Page 38 of Second Chance Serenity

“Perfect. Thanks.”

“Anytime. Talk soon?”

“Definitely.” I glance out the window at where Jaxson sits in his car. The banquet is a week from Friday. Which means I’ll need to be there Thursday to help get everything set up. I still don’t have a dress picked out, and normally, I’d be putting the final touches on the reminder cards by now.

Cards that I haven’t even started.

God, I need strength. Please. I cannot do this without You.

After setting my phone aside, I get to my feet and head back into the kitchen to pour my coffee out and slip into my tennis shoes.

A walk. I need some fresh air, and a quick break. Then, I can come back and focus.

Besides, I may need constant supervision, but does that mean I have to stay inside all the time?

A run on the beach works wonders for my clouded mind. The fresh air, the sound of the waves crashing into shore, the feel of sun-kissed sand beneath my toes…when I ground myself into the reality of this beautiful world God created, I’m able to find my center again.

My anxiety slips away, tucked back into the corners of my mind, and I can finally focus. Out here, the world doesn’t seem so scary. There is no man after me, no gorgeous ex-fiancé to captivate my every waking moment, and no banquet that I normally look forward to and somehow completely forgot.

Wind tugs at my hair, sending the strands dancing around my face. This is my happy place. And everything will be fine.

“I thought that was you.”

Turning to look over my shoulder, I smile as Kyra, Pastor Redding’s wife, who makes her way down to the oceanside, her feet bare. “Hey, Mrs. Redding, how are you?”

“Doing lovely. It’s my day off, and I got to spend it with my gorgeous grandbaby. Kassandra just picked him up.”

“Sounds like a wonderful day.”

“It certainly was.” She wraps an arm around my shoulder and tugs me against her. I relax into the hug, enjoying the closeness of a woman who was practically a second mother to me growing up. “How are you doing?”

“I’m managing,” I reply.

“I know you better than that, Reyna Acker.”

Chuckling, I take a deep breath. “I’m afraid. Stressed. Upset. I don’t even know how to put it all into words.”

“I still cannot believe you were attacked outside of the school. This town used to be so safe, but it seems the devil has been sending loads of trouble here lately.”

“I keep telling myself that everything is going to be fine. That God has a plan for all of this and it’s going to come together in His time, but I’m not entirely sure how I’m supposed to survive in the meantime.”

“You keep your faith, honey. Keep your eyes on God, your Bible read, and focus only on the things you can control.”

“I’m trying.”

She’s quiet for a few moments. “How are things between you and Michael?”

“Nonexistent.” I glance over my shoulder to where Jaxson sits on the steps leading up to the lighthouse that houses the Knight Security offices. He watches everything around us, but he’s far enough away he shouldn’t be able to hear my conversation with Kyra.

“Isn’t he helping protect you?”

“Jaxson is my main guard,” I tell her. “Though Michael does have a habit of popping up here and there.”

“And how does that make you feel?”

“Are we in a therapy session right now?” I joke. Kyra was the town’s therapist for a while before she opened her bakery. Now, she counsels with sugar—or at least that’s what we tell her.

“We can be,” she replies with a light squeeze of my shoulders.

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