Chapter 7.3-Waiting on a Storm, from the Irish Fiction Novel: We Come Back: Vol. 1
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Waiting on a Storm
“Do you have a plan for the day?” my father inquired.
I took a drink of fresh orange juice before responding, “Not a complete one, but a partial one yes.”
“Do you intend to include me on it?”
“If you wish I will yes.”
“I don’t think it’s necessary to reveal the entirety of your plans, I would just like to know how you intend to handle it if he fails the test.”
“Honestly, I am not completely sure, but I think it would involve a lot of bed rest and many nights spent at home.”
He nodded solemnly before commenting, “And I presume we know what you will do if he passes?”
“If he passes I will know where his heart lies,
and therefore can make a decision. I haven’t made any decisions on what I shall do for certain, at this point, Papa.”
“Good. I would like to discuss it further, either way, this evening when you return.”
“Yes, we will Papa.”
“I will leave you now to enjoy your breakfast, with two more questions. The first being, have you told anyone about our plan?”
“No, Papa.”
“Good, and secondly, would you like me to let Trix know you are awake, she has been pacing downstairs for a good half of an hour, worried about you.”
“Yes please, Papa.”
He smiled and as he went to close the door behind him I called out to him.
“Papa?”
He turned and looked at me, his face puzzled and full of concern.
“Yes?”
“I love you ever so much Papa, you know that I would never have an easy decision to make should he pass?”
He smiled and crossed back over to my bed to kiss my head and hug me.
“I know my dear one. I cannot bear to think about any decisions until tonight, when I am forced to,” he smiled, “I love you too.”
Shortly after he left the room, Trix knocked on the door and quickly came in before I had even finished answering the knock.
She immediately rushed over to the chair nearest the bed.
She was in her white summer dress and had her haired pinned up with a red rose barrette.
“I thought I would see if you wanted any help deciding what you wanted to wear today? I figured the chances of you going and seeing him today were high.”
“You figured correctly.”
She laughed. She loved seeing me feeling a bit better.
Last night, she had worried so deeply about me, having seen how much it took out of me to be experiencing these difficult circumstances. Now that I had finished my tray of delicacies she watched me climb out of my bed and search through my wardrobe for the proper dress to wear. I found one of my absolute favorite dresses stashed towards the back, and pulled it out.
“What do you think of me wearing this one Trix?”
I held it out for her to see.
It was a long blue sapphire gown.
The bodice fit tightly against my rib cage and then blossomed out into a shimmery petal skirt. A thin silver ribbon separated the skirt from the top. The sleeves were three quarters in length, and laced with silver ribbon on either side.
“You know I love that one Raea.”
“Good, me too!” I exclaimed.
Putting on the dress took very little time, but that just gave me more to spare when thinking about my hair. I decided I would pull it completely up in a mixture of small intricate braids and tousled waves to form a loosely pinned bun. I put on my favorite silver twisted long earrings, Aubrey’s gifted ring, and a water droplet shaped sapphire necklace. When I took one more glance in the mirror, I felt confident with my appearance, which was one less thing to preoccupy my thoughts with. Saying farewell for now to Trix, I put on my cloak, and headed outside to the stables, completely determined.
Finding the time to make the right decisions can be so exhausting.
How was I to bring up the test without anyone else overhearing? He was certainly not going to be alone, but perhaps I could get him to walk alone with me. I knew what I had to say, but I greatly feared saying it. If I was wrong about him, he would not believe me and show that he did not truly love me, but as my father feared was infatuated only. It would take a very open minded man to believe me or a man who loved me so deeply that he could not possibly believe I would lie to him, and therefore in consequence would believe me.
Time was of the essence as I already was so tired.
When I landed in the trees I took a deep breath trying to steady my nerves. The farther down the trail towards his home that I walked, the more I had to stop myself from flashing to his dark beautiful eyes only inches from mine. The way he had put his hands firmly against my arms holding me against a tree was so intense at the time that remnants of the memory still existed within the trees alongside the trail. It was sprinkling when I arrived but now as I leaned against a tree it began to rain heavily, though the canopy above me stopped some of the down pour. I slid down the trunk of the tree sitting on the soft dirt below me. I really didn’t feel well at all, but I had come this far, and I knew after fuel and rest it would be better. It hadn’t reached the point of no return.
Jack had seen the sun ripped away by a sudden storm.
He had been watching from the terrace, out across the trees off and on all day long, and now what he saw startled him. In an instant a group of dark clouds had swept in from nowhere, and now hovered over the cluster of trees where he had left me the night before. A boom of thunder and a clap of lightening directly into the trees put him on high alert. He suddenly dropped his cup and saucer which shattered on the stone and ran down the steps.
“Where is Jack going?” Beathan asked Hoss, having seen him bolt down the steps.
“I’m not sure.”
All three men stepped out on to the terrace,
seeing Jack running faster than they had ever seen before across his courtyard to the trails that laid on the edge of the estate. They all showed their anxiety at such an occurrence differently. Hoss was bouncing between the balls of his feet and his heels. Mason was nervously adjusting his appearance, and Beathan was pacing back and forth.
“I do not know what he is doing, but he better hurry, that storm looks vicious,” Mason commented as he turned to go back inside to distract the ladies.
Beathan and Hoss stayed outside, both wondering at what point it would be appropriate to chase after him.
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Table of Contents
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