When Love Comes Home

When Love Comes Home
Arlene James

Paige Ellis's prayers had been answered! Kidnapped by her ex-husband, Paige's son had finally come home.But their reunion was not the loving one she'd envisioned: her sweet little boy had turned into a resentful, surly teen. Desperate for help, she turned to the one man who'd rather not get involved. Attorney Grady Jones was clueless about women.Yet client Paige Ellis seemed not to notice. Her gentle beauty and strong faith touched the emptiness inside of him and brought him back to life - and to love. But threats from Paige's ex could destroy their newfound happiness….

“So what’s up? Did you call to check up on me?”

Paige laughed. “I’m looking for a youth hockey league in the area.”

“You’re in luck. I happen to have a buddy who’s a hockey fan, and he’s coach, commissioner and sponsor of the local youth league all rolled into one.”

“You call it lucky. I call it blessed. You, Grady Jones, are a blessing.”

For moments he literally floundered over the phone. Finally he sputtered, “Uh, n-no one, th-that is, what I mean… I take it this is for your son.”

“Who else? I know it’s an imposition, but my son wants to play hockey. It won’t make him happy, but I thought it might improve his attitude.”

Grady imagined that she seemed as reluctant to end the conversation as he was. He promised to talk to his buddy and get back to her soon. A moment of silence followed, then Paige spoke softly.

“I meant what I said, Grady. You’ve been an answer to prayer for me more than once, and I thank God for that.”

“Makes me wish I believed in prayer.”

ARLENE JAMES

says, “Camp meetings, mission work and the church where my parents and grandparents were prominent members permeate my Oklahoma childhood memories. It was a golden time, which sustains me yet. However, only as a young, widowed mother did I truly begin growing in my personal relationship with the Lord. Through adversity He blessed me in countless ways, one of which is a second marriage so loving and romantic it still feels like courtship!”

The author of over sixty novels, Arlene James now resides outside Dallas, Texas, with her husband. Arlene says, “The rewards of motherhood have indeed been extraordinary for me. Yet I’ve looked forward to this new stage of my life.” Her need to write is greater than ever, a fact that frankly amazes her, as she’s been at it since the eighth grade!

When Love Comes Home

Arlene James

Therefore, let those also who suffer according

to the will of God entrust their souls to a

faithful Creator in doing what is right.

—I Peter 4:19

Victoria, I know you are too small to read or even

understand this yet, but the place you hold in my

heart is immense, and it’s never too early to say,

“I love you.” Granna

Contents

Chapter One

Chapter Two

Chapter Three

Chapter Four

Chapter Five

Chapter Six

Chapter Seven

Chapter Eight

Chapter Nine

Chapter Ten

Chapter Eleven

Chapter Twelve

Chapter Thirteen

Chapter Fourteen

Chapter Fifteen

Letter to Reader

Questions for Discussion

Chapter One

Grady frowned across the desk at his older brother and fought the urge to fold his arms in an act of pure defiance. It wasn’t just that Dan expected Grady to spend Thanksgiving traveling for business but that he expected him to do it with Paige Ellis.

Pretty, petite Paige made Grady feel even more hulking and awkward than usual. It didn’t help that Dan might have just stepped out of the pages of a men’s fashion magazine. Slender and sleek, his dark hair having long since gone to silver, Dan served as a perfect contrast to his much larger—and much less dapper—younger brother. Dan was elegant, glittering silver compared to Grady’s dull-as-sand brown.

Dan’s white shirt looked as if it had just come off the ironing board, while Grady’s might have just come off the floor. The navy pinstripes in Dan’s expertly knotted burgundy tie perfectly matched his hand-tailored suit. Grady’s chocolate-brown neckwear, on the other hand, somehow clashed with a suit that he’d once thought brown but now seemed a dark, muddy green.

The only thing the Jones brothers seemed to share, besides their parents and a law practice, were eyes the vibrant blue of a perfect spring sky. Grady considered them wasted in the heavily featured expanse of his own square-jawed face.

“It’s not as if you’d enjoy the holiday anyway,” Dan was saying.

Grady grimaced, conceding the point. Okay, he wasn’t eagerly anticipating another chaotic feast at Dan’s place in Bentonville. Why would he? A fellow couldn’t even watch a good football game without one of his three nieces or sister-in-law interrupting every other minute.

“I didn’t say I wouldn’t do it,” he grumbled. “I said the timing stinks.”