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Sylvie Rose Smith got her five-year old son, Jackson, ready for the babysitter, her wonderful sister Louisa. What would she do without her sis?
“Thank you so much for doing this for me, Louisa. You’re an angel.”
“Hey, you know I love spending time with my little nephew. Besides, it’s good karma.”
“Good karma?”
“Yes, you used to take good care of me when Mom was out working two jobs. It wasn’t easy, was it? You had school to think about and you’d rush home after school and get dinner ready so we’d always have a hot meal.”
Sylvie smiled appreciatively. Her eyes moistened with tears.
“Thanks, sis. I didn’t know you noticed.”
“Of course I did.”
“Well, I was only trying to hold down the fort. Besides, Mom was amazing working two jobs after dad died to put food on the table. Sure, I cooked it, but Mom made sure we never went without.”
It had been a while since their mother passed now. It hadn’t been easy for them but they made do on whatever they had. And family was so important. Her parents had her and her sister when they were in their fifties. They were adopted. And they had the best parents children could have. But it wasn’t easy and as they got older; things got complicated. Their father had been so ill and they had to refinance their home to cover his medical bills. And when he had passed, their mother had a hard time trying to keep up as he hadn’t been qualified for life insurance due to his underlying illness.
Sylvie tried not to think about that now. She knew she had to save her emotional energies for her job interview.
She was a stay-at-home mom for a while until her now ex-husband took that dream away. He’d had some serious gambling debts that he’d managed to hide very well from her. Too well. So well that they’d come to repossess their property to her horror.
He’d forged her signature on documents that she was not even aware of. How could she ever trust a man again?
Well, that’s what she thought at first. But then Sue Mae, her church auntie, had encouraged her to go back into the dating pool again. She’d even set her up on a blind date.
The truth was, Sylvie had been lonely. She missed having the comfort of a loving husband, not that she really had that with her ex, but as Sue Mae said, sometimes things happen for a reason even if we couldn’t see it at the time.
She didn’t ordinarily do blind dates, but she figured why not. She wasn’t getting any younger. And if it worked out she could get married again.
Right now, she was staying at her sister Louisa’s apartment which was small, and Sylvie didn’t want to be a burden.
But the job market wasn’t so kind to single parents without proper childcare—especially single parents who were older in age compared to the rest of the company’s employees. She had limited time to work outside the home while caring for her child.
She could not afford daycare at the rates being charged right now. At the rates some of the childcare centers cost, she’d end up spending her entire paycheck on the monthly fees. What would she have left over to put a roof over her head or feed her lovely son? It seemed almost impossible to survive that way.
Positive thoughts, Sylvie.
The Lord can make a way, even when it seems like there’s no way, remember that.
She drew in a deep breath and tried to clear the clutter thoughts from her mind.
“So you have two interviews today, I hear,” Louisa said, cocking her brow with a grin on her lips.
“Yes, I guess you could say that. And again, thanks so much for agreeing to babysit for my two interviews.”
Louisa smiled. “Oh, of course, sis. It’s about time.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?”
“You know what I mean. It’s been three years since John’s been out of the picture. And you still hold a candle to him.”
“I do not hold a candle to him. Only to what could have been.”
“Oh, sis. John doesn’t deserve you or your thoughts about him. I’ve been trying to get you to go out there and meet someone new for ages. I’m glad Sue Mae finally got through to you.”
Now it was Sylvie’s turn to grin. “Very funny. I’m not going to get my hopes up high. It’s just a date. An honest, simple date.”
“I don’t think dates are simple.”
“Well, I do. I’m not going to get my hopes up too high. Besides, I have a child and you know some men are not really thrilled about having an already made family.”
“You never know. It shows maturity. Some men actually might like that.”
“Well, I don’t know.”
Sylvie didn’t tell Louisa about the one time she did date a co-worker after her divorce. It was a co-worker from her old temp job, a two-week admin assignment, and it turned out well at first until...she told him about her lovely son. He seemed to break out into hives when children were mentioned. She really thought they’d connected.
But she was wrong.
And boy, did rejection hurt. Sure, it was better that she found out beforehand, but it still hurt like crazy. And it was true what they said about once bitten twice shy. No one wanted to be rejected. Especially over and over again.
Her self-esteem just couldn’t handle it again. And it wasn’t even just about her. She really wanted Jackson to grow up in a family home. She knew that single moms rocked and could handle anything, but she just wanted her son to have a father figure and someone whom he could play football with and have fun dad and son times with. But not all men wanted that in a date. She had baggage. Perhaps they thought she was too much for them.
She just hoped that Sue Mae told whomever it was that she was setting her up with that she already came with a family of her own. Her son was her world. And anyone who rejected him was out. She took it personally. Especially because Jackson was a loveable, energetic five-year old. One who loved puppies and people.
She was super protective of him. And that was one of the reasons why she wasn’t eager to just date anyone. Her potential date had to be a good person and in the church. That was her main criteria. Well, as it turned out, Sue Mae had just that for her.
Sylvie was thrilled when she first heard that. And Sue Mae had successfully done matchmaking for quite a few couples at the church. It was as if she had some sort of magical pixie dust. She just knew who would connect and who wouldn’t. Everyone trusted Sue Mae and she was never wrong about couples.
She was the go-to person for matchmaking and for family engagements. She coordinated most of the church’s family days and social community events. No one could put on an event like Sue Mae.
Sylvie was glad she moved back to Sweet Rivers. It had been a while since she’d gone to the Sweet Rivers Church. She and John had moved to Dallas when they first got married, but after his scams and gambling problems, she was back in Sweet Rivers with her son.
Sylvie had confided in Sue Mae about her problem and Sue Mae told her she might have the perfect solution. Someone looking for a temporary bride in exchange for a temporary place to stay.
It all seemed like some kind of mail-order bride arrangement, but she was more than okay with it. If she connected with the guy.
But if there was no connection, there’d be no arrangement.