“I'm sorry, I don't know, sir.”
He took a sip. “My educated guess is ‘no.’”
“Thank you, Mary,” Jane said to the young woman.
The young woman smiled at her before she left the room.
“Surely you can do without a drink for one day.”
“I can, but I've had a long drive. I deserve to be able to relax with a drink.”
“I'd rather you not drink since I’m going back with you.” She wanted to avoid anything that might contribute to an accident since her mother and her husband had died in car accidents.
“Yes, of course. I'm sorry. I don't know what I was thinking.” He took a mouthful of apple cider. “Not bad, actually.” Tyrone looked across at her. “Are you going to pack? We want to get going before dark at least.”
She looked at her tea that she hadn’t had a chance to drink. “I've got some people I need to say goodbye to.”
“Who?”
“Zac and his daughter. Wait, she’s at school. Can we wait until after school before we leave? Then there’s Gracie, who’s become a good friend.”
He shook his head. “I don’t think anyone can become a friend in such a short space of time.”
“You don’t know these people. They have no falsity, they have no agendas, they…”
He raised his hand. “Spare me. I tell you what. How about I stay here for the night and we leave first thing in the morning. Will that make you happy?”
She nodded. “That would be better except they don't have any places here for you to stay. I have the only room; everything else is still under renovation.”
“I'll find something nearby, and then I'll pick you up at eight in the morning.”
“Thank you, Tyrone.”
When Tyrone left to find somewhere to stay, Jane went to find Zac to let him know that she was leaving the next day. She found him packing up his tools in the barn.
“Why are you going so soon?” Zac asked.
“Tyrone needs me back at work.”
“Is that what you want?”
She shrugged her shoulders. “That’s what I wanted a few weeks ago.”
“And now?” When she didn’t answer, he continued, “Does Tyrone need you back at work, or is it Tyrone himself who can’t do without you?”
Jane studied his face as his jaw clenched. “Don't be like that, Zac. There’s nothing between Tyrone and…”
“It's not my concern. You don’t have to answer any of my questions.”
Jane swallowed hard; she wanted it to be his concern and she had to let him know that there was nothing at all between Tyrone and herself. “He wanted me to go with him today, but he’s agreed to wait until the morning. That way I can say goodbye to Gracie, Gia, and your parents.”
He dropped his hammer and put hands on his hips. “I'm going to really miss you, Jane. Do you think you'll ever come back this way?”
“Do you want me to?”
His face softened into a smile. “I do; very much.”
“Then I will come back.”
“Can I call you?”
Jane felt her insides light up. “I’ll give you the number of my cell phone.”
“Good. Care to come with me while I collect Gia from school?”
She nodded. “I’d love to.
“Gia’s going to be upset that you're leaving.”
“I was always leaving. It's just that I'm going a little bit earlier.”
“I guess we all knew that, but lately I haven’t wanted to think about it.”
She was pleased that he was letting her know that he was fond of her too. “Would it be too much to ask that we stop by Gracie's house so I can say goodbye?”
“We’ll do that right after I collect Gia.”
“Thank you.”
“I'll meet you outside the house in twenty minutes. I've just got a little more work to do.”
Jane headed back to the house to tell Lizzie and Tobias that she was leaving early.
After Zac had collected Gia from school, Gia and Zac waited patiently while Jane knocked on Gracie’s door to say goodbye.
“I can’t believe you’re going.”
“Lizzie said I could have the baby there.”
“I know, she told me about it. And the offer is still there for me to deliver your baby. If that’s what you want.”
“I’m going to give it a lot of thought once I get back home.”
“When are you going to decide—you haven't got much time left?”
“I know. It won’t take me long to decide. I haven't mentioned anything to Zac that I might come back to have the baby at the B&B. I didn’t want to say anything to him in case I decided against it.”
“I understand completely. Just keep in touch.” Gracie handed her a card with her phone number on it. “Here's my phone number. Call me any time you need anything—any advice or an opinion on anything.”
Jane took the card from her and then hugged her goodbye.
Chapter 19
Being born again, not of corruptible seed,
but of incorruptible, by the word of God,
which liveth and abideth for ever.
1 Peter 1:23
* * *
Breakfast was spent in silence. The only one who talked was Gia, who asked Jane if she could stay longer. Both Gia and Jane cried, and Zac didn't look happy either.
Jane didn’t linger when the time came to say goodbye. Everyone gave her a hug while Tyrone put her bag in the car and then waited for her. Once she walked to the car, she didn’t look back.
Tyrone’s car zoomed down the driveway, while Jane cried.
“I’ve never seen you show this much emotion.”
“It was an emotional stay,” she said wiping her eyes. “I’ll get over it.”
Tyrone glanced over at her. “Seems I came just in time.”
Jane said nothing.
Half an hour into the drive back, Tyrone said, “Did I sense something was happening between you and that Zac fellow?”
Jane laughed it off. “Of course not. He’s Amish!”
