Chapter 23
— chapter twenty-three
“Your cousin’s a pistol,” Hank told Nelson after Fanny had turned beet red, reported that the wood was on its way, and then scurried down the hall.
“Yeah. She sure is,” he replied, watching as she disappeared from sight.
Hank had been watching Fanny’s escape too. “Where do you think she ran off to?”
“I’m not sure. She’s good at taking a walk when her temper flares. I’m guessing she probably needed a break.”
Nelson had a feeling that Fanny was either going to seek shelter in the women’s restroom or go find Big John and sit with him—if he wasn’t at Hank’s house.
Fanny and John had a close friendship, and she often sought him out when she was feeling stressed.
It was almost a father-daughter relationship, but with a whole lot more ribbing and joking around.
Most likely, John would get a kick out of Fanny’s retelling of her phone call.
Shoot, Big John might even go so far as to pat her on the head and tell her that she did a good job.
Hank was still looking down the hall, obviously hoping that she’d reappear.
Nelson wasn’t sure why Hank was so interested in Fanny’s departure, but it wasn’t his business.
All that mattered to him was that Hank wasn’t going to be upset about a delay.
“I’m pretty sure John can bring in another guy to help him make up any lost time.
We have several men who are master craftsmen. Most of them apprenticed under John.”
“That’s fine. I’m sure you do.”
“If you’d like, I can text you when the wood arrives. I don’t want you to worry.” Sure, he was going above and beyond what he’d normally do with a customer, but Hank Arias wasn’t just any customer.
At last, Hank directed his attention away from the hall and back to him.
“Nelson, I hear what you’re saying but that’s not necessary.
I didn’t come over here to tell you how to do your job.
And believe me, I’ve dealt with plenty of shipping issues over the years.
Those things happen.” He folded his arms over his chest. “I only wanted to stop by to tell you how pleased I am with the progress.”
“Okay. That’s good. Thanks.” Nelson knew he sounded a little scattered, but what else could he say?
Hank could have easily said all of that in a phone call or a text.
There was no real reason for him to come to the mill in person.
Unless it had to do with a five-foot-seven-inch woman with an attitude.
“Do you think she’s okay?”
Yep. There was now no question in his mind about Hank’s appearance today.
The bit of confusion Nelson had been feeling was starting to meld itself into something more. Something like concern. But not for Hank, for Fanny. His cousin wasn’t shy or timid, but that didn’t mean she was all that worldly either. She was a small-town girl, and Hank was anything but small-town.
“I’m pretty sure she’s fine,” Nelson said at last. “I’d bet a nickel that she went down to Big John to fill him in on that conversation.”
“John is that concerned about mahogany?”
“John is always concerned about his materials—but it’s more that he’s concerned about her.
They’re friends. Close friends.” John had always had a soft spot for Fanny.
Nelson added, “He used to make up little jobs for her to do by his side when she was a kid. She’d talk a mile a minute, and he’d listen.
Whenever my uncle—her dad—would try to get her to stop bothering him, John would intervene and say he liked her company. ”
“Ah, okay.” Hank’s expression softened but he still looked worried.
Nelson folded his arms over his chest. “Why are you so concerned about my cousin?”
Hank blinked. “And you’re worried that I’m worried about her?”
“No, I’m worried about your intentions.”
To his surprise, instead of looking embarrassed or defensive, Hank started laughing. “Fanny seems like a lady pretty capable of handling her own affairs, Nelson.”
Lady? That made it sound like she was a forty-year-old stranger. Fanny was not that. “She’s really just a girl, you know.”
“She’s more than that, Nelson. She’s a grown woman doing a great job at a company where there is a significant amount of pressure. I don’t think of her as a girl at all.”
“Yeah, I guess her job is hard to do. And she does it well.” Nelson shook his head. “I mean, she’s great. But still, she’s been sheltered.”
“I understand.” Looking at him directly, Hank added, “Look, if you are asking about my motives, I think it’s pretty obvious.
I think she’s gorgeous. She makes me smile.
She lights up every single room she walks into.
So much that I want to be around her more often.
” He took a breath. “But . . . no, we aren’t dating.
Not yet. I’m not even sure if she would be interested in dating me. ”
“I’ll talk to her about that.”
“Why? I mean, no offense, but you aren’t her father. Maybe you should let her make some of her own decisions. I want what she wants. So if she’s not interested, I’ll abide by her wishes. But I want anything she does to be her decision. Not something she decides to do in order to make you happy.”
As hard as that was to hear, Nelson nodded. Hank was exactly right. He couldn’t treat her like the grown woman she was and a sheltered child at the same time. It wasn’t fair to Hank, and it sure wasn’t fair to Fanny. “I understand.”
“Thank you.”
“Hey!” Fanny called out as she walked down the hall toward them. “Hank, I didn’t know you were still here.”
He stuffed his hands into the front pockets of his jeans. “Yeah, I had a couple of things to talk to Nelson about.”
She looked from one of them to the other. “Is everything all right?”
Hank glanced his way.
And for some reason, that made Nelson look at Fanny again. This time, really look at her. Study her without allowing a bunch of memories of her playing softball—all braces and freckles—get in the way.
Instead, he looked at her as an adult.
Thought about how she’d dealt with Steve without skipping a beat. How she dealt with a dozen balls in the air all day without dropping a single one. She might be young and sheltered, but she was a competent, smart, attractive woman.
Then he noticed how Fanny was gazing at Hank, with the type of expression he could only hope Jenna would send his way.
Fanny really liked Hank. Not as a crush, but as a grown woman likes a man.
And then he realized that Hank was right. She was a grown woman, Hank was a good man, and they were both adults.
It was also obvious that there was something between them, and if he tried to get in the way of it, he wasn’t going to make anything better. Actually, he was very likely going to make a lot of things worse.
“Yeah, Fanny,” he said at last. “Everything is fine.” Holding up his cell, he said, “If you’ll excuse me, I just remembered that I need to go take care of something. I’ll, uh, be in my office.”
He walked inside, closed the door, and then sat down at his desk. Took a breath. And realized that he needed to let Fanny grow up.
After all, it was obvious that she already had.