Kristina wrinkled her nose. “Your lips say great, but your face says something else.”
“No. I mean it. You look wonderful. I don’t think I’ve ever seen you so happy.” Pam closed her laptop and put her hand on her chin. “I’m trying not to let it scare me.”
Kristina sat in the chair opposite her sister. ”Why would my being happy scare you?"
"Because…” Pam exhaled. “What if it doesn't work out? This wouldn’t be just any breakup, Krissi. It’d be a breakup with your first love and the father of your only son. And now he has full custody of his daughter. I know you always wanted a family. Now you'll have an instant one. But if it goes sideways, you lose him and her.”
“Maybe. Maybe not. You can’t always go worst-case scenario, Pam.”
“That’s my job, remember? Look, I’m not trying to rain on your parade, but I don’t want you to get hurt either. This is a big deal. And it could go wrong in a big way. I've seen you spiral out once before. We came so close to losing you in Dallas.” Pam rubbed her hands over her face. “All of us, being like this? So…happy? It feels fragile. It scares me.”
Although Pam was definitely the ‘prepare for the worst’ type, Kristina couldn’t say she hadn’t felt a tinge of anxiety herself. For years, the only thing she’d ever experienced that came close to happiness was being high. But even that was empty and short-lived. The hope and joy she experienced now was brand new. Almost too good to be true. Did that mean it was?
"Let's put it in God's hands. In my heart, I feel this is right, but let's trust God that if Omar and I aren’t meant to be together, He'll take care of me. He’ll take care of all of us.”
Pam bit her lip. “You’re starting to sound like Robin. Next thing I know, you’ll tell me I’m operating out of fear, not faith.”
“I sound very wise.”
Pam chuckled. “For years I’ve tried to keep us from falling apart. It’s been my full-time occupation. Putting things in God's hands and trusting Him to take care of it is going to take some practice.”
“Well, I’ll keep you in my prayers.”
“Shut up,” Pam said, grinning. She stood and stretched. “All right then, I’ll be in the media room if you need me. Bring Chloe in. I’d like to meet her. Omar, too. I promise I won’t bite.”
“Just bark, huh?”
“I’m serious. I’ll be good. Chloe and I can hang out together in there. Tamia and Xavier just bought and watched every Star Wars series, cartoon and movie in existence. We can do that just in case you two want to feed each other shrimp or something silly like that.”
Kristina wrinkled her nose again and Pam laughed.
”Hey, enjoy it while you can. From what I hear, privacy is something you don’t get much of with a five-year-old running around."
Kristina put on her earrings just as the doorbell rang and rushed down the stairs to open the door. Waiting on the other side was an awestruck Omar and the most beautiful little girl she’d ever laid eyes on. She stepped back to let them in, glad to see that Omar couldn’t stop staring at her.
“I thought I’d, you know, put makeup on, run a comb through my hair. Make myself presentable. Stuff like that.”
“It’s working for you.” He looked down at his equally awestruck daughter. “What do you think, Chloe?”
“You look like a supermodel.”
“Believe it or not,” he said in a stage whisper. “She’s been one. And she sings, too.”
Chloe’s eyes grew wide as saucers. “You do?”
“I do.”
“I think somebody’s got a new crush,” Omar whispered as Chloe gazed at Kristina.
Kristina held her hand out to the little girl. “Wanna come with me? There’s someone I’d like you to meet.”
Chloe, suddenly shy and blushing, took Kristina’s hand. She looked back at her dad and cheesed so hard, he started laughing. As they walked toward the media room, Chloe continued to gaze at Kristina.
“Is it Xavier?”
“No, honey, not Xavier. He’s in Dallas right now. But you’ll get to see him soon. He can’t wait to meet you.”
That news made Chloe so happy, instead of walking next to Kristina, she began to skip.
"Now I know it's not as exciting as meeting your brother, but how about meeting one of my sisters? Her name is Pam."
“How many sisters do you have?"
"Two."
Chloe held up two fingers. “Two? Do they look like you?”
“Pretty much.”
"Wow…"
Omar shook his head and laughed along with Kristina as she opened the door to the media room. "Pam, this is—“
Pam put her hand up to signal Kristina to stop talking. She stood in the middle of the room, glued to the news report on the enormous TV screen. Kristina let go of Chloe's hand and moved to the screen, trying to make sense of the images flashing before her.
It was a car accident on a freeway near several overpasses. The camera footage was aerial, from a news helicopter, so it took her a moment to comprehend what she was looking at.
There looked to be several vehicles involved, but it was difficult to tell how many. At the center of it all was a bus, her name partially visible along the side of it that wasn’t caved in.
Once the images started making sense, Kristina found herself struggling to remain upright. She didn’t know if she was awake or dreaming and the voice of the news reporter sounded muffled and far away.
“…have just confirmed that despite previous reports, Kristina Langston was, in fact, not on the tour bus at the time of the fatal accident. According to sources, she is in Atlanta due to a prior engagement and was scheduled to meet with the bus in Dallas on tomorrow evening. No official statement has been made from Langston or her camp, but this is what we know so far:
“Authorities cannot confirm whether there are any survivors of the horrific accident. Of the seven people removed thus far, all were deceased.
“According to sources, the usual passengers of the singer’s tour bus would include Langston's band, her backup singers, dancers and on rare occasions, Langston herself. Among those, is the pop star’s youngest sister, Tamia Langston.
“As always, stay tuned as we continue to bring you up-to-the-minute coverage on this unfolding tragedy. Once more, current reports are that Kristina Langston was not on the tour bus involved in the deadly freeway collision earlier this evening."
The Langston Family Saga concludes in…
Book 3: My Soul Is Satisfied
Kristina Langston had never been happier. After recommitting her life to God and reconnecting with her first love, she was ready to live the “more abundant” life she’d read about.
Then, in an instant, everything changed.
Instead of looking forward to a summer of getting to know and love her newfound family, she finds herself rushing into an overcrowded emergency room, in search of the people she loves most.
In this, the final installment of the Langston Saga, the family is faced with their greatest obstacles yet. Before it’s all said and done, they’ll make choices they never imagined they would and say goodbye to loved ones they never expected to lose.
But in the face of so much tragedy and loss, will they be able to keep the faith? And even if they can, will it be enough?
Wanna Know More?
I know, I know…
There’s a few of you out there gearing up to write me a nasty email over that ending. Uh huh, I see you.
Well, don’t worry. You won’t have to wait long to learn what happened. If book 3, My Soul Is Satisfied, isn’t out by the time you read this, it will be soon. And by soon, I mean within a few short weeks.
So please, refrain from sending ugly emails till then!
Shortly after that, I’ll be releasing Nobody’s Child. In it, you’ll get to finally find out about the past that’s been haunting Robin Jones.
I really love this story and can’t wait to get it to you. In the back of book 3 of the Langs
ton trilogy, I’m including an excerpt I hope you’ll enjoy!
There’s a lot more coming for the members of New Life Tabernacle and I’ll reveal more of what’s ahead in the coming months.
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Don’t forget, YOU are loved!
Sincerely,
LaShonda
Then Sings My Soul (The Langston Family Saga Book 2) Page 12
