This Time with Love: A Christian Romance (The McKinleys Book 1) Read online

  Caroline pulled back, her faded blue eyes wide. “Really? Wow. That certainly was a turn we couldn’t have anticipated.” A slow smile lifted the corners of her mouth. “What was she like?”

  “Different. Six years has changed us both.”

  “Well, I know it has changed you for the better,” his mom pointed out. “How about her?”

  “Two days at a retreat with dozens of other people wasn’t exactly the ideal place to chat. And then let’s not forget her reluctance to actually talk to me.”

  Caroline gave a slow nod of her head. “She wasn’t happy to see you.”

  “I guess you could say that. Shocked, for sure.”

  His mom got up and poured herself a cup of coffee. She put double in hers what she’d put in his and rejoined him at the table where she took a cookie for herself. “Maybe she needs time to get used to the idea of seeing you again. You yourself said she must have had a good reason for disappearing like she did.”

  “Actually, Mom, I believe I said that she must have thought she had a good reason to disappear.”

  “You don’t know her mind, son.” His mom gave him a stern look. “Are you going to give her a chance to explain, or just judge her without hearing her side?”

  Eric sighed and slumped back in his chair. “Old habits are hard to break.”

  His mom’s expression softened. “I know, but you need to keep trying to break it. She’s still young, Eric, be gentle with her.”

  “Actually, she’s not that young anymore.” Eric smiled at his mom. “And it’s just like you to defend someone you’ve never even met.”

  “I’m hoping that will change.”

  He didn’t have the heart to tell her how unlikely that was. Though he hoped that eventually Ana…Staci might decide to give them a shot at friendship.

  “I gotta run, Mom. I’m meeting Melanie for lunch.”

  “How is Melanie?” His mom stood and took their cups to the sink.

  “Not sure but since she decided it’s best we go our separate ways, I’d imagine she’s doing better.” Eric placed his hands on the table and pushed up to a standing position.

  His mom turned from the sink, her hands dripping water onto the floor. “You’re just full of cheery news today. What happened with Melanie?”

  “She felt that we weren’t as close as we should have been. I guess she feels I was being distant from her.”

  “Is she right?” Trust his mom to ask the one question he didn’t want to answer. Given the events of the past couple of days, the answer would most likely have to be yes.

  “I guess we need to talk about it a little more before I can answer that question.”

  His mom gave him a hug. “I’ll pray for you two. And for Staci, too.”

  As he sat with cup of coffee number four of the day waiting for Melanie to arrive, Eric realized that his goal for this meeting had changed. When Mel had initially agreed to meet with him, Eric had been determined to win her back. But now…now he just wanted to apologize that he hadn’t been able to be what she’d needed.

  “Eric.” Melanie slid into the booth across from him. She pulled off the knitted cap she wore and ran her hand through her short blonde hair. Her blue eyes were serious as she regarded him. “How was the weekend?”

  “Interesting,” Eric told her, not really wanting to get into the details of all that had gone on. “Most of it was enjoyable.”

  “I’m glad.” Melanie looked up as the waitress approached their table. “I’ll have a glass of iced tea and the grilled chicken salad with ranch dressing.”

  Eric waited for the waitress to write Mel’s order down. “I’ll have a cheeseburger and fries.” He lifted his cup. “And a refill, please.”

  Once the waitress had left them, Melanie leaned forward, her arms resting on the table. “Listen, I need to apologize for how I ended things. I shouldn’t have done it on the phone, and my timing was a bit off, too.”

  “Is there ever a good way to end things?” Eric asked.

  Melanie shrugged. “I suppose not. But I am sorry.”

  Eric sat back in the booth. “I’m not here to get you to change your mind. I just wanted to apologize for not being able to give you the relationship you wanted.”

  The relief on Melanie’s face hit him like a hammer in the gut. He had been unaware of how unhappy she’d been with him. Clearly, he was more dense and oblivious than he thought.

