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Sheila L Jackson
Amazon
Category:
Romance
Publisher: Virtuous Books
ISBN-10: 0692656863
Type: Fiction
Pages: 254
Copyright: March 1, 2016
ISBN-13: 9780692656860
Price: $0.99 (eBook)
Can joy be found in the midst of pain?
A teenager texting while driving runs a stop sign and shatters Joi Campbell’s perfect life. Her husband and twin boys are killed as a result. Unable to start life over without them, she succumbs to grief and anger. But fate has other plans for the thirty-three-year old emergency room nurse. Her girlfriends book an all-expense paid trip to the Caribbean. There, Joi sees a familiar face from back home— Firefighter Wyatt Payne. Will the flames ignite in paradise between her and the sexy fireman? Or will the guilt of starting over stifle the fire before it gets hot and heated? After surviving a bitter divorce, love is the last thing Wyatt is looking for. But when he meets Joi, their friendship begins to blossom. However, his dangerous job as a fireman brings their budding romance to a halt. And to make matters worse, a secret he’s hiding threatens to push her away forever.
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Excerpt
Prologue
The subdued faces of the two policemen standing outside of Joi Campbell’s door spoke volumes to her overactive nerves.
Her heart pummeled against her chest as their stern demeanor rendered her speechless. Struggling to see behind one of the officer’s wide physique, she’d noticed her parents speeding into the driveway almost on two wheels. Her mother got out of the car before her father came to a complete stop. Charging toward the house, she ran upon the porch, pushed past the officers, and grabbed hold of her daughter. Like a movie playing in slow motion, the scene wasn’t going to turn out well. Especially when her father made it into the house, gasping for air as he clutched his chest. Now, Joi had reasons to panic.
After finding her voice, Joi addressed one of the officers who had partnered with her husband on The Shreveport Police Department. “Where is Michael, Jacob?” Her hands began to shake out of control as she continued to question him. “Where is Michael?” She screamed louder, knowing that policemen only made personal visits to families of fellow officers killed in the line of duty. Jacob and Michael had partnered for ten years and now the day she feared, had come. Joi held her breath and waited for the officer to give her the dreaded news.
Officer Jacob Winn tried putting on a brave face, but no words formed. It was apparent that whatever he had to say was not good, leaving the escorting officer to be the bearer of bad news. Joi’s stomach clinched as she braced herself for the words she had hoped to never hear.
“Mrs. Campbell,” The agony shone in his poignant blue eyes, as his chubby cheeks quivered. “Your husband and kids were killed this afternoon in a car wreck involving a teenage driver, texting behind the wheel. The young lady ran a stop sign, causing her to crash into your family’s vehicle.” His words caught in his throat as he struggled to keep his taut posture.
Joi stared into the officer’s sorrowful eyes as he delivered the worst news no wife or mother ever wanted to hear. As she tried wrapping her brain around losing her husband and ten-year-old twin boys, Jayden and Kayden, her airwaves seemed to have closed, making it difficult to breath. The realization of his statement had become too much for her to process. Her brain felt as if it had short-circuited and like the flip of a switch, everything around her went black, causing her limp body to collapse into her father’s arms.
Chapter One
Two Years Later
Joi knelt beside her husband and twin boys’ graves, still mourning their deaths. True, two years had passed, but for her, it seemed like yesterday. Her parents by her side helped to ease the pain and loneliness of visiting the cemetery on the anniversary of their passing. Her parents kept a watchful eye on her. If not, she’d visit everyday.
Her life consisted of church and work. She had no social life. The thought of dating made her cringe. She was thirty-three years old, widowed, childless and alone. After their funerals, she moved back home with her parents. Joi sold the house she once shared with her family for her sanity’s sake. It had become cold, and the memories deafening. Her sons’ laughter and fighting over the television remote control had faded. Michael, shouting from the bedroom for her to help find his badge that he had misplaced for the umpteenth time, became nothing but bitter sweet memories. A year later, she moved out of her parents’ home and found a place of her own to start over. Those words sounded foreign to her.
Her father rested his hand on her shoulder. “Joi, c’mon. It’s time to go. We’ve been out here quite a while.”
With the palm of her hand, she wiped at a tear threatening to spill from the corner of her eye. She stared up at her father and mother. “I thought it would get easier,” she gulped, hoping to suppress the pain. “Each time I visit, I find it harder to leave.”
Joi and Payne
“I know baby,” her mother said, stroking through the layers of Joi’s short hair. “Michael wouldn’t want you to live the rest of your life grieving over him and the boys. You can find comfort in knowing that they are with the Lord.”
“Knowing that doesn’t ease the pain.” “I want to move on, believe me, but it’s hard.”
Her father helped her to her feet.
