Chapter 15 #2
He worked his way across the disgusting parking lot, mud squelching under his boots, then knocked softly at the back door. No one answered. He clicked on his headlamp, turned the knob, and it opened.
“Hello?” He stepped inside. Movement caught his eye. Tisha appeared, eyes wide and red-rimmed.
His heart squeezed. “Hey. What’s wrong?”
She wiped her face, smearing a streak of mud across her splotchy cheek. “Ethan. You shouldn’t…” Her voice caught. “What are you doing here?”
He tugged off his headlamp so he wouldn’t blind her.
“You and Sadie weren’t at the high school.
Someone said she went home with Tom and Melinda, so I swung by here.
I promised I’d come back for you,” he said, his voice gravelly from giving instructions and talking nonstop to other volunteers.
He had practically inhaled a peanut butter and jelly sandwich, a bag of chips, and some Fig Newtons, washing it all down with a cup of tepid coffee.
He’d tried to stay hydrated, but the needs had stacked up—almost insurmountable.
Everywhere he’d looked, mud mixed with snow, and devastated people waded through stinky water.
She let out a ragged breath. “I’m saving the pies I sold.
At the festival today, people paid for all twenty-four pies, plus begged me to let them preorder if they donated to the fund for the playground equipment.
So now I have to follow through. Besides, I thawed them out, and we’re probably going to lose everything in the freezer anyway.
” She gave a half-hearted thrust in the air with her fist. “So I’ve got to save the pie. ”
“I’ll help.”
She shook her head. “You don’t have to.”
“But I want to.”
“Fine. Here they are.” She turned and shined the beam of her flashlight on neat stacks of white boxes on every square inch of counter space in the café’s kitchen.
“My Suburban is parked out back. There’s not much in it, believe it or not. Where are you going to take them?”
“To the cabin, I guess. Between space in my fridge and some at Tom and Melinda’s place, I think I can save a lot of them, and there are a few that’ll just have to sit out. I’d deliver them myself if I could, but that’s probably not safe.”
He scrubbed his hand over his face. “Will you let me help you move these?”
She hesitated. “Ethan—” Her face crumpled, and she pressed the back of her hand to her mouth.
Oh no. He reached for her, but she shook her head and took a step back. “No, don’t. I-I have to say this.”
He stilled. “Say what?”
“I messed up. Backstage at the festival with Sadie. I should’ve handled it better. She was so upset, and then she ran, and the tidal wave…”
Sighing, he rubbed at the tightness in his chest. “No, I get it. I’m a dad, and sometimes we have to be careful how we respond. Especially in the middle of a crisis.”
“I’m really sorry.” A tear slipped down her cheek. “I don’t want to hurt you, but I can’t ignore her feelings.”
“She’s not ready.” He reached out and skimmed his palms against the shoulders of her puffy jacket, now pocked with splashes of mud and grime. “Listen. You deserve a happily ever after, and frankly, so do I. But you and Sadie need time, and I’m not about to push my way into your life.”
Sniffing, she gave a helpless shrug. “She’s scared, and I don’t know how to make her not scared.”
“We don’t have to fix this tonight,” he said. “Or tomorrow. But as much as I’m into you, and as much as I want this, want us, Sadie has to be comfortable with a fresh start.”
“I know,” she whispered.
“And I don’t think that means never.” He gave her a small, sad smile. “But it means not right now.”
Fresh tears welled in her eyes. “I hate this.”
He leaned over and pressed a tender kiss on her forehead. “Let’s get these pies rescued.”
They loaded the pies into their vehicles, the only sound the slosh of water and emergency generators humming in the distance.
“I’ll see you at the cabin in a few minutes,” she said.
Their headlights cut through the darkness.
It was eerie driving down Main Street with no lights and evidence of the destruction lurking in the shadows.
The ice statues had been toppled over. Only the pirate was still standing, but he looked disfigured and sad.
Ethan turned the corner and headed up the hill toward the Binfords’ place. When he got there, Tisha had backed into the driveway, so he mimicked her parking.
Tom came out on the porch to help.
“Let’s see how many I can put in the cabin,” Tisha said.
“All right.” Ethan followed her around to the bungalow-style structure behind the Binfords’ home. “Wow, this is nice.”
