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  “No,” Dannan said quietly. “I mean, I’d love to have you, but then it’s goodbye all over again for Corina.”

  When it stayed quiet for a bit longer, Dannan realized he missed his mother. He would love to hear her calm logic on all of this but didn’t think such a trip was a very good idea right now.

  “How’s Mom?” Dannan asked, not having had time to even think of her before.

  “Crushed not to be here but praying constantly.”

  The words made Dannan want to cry.

  “Corina and I will come when we can. Just as soon as it seems right, we’ll come down for a nice long stay.”

  It was time for the older men to grow emotional. Neither one was overly surprised that Dannan was thinking so clearly—he often did. But watching him step up and take charge, even speaking of a time down the road when Corina was settled, caused fresh emotion to surface, emotions that only heightened when, a short time later, a certain little girl stumbled sleepily into the kitchen and immediately sought the comfort of Dannan’s lap.

  Tucker Mills

  “We’ve heard from Dannan,” Troy wasted no time telling Conner. After getting the mail, he went right to the bank with plans to tell the Muldoons and Petersons next.

  Conner took the letter Troy handed him and read. It was brief but said much. He was coming just as soon as affairs were put in order, and he was bringing his cousin’s little girl. The letter said her name was Corina Joy MacKay, and she was three years old.

  In the letter Dannan also thanked everyone for their prayers and admitted he would certainly need them in the days to come. There was an estimated time of arrival more than a week down the road, but no firm promises of when he could return.

  Conner handed the letter back to his business partner with one request—that he tell Reese the news just as soon as he could.

  “How is Cathy?” Maddie asked when Jace returned from town.

  “Doing well. Taking it easy but getting things done.”

  “I’m really quite proud of her, Jace. I never expected her to stay so quiet and be so patient.”

  “She’s done well,” Jace agreed. Then he put in, “There’s news from Dannan.”

  “A letter?”

  “Yes. He’s not sure what day he’ll be back, but he’s bringing that little girl with him.”

  “Oh, Jace.” Maddie’s heart was broken and pleased all at the same time. It was wonderful to know Corina would have a home with Dannan but awful to think of her little heart trying to take it all in.

  “What can we do?”

  “I don’t know of anything right now, but we’ll stay in touch with Conner and Reese. I assume they’ll know what’s going on.”

  When Jace said he had work to do and left, Maddie put away the things he’d brought her from town. But she did so with a distracted heart. Until Valerie needed attention, all she could think about was Dannan and his new little girl.

  “I know we need to respect the man’s privacy,” Eli said to his wife and Iris as soon as Troy left. “But I want something done at the house. I’m not sure Doc MacKay even had furniture in that extra bedroom upstairs.”

  “I don’t know how we’re going to go into the man’s home, clean it, and possibly provide furniture, and not invade his privacy,” Iris stated in plain terms, although she was not against the idea.

  Eli looked thoughtful. “We’ll send Finn. He can gain an assessment of the situation for us and report back the needs.”

  “Where is Finn?” Iris asked.

  “He’s checking with Ollie in case we need furniture moved.”

  Scottie had been quiet during all of this, but Eli didn’t question her until Iris exited.

  “Is something bothering you?”

  “Just the situation. I hurt for them, and I don’t want to complicate the situation by doing things to Dannan’s house without first talking to him.”

  Eli patted the side of the bed, and Scottie sat down.

  “If in fact there is no furniture in that small upstairs bedroom, we’ll be doing Dannan a favor. We’ll also make it clear that he may change or return to us anything he doesn’t want or need.”

  “I just wish there was a way to know.”

  Eli watched her and was ready to continue his argument when she spoke up.

  “Don’t do anything yet; don’t even send Finn.”

  “Okay,” Eli agreed carefully.

  “I’m going to see Reese. If she likes the idea, we’ll proceed. If not, we’ll ask Dannan what he needs when he returns.”

  “Does Reese know Dannan that well?”

