Believing in Tomorrow: A Christian Romance (The Callaghans & McFaddens Book 4)

by Kimberly Rae Jordan

  “She.”

  “What?”

  “The baby is a girl.”

  “Oh my goodness, Samantha McFadden! You are doling out information in tiny bite-size pieces tonight, aren’t you?”

  “Just didn’t want to hit you with too much.” Sammi gave a weak laugh. “I wasn’t sure how you’d respond.”

  “Oh be quiet, you,” Amy admonished her. “You knew exactly how I’d respond which is why I should be mad at you for keeping this from me.”

  “You’re right,” Sammi admitted as she ran a hand over her stomach. “You’re probably the only one whose reaction to my story I could accurately predict. I guess I was worried about disappointing you too.”

  Over the next little while, Sammi shared how Levi had taken the news, and what had happened when she’d told her parents. It was late by the time they finished their conversation. In some ways, it had made her feel better, but deep in her heart, sadness lingered. Amy had stuck to her morals. Even though she’d had a serious boyfriend—that she’d since broken up with—she’d never crossed that line. That Sammi had been so weak, so ready to toss aside everything she’d been taught, ate at her very soul.

  At twenty-five, she should have known better than to believe Jayden’s words. If she’d been a teenager, it might have made a little more sense, but at her age, there was no excuse. Maybe the person who was most disappointed in her was herself.

  “Your dad would like to have a family barbecue after church this week,” her mom said a few days later as they cleaned up after dinner. “And I think it would be a great time to invite Levi to meet the family.”

  Sammi’s shoulders slumped. The last thing that she wanted was for Levi to meet everyone. It felt a little too much like introducing her boyfriend to her family, when nothing could be further from the truth. Levi had, at no time, expressed any interest in that kind of relationship with her. Which, she knew, was for the best given the fact that he didn’t share her faith, but there were times when she felt as if she’d accept a proposal from him just so that she wouldn’t be alone.

  And what kind of messed up thinking was that? A lonely, pregnancy hormone-fueled thought process, that’s what. She was more emotional than she’d ever been before, and her usual upbeat approach to life had seemed to disappear with the first positive pregnancy test. Even now, her irritation with her mom over the subject of Levi’s visit was not normal for her.

  “I’ll ask him, Mom, but he may have no interest in meeting the family.” Sammi turned to face her mom, the dish towel she’d been using grasped tightly in her hands. “But I need a guarantee that no one will try to make him feel uncomfortable. That means no comments about how he is or isn’t my boyfriend. He’s a friend who happens to be the father of my baby. Nothing more. I don’t want anything said that will make him want to keep his distance from me. We need to be able to parent this baby together, but if he feels like he’s going to be uncomfortable every time he’s around my family, he’ll stay away. And that won’t be good for the baby.” She gave her mom a pleading look. “So please, Mom, I need a guarantee that you will talk to everyone—Gabe especially—and tell them to keep their mouths shut about anything that will make him uncomfortable. Without that guarantee, I’m not inviting him.”

  Makayla had always been the more stubborn of the two girls, but Sammi could hold her ground when she wanted to. And she did so then with her arms crossed and a scowl on her face.

  Her mom sighed. “You know I can’t control everyone, but I will do my best to speak with each of them to let them know that they need to be welcoming of Levi. I’ll also have your dad say something. That’s all I can do.”

  Sammi stood there for a moment, wanting nothing more than to reject the idea of inviting Levi, but she knew that a courteous relationship between him and her family would make things easier down the road. “Fine. I’ll talk to him, but if he says no, I’m not going to force the issue.”

  “That’s fine, sweetheart. And ask him if he’d like anything special to eat while you’re at it.”

  “Okay. I will.” Sammi turned back to her task of drying the dishes that Danica, her younger sister, had been washing. Her back was aching a bit, making her eager to finish up the job and go lay down for an hour or so before she left for work.

  As she lay in bed a short time later, she decided there was no time like the present to contact Levi. She debated her options. Should she call? Or maybe it would be better and not so much as if she was putting him on the spot if she texted him. It would give him more time to think the invitation, and his response, over.

  Decision made, she pulled up her texting app but then hesitated. Should she dive right in with the invitation? Or lead with some small talk first. Ugh… With anyone else, this wouldn’t be an issue, but she felt like so much was at stake each time she interacted with Levi. She didn’t want him to feel like he was being forced into a role he wasn’t interested in playing. Deep down, she was afraid that if he even got a whiff of an idea that she might view him as anything other than the father of her baby, he would pull back.

  In the end, she settled for a message that was sort of a combination of both options.

  Hey, Levi! Hope your week has gone well! Baby is doing fine though I’m starting to feel more tired and achy.

  Sammi paused, biting her lip then backspaced past all the information about how she was feeling and just left it with the mention of the baby.

  I’ve felt a few little flutters of movement, but no one else has been able to feel it yet. They say that’s not uncommon for the first pregnancy.

  She stared at what she had typed so far. It was going to be a long first message, but she didn’t want him to feel like he needed to chitchat with her. Sammi liked to think they were moving toward friendship, but it still felt awkward when she tried to communicate with the man.

