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MERCY FORCED HERSELF TO PRESS on the brake pedal to slow down. She couldn’t drive like a maniac, because she had to think about Stevie.
Hot tears ran down her cheeks as she navigated her car along the downtown streets. At first, she hadn’t wanted to believe the anonymous text she’d received.
Your husband is cheating on you behind your back. He’s meeting her at his office right now.
But after several minutes of pacing the living room floor, jealousy had gotten the best of her. She’d climbed inside her car and had floored the gas pedal to the office.
When she’d seen two vehicles in the parking lot, one of them Ethan’s, her heart had dropped.
Mercy wiped her tears, but a new flood came right after. It wasn’t any easier when one’s heart was breaking the second time around. Anger and pain warred inside her.
How could Ethan do this to me?
Granted, he used to be a womanizer, but he was an honorable man, too. And they seemed to be so happy together.
She parked near the guesthouse that couldn’t be her home any longer and wiped her face again. She’d have to find an apartment.
Stevie would be heartbroken to leave Ethan. What had she done? Why had she hoped that Ethan would change and stay faithful to her? She wasn’t even living with the man.
Mercy charged inside the guesthouse and started gathering her belongings into her old, trusty suitcase. Because of her son, she couldn’t allow herself to fall apart, no matter how much she wanted to.
“Mercy!” Ethan’s voice made her flinch.
She turned around slowly. “Don’t make it more difficult than it already is. Oh, you’re worried about the auto shop chain, right? But you did marry me, so hopefully your father will honor his promise.”
“I don’t care about that. I care about you. Don’t you know that?” Ethan stepped to her.
“You should’ve thought about that before cheating on me!” Mercy exploded.
“I didn’t cheat on you. You have to believe me.” Ethan took another step toward her.
Mercy felt as if she were suffocating. It was getting harder and harder to breathe. “Come on! You were caught.” She needed to go somewhere to cool off. Somewhere where the source of her anger wasn’t present.
“I love you.” Ethan’s voice was low, his eyes searching hers.
Mercy froze.
These were the words she longed to hear. As she stared into his eyes, so eager to believe him, she knew the feeling was mutual. She’d realized it somewhere between the trip to the petting farm and snuggling on the couch at home while watching cartoons with Ethan and Stevie.
And it was precisely the reason it was so difficult to walk away. Cole’s gambling issue hadn’t been as painful as this. She’d stuck with Cole. But she couldn’t stay, looking at Ethan’s lips and knowing those lips had just kissed another woman.
Cole had told her many lies.
She hadn’t expected to hear them from Ethan, too. She’d thought she knew him better than that.
“I need to go. I need to stay away from you for now.” Mercy threw more clothes into the suitcase.
“I mean it. I do love you.” Ethan’s voice sounded so sincere.
Mercy hesitated, wanting badly to stay. Then jealousy reared its head again. Today, it was Leah. Tomorrow, it would be someone else.
She shook her head. “If you loved me, you wouldn’t have done what you did.”
***
THE NEXT DAY, MERCY sank onto the chair after tucking in Stevie for a nap. The motel room was tiny, but it was all she could afford. The last thing she wanted to do was ask Ethan for money.
Her heart ached, more for Stevie than for herself. Her little boy had never cried as much as after leaving the guesthouse. Every tear, every hiccup was like a knife stab to her.
Mercy hid her face in her hands, as if she could hide from pain that way. She’d taken a vow for life and her son needed Ethan. But she couldn’t force herself to go back, at least not right now. The wound was still too raw.
A knock on the door caused her to look up. She pursed her lips as she walked to the door. She wasn’t ready to talk to Ethan, to listen to his lies again.
She peered in the peephole.
Ethan’s father.
Disappointment and relief stirred inside her at the same time. Relief that it wasn’t Ethan didn’t surprise her, but disappointment did. Did she hope Ethan would come looking for her? Instead, the coward had apparently sent his father.
She squared her shoulders and opened the door. “Hello, Mr. Echeverría. Come on in.” She kept her voice low so as not to wake up Stevie.
The older man stepped inside. “I didn’t come here because my son asked me to.” He seemed to read her mind. Thankfully, he took one glance at the sleeping boy and kept his voice low, too.
“Really?” She gestured for Ethan’s dad to take one of the two chairs in the room.
He sat down. “Really. When I first heard about what happened, I thought my boy made the same mistake I did. But after talking to him, I have a different conclusion. I know my son well, and I know he didn’t lie to me.”
Mercy sat down and folded her arms on her chest, a bit skeptical.
Ethan’s father continued, “I did some investigating. You received an anonymous text telling you your husband was cheating on you in his office, didn’t you?”
