A Forever Love

Marsha Robinson

Description

Rocco and Bella’s past relationships have left them drained and discouraged. Despite the disappointments of their past, they still have a strong desire for a ‘Forever Love’ with the right person. As they cry out to God, He supernaturally puts them in each others path. You will fall in love with Rocco and Bella, as well as, many other fun-loving characters, as they encourage one another in a romantic tale of love, life, and friendship! As iron sharpens iron, they minister to one another and their friends while gaining spiritual knowledge and wisdom for life.

The Faith & Romance Series masterfully combines romantic love with walking in God’s divine providence. You will be inspired as you witness them bearing one another’s burdens and establishing a community of God’s love.

Sujets

• Romance
• Fiction

Informations

• Publié par: AuthorHouse
• Date de parution: 23 novembre 2019
• Nombre de lectures: 0
• EAN13: 9781728332253
• Langue: English

Extrait

Marsha Robinson
 
 
A Forever Love

Rocco & Bella’s Story
 

 
 
The Faith & Romance Series
Book 1
 
 
 

 
AuthorHouse™
1663 Liberty Drive
Bloomington, IN 47403
www.authorhouse.com
Phone: [phone]
 
 
 
 
 
 
© 2019 Marsha Robinson. All rights reserved.
 
No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted by any means without the written permission of the author.
 
Published by AuthorHouse  09/27/2022
 
ISBN: 978-1-7283-3227-7 (sc)
ISBN: 978-1-7283-3226-0 (hc)
ISBN: 978-1-7283-3225-3 (e)
 
Library of Congress Control Number: 2019916796
 
 
 
Any people depicted in stock imagery provided by Getty Images are models, and such images are being used for illustrative purposes only.
Certain stock imagery © Getty Images.
 
Scripture quotations marked KJV are from the Holy Bible, King James Version (Authorized Version). First published in 1611. Quoted from the KJV Classic Reference Bible, Copyright © 1983 by The Zondervan Corporation.
 
 
Because of the dynamic nature of the Internet, any web addresses or links contained in this book may have changed since publication and may no longer be valid. The views expressed in this work are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher, and the publisher hereby disclaims any responsibility for them.
A NOTE TO THE READER
By the time I was two years old, I had a strong love for reading. This passion created a desire to write inspirational books and novels. I’d like to dedicate my first novel to my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. He placed the gift and passion in me to not only write books, but to give my readers the best gift of all...the desire to intimately and deeply develop an everlasting relationship with Jesus Christ. It is my deepest prayer that Jesus is your First and Forever Love. I love you and God Bless you.
 
-Marsha Robinson
CONTENTS
Chapter 1       Destiny Is Calling
Chapter 2       Kill’n’ It
Chapter 3       Ms. Wrong
Chapter 4       Mr. Wrong
Chapter 5       The New Hottie
Chapter 6       So Fine
Chapter 7       Falling in Love
Chapter 8       The Blue Lagoon Jazz Lounge
Chapter 9       Can I Trust You?
Chapter 10     Please Forgive Me
Chapter 11     Birthing Intimacy
Chapter 12     Clash of the Besties
Chapter 13     Darling, You Slay Me
Chapter 14     Going after the Prodigals
Chapter 15     Never Disrespect My Woman
Chapter 16     Home Sweet Home
Chapter 17     The Blessing of Having a Supportive Family
Chapter 18     Conquering Anxiety
Chapter 19     The Big Game
Chapter 20     She’s Mighty, Mighty Mine
Chapter 21     I Want to Be with You Forever
Chapter 22     Run Away with Me
Chapter 23     A Trip to Paradise
Chapter 24     New Beginnings
Chapter 25     The Families Become One
 
