Chapter 28
— chapter twenty-eight
As they headed back to the office, Curtis was unusually chatty. Usually, the guy was pretty reserved with him. Nelson figured it was because he was Curtis’s boss and the guy liked to watch his words.
But now Nelson was wondering if Curtis had been biding his time while he was waiting for a topic that interested him. Which, to his surprise, was Nelson’s relationship with Jenna. “You know, I’m real pleased that you and that sweet Jenna Graber have hit it off so well.”
“Thanks. It was unexpected, but I feel fortunate.”
“I’m sure you do, but Jenna would be a fool not to see a good thing right in front of her. You’re as steady as a rock, Nelson.”
He supposed Curtis meant that as a compliment. He chuckled. “Hopefully she sees me as something more than that.”
Curtis shrugged. “I’ve learned that there’s no telling what women are looking for. My wife said she fell in love with me when she discovered that I always wanted to go on a cruise.”
“Really?”
“Rhonda hates camping.” He snickered before saying, “In all seriousness, Jimmy was such a hothead, I reckon you’re a nice change from that.”
Even though Jimmy was always in the back of his mind, Curtis bringing up his name brought forth another wave of doubt. “There’s a part of me that is having a hard time handling that Jimmy’s accident at Alliance happened under my watch and now I’m somehow benefiting from it.”
“Boss, Jimmy was a grown man, and he reported to Paul, not you.”
“You know what I mean.”
“Okay, how about this? There isn’t a man in our company who would appreciate you acting as if he needed a babysitter. You hired us to do jobs. We do them.” He waved a hand. “And sure, accidents happen, but they’re not your fault, Nelson.”
“I hear you. Sorry.”
“If you heard that, then I hope you hear me tell you that Jenna has her own mind too. If she wants to be in a relationship with you, then that’s her choice. She’s falling in love with you, and you are falling in love with her, right?”
“Right.”
“Then focus on that, boss. Don’t twist up love.”
When they got back to the mill, Curtis’s words of wisdom replayed in Nelson’s mind as he headed back to his office.
Fanny wasn’t there. She’d gone out to visit a couple of clients. He was glad to have a few moments of peace and quiet.
To think about Jenna’s declaration.
And his, of course.
Sure, he would’ve never planned to declare his love in that situation, but he decided that he didn’t care. All that mattered to him was that Jenna felt the same way he did. Somehow, some way, they were going to have a future together.
Eventually, he buckled down and got back to work instead of going home to wait for Jenna’s call. It would keep him busy.
Then, just around half past six, it started raining. Nelson supposed the farmers were pleased for their crops, but all he could think about was that Jenna’s backyard party was going to have to be moved indoors. Poor thing. He bet she was just about at her wit’s end by now.
“Oh, don’t look so sad about a little rainstorm, Nelson,” Fanny teased. “You won’t melt if you get a little wet.”
“I don’t mind getting a little wet, I just wish that it would’ve held off awhile longer. Jenna’s hosting a party in her backyard this evening.”
“Not anymore. What a bummer, though.”
“Yeah. I feel terrible for her. This shindig was kind of thrown at her, and she wasn’t sure what to do. Curtis and I took over a couple of tables and two dozen chairs this afternoon.”
“I’m sorry I wasn’t here to help. I would’ve been happy to go with you and help her set up or something.”
“Believe me, it’s just as well that you didn’t.”
“Why? What happened?”
Briefly, he filled Fanny in on Mary’s accusations, Katie’s tears, and Jenna’s declaration. “To make matters even worse, Curtis heard the whole thing,” he finished.
“Whoa.” Looking completely stunned, Fanny said, “I don’t even know where to start.”
“It was a lot. A whole lot.”
“What’s going to happen next?”
“I told Jenna to call me when the party ends. I’m going to go over there and make sure she knows that I meant what I said.”
Reaching out, Fanny clasped his hand. “I’m so happy for you, Nelson. You two are going to be perfect together.”
“We’ve got a long way to go before we start planning happily-ever-afters, Fan. Don’t forget, she’s Amish.”
“If she marries outside the faith, it’s going to be bad, isn’t it?”
