A Test of Faith Read Free Page B

time in his life … he was lost. Nothing would ever be the same.
    Not ever.
    Funny thing was, he didn’t mind. Not one little bit.
    Anne opened her eyes, blinking at the bright room. Where was she?
    “Hi, there.”
    Gentle fingers brushed her cheek, and she turned her head. Jared. She gave a sleep-dazed sigh and took in the sight of him.
    He looked terrible.
    His hair looked as though someone had tried to style it with a demented weed whacker. His eyes were bloodshot, his face sagging from fatigue.
    But he was smiling. A big, broad smile that made her want to smile, too. “What …?” The words caught in her dry throat, and Jared pressed a wet cloth to her lips. She smiled at him and tried again. “What happened to you?”
    His tender laugh warmed her. “You, sweet girl. You happened to me.”
    “Hmm.” She thought about that. “Looks like it hurt.”
    He lifted her hand and kissed the back of it. “Yeah, but it’s a good pain.” He pressed her hand to his stubble-roughened cheek. “You gave us a beautiful little girl, Annie.”
    A daughter. Anne hugged herself at the news. A little girl to love and guide and share the world with. She could hardly take it in.
    “Our little Faith Adelle is finally here.”
    Faith Adelle
. They’d chosen the name within days of finding out Anne was pregnant—Joshua Aaron, if it was a boy;Faith Adelle if it was a girl. Faith, because God had answered their prayers; Adelle, to remind them to raise her to have a noble and kind spirit.
    “She’s okay, isn’t she?” Anne knew the baby was fine, but she needed to hear it from him.
    He chuckled, a glow of pure happiness lighting his features. “She’s more than okay. She’s wonderful.”
    “And she’s eager to see her mommy again.”
    They both turned. A nurse stood in the doorway of the room.
    She smiled at them, and Anne’s focus shifted to the tiny bundle in the nurse’s arms. Without another word, the woman came into the room and handed the bundle to Anne. “You did good, Mom.”
    Anne looked onto the delicate face, the long lashes sweeping down to caress plump, velvety cheeks. She reached out to touch the puckered mouth, then lifted one tiny baby fist to study the miniature fingers. “Look at all that hair!”
    The nurse nodded. “Amazing, isn’t it? Most babies are born bald as my grandfather, but this little one had enough hair we could even put a bow in it!”
    She pushed the blanket back so Anne could see the little pink bow clipped to Faith’s dark auburn hair. “The nurses all agree; she’s one of the most adorable babies we’ve ever seen.”
    Just then, Faith’s eyes opened and Anne found herself staring into her baby’s eyes. Her baby. This was her baby!
    Emotion flooded her heart until she thought it would overwhelm her. Speechless, she lifted the downy head to her cheek and felt the soft, wispy hair.
    “She’s amazing.” Her hushed words brought smiles to Jared’s and the nurse’s faces.
    “She is that.” The nurse tucked the blanket under Faith’s tiny chin. “And I’ll tell you somethin’, this little lady has a mind of her own. She wanted to be born, and she wasn’t waiting for anything or anyone.”
    Anne cuddled her daughter against her and looked from Jared to the nurse. “What happened?”
    The nurse eased into a nearby chair. “Your labor wasn’t progressing; you remember that?”
    Did she ever! Anne nodded.
    “We were about to call the doctor to check things out when you and the baby decided it was time to get things over with. Now. You both went into distress.”
    Anne looked at Jared. “Distress?”
    He took one of her hands, holding it like he’d never let go. “Your blood pressure dropped, Annie, and the baby’s heartbeat slowed. I thought I was losing you both.”
    The memory of his frightened face came to her then. “Oh, Jared. I’m so sorry.”
    The nurse stood, patting Anne on the shoulder. “You gave us all a scare. We’re still not quite sure what