  Anyway, my mom and dad were wondering if you’d be interested in joining us for a barbecue on Sunday after church. Please feel free to decline the invite if you’d rather not come. My family can be a little overwhelming at times since there are so many of us.

  Sammi read the whole message over a couple of times before hitting send. Once it was gone, she turned on her side and, after setting her alarm for one hour, she set the phone on the bed and closed her eyes.

  When the alarm went off, it felt as if hardly any time at all had passed. With a groan, Sammi rolled onto her back and stared at the ceiling. In addition to the sleep she got after each shift, it seemed that she still needed to take a nap each day. At one time, she would have met up with some co-workers for a meal before their shift started, but now she wanted sleep more than socialization and food. Hoping a quick shower would make her feel more awake, Sammi moved to the bathroom and turned the water on.

  It wasn’t until she was standing under the spray that she remembered the text message she’d sent. Had Levi replied? Moving more quickly through her shower, Sammi finished in record time and dried off before wrapping a towel around herself and going back into her bedroom to grab her phone.

  A quick check showed that not only had Levi not replied, but it also didn't appear that he had even looked at the message. Sammi hoped that nothing was wrong, but she didn’t have time to dwell on that thought too much as she needed to get ready for work. Taking a shower had already cut into the short amount of time she’d allowed herself to get ready following her nap.

  Once at work, she shoved her phone and purse into her locker and tried not to think too much about Levi while she went about her shift.

  CHAPTER TWELVE

  Levi walked wearily from his truck to the house, glad that the end was in sight for this miserably long day. It had been unseasonably hot as they’d worked to try to make up for lost time on a couple of their larger projects. Knowing that snow could come as early as October 31st, Levi wanted to make sure that they had all their landscape projects, in addition to their regular lawn care properties, ready for winter by that date. They’d had four straight days of rain whic
h meant that they were now behind on a couple of their big projects. On top of that, they’d had some equipment problems that had delayed them further.

  The day’s issues had stemmed not just from the rain delays but also from a couple of the guys calling in sick—which neither Levi nor Jeff had believed for a minute. If they hadn’t needed all the hands they could get for the next few weeks, he would have fired them the next time they showed up—no doubt hung over.

  After finishing work around seven-thirty, he’d stopped by the care home for a quick visit with his mom. Sadly, it had gone as well as most visits with her went these days. He tried to visit two or three times a week, though sometimes—especially on a long day like he’d just had—it was tempting to not go because of how she treated him when he was there. However, he’d resolved to not be the one to create distance between them any more than he already had with his decision about Davy.

  His mom would have to forbid him from visiting and then have the care home staff throw him out before he’d stop going to see her. He just had to hope that one day she’d see that what he’d done had been to teach Davy about the consequences of his actions, not because he hated his brother—which he didn’t. True, he didn’t like him very much these days, but hate had never factored into his decision to turn Davy in to the authorities.

  After the visit with his mom, he’d stopped by Home Depot to pick up several things needed for a job the next day. He was grateful he’d been able to get to the store before it closed so that he didn’t have to make a trip there the next day before work could start on a couple of the sites. Still, both stops had added to an already long day, and he was relieved to finally arrive home around nine-thirty.

  Since the crew had been able to get something to eat between jobs, he didn’t have to deal with having to make anything for supper once he got home. Instead, Levi headed straight for a hot shower. When that was done, he grabbed his phone and tablet and settled into bed. He hadn’t had time to check messages or emails throughout the day so even though he was exhausted and wanted sleep more than anything, he knew he needed to take care of those first.

  The first thing he saw when he checked his phone was that he had a text from Samantha. It had been a few days since they’d last been in contact, so Levi hoped that nothing was wrong.

  As he began to read her message, a smile crossed his face at the news that Samantha had felt the baby move. He wondered if she’d let him feel it once the movements were more pronounced. As he continued to read the text, his smile slid into a frown. She wanted him to meet her family?

  Levi looked up to stare at the blank wall opposite his bed and let out a long breath, remembering the visit he’d had from Steve Callaghan. Would they all be that intense? Was this something that Samantha wanted? From the text, it sounded more like it was her mom and dad’s idea, but if there was any chance she wanted him there, he would accept. Regardless, he was going to have to meet them sooner or later. With the baby’s birth only a few months away, sooner might as well be now.

  If you would want me to be there, I will. Just let me know the time and if I should bring anything.

  She didn’t reply right away, but a glance at the clock told him that she was likely at work since her shifts started at ten or, if she wasn’t working, she would most likely be asleep. Which is what he wanted to be, so he moved on from the text message to his emails, hoping the replies he sent made sense since he was beyond exhausted.

  These were the times he hated working six days a week because while a lot of people would have the next day off, he wouldn’t be one of them. He could rest a bit more when the snow fell and their work days became more sporadic as snow removal was unpredictable since snow didn’t grow the way grass did.

