No Wasted Tears (18 page)

Adam guided Destiny down onto the sofa beside him. He picked up the Bible that lay on the coffee table and opened it up. The first book that he came to was Matthew 6:33, and he began to read. “‘But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.’ I think this is a perfect scripture to meditate on for the evening. I really enjoyed this evening, but more than that, I appreciate your relationship with the
Lord.”

Smiling, Destiny answered, “God will have to come first in my life, plain and simple. Putting God first, as his Word says, is so important. Seek ye first the kingdom of God. It’s a big sacrifice, but when you start the process, you realize and learn that God is just like a protective father watching out for his
children.”

Adam was amazed at the response Destiny gave him. “You know, Destiny, God is supervising his flock and won’t let any harm come to
you.”

“My aunt told you?” she looked up from the
Bible.

He looked at her, making sure she was comfortable with this conversation. “If you’re not comfortable talking about this, we can change the subject.” He closed the Bible he’d been holding in his
hand.

He felt her tension; the way she gave a tiny, almost imperceptible flinch as she held the Bible in her hand. “When I think about those calls, it brings back the fear, anxiety, and insecurity that I felt in South
Carolina.”

Adam wanted her to trust him enough to confide in him. But she also had to be comfortable opening up to him. So he waited, not wanting to rush
her.

She gave him a fleeting smile. “I believe that one day I’ll be able to share more about my past with you.” She shifted her attention to his face. There was something about the way he was watching her that must have caused the single tear he saw roll down her face. With a trembling hand she wiped it away quickly. He understood her reluctance to reveal her feelings, with him since she was just beginning to really know
him.

“Destiny, I’m not trying to force you to…” He stopped speaking when he saw her get up and pace in front of him with her arms crossed over her
chest.

“It’s okay, Adam, I’m kind of tried.” He sat quietly, absorbing that information, hoping he hadn’t made her
upset.

She twisted her mouth wryly. “To tell you the truth, I think I’ll go to bed early.” She was deliberately pushing him away, as if distance in this moment would protect her from whatever it was she was battling with in her
past.

Destiny gave him an apologetic grimace as she sat back down. “I’m
sorry.”

He gave her a tight smile. “No problem, but if the phone calls persist, please let the authorities
know.”

His words seemed to shock her because she responded nervously. “Do you think that’s
necessary?”

“Yeah, I do, and because I don’t know everything about your past. Those phone calls could be connected to it. But I want you to remember that you’ve got a friend who will listen if you need it.” He rose from the sofa and gently helped her out of her seat. Reaching for her hand, he gave it a slight squeeze to reassure
her.

“I’ll remember,” she said quickly. “I just don’t want to bother you with all of my
baggage.”

Adam didn’t want to sound impatient. “Just remember what I said if they persist: call the police.” He looked down at her now, wondering if she had any idea of the war going on inside him. She was cautious around him, which was understandable given she seemed to have given so much of herself to someone who gave her a limited amount of themselves, which only leads to
frustration.

He hesitated a moment longer. But she was right. Maybe he was taking on too much too soon. She’d even admitted that she had baggage. Heck, he didn’t even know everything about her yet, and he certainly didn’t want to turn her away. Not wanting to
wear
out his welcome, he reached for his jacket and slipped it on before turning around to face
Destiny.

“I want to thank you and Miss Sara for a wonderful evening. I had a nice time tonight,” he said politely, squeezing her hand beneath
his.

“I’m glad you were able to come, and I hope we’ll be able to do this again,” Destiny
confessed.

Adam took her into his arms. Taking a deep breath, he looked into her eyes before lowering his head but he didn’t kiss her he pulled her to him in a light
hug.

“I’ll call you tomorrow. Maybe we can make plans for later this week. I want to take you to a special place that means a lot to me, okay?”

Adam was pleased to see her nod in response; he was looking forward to their day
together.

Pausing, his hand on the knob, he turned to face her one last time, studying every detail of her face as if he wouldn’t see her
again.

“How long have we known each other?” he asked
her.

“It’s been over five
months at
least.”

“It’s been incredible, and I’ve enjoyed getting to know you, Destiny, but I want you to trust me as well.” Adam
stated.

“I want that as well,” she said. “I’m getting there, and I know things are going to get better.” Destiny returned the smile she was receiving from him. She walked over to where he was standing at the
door.

“Don’t forget, in all of this you’ve got to learn to trust yourself.” He kissed her on the cheek and walked out the
door.

After Adam climbed inside his car and started his engine, he noticed how Destiny clung to the door with her hand clutched tightly around the doorknob. There was still a lot he needed to know about
her.

