Love Inspired March 2014 - Bundle 2 of 2: North Country Family\Small-Town Midwife\Protecting the Widow's Heart (29 page)

“It's all what you're used to.” Autumn remembered counting the time until her clinicals would be finished and she could move back up north, where she could live a more isolated lifestyle.

Autumn reached for Mrs. Hanlon's suitcase handle.

“You don't have to do that,” the older woman said.

“Yes, I do.” She shot her a quick smile.

Jon's grandmother went ahead and opened the door for her. As Autumn wrestled the suitcase out to the car, she eyed the diminutive elderly woman with admiration, thankful that the luggage had wheels. The woman must work out daily to have handled the case herself on the trip up here.

While Mrs. Hanlon made herself comfortable in the passenger seat, Autumn stashed the suitcase in the backseat. No way would it fit in the trunk with her equipment and the twins' swim toys, which she'd never taken out. Her cell phone rang as she opened the driver's door. She frowned at the display.
The birthing center.
Was Jon calling to check up on her and his grandmother? Hadn't he gotten her message?

“Hello.”

“Autumn, it's Lexi. Kelly called a couple of minutes ago to see if you were still here. She and Jamie are at Tanya's. Tanya's little boy was born this morning. Anyway, Allie and her husband are on their way here, and Kelly wants you to come and be with them until she can get to the center. She'll be here as soon as she can.”

“I'm at the train station. There was an accident and I had to wait in traffic. I still need to drop Mrs. Hanlon off at Jon's house. It'll be forty or forty-five minutes before I get back to Ticonderoga. Allie should be fine until I arrive. And Jon's there.”

“Okay, I'll let Kelly and Admissions know.”

“And call Kristen in if she's not there already. She can be with Allie until I get there.”

“She's right here. See you in a bit.” Lexi clicked off.

“Is there a problem?” Mrs. Hanlon asked.

Autumn explained what was going on.

“I can wait at the birthing center. It's not like I haven't spent many hours touring medical facilities with my husband or waiting on him while he conducted JMH business.”

Autumn wasn't sure where the bitterness in Mrs. Hanlon's voice was coming from, but it would make things easier for her if she could go directly to the birthing center. “That would be good if you really don't mind. Jon has a mother in labor, so I can't tell you when he'll be available. But I'm just going to stay with one of our mothers until the other midwife arrives. Then I can take you to the house.”

“I make sure I always have a book to read.” Mrs. Hanlon tapped the e-reader protruding from the pocket in the side of her leather purse. The resigned look on her face almost made Autumn change her mind and drive out to Paradox Lake first.

They arrived at the birthing center ten minutes later. Autumn's parents-to-be were checking in with the receptionist. After greeting them, Autumn introduced Mrs. Hanlon to the receptionist and asked her to make the older woman comfortable in the staff lounge. She sensed Mrs. Hanlon watching her and was glad when she and the parents turned the corner to the birthing suite.

* * *

Jon walked through the lobby and frowned when he saw no one in the reception area. He was going to have to talk with the office manager. But not right now. He was in too good of a mood. The delivery had gone well, almost as perfectly as the one with Autumn the other day. All that had been missing was the atmosphere of closeness Autumn and that couple had shared. Plus, his grandmother was here for a visit, and he'd had a call earlier in the day from the director of Help for Haiti saying they had received his CV and were very interested in his joining the nonprofit organization when his one-year contract with the Ticonderoga Birthing Center was over.

“Nana.” He started when he entered his office and found his grandmother sitting in his desk chair reading. “What are you doing here? I thought Autumn was driving you to my house.” Jon's gaze bore into hers. “Did
Grandfather
ask you to check out the facility?”

“No, but I'm sure he would have if I'd given him enough notice of my visit for him to think of it.” She closed her e-reader and placed it on the desk. “As for why I'm waiting in your office, your friend got a call to come here and cover for another midwife until she returned from a home birth. I found that interesting, that they do home births.”

“I'm sorry. I know how you feel about hanging around medical facilities.” Jon was well aware of his grandfather's propensity of turning any trip he and Nana took into a business trip. “Autumn should have had you wait in the lounge. It's more comfortable.”

“She did, but I wanted to check out your office. For myself,” she added. “I asked the receptionist to tell Autumn I'm in here when she comes to get me. She seems very nice.”

Yes,
nice
was one adjective he'd use to describe Autumn.
Beautiful
was another, but he wasn't about to share that with Nana.

“She said she's known you since you were a resident.” His grandmother's eyes twinkled. “Do I see a cause and effect?”

“What?”

“Did you take the position here because of Autumn?”

“No.”

“You don't have to bark at me. You sounded like your grandfather.”

“Sorry.” The last thing he wanted was to be in any way like his grandfather.

“I only asked because it's an administrative position. You've always said how much you like delivering babies.”

