Chapter 12
— chapter twelve
Now that he was only a few minutes away from home, the heavens had decided to work against him. He slowed down further and turned on his lights. One had to be careful on these narrow, winding roads all the time because of the number of Amish buggies, bicycles, and scooters that frequented it.
In a torrential rainstorm, it was a white-knuckle situation. All he wanted to do was get out of his vehicle, quickly answer the pile of emails that were sure to be in his inbox, and take a hot shower.
Shifting in his seat as the muscles in his back protested, Nelson gritted his teeth. Ever since he’d gotten hurt playing softball a couple of years ago, his body hated sitting for long periods of time. “Almost there,” he muttered to himself as he moved to turn up the radio dial.
Then he saw them.
An Amish woman and her little girl walking under the worst umbrella ever. The thing was small and didn’t seem to be any match for the rain pouring down.
He hoped they’d accept a ride from him. After checking that there wasn’t anyone right behind him, he slowed down even more. Nelson was about to lower his window to offer them a lift when he realized it was Jenna and Katie.
Glad there was still no one behind them for miles, he quickly pulled to the side of the road just ahead of them and hopped out. “Jenna! Katie!”
“Nelson?” Jenna said.
“Yeah. It’s me. Come here,” he added as he strode toward them. The closer he got, the more worried he became about them. Each of them was soaked to the skin, and visible goose bumps were on Katie’s arms. Why were they out in this storm?
“I’m so glad to see you!” Jenna exclaimed. “This rain has been awful.”
“You’re right about that.” Fighting the urge to pull her against him, Nelson grabbed hold of her useless umbrella instead. “Are you okay?”
“I think so. We’re just wet.”
After he closed the umbrella, Nelson bent down for Katie.
“I’m gonna pick you up, Kitty,” he said as he scooped her up against his chest. With his free hand, he wrapped his arm around Jenna’s shoulders. “Come on. Let’s get you inside the truck.”
To his surprise, Jenna didn’t utter a word of protest as she leaned toward him.
Sure, it was pouring down rain and he was worried about Katie, but there was something inside him that felt as if he was finally doing something for Jenna that she appreciated. No, that she needed.
And that made every protective instinct he’d ever possessed come to life.
Opening the passenger-side door, he helped Jenna get in and then handed Katie to her. “Buckle her up in the middle, Jenna,” he murmured before trotting back to his side.
He was soaked to the skin, and he’d only been outside a few minutes.
Anger lit inside him as he wondered where they’d been. Who would have encouraged them to walk home when it had been so obvious that it was about to storm?
Nelson pushed those thoughts aside and forced himself to focus on the present. There would be plenty of time to discuss their situation later.
“Katie, are you all buckled in?” he asked as he turned the ignition back on.
“Uh-huh.” She tapped the seat-belt buckle to show him.
“And Jenna?”
“I am too, Nelson.” She touched the strap across her chest with a smile at her daughter. “But it’s time you buckled in as well, jah?”
He gave her a small smile. “Yes, it is,” he added while he quickly buckled his own seat belt.
Glad he’d turned on his hazards when a car zipped by, splashing water from the road’s surface, Nelson fiddled with the air, turning it to a warmer temperature.
“We’re close to my house. I’m going to take you both there so we can get you dry. ”
Jenna looked like she was about to argue but seemed to notice the way Katie was shivering too. “Thank you,” she said.
“I’ve never been to your house, Nelson,” Katie said as he pulled back onto the road.
“I know, and I can’t wait to show it to you.”
“I’m cold.”
“I know, baby. I’ll help your mom get you wrapped up in some warm blankets.”
She giggled. “I’m not a baby.”
He couldn’t believe that word had slipped out, but maybe it wasn’t much of a surprise after all.
Honestly, there were even moments when he’d wanted to call Jenna a bunch of endearments, but he’d bitten them back.
It seemed that all he’d needed was for them both to be soaking wet and cold for one to finally see the light of day.
“You are right,” he said. “You are a big girl. Not a baby at all. It was my mistake.” He glanced at Jenna, ready to apologize for the slip, but she didn’t seem upset by it.
Though, no doubt, she was likely trying her best to keep calm for Katie’s sake.
They drove in silence for the next few minutes, only the heat blasting from the vents disturbing the quiet. When he turned into his driveway at last, he breathed a sigh of relief. “We made it.”
Katie’s eyes widened. “We’re at your house?”
“Yep.”
“Are we gonna get wet again when we get out?” Katie asked.
“Nope. I have a garage.” He slowed to a stop and pointed to the opener. “Press the button for me, Kitty.”
Reaching up, she pressed the garage door opener and then beamed when the door started going up in front of them.
After he pulled in, he and Jenna exited. Just as Jenna was about to reach for Katie, the little girl turned to him. “Will you carry me again?”
“Of course. Come here.”
When he wrapped his arms around the five-year-old, Nelson was struck again by just how soaked her pink dress was. Her arms were still cool to the touch as well. “We need to get you warm, Katie.”
“I know.”
Jenna chuckled under her breath as she followed him into the house.
Nelson was glad that she was still not protesting his decision to bring them to his house. In fact, she looked as chilled as her daughter.
He walked them through the sprawling ranch to the master suite.
“Jenna, I’m starting to think that you girls might need to take a warm shower.
How about I pull out some of my sweats for you and an old T-shirt for Katie?
” he asked as he gently put Katie down. “You two can get warm while I put your clothes in the dryer.”
It was obvious that Jenna was ready to protest that idea—until she caught sight of herself and Katie in the mirror. They really did look like wet rats. Plus, more important than that was the fact that they were both chilled. “Danke.”
He strode to one of the walk-in closets nearby, then opened a couple of drawers, pulled out sweats, two T-shirts, and a zip-up hoodie, and set them on the counter. “There are extra towels in the cabinet next to the shower and shampoo and conditioner in the shower if you want to wash your hair.”
“We won’t be doing that.”
“Use whatever you need, Jenna. When you’re all done, bring me your wet clothes, okay?” When she nodded, he smiled. “I’ll leave you alone, then. Please, take your time.”
“Thank you.”
Not wanting to make her any more uncomfortable than she already was, he walked out and headed down the hall.
After stepping into the guest bath and towel-drying his own damp hair, he frowned. He could use a change of shirt too. Glad that he still had a pile of clothes on top of his dryer from his housekeeper’s last visit, Nelson switched to a dry one.
Feeling better already, he padded down the hall in bare feet to the kitchen. He knew Jenna well enough to know that a cup of fresh coffee was in order.
Digging in the back of a cabinet, he found a packet of hot chocolate mix too. Pleased to have something else to do to help Jenna out, he got to work.
It was amazing how taking care of Jenna and Katie felt like second nature to him.
No, more than that. It was as if he’d been waiting years to have the chance. Now that it was here, he needed to concentrate on the moment. Not worry about what was going to happen next with them.
Because he was pretty sure that as soon as he served Jenna and Katie hot drinks, gave them a couple of Oreos, and handed them back their dry clothes, the two of them would be more than ready to leave.
And after he dropped them off, would Jenna still let him visit? Or would things be awkward once again, especially after Jenna reminded him that she had no interest in ever marrying. It went without saying that she certainly didn’t want to marry an Englisher.
Or her husband’s old boss.
Regret filled him as he realized that this would probably be the only time Jenna and Katie were in his house. One of the master suite’s closets would never be Jenna’s, and neither of his two guest rooms would ever be filled with Katie’s laughter.
The best thing he could hope for was that he and Jenna would still be friends.
Then later, when she decided to eventually marry again, their relationship would grow even more distant. She’d have no reason to see him anymore.
After all, anything more would be next to impossible.