by Gail Sattler
“Actually, you just missed her. She left about one minute before you got here.”
“How about that.” She reached out to touch Rachel’s shoulder. “What a cute baby. So this is your fatherless child. Dennis has such a kind heart to help those in need. He always helps those less fortunate people at church when they go through a tough time. This must be a good job for you, much better than any work you could find in that quaint little town you came from. And it will be good for Raymond to play with someone his own age, too.”
Adelle recoiled. She wasn’t a charity case. At least she hadn’t gotten that impression from Dennis. But then, she hadn’t gotten any impression from Dennis. Except for a friendly peck on his way out the door, he hadn’t touched her in any way except when they held hands to pray.
Joanna reached into her purse. “I guess I can catch Donna another time. I was just in the neighborhood. But when Dennis gets home, can you give him this? He left it at my house.” Joanna handed her a man’s watch. “Oh, and can you tell him that the jeweler phoned? They’ve finished sizing his wedding ring, and they want to know when he’s going to pick it up. Thanks, sweetie. Tah-tah.”
Without waiting for Adelle to show her out, Joanna pranced out the door.
Adelle’s feet wouldn’t move. Apparently, the wedding was back on. The rings had been ordered and were ready. She looked at the expensive watch in her hand and turned it over. Engraved on the back was a date about four months ago, and the words “It’s time to get married, love Joanna.”
Adelle felt sick. If he had left his watch there, that meant he had been there recently. Not that he had to tell her everywhere he went, or who he was with, but that was something she would have wanted to know.
He should have told her that he was getting married, after all.
Being in love with a man who was also her employer was one thing, but being in love with a married employer was wrong. Dennis and Joanna weren’t married yet, but if the rings were ready, then the wedding date must be close. And she hadn’t known.
Of course, he had been back home nearly a week before her arrival. She hadn’t taken long to fall in love with him. In that same amount of time, there was no reason he couldn’t have made up with the woman whom he had already said he would marry. He had known Joanna all his life. He had only known Adelle a few weeks. It didn’t make sense for him to choose her over Joanna. Now she knew whom he had chosen.
She tried to fight back tears, but they spilled out anyway.
He hadn’t said anything to her. So, by reconciling with Joanna, he had lied by omission.
She gently laid the expensive timepiece on the coffee table and hustled into the family room to lay Rachel beside Raymond in the playpen, where they could both watch the still-standing Christmas tree.
The tears flowed harder. This would be the last time Rachel would be with Raymond.
After making sure they were sufficiently amused with the blinking lights, Adelle ran to her room. Without folding anything properly, she rammed all her clothes into her suitcases and threw the rest of her belongings haphazardly into boxes.
As soon as Donna returned, she was going home.
Just as she closed the last lid, a car pulled into the driveway. She wanted to avoid any long explanations for her flight, so she grabbed Rachel’s bunting suit from the closet and ran into the family room to get Rachel into her car seat while Donna put the groceries away.
The front door slammed. “Adelle! Where are you?”
Adelle froze. It wasn’t Donna. It was Dennis.
She had no idea what he was doing home in the middle of the day, but whatever the reason, she couldn’t face him. She probably should have known about the wedding plans. To run now was cowardly, but she couldn’t let him know how stupid she’d been to fall in love with an almost-married man.
He stormed into the family room. “What are you doing?”
The front door slammed again. “Adelle? Dennis? Where are you?” Donna’s voice called out.
If only Donna had arrived before Dennis, that one minute would have been enough to make a clean getaway.
Dennis came up alongside her. Out of the corner of her eye she saw his hand about to touch her, but then he yanked it back and held both his hands behind his back.
Adelle dropped the bunting suit on the floor and spun around.
Dennis stepped backed, leaving a couple of feet between them. His eyes widened, when he saw her tear-streaked face. “I heard that Joanna was just here.”
Donna ran through the doorway. “Praise God, you’re here. I can only imagine what she said.” She squeezed in behind Adelle and scooped up both babies. “I’ll go entertain them somewhere else.”
“What happened, Adelle? What did Joanna say to you? And don’t try to deny she said something. It’s obvious you’re upset.”
“How did you know she was here?”
“Donna forgot the shopping list and had turned around to come back to get it when she saw Joanna’s car in the driveway. Joanna knows that Donna wouldn’t have been here because she goes shopping every Friday. She meets a friend and they shop together. Since Joanna’s arrival coincided with the time she is usually gone, Donna knew she was up to no good. When Joanna pranced out the door with a smile on her face, Donna called me on her cell and told me to come home right away.” He inched closer, but still didn’t touch her. “Tell me, what did Joanna say that’s upset you so much to make you run out on me?”
