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His hope was that some of the blessing would start in just a few hours. They were headed to the big house for the rest of the evening, and the whole family was going to be ringing in the New Year together. It was something they did every year, though he’d missed a few of the celebrations while doing his residency.
“Is Janessa coming with us?” Aria asked as they moved away from the spot where the pastor and his wife were greeting people as they exited the sanctuary.
“I think so, but she’s wandered off.”
Aria slid her hand around Gareth’s elbow, and he covered it with his own. He loved it when she reached out to initiate physical contact with him. It wasn’t something she’d done initially, but as their relationship had grown, she’d gotten more comfortable with it. And now, she seemed to reach for him without even thinking about it.
“There she is,” Aria said, pointing to where his sister stood talking to a group of her friends.
They were also friends of Aria’s since she’d joined the women’s group that Charli and Janessa were part of. But even though she enjoyed the group, she still seemed to prefer hanging out socially with just one or two people. Gareth’s family being the exception. She seemed to like being with all of them. And thankfully, they liked her too.
“Do you need a ride?” Gareth asked Janessa as they approached her.
“Yep. Are you ready to go now?”
“I think so. Mom and Dad have left already.”
Janessa turned to say goodnight to her friends, giving them hugs, as did Aria. He left the two standing just inside the door while he went to get his vehicle, sparing them the walk in the cold wintery night.
He let the SUV warm up for a couple of minutes, then pulled it up behind another car that idled at the bottom of the church steps. Janessa and Aria hurried to the car, slipping into their seats and pulling their doors closed without delay. Aria still didn’t really enjoy the cold, so whenever possible, Gareth tried to warm the car up for her. She definitely loved the heated seats. Probably as much as she loved him. Maybe more on really cold days.
“That was a lovely service,” Aria said as he pulled away from the church. “I’ve never been to something like that before.”
“Ever since Pastor Ken arrived, he’s had this type of service on New Year’s Eve,” Gareth said. “As you saw, it’s not the most well-attended service, but our family always goes.”
“It certainly seems like a great way to end off a year, reflecting on it, while also focusing on the next.” She fell silent for a moment, then said, “This time last year, I would never have imagined this would be where life would take me.”
“There’s a few of us who can say that,” Janessa remarked from her seat behind Aria. “It’s just proof that we can start the year out with one plan or expecting certain things to happen and then God takes us in a completely different direction.”
Gareth certainly hadn’t started out that year anticipating that he’d get a girlfriend. Being in a relationship was always in the back of his mind, but he’d just assumed that the year would be like all the other ones with regards to dating and girlfriends, especially since Nora was there to chase off any potential girlfriends. Having Nora out of his life and the clinic had definitely helped his relationship with Aria flourish.
“I am ending this year with so many changes,” Aria mused.
“Have you decided what to do about those DNA messages?” Janessa asked.
Aria shifted in her seat. “Actually, as I listened to the pastor speak tonight, I made a decision.”
Gareth glanced over at her in surprise. The last time they’d talked about the messages from her half-brother, she still hadn’t been sure about contacting him. He knew she struggled because her mom had never wanted her to know about her family. Finding out that her mom had been in contact with her father’s wife had been a shock to Aria.
“What did you decide?” Gareth asked.
“I’m going to contact Micah.” Given how uncertain she’d been whenever they’d talked about it over the past couple of weeks, her certainty now was surprising. “This has really been weighing on me, so tonight, when the pastor had us consider the burdens we carried and how we should hand them over to God, I knew I needed to do that with this.” She sighed. “Honestly, I haven’t prayed about it as much as I should have. I think I was scared of what God might want me to do about the situation.”
Gareth had prayed about it plenty, concerned with how much stress it was causing Aria. Because of that, he was glad that she’d made a decision. He didn’t have strong feelings about what she should do. He just wanted her to be happy with whatever she decided, and he’d support her in any way she needed him to.
“I don’t know where that will lead, but I think it’s time to find out more about my past and what my mom went through.”
Reaching out, he gave her hand a light squeeze. “I’ll be there whatever happens.”
“I know.” Her fingers tightened around his hand. “That is part of what gives me the strength to face the unknown.”
As they pulled up to the house, Gareth felt a frisson of excitement. Though he’d rung in the previous year without much anticipation, that wasn’t the case this year. Both his personal and professional lives were going well, and he hoped that the next year would be even better.
Once inside the large home, they were greeted with warmth, laughter, and the smell of amazing food. For the next three hours, they’d spend time eating, playing games, and then, as the new year approached, they’d spend some time in prayer.
The gathering there that night was a little larger than it had been in the past, but each person present was considered family, whether or not they were officially. And Gareth was glad that they were all there.
“Ten!” Everyone joined in the countdown to midnight, with Layla yelling the loudest. “Three! Two! One! Happy New Year!”