“You’ve never been here?”
He shook his head. “Is it new?”
“Built within the last five years maybe?” Snow crunched under her boots as she carefully held two pie boxes in one hand, then fumbled with the doorknob. “It’s quite lovely. Sadie and I are glad to have a space of our own.”
“Yeah, I bet.” He scraped his muddy boots on the welcome mat.
“Don’t worry about the mud; it’s inevitable.”
“If you’re sure.” He stepped inside. Pictures of Chase greeted him—on every surface and every empty space on the wall.
Artwork related to planes. Pictures of Chase, pictures of Chase and Tisha.
More pictures of Chase and Sadie. He tried to keep his eyes focused straight ahead, but man, the guy was everywhere.
So this was why Sadie reacted the way she did.
If Chase was still this much in their lives, then Ethan had made the right decision.
“Here you go.” He handed her a stack of three boxes, determined to keep his expression neutral. It wasn’t his place to criticize or comment. There was nothing he could say that would make this situation any easier.
Between Tom hauling pies into the house and Tisha and Ethan bringing in the rest from their vehicles, within thirty minutes, they’d made space for almost every pie. Except for four that she stacked neatly on the counter.
“These will be okay without refrigeration. I’ll try to find their new homes tomorrow,” she said, facing him in the dim glow of the lamplight. “Ethan, I—”
He held up his palm to stop her. “Tisha, I think I need to go before I can’t walk away. So let me know if you need any more help with the pies.”
Then he turned and left the cabin. Thankfully, Sadie and her grandparents did not come outside, and he made a quick escape in the Suburban.
He cranked up the U2 station on satellite radio and drove through town, the windows down and songs playing loudly.
When he got to the resort, he parked and trudged toward the back door.
What a blessing to be able to sleep in his own mud-free bed.
He needed a hot shower and a bowl of cereal, and then he planned to sleep for about two days.
Luke greeted him at the door. “Hey, man, I was getting worried about you. Everything all right?”
“Yeah. I just helped Tisha with a pie rescue.”
“Oh? How’d that go?”
“Not great.”
“Uh-oh.”
Ethan hesitated, then craned his neck, looking around. They didn’t have any scheduled guests tonight, but they had opened up the rooms for anyone who needed them. Three couples sat by the fire, talking quietly.
“If you’re looking for Brody, Mom put him to bed about an hour ago. The kid was wiped.”
“Yeah, I know the feeling.”
“Come on in the kitchen. Tate went to grab more pop out of the garage.”
Luke had the most delicious-looking sub-style sandwich packed with lettuce, tomato, and some kind of deli meat sitting on the counter. “Here, I made this for you.”
“Wow. Thanks. I’m starving.”
“Thought so. There’s some grapes, chips, and plenty of cookies.”
“Yeah, I’ll take the grapes, thanks.”
He dragged himself to the table, pulled out a chair, sat down, whispered a quick blessing, then dove in.
“So, things with Tisha are…bumpy?” Luke set the bowl of grapes in the middle of the table. “I heard about that kiss.”
“Did you also hear about Sadie’s epic meltdown?”
Luke palmed the back of his neck. “Yeah, I might have heard something about that. She’ll get over it.”
“That’s the problem,” Ethan said. “I just told Tisha I’m taking a step back because she and Sadie need some time.”
Luke stared at him. “What?”
Ethan paused, his sandwich halfway to his mouth. “Sadie’s not ready for me to be a part of their lives.”
Luke’s mouth drifted open.
Ethan pinned him with a look. “What?”
“I’m proud of you, man. That’s a selfless move.” Luke leaned his elbows on the table. “But what are you thinking? She’s seven. You’ve got to win her over. How hard can it be?”
Ethan shrugged. “Not as easy as you might think. Sadie isn’t ready to say goodbye to her daddy yet. And I can’t barge into her life. I need to be invited in.”
“Huh.” Luke ripped open a bag of barbecue-flavored chips and popped one into his mouth. “Guess I’m just surprised you’re going to give up so easily.”
Ethan sighed. “I’m not giving up. It’s called being patient.”
Shaking his head, Luke reached for another chip. “Good luck with that.”