Page 60 of Love Everlasting

“What, then?” He pressed a kiss to her hair.

“It’s D-Debbie.”

Jack’s pulse stalled.

“It’s just not fair, Jack.” Lacey sat up to wipe the tears from her face, and he reached for a tissue from the nightstand, nudging it into her hand. “That sweet little girl has had so much rejection and pain in her life and now she has to start all over again with heaven knows how many other foster families.” She blew her nose, words nasal from weeping. “All of whom will probably never really want her because of her risky health issues ...”

Her voice trailed off into another sob, and Jack held her close, rubbing her back in a soothing up-and-down motion. “Babe, God has a plan for Debbie’s life, I promise, and it will be good.”

“I believe that, Jack, I do, but how long will it take?” Lacey pushed away, her eyes wide and wet while frustration threaded her tone. “The poor kid’s been waiting her whole life just to get well and be loved, and now she’s gotta wait some more? Without any guarantee she’ll find a family who will love her or want her?”

Her lower lip began to quiver, and Jack held her face in his hands, fusing his gaze to hers. “Lace, there is no greater guarantee than God’s love, and although His timing is not always in sync with ours, He will provide a loving family for her soon, I promise.”

“But that’s just it, Jack, you can’t promise that,” she whispered, jaw trembling as she swiped at more tears on her face. “Nobody can.”

He stared at the woman he loved more than life itself and knew he should wait. Knew he should just love her and comfort her and keep the promise he’d made. But the pain in her eyes stabbed straight into his soul, and suddenly nothing mattered more than making it go away.

Even if it meant breaking a promise.

Drawing in a deep swell of air, he slowly traced the line of her jaw with the pad of his thumb, hoping to still its awful tremor of grief. “No, nobody can promise absolutely, Lace, but I believe I can come pretty darn close.” He leaned in to caress her lips with his own, gently cupping her face like the precious treasure she was. “Maybe not on the timing,” he said softly, his breath warm against the dampness of her skin, “but definitely on a loving family for Deb.”

She jerked away, breathing erratic as she stared at him with saucer eyes, fingers digging into his arms. “What do you know, Jack?” she rasped, the hope in her face completely doing him in. “You have to tell me or I will never be able to sleep.”

His smile was tender. “You won’t either way, babe, but that’s okay, because I know one or two ways we can pass the time.”

Hopping up on her knees, she grabbed his shoulders and rattled him hard, the fire in her eyes making him grin. “So help me, Jack O’Bryen, if you don’t tell me what you know right now …”

He chuckled and flopped back on the bed, hauling her along with him while he nestled his mouth into the curve of her neck. “Well, I had an opportunity to talk to Miss Myra a few weeks ago, and she confided it’s a fairly young couple with no kids who actually met Debbie already and promptly fell in love.” He paused to fondle her earlobe with kisses. “So … they’re actually talking adoption rather than foster care.”

Lacey popped up from his chest, her smile half-hearted at best. “Are they a decent couple? Can they afford her healthcare? And both Miss Myra and Will have approved of them?”

Grinning, he tugged her back down. “Yes, a very decent, church-going, solid-income couple with a close-knit extended family who will be over the moon to welcome Debbie.”

“They’re not too old, are they?” The worry in her tone made him grin.

“Well, he’s a bit long in the tooth, I’m afraid, but she’s much younger and a teacher, I understand.”

Her sigh feathered the bare skin of his chest. “Well that’s good because Debbie is going to need all the extra tutoring she can get.” She jolted up again, panic lacing her tone. “They do live in Savannah, right, or at least not too far away?”

He brushed a wisp of hair from her face, fingers straying from her ear to her jaw. “No, babe, they don’t live in Savannah, but close.”

“How close?” she rasped, clutching so tightly, he was certain he’d have handprints embedded in his chest.

A tiny squeal squeaked from her lips when he whooshed her onto her back, hovering over her with a wayward gleam in his eye. “This close,” he whispered, bending to tenderly skim her mouth with his own.

Her body seized right before she dug her fingernails into his arms like meat hooks, tears pooling in her eyes as she shoved him back. “Don’t toy with me, O’Bryen, or I will so make you pay.”

Rolling onto his side, he brought her along, flashing some teeth while he cocked an elbow to rest his head in his hand. “Actually, I’m pretty fond of toying with you, Mrs. O’Byren,” he said with a tender smile, voice fading to a whisper, “but I’m also fond of making you happy. Which is why I talked to Miss Myra months ago about possibly adopting Debbie.”

Lacey blinked, the whites of her eyes growing in the dark before she launched into his arms with another squeal so loud, Jack was grateful Ben was still out. And then, in the span of a heartbeat, she jerked back again, fingers still clutched to his arms. “B-But … b-but you refused to even consider the possibility of adoption when I mentioned it months ago. You said maybe years down the road if we couldn’t have children of our own, but not this early in our marriage.”

A grin curled his lips. “Had to do something to throw you off the track.” He slowly grazed the curve of her jaw. “And it was ‘early’ in our marriage, if you recall.” He arched a brow. “Uh … like on our honeymoon?” His smile softened into serious. “We were always on the same wavelength with Debbie, babe, but I didn’t want you to get your hopes up till I could make sure it was a definite possibility with no roadblocks.” He brushed his lips gently against hers. “I can’t stand to see you disappointed, Lace, especially with all the frustration you’ve gone through trying to get pregnant.” He gave a slight shrug. “So I figured derailing your thoughts about Debbie in the meantime was the best course of action till I made sure it could actually happen.”

Eyes misty, she flung herself into his arms once again. “Oh, Jack, I didn’t think I could love you anymore than I do, but I adore you!”

His chuckle fluttered her hair as he returned a hug of his own. “That’s good, babe, because I plan to be around for a long, long time, taking good care of you and Debbie and all of her brothers and sisters.” His tone sobered as he held her at arm’s length, hoping the sobriety in his eyes would temper her joy with caution. “But … you need to know, Lace, by telling you this now, it means I had to break a promise I made to Miss Myra not to say anything until she has a few more details tied down, just in case.”

The smile dissolved on Lacey’s face, which tore at his gut.