  “Your heart wasn’t in it.” Melanie picked up her knife and turned it over and over between her fingers. “If I had to guess, I’d say your heart belongs to someone else. I don’t want to take second place to another woman in my man’s life.”

  CHAPTER FOUR

  ERIC tossed the Styrofoam take-out container onto the counter in his kitchen. After Mel’s statement about not taking second place to some other woman in his life, conversation had died. How exactly could he respond to that? He could no longer deny her observation since seeing Ana—Staci—again.

  He jerked the fridge open and grabbed a can of soda. After popping the tab, Eric took a swallow and removed a plate from the cupboard. He set the can down and opened the take-out box. After putting the burger and fries on the plate, he nuked it for several seconds.

  Leaning a hip against the counter, Eric crossed his arms and mulled over the meeting with Mel. It could have gone worse. At least she hadn’t ranted and raved or dumped water on his head. Their meeting had just…ended.

  When the microwave beeped, Eric pulled the plate out, grabbed the can of soda and headed for his office. He hadn’t bothered to tell Melanie about Ana. Staci. Actually, in this case, Ana was the right name, because she was the woman he’d never had closure with. The Staci he’d met at the retreat wasn’t the same woman Ana had been.

  Eric rubbed his forehead. Too many names. Too many personalities. Too many women!

  He picked up a fry, realized he’d forgotten to bring some ketchup, and tossed it back onto the plate.

  His intent wasn’t to get back with Staci—at least he didn’t think it was. When he’d first discovered she’d disappeared, he’d wanted to find her in order to continue what they’d had together. But when he’d stopped his search, he’d moved on. He’d dated—okay, not successfully—but at least he’d tried. Staci was part of his past. An important part and one he needed to resolve apparently, before he could have success in any future relationship.

  Unfortunately, he couldn’t deny the biggest draw to Staci was physical, and he just didn’t trust himself. The spark was still there, but physical intimacy was nothing to base a solid relationship on. And their previous intimacy would only interfere in anything they tried to build now. No, all he wanted from Staci were some solid answers and closure.

  Eric turned on his computer, taking bites of his burger as he waited for it to boot up. Slow and easy was the best way to approach things with Staci. In a surprising turn of events, he now had an appointment with Staci’s friend Philip on Friday. It was one way to keep himself in Staci’s life—even if it was just on the outskirts. And since there wasn’t a new relationship on the horizon, he had some time to figure out how best to deal with her.

  Opening his email, he found several messages from his supervisor at BlackThorpe. His plans for the week changed upon the opening of the first one. It looked like his trip to New York had been moved up. The three guys he was supposed to meet with before their departure to Africa needed to leave sooner than expected. The next three emails were actually from his boss’ secretary with information on his flight and where he’d be staying and his itinerary once he got to New York.

  At least he’d be back for his appointment on Friday with Philip. And maybe it was good he had something to keep him occupied for the next few days. Though he doubted anything could really keep his thoughts from Staci and the tangled mess of their past.

  Staci folded a tiny t-shirt and placed on the top of the pile. Her suitcase sat open on the window seat in her bedroom. Open, but empty. She hadn’t put the suitcase away after emptying it upon her return from the retreat. But she still hadn’t actually put anything back into it. Though there were piles of clothes around it, she hadn’t packed them yet.

  She sat down on the edge of the bed and took a deep breath. All week she’d been trying to figure out what to do. All week she’d been waiting to hear from Eric. Yet here it was Friday and still no word from him.

  What did that mean? Was he really going to leave her alone?

  “Mama?”

  Staci looked up to see her daughter standing in the doorway of her room. “Hey, sweetheart.” She waved her in. “Did you have a good nap?”

  “I didn’t want a nap,” Sarah told her indignantly.

  Staci just smiled. She ran her hand over Sarah’s soft, dark curls. The little girl leaned against her leg and stared at the piles of clothes. “Are we goin’ somewhere?”

