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He forced a smile. “I won’t throw it away.” How could he? No one had ever done something so meaningful for him. And even if he couldn’t have her, at least he’d have a permanent record of how she’d once felt about him.
He made his escape to sit in the car. Took a deep breath as he plugged in the USB and waited for the sound to begin.
“Hi, Dan! Happy birthday! I hope you enjoy this, and I hope you have a wonderful day. I wish I was there with you. I love you!”
He swallowed the roar of pain. Her voice sounded so happy he could almost see her smiling at him. Sarah introduced the first song, one of his favorites from church. The congregation was making their way to the parking lot, so he drove off to meet his parents and brother at a restaurant for lunch, vacillating between smiling at the corny jokes and the way she sang, to despairing that he’d never see her again. He sat in the restaurant’s car park until the last song had finished, praying to maintain his composure over the next few hours. Playing Sarah’s songs before meeting his parents had been a really bad idea.
He got out and met his folks inside, managing the small talk and even a few smiles through the first courses, murmuring his appreciation for his parents’ and Sam’s gifts as dessert was served.
His mother leaned forward. “So, what did Sarah give you?”
At least he could say something. “She gave me a CD she made. It’s awesome.”
“A CD?” His father’s lip curled.
“Yeah, she wrote all these songs, played them, sang them, recorded them…” His voice trailed off. “It’s really special.”
“That’s nice, dear.”
His mom’s condescension dug defensiveness on Sarah’s behalf. “Did I ever tell you Sarah was part of this famous music group called Heartsong Collective?”
“Really?” Sam looked mildly interested.
“Yeah. They toured the world, did a bunch of albums she wrote songs for. Her songs are sung in churches everywhere.”
At the mention of churches, his dad’s face tightened.
“I see. So, how is Sarah?” His mother looked at him expectantly.
Oh God.“Uh, I haven’t spoken to her for a while.”
“Really? She hasn’t contacted you for your birthday?”
Lunch threatened to reappear. This was awful. He could either let them think badly of Sarah or tell them the truth. He sighed. It was time for the truth about his past to come out anyway. He kept it short, only too aware of the shock and disappointment evident in their faces. Happy birthday indeed.
His father shook his head. “Why didn’t you tell us, son?”
He shrugged. “I didn’t know how to. I’m sorry.” When would the apologies stop? When would his father’s disappointment end?
“I can't believe this is the first we’re hearing of this. This is important. This, this…Lana woman could’ve taken you to the cleaners! You could’ve ruined your career.”
“Dad.” How could his father see it like this? It was dollar signs all the way with him.
“I’m sorry, Daniel,” his mom said. “We liked Sarah—and her parents, for that matter. I know you cared about her, and I’m sorry she won’t be part of the family one day.”
Dan blinked. “You really liked her that much?”
“Yes, we did.”
What—even Dad approved of her?
His father nodded. “She was a little forthright at times, but on the whole Sarah seemed like a lovely, sweet, innocent girl. I’m not surprised she left you, considering what you did.”
Dan wanted to roll his eyes, but that wouldn’t go down well. “Dad, it happened years ago.”
“Maybe it did. I think you should count your lucky stars you escaped so lightly.”
Dan shook his head. “It wasn’t lucky stars. I’m not proud of what I did, not happy about any part of it, but I am glad that it made me realize who God is.”