Epilogue
About the Author
About the Book

CHAPTER 1
Destiny Is Calling
For I know the thoughts that I think towards you, saith the Lord, thoughts of peace, and not evil, to give you and expected end.
—Jeremiah 29:11
M arcella Ann Truman, also known as Bella, sat alone in the den of her parents’ home. The den overlooked her mother’s beautiful botanical garden. She was seated at the family piano, playing Yiruma’s “River Flows in You.” While doing so, she began to methodically reflect on why she didn’t get accepted to the university in Northern California. She’d researched the benefits and challenges of attending that university since she was in junior high school. Most of her friends attended her home church in Southern California, and they had all been accepted to the universities of their choice. She couldn’t comprehend why her 4.0 grade point average and her abundance of extracurricular activities hadn’t guaranteed her placement at the school. She was the vice president of the student council, had been captain of the cheerleading squad for two years, and she interned at a local magazine as an editor’s junior assistant. She also enjoyed tap dancing and acting in the off seasons. She was crushed by the fact that she didn’t have a plan B. Her only plan was to attend the university. She had foolishly put all her proverbial eggs in one basket.
A week later, her church youth group leader told her about a special scholarship at the University of Michigan. The scholarship was targeted to both minorities and international students. The college was looking to become the top research university. Bella didn’t want to be a scientist, nor did she want to work in the medical field. The only thing she wanted to research was journalism and business management. She also had a deep desire to increase her knowledge in theology, which was the main reason she originally chose a Christian-based college.
After finally deciding to pursue the scholarship at the University of Michigan, she applied to try out for the cheerleading squad. Even though she was accepted to attend the school, she was too late to sign up for cheerleading auditions. It seemed as though high school was destined to be the best years of her life. Not only were her college plans being ripped to shreds, but she was being forced to leave her family and friends. What was she supposed to do in a state that was 2,300 miles away from home? The more she thought about her future, the more despondent she became. Her dreams seemed to slowly evaporate right before her eyes.
*****
Marlene Truman’s youngest daughter, Bella, was truly a gift from God. As the baby of a large family, one would think she would be spoiled, selfish, and thoughtless—especially since her older brothers thought she could do no wrong, and her sisters gave her lots of attention. Since Bella was five years younger than her last child, it had been a shock to her and her husband when they discovered they were expecting another child. Even though Marlene’s other pregnancies had been free from drama or stress, her pregnancy with Bella was difficult. Her body had threatened to miscarry during her first trimester. She had to shepherd her strength with this pregnancy, and by the beginning of her third trimester, her ob-gyn, Dr. R. A. Brown, had placed her on bed rest. Despite the exceptional medical care that Marlene received and the loving support of her family, Bella was born seven weeks premature. Marlene remembers watching her as she lay in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) of the hospital. She was so tiny and fragile. She had tubes connected all over her body, and the sound of the medical equipment that was monitoring her vital signs filled the air. Marlene and her husband, Renaldo, cried out in prayer for several days for their precious gift from God to be all right. Within weeks, she was just as vivacious as any other healthy baby.
The first few days after Bella’s birth, Dr. Brown walked in the room and said, “Don’t worry. Your baby girl is a fighter. I’ve been delivering babies for a very long time now, and I know a strong fighter when I see one. Before you know it, she will have control of your entire household!” Marlene decided to not only trust the doctor at his words but to add her faith to them. At that precise moment, she decided to name her daughter Marcella Ann Truman. Marcella is Latin for warlike, martial, and strong. Ann means grace, prayer, and God has favored me. Naturally, her family name, Truman, meant loyal one. With a name like that, it would only be a matter of time before Marcella Ann Truman rose to do great things for the Lord.
Marlene and Renaldo had given all of their children biblically sound names because Proverbs 22:1 says, “A good name is rather to be chosen (better) than great riches, and loving favor rather than silver and gold.” As Bella grew up, Marlene saw her little miracle exhibit every characteristic and blessing of her God-given name.
Marlene watched as Bella played beautifully at the piano. Anyone who didn’t know Bella would have thought she was playing with great finesse and passion. Marlene knew her daughter well, and she knew that she was playing with a very sorrowful heart. As her fingers skillfully moved across the keyboard, every note seemed to cry out with Bella’s unspoken pain and despair. She very slowly entered the room, so as not to disturb her.
Bella was startled by her mother’s presence in the room. Apparently she was so entrenched in her thoughts she didn’t hear her approaching. She instinctively slowed her playing. “I didn’t hear you come into the den. Did you want something?” asked Bella.
“No, I heard you playing, and I thought I would check on you. How are you feeling?”
“I’m fine,” replied Bella.
“You don’t look fine. What is it that has you so deep in thought?”
Bella had a very good relationship with her mother. She trusted her implicitly. She felt as though she could talk to her about anything. However, she was trying to be a responsible adult about this situation. She really wanted to start handling all her decisions on her own. She was the youngest of six children, three older brothers and two older sisters. Even though they hadn’t all chosen to go to college, they all seemed to have made the transition from high school to adulthood without any problems. Bella felt as though she was stalling before she even got out of the gate.
“I was just thinking about the university in Michigan. Things just aren’t going as I planned. The one thing I was really looking forward to is cheering at the university. Now they’ve told me that I can’t even do that.”
“Maybe you shouldn’t accept no when you want the answer to be yes,” said Marlene.
“It’s college, Mom, not high school. You can’t ju