orders.”
He appeared confused for a moment, then he gave a sheepish grin. “Your tree. It’s real. I had to get up and smell it.”
Lara glanced across the room at the small Christmas fir. Boxes of decorations sat around it, ready for the evening of tree trimming, popcorn and hot cider she had planned. But she noted that the glistening angel she always put at the top was already perched in place, gazing down at her and Jeremiah with a beatific smile.
Chapter Six
J eremiah opened the front door of his house and stepped into the foyer as Daniel and Benjamin crowded in behind him to get out of the cold. After dropping Lara off at his house earlier that night, Jeremiah and Benjamin had driven back to the hospital to check on Tabitha. During their journey, the snow had turned into rain, and the rain into ice. With temperatures rising and falling, the roads treacherous and people already overdoing the Christmas holiday, the hospital had maximum traffic. Tabitha had been transferred to an isolation ward, but getting information about her condition had proved to be a nightmare.
“You guys hit the hay,” Jeremiah told his sons. “Daniel, you’re going over to work on Miss Ethel’s house in the morning, right? Benjamin, you’ve still got school. I’ll check on Tobias.”
“And Dr. Crane.” Benjamin gave his father a sly smile. “It’s okay, Dad. We know how you feel about her. It’s fine with me and Daniel.”
“Daniel and me,” Jeremiah corrected as he shrugged out of his coat. “And you don’t know a thing about it. Dr. Crane is here because she runs the international student program. She’s helping us out until Peter gets home. I wonder if he’s made it to Dallas yet. Did Tabitha give you that phone number?”
Both boys shook their heads. Well, they would visit Tabitha at the hospital again in the morning and get the information from her then. The main thing now was to make sure Lara had been able to cope with the baby while the men were away. Jeremiah would take a quick look at his answering machine, grab a granola bar from the pantry and head over to the cottage to check on them.
As Daniel and Benjamin started up the stairs to their rooms, Jeremiah pulled off his cap. A shower of water droplets scattered across the marble floor. He hung the cap on a hook in the foyer’s closet and stepped into the living room.
The sight that met his eyes nearly took his breath away. In a rocking chair beside the fire, Lara cradled the sleeping baby. Red-gold curls tumbled around her face while her green eyes gazed at him, and for a moment he imagined himself transported into a Renaissance portrait of the Madonna and her Holy Child. A soft, maternal glow radiated from the woman’s face. Her blue sweater and jeans blurred into a formless shape around the baby wrapped in his white blanket. The only thing missing was the lowing of cattle and the choir of angels.
“How is Tabitha?” Lara asked him in a low voice.
“Not well.” He walked silently across the carpet toward her, the spell not quite broken. “The doctors don’t know what’s wrong yet. They’re trying to get in touch with a tropical disease specialist. Infectious disease.”
“Don’t worry. Tabitha’s been in the States nearly a year and has given birth to a son. If she had brought something contagious from Africa, we would have known before now.”
He bent over and looked down into the folds of the velvety blanket. Tobias drifted in sleep, his eyes closed and his lips plump and pink. Lara rocked back and forth, holding him tightly.
“I found Tabitha’s milk in the freezer,” she whispered. “She had stockpiled quite a bit. It should get us through tomorrow. The cottage was cold, so I gathered some supplies and brought Tobias back over here.”
“Sure, that’s great. What about the crib?”
“I’ll hold him.”
“All night?” He pulled up a chair and sat down across from Lara. “You need your sleep.”
“I can sleep here. I had
He appeared confused for a moment, then he gave a sheepish grin. “Your tree. It’s real. I had to get up and smell it.”
Lara glanced across the room at the small Christmas fir. Boxes of decorations sat around it, ready for the evening of tree trimming, popcorn and hot cider she had planned. But she noted that the glistening angel she always put at the top was already perched in place, gazing down at her and Jeremiah with a beatific smile.
Chapter Six
J eremiah opened the front door of his house and stepped into the foyer as Daniel and Benjamin crowded in behind him to get out of the cold. After dropping Lara off at his house earlier that night, Jeremiah and Benjamin had driven back to the hospital to check on Tabitha. During their journey, the snow had turned into rain, and the rain into ice. With temperatures rising and falling, the roads treacherous and people already overdoing the Christmas holiday, the hospital had maximum traffic. Tabitha had been transferred to an isolation ward, but getting information about her condition had proved to be a nightmare.
“You guys hit the hay,” Jeremiah told his sons. “Daniel, you’re going over to work on Miss Ethel’s house in the morning, right? Benjamin, you’ve still got school. I’ll check on Tobias.”
“And Dr. Crane.” Benjamin gave his father a sly smile. “It’s okay, Dad. We know how you feel about her. It’s fine with me and Daniel.”
“Daniel and me,” Jeremiah corrected as he shrugged out of his coat. “And you don’t know a thing about it. Dr. Crane is here because she runs the international student program. She’s helping us out until Peter gets home. I wonder if he’s made it to Dallas yet. Did Tabitha give you that phone number?”
Both boys shook their heads. Well, they would visit Tabitha at the hospital again in the morning and get the information from her then. The main thing now was to make sure Lara had been able to cope with the baby while the men were away. Jeremiah would take a quick look at his answering machine, grab a granola bar from the pantry and head over to the cottage to check on them.
As Daniel and Benjamin started up the stairs to their rooms, Jeremiah pulled off his cap. A shower of water droplets scattered across the marble floor. He hung the cap on a hook in the foyer’s closet and stepped into the living room.
The sight that met his eyes nearly took his breath away. In a rocking chair beside the fire, Lara cradled the sleeping baby. Red-gold curls tumbled around her face while her green eyes gazed at him, and for a moment he imagined himself transported into a Renaissance portrait of the Madonna and her Holy Child. A soft, maternal glow radiated from the woman’s face. Her blue sweater and jeans blurred into a formless shape around the baby wrapped in his white blanket. The only thing missing was the lowing of cattle and the choir of angels.
“How is Tabitha?” Lara asked him in a low voice.
“Not well.” He walked silently across the carpet toward her, the spell not quite broken. “The doctors don’t know what’s wrong yet. They’re trying to get in touch with a tropical disease specialist. Infectious disease.”
“Don’t worry. Tabitha’s been in the States nearly a year and has given birth to a son. If she had brought something contagious from Africa, we would have known before now.”
He bent over and looked down into the folds of the velvety blanket. Tobias drifted in sleep, his eyes closed and his lips plump and pink. Lara rocked back and forth, holding him tightly.
“I found Tabitha’s milk in the freezer,” she whispered. “She had stockpiled quite a bit. It should get us through tomorrow. The cottage was cold, so I gathered some supplies and brought Tobias back over here.”
“Sure, that’s great. What about the crib?”
“I’ll hold him.”
“All night?” He pulled up a chair and sat down across from Lara. “You need your sleep.”
“I can sleep here. I had
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