However, as she stood on Gage’s front porch, it became clear that the girls were not in bed after all. Giggles and the sound of little running feet seeped through the door.
Thoughts of Cassidy and Emma made her smile. Perhaps spending a few minutes with them would calm her nerves and make it easier for her to talk to Gage once they were tucked into bed.
She knocked on the door and a moment later, she was greeted by two pajama-clad, red-faced little girls.
“Celeste! Help me!” Gage stumbled to the door, every bit as winded as the girls. “They’ve been chasing me all night. You gotta make them stop.”
“Nuh-uh.” The girls chimed simultaneously.
“He’s a tickle monster,” said Emma through her giggles.
“And he’s trying to catch us.” Cassidy squealed and took off across the room with her sister and father close behind.
Celeste hurried inside and closed the door. “I’ll save you, girls.” She ditched her coat and joined in the pursuit. She followed them into the girls’ bedroom, where Gage fell to the floor and his daughters piled on top of him. “Girls, there’s only one way to slay the tickle monster.”
They both looked at her.
“We have to tickle him.” She lunged into the melee, sending Gage into fits of laughter as they relentlessly attacked him.
A few minutes later, they all collapsed, the sounds of heavy breathing filling the room.
“That was fun,” said Emma as Celeste coaxed her to her feet.
“No.” Gage pushed onto his knees. “That was exhausting.”
“Have you two brushed your teeth?” Celeste looked at Emma first, then Cassidy.
“Yes, ma’am,” they echoed.
“Good. Now hop into your beds.” As she pulled the covers over Cassidy and Gage did the same for Emma, it struck her that if things worked out between her and Gage, she’d be a part of this every night. She didn’t know if she was equipped to be a mother, but what a blessing it would be to claim these two little girls as her daughters.
“Will you read to us?” Emma’s request was followed by a yawn.
“Not tonight, sweetie.” Celeste gave her a hug and kiss good-night. “But maybe next time, okay?”
“Okay.” With that, Emma rolled over and closed her eyes.
Celeste duplicated the bedtime ritual with Cassidy, as did their father, and headed for the door. “Good night, girls.”
Gage flipped the light off and followed her into the hall, taking hold of her hand. “So what’s your trick?”
“Trick?”
“Not one argument from Emma about reading.” He rubbed the back of his neck with his free hand. “She usually hounds me until I give in.”
Celeste smiled, turning to face him as the entered the living area. “That’s because she knows you’ll give in.”
“You’re probably right.” He let go of her hand and started toward the kitchen. “Can I get you some water?”
“No, thank you.”
“I’ll be right back.”
In his absence, she made herself at home on the sofa, kicking off her shoes and drawing her legs up under her. Lord, give me the courage to say what I have to say.
“How are things going up at the mine?” She asked when he returned. Since he’d started his new job, they really hadn’t had much opportunity to talk.
“Incredible.” He set his cup on the coffee table and joined her on the couch. “It’s as though I never missed a beat from my job back in Denver.”
“That’s wonderful.”
She’d never seen Gage as animated as he was when he told her all he’d been doing, about his coworkers and the mine itself. The way his face brightened as he spoke told her how happy he was to be doing what he loved. And she couldn’t be happier for him.
Eventually, the conversation shifted back to her and how much they’d missed seeing each other.
“You were great with the girls. The way you just joined in, it’s like you belong.” He touched her cheek. “Can I ask you something?”
“Sure.”
“Though I think I already know the answer.” He straightened. “How do you feel about kids? I mean, like, being a mother.”
Her heart screeched to a grinding halt. The time had finally come.
“I love kids. And if God called me to be a mother, I would consider it an honor.” She reached for Gage’s hand. “However, before we start talking about things like that, there’s something I have to tell you.”
“Okay.” He looked perplexed. “Should I be worried?”
“No. At least, I don’t think so.” She shifted slightly. “Remember I told you how my whole life had been planned out?”
“Yeah.”
“Well, sometimes even well-laid plans can get a kink in them.” She tilted her head to look at him. “That kind of happened to me my junior year of college.”
Her stomach churned. Her mouth went dry, making her wish she’d accepted that water.
“I guess my mother isn’t the only one who was messed up by my father’s betrayal.”
“What do you mean?”
“My mother is a planner to the utmost degree. Always has been. Somehow I got it in my little eight-year-old brain that my mother hated my father because he did something that wasn’t part of the plan. Keep in mind that, at that time, I didn’t know he was having an affair. I just knew that he left.”
Gage nodded.
“So I got it in my head that as long as I did things according to plan, my mother would still love me. But if I didn’t...”
“Based on some of the things you’ve told me, I can see where you might think that.”
“Everything was progressing the way it was supposed to. I was top of my class at the University of Texas, Mom was already scouting jobs for me...when I got pregnant.”
“I see.” Gage cocked his head, his gaze narrowing, though not in a bad way. “Did you tell your mother?”
