What God Has For Me Read Online Free Page B

nothing. The set was actually a customized play
gym with a slide, monkey bars, and a playhouse installed days after
they moved into their new house.
    “Mom and I will get this kitchen in shape
while Granny Rose gets her
Mostaccioli
together,” Tracey
said.
    “You got that right and you know I need a
clean place to cook.” Soon pots and pans took the punishment of
Granny Rose’s displeasure.
    Zachary smiled as the back door busted open,
Tracey’s sons raced out.
    “Hi, Uncle Zach.” Ashanti waved as she was
about to run toward him.
    “Stay back,” he ordered them until he closed
the lid on the pit, then squatted. “I don’t want you to get burned.
Whenever there’s smoke, it means something is hot, remember?”
    Ashanti nodded and then jumped down the
deck’s few steps into the yard to keep up with her cousins.
Standing, Zachary turned around and Halcyon graced the doorway. He
gave an appreciative glance. She and Ashanti wore matching denim
outfits, even Jonathan had on denim overalls and a baseball cap.
“Hey, Bridget.”
    He liked calling her by her middle name. It
seemed to be softer and fit her personality versus Halcyon, similar
to her father, Harold’s name which they named her when they found
out she wasn’t a boy.
    “Hi, Zach.” Halcyon was about to brush a kiss
on his cheek when he thwarted that and her lips landed on his. She
seemed unaffected.
    “Nice shade of lipstick,” he complimented,
trying to tame his emotions when he wanted to pull her closer and
not let go.
    She blushed. “Thanks for noticing.”
    “I notice everything about you—everything.”
Zachary didn’t blink.
    “Ah, okay.” She did blink. “Let me get
Jonathan situated with Momma, I’ll grab Desi’s apron, and be right
back to help you.”
    “His and her chefs. Sounds like a plan.”
    Minutes later, smoke spewed from the grill
when Zachary lifted the lid, almost gagging him, while Halcyon’s
perfume tickled his nose when she joined him. Once they got into a
comfortable routine, Halcyon stood nearby with a platter ready to
dip the cooked barbecue into Desi’s special sauce. “So how’s the
job going?” Zachary casually asked.
    Halcyon shrugged. “All right. It provides
health care for my babies. That’s all that matters.”
    “No, that’s not all that should matter,” he
softened his tone. “I want to see you happy again, excited about
life, not just going through the motions of living. You could’ve
come to me for employment. You still can and you know it.” He tried
to keep the edge out of his voice. Stubborn woman .
    Halcyon shrugged. “I’ve applied at other
places, this one came through first. It’s only temporary. It’s not
about me. It’s about Ashanti’s and Jonathan’s needs.”
    “Not once have I ever seen your babies do
without. You’re on top of your game. You make motherhood look
easy.”
    “You really think so?” Frowning, Halcyon
seemed skeptical as she stared at him as if he were speaking in
another language. She sighed, then turned and took the overflowing
platter of barbecue in the house. She returned moments later with
an empty one and picked up the conversation, “Sometimes, I feel
like a failure—not finishing school when I was so close, not having
a father in my children’s lives and…”
    “And what?” he prompted, stabbing the ribs a
few times to check for tenderness. “You know you can talk to me
about anything, and it will never go outside of you and me.”
Replacing the lid over the ribs, he nudged her to take a seat, then
he did the same. “Talk to me.”
    Refusing to look at him, she glanced in the
direction of the children. “I can’t blame anybody for my situation.
Every day, I try to move on mentally, but it’s a never-ending cycle
of dealing with so much guilt from bad decisions. I just don’t want
Ashanti and Jonathan to suffer for my mistakes.”
    Behind the pretty face and alluring smile,
Halcyon was still hurting. Zachary could tell that she was