“You’re being too hard on yourself.”
“There’s never a day when I’m not. Definitely no Father of the Year over here.”
“You’re a great father, Nate. Was it a scary situation? Sure. But Ashfield is one of the safest towns.”
“But what if—”
“Nate, stop. She’s fine, and now she knows not to do it again. This was a valuable lesson for the three of you. And there is a bright side.”
Scoffing, Nate looked at me like I’d grown two heads.
“She got to watch the sunrise. She said it was the most beautiful thing she’d ever seen, and I made her promise that, next time, she’d wake you up to join her.”
His chin dropped to his chest, and his thumb and pointer finger covered his eyes. When he looked back up at me, the whites of his eyes were now red. “You know, I always thought it would be Molly who would give me my first heart attack.”
Smiling, I added, “They’ve both got to keep you on your toes.”
It wasn’t long before Tami and the twins returned, all three with cups of homemade ice cream in hand. I was partial to the strawberry concoction myself and was glad to see both girls had chosen that flavor.
My heart swelled as they offered spoonsful of the cold confection to their dad.
“And your heart grew three sizes that day,” Tami quoted, earning herself an eye-roll as I stole her spoon and scooped out a dollop of ice cream from her cup. Mango. Delicious.
Just like the man worming his way under my skin.
Chapter Twelve – Nate
My heart still raced by the time the girls and I arrived back at the bed-and-breakfast. We stopped for lunch at Angelo’s for pizza. They both claimed this would be our new tradition on Saturdays. I wasn’t opposed in the slightest.
In the rearview mirror, I continuously checked on Eloise to make sure she was there and okay. There was no way to describe the fear and panic I felt when I woke to find she was missing.
I’d slept in. Something I never did. With my cell phone dead, I had no alarm to wake me before the girls to catch a workout. Molly was down in the kitchen eating cereal directly out of the box. I’d have to reimburse Autumn for that. When I asked her if her sister was awake, she just shrugged.
I searched the house from top to bottom and even around the yard. So many thoughts intruded, like her drowning or an animal attacking her. Finally, my phone had enough charge to power on, and the relief I felt at hearing Alex’s message was comparable to the twins’ birth.
They’d been five weeks early, and we worried about their lungs and heart. It felt like I held my breath through the entire delivery. When they cried after taking their first breaths, I’d finally taken my own.
Sunny Brook Farms had been the first place I stopped. I had to track down one of the farm hands, since the house was empty. They told me Alex and Eloise were at the market.
I’d never be able to describe to someone what it felt like to hold my daughter in my arms again. She may have only been missing for a short time, but it felt like years to me.
“Daddy, we beat Miss Alex home.”
“We sure did. Maybe we should do something nice for all her help today. What do you think?”
“Yes!”
I got the girls settled outside under the covered area of the porch with some paper and paint. Molly was most excited to try out the glitter glue we packed up before leaving California.
While the girls painted, I grabbed my laptop and began researching home designs. I wanted something similar to Nash and Marisol’s home. It held the best memories for me, and I wanted my girls to have the same.
It wasn’t long before I heard the crunching of gravel on the other side of the house. My fingers shook over the keys of my laptop. I was nervous to see Alex. After the meeting at the market, I felt exposed. Like she was a firsthand witness to my lack of parenting skills. As someone who was a perfectionist, it was a hard pill to swallow.
“Hey, everyone.” Her head popped out of the opening of the sliding glass door. “I’m going to take a quick shower, then Eloise and Molly, you both can help me bake before I get dinner started. Is that okay?” She directed the question to the twins, but I sensed she was asking permission from me about the activity. I gave her a quick nod as the girls hovered over their artwork, not wanting to spoil their surprise for her.
Laptop aside, I got down on my knees at the table and helped my daughters cut out shapes. Twenty minutes later, Alex found us in the same position, only this time I had glitter glue stuck to my arms. I was pretty sure there was some in my hair as well.
Alex oo’d and ah’d at the self-made art, delighting the girls. Not that they were hard to please, seeing as Tami now took up the number-one friend spot after buying them ice cream this morning.
