Ryan placed his hand over hers. “You’re already helping me. You help me by being supportive of everything I do. That means the world to me, Faith.”
She smiled at him, appreciating the affirmation, but internally she squirmed a little.
I’m glad he feels that way,she thought,but I feel like I could do more. There’s got to be something I can actually do to help him out.
She thought for a few minutes as she and Ryan sat in the gazebo with their arms around each other, looking out into thebeautiful summer night. Then all at once, she was struck with an idea.
“Ryan,” she said, turning toward him. “If you wanted, I could help out by taking a few of the brewery’s operations and communications tasks off your plate. That way you can focus on the bigger, more important matters while you’re settling into this new role.”
Ryan blinked at her in surprise, looking genuinely touched. “Would you really do that for me?”
She nodded, smiling and glad that he seemed to love the idea. “I absolutely would. I can come by the brewery tomorrow and we can discuss what tasks I can take on. Dean’s surgery is tomorrow, so I’ll want to wait until I hear about how it went—otherwise I know I won’t be able to focus—but we should know pretty soon. After that, I’m all yours.”
He placed his forehead against hers. “You’re amazing, you know that?”
“Oh, shush. You know I’ve got your back—and I know you’d have mine if our situations were reversed.”
“That is true.”
They smiled at each other for a moment, and Faith felt full of excitement. She couldn’t wait to help soften this challenging task for the man who she was coming to love more with each passing day.
CHAPTER NINE
Dean stood in the center of Main Street Auto, looking around the familiar garage. The smells of oil and grease filled the air, and Dean took a deep breath, finding the scents comforting. He leaned back a little, stretching his back as he turned his attention to the car he had been working on. It was an old Mustang that was in for a waxing. Although it was somewhat physically involved work, waxing was on the easier side and also a task that Dean could have done in his sleep. He found the familiar movements of the task soothing. He needed to feel soothed that morning.
He was alone in the shop, since it was still a good hour and a half before it was due to open. He had come there by himself an hour ago, after trying and failing to fall back asleep when he'd woken up in the middle of the night. It was the day of his surgery, and no matter how much he told himself that it was a good thing and that it would all turn out all right, he felt jittery and nervous about the procedure that was awaiting him later in the day.
He would have preferred to have taken on a more involved car repair task, such as replacing a set of brakes, but there had been so much pain in his hands of late that he hadn't been ableto do any kind of strenuous work in the shop. He thought about the surgery, wondering if it would allow him to work the way he used to. He felt his heart stir, longing for the ability to work with the kind of strength he’d had a few years ago.
It's all going to be great,he murmured under his breath as he continued to wax the car.The surgery is going to go great, and then I'm going to feel great. Nothing is going to go wrong.
He had been saying similar phrases over and over to himself ever since the night before, but he still felt jittery. He was worried that something might go wrong, or that the surgery simply wouldn't have the effect on his body that they were all hoping it would. He kept thinking of how much Noelle was hoping for an ideal wedding. They both wanted a day in which he wasn't in any pain, and he knew that she was especially treasuring the idea of getting to dance with him without worrying that he was in physical distress. He couldn't bear the thought of their wedding not being everything she dreamed of, especially after they’d already had to postpone it because of the surgery. He was afraid that he wouldn't be sufficiently recovered in time for their big day.
Just as he was finishing up waxing the car, he heard the front door to the shop open. He turned around curiously, wondering which one of his employees was arriving to work an hour early. A moment later however, Noelle stepped into the garage.
“Sweetheart,” she said, hurrying over to him. “I went over to your house, but you weren't there. I got so worried. You didn't answer your phone when I called.”
Dean glanced at the clock on the wall, feeling guilty. “I am so sorry,” he said. “I didn't realize how late it had gotten. My plan was to come here to work until it was time to start getting ready. I should have had my phone on me in case you tried to get in touch with me.”
She shook her head, wrapping her arms around him reassuringly. “I'm not angry. I was just worried. And I'm a little confused.” She laughed. “What are you doing in here waxing a car? Isn't this something your guys can do for you, especially when you have such a big day?”
Dean sighed. “I'm in here workingbecauseI have such a big day. I couldn't sleep last night. I dozed off for a little while around midnight, but then I woke up at about three in the morning and I absolutely could not go back to sleep. I feel totally wired. Working on machines always helps make me feel more calm, so I wanted to come in here to get some work done.”
“Oh, sweetheart.” She laid her head down on his chest, and he felt her take a deep breath. “I’m sorry you’re feeling so nervous. I think I would be, too, and I understand. But I don’t want you to worry.” She kissed his neck. “Everything is going to be fine. The doctors are skilled, and they said your tests all look good. We’re full speed ahead on this thing, no fear. Okay? Onward and upward.”
She looked up at him with a radiant, confident smile that stirred his heart deeply. He thought to himself that he didn’t think he would be able to do any of this without her.
“Okay,” he said, taking a deep breath. “Are you all ready to go?”
“Yup. I downloaded an audiobook we can listen to on the drive, or I have a few music playlists set up if you’d rather listen to tunes.”
“Oh, sweetheart.” He hugged her, feeling touched by how thoughtful she was being. “You make everything better.”
“Aww!” She laughed. “You make everything better—and hopefully this surgery will make everything better too.”
They left Main Street Auto with their arms around each other, and Dean knew that he would have the strength to face what was in front of him as long as she was by his side.
CHAPTER TEN
