Nolan nodded. “Are we ok?”
Grace nodded as she rushed to answer the ringing phone. A few short sentences later, she hung up and turned to Nolan. “Do you want to drive me over to the hospital? Paige is there and coming around. I’m glad I listened and didn’t insist on going with them. It sounds like the officers are there now.”
“Is she all right?”
As Grace gathered her purse, she explained what Mrs. Matthews had told her. “Seeing the man coming into my house with a package sent her into shock, but she’s fine now—or will be. The doctors are going to make sure she responds well for a little bit and then they’ll let her go.”
“That would be a weird sense of déjà vu, I suppose—seeing something that terrified you recurring like that. It might feel like an out of body thing.” Nolan took her hand as he opened the door. “I’m just glad that we were all here. You could have been next if you had just ordered something.”
A smile managed to creep across her features despite her concern for her friend. “That’s where you can be glad that I can’t afford recreational shopping.”
~*~*~*~
Wednesday brought the surprise of a new cordless phone that rang four times to awaken Grace in the morning. She laughed when she discovered that Craig had installed it as she slept. Craig teased that Nolan had begged to help so he could determine if she snored, but Grace dismissed him with a laugh.
The morning news announced that the man arrested the night before for the attacks on eleven Brunswick women had confessed to all charges against him. The announcement brought relief to more than the friends of Paige Matthews.
Paige was kept in the hospital for observation overnight and released the following day. Grace and Nolan enjoyed speculating how serious the relationship was growing as they watched the solicitous care Nathan showed as he settled Paige into his car and drove toward her apartment. From the looks of things, it seemed that Paige might have finally found a man she was comfortable with.
Thursday, Nolan knocked on Grace’s door as she finished her time of prayer and Bible study. He pulled a blindfold over her eyes and led her to his car. Once out of town, he passed her a basket with hot tea, Danishes, and fruit.
“Where are you taking me?” Grace was enjoying herself immensely. She loved surprises.
“Ok, take your blindfold off. We’re going to a favorite childhood place of mine.”
“Does this have something to do with ‘five golden rings?’”
Nolan’s grin answered for him. Grace smiled at the thought but wondered what golden rings had to do with the man’s childhood. “Sure, leave me hanging.”
“It’s supposed to be a surprise. If I tell you, it’s not a surprise!”
The car ride was a long one. They laughed, told funny childhood stories, and their understanding of each other developed to a deeper level. Two and a half hours later, they took a side road that led to a small replica of a European Village.
“You’re taking me to Little Vienna! I haven’t been here since I was in Jr. High.”
Nolan smiled. “They brought us here in seventh grade, but my parents came every year. It’s where they went on their honeymoon, and we all came every year for their anniversary. I liked it because I always got a room at that little inn on the square all to myself.”
“They let you stay in it alone?” Grace couldn’t imagine such an idea.
“Well, we had those connecting doors. They were always open when I went to sleep and closed when I woke up. I thought it was magic.”
She laughed at the picture of an awed child waking up to a door that was shut when it had been open. “You had a delightful childhood, didn’t you?”
“My parents were masters of creating special experiences to enrich my life.” His voice was laced with longing as he remembered the parents he missed so fiercely.
He pulled into an almost empty town square. Thursdays were usually fairly free of tourists, even though it was just days before Christmas. Nolan led her through park to an old-fashioned carousel. A few mothers sat watching their children ride the horses, and several more sat on the horses next to or behind their children.
“The brass ring! You’re going to try for the brass ring, aren’t you?”
Nolan nodded and held up his hand, all five fingers extended. “This one happens to have five brass rings and a bunch of iron ones. I thought it might be a fun diversion from chocolate and pears.”
“Five? You’re going to try to get five rings? Are we going to ride this thing all day? I tried for a brass ring when I was in Jr. High! It’s not as easy as it looks!”
Nolan’s smile disarmed her. She gazed into Nolan’s eyes and groaned in mock disgust. “You’ve done this before, haven’t you?”
