Child Of Hope (Book)

Child of Hope is a 2021 novel written by Canadian Christian author Kimberly Rae Jordan.

The novel is the third and final of three novels, under the series title We Three Kings, featuring the Minneapolis-based King triplets (in birth order: Hunter, Hayden, and Heather), heirs of their father's multi-million dollar company and their Christmastime interactions with struggling families far below their social and financial status, all of which ultimately lead to romance, marriage, and the King family member adopting the child. All three novels were released in the fourth quarter of 2021; Child of Hope was released in December.

Child of Hope centers around Hayden, the middle triplet (and identical twin to Hunter), who (nominally) works in the Digital Marketing department of their company, but has become a recluse in recent years, as he was seriously injured in the accident which clamed his father's life. The title comes from the hope that the young son of Hayden's housekeeper -- who, like Hayden, has a permanent disability -- has given Hayden, allowing him to finally overcome the grief and guilt he has held for the last six years.

Plot[edit]

The novel is set six years after the triplets' father, Greg, died in a multi-fatality car accident (the accident also left Hayden with severe physical injuries and emotional ones, as he witnessed his father's death), two years after the events in Child of Joy, and one year after the events in Child of Love.

What was supposed to have been the final surgery for Hayden -- one that would finally relieve him of most of the pain from the accident -- resulted in complications; ultimately he would have his left leg amputated below the knee. His already bad emotional state only worsened afterwards: he has made no attempt at getting a prosthesis and has stopped going to therapy for the emotional trauma he faced.

Although Hayden has shared some details of his father's last moments before death with his siblings, he has not shared the entire story, mainly how he blames himself for what happened. Hayden had never been serious about his role in the company and his father was disappointed in his work; they were on their way to dinner to further discuss things and were in the midst of an argument when the accident took place. Hayden constantly remembers the last words of his father (he asks Hayden to tell his mother, Hunter and Heather he loved them, but never told Hayden he loved him as he was interrupted by another car hitting them, killing him and leaving Hayden in a coma); the scene becomes a recurring nightmare for a guilt-ridden Hayden.

Hunter has paid for Hayden to have a housekeeper in the ensuing years. His first housekeeper, Leta, unexpectedly retired when her daughter (Paige) and grandson (Rylan) moved in with her. Rylan has permanent disabilities resulting from his birth (and must use a wheelchair) and the family received a large settlement. But his father (Glenn) did not want to raise a disabled son and sought a divorce; in the divorce he surrendered his parental rights, but then absconded with the settlement funds, forcing Paige and Rylan to move in with Leta. Leta recommended Paige as her replacement, mainly so Paige could have medical insurance for Rylan. Because of Rylan's special needs, and Paige not being able to afford assistance for Rylan, she and Leta are homeschooling Rylan, though it leaves him without any friends. (He also has no male who could possibly be a "father figure": Paige's father died unexpectedly her last year of high school, and her brother Pete has been in and out of jail, forcing Paige to cut off ties with Pete to protect Rylan.)

One day Paige was forced to bring Rylan to work as Leta could not babysit him that day; she was assisting a friend recovering from surgery. Hayden unexpectedly saw Rylan at the dinner table; instead of being upset at Paige bringing him to work, he actually started bonding with him, and over the next couple of days the two watched movies together. When Hayden learns of Glenn's actions, he secretly contacts his company's security firm, hoping that he can recover all or some of the stolen funds. Sensing that Rylan needs friends (especially friends who won't tease him for his disability), he invites him and Paige to swim at his apartment's indoor heated pool, mainly to meet his nieces Rachel and Isla, who have only known Hayden as injured and have been very kind to him during that time. Paige also meets the other siblings: Hunter (and his wife Carissa) and Heather (along with her fiancée Ash; as a follow-up to the prior book his business has grown, now having two full-time employees plus two trainees). Paige and Rylan (and Leta) are invited to continue the traditions of the past two years: the company children's Christmas party, the children's Christmas program at church (with Rachel and Isla as a featured duet), Christmas Eve dinner and service, and the "Christmas pajama sleepover", which they accept to some degree (they prefer to have Rylan sleep in his own bed on Christmas Eve but agree to come over in the morning on Christmas Day, pajamas included).

As Hayden tells Paige of the last minutes of his father's life, in turn, Paige admits she didn't re-enroll Rylan in school, not only due to financial issues, but because she feared he would look at other children and only think about his own limitations. She also says a motorized wheelchair was in the works, but Glenn's theft of the settlement fund kept that from happening. It leaves Hayden in a depressed mood most of the weekend, though he makes arrangements to gift Rylan with a motorized wheelchair for Christmas, along with presents for his two nieces^[1] His mood is brightened only slightly by a mysterious call from a man who won't identify himself (except to state that he and Hayden have as a mutual friend the head of the security firm); he has (through illegal means) located and recovered all of the stolen settlement funds (plus his "finder's fee"). Paige asks Hayden about this the following Monday; he finally admits that he was behind the recovery. Yet even this positive news leaves Hayden depressed: now that Paige has the money back, he fears she won't need to work any longer, and therefore she and Rylan will be out of his life.

Not until the day before Christmas Eve does Hayden finally tell a family member -- Heather -- the entire story about the accident. Heather reassures him that their dad did not die disappointed in him, but that he would be disappointed if he could see what Hayden has done with his life since; it becomes the turning point after six long years of depression. He and Paige discuss her future plans (she will continue to work for Hayden, instead of returning to study genetic research, which she was doing before Rylan's birth), and even though both of them still have concerns about a relationship given their employer-employee status (though technically, she works for Hunter), they agree to begin dating.

In the final chapter (before the Epilogue) the two are on a Pacific island beach, where Heather has chosen to hold her wedding on Valentine's Day. In the interim, Hayden has made several changes in his life: he is awake whenever Paige comes over, after physical therapy he goes to his home office to work during the day (except on Fridays when he spends time with Rylan), and returned to emotional therapy sessions. Most recently he has started the process of getting his prosthesis.

The Epilogue shows Eliza holding a picture of her late husband. It is now seven years after the fatal accident, on the day before Christmas Eve, exactly one year after Hayden's emotional breakthrough. He and Paige are engaged, and the following day (Christmas Eve) will be their wedding day, at the same venue where Hunter and Carissa held their ceremony. The two have built a house with accessible features for both Rylan and Hayden (who now has his prosthesis) and an attached apartment for Leta, in the same area as his siblings, thus allowing Rylan to attend school (an aide is also available for him as needed) with Rachel and Isla (Hunter has adopted Rachel while Heather and Ash have adopted Isla; Rylan's adoption by Hayden will take place after the honeymoon). Paige will also return to college to complete her degree. Though Eliza is still sad that her husband isn't alive to see the weddings, she knows he would be proud of how Hayden has changed in the past 18 months.

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