Beyond Promise Read Online Free PDF

and fist pumped
Derek.
    “Exactly,” I agreed. “You’ve got to stay
positive or there’s no point in showing up. If I was your date and
felt like you didn’t want to be there…”
    Derek threw his hands into the air. “I get
it. I get it. Enough about me. It’s you I’m here for.” He pointed
his finger at Ayden.”
    “I’m all warmed up,” Ayden told him.
    “Yep. He’s been in the gym for over an
hour,” I confirmed.
    Derek nodded and dropped his bag onto the
ground, fishing out some belt weights. “Let’s get outside before it
starts to rain.”
    Ayden gave me a quick kiss on the cheek.
    “Whatever you say.” Ayden opened the door
and there stood Brandy and Gabby. They were grinning from ear to
ear and looked suspiciously inside as they eyed Ayden, who was
still shirtless.
    “Did we interrupt something? We can come
back later.” Gabby started giggling.
    “Very funny,” I hollered over Ayden’s
shoulder. “He’s training. Derek just got here and they’re headed
outside.”
    “Sure he was,” Brandy yielded a wry
laugh.
    Gabby and Brandy came inside and set their
purses on the entry table. I noticed Brandy’s slight limp had
returned. She hadn’t mentioned anything about her leg recently, but
obviously that didn’t mean anything.
    “Like my decorations?” I asked, shoving the
thought aside. I knew Brandy hated when we brought up anything to
do with her accident, and I tried my best to respect her
wishes.
    This morning I had decorated the entry table
with mini pumpkins and dried leaves. I was quite impressed with
myself, considering I’d never really been the crafty type of
person.
    “It looks lovely,” Gabby said, taking her
purse back off the table. Brandy did the same.
    “You didn’t even notice, did you?” I
narrowed my eyes and they both exchanged looks.
    “It looks amazing,” Gabby said again.
    “And that’s my cue to exit.” Ayden gave me a
wave and a quick hug to his sister, Brandy, before walking outside
with Derek.
    “It really does look neat,” Brandy
seconded.
    “But?”
    “But nothing. It looks amazing.” Gabby
reached over and squeezed my hand.
    Brandy bit her lip and looked at the table.
“I think that would be the perfect arrangement for an end table or
somewhere a little smaller. It kind of gets lost on this huge
table.”
    I glanced at the long foyer table that
stretched the length of the wall and she had a point. The
distressed wood table was probably five feet long and my
arrangement, maybe, took up six inches of the table.
    “I don’t think she needs something that
takes up the whole table,” Gabby countered.
    “I didn’t say that, but I didn’t even see it
until she asked about it—”
    “And size isn’t everything,” Gabby
interrupted, and then turned bright red as she realized how that
could be misinterpreted. “Okay, size is important sometimes.”
    I started laughing, realizing that these two
had already become like sisters, arguing and all, and Brandy hadn’t
even officially walked down the aisle with Aaron yet.
    “Alright. I’ve got the perfect addition,” I
said, remembering an embroidered table runner Brandy and Ayden’s
mom had given me. I walked into the dining room and opened the
drawer of the hutch.
    “What about this?” I asked, removing the
burnt-orange table runner with embroidered pumpkins and leaves.
    “That is perfect,” Gabby agreed.
    “I thought you said it already was perfect,”
Brandy laughed and Gabby rolled her eyes.
    I walked it over to the table, and we all
worked on the display, placing my arrangement back in the center as
the final touch.
    “That does look better,” I announced.
    “Yep. Now it says, don’t put your purse
here.” Brandy smiled. “But back to the important stuff. What smells
so delicious?”
    “Pot roast. I’m making pot roast.”
    “I’m so impressed,” Gabby said, following
Brandy and me into the family room. “Our Lily is cooking and decorating.”
    “It’s almost like