"Sounds like your little family had quite the adventure." Mrs. Huckabee sipped her coffee and folded a washcloth. "The Good Lord was with you for sure."

They'd taken the laundry to the kitchen table and Mrs. Huckabee had insisted on helping while they enjoyed a light lunch Dani made of chicken avocado salad and iced tea.

"Adventure follows us," Dani said folding the corners of a dishtowel. "I like the ordinary things in life like doing laundry." She breathed in the fresh-washed scent of the towel. "It calms me."

The older woman chuckled. "Can't say that I blame you, but you have to go where the Lord leads. I hear congratulations are in order."

Dani stopped folding, confused, and looked up. "What do you mean?"

"Josh told me the two of you are getting married." Mrs. Huckabee smiled a sparkle in her eyes. "I assumed he'd spoken to you first. Didn't mean to let the cat out of the bag."

"Josh told you we were getting married? Me and Josh?" Dani imagined her face looked all puckered like a caught fish.

"Of course, you and Josh. Well, not those exact words. He said you were home for good and the three of you were going to be a family now."

"Oh." Disappointment sank within her.

"Oh?" Mrs. Huckabee leveled an admonishing look at her. "That's not the reaction I expected. I know you want to marry Josh, so what's wrong?"

"We talked about it on the trip, but he hasn't mentioned it since." Dani wasn't sure what she'd expected, and they hadn't spent much time alone aside from a few awkward dates that made her wonder if he was having regrets.

Most of their time was spent at church, with Jacob, or with their friends which were moments she'd always treasure. Doubts kept creeping in. She asked God to help her, but Dani wasn't hearing an answer. The more time went on she realized it was selfish of her to barge back into his life and expect him to give up his fiancé for her.

"It's not what you want?" The question was laced with disapproval. "You have a child together, and Jacobs needs both of his parents."

"It's what I want, Mrs. Huckabee---"

"Bee."

"Bee, I want that more than anything, but it's not just about me." The admission came out in a tumultuous rush of emotion. "Meredith is part of their lives. I don't want to be selfish."

Feeling Bee's shrewd gaze, Dani glanced up from the socks she was joining and saw the older woman watching her with a perceptive glint in her eyes. "He ended it with Meredith, and he wants to marry you."

"It's not that simple."

"There you go again, complicating two plus two." She shook her head with a roll of her eyes. "It's four by the way."

"He loves Meredith."

"He chose you. You're the mother of his son." Bee's gaze sharpened. "Love isn't a fleeting feeling, not if you follow the Lord God. Read your Bible."

Dani nodded, knowing she spoke the truth. Still, she was afraid. "You should have seen the three of them together after we found Jacob..."

"So, you got your feeling hurt and this is about your pride? Suck it up, child, and pray harder than you ever have before. You walked away from your family once don't make the same mistake twice."

Dani's stomach tightened. "Even if it hurts Josh?"

Bee leaned forward and put her hand on Dani's. "I'll pray for all of you, including Meredith. You keep praying too, Dani. The Lord has plans for you all—including Meredith. Trust Him. Don't get in His way."

"I'll do my best." She had so much to be thankful for and yet she kept worrying. Why wasn't her faith stronger? It was wrong to pick up problems she'd left with the Lord.

"Stop trying to run your own life and it will be easier to hear the Lord without your own voice in the way, Dani."

"You're right."

Bee nodded. "Have you talked to your mother?"

The quiet question caught her off guard. "She finally answered one of my calls. Jennifer thinks I'm making a mistake. I'm not surprised. She won't even look at a picture of Jacob."

"Sometimes people can't bear to confront their own sins."

"I don't think she has any regrets or she wouldn't keep pushing me away from Josh and Jacob."

Bee wore a shrewd, knowing expression. "You asked about your daddy, didn't you?"

Dani blinked away the sting of tears. "She told me to never bring him up again. Unless I do one of those DNA tests, I guess I'll never know."

The older woman didn't say anything out loud but her eyes spoke volumes. Dani just wasn't sure what it meant.

"I can't disrupt the Wyatt's lives like that. Not after all they've been through." She shook her head, and a feeling of despair washed over her. "The gossips would be buzzing over the news! Imagine the scandal that would cause in this little town."

Bee waited until Dani looked up at her. "Imagine the joy they'd experience knowing their only son lives on in you and Jacob."

***

"I think I made a mistake with Dani."

Caleb's head shot up from the magazine he was reading, his jaw dropping as he stared at Josh. "Dude, man up and do the right thing this indecisiveness isn't attractive."