“I should get to do plenty of births here if the past few days have been any indication. As the center's director, I seem to be the backup obstetrician for every doctor and midwife in a fifty-mile radius.” He wasn't going to share that the reason he took the job was for the administrative experience. He'd need it working with Help for Haiti. He and Nana didn't disagree on many important issues. But his following in his cousin Angie's footsteps and pursuing mission work in Haiti was one that they did.

His office door opened, interrupting the conversation.

“Mrs. Hanlon, I apologize. It took Kelly longer to get here than she'd expected.” Autumn halted. “Jon.”

He fought the grin that her wide-eyed surprise brought to his lips.

“How did your birth go?” She regained her composure.

“Textbook-perfect.”

“See. You were concerned about nothing.”

His face warmed. He glanced sidewise at his grandmother to see her reaction to Autumn's words. Hanlon men never admitted doubts about their abilities in anything, particularly work. Nana had a familiar all-knowing expression on her face.

“As I said this morning, I would have liked more background on the case.” He didn't know why he was explaining himself.

“I know what you mean. I felt like that for my first couple of births after I joined Kelly's practice. I hadn't been with the mothers for most of their pregnancies.”

For some reason, Autumn's words rankled him. He brushed them off. Nana wasn't his father or grandfather. She wouldn't care if he'd expressed concerns to Autumn, or anyone else. What was with him? All Autumn was doing was commiserating with him, as any colleague might.

“I'm free for the rest of the day if you still want me to drive your grandmother to your place.” Autumn exchanged a glance with Nana.

“No, thanks. I'm cleared for the afternoon now, too.”

“Okay. It was nice meeting you, Mrs. Hanlon. I'm sure I'll see you again before you go. I live on the other side of the duplex Jon is renting.”

“Oh, I'm sure you will.”

The way Nana's voice rose at the end of her statement told Jon she hadn't taken his “no” to her question about whether Autumn had been a factor in his coming to the Ticonderoga center at face value. He'd have to clear things up with Nana that Autumn was nothing more than a colleague. “Ready?”

His grandmother stood.

“I'll go unlock my car,” Autumn said.

Jon and his grandmother followed her to the parking lot, and he pulled the suitcase from the car. Its weight matched its size.

“See you later.” Autumn pressed her key fob and relocked the car.

He watched her walk back to the building before lifting the suitcase with a stifled grunt.

His grandmother nodded toward the case. “It has wheels.”

“I've got it.” He rethought his immediate reaction to carry the suitcase anyway and lowered it to the floor. There was no need to impress Nana.

“I'm having the rest of my things shipped,” she said. “The train didn't have checked luggage.”

She had more things? Nana was a no-nonsense person. It was out of character for her to bring more than she'd absolutely need for her visit. She seemed her usual self, but he made a mental note to keep an eye out for any other personality changes. Although she was in good physical health, Nana would be turning eighty on her next birthday.

“How long are you planning to stay?” he asked.

“Indefinitely. I've left your grandfather.”

Chapter Nine

J
on filched one of the chocolate chip cookies Nana had baked for the singles group meeting this afternoon and left the plate covered on the kitchen counter. In the two weeks since she'd arrived, he'd gotten no further in knowing why she'd entrenched herself at his house or when she might be planning to leave. She changed the subject whenever he brought it or his grandfather up. The fact that she'd bought herself a car this week at the dealer in Ticonderoga said her departure probably wasn't imminent. The only word he'd gotten from the rest of his family were two terse voice mail messages, one from his father and one from his grandfather, telling him to make Nana go home. As if that was something he could readily do.

He leaned against the counter and finished his cookie, enjoying being alone for a while. Nana had stayed after church service for an impromptu meeting of the Hazardtown Community Church's women's group. Her getting involved at church was another signal that she planned to stay awhile. It wasn't that he minded sharing the house with Nana per se, but he was used to living alone and doing things his way. He knew she didn't do it on purpose, but at times, she made him feel twelve years old.

The wall phone rang, and he pushed away from the counter to reach over and answer it. “Hello.”

“Jon, this is Becca. I hate to do this at the last minute, but I'm going to have to cancel on the meeting. My daughter has been sick to her stomach since we got home from church.”

“What are her symptoms? Does she have diarrhea? There have been a couple of cases of E. coli at the Saranac Lake medical center.”

“More likely a sugar-overload tummy ache. When I wasn't looking, she had a second piece of cake at coffee hour.”

“If she's not feeling better tomorrow, you may want to take her to your doctor. You can't be too careful.”

“I'm sure she'll be fine. I feel bad that I have to cancel after you had that birth last Sunday, and we had to put off the Bible study launch until today. I know Autumn's put a lot of effort into getting our group up and going. The couples group is a lot larger.”

