“For a little while.”
“But what if you say yes about the puppy? Who’s going to take care of it if I’m not here?”
Jackson brought the platter of sandwiches and set it on the table. “Me, I suppose. Come here, Jewel.” He set her in her chair then took a seat in his.
Jackson lifted his head from praying to see Noah frowning at his plate.
“What’s the point of having a dog if I’m not around,” he grumbled.
Jackson let the comment go unremarked. He served everyone, then sighed and picked up his sandwich. Maybe he could persuade Peggy to take a puppy, too.
Stop stalling and tell them.
“Dog, Papa,” Jewel said with a big milk-laced grin that speared him right through the heart.
He didn’t want to give up his children, and he didn’t want to live without the woman he loved.
If Caroline wouldn’t come to him, he’d go to her and beg for a second chance. She might turn him down, but at least he’d live knowing he tried.
“We’re going into town tomorrow,” Jackson said, “but not to Miss Celia’s. We’re going on a trip.” He’d made arrangements with Rudy Dolan, a hand on a neighboring farm, to run the things long enough for him to take the children to Fort Kearny. For the right price, he could be persuaded to stay longer.
Noah’s head snapped up. “Where to, Papa?”
“To Pennsylvania. We’re going to visit Aunt Caroline.”
Noah’s face lit up, and Jewel squealed and clapped her hands.
If Jackson had been given to such theatrics, he’d have joined her. As soon as he’d made the decision, he’d known it was right.
He gobbled his sandwich then set the children to playing again while he washed the dishes, his mind cataloguing everything he’d need to pack. He’d never traveled farther than Sagebrush Springs with the children, but somehow, he’d figure it out.
“Look after your sister for a few minutes,” he told Noah. “I have to get a trunk from the barn.” The children’s garments were small. If he carried the overflow in a carpetbag, he should be able to fit all of their belongings into one.
He removed the dusty tarp from his steamer trunk and started dragging it out of the barn then decided to load it into the wagon instead. He’d have to pack it there. He wouldn’t be able to lift it once it was full.
Jonah whinnied out in the pasture. Then Cody and Scout shifted in their stalls and tossed their heads.
Jackson walked outside and looked around to see what had unsettled them. He squinted at a small dark object in the distance.
A carriage was coming down the road.
Chapter 19
Jackson brushed the dust from his hands and waited. From a distance, the carriage and team appeared to be Oliver’s. As the carriage drew closer, Jackson made out the form of a second person on the bench—a female. He prayed it was Caroline, but it could be Peggy. She’d had a penchant for surprising him since they were kids.
If it were her, he would alter his plans. But he wouldn’t let anything stop him from going to Greenvale.
A smile spread across Jackson’s face as Oliver drove into the yard. He wouldn’t have to go anywhere.
She’d come back.
Jackson’s smile melted Caroline’s heart, as it always had. If she wasn’t careful, that alone would undermine her resolve. She hadn’t returned to leap into his arms and promise him a future. She’d done it so he wouldn’t have to be alone for the holiday.
“Aunt Caroline!” Noah called from the porch. He led Jewel down the steps, and they both ran out to the carriage.
Jackson handed Caroline down, then picked Jewel up and held her. He didn’t say anything, just kept smiling.
“I have a present for you from your Grandmother Bennet,” Caroline said to Jewel. She held out a fabric doll her mother had sewn. It had a custom-made dress, embroidered features, and yarn for hair.
