successful you’ve been with the restaurant. Do you think you could have done that with a husband and babies to take care of?”
“But I’ve been praying so hard for God to send me my husband. What’s wrong with me?”
Meredith moved to kneel in front of her sister—after shifting the rug closer with her foot—and rubbed Jenn’s upper arms. “Remember that just because it seems like God isn’t giving us the main desire of our hearts doesn’t mean He’s not working in other areas of our lives—blessing us in ways we can’t see because we’re focusing so hard on the one thing we want but don’t have.”
“How can you be so calm about this?” Jenn grabbed a fresh wad of toilet paper and patted her face dry.
“Because I’ve had all day to think about it.”
“Forbes?”
“Forbes.”
Jenn rolled her eyes. “I swear he knows everything everyone in this family is going to do three days before we know we’re going to do it.”
The continued celebration of Marci’s engagement created enough chaos that only their parents, Forbes, and Rafe looked at Meredith and Jenn in concern when they returned.
Though she smiled and laughed, Jenn remained subdued for the rest of the evening, cuddling the puppy on her lap. As they walked out, Forbes wrapped his arm around Jenn’s shoulders and leaned his head close to hers. Rafe came up beside Meredith and encircled her waist in a quick half hug and walked with her toward the front door.
“Crazy, huh?”
“What do you mean?” Meredith tilted her head to study her younger brother’s profile. Though he would turn twenty-nine in a few weeks, she could still trace elements of the pudgy-faced, red-haired little boy.
“I mean that Marci is the first one of us to get married. I always figured it would be Jenn.”
Rafe’s words pressed salt into the gaping emotional wound Jenn’s had ripped open. “Gee, thanks.”
“Oh, come on, you know what I mean—Jenn had her first serious boyfriend when she was barely fifteen.”
“The first one Mom and Dad knew about, you mean.”
“Yeah.” Rafe opened the door.
Meredith shivered in the cold, damp air and buttoned her jacket.
“She’s taking this kinda hard, isn’t she?” He nodded toward Jenn and Forbes, standing next to Meredith’s SUV. Jenn hugged the puppy to her, like a shipwreck survivor hanging onto a buoy.
“She’ll get over it—as soon as she finds a new boyfriend. And that won’t take long.” But Meredith wasn’t certain about herself. She’d known a day would come when her younger siblings started getting married, but she hadn’t expected to still be single when it happened.
“So long as she doesn’t make any rash decisions, like eloping with the next guy who asks her out.”
Meredith laughed and dug her keys out of her purse. She used the key fob remote to unlock her car. “You know Forbes would never let any of us make a rash decision about anything.”
“He’s so ... I don’t know, anal retentive or obsessive-compulsive or something. He needs serious psychological profiling.”
“I think all they’d be able to tell us is that he’s a massive control freak.”
“Y’all talking about me?” Forbes turned to face them while opening the car door for Jenn. “Because there’s only one control freak allowed in this family.” He waggled his eyebrows.
“Rafe, are you in town Thursday?” Jenn settled the puppy on the floor while she fastened her seat belt.
“I think I get in late in the afternoon, so I should be there for dinner.” He blew her a kiss then hugged Meredith.
“Fly carefully.”
“I always do.” Rafe clasped hands with Forbes then trotted off to his classic red Corvette in the driveway.
Forbes closed Jenn’s door then walked around the SUV to stand with Meredith. “What’re you thinking about?”
She couldn’t bring herself to admit to her emotional turmoil over tonight’s events, not even to Forbes. “Just stuff.”
“Marci-related
“But I’ve been praying so hard for God to send me my husband. What’s wrong with me?”
Meredith moved to kneel in front of her sister—after shifting the rug closer with her foot—and rubbed Jenn’s upper arms. “Remember that just because it seems like God isn’t giving us the main desire of our hearts doesn’t mean He’s not working in other areas of our lives—blessing us in ways we can’t see because we’re focusing so hard on the one thing we want but don’t have.”
“How can you be so calm about this?” Jenn grabbed a fresh wad of toilet paper and patted her face dry.
“Because I’ve had all day to think about it.”
“Forbes?”
“Forbes.”
Jenn rolled her eyes. “I swear he knows everything everyone in this family is going to do three days before we know we’re going to do it.”
The continued celebration of Marci’s engagement created enough chaos that only their parents, Forbes, and Rafe looked at Meredith and Jenn in concern when they returned.
Though she smiled and laughed, Jenn remained subdued for the rest of the evening, cuddling the puppy on her lap. As they walked out, Forbes wrapped his arm around Jenn’s shoulders and leaned his head close to hers. Rafe came up beside Meredith and encircled her waist in a quick half hug and walked with her toward the front door.
“Crazy, huh?”
“What do you mean?” Meredith tilted her head to study her younger brother’s profile. Though he would turn twenty-nine in a few weeks, she could still trace elements of the pudgy-faced, red-haired little boy.
“I mean that Marci is the first one of us to get married. I always figured it would be Jenn.”
Rafe’s words pressed salt into the gaping emotional wound Jenn’s had ripped open. “Gee, thanks.”
“Oh, come on, you know what I mean—Jenn had her first serious boyfriend when she was barely fifteen.”
“The first one Mom and Dad knew about, you mean.”
“Yeah.” Rafe opened the door.
Meredith shivered in the cold, damp air and buttoned her jacket.
“She’s taking this kinda hard, isn’t she?” He nodded toward Jenn and Forbes, standing next to Meredith’s SUV. Jenn hugged the puppy to her, like a shipwreck survivor hanging onto a buoy.
“She’ll get over it—as soon as she finds a new boyfriend. And that won’t take long.” But Meredith wasn’t certain about herself. She’d known a day would come when her younger siblings started getting married, but she hadn’t expected to still be single when it happened.
“So long as she doesn’t make any rash decisions, like eloping with the next guy who asks her out.”
Meredith laughed and dug her keys out of her purse. She used the key fob remote to unlock her car. “You know Forbes would never let any of us make a rash decision about anything.”
“He’s so ... I don’t know, anal retentive or obsessive-compulsive or something. He needs serious psychological profiling.”
“I think all they’d be able to tell us is that he’s a massive control freak.”
“Y’all talking about me?” Forbes turned to face them while opening the car door for Jenn. “Because there’s only one control freak allowed in this family.” He waggled his eyebrows.
“Rafe, are you in town Thursday?” Jenn settled the puppy on the floor while she fastened her seat belt.
“I think I get in late in the afternoon, so I should be there for dinner.” He blew her a kiss then hugged Meredith.
“Fly carefully.”
“I always do.” Rafe clasped hands with Forbes then trotted off to his classic red Corvette in the driveway.
Forbes closed Jenn’s door then walked around the SUV to stand with Meredith. “What’re you thinking about?”
She couldn’t bring herself to admit to her emotional turmoil over tonight’s events, not even to Forbes. “Just stuff.”
“Marci-related
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