Catching her hand, he ran for the entrance to the carousel, and they each chose their animals. She sat sidesaddle on a lion beribboned to show his regal bearing. “If I’d known we were doing this, I would have worn something else!”
Nolan smiled and shook his head. “You’re perfect the way you are. You look like English nobility parading through the jungles of India.”
Smiling she bopped him with her purse as they came close to the first ring. Leaning, the man snagged it with ease and presented it to her with a flourish.
On their second pass, he leaned behind Grace to grab a ring near her side. Her laughter rang out as she held two rings in her hands. The children around them stared in awe. Swiftly, he stood on his feet and leaned across the other way to snatch one that came in quick succession.
Laughing through the final two rings, Grace felt the carousel slow down to stop. She whispered something into Nolan’s ear before dismounting from her lion and handing the rings out to the children nearest to her. “If you give this to the man when he comes around, he’ll let you ride again.”
They stood and went to sit on the booth-like benches and smiled at the children’s delight in riding again. As they exited the carousel, Grace noticed Nolan slipping a bill to the operator as he passed. “Did you pay him for the rides?”
“Well, the brass ring tradition wasn’t meant for big adults like me. It wouldn’t be right to take advantage of them.”
“You are a fine man, Nolan Burke. A very fine man.”
They strolled hand in hand through the village as Nolan shared his childhood memories. From the fountain, he fell into after making a wish, to the little shop where his father purchased his first knife, he had a story for almost every brick and cobblestone.
Grace found it fascinating to discover the rich heritage that a man, completely alone in the world, could have hidden away in another side that others didn’t see. “Thank you for sharing this with me.”
They ate lunch in an authentic Austrian restaurant, sampling Weiner Schnitzel and Apfel-strudel. The proprietress tried to encourage the couple to try a sachertorte, but overfull from their lunch, they refused as graciously as possible.
“This river runs into Lake Danube near Fairbury. I remember thinking that they should have built this village down there,” she mused as they neared the water.
Skipping rocks across the surface of the side creeks and throwing an occasional snowball at each other, the couple spent a glorious afternoon just enjoying each other’s company. As the day drew to a close, Grace found herself not wanting it to end. The thought of sending Nolan home alone disappointed her.
~*~*~*~
Friday dawned bright and clear. Fresh snowfall was evident by the hushed sounds of children hurrying off to the bus. Grace dressed quickly and brushed her hair as she threw open her living room drapes. The sight before her sparked an uncontrollable fit of giggles.
On her lawn, in all their tacky glory, sat six of the most ridiculous Easter geese she’d ever seen. Dressed in prissy bonnets, the ‘geese’ had laid plastic Easter eggs all over the snow-covered lawn. The incongruous mixture of pastel and lace bonnets with Christmas wreathes draped about the necks of the geese was a remarkable sight. Children giggled and pointed as the
y passed her lawn with its gaggle of carefully positioned geese—designed for maximum comical effect.
She picked up her new cordless phone and dialed Nolan’s cell number. His drapes were closed and the driveway showed tire tracks, so she was certain that he’d gone to the city for a lunch meeting or to de-bug some program that he’d written. Nolan answered on the fifth ring.
“Sorry, Grace. I had to pull over. The traffic is murder out here. What can I do for you?”
Grace stared at her phone before speaking. “How’d you know it was me? Why didn’t you just ignore the call?”
“I have the phone Velcroed to my dash, and the phone flashes your name and number if I enter it into the address book in my phone.”
“Oh, duh. Craig’s does that too. I forgot.”
Nolan smiled at the mental picture he had of Grace. He could imagine her nodding into the phone and trying to keep a straight face as she commented on the spectacle he’d made of her lawn. Leaving that morning without seeing Grace’s reaction to his artwork had been hard. Nolan observed that work could be a serious detriment to one’s social life.
“Grace? Did I lose you?”
She shook her head and answered. “There is a spectacular sight on my lawn. I’m likely to be in tomorrow’s paper, you know. Meanwhile, I’m becoming quite nervous about the next few days.”