Adam pulled his car onto the expressway, rubbing his head, pondering the conversation he’d just had with Destiny. Before tonight he felt like they had made a connection but now it seemed as though they had a set
back.

Adam was glad that he didn’t accept the invitation he had received on Sunday from Sister Deloris Green to have dinner with her family tonight. Deloris had been trying to set him up with her daughter, Barbara, since he had come to Greater Community. He knew that her invitation came with strings attached that he had no intention of
untying.

He had dated since coming to Greater Community, but never anyone from his ministry. None of the relationships were what he was looking for. They were too overbearing, too loud, too argumentative, too needy, too materialistic, or carrying too much excess
baggage.

He knew that he didn’t want to deal with any additional baggage. He had enough of his own and was still unpacking a lot of it. Destiny wasn’t perfect, but he also knew that with God’s help, they would be able to work through any issues she was dealing with from her
past.

Adam didn’t dare relax. He couldn’t help but think about what he knew he shouldn’t, “Lust, lust and more lust,” he said out loud in the car. “Lord keep me
delivered.”

He recalled one of the conversations they had about the progression of their relationship. Destiny had pursed her lips, she seemed to hate the fact that she was blushing, or it may have been the fact that she hated him in that moment for watching her with such amusement. Then she told him in the most serious tone, “I can assure you I would never fall in lust with someone,” she said. “I would only love someone I admired as a man, for his qualities as a person, not his possessions or social standing. And I most certainly wouldn’t marry a man on physical attraction alone. If I didn’t learn anything else in my past, I know this with everything in
me.”

Yes, he and Destiny still had a long way to go although it had only been five months, he knew God wasn’t finished working on either of them. He had time, and he knew how to
pray.

Tapping his fingers lightly on the steering wheel to the beat as he pulled his car into the driveway of his condominium. After pulling his key out of the ignition, he continued to sing the words to Jason Nelson’s song “Shifting the Atmosphere” that he had been listening to in the car and couldn’t help but smile. The song helped to push the negative thoughts to the back of his mind. Tomorrow was going to be a good
day.

At home on Tuesday, Adam headed straight for his bedroom. He was tired, and it had been a long day of counseling. It was amazing that the week was going by so fast. There were no dinners with Destiny or her aunt to relax him. As a matter of fact, Destiny was the reason he was so agitated. He had known there was something she hadn’t been telling him from the lags in their conversation
today.

He could hear Destiny sigh on the phone, obviously not sure how to tackle her conversation with him. Adam wasn’t surprised. After all, he didn’t know what was bothering her
.
He could hear her hesitation right through the
telephone.

“You don’t have to tell me what’s bothering you if you don’t want to. I’m not going to force you, but I thought…” His voice trailed off, trying to find the words as he held the phone to his
ear.

Apparently he wasn’t the only person struggling to get their conversation started. Adam was surprised when he heard Destiny’s breath catch through the phone. “You thought that we’d be further along in our relationship?” she asked softly. “I don’t know what’s going on,” she said. “I don’t know what’s what any
more…”

He had been curious about her unfinished sentence in spite of himself. Hadn’t they just had this conversation a couple of days ago? Surely they had made some headway? “You don’t know about what, Destiny?” he asked, his tone a little stronger than he’d
meant.

Destiny sounded like she may have been hurt by something. “Us, Adam I don’t know if I want us right now,” she
confessed.

“Hmm, I see,” he responded. He decided to remind her of that fact. Adam had been confused by her concern. Odd, he’d have expected her to be ready for something new since moving here. But that wasn’t the case. His efforts to get her to talk to him hadn’t worked. He’d tried everything. Whatever it was, it had him concerned about her. Adam sat on the edge of his king-sized bed, bowed his head, and
prayed.

Chapter 14

Shaking almost uncontrollably, Destiny awoke to the sounds of shattering glass. Her nightgown was soaking wet and fear immediately gripped her when she saw pieces of glass scatter on the floor from her bedroom window. It was in that instant she saw what appeared to be the shadow of someone move quickly across her bedroom. Her whole body froze as she slowly turned her head in the direction that she saw the shadow
move.

Not realizing that glass covered her bed until she felt a sharp, piercing pain on her cheek, her hand rose to touch the side of her face where it came in contact with a wet substance she assumed was blood. Refusing to yell, she slowly rose out of the bed to move to the door. Putting one foot down she felt a hand wrap around her ankle causing her to trip and fall on the floor. She yelled with all of the strength she could muster, but the hand on her ankle was so strong she couldn’t move any further. She felt more pain as her knees came in contact with the glass on the floor. Terrified, her legs went into automatic kick mode. Using all of her power, she freed herself and she pulled her herself across the
floor.