Page 86 of Better Together

Colt opened the window and squatted in front of her. “You don’t have to do it. We can hang out at the main house until Brett gets back.”

“No, I want to climb in the window. You’ll hold me, right?”

“The whole time.” Colt offered her his pinky, and she wrapped hers around it. “Pinky promise.”

Colt turned Abby around and grabbed her tiny waist. She giggled when he hoisted her into the air. “Now, straighten your legs out. I’ve got you.”

Abby did as he said, holding onto his shoulders with a mighty grip in the process.

“Okay. The toilet is right under the window. So I’ll slide you in, feet first. Let me know when you feel the top of the toilet with your feet.”

“Got it!”

Ben chanted behind him, “You can do it. You can do it.”

“Don’t put your footinthe toilet.” He’d have a tough time explaining that one to Remi.

With most of her body in the window, Abby finally relaxed in his arms. “I found it!”

Colt released her and rested his hands on the windowsill. “Good. Now, can you go unlock the front door?”

“Got it!” Her thumping footfalls traveled across the cabin.

Colt and Ben raced to the front where Abby waited on the porch. With her hands in the air, she smiled and shouted, “I did it!”

Colt grabbed her up and spun her around. “You did it. You saved the day.”

“Can I have my flowers now?”

Abby could ask for the world in that sweet voice, and he’d give her the moon and stars too. “You bet.”

When they brought the flowers and cupcakes inside, Colt headed straight for the bedroom with Remi’s bouquet. “I’ll give these to Remi later tonight. Let’s keep it a secret until then.”

Ben popped open the cupcake container. “Can I have one?”

“Food first.”

“What’s for supper?”

Colt checked his watch. Remi wouldn’t be home for another hour and a half at the earliest. “Let’s have supper at the dining hall.”

“Yay!” Abby threw her arms in the air and wrapped them around Colt. “I get to see Miss Vera!”

“Maybe she made her famous cobbler,” Colt said as he flipped Abby over his shoulder.

Waiting for Remi to get home in the evening was torture. He’d be leaving for Newcastle in the morning, and the flowers were a pitiful substitution for the things he wanted to tell her.

Well, really only one thing–that he loved her. She’d freak out, but the truth was burning a hole in his chest. He wanted to tell her she was the reason he smiled. He wanted to tell her she was an amazing mom to the kids. He wanted to tell her that he didn’t go a single waking hour without thinking of her.

But the flowers would have to do. She was bound to get squirrely when he finally told her the truth, and that wasn’t the state they needed to be in when he’d be gone for the next seven days.

In truth, Remi was already struggling, and he couldn’t add to the pressure. Her smiles came in short segments instead of extended periods of time. Sometimes, her smile was a second too late, almost like she hadn’t understood the joke or the humor in the situation right away.

He pushed the worries away. She’d told him on Tuesday that she needed to take the afternoon to visit her therapist. It had been months since she’d gone, and the nagging fear that she was struggling because of him reared its ugly head. They’d been married for over two months, and the good days had outweighed the bad. Hadn’t they?

After supper, he wrangled the kids back to the cabin where they started a card game. Abby was ready to play with her dolls after the first game, but Ben was determined to win a game before quitting.

Colt stared at the UNO! cards in his hand. The colors and numbers blurred. She was unhappy. She had to be. Why else would she need to talk to her therapist now?

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