by Irene Brand
But when Nathan walked into the group, dressed in a dark-red shirt and white trousers, deeply tanned from his work in the sun, Autumn’s stomach quivered and her taste for food changed to a longing for him. His high-bridged nose and slightly jutting chin kept Nathan from being overly handsome, but Autumn had never seen a more appealing man. Their glances caught and held, her blood stirred and she was mesmerized by the gray eyes filled with patience, touched with laughter, conveying his pleasure at seeing her. Autumn pulled at the collar of her shirt and unbuttoned it.
Sandy’s sudden appearance from the house with an ice cream freezer broke the spell.
“Nathan,” Sandy said, “you’re just in time. Help Ralph make the ice cream while the hamburgers cook.”
The electric freezer worked fast and the ice cream was ready in a short time. By that time, Autumn’s appetite had returned, and as long as she kept her eyes off Nathan, she ate heartily. She ate both a hot dog and hamburger, but refused Sandy’s insistence on second servings.
“I’m waiting for dessert,” Autumn said. “I haven’t had homemade ice cream for years.”
Sandy served the vanilla ice cream in bowls with large slices of cake. Autumn had just finished with dessert when her phone rang.
“Ah! Perfect timing,” Ralph said. “You must have your customers trained.”
Autumn walked away from them, lifted the antenna and answered the phone.
“Sorry to leave good company,” she said, when she finished the conversation, “but a farmer seventy-five miles west of here has a cow calving, and he needs a vet. Trina, if you’ll drive me into town, I’ll pick up the truck, and you can come back to spend the afternoon.”
“I’ll take you to the clinic and go with you on the call, if you like,” Nathan said. “That way Trina and Dolly won’t have to interrupt their visit.”
With a brief glance at Trina, and without meeting Nathan’s eyes, Autumn said, “I’d appreciate your company. On that kind of call, I might need some help.”
Inwardly, Autumn was as excited as a teenager on her first date. He wanted to be with her! Time was healing the wounds of the past.
They made a quick trip to Greensboro where Autumn checked the supplies in the truck to be sure she had everything she would need.
“Are you going to change your clothes?” Nathan asked.
“I don’t think I should take time. I keep coveralls and boots in the truck, so I can change to that when we get to the farm. The man sounded desperate.”
“Who was it?”
She glanced at the note she’d made. “Stanley Wooten. I don’t remember seeing that name on Ray’s list of clients.”
“He could have gotten a vet closer than you, but Sunday isn’t a good time to find help. Ready?”
“Yes. Do you want to drive?”
“I will, if it’ll be any help to you.”
She handed him the keys and stepped into the passenger’s side of the truck. Keeping to the speed limit, they didn’t lose any time as they drove westward. When they neared their destination, Autumn referred to the directions the farmer had given her. An hour and a half after they’d left Greensboro, they drove into the Wooten barnyard.
A sharp-featured, foxy little man with high color and hard eyes bounded out of the one-story house and across an unkempt yard.
“Mr. Wooten…” Autumn began.
He must have mistaken Nathan for the veterinarian, for he turned on him, saying, “Now’s a fine time for you to get here. The cow and calf have been dead for an hour.”
“Mr. Wooten, I’m the veterinarian. I came as soon as you called me.”
“A woman vet! No wonder you’re late—probably had to paint your face and get all dressed up before you came. You’re too late, so don’t expect any pay for your trip.”
Autumn’s face blanched, and his vitriolic attitude rendered her speechless.
“Just a minute, Mr. Wooten.” Nathan came to her defense in a quietly controlled voice, but Autumn sensed how angry he was. “Dr. Weaver came as soon as you telephoned. She left a picnic and didn’t even take time to change her clothes. If your stock died, it’s your fault because you waited too late to call. Considering your attitude, I’m not surprised that you couldn’t find a vet any closer than Greensboro.” He took Autumn’s hand. “Come on, Autumn. You don’t have to take this.”
“I’m sorry about the cow and calf, Mr. Wooten,” Autumn said over her shoulder as she followed Nathan to the truck. She sat close to him, their shoulders touching as he gunned the engine for departure.
She twisted her hands together, and the knuckles whitened. Nathan didn’t say anything until they reached the highway. When he picked up speed, he put his arm around her shoulders.
“Aw, come on, Autumn. Don’t let it get you down. He’s obviously a sorehead.”
“I don’t know how we could have gotten here any sooner without breaking the speed limit. If I’d stayed home instead of going to the cookout, I might have made it.”
“You were on your way in less than a half hour. And the cow was probably dead before we left Greensboro. He ranted at you to give him an excuse not to pay for the call.”
“I wouldn’t have charged him anyway. But this incident points out to me that a lot of farmers won’t want a woman vet tending their livestock. Maybe my parents were right—I chose the wrong profession.”
“You don’t believe that, do you?”
She shook her head.
“Neither do I. And one of these days, your parents are going to agree with us. You fought too long to get where you are, to let a cranky little man cause you to lose confidence. We’ve got an hour’s drive back home. Don’t let’s spoil it by thinking about that incident. One of these days, you’ll laugh about it.”
