As they strolled, snow flurries fell softly, not enough to amount to anything, just enough to make it feel cozy.
But as she stepped out to cross the mostly deserted street, lights blinked on the other side, and then came on.
"Look! Perfect timing." Mark smiled, and then looked at her.
She knew she was supposed to be happy, but she was watching him. Was he happy to finally get the rest of the people out of his house? It felt like it, but there was definitely something that looked like disappointment on his face. Probably the same look that was on hers.
"Well, that's great. We can see how everything fared, now that the lights are on," she said. God's timing was perfect, she supposed. And if she wasn't supposed to stay with Mark, then that was the way it was.
She pulled the key out of her pocket, and Mark glanced at her, then held his hand out for it.
It made her feel like he was taking care of her again. Unlocking the door, walking with her while she checked on things, but not pushing in, or making her feel like she couldn't handle it on her own. Just making her feel like he cared and wanted to take care of her. It was a good feeling.
"This will be good news for your candle orders. And for your bottom line."
"Yeah. I've been eager to get started. Part of the reason I stayed so busy today was so that I wasn't thinking about what I needed to do."
"I’ll help you. We'll get that done."
She nodded, stepping into the shop as he opened the door for her.
She appreciated him caring and being concerned that her business was profitable. He really didn't need to, and they both knew it, but he did. Although, she had to admit to herself that it wasn't just her. He was like this with everyone. Always going out of his way to do whatever he could to help. Maybe she wasn't as special as she wanted to think she was.
"Well, it doesn't look like any pipes burst, at least not down here," she said as she glanced around, checking the sink in the bathroom and the one out by her workshop.
"You know, I don't hear your furnace running," Mark said thoughtfully.
"Now that you mention it, I don't either." Olivia tilted her head, as though that would help her hear better, but he was right. The furnace was not running.
"If you don't mind, I'll go ahead and go down to the basement and see what I can find."
"I don't mind at all. I'm gonna go upstairs and look around. I shut the water off down there, so would you mind turning it on... or... maybe not. I guess if the furnace isn't running, we better not turn the water back on."
"No. And that showed a lot of foresight on your part, and would be the reason why the pipes aren't leaking."
She made quick work of going upstairs and looking around. The apartment was small, with only two small bedrooms and a living room, dining room, kitchen combo.
Everything looked just fine, and she had packed well, forgetting nothing, so there wasn't anything she needed to pick up. She had drained the toilet as well as the faucets, so no water dripped out at all.
The lights worked just fine, but still, she felt no heat from the registers.
As she walked back downstairs, Mark was coming up from thebasement. She waited until he had gotten to the top and closed the door. She hated going down there. Even though there were lights, it was still dark and creepy, and she always felt like she was going to see some kind of animal huddled back in the corner. She never had, but that didn't make it less scary for her.
"Well?" she asked.
His lips pressed together, and he shook his head. "I tried the relay switch, and a couple of other little tricks I know. I'm not a repairman or a furnace expert by any stretch, and I'll just be honest. I have no idea whether it's something that's fixable or not. But I couldn't get it to work."
"I know nothing about furnaces, and I would have no idea of what to do. Or actually, I wouldn't even be able to find the furnace, I don't think. Unless it says 'furnace' on it."
He laughed, and she supposed it was funny. Although she doubted that anything in the basement had a label on it.
"I guess I'll need to call the furnace repairman, but I'll probably wait until morning. Unless...I don't want to overstay my welcome—"
"You and the boys are welcome to stay as long as you need to. And if that means that you're still in my house this time next Christmas, I'm totally fine with that." He paused for just a moment, and then he said, "The congregation might have some problems with it, though."
"Oh, having a woman living with you?" She nodded. "Yeah. That probably doesn't look very good."
"Giving you a place to stay while you don't have electricity or heat," he added with emphasis on the heat, "is perfectly fine. And you can stay as long as you want to. If anyone says anything, I can find a different place to go."