  “He takes almost every noon meal with them, and sometimes evening tea.”

  “I didn’t know that.”

  “Reese was so close to Doc MacKay,” Scottie explained, “that they’ve just taken him in. I believe Conner and Dannan are alike in age and get on very well.”

  “Yours is the best idea, Scottie. We’ll wait and see what Reese says.”

  Scottie was relieved by this adjustment and told Iris on her way out not to send Finn just yet. But relief soon gave way to excitement. Scottie didn’t even walk, eager to get to the big house and talk to Reese. She hitched the cart horse to the buggy and wasted not a moment of time.

  Six

  Dannan was on the Friday train back to Tucker Mills two weeks after he’d left for Willows Crossing. He had a very weary little girl in tow, and more trunks and baggage than he could manage. Corina had not cried on the train or even been fussy, but her sober countenance as she took in each new sight and sound was hard to watch.

  “Mama here, Danna?” Corina asked, once they stood in front of the station, using her own pronunciation of his name.

  “No, Corina,” Dannan told her, taking her hand as the stationmaster headed their way. Dannan had a few words with him and then moved aside to wait for the unloading of his baggage. Once on the bench outside the station, the warm June sun across his lower legs, Dannan took Corina in his lap and tried to explain yet again.

  “Mama is dead, Corina.”

  “Jesus died.”

  “Yes, He did.”

  “He’s alive.”

  Dannan looked into her eyes and asked God, as he’d been asking for days, how he was going to do this. How was he going to make her understand that her mother was not coming back?

  “Why did Jesus die?” Dannan asked, hoping he would not regret the way he changed the subject with her so many times.

  “Sin.”

  “That’s right. For our sins. That’s very good news, isn’t it?”

  Corina smiled at him, and Dannan knew another question was coming, but a very large presence had joined them. Dannan looked up to see Conner sitting down on the bench to his right.

  “Dannan,” the big man whispered, all his throat would allow. “I heard the whistle and hoped you’d be on this train.”

  Dannan put his hand out to shake Conner’s larger one and felt suddenly choked up. Although Tucker Mills hadn’t been home for all that long, it felt amazingly good to be back.

  “I need to tell you a few things, but first, is there anything I can get for you right now?”

  “We’re waiting for the baggage to come off, and then I’ll tell the stationmaster which ones are mine.”

  “I’ll send a wagon for those things,” Conner offered, taking charge. “I’ll stay and see to it, but before you head home, I need to tell you that folks have been busy in your absence, especially Eli Peterson.”

  Dannan’s brows rose in question, and Conner smiled a bit.

  “He sent for me earlier this week, and I’m to tell you what he’s had done.”

  “At the house?”

  “Yes. They asked Reese if she thought you would object, and she told them no. I hope she did the right thing.”

  “I’m sure it’s fine,” Dannan said, trying to picture what Conner could be talking about.

  “I’m not sure you’ll know the place,” Conner continued. “Iris, Scottie, and two others cleaned li
ke women on fire, and Eli had Scottie furnish and decorate a nearly empty bedroom upstairs. I’ve been told it was done with a small girl in mind.” Conner glanced toward Corina but found he couldn’t keep his emotions level if he looked into her eyes.

  “Eli did not wish to overstep, and he offers sincere apologies if you feel he has. Everything is reversible if it’s not what you had in mind.”

  Dannan could not speak. When Corina had napped on the train, his mind had been busy with the practical side of all of this, such as where she would sleep. Jonas MacKay had taken some furniture with him when he left Tucker Mills with Dannan’s assurance that he would not need it. Now he found himself a father with one small charge. Grant and Annie had been renters. Most of their furniture belonged to the landlord.

  “Dannan, are you all right?”

  That man cleared his throat. “I’ll go see Eli myself, but please rest assured that I don’t feel he’s overstepped.”