Adelle swiped her face with her sleeve and stiffened to make herself as tall as possible. “She said your wedding rings were ready to try on and pick up. And you forgot your watch at her house.”
His brows knotted. “Wedding rings? Watch? What are you talking about?”
“This is my own fault. I didn’t know you two had made up. I can’t stay here any more.”
“We didn’t make up. And I know nothing about any wedding ring. Of course she has her wedding ring. It came with the engagement ring as a set. I told her she could keep it, but I never picked out a ring for myself.”
“She said it was ready.”
“If she ordered a wedding ring for me, I didn’t know anything about it.” His brows knotted and he brought his left hand out from behind his back. “See? I’m wearing my watch. I certainly didn’t leave it at Joanna’s house. And I haven’t been there since before Christmas. She drove me home from the airport, which was a complete surprise to me to see her there, but that was when I told her our engagement was over.”
“She said I was a charity case. She knew I was a single mother and she knew all about me.”
Dennis brought his right hand out from behind his back and ran his palm down his face. “It’s not hard to figure out that you’re a single mother. I told my friends that you and your daughter had moved in with me, that you were going to look after Raymond. I don’t think a happily married woman would leave her husband to be a live-in nanny. Of course they all know you’re a single mother, but that’s all they know. They don’t know the details. Only I know that. But I did tell my friends how we met, and how you rescued me in the snow. Remember Joanna and I grew up together. Most of our friends are mutual friends. It wouldn’t be hard for her to find out all this information.”
Adelle sniffled and backed up. She saw the watch on his wrist, but with his financial freedom, it wasn’t unreasonable to think he owned more than one watch. He could well afford a different watch for every day of the week.
He caught her line of vision to the watch on the coffee table, and picked up the watch. “I don’t recognize this.” He examined it closer, then flipped it over. As he read it, his lips tightened. “This is probably the date she told me it was time we got married. It was her idea, you know. I’ll bet this is what she was going to give me for Christmas, because when she stormed out of here, she grabbed back the gift I still hadn’t opened.”
Dennis shook his head and sighed. “I’m really disappointed in her, I would never have thought she would stoop so low, to stage this as a
n act of vengeance because I told her I couldn’t marry her. I’m sorry she hurt you like this, Adelle.”
Her lower lip quivered, and more tears welled to the surface. She knew she should say something, but if she spoke she would burst into tears again.
Dennis stepped closer and extended his hands at waist level, waiting for her to touch him first. His consideration for her emotional baggage touched her very soul. She couldn’t speak, but she could show him how she felt by touching him, as he was asking without words.
She sniffled, stepped forward, and shakily wrapped her fingers around his.
For a second he closed his eyes, and she could see the tension leave him as his stiff posture loosened.
“I don’t love Joanna, Adelle. I don’t know if I ever really loved her. I always thought we were close friends, although now I wonder if we really ever were. The woman I love is you.”
She sniffled again. “Really?”
He gave her hands a gentle squeeze. “Really. I think I fell in love with you on Christmas Day because of your gentle spirit, your strength of character, and your solid faith, despite what’s happened to you. I can’t count the hours I’ve prayed about you and what’s happening between us, especially since we haven’t known each other long. I was going to wait, but I can’t any more. I really feel this is God’s will for us, both by the way we met, and how much it felt like a part of me was missing when I came home alone.”
Adelle raised her chin to stare into his eyes. The love she saw in them confirmed his words. “I know it’s happened so fast, but I love you too.”
“You didn’t know it at the time, but on Christmas Day I gave you the gift of my heart, and now I offer you the rest of me and my ready-made family. I love you, Adelle. Will you marry me?”
Adelle released his hands and, wrapping her arms around him, she sank into his chest with her ear right over his pounding heart. “You got the same gift—my heart—on Christmas Day. And if you’ll take my ready-made family, yes, I’ll marry you.”
He wrapped his arms around her, buried his face in her hair, and kissed her cheek. “When?”
“Whenever you want.”
“Soon. Before we take down the Christmas tree.”
Adelle smiled. It had been a long Christmas season, but with it she had received the best gift ever, the gift of God’s grace, a loving husband, and a family of almost twins.
About the Author
Gail Sattler lives in Vancouver, BC (where you don’t have to shovel rain) with her husband, three sons, dog, and countless fish, many of which have names. She writes inspirational romance because she loves happily-ever-afters and believes God has a place in that happy ending. Visit Gail’s website at http://www.gailsattler.com.
Dedication
Dedicated to Dave and Marthe. Thank you for answering all my questions and not running when you saw me coming with my map in my hand, once again.
A note from the author:
I love to hear from my readers! You may correspond with me by writing:
Gail Sattler
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