3. Jenny #2
After they got some food in them, she and Gael could make a solid plan about how they wanted to begin the next day.
Jenny usually loved a tightly packed schedule, but she had forced herself to simply bring a list of possible activities and let this week play out by ear, with Gael’s moods and preferences guiding their daily choices.
Kids liked to move at their own pace, and she was fine following along with that.
“What have you been up to?” Erik asked when they had been driving a little while more.
She smiled and caught him up on her teaching job and her new gig doing online tutoring, and then asked about his service.
It was incredible to hear about all the places he’d been, and even more wonderful to know that even though he was living a civilian life now, he was still dedicated to his fellow veterans.
As they talked, Erik pulled off the highway and drove them along winding roads through small rural towns.
“Here we go,” he said at last. “Welcome to Trinity Falls.”
They were moving along a road with larger houses on it. The snow-frosted Victorians and Tudors were strung with holiday lights, and plastic Christmas decorations lit up many of the snowy yards.
“It’s beautiful,” Jenny said, imagining what it would be like to live in one of those peaceful-looking houses.
“The actual town is pretty tiny,” he told her. “But there’s lots of farmland all around it. And soon, the highway will come right past us.”
“Will that change things?” she asked, as they passed a block of little shops with the sidewalks shoveled clear and cheerful displays glowing in every window.
“I hope not,” Erik said.
“What brought you here?” she asked him.
“A couple of people I served with are from this area,” he said. “And when I decided to start the Homecoming Heroes Center, it seemed like a perfect spot—far from the city, but with a tight-knit community.”
“That’s really nice,” she said honestly.
“Well, that was the whole downtown,” he laughed as they passed the shops. “It winds around the corner there, but that’s about all there is to it.”
“What’s that?” she asked, pointing to a collection of larger stone buildings surrounded by fields.
“That’s the community college,” he explained. “They also own acres of woods behind the campus and the fields.”
“Beautiful,” Jenny said again.
“In a few minutes, you’ll get to see the countryside,” he told her.
As they continued, the houses spread out further and further.
“This is Route One,” he told her as he made a left. “And from here on out, it’s all basically farmland.”
Sure enough, they passed nothing but snowy fields and little farmhouses here and there. The night was clear, and the sky was bright with stars.
“It’s like something out of a book,” Jenny murmured.
“It’s hard not to fall in love with this place,” Erik agreed, nodding. “I know I have.”
She smiled and gazed up at him, glad that he seemed happy with his life here.
“We’ll be there soon,” he said. “If you want to wake your son.”
My son… The words never got old.
“Good idea,” she told him.
She turned around and saw that Gael had drifted off at last, his head resting against the window.
“Hey, Gael,” she whispered. “We’re almost there.”
He blinked and sat up.
“Erik was just thinking you might want to wake up a little bit now,” she went on. “So you’ll be ready to go in with our stuff.”
“Okay,” Gael whispered, rubbing his eyes. “That was fast.”
She had to smile at his good attitude. Their journey had been anything but fast, but she was glad it felt that way to her exuberant nine-year-old.
“Can I have a snack when we go in?” he asked.
“Of course,” she told him. “But first we need to get our things inside and check in with Miss Trudy.”
“Okay,” he said happily.
She turned forward in time to see that they were following a narrow road around a dark lake. The moon and stars reflected in the glassy surface, and beyond it was a gorgeous old inn, hung with twinkle lights.
“Wow,” Gael said.
“The inn is historic,” Erik told them. “I don’t know much about it, but I think it’s been in the owner’s family forever, so she can probably tell you more.”
He pulled into a gravel lot and turned to Jenny before he cut off the engine.
“Listen,” he said softly. “A few of my crew are staying here, so it may be a little awkward for me to explain to them why Lydia isn’t with me.”
“It’s fine,” Jenny said. “We don’t mind, right, Gael?”
“We don’t mind,” he echoed.
“I guess we’ll see how it goes,” Erik said.
He hopped out and Jenny was amazed to see him heading for her door. The man took chivalry to a new level, and she was here for it.
He opened her door and she let him help her down this time. Maybe it was her imagination, but a spark seemed to dance between their hands when they touched, just like old times.
