Chapter 13 Far And Away #2
Nash and Charlie put the bags into the back seat on the other side of Ella’s car seat.
The packages they still had to pick up would take up most of the room in the truck’s bed.
She didn’t know what Nash had ordered but the snowshoes she’d ordered for everyone at the farm wouldn’t be in small boxes.
When they’d decided to come to New York, she’d told Nash she wanted to order something big from a sporting goods store. He had the same idea, so they’d found a store along their route. They’d also asked the store to help them keep the contents secret as they were Christmas presents.
When the GPS told them to turn for the store, Olivia’s heart grew lighter. She couldn’t wait to surprise everyone with the snowshoes and then spend time with them all making paths through the orchard.
Family time with their new extended family.
Nash pulled around to the back of the store near the loading dock and they all got out to stretch their legs. Even crossing the city had taken an hour. Olivia lifted Ella out of the seat and the girl reached immediately for Charlie. “Lee. Lee. Mama. Na.”
Olivia laughed. “Nash. Are you saying Nash?”
“Na. Lee. Mama.” Her little face brightened with pride as she looked at each of them and shouted their names.
Olivia watched as Nash squatted down while blinking back tears. He didn’t try to hide his emotions from any of them. “Hello there, Ella. Are you saying Nash?”
“Na.” And then she reached out to pat his scruffy jaw.
Nash laughed and hugged the little girl. “Good job, Ella. Thank you for making my day.”
“Na.” Then she squiggled down and grabbed Charlie’s hand again.
Charlie took it with a smile. “Great job, Ella. Now you can say all our names. You can call us whenever you want.”
Olivia groaned dramatically. “And so it begins. The princess will have us all at her beck and call.”
Nash grinned and stood to brush his hand down Olivia’s arm. “As it should be. Why don’t you guys stay here, and I’ll run in and see if the order is ready? Then we can go home.”
He jogged up the steps and rang a bell at the back door of the building. Olivia watched him because the view was terrific.
When she looked back down, Charlie was holding Ella’s hand and watching Olivia speculatively. Her heart bounced.
“Do you like my dad?”
Olivia’s skin flushed as she nodded. “I do.”
Charlie studied her. “Good. He likes you, too.”
She managed to smile. “That’s good to know.”
The boy grinned at her. “And I mean he likes you, likes you.”
That made her laugh. “That’s also good to know.”
He grinned. “He’s never had a girlfriend.” Then his smile dimmed. “Not since my mom, anyway.”
Olivia wasn’t sure how to respond, so she went with her gut. “He’s told me a bit about your mom. He said she loved you both very much. She sounds like a wonderful person.”
Charlie nodded. “I know. I wish she hadn’t died.”
Olivia pulled him in for a hug. The boy was almost her height, and she figured it wouldn’t be long before he soared past her. “I’m sorry. I know that’s got to be hard. It’s good to know she was a good person who loved you.”
He nodded and didn’t squirm out of her hug. “Yeah. But it would be okay with me if you and Dad dated. I think Mom would be okay with it, too.”
Tears slipped down her cheeks. “Thank you, Charlie. That means so much to me. You’re a pretty great person you know.”
He laughed, but the sound was watery, so she squeezed him harder.
“That’s what Dad tells me.”
She grinned. “He’s right.”
Ella tugged on Charlie’s hand. “Lee. Lee.” The rest of the sounds didn’t make sense, but Olivia figured it wouldn’t be long before the girl was speaking in phrases and then sentences. Now that she was connecting words to people, she’d likely expand her vocabulary quickly.
As Charlie walked Ella up and down alongside the truck, Olivia worked to control her emotions. She and Nash had Charlie’s approval as a couple. Other than being trusted with Ella, she wasn’t sure if anything else had ever caused this burst of pride in her heart.
The store’s door opened, and Nash held it as two men walked down the steps with a large box covered in a tarp.
Her snowshoes or whatever Nash had ordered?
She was grinning when one of the men stumbled on the stairs and drew her eye.
Big man, bruiser type with lots of muscles. Same coloring and hair as Adam, but he wasn’t facing her.
Olivia’s heart thumped hard in her chest and panic zipped through her as she waited for the man to turn around. Was it Adam or was she panicking for nothing.
Charlie’s voice broke into her terror. “Olivia? Are you okay? What’s wrong?”
She blew out a breath and opened the truck door just in case. “I’m okay. That man reminded me of someone I used to know. Let’s get Ella into her car seat. Don’t want either of you to see the boxes, and spoil the Christmas surprises.”
Charlie nodded, but his frown remained. He turned to look at the men helping Nash. Olivia kept her head down as she lifted Ella into the seat. The slight tint on the windows should help conceal her identity even if it was Adam.
It couldn’t be him. The odds were astronomical that he would work at the store where she’d bought snowshoes. The group home wasn’t even in the same borough.
Once, Ella was in the seat, Olivia grabbed one of Charlie’s ball caps and put it on. She kept her head angled so she’d be difficult to identify and then looked through the truck’s rear window. The men were loading the first boxes now.
When the man turned, he smiled and said something to Nash.
Not Adam. It wasn’t Adam. Ella was safe.
Relief had her limbs wobbling and Olivia rested her head on Ella’s hair. “You’re safe baby girl. It’s not him.”
Olivia moved to the front seat and Charlie climbed in the back. They shut the doors and Olivia locked them. While the man wasn’t Adam, fear continued to ripple through her.
Coming to New York had been stupid. She’d put her daughter at risk to enhance her career. Sure that career would help secure Ella Mae’s future, but her safety was more important.
What kind of mother was she?