Chapter 15

15

F aith nodded. "Of course I remember."

"I still have faith," Destiny said, dropping her chin and staring into Faith's eyes. "And it's getting stronger."

The smile on Faith's face told Destiny she'd said what Faith wanted to hear. "I had one more stop planned," Faith said.

"Let's go," Destiny said, gathering their trash.

Faith drove them to their favorite frozen yogurt shop. They sat outside on a bench and enjoyed their dessert. This was so much better than Destiny had imagined. She wanted to spend the day with Faith, but she was afraid things would be awkward. Instead they had a relaxed wonderful time, just as they once did.

"Would you like for me to meet you at the nursery Monday afternoon?" Destiny asked, spooning the last bite of yogurt into her mouth.

"I'd be happy to come get you," Faith said. "I can say hello to Monica."

"Okay."

"Then we can go by the office complex for one more look," Faith said.

"You'll have to bring me all the way back to my shop once we're finished."

"I don't mind," Faith replied.

They threw their trash away and Faith drove them back to Destiny's apartment. The sun was dropping lower and lower in the sky, so she hurriedly pulled into a parking space. She ran around the truck and opened Destiny's door.

"We're just in time," Faith said, holding out her hand.

Destiny took it and chuckled. She let Faith lead them around the corner of the building to a small sitting area. They could just see the sunset through the trees.

"I think we made it," Faith said, pulling Destiny down to sit next to her.

Destiny couldn't help but get caught up in Faith's excitement. This had been one of the best days she'd had in a long time. It's funny how being with someone you love made the simplest things even better.

They hadn't done anything special today. Being with Faith, doing these simple things they both liked, that's what made it special. Destiny couldn't help but squeeze Faith's hand as they enjoyed the sunset like they'd done so many times before.

She sighed and smiled. Faith was definitely showing Destiny that she was not giving up on them. But what would happen if they didn't win the bid? It was such a longshot. What about the doubts? Destiny could feel them at the back of her mind. Stop!

Destiny took a deep breath and pushed the doubts away. There would be plenty of time to think about them later. Right now, she wanted to end this date surrounded by the happiness of spending the day with Faith.

"That was a nice sunset to end this day," Faith said. "I was afraid we were going to miss it."

"It wouldn't dare mess up this lovely day you planned for us," Destiny said as they walked back to her apartment.

"I hope you had a good time," Faith said when they stopped outside Destiny's front door.

"I had a wonderful time," Destiny replied. Her heart began to pound a little faster in her chest. "Would you like to come in?"

Faith shook her head. "Not this time." She smiled. "Thank you for today, Des. Will you go out with me again?"

Destiny chuckled. "Yes, but shouldn't it be my turn?"

Faith shrugged. "Not necessarily."

Destiny felt Faith's lips softly touch her cheek. She momentarily closed her eyes and committed the sensation to memory. Oh yeah, she'd be thinking about that later.

"Have a nice weekend," Faith said. "I'll see you on Monday."

Destiny smiled and watched Faith walk back to her truck. She waved as Faith got inside and Destiny opened her front door. Once it was closed she leaned up against it and let out a deep breath.

"What just happened?" she murmured.

There were times throughout the day when the last three years seemed to disappear. It was just the two of them doing what they loved and being together.

Destiny sighed and reached up to touch her cheek where Faith had softly pressed her lips.

"How do we start over?" she whispered.

They couldn't take up where they'd left off because so much had happened, but the love was still there. Destiny felt it and couldn't deny it. She'd tried to tell herself that it didn't matter that they still loved each other, but it did.

Destiny felt like she was falling in love with Faith all over again. She'd met Faith's parents only once, but she understood why Faith gave them chance after chance. They were personable and outgoing, but broke her heart over and over.

She remembered wishing Faith could have parents and a family like she had. She wondered if it would give Faith a sense of relief because it always felt like she was waiting for them to hurt her all over again.

Maybe Faith letting her family go was the next best thing. It was hard to explain but Destiny could feel that hint of underlying tension that was always a part of Faith. It was just there. Sometimes it was stronger and Destiny did everything she could to ease it.

She furrowed her brow as she thought back over their conversations since being trapped in the shack. Faith said she could see everything clearly now and since then she seemed lighter. Come to think of it, Destiny hadn't noticed that unease in Faith since their night in the shack.

It was almost as if Faith's confidence was growing before Destiny's eyes.

"Ahh, this is too much." Destiny fell down on her couch and covered her face with her hands. "You were never easy, my love," she whispered. Her eyes sprang open when she realized she'd just called Faith my love .

Her phone beeped with a text, pulling her out of her head.

Thanks for the wonderful day. Let's do it again soon.

Destiny smiled as she read the text from Faith.

