Maddie clapped a hand over her mouth but couldn’t quite suppress the laughter that backlit her beautiful green eyes. Beautiful green eyes that narrowed with suspicion a split second later. “Wait a second. You said you don’t read. The Outsiders is a classic.”
“There’s a book, too?” Aiden cocked his head, careful to keep his expression neutral. “I thought it was just a movie.”
He waited for the look of horror or pity, but the suspicion only deepened, which kind of took the fun out of teasing her.
Aiden had figured out at an early age that people didn’t think he had a lot going on upstairs. He wasn’t like his brothers. Brendan could crunch numbers and decipher complicated spreadsheets, and in his spare time, Liam could assemble a rocket from a box of spare parts.
In one of his Sunday morning messages, Pastor Seth had told the congregation that God gave all His children unique gifts. For Aiden, though, finding those gifts felt more like combing the grass for Easter eggs rather than spotting a brightly wrapped present under the tree on Christmas morning.
In other words, he was still looking.
“I don’t mind starting tonight.” Maddie pulled out the chair next to his and sat down, stirring the air—and Aiden’s senses—with the scent of lily of the valley. He recognized the fragrance because the flowers appeared every spring. They weren’t showy like Sunni’s roses or the hydrangeas that bloomed along the foundation of the house. Lily of the valley blossoms were small and delicate. Easily overlooked. But if a person was paying attention, the flowers were surprisingly strong, brightening the shadowy places in the yard and thriving where others would have faded away.
“Aiden?”
He hadn’t been paying attention. “Sorry.” Aiden shifted restlessly, rattling the joints of the high-backed wooden chair. No doubt the conference room was a cozy, comfortable place to hold a meeting, but at this time of night, the pain from his injuries would normally have already forced him to the couch. “What’s your first question?”
“What is your sister’s name?”
“I don’t know.” Aiden pushed the words out through gritted teeth.
“But...” Maddie paused and searched his face. “How can you find your sister if you don’t know her name.”
“That’s why I asked you for help.”
“Okay...” Maddie drew in a breath. Released it again. “We’ll do what we always do when we’re not sure where to start, then.”
“Dive in headfirst?”
“Ask God for direction.”
“Ask God.”
Aiden shouldn’t have been stunned by Maddie’s suggestion. She was a believer. Attended church every Sunday, just like he did. But the fact that prayer hadn’t crossed Aiden’s mind showed how far he’d drifted from God since the accident.
He tried. He really did. But Aiden didn’t know what to say—and he wasn’t sure God was listening. In his darkest moments, Aiden wasn’t sure God cared about the details of his life at all. If He did, where had He been the night Aiden had ended up in the ditch, leaving both his body and his plans for River Quest temporarily out of commission?
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