“Are you kidding me? She would have been done with me for sure. Or so I thought anyway.” Uneasy, she pushed to her feet and started to pace. “I panicked. And even though I knew it was wrong...” She stopped and made sure she had Gage’s full attention. “I had an abortion.”
Gage didn’t say a word. He just sat there, his expression vacant.
She sat down beside him once again. “I can’t tell you how ashamed I am. But I hope you understand why I had to tell you.”
Straightening, he gripped the edge of the cushions, the rise and fall of his chest suddenly more pronounced. “So you got rid of a child because it stood in the way of your plans?” He didn’t look at her.
“Yes.” She stared at her clasped hands, embarrassed and waiting for him to say that he understood. That everyone made mistakes. That it didn’t change the way he felt about her.
Instead, he pushed to his feet. Picked up her coat. “You should go.”
His words cut her as deep as any knife.
Disbelief, along with an unbearable ache, settled into her chest as she shoved her feet into her shoes. She stood and accepted her coat, all the while battling tears.
“I think it would best if we didn’t see each other anymore.” He looked at her now, pain evident in his darkened eyes. “My daughters were sacrificed once at the altar of somebody’s dreams. I can’t risk that happening again.”
“Gage, I would never...”
Try as she might, she couldn’t stop her bottom lip from trembling. How could he even think she’d do anything to hurt Cassidy and Emma?
A sob escaped her throat, but she covered it with her hand. The thought of not seeing Gage was bad enough, but not seeing Cassidy and Emma was too much to bear.
She reached for the door, not even bothering to put on her coat. Continuing outside, she heard Gage mov
e behind her. Would he try to stop her? Perhaps he simply needed time to process things.
“And you should probably find another contractor to finish the suites, too.”
* * *
By Friday morning, Gage felt as though his heart had been run over by a lawn mower.
Leaning back in his desk chair, he rubbed the ache in his forehead. The look of disbelief and anguish on Celeste’s face when he sent her away had taunted him all night. He loved her, of that he was certain. But she’d selfishly chosen her aspirations over her child, just like Tracy. And that he could not ignore.
To contemplate a future with Celeste would be like playing with fire. Eventually, he’d get burned. Not only him, but Cassidy and Emma, as well.
Good thing he’d found out now. Suppose he’d married Celeste and then she decided that motherhood wasn’t for her?
At least this way he wouldn’t have to worry about the possibility of his children being abandoned again. Even though they’d bounced back from their mother’s betrayal, he couldn’t help wondering what kind of scars it had left on their hearts. How it would affect them as they grew older. Especially Cassidy, who had a tendency to internalize things. If he’d married Celeste and she turned her back on them, the repercussions would be disastrous.
Celeste isn’t Tracy.
Maybe. But he couldn’t chance it. Even if his own heart was in shambles.
“You ready to check on that new drift?”
Looking up, he saw Ted standing in the doorway of the mine office.
“Sure.” Gage chugged the rest of his coffee, grateful for the distraction.
The old wooden swivel chair creaked as he stood. He gathered his hard hat, safety glasses and mine light.
They’d recently blasted out a new tunnel in the mine and, now that it had been mucked or had the rocky debris removed, the integrity of the space needed to be inspected for any loose spots that could give way later and, potentially, harm equipment or workers. That meant he had to have his wits about him, not allowing his mind to dwell on something that would never be.
“Let’s do it.” He donned his helmet then, on his way out the door, snagged a long pry bar he’d use for testing any suspicious areas.
A stout north wind blew against them as they crossed the grounds to the portal that led into the mine. He didn’t care, though. He could use the jolt.
“You feelin’ okay?” Gravel crunched beneath Ted’s steel-toed boots.
“Not particularly.”
“Would it have something to do with Celeste?”
“Not anymore, it doesn’t.” Gage eyed the snow-capped peaks, noting the gray clouds that had begun to settle into the area. It would snow soon.
“What is that supposed to mean?”
“Celeste isn’t a part of my life anymore.”
His friend studied him as they walked. “You say that as though it’s a good thing.”
“Trust me, it is.”
“So when’s your brain going to tell your heart?”
“What?” He looked at Ted.
“You may be giving me the facts, but those dark circles under your eyes and the woebegone look on your face have heartache written all over them.”
Gage took a deep breath, willing the cool air to clear the fog from his brain. “Sometimes doing the right thing isn’t easy.”
“What makes you think Celeste exiting your life is a good thing?”
“Ted, there are some things you just know.” He stepped through the portal.
“True. However, sometimes fear holds us back from going after what is right.”
“What are you? The company psychologist?”
Ted flipped on his headlamp. “I’m just lookin’ out for you, my friend.”
“Yeah, well, you keep pushing and I might have to move you off of that friend list.” He wasn’t ready to tell anybody what a loser he was when it came to women. Apparently the only thing he had a talent for was falling in love with the wrong ones.
“Hold on.” Pausing, he turned to one of the other miners who was jotting something on a clipboard. “Hey, Wilson.”
