After a few seconds that felt like months, one side of his mouth hitched up. A dimple dug into his cheek. “Yes.”
She was so relieved, she considered fainting. “This is just a small token of how sorry I am.” She extended the seeds.
He took them from her, the emerald power of spring lighting his eyes.
“Because I am,” she continued, “very sorry for filling that stupid prescription and for shutting you out.”
“I read the letter you posted on your website.”
“You did?”
He nodded. “I want to show you something.”
“Okay.”
He set the chives in his truck, and they walked toward his farmhouse. As they went, she told him about her parents’ involvement in Russell’s death and why that had sent her sinking into such a black hole of anxiety. She told him, too, about their visit with Alice Atwell.
He listened carefully but said almost nothing.
A few days ago, before their fight, they’d either have held hands on this walk or her arm would have been wrapped around his elbow, their shoulders rubbing. The physical separation between them now felt painfully obvious.
“Have you seen any of the responses to the letter you posted?” he asked.
“No. I’ve purposely stayed away from all of it.”
They climbed the steps to his front door, which he held open for her. She passed inside and . . .
Flowers greeted her. So many flowers.
Slowing, her jaw dropped. Flower arrangements and gift baskets and cookie bouquets lined the walls of the foyer. They covered his desk. They jutted upward from his dining room table. More of them buried his living room coffee table.
“These started arriving for you yesterday,” he said.
Struck with wonder, her hands rose to cover her mouth.
“One of my employees at The Kitchen spent his work hours at the gate yesterday, receiving all of them. I didn’t want the trucks and delivery men disturbing you.”
“I had no idea. I was gone most of the day yesterday.”
“By the time you got back, I’d brought them all here. I hauled more of them up this morning.”
“I had no idea,” she repeated, dropping her hands.
“You have over three thousand comments on your website, Gen. Thousands more on your social media sites. The people who sent these did so because they support you.”
“And the people who don’t support me?”
“Have been venting their disappointment,” he admitted. His expression challenged her to look on the bright side. “But some people are always going to be disappointed and unhappy. The majority care about you. A lot.”
“They do?”
“Yes.” He spoke with so much certainty that she didn’t dare question him. “You’re more real to them now because they know that, like them, you sometimes fall short. And you’re brave enough to admit it when you do.”
“I regret that I fell short with you, Sam.”
Gently, he took hold of her upper arms and turned her to face him. His masculine features sharpened with concentration. “You told me once that you believed that I was like the caravan that rescued Joseph from the pit. You thought that God brought you here because of what you were going through. Remember?”
“Yes.” Her heart thundered.
“It’s the opposite, Gen. I think God brought you here because of me.”
She blinked.
“You’d have figured out your problems,” he said, “with or without my help—”
“No. I wouldn’t—”
“—but I was never going to. Without you.”
She was speechless.
“I love you,” he said. “I will always love you. And I will never walk out on you again. It’s me who’s sorry that I fell short.”
“You didn’t fall short.”
“I love you.” Fervent color stained his cheeks. “No matter what. No giving up. No turning back.”
She set her palm on his cheek, overcome by the beauty of him. HE LOVED HER! “I love you, too.”
His face settled into a grave expression that asked, Are you sure?
“I’m discovering that transparency’s getting easier with practice.” She wove her hands together behind his neck. “I love you. See?”
He looked shocked.
Genevieve laughed. “I love you.”
How could God have been this good to her? She shouldn’t have received the flowers, the cookie bouquets, the gift baskets. She certainly shouldn’t have received Sam’s love.
And yet . . .
And yet. God had lavished them on her anyway.
Her mind spun like a golden, dazzling pinwheel. Her body felt too insignificant to hold joy this large.
And then Sam’s mouth claimed hers, sealing his words and hers with a kiss that caused the rest of the world to whisk away. Only she and Sam were left, ringed by blossoms and freedom and sunlight.
Genevieve
I grab Natasha’s hand. I’m shaking, and I can feel her shaking.
The building is coming down around us, just like the last time. “God, God, God, God,” I whisper.
The structure stops trembling. Quiet comes. Slowly, the dust begins to float away. Where the wall across from us used to be, there’s now a huge opening. I can see the surrounding buildings and the sky—bright blue, without clouds.
From within the dust, I see movement, and the movement becomes figures. Three men and a woman, dressed in uniforms with hard hats that have lights on the front.
Behind them a helicopter soars into view, drawing closer, its big blades cutting the air.
The man in front is smiling. He’s strong and confident and big.
We’re going to live.
“Are all five of you okay?” he asks.
“Yes, sir,” Ben answers.
“Excellent.” He bends toward me, offering his hand. “Ready to get out of here?”
“The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us.
We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son,
who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.”
John 1:14
Discussion Questions
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), 130 American die from an opioid overdose every day. Did you learn anything new about opioid addiction while reading Stay with Me? Was there anything about Genevieve’s recovery journey that surprised you?
Becky chose to tell the story of the earthquake in short accounts written in first-person point of view between each chapter. Why do you think she chose to reveal the Miracle Five’s backstory in that particular way?
Genevieve, Natasha, Sebastian, and Ben have maintained their friendship since middle school? Have any of you walked through a life-altering event with a friend? If so, how did that impact your connection with that person?
Sam is an organic farmer who eats extremely healthy. Why do you think that Becky gave him that profession and characteristic?
Sam delivered supplies to Genevieve when she was suffering through withdrawal, and later he cooked for her. He showed his love through his actions long before he could bring himself to admit his love to himself or to her. Do you find acts of love or words of love more powerful? Why?
What aspects of Genevieve’s personality were used by God to alter Sam’s life?
As the plot line surrounding the mysterious letters unfolded, did you form any theories about what had happened with Caroline and Judson in the past? If so, what were they? Do you think Alice’s decision to extend grace to Judson was fair?
Genevieve was gifted and called by God. However, in trying to fulfill her calling, she sacrificed her physical health and mental well-being. Do you think the challenge of maintaining balance is harder now than it was in the past? In what ways?
Stay with Me’s theme is transparency. Did you feel that it was necessary for Genevieve to admit her failings publicly at the end of the novel? Why or why not?
&
nbsp; Did you notice that Becky set up a love triangle for her next novel, Let It Be Me? What do you think might happen with Ben, Sebastian, and Leah?
Becky Wade is the 2018 Christy Award Book of the Year winner for True to You. She’s a native of California who attended Baylor University, met and married a Texan, and moved to Dallas. She published historical romances for the general market, then put her career on hold for several years to care for her three children. When God called her back to writing, Becky knew He meant for her to turn her attention to Christian fiction. Her humorous, heart-pounding contemporary romance novels have won three Christy Awards, the Carol Award, the INSPY Award, and the Inspirational Reader’s Choice Award for Romance. To find out more about Becky and her books, visit www.beckywade.com.
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Table of Contents
Cover
Half Title Page
Title Page
Copyright Page
Dedication
Contents
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Scripture
Discussion Questions
Next Book in the Series
About the Author
Back Ads
Back Cover
List of Pages
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