Josh had just shot the basketball and it swished through the hoop. His gaze fell on the magazine in Caleb's lap. "Maybe reading a women's mag would make me more attractive."

"Hey, at least I'm trying. These articles have insider info on what women want from us poor clueless dudes." Caleb held up the magazine which sported a trio of women who looked like they were talking about a guy standing off to the side by himself. "It says right here women want to be romanced."

"That's not top-secret info unless you've been living in a cave—no pun intended." He threw the basketball and Caleb caught it with one hand. "And I'm not indecisive."

Caleb threw a deadpan look. "You just said you made a mistake with Dani."

"That's not what I said—" Josh shook his head, frowning. "I meant I think I pushed her too hard and too fast. I've no regrets about her. I love Dani. I always will. It's the other way around. She's acting...strange."

One of Caleb's brows lifted. "Don't tell her that."

"I'm telling you. Hoping for advice. Clearly, I've hit an all-time low."

"Ty was busy, huh?"

"I called his office and his secretary told me to make an appointment."

Caleb's brow furrowed. "Why didn't you just call him? You do have his number."

"I figured with his new position he'd have other people to tend and I didn't want to overload him with my problems."

"Just so you know, if I need Ty's advice I'm taking full advantage of our friendship. His digits are getting used."

"Duly noted. So has Dani said anything to Rach?"

"My wife and I have our own mountain to climb. I'm not getting involved in her girl talk."

Josh sighed. "Rachel said something."

"Didn't say that." Caleb's lips compressed and he reached for that dumb article again. "Here, you need this more than I do."

"Yeah, sure, thanks. I needed to reline some cabinets." Josh lifted the magazine. "This'll be perfect."

"Stop complaining, and read about how to romance your woman. Make yourself irresistible—"

"Please stop." Josh groaned. "This doesn't apply to us. We've done the romance. We have a child together."

"He's hopeless," Caleb grumbled as Ty approached. "I try to tell him how to get through to Dani and he throws it in my face. At least you're here now."

Ty glanced between them, looking confused. "What's with the cabinet paper?"

Josh laughed.

Caleb straightened. "Important advice for men."

"Hmm." Ty grunted. "It's just us today?"

"Our latest scrape with danger lit a fire under Tanner, and he's trying to get his girl back."

"He's probably groveling on his knees at this very moment." Caleb dropped to his knees and clapped his hands together mimicking Tanner. "Please, take me back. I'll always be a clueless man but I am your man and I love you sooooo much!"

Ty's lips twitched. Josh couldn't hold back laughter.

"Parker's on a date with Lindy. Dani, Rach, and Annie are babysitting the boys." Josh's voice caught on Dani's name, but he didn't think they heard. He was wrong.

Ty turned to him. "Everything ok, Josh?"

"I didn't mean that I don't think I need to put in an effort with Dani. It's just—" He scowled at the magazine. "This stuff isn't for us. I'm not trying to seduce her. I want to build a future together forever with Dani and Jacob."

Ty's gaze flicked to the magazine and he looked amused. "Read the Bible. Philippians 2:3 is one of my favorites. Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves. I can text you some other verses for building a strong relationship."

Caleb's gaze slid to Ty. "You probably have never had to use them for yourself, right? I mean you and Annie are perfect."

"Of course I have. The Bible is my go-to source of inspiration when I need help of any kind."

"That's great, but the rest of us aren't as disciplined."

Ty was quiet for a moment. "Annie and I waited years to be married. It wasn't easy. We struggled like all couples do, but we kept relying on God to get us through."

"You sure made it look easy." Josh knew there was more Ty wasn't saying. "Both of you are always smiling and happy. Always willing to help anyone in need."

"That's because we know what it's like to be in need ourselves." Ty took the basketball, threw it, and they watched it swish through the hoop. "You of all people, Josh, know how hard Annie had it after her brother's accident."

A wave of shame fell over Josh. He'd been Annie's best friend in high school, her next-door neighbor, yet he'd managed to forget that dark period in her life when her family didn't know if Tommy would recover. He also remembered the guilt she'd had thinking she was somehow to blame.

Caleb cleared his throat. "We remember."

"You probably also will recall that her parents did not want her to marry me." Ty let out a humorless laugh. "They were thrilled when I was accepted to school halfway across the state, but Annie and I let God lead us."

Josh let out a low breath. "Send me those verses."

"Me too." Caleb tossed the magazine in the trash.