Snowfall by Shelley Shepard Gray

know what’s coming. The kids told me how you grew up as an only child. I doubt you have any concept about what it means to be surrounded by so many kids, all needing one thing or another.”
    â€œYou’re right. I’ve never felt helpless and like there wasn’t a single thing I could do to change things,” she bit out, every word laced with pain.
    He jerked his head and stared at her. Then, as it was altogether obvious that he’d caught the tinge of pain in her voice, he looked away. “Sorry. I know you’ve probably experienced some difficult days, but I’m feeling more than a little frustrated right now.”
    She shouldn’t have expected him to understand what her life had been like. But though she’d surely never experienced the death of a spouse—she couldn’t even begin to imagine what that had been like for him—she did, in fact, understand what it felt like to be overwhelmed by life. She’d also experienced the feeling of being weighed down and having no choice but to continue on.
    She chose her words with care, staring at her hands folded in front of her. “Perhaps instead of thinking of everything that is hard, we could think of blessings.”
    He stilled. “Blessings?”
    â€œ Jah .” With a small smile she said, “Though your kinner might soon be covered in chicken pox, you do have six of them. That is a blessing. Ain’t so?”
    He stiffened, then, to her relief, the corners of his lips tipped up. “That is true.”
    â€œThey are gut kinner . Wonderful-gut kinner , Martin. And they’ll get through these Christmas chicken pox.” Thinking about what might be in store for them, she teased, “It might not be easy but we’ll get through it together.”
    He looked at her, blinked.
    And then, to her shock, he murmured the most incredible thing in the world. “Maybe you are more than I realized, Ruth. Maybe you are far more than either of us has ever imagined.”
    Though she didn’t know exactly what he meant, the words were so beautiful, so loving and kind, so much everything she’d always hoped she’d one day hear but never expected to, it rendered her speechless.
    At the moment, she was beyond doing anything but savoring the moment. Just for a little while.
    What had he been thinking?
    Staring into Ruth’s blue eyes, Martin couldn’t believe he’d just said something so personal. He thought he would have been smarter than that.
    Feeling his cheeks heat, he inhaled. “I am sorry, Ruth. I don’t know why I said such a thing. I didn’t mean any disrespect.”
    â€œI didn’t take offense,” she said quickly.
    He met her eyes again. No, she didn’t look offended. Instead, she looked confused. Maybe a little flustered.
    Actually, she looked a bit stunned.
    And why shouldn’t she? Here she’d been trying to help him, and right in the middle of their discussion, he’d let loose a fireball like that. It had been inappropriate.
    Had he been so focused on his children and their needs and his troubles that he’d completely forgotten what it was like to be thoughtful of others?
    His mouth went dry as he stared at her longer. It was obvious that she was aware of his scrutiny, but she didn’t shy away. No, she had more of a backbone than he’d originally thought.
    It ignited the tension between them. Illuminated the fact that she was prettier than he’d first realized. Her blue eyes were bluer, her curly dark hair shinier. Her cheekbones were more pronounced, her bearing softer and more feminine than he’d first imagined.
    He was also realizing that she was easier to be around than he had anticipated. Almost too easy to be around.
    The direction of his thoughts caught him off guard. Being aware of her as a woman was the very last thing on earth he needed. It wasn’t right. It wasn’t right to her, him, Grace’s