A Tidbit of Trust

He doesn't trust her. She doesn't trust herself. They both need to trust God.

Sara Reynolds has finally gotten her life back on track with God. Even though she turned her back on her serial dating past, she’s still working on being single and content. So, it’s a good thing Adam is obnoxious, even if he is the first guy to catch her eye in about a year.

Adam Lassiter knows all about Sara’s sordid history with men. That alone ought to eliminate her as someone he’d consider dating. After all, he’s made the effort to lead a life that honors God—even when it’s hard. But after a chance encounter in Jamaica, Adam has a hard time getting Sara out of his mind.

After Adam apologizes for how he treated her in Jamaica, Sara must adjust her first impression. When he continues to pursue a friendship—and more?--she has to decide if she can trust herself enough to respond. But even if she does, how can Adam trust that the changes Sara has made in her life are real?

A Tidbit of Trust is the fifth and final book in the Taste of Romance Contemporary Christian Romance series. Catch up with old friends from the previous books (A Splash of Substance, A Pinch of Promise, A Dash of Daring, and A Handful of Hope) in this satisfying conclusion to this series today.

The resort wasn’t far from the falls. It had taken maybe twenty minutes to get to the parking area. Now she stood in the crowd with all the others who had been on the shuttle listening to last minute instructions.

“As we climb the falls, you need to hold hands with the person in front of you and the person behind you. We’ll climb like that in a chain. If you start to slip, the people on either side should be able to help. But most of all don’t panic.” The guide grinned. “This is supposed to be fun.”

Sara frowned. She hadn’t realized they’d have to go up as a group.

That’s what she got for not reading the excursion information more carefully. Ah well, it was a once-in-a-lifetime experience, right? At least there wasn’t a cruise ship in port today, flooding the area with even more people working their way up the rocks as water crashed over them. In fact, Sara only saw one other group lining up. Even if her group was second in line, the whole trek shouldn’t take more than an hour. That left plenty of time to poke through the long line of stalls manned by local craftspeople and to find something to eat. Then she could honestly tell everyone that she hadn’t stayed in the resort her entire vacation. Win-win.

Sara moved into the line as it formed and took the hand of the man in front of her. His wife, maybe girlfriend, was in front of him and fixed Sara with a frown. What was she supposed to do? The guides were walking down the line making sure everyone was holding hands. Maybe going on excursions like this wasn’t a great idea for couples who didn’t like other people.

The woman behind her tapped her shoulder and offered her hand with a smile. At least some people were friendly.

The group ahead of them, composed mostly of teenagers from what Sara could see, was finally on its way up the falls, which meant their group could now begin the trek. The water was cold. Colder than she’d expected. She certainly wasn’t going to be getting any wetter than she had to on this climb. She’d save any water sports for the ocean. She could snorkel just off the beach outside her room without freezing to death.

Up ahead, a girl shrieked and slipped off a rock into a pool between levels of the falls. Sara winced and looked down at her footing, watching where she put her feet more carefully. Of course, that kept her from doing much looking around. This was supposed to be a beautiful climb and she was missing most of it.

When they reached the mid-point, the guide gestured for them to drop hands. “We’ll take a short rest here. You can sit, if you want to.”

Sara shook her head and turned to look up the remainder of the falls. The group ahead of them was nearing the top. The rush of water over the rocks was breathtaking. God sure made amazing things. She turned and looked down over what they’d already climbed, her eyes widening at the height.

“All right, form back up and let’s continue,” the guide hollered from the front of the group.
Some groaned as they stood. The man in front of her didn’t reach back for her hand. That was fine.

Sara was managing okay without his help, and she didn’t particularly want to deal with the death glares his wife had shot her way for the first half of the trek.

There were a few more slips and splashes—not all accidental, as the guides were urging people to jump in at various spots—before they reached the top. Sara turned and looked back down, following the falls as they splashed against the rocks and threw rainbows into the air, then let her gaze drift across the beach to the ocean.

“I can’t...it hurts.” The words, punctuated by sobs, made Sara turn. A teenage girl leaned against a large rock, with one foot off the ground. A man about Sara’s age with a grim look on his face stood beside her.

“It’s not far to the van. We’ll head back to the church and...maybe they can call a doctor. I’ll have to check with the pastor and see what he recommends.”

Sara crossed to them, wiping her hands on her damp shorts. “Hi. I overheard a little. Maybe I can help?”

“Are you a doctor?” The man’s eyebrows lifted, hope evident in his expression.

“No. But I’m a physical therapist. I can probably tell you if something’s broken. What hurts?”

The girl sniffled. “My ankle. It got caught between some rocks as I climbed.”

Sara squatted and lifted the girl’s foot. The fact that she could put it down, even with very little pressure on it, was a good sign. It wasn’t very swollen and though it caused a few whimpers, it had full range of motion with no popping or grinding sounds.

Sara stood and faced the man. “I think it’s a sprain, worst case. If your daughter stays off it for the rest of today she should be fine tomorrow. If you can find an elastic wrap and elevate it with ice, that’ll be even better.”

“She’s not my daughter. But we can manage the bandage and ice.” He turned to look at the girl.

“You’re going to be okay. Maybe you can help with the puppet show for the kids tonight instead of the soccer game we were going to organize.”

“Okay, Adam.” The girl wiped a tear off her cheek and tried to stand, peering up at Adam through her lashes. “I think I’m going to need help getting to the van though.”

Adam cleared his throat, pink heating his cheeks. “Maybe I can find Molly and she can carry you on her back.”

Sara stifled a smile. Apparently Adam had caught the subtle flirtation and was backing away as fast as he could. “What if she leaned on me? I can help, we’ll follow you, and that’ll get her to a place to put her foot up faster than if you have to go find someone else and bring them back here.”

He studied Sara before nodding. “Okay. Thanks...”

“Sara. Sara Reynolds.” She stuck out her hand.

“Adam Lassiter.” A shiver raced through her as he took her hand firmly in his. Must be a delayed reaction to the cold water of the falls. The sooner she got this girl to their van and herself on the shuttle back to her resort, the better. She obviously needed dry clothes and time in the sun.