A Nurse for Daniel
Page 12
He followed and sat next to her, turning his chair so it would face her. So as not to crick her neck, she did the same, causing their knees to almost touch. She sipped the tea and tried to stop her hands from shaking. “I’m listening,” she said, trying to sound nonchalant, as if her heart were not pounding in her chest at his proximity.
“It took two weeks for me to track her down, but I followed the clues north and found her in another small town. She was, indeed, married and is carrying their first child. She introduced me to her husband as an old friend, of course, and afterward, it took two days for her to sneak away to hold a private audience at my hotel.”
Gwen let a bated breath escape her lips and set the cup down. She clasped her hands together on her lap and wondered what it would all mean for them. Did he love her, or had their kiss been nothing more than a fleeting moment he’d already forgotten?
“She asked after Jacob, and I told her the boy was well taken care of. Her new man is pleased that she did not drag him into their new life and excited about his own seed growing within her. The man is a mite self-righteous, in my opinion, but Shannon seems to care for him and enjoys the lifestyle he provides for her.”
“I’m pleased she has found happiness,” Gwen mumbled.
“Are you, now?”
“What’s that supposed to mean?” Uncomfortable under his unrelenting stare, she shot to her feet. “Shall I fill our cups?”
He jumped up and grabbed her arm.
She whirled around to face him. His unmasked face lay barren for her to read a mix of pain, joy, apprehension, pleading and concern in the lines she found there.
“Gwen, have I messed up my chance with you? All the way home, I prayed that you’d still be here, and the Lord would see fit to provide me one last miracle. You are my perfect mate, sent to me for more than the care you provided to bring about His healing to my mind and body.” He clasped both of her hands in his. “I stand before you a broken man, fearful that the trip to appease my guilty conscience has spoiled my chance to court you. Will you be mine, Gwendolyn Peters, or will I wallow in bachelorhood for the remainder of my days?”
“Your lonely view of the future sounds similar to the one I have lived these past weeks. I have pronounced myself a spinster till the day I die. For, surely, one cannot love this deeply twice in a lifetime.”
Daniel pulled her into his embrace, his arms wrapped around her back. She rested her head on his chest and found his heart racing as fast as hers.
Was she dreaming?
She snuggled in to confirm her right to be there. “I love you, Daniel McAlister and have missed you, dearly.”
He lifted her chin, and she stared into his smoky, blue eyes. “Oh, Gwen—how I’ve longed to hear you say that. I fell in love with you the first time you stood your ground, stubborn as a mule, and it only intensified as you rose to every challenge I threw your way. You are, indeed, a woman of value and worth brought to the doorstep of a foolish, depressed man. When I could not contain another ounce of love inside, I chanced to kiss you that day at the picnic. It was the day that started and ended all things, good and bad.”
“God’s timing is perfect, Daniel. After all the loose ends have been tied in a neat bow, things are now as they should be.”
Daniel bent close to within an inch of her lips and groaned, “How can I ever thank God enough for you? You make my insides go crazy.”
“Perhaps you should kiss me again, and the craziness will subside,” Gwen said.
“You do not have to ask me twice.”
He lowered his lips and touched hers softly with them. It felt like the brush of a passing wind and toyed with her senses until she pushed in closer.
Daniel answered her plea with a kiss that sealed their love and commitment in a way neither of them had ever dreamed possible.
Epilogue
Three months later, when the colored leaves covered the earth like a thick carpet, and the soft autumn winds added a fresh crispness to the air, the couple gathered in the church to exchange their vows. The day was perfect. The entire congregation was present – both whites and colored—the former hostility of the two under the same roof absent during the special event. Gwen’s parents had traveled to Kentucky to watch their daughter marry, and Mother and Father McAlister, stood in the front pew, each of them holding one of Jake’s hands.
Daniel could not get enough of his bride. One fairer could not be found anywhere in the world. Her face reflected the sparkle of the afternoon sun, igniting a glitter of magic in her eyes like a child at Christmas.
Ah, yes—he’d celebrate with his entire family this coming Thanksgiving and Christmas season, unlike the last one that he’d barely endured alone in his chalet. Family was something he would never again take for granted as long as he lived.
Gone was the nurse’s cap that Gwen wore daily at the clinic, replaced with a silver tiara to hold the blonde curls back under the nettled veil. Her dress had been designed to have all the right angles, enough to cause his senses to crumble at the perfection of her form, and the preacher declared that all of her was his, to have and to hold. More importantly, she offered her entire self unconditionally and without reservations in this one act of commitment.