Thank you! What do you have in mind? A little flirting wasn't a bad thing, was it? Destiny thought as she replied. The three little dots appeared on the screen then the words.

I'll surprise you. See you Monday.

Destiny chuckled. This was such a role reversal for them. Destiny was the one who usually surprised Faith, but not anymore. Is this what their relationship could be going forward?

Can't wait , Destiny replied.

She sat back against the couch and smiled. "Slow down," she said softly. It would be easy to get caught up in these happy feelings again, but she remembered what happened last time.

The next day Destiny went over to her parents' house for Sunday lunch. Her dad loved to grill on Sunday afternoons and burgers were on today's menu.

Destiny helped her mom get the rest of the meal ready in the kitchen.

"I talked to your brother this morning," Gretchen said.

"How is Mr. Wonderful?" Destiny replied.

"Very funny," Gretchen replied.

"If you don't believe he's Mr. Wonderful, just ask him," Destiny teased. "I talked to him this morning, too."

"Oh?" Gretchen said with surprise.

Destiny chuckled. "We do talk to one another, Mom. He had a deal on a couple of work trucks for me if I was interested."

Gretchen stopped slicing a tomato to look over at Destiny. "He does give you his price for vehicles, doesn't he?"

Destiny smiled. "He's one of the top car dealers in the state. I'm not sure he did that by giving his sister a vehicle at cost."

"He'd better have given it to you at cost," Gretchen said, pointing the knife at Destiny. "I'll call him back after lunch."

"Mom!" Destiny exclaimed. "I'm kidding. Of course Chase gave me the best price, just as I do for him on landscaping when I can."

"You'd better," Gretchen said. "Y'all are family."

Destiny shook her head and prepared the lettuce for the burgers. "I told him about what happened with Faith. I thought he was going to come up here and hunt Gloria down."

"He's your big brother," Gretchen said. "No one messes with his sister."

Destiny chuckled. "Yeah, Chase is a good brother."

"I wondered how you felt about Gloria."

"I'll see her again someday," Destiny said. "What she did wasn't just unprofessional, it was despicable."

"Faith feels such regret for not talking to you about it," Gretchen said.

"I know. We spent the day together yesterday." She felt a flutter in her stomach thinking back to her time with Faith.

Gretchen smiled and looked over at Destiny. "Good for you. I would think now that you know the truth you wouldn't want to waste any time being apart. You were both hurt and sad for so long."

"Look, Mom. I know you want us to get back together, but it isn't that easy," Destiny said. "First, it's the way we broke up and her trust issues. Now she tells me that she trusts me completely and should have all along. On top of that she wants to give up her family. I don't want her to give up anything for me."

"Honey, she's not giving up her family for you," Gretchen said. "She's giving up her family because she wants a life of trust and love. She wants that life with you!"

"But to give them up?"

Gretchen sighed. "Didn't they give her up long ago?"

Destiny shrugged. "Faith does seem different," she said. "There's a lightness to her that wasn't there before."

Gretchen smiled. "She's letting all the hurt and pain go, but she's also letting go of the responsibility."

"I never thought of it like that," Destiny said. "There was always something hovering around us, like she was waiting for something bad to happen. I didn't realize it then, but I do now. Oh my God!" Realization swept through Destiny.

"What?"

"That's why she didn't feel like she was good enough," Destiny said. "She didn't feel good enough for her parents, so why wouldn't it be the same thing with me. Oh my God, Mom! She tried to explain it to me that night and again on Friday. I didn't get it then, but I do now. My poor baby."

"That's why she's letting them go, Destiny," Gretchen said. "She wants a life with you. She wants to love and be loved. She wants to trust and be trusted."

"That's what I wanted, too, Mom," Destiny said. "How do I know this won't happen again?"

"You don't," Gretchen said. "You have to trust her."

Destiny groaned. "Oh, I want to so badly."

Gretchen walked over and pulled Destiny into a hug.

"Faith is trusting herself," Gretchen said. She stepped back and smiled at Destiny. "You should, too."

"It seems that we're dating," Destiny said, shrugging. "It's Faith's idea."

Gretchen smiled. "She's giving you time."

"I know, but I told her that maybe we didn't know each other as well as we thought," Destiny explained. "She said what better way to get to know each other than going on a date."

"Is that what yesterday was?" Gretchen asked.

Destiny nodded. "We had the best day and we're going to do it again."

"When?"

"I don't know, she's going to surprise me," Destiny said. The thought made a feeling of warmth spread through her body.

"A surprise, huh," Gretchen said with a giggle. "That sounds fun."

"She planned everything yesterday. Who knows what she'll do next."

"You can count on it being something you love, honey," Gretchen said. "Because if there's one thing I know, Faith Fields is still very much in love with you."

I'm still very much in love with her, too , Destiny thought. What do I do now?