“Mommy! Ari threw up on the chair.” Becca's son's voice came over the phone.

“I have to go. Bye.”

He hoped Becca was right about it being nothing more than too much cake. E. coli was more likely to cause diarrhea than vomiting. But even simple illnesses could lead to serious complications. His throat tightened. As had happened with Angie. He shook off the weight settling on his shoulders. Angie had been on his mind too much the past few days, ever since he'd received the literature from Help for Haiti that he wanted to share with the group today.

A knock on the front door drew him into the living room. Autumn stood on the other side of the screen door smiling. The last of his gloom lifted.

“Come in. It's open.” He started across the room.

She held up a large plastic bottle of iced tea she'd said she'd bring to go with the cookies and a zester/grater to show him her hands were full.

He pushed the door open. She still had on the flowing skirt and red T-shirt she'd worn to church. He'd admired how the skirt emphasized the graceful way she moved when she'd walked down the church aisle to take a seat with her grandparents.

“Hi. Your grandmother asked if I had a zester she could borrow. Is she in the kitchen?”

“No, she stayed for the women's group meeting at church.” He took the tea and grater from her and placed the tea on the coffee table next to the stack of red plastic cups and napkins he'd put out before Becca had called.

“Your grandmother certainly is getting involved for a summer visitor.”

He thought so, too. “Did she tell you that, that she's here for the summer?”

Autumn bit her lip. “Not in so many words.”

“She's enjoying herself, and my grandfather is on a business trip.” Grandfather was always on a business trip or planning one, so his statement couldn't be too far off. “So she's extended her visit.” For how long was anyone's guess.
She evaded his question every time he asked. “Make yourself comfortable. I'll put the grater in the kitchen and get the cookies Nana made for us.”

He grabbed the plate of cookies and left the grater in its place on the counter. As Autumn had noticed, Nana was settling in at Paradox Lake nicely.
Too nicely.
Because he knew how difficult his grandfather could be, he could see how his grandmother might want some time away from him. But Nana couldn't hide out in the mountains indefinitely. At some point, Grandfather would storm up here to take her back. That could be Nana's plan—to see if Grandfather cared enough to come after her.

He thought about the loving picture Autumn's grandparents had made at church this morning sharing a hymnal, each holding a side of the book, shoulders pressed together. His parents in their constant competition would have been trying to wrestle it out of the other one's hands and outsing each other. Grandfather and Nana would have simply each had their own hymnal or sang the hymns from memory. Of course Autumn's grandparents could have been putting on a public show. Jon knew all about putting your best face forward, even if it was a false face. That's what had made her grandparents' actions seem true.

“Hey, you're not eating all those cookies, are you?” Autumn called from the other room. Her voice grew louder. “They smelled delicious when your grandmother was baking them yesterday. I hoped they were for us.” She met him at the doorway.

“They taste as good as they smell,” he said. “I sampled them earlier. I couldn't serve my friends inferior cookies.”

“Of course not. I'd better double-check.”

He lifted the plastic wrap to offer her a cookie and his hand brushed hers as she reached for one. Her eyes darkened, locking his gaze to hers. She snatched the cookie and popped a bite in her mouth. He watched her slowly chew it, obviously savoring the sweet flavor while he enjoyed the delight she took in each chew.

“Jay, I'm home.” The screen door clicked closed behind his grandmother. She looked from Autumn to him. “I didn't mean to interrupt.”

“You're not interrupting anything.”

“I was just sampling one of your delicious cookies.” Autumn took a step back from the cookie plate and him.

“Good. Jay, I mean Jon—I keep forgetting he prefers Jon. We always called him Jay to distinguish him from his grandfather. Jon and I are still working out our living arrangements. I don't want to intrude on his privacy.”

Autumn wrinkled her brow.

He understood her confusion. Nana was talking as if she planned to stay with him permanently and he and Autumn had something to be private about. As much as he loved his grandmother and wished he could have lived with her when he was a child, he'd never imagined he'd get his childhood wish now.

“Have you changed your plans?” Nana asked.

“No, I don't know what you mean.”

“You said your singles group was coming over to watch the Bible series.” Nana made a point of glancing around the living room, stopping with him and Autumn standing in the doorway.

“We are,” Autumn answered for him. “I'm the first one here.”

And maybe the only one coming, considering it was ten minutes past the time they'd agreed to meet. Not that he'd mind watching the movie alone with Autumn. He snapped his thoughts back to the conversation. “Becca called. She can't come. Her little girl is sick.”

“That's too bad,” Autumn said. “I hope it's nothing serious.”

“She said it was probably too much cake. But I told her about the two cases of E. coli at the medical center.”

“You didn't.”

His jaw tightened. “I thought she should know. The county health department hasn't determined the cause.”