  “I’m not sure. Right now, I’m just sorting stuff.” Staci picked Sarah up and sat her on her lap, an action made easier by the little girl’s small stature due to her dwarfism. “Would you like to go on a trip?”

  “Maybe. On television, there’s a Disney boat. That would be fun.”

  Staci nodded. “That would be.” She was fortunate to be in the financial position of being able to take her daughter on such a trip. And maybe now would be a stellar time to get out of Dodge.

  Sarah slid off her lap and headed for a nearby pile. She plucked a dress from mid-pile causing the clothes to tumble onto the floor. “I wanna wear this.” She held it up to her shoulders. “It’s my favorite dress.”

  Staci motioned her to come back over. She helped her take off her shirt and pants and slid the dress over her head. It took just a second to zip up the back. “You look beautiful.” She folded the recently rejected clothes and
set them beside her on the bed. “Are your legs hurting you?”

  Sarah shook her head emphatically. “No. I don’t need medicine.”

  Staci watched as her daughter sashayed out of the room as only a five-year-old little person could. Surely there was no one in the world who wouldn’t fall in love with her beautiful little face and bubbly personality. But what would Eric think? Mr. Perfection. Would he have a problem with the fact that his daughter was a little person? She’d always be stared at. They’d discovered that already and she wasn’t even six years old. There would be physical things she could never do, but Staci had chosen early on to focus on all the things that Sarah could do.

  Her refrigerator was covered with amazing pictures that Sarah had drawn. They cooked together. They danced together. They read together. Staci was determined that Sarah’s life would be so rich and full that she’d never regret the things she wouldn’t be able to do. One of the things she did long to give Sarah was a father and maybe a brother or sister down the road.

  It had been Sarah’s regular requests for a sibling that had finally spurred Staci towards trying out the dating scene again. Though the few guys she’d gone out with had been nice, none of them had stirred her emotions. Vince had seemed promising, but events at the retreat had shown her otherwise.

  How could she think of ripping Sarah away from the stability they’d developed in their life here in Minneapolis? Staci stood and left her room. She found Sarah seated on the floor of the living room, her dress spread out all around her, eating a banana. For now, the children’s program on the television would keep her occupied.

  As she stood there watching her, Staci knew she couldn’t take this all away from her daughter. If Eric did show up, she would try her best to keep Sarah’s existence from him. If he did find out and couldn’t accept Sarah for who she was, Staci would make sure that Sarah never knew her father had rejected her.

  And it would be Eric’s loss in the end.

  Eric pulled into the underground garage of his apartment block with a sigh of relief. It had been one of his busier weeks, with his trip to New York and his attempt to get caught up once he got back. He’d been tempted to put off his appointment with Philip, but the pressure he’d been under lately at BlackThorpe made him go ahead with it.

  He entered his apartment and went to his office to put away his briefcase. The trip to New York—though busy—had been enjoyable. He’d gotten to spend hours talking about a place he loved, a culture he was well-versed in. Though he’d only been nine when they’d left Africa, Eric had continued to expand his knowledge of the continent and all the countries it contained.

  When he’d graduated from high school, Eric hadn’t been able to afford college on his own, but he knew he had to get away from his family. Particularly his dad. Joining the military had seemed like the logical thing at that point. And being on active duty, he was able to get some discounted tuition rates to study what he really wanted to get into. Armed with his courses in international security and his military experience, he’d been approached by one of the men he’d served under to join their company in LA, offering security to corporations working overseas. He’d left the military and joined that company, eager to use his knowledge. He had been good at his job and they had paid him well for it.

  But then had come the day when none of his knowledge, none of his experience, had been enough to keep him from being taken hostage by a rebel group in Iraq. He had taken unnecessary risks—an all too common practice since Ana had left him—and had paid for it when he’d agreed to take someone else’s place at a meeting and then hadn’t arranged for proper security. He had known better, but he simply hadn’t cared. But God had had plans for him.

