Family Wanted

Thank You, God.

Chapter Two (#ulink_2fac8231-8ca5-5e7a-974d-7b8840cea3b3)

Sometimes, God gives us tough decisions to make, and maybe I made the wrong one.

The main room of the trailer had a small kitchen to the left, a couple of desks in the center forming a workspace and a tiny sitting area to the right with a sofa and television. “You brought your résumé?” Savvy asked, guiding Isabella to the kitchen table.

“I did.” Isabella handed her the piece of paper.

Savvy scanned it as she spoke. “After you left yesterday, I realized I never told you the history behind Willow’s Haven. Brodie reminded me that it’s important everyone who works here knows how the place has come about and the reason behind our desire to help children.”

Isabella had wondered what caused Savvy and her husband to start the home. “Were you orphaned?”

“Technically, no,” Savvy said, “but my mother abandoned me when I was born and left me to be raised by my grandparents. I was fortunate, because my grandparents are amazing, but there are a lot of kids who are abandoned by their parents and have nowhere to go, which is why we’ll help children who are either orphaned or abandoned. That’s the reason we’re classified as a children’s home, rather than an orphanage.”

Isabella could hear the compassion in Savvy’s voice as she talked about the home, and it touched her heart. “It sounds amazing,” she said, praying she’d get this job and have an opportunity to be a part of something that would truly change children’s lives. “Where did you get the name, Willow’s Haven?”

“It’s named after my best friend, Willow Jackson. This trailer was her home.” She took another look at the résumé and glanced up at Isabella. “Willow passed away a little over a year ago and left her children to me. Brodie and I couldn’t get over how much love Dylan, Rose and Daisy needed after Willow died, and we couldn’t stop thinking about the children who didn’t have anyone to provide that love. We knew there were orphaned and abandoned children who didn’t have anyone who would talk to them about things that are truly important, like faith and God.”

Isabella’s throat tightened. She’d never had anyone mention faith or God in the orphanages she’d lived in. She’d latched on to every snippet of God’s love that she’d learned on the rare occasions she’d gotten to attend church, primarily at Easter and Christmas, and that was only because those were the times the churches gave cash to the orphanages or foster homes. But those tiny glimpses of God, whenever she got them, saw her through the hard times. Gave her hope. Even if she’d seen Richard as something of a savior when she’d been eighteen.

“So the plan for Willow’s Haven is to provide a Christian environment where children will know that they are loved by the staff and, more importantly, by God. And our ultimate goal, of course, is to place each child in a loving, Christian home.”

“That sounds incredible.” Isabella wondered how different her life would’ve been if she’d have been placed somewhere like Willow’s Haven. Would she have responded so quickly to all of the attention Richard Gray provided?

Savvy’s dark eyes practically sparkled with excitement. “I know. We were so blessed that Ryan Brooks and Dana Brooks Cutter—the brother and sister at the head of Brooks International—thought so, too. Their company is funding the child home. And I was so excited to hear from you so soon. I just placed the ad three days ago.”

Isabella didn’t want to lie about seeing an ad that she still hadn’t laid eyes on. “I believe God led me here.”

Savvy’s mouth lifted on one side. “I’m thinking you may be right.” She pointed toward the kitchen. “I made a pot of coffee earlier. Would you like some?”

“Sure, but I can fix it.” Isabella served herself a cup of coffee with plenty of cream and sugar. “You want some, too?”

“Already had three cups.” Savvy held up the résumé. “You have a business administration degree, but it doesn’t appear that you’ve used it.”

“No, but I’d like to.”

Savvy looked as though she wanted to ask more about the degree but then thankfully moved down the page. “Okay, I see your volunteer work teaching swimming at the Y, but this says you’ve also been volunteering at the charity hospital in Atlanta, up until last week?”

Isabella sipped her coffee, enjoyed the delicious warm liquid on her tongue. “I put the name of the administrator under my references. I really enjoyed working there, volunteering there, I guess I should say.”

Savvy wrote something on the paper. “What made you start volunteering at those places, and why did you leave?”

She’d started volunteering at the Y because Nan told her she’d enjoy working there. Nan had held a paid position as an office assistant at the Y until she was too sick and went to the hospital, where she met Isabella.