His hearty laughter warmed her heart. “I assure you, there will be no more fowl play at your house.”
She dissolved in a fresh burst of giggles and said goodbye. Seeing her little dog come crawling out from his bed on the back porch, Grace picked him up. “Rolex, would you just look at what that man did out here?”
Rolex bounded into the yard the moment she opened the door. The pooch yipped and yapped at each goose, pulling on some of the wreaths, and knocking a couple over. With a triumphant bark, the fur ball grabbed a green egg in his little snout and dashed back into the house.
Grace spent her day with Melanie and Gracie-Anna, finishing the plans and the shopping for Christmas Day. On their way through the mall to Melanie’s favorite home store, she saw an exquisite sweater in a store window. In an instant, she threw aside her desire to be fiscally responsible.
“Melanie. I want that sweater. I could wear that with my royal velveteen skirt to that party at Nolan’s friend’s house next week. I’ve got to have it.”
Without a moment’s hesitation, she went into the store, found her size, tried it on, paid for it, and left the store swinging her shopping bag and feeling wonderful. Melanie dropped Grace off at her doctor’s appointment, where Nolan planned to meet her, and drove straight to Craig’s office. When Craig heard the story of Grace’s purchase, the man smiled a special smile that Melanie knew was reserved only for his sister. “She’s in love, Mel. My baby sister is in love.”
~*~*~*~
Grace sat in the doctor’s private office waiting for the verdict. Dr. Kline took her suggestion and let her sit in the office and rest from her shopping trip while he took the next patient. Nolan hadn’t arrived yet and she hoped he’d make it before she received her “verdict.” Moments after she finally relaxed, an attentive nurse ushered Nolan into the office.
Nolan sat next to Grace and took her hand in his, startled by how cold it was. “Grace, I’m so sorry I’m late. Your hands are like ice. Are you nervous or just cold?”
Smiling at the handsome man next to her, Grace shrugged. “I’m always cold. You know that.”
A voice behind them spoke out. “Not for long. My suspicions were confirmed. You have low-thyroid function. I’m going to start you on a synthetic replacement for the thyroid hormone.”
For the next several minutes, the doctor told Grace what to watch for in order to determine if she became over medicated. Nolan had many questions for the doctor and Grace took notes. Surprisingly, the answer seemed to be simple. The doctor instructed her to take a tiny little pill, and the pill was “instructed” to make her well.
At home, Marci brought Amber to Grace for a few hours while she went to dinner and a movie with Todd Mercer. When Nolan noticed his little friend bouncing her way into Grace’s house, he gathered a computer video game console, a new soccer game, and made a beeline for Grace’s house. He’d noticed that the girl needed male attention and had made a point of spending as much time with her as he could, whenever she was with Grace.
After a meal, hot chocolate and a frenzied game of Yahtzee, Grace begged for a nap. Nolan encouraged her to rest while he and Amber battled it out on the electronic soccer field. Twenty minutes later, the score stood tied. Amber tried not to squeal as she scored another goal.
“Are you going to marry Miss Grace?” Amber’s voice was hushed over the sounds of the game in which both were engrossed.
“I hope to. What do you think? Should I ask her to marry me?” Nolan was somewhat taken aback but intrigued by the girl’s question.
Amber nodded emphatically as she swerved to kick an electronic soccer ball that rolled across the screen. “What will you say?”
“Say?”
Amber sighed and tossed her joystick aside, allowing Nolan to score the winning point. “How will you ask her? Will it be romantic?”
Nolan shrugged as he packed up the game gear. “I’m not sure. I’d like it to be, but that’s kind of personal.”
“You’ve got to make it romantic. She’s going to remember it for the rest of her life! You can’t just go in there and say, ‘Oh, by the way, I thought it might be cool to get married. What do you say?’” Amber sounded quite affronted that the perfect situation hadn’t been arranged before now.
