A Time to Heal(11)

"When the son takes over the farm and moves into the farmhouse, his parents move here so they're close if they need any caring for. We won't be needing it for that. My parents are dead."

"I'm sorry. It's tough to lose family." He thought of his grandmother.

"Danki. But they've been gone for almost seven years now."

Going to the closet, she pulled out a quilt and placed it on top of the bedding on the dresser. "You might need this.Sometimes the nights get cool."

Chris threw his backpack on the floor near the bed and walked over to the dresser. He stroked the patches on the quilt.

"This reminds me of my grandmother."

"She quilted?"

"Yeah. Don't know where she found the time. She helped my grandfather with the farm and had six kids."

Hannah studied the way his big hand stroked the patches on the quilt. "It's something many of us enjoy doing—in my world and yours. And it's not just about making something warm for our families. It's a way to bring beauty into our everyday lives, to have something of our own, something creative."

"When we talked at the V.A. hospital, Jenny told me a quilt brought her here. She said her grandmother sent one to her with a note that said to come here to heal."

"Ya. I remember."

Chris walked over to stare out the window.

"Is that why you've come?"

Chris jerked around and stared at her. "I'm all healed. I came to look around, see a place I've heard about. It's been a long time since I had a vacation."

"Many people come here. Couples. Families. School groups.Even tourists from overseas. But not single men, Chris. Not single men."

"Oh yeah? Why else would I come?"

It was so quiet she could hear the ticking of the clock in the other room. "I don't know," she said finally. "But I hope it's not because you want Jenny. She belongs to my brother now."





He met her stare for stare.

"I know she belongs to your brother. I didn't come to 'steal' her."

She folded her arms across her chest, eyeing him warily.He hadn't ever met a woman so determined, or so protective of her family.

"Maybe I shouldn't stay," he said slowly. "I don't want to cause any problems."

He had already brought one family enough grief. One man's wife had alternately begged and screamed at him, and the child whose hand she held . . . He hadn't been able to forget the look of confusion in his eyes. At four, the child had been too young to understand what had happened to his father in court.

For the second time that day, he turned to leave the property.And felt her hand on his arm.

"Wait! Don't go."

Turning, he looked at her. "I'm sorry," she said. "Maybe I'm being too—"

"Suspicious?"

She laughed and shook her head. "Cautious, not suspicious.I don't want the people I love hurt in any way."

"I'm not here to hurt anyone."

"No," she said with a sigh. "So far you've actually kept two of us from serious injury today. First me, and then Mary." She sobered. "I know I would have broken some bones if I'd fallen from the loft. At the very least."

"You thanked me for that."

"No," she said, looking at him directly. "I don't think I had a chance to do that. Big brother came along ready to beat you up."

She didn't think she'd ever look at the hayloft the same way again. When she'd heard a noise, she'd thought it was just one of the kinner being mischievous. Instead, she'd surprised a man—a strong, mysterious man. The strength of his grip had saved her from falling and hurting herself. What she'd felt when he touched her, when he looked deep into her eyes— that had shaken her more than she cared to think.

When he looked at her hand on his arm, she let it go.

"I can sleep anywhere. Haylofts. In the woods."

"No one who's a guest in our home will sleep in the hayloft or in the woods."

"I slept in far worse places overseas."

Hannah flinched. "I don't want to think about that."

He shrugged.

"You saved Mary from a serious burn too. I think that's what really convinced Matthew that you were a good person, that you instinctively jumped up to protect her. I can't let you leave and walk through the dark to find a motel."

Hannah walked to the closet and double-checked its contents."There are more blankets in here if you need them."

"The quilt should be enough."

She watched him stroke the quilt again.

"It'll feel real homey tonight, I'm sure," he mused. "I stayed with Grandma one winter when my mother was in the hospital.Grandma made me a quilt and she'd tuck me in at night. It felt like a warm hug."

He turned. "The quilt got lost in a move and Grandma's not around to make me another. Maybe I should buy one in town before I leave."