“Yep. I’m not even sure if it’s allowed.”
“You might not want my advice, but I’m going to offer it anyway.” She took a deep breath. “Concentrate on the two of you tonight.”
“You think so?”
She nodded. “I don’t have a lot of experience in this, but I’m pretty sure that falling in love with someone is something to celebrate. It doesn’t happen all that often.”
“You’re exactly right. Thanks.”
“Anytime. I’ll see you tomorrow.” She picked up her purse off the top of her desk. “Don’t forget that we have a load of lumber arriving at seven, and you’ve got a meeting with the bank at nine.”
“I’ll be here. See you bright and early, Fan.”
“Yeah, you too. Careful going home.”
After she walked out the door, Nelson checked his phone. Since he still hadn’t gotten a call from Jenna, he did a walk-through of the plant to make sure everything was shut down and the security guards who worked the night shift had arrived.
Then he strode out to his truck.
The rain was coming down in sheets, and the wind had picked up, making it almost impossible to see.
For a moment, he considered following Fanny to her apartment.
Sure, she was a competent driver, but it was really awful out.
He wouldn’t be surprised if some of the traffic lights started malfunctioning because of the wind.
When he pulled out onto the state road that led toward his house, he decided just to go on home. Fanny wouldn’t appreciate him following her around. Instead of being glad that he was worried about her safety, Fanny would think he didn’t trust her driving.
Besides, he was anxious to get home and wait for Jenna to call. He couldn’t wait to see her. Not only did he want to reassure her about his feelings, but they had a lot to discuss about the future. And maybe . . . a few overdue kisses to be had.
After hearing on the radio that there had been a multivehicle accident on the state route he usually took, Nelson decided to take a detour.
Usually, he hated driving on the hilly, winding roads in the evening.
The route took twice as long and was often occupied by the Amish.
Every time the road turned, he feared that he’d come upon a horse and buggy or one of the more popular electric bikes.
However, with the weather being the way it was, he figured navigating around Amish vehicles was the least of his worries. It was rare to see many buggies or bicycles in this type of weather.
Turning his brights on, he slowed and crept along in the dark, glad he recognized some of the intersections and houses since there weren’t any streetlights around. As the radio got scratchy, Nelson turned down the volume and thought about Jenna.
If she loved him as much as he loved her, they were sure to have a future together.
He wasn’t sure what it would mean to her, though, to break her baptismal vows.
Was she worried about what her parents—or even Jimmy’s parents—would say?
Or how she’d be treated in the community?
Then, too, was the fear that she might eventually regret leaving her faith.
He would hate if she one day felt she’d made a huge mistake by marrying him.
But eventually—if Jenna was still willing and the Lord helped things along a bit—she would be his wife.
Maybe one day, he’d be driving home on another night like this.
Tired from work, but anxious to see her.
And when he pulled into the garage, she would be waiting for him. So pretty. So fresh and sweet.
He could pull her into his arms, try to carry her inside—just to make her laugh. And then he would kiss her like he wanted to. Kiss her until she was clinging to him, responding to the heat in his gaze, silently promising that she was just as anxious as he was for the night not to end.
Just imagining it, Nelson felt a shudder run through him as he guided his truck up another hill. He’d wanted Jenna for so long. He’d hoped and prayed that one day she’d let him in. At least a little bit.
And now—
His mind froze as the scene before him jerked him into action.
There was a buggy. And an electric bike.
And a car attempting to weave around them into his lane—just as the road started to curve again.
Every instinct encouraged him to jerk the steering wheel to the left because there was a deep ditch on his right.
But the car was weaving, attempting to miss the bicycle.
He had no choice. Nelson slammed on the brakes, jerked his truck to the right, and practically leapt off the road.
The tires screamed against the wet pavement and metal crashed.
He could have sworn he heard someone in the distance call out, but he wasn’t sure.
His truck rolled, the airbags deployed, and every muscle in his body braced for impact.
At last, the vehicle came to a stop.
At least, he thought it did. It was impossible to tell because there was nothing to see.
The only thing in front of his eyes was red.