Nolan chuckled and tweaked her hair. Amber’s giggles resounded through the room. “Shhh! We don’t want to wake up Grace. She needs her rest. So, where did you get your notions of romantic proposals?”
Amber grinned. “My mom likes to watch old movies. They’re really mushy sometimes. The guys always say something really romantic to the girl, and how can she say no when he says something so great? You gotta say it right.”
Nodding absentmindedly, Nolan began mentally rehearsing how to ask Grace to promise to become his wife. Looking over at Amber, he sighed. “I’ll never come up with anything that sounds as good as a movie. I’d be smart to just drop a ring in her lap, get on my hands and knees, beg, and pray for the best.”
“No way. You need to do it right. Miss Grace deserves the best, and you’ve got to give it to her.” The little girl’s voice showed traces of disgust. “Hey… I have an idea. I’ll be Grace, you practice on me.”
“Like I said—kind of personal. I don’t think Grace would like to know that someone else heard her proposal before she did.”
Amber clapped her hands and bounced on the couch in delight. “If you can’t tell me then it’s perfect. And then the preacher will say you may kiss the bride!”
Nolan lifted Amber’s little hand and kissed it in the manner of days gone by. “Thank you, Milady Amber. I can’t wait to ask her.”
“Do you have a ring? You’ve got to have a ring. Grace is old fashioned. She won’t want to have to pick it out herself. It’ll make her feel weird. You really should have one.”
“I don’t know what she likes.” Suddenly, Nolan realized that marriage might be easier than the process of getting there.
“Well, Melanie told Mom that Grace likes apples and pearls, but Miss Grace told me that she likes Black Fools Gold.” Pride rang in Amber’s voice as she relayed this very important information while Nolan did his best to keep from laughing.
“What’s this about fool’s gold and pearls?” Grace’s voice startled the co-conspirators.
Nolan scrambled to find the right words to cover his tracks. “Well, we were just rehearsing.”
Amber interjected her contribution before Nolan could continue. “For kind of a play thing. Nolan was being the handsome prince. He makes a good one, huh? I was Milady Amber.”
“Sounds like a nice play. I want to see it when it opens, ok?” Grace heated tea as she liste
ned to the pair joke about Nolan wearing tights and a medieval tunic.
Before Nolan could open his jaw, Amber quipped, “Don’t worry, you will.”
Chapter Twenty-Six
Saturday dawned early. Day seven arrived. Grace wondered just what to expect as she tried to imagine what would happen with swans. “Lord, yesterday’s foray into the wonderful world of front page small town news was quite intriguing, but can you help him find something less public for his swimming swans?”
Two hours later, Amber arrived at her door shivering and dressed in a Swan Lake costume complete with tutu. Standing in Grace’s living room with her mother taping every minute for posterity, Amber read a short poem written for the occasion. Her sweet little singsong voice was filled with excitement.
Seven swans a-swimming will soon be swans a-dancing
You can just call it my peculiar form of romancing.
And I would like, to ask from you, if I may be so bold.
For just one hand, throughout the night, for this poor gent to hold.
The little ‘”ballerina” hugged Grace and handed her a creamy envelope of tickets to January’s performance of the classic ballet in Rockland. Grace’s eyes began to fill with tears. Nolan was going “all-out” with this little game of his. Ballet tickets were limited to Grace’s dreams and far away from her budget.
Marci nodded and pushed the camcorder into her hands. “Take this and go talk to him. He loves you, you know.”
“I know.” She hurried across the street, camcorder in hand.
Nolan stood shivering in his doorway. With less reserve than Grace usually carried herself, she jogged up to him as if to hug him but stopped short. “Thank you.”
A fleeting look of disappointment masked his eyes before he smiled down at her. “You’re welcome. Do you like ballet?”
“I watch it every time it’s on the TV, but that’s not very often these days… What’s wrong?”
Nolan waved off the question. “I’m glad. These are good seats. My father was a patron of the Rockland Arts Association, so I grew up on a wide variety of cultural things.”
Noble Pursuits Page 22