“I didn’t say it would be easy.” Her mother gave her one of those, this-too-shall-pass, kind of smiles.
Joi dusted the grass off her knees, took a deep breath and said, “How am I going to face the future, when it’s lying here in three graves? My heart aches for them daily, Mom.” She didn’t want to fall apart in front of them. If she did, they would talk her into moving back in with them. That was the last thing she wanted to do. She valued her privacy.
The three strolled over to a vacant bench. Joi sat in the middle. Taking in all that had been said, she didn’t want to worry her parents any more than she already had. So, she hid her agony to keep from hearing another one of their lectures about, “God, putting no more on her than she could bear.” She had heard enough of that from her pastor, and frankly, she was tired of hearing it. Joi had lost the love of her life and her sons because of some irresponsible teenager whom she thought had gotten off easy for reckless driving. It wasn’t fair that she had to go on without those she loved while a criminal got away with manslaughter.
“What are your plans for the rest of today?” her mother casually asked. Changing the conversation was something she’d always done if the subject was depressing.
Pathetically, Joi answered, “I have no plans. I’m going to watch a Lifetime movie, microwave a TV dinner and call it a night.” Why take the time to prepare a meal when there was no one but her?
“TV dinner! Lifetime movie!” Her mother shouted, while her father scooted to the edge of the bench, looking at her as if
Sheila L Jackson
she had said a curse word. “Child, those movies are depressing. Either someone is being killed, stalked, dating a psycho or committing adultery. Why don’t you join your father and me for a good home cooked meal?” A hopeful smile smoothed the worry lines that had formed across her mother’s forehead.
Her father shook his head in agreement. “That’s a great idea.” He gently squeezed Joi’s hand. “You know your mother always cooks too much food for the two of us.”
“I’m going to pass on dinner. It’s been a long day.” She yawned, hoping her tired act would cause them to back off. If she accepted their dinner offer, they would try to get her to sleep over. “I just want to go home and relax before going to work tomorrow. You know how it is in the hospital’s ER, never a dull moment.” She faked an exhausted smile.
Over the past ten years, Joi worked as an emergency room nurse. She loved her job. The thought of making a difference in others’ lives gave her a sense of purpose. Working at Blessed Memorial Hospital saved her in more ways than one. It kept her busy and sane, until she arrived home after a long, grueling day, then silence greeted her at the door.
“Yes, I do remember,” her mother said. “I don’t envy you at all. People don’t know the pressures that go along with being a nurse.”
“Well, my beautiful ladies, it’s time to head back into town before nightfall.” Her father stood to his feet. Helping her and her mother up from the bench, he escorted them to the car. Once inside the backseat, Joi craned her neck out the window to get one last look at the cemetery as her father drove away. She wanted to run back to their graves and scream until she could not scream anymore.
*****
Joi and Payne
Later that night, Joi wandered over to the fireplace mantle lined with photos of a once happy family. She picked up one and cradled it in her arms. How she wished she could see their smiling faces and hear their laughter again. She and Michael had been college sweethearts. They were inseparable until fate had torn them apart.
Their deaths could have been avoided if only Rebekah, the teenage driver had kept her eyes on the road, instead of her cellphone. Her parents hired the best lawyer money could buy, getting her off with no more than a pat on the hand. The judge sentenced the teen to do five years of community service. Her family lives meant nothing to the justice system, which told her money and power still ruled. When the girl’s sentence was handed down, Joi wanted to scream. Was she the only one in the courtroom that thought the sentence was too lenient? Joi wanted to yell at the injustice of the entire proceeding. Surely, it had to be a terrible mistake. Before she got the chance to voice her complaints, her parents and in-laws hauled her out of the courtroom.
Whoever coined the phrase, “Time heals old wounds,” lied. Her wounds were still fresh. No scabs had formed to start the healing process. Joi placed the photograph back onto the mantle, and called it a night.
In her mind, she wanted to move on, but her heart said differently. No matter how many prayers she prayed or tears she cried, none of it had brought her family back. She wanted to live again, but didn’t know how. Grief consumed her constantly, even in her dreams. Escaping it was getting harder to do, especially during those long, lonely nights when there was no one to share her bed with. Michael was the only man she had known intimately. How could she let another man into her heart when her deceased husband still claimed it?
For now, she sought solace through the memories of much happier times. That had to do for now. The dating scene today was downright scary and dangerous, especially when
Sheila L Jackson
television shows reenacted dates and marriages that had fatal endings. The thought of it, terrified her.
Lord help!
Dating was on the bottom of her list of things to explore. She shivered at the thought as she lay in her empty bed wishing Michael was there with his strong arms to hold her through the night. Instead, she snuggled up with a pillow and cried herself to sleep as she had done for the last two years.
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