  Conner put a hand to the smaller man’s shoulder and forced himself to do what had to be done. He looked at the child on Dannan’s lap, taking in the dark hair and large hazel eyes, and said, “I should meet this person you have with you.”

  Dannan smiled at him in compassion before turning to Corina.

  “This is Mr. Kingsley. Can you tell him your name?”

  “Porina Joy,” the little girl obediently answered.

  Dannan smiled and then turned back to Conner. “Those hard c’s are proving a little tricky.”

  It was just what Conner needed. His smile was huge, not hinting of the tears he held inside as he formally addressed the little girl.

  “It’s nice to meet you, Corina. My wife is going to want you to call her Reese, and I think you’ll be at my house enough to call me Conner. Do you think Dannan will agree to that?”

  Corina looked up at Dannan.

  “Can you say Conner?” Dannan prompted.

  “Ponner.”

  “Close enough,” Conner laughingly remarked, thinking that in a matter of moments, this little girl had walked straight into his heart.

  The train began to move, and Dannan realized he’d missed the unloading. He headed back into the small, cramped station, Corina at his side and Conner bringing up the rear. He showed his bags to Conner, who took over and sent him on his way.

  It wasn’t far, but Dannan was suddenly tired. He felt too weary even to pick up Corina, but not too weary to notice the trusting way she kept her hand in his. Dannan made himself ignore the way he felt, and tightening his grip ever so slightly on Corina’s small hand, they continued the walk home.

  Reese had not been expecting Conner but somehow knew why he was home. She stopped in the wide hallway, 15 feet from the front door, and watched his face. “Was that the train? Have you seen them?”

  Conner didn’t speak until he was right in front of her. “They were there.”

  “You met Corina?”

  Conner nodded. “She’s so little and sweet. I can’t stop thinking about her.”

  “How did Dannan seem?”

  “Tired. I’ve never seen him so tired.”

  “And Corina? Was she tired too?”

  “I don’t think so,” Conner guessed, smiling a little. “She must have been warm on the train because her hair was curled around her neck and forehead.”

  “What color?”

  “Dark brown. It looked soft when she walked in front of me, and when I saw the back of her little neck, I—” Conner couldn’t finish. He didn’t have the words to describe what went through him at that point.

  Reese put her arms around him. Conner laid his cheek on the top of his wife’s head.

  “She can’t say hard c’s,” Conner added. “She calls herself Porina and I was Ponner.”

  Reese’s shoulders shook with mirth even before her mouth opened to laugh in sheer delight.

  “I can’t wait to meet her.”

  “I invited them for tea tonight, but Dannan said he wasn’t sure.”

  Reese nodded, trying not to get her hopes up but also knowing she was going to have to force herself all afternoon not to march over there and meet that little girl.

  It was a good thing Corina was occupied because Dannan couldn’t speak when he saw the extra bedroom upstairs. A small bed sat low to the ground in one corner, a low dresser to the side. The ceiling had been painted, and the walls were covered in wallpaper, the print a bright, fun blue. It was a paper he wouldn’t mind having in his own room.

  The quilt on the bed, however, was as feminine as it could be. Every pastel of the rainbow was displayed, and it fit the bed as if it had been made especially for it. There was even a small rag doll against the pillow, and Corina had taken exactly five seconds to get her hands on it.

  “Sit, Danna,” she invited, having perched herself on the edge of the mattress, whose frame was not many inches from the floor. Clearly she knew it was all for her.

  “Thank you,” Dannan said, lowering himself as carefully as his long legs would allow. He thought about reading her stories once she was tucked up for the night and wondered if he could find a rocking chair for the job.

  “How do you like your room?” Dannan asked her, wondering how long it would hurt to see the mixture of Grant and Annie in her face.

  “My room,” she repeated.

  Dannan slipped an arm around her, and she nestled against him for a moment, but it wasn’t long before she spotted a basket in the corner and went to investigate. Dannan watched her from his place on the bed, his stomach starting to rumble. Had he been on his own, he might have slipped over to the tavern to see if they had anything left over from dinner, but he wasn’t taking Corina there.

