Healing Hearts (New Hope Falls #6) - Kimberly Rae Jordan Page 0,59

a spiritual marriage.

She’d bought everything he’d sold to her during that time. Only coming to realize later that he’d wanted a spiritual but not legal marriage with her because he had other wives already. He may have railed against society and all its laws, but he didn’t intend to get arrested for bigamy.

Looking back now, all she wanted to do was yell at herself for being so, so stupid and naïve. The only way she could live with herself and move forward was if she learned from her mistakes. As her father had always lectured them: those who didn’t learn from their mistakes were doomed to repeat them.

She did not intend to be one of those who repeated her mistakes. Her goal from that point on was to devote her love and time to her son—the only good thing that had come from that time with Ezekiel.

Everything she did was to provide for him the life he deserved. The one he’d missed out on so far. And though she might not be able to afford the most expensive toys or the best places to live, she would love him with all her heart and do what she hadn’t been able to do during their time in the compound to show him that he was important to her.

Ryker was playing a role in Bryson’s life now, and because it brought Bryson joy, Sophia hadn’t yet been able to bring herself to force Ryker away. But someday, Ryker would have his own children, and Bryson would fall below them in Ryker’s priorities—which was as it should be. But if there was any way for Sophia to lessen Ryker’s importance in Bryson’s life before that occurred, it would make it easier for the child to accept.

She’d never imagined she’d be a single mother with only one child, but she accepted that that was her lot in life now. But what she hoped and prayed for was that there would be people in the years ahead who would fill the gaps in Bryson’s life the way Ryker was filling a gap for him right then.

And as long as Bryson was happy, it would be enough.

CHAPTER TWELVE

“Thanks for coming,” Silas said as he gave Ryker a hug, slapping him once on the back.

“You know I wouldn’t have missed this for the world.”

His nephew and niece had been the only children he’d been able to deal with in the dark months following his return from Syria. They’d been the solitary bright spots in his world, offering their love without any expectations for how he should be behaving.

“I just find it hard to believe that Jonah is turning eleven. You’re going to have a teenager on your hands before you know it.”

Silas groaned. “I already feel like I have teenagers on my hands. Emery already wants makeup and specific clothes that apparently all the cool kids wear. She’s only eight!”

“You were the one who decided to have kids,” Ryker said with a laugh. “I think you must have forgotten what we were like at that age, wanting all the big kid things.”

Silas grimaced. “Well, come to the kitchen to have some pizza and a bunch of other junk food that Donna bought for the kids against my express wishes.”

“You’re turning into an old fuddy-duddy, Si. Let the kids have some fun.”

Even as he said the words, his thoughts went to the night before at Sophia’s and Bryson’s announcement that he’d never had a birthday party. Ryker still wasn’t sure what to make of that. It seemed that the more time he spent with the pair, the more questions he was left with. Would he ever get answers?

“Hi, Uncle Ryker!” Jonah called out from where he was seated at the table in the dining room with a few friends.

He knew that the party had started mid-afternoon with the boys coming to swim in the pool and to play video games.

“Happy birthday, Jonah,” Ryker said as he went to where his nephew sat and bent over to give him a quick hug. “Have you had a good day?”

“It’s been great.” Jonah pushed up his glasses with a quick movement. “And we’re going to watch a movie and play more video games when we’re done here.”

“Sounds like a stellar plan.” Ryker held out his hand for a fist bump. “Did you save me some pizza?”

“I think Mom did. She’s in the kitchen with Emery.”

Ryker left the boys to their video game centered conversation and went in search of Donna, Emery,