  Thankfully, being so physically exhausted meant that even if he’d wanted to stay awake and mull things over, his body wouldn’t let his mind do it. He fell into a deep sleep that was only interrupted when his alarm went off at six o’clock the next morning. With a groan, he reached out to shut it off then swung his legs over the side of the bed, rubbing at his face as he waited for his brain to kick into gear.

  As he woke up a bit more, Levi remembered that he was waiting for a reply from Samantha and reached out to pick up the phone. Blinking a couple of times to focus, he then stared down at the screen. It appeared that Samantha had been working since her reply had come in around two a.m.

  Samantha: I think it would be nice, if you don’t mind coming. You can just come to the house or, if you’re interested in learning about the faith the baby will be raised in, you could meet me at church. No pressure at all though! Just if you’re curious.

  Huh. Levi read the message a couple of times. Was he really that interested? Samantha seemed nice enough, and so had Steve—for all his intensity. It wasn’t so much that he was worried about his baby sharing their faith, but rather how she might be treated since Samantha was an unwed mother. From Samantha’s own words and other things he’d heard about religious people, pregnancy outside of marriage was a big no-no. He supposed it wouldn’t be the worst thing in the world to be more informed.

  Sure. I can meet you at church. Text me the time and the address. And if there’s a dress code, let me know so I can dress appropriately.

  Thankfully, he did have one suit that he used when he was handling the business side of his company. He could pull that out if he had to, though there was no question he’d much rather wear business casual if he could.

  Samantha: Great! The service is at 11. Attire is nothing fancy. People wear a bit of everything, so whatever you're comfortable in will be fine.

  Levi read the address she gave in the next text, picturing the large building he was pretty sure she was referring to. He took some solace in the fact that his presence likely wouldn’t draw too much attention if a large number of people were in attendance.

  I’ll see you then.

  He sure hoped he was making the right decision, not just to go to the barbecue but to go to church as well. As he got dressed for the day, Levi tried to think back to the last time he’d actually been in a church. The only event that came to mind was Henry’s sister’s wedding, and if he remembered correctly, that was close to five years ago.

  He shook his head, a grin teasing the corners of his mouth. The things he was willing to do for his little girl, and he hadn’t even officially met her yet.

  Before crawling into bed after her shift, Sammi tapped out a quick text to her mom to let her know that Levi had accepted the invitation to the barbecue. She didn’t mention anything about him attending church with them, kind of anticipating that he might still change his mind.

  It would be the first time she’d attended the late service at the church since Jayden had broken up with her. And she wouldn’t have gone to this one either except that Bennett and Grace were having baby Olivia dedicated at the second service. Though she’d been born the previous December, it was only recently that Grace had felt comfortable bringing the baby to church. Because she’d been born prematurely, Grace had been hyper-protective of Olivia and tried to limit her exposure to germs and such. So while she’d been willing to be around family members, the large number of people at church was much more daunting for her. Just recently, Grace had finally been comfortable enough with Olivia’s state of health to be willing to take her out into larger groups.

  Up until a couple of weeks earlier, Grace, Bennett, Tami, and Makayla had taken turns staying home with Olivia on Sunday mornings. Because she and Bennett—along with most their friends—attended the later service, Grace had committed to have the baby dedication during. The whole family was excited about attending Olivia’s dedication—which was as to be expected—except now Sammi was bracing herself for the possibility of running into Jayden and his fiancée.

  After Sammi had sent the message, she crawled into bed and curled around her baby bump, rubbing her hand in circles over the firm mound. It was a habit she’d fallen into as the baby had grown within her. Before falling asleep, she
often talk to the baby for a little bit, trying to keep any negative thoughts and feelings at bay by concentrating on the baby.

  Normally Sammi would only sleep for a few hours as she switched from night shift to her days off, and then she would sleep again later that night. But with being pregnant, she found she could sleep whenever she put her head on a pillow. So, she didn’t bother setting an alarm, knowing she’d wake up when her body needed her to.

  The next morning, Sammi stood in front of her closet, debating what to wear. Though she’d started to wear maternity clothes, they were mainly items she’d found at the thrift store that were a bit better at masking the baby bump, but she found she wanted to wear the dress Levi had encouraged her to choose at the maternity store. Unfortunately, that dress wasn’t really made for hiding a belly, but maybe, with Levi at her side, she could deal with the looks that might come her way.

  She slipped the lavender dress over her head, glad that the weather was nice that day, so the shorter sleeves wouldn’t be an issue. After she’d tied the belt behind her back, Sammi went to her full-length mirror. At twenty-one weeks pregnant, her stomach—especially in a dress like this—was quite pronounced. There would be no doubting that she was pregnant. For the most part, loose scrubs and flowy summer tops had allowed her to keep her baby bump hidden, but wearing the new dress would accentuate it.

  Sammi stood staring at her reflection, her hand resting on her belly. She was at war with herself. Fear was demanding she take the dress off and put on one of the more subtle outfits she’d worn on past Sundays. As her vision blurred, Sammi looked away from the mirror. How she wished she could be like Makayla, who had been wearing baby bump accenting maternity clothes almost from the moment she’d begun her second trimester. Yet here was Sammi, just a month behind Makayla, still hiding hers.