  After being released by his captors, his spiritual revelation had led him back to his family in Minneapolis. That had meant leaving the company in LA, but it hadn’t taken long for BlackThorpe to approach him so he hadn’t been unemployed for long. His job with them had been a bit different. Rather than going out into the field as security, he’d been given assignments that involved educating businessmen and other people traveling into areas with sensitive security issues. It had worked for him so far. Though it had still involved travel, the risk was lower.

  But he’d been hearing murmurs lately from his supervisor that he was going to be sent on a longer assignment. Right then, the idea didn’t sit well with him. Part of his agreement with Marcus Black when he’d hired him had been that there would be no long-term assignments. Since nothing official had come through yet, Eric was just biding his time. He really didn’t want to end up working hands-on security for three or more months, which is what he’d been hearing.

  The buzzer for the security door went, drawing him back to the present. He left his office and made his way down the hallway to the foyer.

  “Yo!”

  “Yo? Let me in, Eric.”

  Grinning, Eric pressed the button to let her in. He opened the door and leaned against the door jamb waiting for the elevator to arrive on his floor. When it did, Victoria stepped out, a large pizza box in her hands. “Hey, Eric, have time for some supper?”

  Eric smiled and took the box from her. “Pizza? With you? Anytime.” He stepped back so she could come into the apartment. As they walked through to the kitchen, he noticed her limp was a bit more pronounced. “How’s the pain these days?”

  Victoria slid onto a chair at the table just off the kitchen. “Some days are better than others. They’re talking hip surgery now.”

  “How do you feel about that?” Eric asked as he put the pizza box on the table and went to get a couple of sodas from the fridge and two plates.

  She didn’t answer him until he sat back down across from her. “I have a hard time contemplating another surgery. The one on my back was not fun.”

  “But the results were worth it though, weren’t they?” Eric opened the box and lifted a piece out and set it on a plate for Victoria then took one for himself.

  “Yes, for sure. I’m just weary of pain, you know?” Victoria reached across and patted his hand. “You wanna say grace?”

  After he had said a prayer for the food, they spent a few minutes in silence as they ate their pizza. Eric looked at his sister and marveled again at the fact that she was actually speaking to him. After the way he’d treated her...he didn’t deserve to have any sort of relationship with her. It spoke of her goodness and God’s grace that he had a second chance with this sister.

  She was ten years his junior but had a spiritual maturity that far outpaced his. She’d been born seven months after they’d come home from Africa. His nine-year-old mind hadn’t been able to grasp all that had been going on then. First having to leave Africa so abruptly then having a sister who required so much extra attention—all it had said to him was that God was mad at them. Otherwise, why would He have let it all happen?

  At fourteen, he’d finally understood everything. Then he viewed all that had happened as a punishment for his dad’s sin. And he’d hated him for it.

  “Do you think I should have the surgery?” Victoria asked as she laid the crust of her pizza down.

  “You’re asking me?” That she valued his opinion still surprised him.

  Victoria met his gaze square on. “Of course. I want the support of the family in this decision.”

  “All I have to go on is the outcome from your back surgery. When I see how much better you are now than before, I want to say go for the hip surgery. But I didn’t experience the pain before or after the surgery. In the end, Tori, you are really the only one who can make the decision. I’ll support whatever you decide.”

  Victoria picked up a second slice of pizza. “So Mom tells me you ran into your old girlfriend.”

  Eric gave a shake of his head at the rapid change of subject. He swallowed the bite of pizza he’d taken and took a drink of his soda. “Yes. Talk about a strange twist of fate.”

  “Not fate,” Victoria informed him. “God.”

  “What?”

  Victoria cocked her head to one side. “You honestly think it was only a coincidence that you and Ana...Staci ran into each other?”

  Eric had thought it was strange. Weird. Lucky. He hadn’t really thought that maybe God had arranged it all. Was that possible? In New York, he’d had some time to think about the whole situation, and he’d come to a couple of realizations.