  It was a good time to remember Conner’s invitation. He pulled out his pocket watch and saw that if he could hold off, Reese would be feeding him in little more than an hour.

  A messenger brought a note to Eli. Scottie, who answered the door, thanked the boy, who refused the coin she offered, saying that Mr. Kingsley had paid him. Eli had planned to nap, but Scottie still slipped upstairs to check on him. She entered with a smile when she found him awake.

  “From Conner,” she explained, passing the paper to him.

  Eli read these words out loud to his wife, “ ‘I talked with Dannan at the train station. He plans to see you himself but did not think changes to the house would be a problem. Thank you for all your work. Conner.’ ”

  “So they arrived,” Scottie confirmed, sighing a little. “I hope she likes the room.”

  “How could she not?” Eli teased. “I wanted that quilt myself.”

  Scottie laughed with him, but it wasn’t long before they fell quiet. They sat together, both thinking on the changes ahead for Dannan and the little girl.

  Eli’s eyes had been directed out the window, but when they finally swung to his wife, he found her looking at him.

  “It’s a helpless feeling, isn’t it?” Eli said, guessing her thoughts.

  “Yes. I have to keep reminding myself that there is nothing helpless about our God.”

  Eli took her hand.

  “Thank you for the reminder,” he said softly, and Scottie could hear the fatigue in his voice. Leaving him alone to nap, Scottie exited the room, knowing that she was going to have to remind herself all afternoon about her own words.

  “This is Reese,” Dannan said, wasting no time with formal names. He nearly lived here and knew Corina would as well. “And this is Troy. Can you tell them your name?”

  “Porina Joy,” the little girl obediently replied, helping the adults to smile in her presence when the temptation to cry was so strong.

  “Come in,” Troy invited Corina and then led them toward the dining room. Corina looked into his face, the face of a young-looking grandpa, and followed without a glance at Dannan.

  “How are you?” Reese asked after she’d given Dannan a hug.

  “I’m not sure. I think there’s still a good deal of shock.”

  Reese nodded in compassion and preceded Dannan into
the dining room, only to find Troy making Corina right at home.

  “I have two little granddaughters just about your size,” he said as he helped her into a chair. “They were just here to visit me.”

  “Two?” Corina asked him, catching only that word.

  “Yes.”

  Dannan had taken a seat next to his small charge, and once Troy prayed and the plates were passed, Dannan gave her small amounts. She had been a good eater so far, and he was glad of that. He buttered a slice of bread for her, made sure she could reach her water, and checked that her meat and vegetables were cut into small bites.

  “I have pie too,” Reese said, watching them and trying not to stare.

  “We’ll save room,” Dannan promised, not sure Corina even heard.

  “How is the house?” Conner asked when things grew quiet enough for him to be heard.

  Dannan shook his head in wonder. “Have you seen it?”

  No one else had.

  “Corina’s room is perfect for her. The bed is so low that she can sit on the edge of the mattress and have her toes on the floor. We were able to put some of her things away in the little dresser before we came over, and she giggled with excitement to reach and open the drawers herself.”

  “And the rest of the house?”

  “As clean as I’ve ever seen it. Not a thing out of place, and any clothing I’d left out was all washed, pressed, and hung away.”

  “You don’t feel intruded upon?” Reese checked.

  “No. I don’t think anyone went into my workroom, and my only concern there would be a bottle bumped over and broken.”

  “Danna,” Corina whispered beside him. Dannan looked down to find a look of distress on her face. “I need a visit.”

  “Okay.” Dannan was swiftly learning her phrases, so he excused them both and took her from the room. The other three adults were almost relieved. They had a chance to look at each other in wonder. None of them were lulled into the false belief that the days ahead would be carefree, but Corina was doing so well. She was bright and attentive to things around her when Conner, Reese, and Troy all thought she would be constantly asking for her mother.