“I don’t know what Mr. Wooten might have done if you hadn’t been along. Thanks for coming with me today and sticking up for me when he got nasty.”
“At your service anytime you need me, ma’am.” His tone of mock servility amused Autumn, she laughed, and they didn’t let the irate farmer spoil their afternoon.
They entered a small town, and Nathan removed his arm from around her shoulders as they drove along the narrow streets.
“There’s still eight years of your life that I don’t know much about,” he said, “and I find myself wondering what happened to you during that time.”
She laughed. “You wouldn’t find anything exciting about those seven years I spent at the university, going to school year-round, trying to finish my degree as soon as possible. It’s almost like one continuous nightmare. I studied, went to class, worked to pay my expenses, existed on fruit, cottage cheese, canned soups and bread. Studied, went to class, worked…”
“Okay. Okay,” Nathan said. “I get the general idea.”
“Actually, it’s a period of my life I’d just as soon forget. I wasn’t happy. I made a lot of acquaintances, but Trina and her sister were the only friends I had. I simply existed, but my goal for the future kept me going.”
“I understand. I feel the same way about the time I worked in the Middle East. It was boring, hard work, but I was determined to make something of myself, and I thought that took money. You told me that you and Trina had spent almost a year in Europe. You must have had some interesting experiences there.”
“Yes, lots of them. After the Bible Conference ended, we traveled with a small group of Christians, and it was a time of growing for me. Every day we’d pause for prayer and praise. We worshiped on a ferry boat between England and Holland. We stopped for prayer beneath the Eiffel Tower in Paris. We sang and studied the Bible on the banks of the Mediterranean near Marseilles. During the traumatic school years, I had that to look back to and cherish.”
“Did you travel through the Alps?”
“Oh, yes,” she said. She knew Nathan was asking these questions to prevent her from brooding over Mr. Wooten, and she was thankful that he was with her. What a miserable drive she would have had back to Greensboro, if she’d fac
ed the man alone!
“Although most people believe that Switzerland has the most spectacular scenery, I liked the Austrian mountains best. We spent a month in a little Alpine village in Austria. It was the tourist skiing season, and many people were visiting from English-speaking countries. We worked in a hotel, cleaning rooms, waiting on tables, and we were welcomed because we could speak English. We got large tips from the tourists. Fortunately, it was our most profitable stop, for we needed the money to buy a ticket back home.”
The hum of the motor and the singing tires on the highway contrasted sharply to the quietness of that Alpine setting. In her mind’s eye, she could see the ancient, colorful buildings, the beautifully costumed local residents, and the steep slopes behind the village.
“In most of our travels, we conducted our own worship because we couldn’t find many churches with English-speaking services. But in that village, there was a visiting Irish priest who held services in a room at the parish church attended by many of the tourists. It was a cosmopolitan atmosphere. We sat beside people from England, Australia, New Zealand, or the United States, and when we knelt at the altar to receive communion with people we didn’t know and might never see again, I was sure that’s the way God wants us to worship. It was an awesome experience, and it sustained me in the years to come.”
“Sounds like you had a great time.”
“I’d have never achieved what I have without those experiences. I had to come to terms with myself, spiritually and emotionally, before I could continue with my life. When I came home to the States, the past wasn’t buried, but I was determined not to let it stand in my way. Times when I wanted to give up, when I didn’t think I had any reason to keep on living, I remembered the high points of our trip. I memorized a Bible verse to give me courage, and I’ve repeated it over and over. ‘I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me.”’
Nathan took his eyes from the road briefly to look at her, and she saw admiration in his eyes. “You’re a special person. Not many people could have gone through what you have without becoming bitter.”
“Oh, I’ve had my bitter moments,” she admitted.
“But you haven’t dwelled on them.”
Nathan pulled off into a highway rest stop. “Let’s stop for a while unless you’re in a hurry to get home.”
“I left my phone with Trina, so she’ll take any calls. I would like to walk.”
Nathan put his arm around her waist and they walked along the short trails, oblivious to the travelers around them. At a vacant shelter Autumn sat on the table with Nathan on the bench in front of her. She ran her hands through his hair and smoothed down errant locks the breeze had ruffled. How grateful she was to be with Nathan! Right now, all she had from him was friendship, and she wanted so much more, but he was a comforting and pleasant companion. She thought he was slowly gaining his trust in her again. She would have to be content with that.
As they started on toward Greensboro, Autumn asked, “And what about you? Did you see anything of the Middle East except the oil fields? You surely didn’t work all the time.”
“I took one trip to the Holy Land during the Christmas season. I’d always wanted to be in Manger Square on the night we observe the birth of Jesus. It was disappointing to some extent because the city of Bethlehem is so commercialized. I rather resented people making money on such a holy time. But when I went into the large cathedral and was directed to the tiny niche where the stable might have been, I worshiped Christ, as if I’d been one of the shepherds or Wise Men who came to pay homage to Him.”
She wanted to ask if he’d thought of the Christmas Eve they’d spent together, but she said instead, “What other part of the trip was important to you?”