When she clearly spoke the words, “I do,” his heart felt near to bursting, and when the preacher pronounced the new couple as Mr. and Mrs. Daniel McAlister to the waiting crowd, he clung to Gwen’s hand and swore never to let go. Joy filled his heart to overflowing.
A quick glance at Jake found the boy’s feet dancing on the floor. His eyes lit up at the sight of his father and mother. The added bonus, that his dear wife would love this mistaken-miracle-child that had landed on his doorstep, was more than he deserved—the woman was a godsend.
Gwen stared at the man next to her, scarcely able to breathe. Her delight knew no bounds, and it helped that her parents were in total acceptance of this man God had given to her. Daniel’s black suit was flawless, with the tip of a white hankie peeking out from his front breast pocket. He wore the lines of victory over the many tests and trials life had thrown his way on his face, regally.
Recalling his past had come at a cost. On occasion, he’d shared with her the memories of war-time that now tortured his mind and attempted to steal his sanity—the vivid back-flashes he suffered during his daytime hours—and it hurt her to hear them recited. But voicing them seemed to help him, so, she’d vow to console and listen patiently whenever he needed her for the rest of her life.
His hair shone with streaks of sunny highlights, and she yearned to reach up and tame that one flick of cowlick that always foiled his best attempts at grooming. But she liked it—it made him human and vulnerable, not a stiff replica of the man his parents had raised him to be. His injuries had wiped all that superficial nonsense from his character, and had refined him into the man she adored, the man she now called husband.
Mrs. Daniel McAlister had a nice ring to it, and the fact that she could find love, family, and a career all in one place thrilled her to no end. God had been gracious, and she’d spend the rest of her life praising Him.
When he swept her into his embrace and engaged her in the kiss that would seal the pact for all of time, she melted into his arms, the world slipped away, and all that was left was Gwen, Daniel and the first moment of the rest of their lives.
The new mill was set up by the river. Nearby, the building that housed the men who worked for them during the week had been under-planned and was near-full, leaving Daniel to wonder where he might put the new recruits coming to join the team the following month. A section of the river had been isolated to create a mill pond, where the wood would be washed clean before being lifted by the arms of the steel clamps to position them on the rack in preparation for sawing. Huge blades ran its lengths to skim the bark and the roundness away, and then the log was turned, and the process began again until all four sides had been squared. Now the log was ready for the client’s precise measurements and the planks were cut to
order. These boards were considered number-one-grade, and the new business was fast becoming known for its fine quality wood. The orders already filled a book, and one week in, the men worked diligently to keep up with the demand.
The entire family was there to celebrate the grand opening of McAlisters’ Mill. They had invited all of their business friends and acquaintances for the event. All afternoon, Daniel and Arthur conversed with future clients and speculated on jobs they needed done on their properties, but mostly, neighbors came to congratulate the owners of the gold mine the family had the good sense to envision.
The ladies minded the tables of food and watched that the men did not spike the cool lemonade offered to guests of all ages.
It was mid-afternoon when Daniel sought out Gwen. He lifted her and spun her in the air. “This is the Day the Lord has made.” He pecked a kiss on her lips and held her at arm’s length. “Spring, summer, and fall have found blessings for me at every turn. How did we deserve such favor, Mrs. McAlister?”
“The favor may be unmerited, but it has been given as a gift from a loving God to His undeserving people. I am so happy, I could cry,” Gwen said.
“Wait until tonight, and I will wipe your tears away with my lips. I never tire of the emotions you wear like a garment of praise.”
“You did good, Daniel McAlister, for a man who had given up on life and wished to die.”
“I want to live forever, now that I have you, Jake and a job I love.”
“We shall live happily-ever-after, together forever, in this world and the next.” Daniel sealed it with a stolen kiss before he hurried off to join the dwindling crowds.
Soon, they would return to their chalet home, where Jake waited with his nanny for them. The cottage next door was now a full-time clinic where Gwen lived out her dream as a nurse. Life could not get much better than in their corner of the McAlister estate.
The End
Nursing the Heart Romance
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Author’s Bio
Dream Creations: bringing words of hope for the nations. Marlene writes Christian romance books, both historical and contemporary, with a twist of mystery, adventure, suspense and drama to set your pulse racing. She is a wife, mother, grandmother and follower of Jesus.