Tyrone glanced over at her and she knew that he didn't believe a word of what she said. He knew something was going on between the two of them. “I think you’re lonely since Sean died. I didn't know Sean's death would’ve affected you in that way.”
“Of course, it affected me. My husband died, and my child is going to be fatherless.”
“I know it affected you; I meant I didn’t know it had affected you in that way. That you’d become vulnerable and succumb to the interest of the first man who came along.”
“That’s a dreadful thing to say.”
“I didn’t mean it. Sorry I spoke.” After twenty minutes of silence, Tyrone spoke again. “You could marry again you know, and you don’t have to marry an Amish man.”
“That’s the last thing on my mind. I can't think of anything like that right now when I'm so close to giving birth.”
“You're not that close, are you? You’ve still got a few more weeks work left.”
“Yes, and my work won’t suffer up until I go on maternity leave. I plan to leave two weeks before my due date.”
“Yes, I know.”
Even though Jane knew she’d miss Zac and the rest of his family, she was glad to be home in her own apartment with her own belongings.
The next day it was back to work as usual.
Mid-morning of the first day she found she wasn't excited about the work anymore. It didn't mentally stimulate her the way it used to.
Neither did she care that Derek had done an unusually good job on the O’Connor account. In fact, she was pleased because if she left, her clients would be in good hands. If Derek wanted her job, he could have it as far as she was concerned. Maybe it was the pregnancy hormones affecting her, she didn't know, but all that was uppermost on her mind was what it might be like to marry Zac and have a family with him.
“Well, what was it like in the middle of nowhere?”
She
looked up to see her personal assistant, Jenny, perch herself on the edge of the desk with two take-out coffee cups. She handed one to Jane. “Decaf.”
Jane laughed as she took the decaf. “It wasn’t exactly in the middle of nowhere. It was nice and calm and I miss it and the people.”
“Really?” Jenny pulled a face.
“Yes really."
"Do you want to hear the gossip?”
“ Gossip about what?”
“Derek and what he’s been doing while you've been away.”
“Yes tell me what he's been up to.”
Jenny proceeded to tell her all about Derek and what else had happened since she’d been gone.
Jane left work that day wishing she hadn’t left the B&B so early. If she had stayed, maybe she could have developed some kind of a relationship with Zac—a relationship beyond friendship.
When she got home she decided that she would have her baby at the B&B. She took her diary out of her bag and flipped through the pages until she found the marked date—two weeks before her due date. Tomorrow she would call Lizzie and tell her that she would happily accept her kind offer of having the baby at the B&B, and to expect her on that day. Then her next call would be to Gracie accepting her offer. Jane would ask them both to keep it quiet.
When her cell phone rang, she looked down at the caller ID. It said ‘Zac,’ but maybe it was someone else from the B&B.
“Hello?”
“Hello, Jane. It’s Zac.”
“Zac! It's nice to hear from you.” Her heart pumped against her chest at hearing his voice.
“How’s New York?”
“It's busy and stressful—just the same as when I left.”
He chuckled. “You should move here. Raise your child in the fresh air with good food.”
Jane laughed. Ask me to marry you and I will, she mentally projected down the phone. “Maybe I will someday. I'll surprise you.”
“I hope you don't mind me calling you.”
“Of course not; that's why I gave you my phone number. Call me any time.” Right at that moment, the phone disconnected. She looked down at her phone to see the battery had gone dead. She said a rude word before she stood up and plugged the phone into the charger.
A few minutes later, the phone came to life, but there was no missed call from Zac. She hoped that he didn't think she'd hung up on him.
The next morning, the first thing she did was to check her phone. There were no missed calls from Zac, but there was a voice message. She listened to the message and it was from Zac saying that they'd been accidentally disconnected and he’d call again another time. That was all he said. She listened to the message another three times to hear his voice.
That day, Jane did something she’d never done in her life—she called in sick. She couldn’t face going to work—Jane didn’t want to see Derek or have to worry about what he’d done or not done in her absence.
The lawyer phoned and said he hadn’t been able to trace what had become of the money Sean had received from cashing in his insurance policy. Jane instructed him to stop searching for it. It was a waste of his time and her money. All Jane cared about now was going back and being close to Zac.
Chapter 20
Surely goodness and mercy shall follow
me all the days of my life:
and I will dwell in the house of the Lord for ever.
Psalm 23:6
* * *
The weeks leading up to the birth had been torturous for Jane. She’d gone from being a workaholic to hating her work—not able to prevent herself from thinking about Zac. The bright spots in her world were the phone calls from Zac each night. He would talk about life and God, anything at all, and she’d listen. One of their conversations had lasted two hours. He’d told her more about God, the community and the ways of the Amish. In their last conversation, he’d asked her if she ever thought she might be able to live in the community.
Now she was on her way back down to Lancaster County and the Yoders' B&B for the birth of the baby. Just as Gracie had suggested, she'd had fortnightly visits with the doctor to monitor her baby’s health. All was fine with her and the baby.
