with Austin, I’m sure she won’t be so upse
t about her dad.”
“I hope you’re right.”
Josh followed her in and acted odd again, pacing, standing every time she stood. He could never seem to settle down and get comfortable.
When she went in to change clothes, he kept talking to her from the hallway like he was trying to keep her occupied.
Just before she returned to the living room, her phone sounded with a message from Chloe.
Though the words made perfect sense, Sophie couldn’t absorb what she was reading.
Chloe’s text: I’m not coming tomorrow after all. I think I’ll try to pick up a shift at work instead.
Sophie: I can drive up for dinner.
Chloe: No, I’m good.
All she could do was stare at her phone. In twenty years she hadn’t spent a birthday without Chloe there to celebrate. This was, no doubt, due to Josh.
Sophie: So I won’t see you until T’giving?
Chloe: I’m gonna try something different this year
Sophie dialed her number, but Chloe didn’t answer.
Chloe: I’m out with Austin. Can we talk later
Sophie said: Please call me when you get home.
No response.
When Josh called from the hallway asking if everything was okay, Sophie wiped away tears. This thing with Chloe was worse than she thought.
Back in the living room with Josh, Sophie could hardly focus on what he was saying, something about the show they were watching.
Eventually, just after ten, she said, “I think I need to get some sleep.”
He pulled her closer. “Is everything okay? You’ve been quiet since we got home.”
“I’m just tired.”
Before long, he left. That’s when Sophie started blowing up Chloe’s phone. At eleven Chloe finally called.
“You can’t mean you’re not coming for Thanksgiving!” Sophie said.
“I just don’t want to come this year. Things are complicated now.”
“They don’t have to be. We will have Thanksgiving together, just you and me.”
The moment she said it, she remembered what she had just told Josh. She would figure something out. Maybe she could have lunch with Josh and dinner with Chloe, or the other way around.
