AllFreeNovel
Share Us
She wasn’t sure why she felt so protective of Will where his relationship with Daphne was concerned. It probably stemmed from witnessing what had happened with Jay and Casey. Time and time again, she’d told Jay not to get back together with her. But he hadn’t listened.
Thankfully, it seemed Will wasn’t going to fall into the same pattern, and hopefully, the next relationship he got into would be with a woman who treated him better than Daphne had and who enjoyed hanging around with the rest of them.
On Thursday evening, Janessa headed to the church with Aria. The Bible studies and small groups had started up that week, a little behind the start of the school year.
She hadn’t been sure if she would go to the ladies’ group that night or not. The previous year, she’d been more involved in the Bible study. But for some reason, that year, she felt… distracted, for lack of a better word.
Aria had encouraged Janessa to go with her, and Janessa hadn’t had a good reason not to. Gareth co-led a Bible study with Wade and Jackson that same night, so it didn’t surprise Janessa that Aria was available to go with her.
“Misha says she’s on her way,” Aria said as Janessa drove to the church.
Janessa was glad Misha had decided to come with them because it would be nice for her to have more interactions with the church members. Denise regularly attended the crafting group, and she seemed to have made some good friends through that.
“Are you and Gareth going to the couples’ Bible study on Sunday night?”
“We haven’t made a definite decision yet,” Aria said. “But I think it’s likely.”
“Did Jay and Will agree to go to Gareth’s tonight?”
“Last I heard, Will was going, but Jay wasn’t sure because of Peyton.”
“It is hard on a school night. If it doesn’t go too late, Charli could probably watch him.”
Janessa pulled into the parking lot of the church and found a spot easily. Some groups met in homes, but none of the ladies had volunteered their home for the first meeting. Maybe she and Aria should offer to host on occasion, since it would mean Charli could attend once she put Layla to bed.
Janessa checked her phone as she followed Aria into the room, looking up when she heard Aria mutter, “Oh boy.”
She looked, peering around her friend to see what had prompted those words. Janessa’s brows rose when she spotted Daphne talking with one of her friends.
“Behave,” Aria muttered as she grabbed Janessa’s arm and dragged her to a set of seats far away from Daphne.
“What’s she doing here?”
“Is it really a surprise that she’s here?” Aria asked, keeping her voice low. “I mean, she attends this church, too.”
“Yeah. But she hasn’t been to any Bible study I’ve ever been a part of.”
Aria sat down on one of the overstuffed loveseats angled in a circle with several individual chairs. She pulled Janessa down beside her.
Janessa stared at Daphne as she tried to figure out why she would be there. Though she regularly attended the Sunday morning worship service, Daphne hadn’t been very involved in any other church activities. She’d never come to Sunday school as a kid and had rarely shown up for the youth group when they were teens.
And yet, here she was.
A knot formed in Janessa’s stomach as she considered what the other woman’s presence might mean. Had her grandmother convinced her that Will was the better man for her? If so, maybe she figured the best way to get back with the pastor’s son was to attend more stuff at the church.
Will had said it wasn’t possible that Daphne would want to get back together with him. But what if he was presented with the opportunity, not just a vague possibility?
Aria nudged her in the ribs. “Stop scowling.”
Janessa glanced at Aria, then made an effort to smooth out her expression.
It didn’t make any difference to her what Will did. She was only concerned for his state of mind, which had seemed to suffer after the breakup.
If he decided to get back together with Daphne—after seeing what Jay had gone through with Casey—then he deserved whatever came his way as a result.
She pressed a hand to her stomach as it clenched, leaving her feeling a bit sick. She didn’t want Will to get hurt again, but even more than that, she didn’t want him to get back into a relationship. Especially a relationship with Daphne.
Why did it really matter?