The older man looked up.
“We’re heading down to inspect that new drift.” No one went anywhere in a mine without someone else knowing where the person would be.
The man noted the time on his watch and sent them a thumbs-up.
Moving through a series of tunnels and shafts, Gage and Ted continued almost a mile into the mountain, until they reached the drift in question. Average in size, the ceiling stopped at about twelve feet, while the diameter spread to twenty.
Gage pointed to the left with his light. “You start there, I’ll work over here.”
From the roof to the sides, they’d need to examine every inch of the white quartz for even the slightest of cracks, using their pry bars to test anything in question. A solid ring meant the rock was good, while a drummy thud indicated it was loose.
Working methodically, he was able to focus on the task at hand instead of Celeste, marking unsound areas with spray paint as he went. It felt good to be doing what he loved again. Being inside the mine always energized him. Perhaps it was the anticipation of finding the mother lode or maybe that he’d read Jules Verne’s Journey to the Center of the Earth one too many times. Whatever the case, today the mine offered him solace.
“I think they made a good move going deep like this.” Ted aimed his light against the wall. “Come look at this vein.”
Gage joined his friend at the far end of the room. “Oh, yeah.” He traced the jagged line along the rocky surface with his flashlight. “This is a nice one. Silver, copper, maybe a little go—”
A loud crack rent the air just then, followed by the sound of thunder and a rush of air.
Turning, Gage instinctively ducked as he watched the ceiling crumble before them. Rocks pelted him.
He yanked Ted against the back wall.
Dust filled the air.
Gage’s heart slammed against his rib cage. Sweat beaded his brow. He pressed against the wall as the relentless pounding reverberated around them.
They were going to be buried alive.
Chapter Fifteen
Celeste wandered the empty dining room, disinfecting tables and trying to behave as though all was right with the world. In reality, she hadn’t been this miserable since the weeks following her abortion. That hollow feeling that accompanied great loss was something she hadn’t ever wanted to feel again. Now it had returned—threefold.
The loss of Gage also meant the loss of his daughters. How had she allowed them to worm their way into her heart in such a short time? But, oh, how she loved having them there.
The way Cassidy and Emma would call her name in unison was a thrill she’d never experienced before. And one she’d likely never experience again.
How could she remain in Ouray, live across the street from the only man she’d ever trusted and those two precious girls, all the while wondering what might have been?
Perhaps her mother was right. Perhaps she should go back to Texas, back to corporate life. Sure, it was stressful, but at least her heart was safe.
Retreating to the kitchen, she lifted the lid on a large pot of chili and stirred the bubbling red mixture. She understood his fierce protectiveness of his daughters. But for him to even think her capable of walking away from them like their mother had hurt her most of all. Yes, she’d done a foolish thing. Selfish even. But she also knew the sting of abandonment.
Get over it, Celeste. A month ago you couldn’t even stand the guy.
That’s right.
She replaced the lid. How could she possibly be in love with Gage? Infatuated, perhaps. Maybe it wasn’t him at all. Maybe it was the girls who’d occupied such a big part of her heart.
; She recalled the way he looked at her that day she almost fell off the ladder. And then that same look just before he’d kissed her in the mine. He made her feel special. Protected.
Loved.
She heaved out a sigh. She loved him, all right.
Now she’d have to find a way to move past it.
No use crying over spilt milk, Granny would say.
“Cookie dough is in the fridge.” Leslie, her newest waitress, appeared from the storeroom carrying a box of individually packaged crackers.
“Thanks, Leslie. I appreciate you taking care of that for me.” Normally Celeste loved making her trademark cookies, but today, she didn’t have the heart for it.
Voices echoed from the direction of the front door, so she quickly washed her hands and returned to the dining room. She seated her guests, took their drink orders, then headed for the coffeepot, willing herself to focus on something besides Gage.
One way she could do that was to start looking for a new contractor. Since the demolition was complete, perhaps one of those guys who had frowned on the idea of salvaging would be more accepting now. Though she doubted they’d have Gage’s attention to detail.
She delivered the two mugs of coffee and pulled out her order pad. “Are you ready to order?”
The town whistle cut through the air just then. The whistle went off every day at noon and whenever there was an emergency.
She glanced at her watch. Ten fifty-nine.
The sound of multiple sirens echoed throughout the town and she, along with her waitress and two guests, stared out the front window to see what was going on.
A pickup truck and a Jeep SUV practically flew down Main Street with their emergency lights flashing. Something big had happened, that’s for sure. An accident on the highway, perhaps.
Closing her eyes, she sent up a quick prayer for all involved.
The door flew open then and Karla rushed inside. “Celeste...” She hurried toward her, seemingly out of breath. “I just came from the bank. There’s been an accident at the mine.”
Thoughts of Gage filled Celeste’s mind. “Which mine?”
A Father's Second Chance (Contemporay Christian Romance) Page 15