Isabella wouldn’t tell Savvy about her relationship with Titus’s ex-wife, so she focused on the other reason she’d started volunteering. “My husband—ex-husband—and I divorced last year. I wasn’t feeling very good about myself at the time, and I wanted to do something to help others while I waited for the divorce to be final. Then I planned to move away, find a small town and start my life new, away from the big-city lifestyle.”

“You don’t get much farther away from big-city than Claremont,” Savvy said, grinning.

“I realized that last night, when I went to the town square.” Isabella recalled the quaint Mayberry-type atmosphere that radiated from the place.

“And so your divorce just finalized, and you were looking for a small town where you could settle down?”

“No. It was final six months ago, but I...” She struggled to say enough, without saying too much. “I became friends with one of the patients at the hospital, and I didn’t want to leave until—” she carefully picked her words “—until she no longer needed me.”

Savvy’s hand moved to her heart. “You’re going to be great here, you know. You may even be perfect to oversee a cabin eventually, but having you in the office will work, as well.”

Isabella wanted her to understand how much she already felt drawn to Willow’s Haven. “I was raised in orphanages,” she said. “And they were terrible. I won’t go into detail, because I honestly don’t want to think about it—or talk about it—ever again. But when you described what your plans were for Willow’s Haven, I felt like God brought me here for a reason. Because I know how children feel when they’re abandoned, and I know how important it would’ve been to me to have someone who cared, someone who told me about God and someone who truly loved me.”

Two thick tears trickled down Savvy’s cheeks, and she brushed them away. “I knew God answered my prayers with you,” she said softly. “I’d like to go ahead and show you everything today, what computer software we’ve bought for the office, the files that we’re going through in our search for children needing a home. There are plenty of kids—too many, truth be told—but we want to be ready to take as many as we can as soon as possible. As the cabins go up, we want to fill them.” She motioned toward one of the small desks with a laptop. “Everything’s over there. We’ll go ahead and get started. Sound good?”

“That sounds great.” Eagerness flooded Isabella’s soul. God had brought her here. She could feel it. And she couldn’t wait to get started.

“I thought it would,” Savvy said. “And while you’re figuring things out, I’ll call your references. But I already know that everything will be fine.”

Happy with this turn of events, Isabella took her coffee and started across the room as the phone on the desk began to ring. “Do you want me to get that?”

“Sure,” Savvy said. “Just answer, ‘Willow’s Haven.’”

Isabella picked up the phone on the third ring. “Willow’s Haven,” she said. “Can I help you?”

“Well, ma’am, I hope you can. I’m trying to get in touch with a Mr. Titus Jameson. I called his office, and the voice mail left this number. Would he happen to be there? It’s rather important.”

“Yes, he is. Hold on one moment, and I’ll see if he’s available.” She lowered the receiver and said to Savvy, “It’s a gentleman looking for Titus. He said it’s important.”

She nodded. “His cell doesn’t pick up out here. Let me see if I can get him.”

Isabella waited while Savvy went outside. She heard her calling Titus’s name, and then she returned.

“He wasn’t far away,” she said. “He’s coming.”

A few minutes later, Titus entered, his forehead already starting to dampen with sweat and his work shirt beginning to cling to his muscled frame.

Isabella handed him the phone while trying not to stare.

Not an easy feat.

“Thanks,” he said, his fingertips brushing hers in the exchange.

“You’re welcome.” She didn’t want to blush, but she thought it might be happening anyway, so she turned her attention to the laptop in front of her, even though the only thing on it was a screensaver of Dylan, Rose and Daisy.

“This is Titus,” he said.

Isabella heard the other man’s voice, a distant mumbling through the receiver as he spoke to Titus, but she couldn’t make out the words. And she really didn’t want to eavesdrop on the conversation, so she moved the mouse around on the computer with the hopes that something would show up besides the screensaver.

Savvy had gone to the kitchen area and started washing dishes. But since Titus took the call at the desk, and there wasn’t a whole lot of room for him to walk around and talk with the cordless, he simply sat in the chair opposite Isabella and listened to the man on the other end.

Which made it easy for her to see when the color drained from his face.