Mercy stared at him, startled. “How do you know?” She managed to keep her voice hushed, despite the shock.
“I talked to Leah. It took some time to find out the truth, but I can be pretty persuasive. She was so angry that Ethan didn’t come to her even after you left that she blurted it all out. She sent that text to you. She set up a trap.”
“I... don’t know what to say.” It was a good thing Mercy was sitting because her knees turned weak.
Ethan’s father was a highly respectable man, and she didn’t think he’d make up something like that just to help his son.
Mr. Echeverría’s dark eyes were kind and wise. “Don’t say anything. Just consider returning. I’ve never seen my older son as heartbroken as after you left.”
Her mind whirling, Mercy stared into space.
She’d always thought her faith was strong. Her faith had saved her during her disastrous marriage and during her widowhood. She’d surrendered her guilt at not making her first marriage work to the Lord. She’d surrendered her resentment, too.
But had she surrendered her trust issue?
No.
Instead, she’d brought it with her into her new marriage, letting it affect her judgment. She’d believed easily that Ethan had cheated on her because deep inside she’d expected it to happen sooner or later. Yes, Ethan used to be a womanizer, but he hadn’t been married then. In all the years she’d known him, he’d never once lied to her.
The problem wasn’t that Ethan wasn’t trustworthy. The problem was that, after Cole, she couldn’t trust a man, even her husband. Especially not her husband.
Lord, I’m asking for forgiveness. I’m surrendering my fears and my trust issues to You. Thank You, Lord, for opening my eyes. Please help me repair my marriage. Please bring Ethan back to me. Amen.
There was another knock on the door.
Hope stirred inside Mercy. “It’s open,” she said.
Ethan stepped inside. “Mercy, I...” His eyes widened at the sight of his father. “Dad?”
Mercy pressed her finger to her lips, silently asking Ethan to keep his voice down.
Mr. Echeverría rose to his feet. “I was about to leave, anyway.”
Ethan shook his head. “No, please stay.” He turned to Mercy.
Relief and joy swept over her, tarnished a little by guilt.
“I know it’s going to take a lot of time to persuade you to change your mind, to make you believe me, but—” Ethan started.
“No,” Mercy interrupted him.
Ethan visibly swallowed. “Please don’t say no yet. Hear me out.”
“I mean, no, it’s not going to take a lot of time for me to change my mind or believe you. Thank God, I already did. Your father explained to me what really happened between you and Leah.”
Ethan looked at his dad. “What am I missing here?”
“I know you’re not the one to blame for that... thing.” Mercy allowed herself a tentative smile. “There’s something else I need to tell you. I’m in love with you.”
One moment, Ethan’s eyes widened, as if he could hardly believe the news.
The next moment, Ethan ran to her, lifted her, and whirled her around. The feeling of elation swept her up. When he put her down, she was dizzy in the most wonderful way.
“Oh, about the box I went to pick up at the office yesterday...” Ethan reached into his pocket.
Mercy shook her head. “I don’t need the proof you needed to be there.”
He took out a small black velvet box and dropped on one knee. “Mercy, will you please marry me?”
She wanted to laugh and cry at the same time. “I already married you.”
“Well, I’m so happy you love me that my thoughts got scrambled. I meant a renewal of vows in the church. I want you to have the wedding of your dreams that you’ll remember forever.” He opened the box. A gorgeous ring sparkled with seven diamonds.
Mercy felt dizzy again. “Of course I’ll marry you. I mean, we’ll renew the vows. How kind of you to think of that. And the ring is beautiful.”
Ethan grinned as he rose to his feet. “The ring was in that box I just mentioned. I had to buy it online because we don’t have a jewelry store in our small town. And then I mailed it to my work address because I didn’t want you to accidentally see it. I meant what I said, Mercy. I love you.” He slipped the ring on her finger.
“I love you, too.” She moved closer to him.
He dipped his head, and a wave of excitement rushed through her in anticipation of a kiss.
Ethan’s father cleared his throat.
Ethan glanced in his dad’s direction. “Oh, sorry, Dad.”
The older man winked at him. “Nothing to be sorry about. It’s about time that you kissed your wife.”
Mercy chuckled. She could see where Ethan got his charisma from.
Stevie stirred, jumped from the bed, and ran to Ethan. “Daddy!” Then he turned to Ethan’s father. “Grandpa!”
Ethan lifted Stevie in the air. “Hey, buddy! I’m happy to see you again.”
Her son turned pleading eyes at her. “Mommy, are we gonna go home?”
Everybody seemed to stay still.
Her heart swelled in her chest. “Yes, sweetie. We’re going home.”