Zac still had no idea she was on her way back by bus. She hoped it would be a nice surprise. Tyrone had offered to drive, but to avoid an uncomfortable scene between Tyrone and Zac; she’d opted to go by bus.
Tyrone was suspicious that there was something going on between Zac and herself, which there wasn't—at least not officially, but Jane had wished there were.
Thinking about seeing Zac again prevented Jane from getting any sleep on the bus.
When the taxi took her from the bus station to the B&B, Lizzie was waiting at the front door.
“Oh, you have gotten a lot bigger.” Lizzie giggled. “We’ve got everything ready for you. You can stay in your old room and when the time comes for the baby, we’ve got that room ready for you.”
Jane put her arms around Lizzie and gave her a hug. “Thank you for everything. It’s so good to see you again.”
“I haven't told Zac you're coming; is that what you wanted?”
“Yes, that's exactly what I wanted. I didn't want him to know.”
Tobias walked out into the reception area and seemed surprised to see her. “Jane?”
“Yes, it’s me.”
“I had no idea you were coming.”
“Here I am.”
“She’s having her baby right here at the B&B,” Lizzie said to Tobias, who was clearly hearing it for the first time.
Tobias looked delighted. “That's wonderful. I'm so glad you've come back to visit us. Does Gracie know?”
Jane gave a little giggle.
“Who do you think is going to deliver the baby? Not me!” Lizzie said to Tobias.
“Yes it's all been arranged,” Jane said.
Tobias left them alone.
Jane asked, “Where is Zac?”
“Zac's left us for a while.”
“What do you mean? He's gone?”
“He's coming back. He’s visiting someone.”
“Who?” Jane had deliberately not taken his calls for the past two weeks because she thought she might give the surprise away that she was coming there to give birth. Now she knew she’d made a bad decision. He obviously thought that she was no longer interested in him. Maybe he’d gone to another community to look for a wife.
Jane put a hand over her heart.
“What is it, Jane?”
“I just feel a little cold.”
“Come and warm yourself by the fire. I'll get a nice cup of hot tea for both of us. How does that sound?”
Jane nodded. Once they were in the living room, Jane asked. “Can I use my cell phone in here?”
“Of course, you can.”
“Good! I'll just call Gracie and let her know I'm here.”
Lizzie rang the bell letting the girls know that she wanted something from the kitchen.
Gracie wasn't home, so Jane left a message on her answering machine. “Hi Gracie, it's Jane I'm at the B&B. Come and see me when you can.” She ended the call.
When Jane was sitting down with Lizzie, having a cup of tea, Jane asked Lizzie questions about the B&B and heard all about the renovations.
“I’m so sorry I wasn’t here to help you with that opening night you had planned. I really wanted to help, but my boss arrived unexpectedly.” Jane felt bad that she’d only just now remembered her offer to help—back then she’d left without a word or apology for not being able to help.
“Don’t concern yourself about that.”
“So you've got no idea where Zac went?”
“No! He's a grown man; he doesn't tell me everything.”
"Did Gia go with him?”
“No, she’s here with us. He said it would only be a couple of days, and he left yesterday.”
Gracie put a hand over her stomach when she felt a pain.
“Is it time? You’re not having the baby now, are you?”
; She shook her head. “I’ve been having slight pains for the last few days. Gracie said it's quite normal to have contractions—that aren’t really birthing contractions when the time is close. They’re practice contractions apparently.”
“Are you sure that's all they are?”
“I hope so. Otherwise, I'd be in more pain. Wouldn't I?”
“You should get Gracie to check you over.”
“I've left a message on her machine. I'm sure she'll be over soon as she gets the message.”
Gracie came later that day, as soon as she’d gotten the message. To Jane’s surprise, Gracie told her she was in labor.
“I can't be.” Jane pushed herself up from the bed and looked from Gracie to Lizzie, who was still in the room. “I'm not in any real pain.”
“Not yet,” Lizzie said, eyeing her sympathetically.
Jane didn't like the sound of that. “So I'm having my baby now? How far away?”
“How long is a piece of string?” Gracie answered. “This time tomorrow, you should be sitting here with your baby in your arms. Or, maybe in a few hours.”
Jane felt both fear and excitement. Fear of the unknown outweighed her excitement. She hoped she’d made the right decision to have the baby away from the hospital.
Lizzie stepped forward and touched her on her shoulder. “It might be a bit to go through, but you’ll have your baby at the end of it.”
The baby she’d never intended to have—the baby who had been a pure surprise and the one thing in her life that she hadn't planned for.
Lizzie had offered to stay with Jane throughout the birth and Jane was glad to have her there. It was five hours after the midwife had gotten there that Jane’s contractions had intensified. Jane no longer had her mind on Zac and where he was. All she could think about was the pains that were wracking her body and wondering when it would all end.
“This part’s the worst,” Lizzie whispered to her as she mopped Jane's forehead with a washcloth. “When you get to push you’ll feel better.”
Jane looked at her and nodded.
A Pregnant Widow's Amish Vacation Page 11