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Belinda Leah Ralphs had a nervous stomach and sweaty palms, but there was also an undeniable electricity and thrill in the air.
She and Air Force Pilot Paul Braven soared across the ocean in Mercedes Belle’s jet. They were headed to an undetermined location for a week on a reality television show to win a million dollars for Gardening Goodness, the charity she’d created during college. Her life’s work and passion.
She tugged the gold chain out from under her T-shirt and gently held the intricate twisted band hanging from it. She touched one of the bees on the ring with the tip of her finger. The promise ring her lost love Jagger Lemuel had given her had only been on her left ring finger for a week. She’d left the beautiful ring behind when she went to Ghana for her service mission the summer after they graduated high school. She hadn’t wanted to damage or lose it.
She’d grown close to her friend Mike Causey on the three-month-long trip. Her parents adored everything about Mike—his faith, his future plans, his strong and devoted family, his patient and steady nature. On the flip side, they feared or loathed everything about Jagger—his lack of faith, his dangerous future that would take Bee far away from them, his lack of family support, his passionate and fiery nature.
They’d begged her to give Mike a chance. As an impressionable eighteen-year-old, devoted to her loving parents, she’d tried. She really had. She’d focused on Mike that summer as they served in Africa together. She and Jagger rarely had the opportunity to even get a FaceTime call in with his strict schedule, her busy schedule, and the time difference. When she and Mike returned to America, she’d been confused and hopeful yet fearful about seeing Jagger again. Would he be upset and feel she’d cheated on him because she’d spent so much time with Mike, or would his love and desire for her overcome everything else like it always had?
Yes. Of course her Jag would come for her and true love would conquer all.
Against her instincts, she’d listened to her parents and half-heartedly prayed to know which man was the right one for her. Heaven would be on her and Jagger’s side. She had been sure of it.
One afternoon, she’d gone home for the weekend and Mike had come with her. They went on a long horseback ride. She let him kiss her in the barn after their ride. She’d even tried to kiss him back, grateful when he picked her up in his arms and she could bury her head in his neck, laugh to hide her discomfort, and not look at him or kiss him again. It had all felt so wrong.
That was the day she’d determined Mike wasn’t right for her. Heaven had backed her up and confirmed Jagger was her one true love. Mike’s kiss had done nothing for her, where Jagger’s kisses turned her world upside down, lit up her body and soul with joy, and left her longing for more.
She was ready to tell her parents she had chosen Jagger and tell Mike she was sorry but they weren’t a good match. That was the day Jagger blocked her number and stopped responding to her emails. She never saw him again.
Apparently, her inspiration had been all wrong and Jagger dumping her was her answer from heaven.
Belinda had mourned him throughout her college years, not sure that she’d ever get over Jagger. Mike never gave up on her. He was a good man just as her parents constantly reminded her. Mike was ‘handsome, smart, kind, even-tempered, devoted to her,’ they’d say over and over again.
‘Boring and uninspiring,’ she’d counter. They always smiled patiently at that. Jagger was the only one who had understood she was allergic to boring.
She and Mike stayed close as friends, even after they graduated the university. When she finally realized that Jagger would never come for her, she agreed to marry Mike.
They’d given their marriage an honest effort, but years of infertility and her spending most of her time in Africa had taken their toll. Mike was a good guy and deserved a woman who could love him. After eight long years of being married to the wrong man for her, Belinda finally gave up on living the lie and asked him for a divorce. He didn’t fight her, and they split ‘amicably.’ Last she heard, he was happily married to a widow with four small boys and living in Williamsburg. Good for him. He’d be a fabulous dad, and he deserved to be happy.
“Kauai,” Paul said, interrupting her thoughts and pointing out the window at a lush, green island with jagged mountain peaks covered with verdant beauty.
“Oh my!” She stared in awe. Belinda loved gardening, making things grow, and often had to work hard to produce crops in infertile and dry soil. Everything here looked to be growing with only help from heaven above. “Did you know we were coming here?”
He shook his head. “I didn’t know for certain, but I guessed one of the Hawaiian Islands by the route we took.”
“I’d guess you have a good sense of direction to be a pilot.”
“It helps.” He smiled and shrugged. He was exceptionally good-looking, but she’d learned her lesson. She could never give her heart to anyone but Jagger, and Jagger was dead to her. She hadn’t even attempted dating, despite her parents pushing her in that direction. She spent all her free time raising money to fight hunger in third world countries and visiting the poorest African countries—Madagascar, Mozambique, and Malawi. The adults were grateful, and the children loved her. She adored children. It only mildly stung when she remembered she’d never have a baby of her own.
She stings like a bee, but her honey is so sweet. Jagger’s voice was suddenly in her head.
Why had she let herself think of him and that line?
Pushing it away, she admitted to Paul, “I couldn’t find my way out of a wet paper bag.”
He chuckled. “I love your accent.”
“Oh, thank you.” She went home to Oneida to be with her parents often, not even bothering with an apartment or home of her own. Most of her time was spent on her humanitarian trips. She didn’t realize she had a Southern accent any longer. All the people she visited in Africa thought she talked funny, like any American.
The plane swooped over the jagged and green-covered mountain peaks. Some of the mountains were so tall that white clouds swirled around them. Paul pointed out a waterfall. Even from afar, Belinda didn’t know if she’d ever viewed scenery so beautiful. They crossed over the ocean for a moment, then banked and landed.
“Smooth landing,” she said.
“I could do better,” Paul teased.
She laughed with him. The plane taxied around to what Paul explained was the private sector, a much quieter part of the already-quiet airport. It was deserted except for them and the three men she could see waiting for them. Two with dark hair, one blond. She zeroed in on the thicker, dark-haired man. A superhero-type of guy, larger than life, with bulging muscles and the confident bearing that shouted he would protect his lady and save the world. This was a man who could distract even her from her longings for a young love that would never come for her.
Even as she thought that, she caught a better glimpse of his face—the strong jawline, the regal nose, the dark brows and eyes, the shadow of a beard on his jaw.
