The Gift: The Spirit of Christmas Series, #2
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About this ebook
A Christmas Novella
The gift Theresa Manning wanted couldn’t fit under a Christmas tree. She desperately wanted a true family, with a faithful husband who would be daddy to all of her children. But she’d struck out three times in the baby-daddy department. And now that her career was on the rocks as well, the only One Theresa could turn to was God. She prayed for God to turn her life around, just as he had done for her friend, Trinity Thomas on Christmas Eve.
Tony Black had made mistakes in his life, he’d never tried to hide that fact. But every since he fell in love with Theresa, he vowed to be a better man. The fact that she didn’t trust him and had called off their wedding because of unsubstantiated rumors was not going to stop him from being with his family and showing them the true spirit of Christmas.
Along the way, this holiday season, Theresa and Tony just may received the greatest gift of all.
Vanessa Miller
ERROR
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The Gift - Vanessa Miller
The Gift
Book 2
Spirit of Christmas Series
by
Vanessa Miller
Other Books by Vanessa Miller
Our Love
Rain in the Promise Land
After the Rain
Heaven on Earth
Feels Like Heaven
How Sweet the Sound
Best of All
Better for Us
Her Good Thing
Long Time Coming
A Promise of Forever Love
A Love for Tomorrow
Yesterday’s Promise
Forgotten
Forgiven
Forsaken
Rain for Christmas (Novella)
Through the Storm
Rain Storm
Latter Rain
Abundant Rain
Former Rain
Anthologies (Editor)
Keeping the Faith
Have A Little Faith
This Far by Faith
EBOOKS
Love Isn’t Enough
A Mighty Love
The Blessed One (Blessed and Highly Favored series)
The Wild One (Blessed and Highly Favored Series)
The Preacher’s Choice (Blessed and Highly Favored Series)
The Politician’s Wife (Blessed and Highly Favored Series)
The Playboy’s Redemption (Blessed and Highly Favored Series)
Tears Fall at Night (Praise Him Anyhow Series)
Joy Comes in the Morning (PHA Series)
A Forever Kind of Love (PHA Series)
Ramsey’s Praise (PHA Series)
Escape to Love (PHA Series)
Praise for Christmas (PHA Series)
His Love Walk (PHA Series)
Could This Be Love (PHA Series)
Song of Praise (PHA Series)
Publisher’s Note:
This short story is a work of fiction. References to real events, organizations, or places are used in a fictional context. Any resemblances to actual persons, living or dead are entirely coincidental.
Vanessa Miller
www.vanessamiller.com
Printed in the United States of America
© 2015 by Vanessa Miller
Praise Unlimited Enterprises
Charlotte, NC
No part of this ebook may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical—including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system—without permission in writing from the publisher.
Prologue
December 24, 2014
Theresa Manning was not having a good day and it was getting worse each minute she sat in this unproductive meeting. She was a member of a singing group called the Four Ts. They had been on the top of the charts and loving life until drugs, booze and men got in the way.
All of my fears concerning this group have finally come to pass,
Darrell Warner, the manager of the Four Ts said to the women as they sat around the conference table.
You certainly never let any of those fears be known. All you’ve ever told us was that we shouldn’t worry because another record label would pick us up in no time,
Theresa said with fire in her eyes.
And I believed that. The Four Ts are so talented, that I didn’t think I’d have a problem placing you all with another label. But so far, I’ve had no takers,
Darrell told them.
Theresa shot an accusing eye towards Trinity and Tara. They were the problem in this group. Tara was a drug-head and Trinity was a drunk, who couldn’t even stop herself from drinking long enough to accept an award on a nationally televised award show.
What if Trinity seeks help for her drinking problem?
Tara asked. Do you think the label would take us back?
Hold on a minute,
Trinity said as she put down her iced tea that had been mixed with a little something-something and turned on Tara. Who said I have a drinking problem? Maybe you need to concern yourself with the addiction you have and leave me out of it.
I never said I didn’t have problems,
Tara admitted, but I’m not the one who vomited on the stage while we were accepting our Grammy.
We weren’t on the stage. I vomited on the steps and we had already accepted our Grammy so my little incident wasn’t even on film.
You are the most selfish person I’ve ever met, Trinity Thomas. Don’t you know that your little incident didn’t need to be televised,
Theresa interjected, because the cameras had already caught you tripping and slurring your words. It was awful.
And I suppose you’ve never done anything to embarrass this group… how’s your three babies’ daddies? Is the last one still on probation?
For your info, Tony is not on probation. That guy didn’t press charges because he started that fight.
Probation or not, he still got released from the Chargers,
Trinity was slurring words as she spewed venom.
Again, you need to talk what you know. Because Tony wasn’t released from anywhere. He’s been traded to the Panthers, which is a much better team for his skill set.
Theresa had called off her engagement with baby-daddy number three, but she wasn’t going to let Trinity disparage him. She wasn’t going to let anyone harm Tony Black. Not while there was still breath in her body.
Ladies, ladies. We don’t need to fight each other. We’re all on the same team here,
Darrell tried to calm the situation.
Speak for yourself,
Theresa said as she stood up. We don’t have a contract and I’m not about to saddle myself with this group one second longer. I’m out.
Are you serious?
Tara asked. You’re really going to leave us at a time like this? We might be down, but we’re not out, as long as we all stick together.
That sounds good in a song. But this is my life, and I don’t need this.
We don’t need you anyway, with your half-singing self. Get-to-getting,
Trinity told her with no love lost.
Theresa swung her Marc Jacob’s Crocodile handbag on her shoulder and walked out of the room.
I don’t believe she’s acting like this. When we went through that firestorm with the media because of her choice in men, she begged us to stick by her. Now she does this?
Theresa heard Tara’s comment and didn’t care one single bit. Right was right and wrong was wrong. Her having three children while not being married didn’t bring the group down. But their drugs and drinking sure did. She didn’t have time to fight with the Four Ts anyway. It was Christmas Eve and she was needed at home to bake cookies and spend time with the most important people in her world. Besides, she had other problems to worry about.
1
She was pregnant… again. And even though it was Christmas Eve, Theresa Manning was far from jolly about this situation. She hadn’t told anyone about the pregnancy because she just couldn’t take seeing the disappointment in everyone’s eyes. She already had three kids by three different men. Theresa had sworn to herself that she wouldn’t have another baby before