She let go right away and followed him back to grab the suitcases as Gael hopped out to join them.
“Here we go,” Erik said, swinging down the two carry-on suitcases as well as their backpacks.
“I can get mine,” Gael offered.
“No, no,” Erik said. “I’ve got them already—least I can do.”
The least he could have done was leave them at the airport to figure out how to get to the train, but that wasn’t who Erik was. It made Jenny smile to think that exploring the wide world hadn’t changed the big-hearted young man she had loved in secret.
Gael darted ahead of them, up the steps to open the door, which was hung with a pine wreath.
Warm light glowed in the windows, and Jenny instantly felt at home, even though she had no idea what to expect from their stay.
“Welcome, welcome,” a friendly voice called out from inside as the door swung open, releasing a warm breeze and delicious smells.
Jenny followed Gael, with Erik bringing up the rear, hands full of their suitcases.
She was still holding the bouquet of flowers, but she figured she could trade them back for her suitcase once they found a place to set everything down.
She wasn’t sure why she hadn’t just left them in the car, but for some reason, she didn’t want to put them down yet.
The lady who had welcomed them scurried behind the little counter—she had to be Trudy.
Just past the entry hall, which was decorated with red ribbon-wrapped evergreen boughs, the table in the open dining room was covered with fragrant dishes. A man and woman seated at it were on their feet in a heartbeat, all smiles. Jenny figured they must be the veterans Erik had told them about.
“Whoa,” the man said. “Hey there, Cap. Hey, little lady. I’m Tom.”
“We’ve been so excited to meet you,” the woman said to Jenny at the same time. “I’m Angie.”
Her smile was so warm and welcoming that Jenny found herself smiling back before she could stop herself.
“Flowers and all,” Tom said, nodding knowingly at the bouquet she was still holding. “Cap’s a romantic, but we knew that already. So, this is your fiancée, huh?”
There was a terrible pause, and Jenny suddenly wished that she could disappear.
“Yes,” Gael said brightly.
Jenny was too shocked to say anything.
“Hey, Fallon get over here,” Tom yelled over his shoulder. “Meet Goldilocks in real life.”
Jenny looked to Erik, and he only gazed back at her, apparently as speechless as she was.
“We got here on an airplane,” Gael told Angie excitedly. “It was really fun.”
“No offense,” Tom said, turning to Jenny. “But why are you called Goldilocks?”
Jenny blinked at him, wondering what on earth she could possibly say to that. Even if she wanted to go along with whatever was happening right now, her hair was long, straight, and very dark.
“It’s because she likes everything to be just right,” Gael said brightly.
Even though she was overwhelmed, Jenny couldn’t help but smile at his quick thinking.
“Is that right?” the man said with a chuckle. “Okay, little man, okay. I didn’t know there was a stepson in the mix.”
“I’m adopted,” Gael said. “She adopted me. Isn’t that cool?”
“That is cool,” Tom said, nodding and clapping Gael on the shoulder. “And now you’re going to have two amazing parents.”
“Is this her?” another man who had to be Fallon asked, striding into the center hall with a hopeful look on his face. “We’re so glad you’re here.”
“Thank you,” Jenny couldn’t help saying. “It’s nice to be here.”
“We’re tired though,” Gael put in.
“Yes, right,” Erik said quickly. “Let’s get you two upstairs. We’ll have plenty of time to hang out later.”
Breathing a sigh of relief that she hoped no one else noticed, Jenny turned to Trudy, who had come out from behind the counter with keys in her hand.
“Don’t worry about checking in,” Trudy said kindly. “I marked you down. Let me just show you upstairs.”
Jenny nodded, grateful not to have to sort out who she was with the owner in front of everyone. As they headed up the stairs, she could just hear the three veterans still chatting.
“…such a sweet kid,” Angie was saying.
“I can’t believe he didn’t tell us,” Tom added excitedly. “We’ve got to come up with an extra surprise for the little guy.”
Her heart wrenched as she wished that it could all be true. What if she was the one who was going to marry Erik Anderson next week?
I wouldn’t have missed my flight for anything, that’s for sure.
That Goldilocks of his must be a fool.