“When we crossed the Sea of Galilee in a fishing boat similar to the ones used in the first century. Jesus had spent so much time on or around Galilee, that I felt He must have walked the same paths I did and had sailed across the same water. We stopped in the middle of the lake to worship, and I felt closer to Jesus at that time than I ever had before or since.”
“That’s an experience I’d like to have someday, but I won’t be traveling much in the near future. I’ll have to pay off my school loans and set up a vet practice before I can travel.”
He didn’t answer until they’d driven several miles, and his face was thoughtful.
“I’d like you to know, Autumn, that I thought of you and the Christmas Eve we’d spent together when I knelt before that manger. I didn’t think I’d ever see you again, but now God has brought us back together. What are we going to do about it?”
Autumn put her arm around his neck and leaned close to him. She kissed her hand and moved it softly along his lips.
“Thanks for telling me. Patience isn’t one of my virtues, but I’m trying to turn the development of our relationship over to God. We’ll know what to do when the time comes.”
Chapter Ten
After the satisfying afternoon with Nathan, Autumn was in a state of euphoria, but a call Monday morning from her mother brought her down to earth with a thud.
“Well, Autumn,” Clara Weaver said, “have you forgotten you have a family?”
Clara’s tone pierced Autumn’s heart, and she said more sharply than she should have, “Actually, I was of the opinion I didn’t have a family. I’ve understood the Weavers have disowned me and that Daddy said I was never to come back to Indian Creek Farm.”
“Landon is gone for a few days. I want you to come and see me.”
“Very well. Let me check my schedule.” With bleary eyes, Autumn looked at the appointment book. “I have a call in that direction tomorrow morning. I’ll stop by then, if that’s convenient for you.”
“You’re not speaking to a stranger. I’m your mother, in case you’ve forgotten.”
“No, Mother, I have a good memory. I remember many things. I’ll be there tomorrow.”
The minute she hung up the phone, Autumn was sorry she’d delayed the visit for a day. She knew she wouldn’t have a moment’s peace until she went home.
As soon as they’d finished their evening meal, Autumn changed into white shorts and a striped, knit shirt and headed toward Woodbeck Farm. Nathan had said he could use her help, and if she could be with him, the evening hours would pass more quickly. If she stayed in Greensboro, she’d fret all evening about the visit to her mother.
Nathan was driving the tractor into a machinery shed when she arrived. He waved and she walked to meet him.
“Do you have time to work on the cart tonight?” she asked. “If so, I’m ready to help.”
“I’ve been in the field all day, so I’ll have to shower and change clothes. I’m hungry, too. After I’ve eaten, we can decide what has to be done on the cart. Do you want to walk Beauty until I’m ready?”
“Shouldn’t I prepare something for you to eat, while you shower and change?”
“That would be a big help. There’s some spaghetti left over from Saturday. You can heat that and make a salad. I always eat a big breakfast, and it lasts me until evening.”
Nathan was a good housekeeper, she decided as she searched his neat refrigerator for vegetables. No dirty dishes in the sink, either. After she’d made the salad, she stirred up a pitcher of instant tea and was putting ice in his glass when he came into the kitchen.
His hair, still wet from the shower, was plastered to his head. He wore a pair of brown shorts and a multi-colored plaid shirt open at the collar. Holding a pair of socks in his hand, he padded barefoot across the kitchen floor toward a pair of tennis shoes beside the lounge chair. He looked so strong and virile that Autumn caught her breath and looked away. He was the answer to any woman’s dream, especially a woman who’d been dreaming about him for years.
Perhaps he sensed her discomfiture, for without speaking, he sat in the chair to put on his socks and shoes. She turned her back and busied herself with scooping the spaghetti into a bowl.
“What kind of salad dressing do y
ou want?”
“I’d like a mixture of French and Italian,” he said, “but you don’t have to wait on me. I’m used to taking care of myself.”
“So am I. But it’s been nice to have Miss Olive fussing over me the past few weeks. A little coddling won’t hurt you.”
He sat at the table and waited while she served him.
“Maybe not. I’ve never had the chance to find out.”
Without looking at him, she asked, “I assume you’ve never been married then.”
He lifted his eyebrows when she glanced his way. “I thought modern marriages were partnerships where the husband couldn’t expect to be coddled.”
“I guess I’m talking about something I don’t know about then.”
“Apparently so.” He laughed and held out his hand to her. “Come, sit with me. Are you going to eat?”
“Miss Olive served supper before I left.”
She took the chair beside him, and he held her hand and thanked God for the food and “for Autumn, who’s come to help me.”
He started eating, and she took a pecan cookie from a sack on the table and nibbled on it.
“To answer your question—no, I’ve never been married.”
His words fill her with joy, and she wanted to ask why he hadn’t married, but she stifled her curiosity and changed the subject.
“I’m going home tomorrow,” she said. “Mother telephoned today and asked me. Daddy’s gone away for a few days.”
“Are you excited about it?”
“I’m afraid. I’ve always heard that one can’t go home again. Maybe it’s too late to patch up mistakes of the past.”
“The Bible teaches that we need to look toward the future. God forgives and forgets our mistakes, so we should also.”