“Why did she need to know? The two people who were admitted to the medical center were campers from a campground on Saranac Lake. Becca's daughter hasn't been anywhere near there. I hope you didn't cause her unnecessary worry.”

His grandmother placed her hand on his forearm, as she'd often done when he and his father were talking and she'd feared it would turn into an argument. It was her signal to back off a lost cause. He resisted shaking it off. He was old enough to pick his own battles. Of course, it didn't make any sense to him, either, to be arguing with Autumn. What she'd said was true, and he generally reserved confrontations for family members.

“Becca,” Nana said. “She's a petite dark-haired woman with two kids, an older boy and a toddler girl?”

“Yes, Becca Norton,” Autumn answered.

“Norton.” Nana put a finger to her lip. “I met her mother, or maybe it was mother-in-law, at the meeting today.”

“That would be her ex-mother-in-law,” Autumn said.

Jon eyed the TV across the room and listened for any sound of other people arriving. This was the point where Nana normally would say something about how too many people his and Autumn's age didn't make enough of an effort to keep their marriages together.

Nana simply nodded. At least she wasn't going to be a hypocrite, assuming she'd really left his grandfather. Heaven knew Nana had put her all into her marriage.

“I'm getting to know everyone. Give me another few weeks and I should have it all down. Everyone I've met has been so friendly and welcoming, nothing like what you hear about small towns being insular and closed to people from outside.”

“We have our share of narrow-minded people, just like anywhere else. I think the dependence on tourists may make us more open,” Autumn said.

“Whatever, I like it here. How about you, Jon?”

“I don't know.” His ears had shut down at
another few weeks.

Autumn's eyes narrowed.

What had he said?

“You're probably so busy working that you haven't taken time to get to know all these nice people. I'm afraid his father and grandfather have set a bad example for him in that regard,” his grandmother explained to Autumn. “His mother, too, for that matter.”

He caught on to the gist of the conversation. “I joined the singles group.”

“Which seems to consist of you and Autumn, who you already know.”

He hadn't come to Paradox Lake and the birthing center to make new friends. Nana's dig about not socializing more took him back to his awkward middle school days when he'd preferred reading science journals and science fiction to spending time with his classmates. His parents were fine with his behavior. It kept him quiet and out of their way. Nana hadn't been. She'd joined the parents' organization at his private school and made him go to any and all social functions. By high school, he'd outgrown his awkwardness and discovered girls and they'd discovered him. He still generally preferred his books, though. They didn't ask him for companionship and commitment he didn't know how to give.

* * *

Autumn glanced at the door. “Josh said he and Lexi were coming when I talked with him at church this morning.”

“Maybe they changed their plans.” Mrs. Hanlon picked up her e-reader from the table. “I'm going out to the patio to read and leave you two alone to watch your movie,” Mrs. Hanlon said.

Jon threw yet another frown his grandmother's way. While Autumn could sympathize with his irritation at his grandmother's remark about leaving them alone, she couldn't figure out what else was with him. He'd invited his grandmother for a visit, and he'd seemed happy that she was coming when he'd asked Autumn to pick Mrs. Hanlon up at the train station. Now he didn't want her here?

“I apologize for Nana. And maybe the movie idea wasn't as good as it sounded to everyone at the meeting the other week.”

Now she knew something was up with Jon. The know-it-all resident she'd worked with at Samaritan would have phrased his idea being a bust in a way that would have put him in a better light. “No need to apologize. My grandmother is the same way about any male friends I introduce her to. As for the movie, July isn't the greatest time to try to get a group together, with vacations and all.” She needn't admit that she hadn't done much better launching the group in the spring. She held a bit of resentment that Jon had commandeered her group with his movie suggestion.

“Hello, hate to interrupt, but someone told us the singles group was meeting here today,” Lexi said.

Autumn didn't miss Lexi's emphasis on the word
interrupt
and, from the brief hardening of Jon's features, the veiled reference to her and Jon being alone hadn't been lost on him, either. Why did everyone think she and Jon had something going on? Despite their birthing suite kiss, nothing more than friendship was going to develop between them. They were too different. She was the settling-down type and he wasn't.

“That's what I heard, too. Come on in. Autumn and I were putting out the refreshments and wondering where you two were.”

“We didn't mean to be late,” Josh said.

Jon wiggled his eyebrows in response, making them all laugh. She was entirely too sensitive about people thinking she and Jon were a couple, about everything lately.

Lexi smiled up at her apparent date. “Josh took me to lunch at his mother's and we all got talking and lost track of time. His grandmother was there. She's a hoot.”

“She sure is,” Autumn said. “I had Mrs. Stowe for English in high school, as did my aunt and my dad, and maybe my grandparents, too.”

“Get out,” Josh said. “Grandma's not that old.”

“She'd only have to be four or five years older than my grandparents to have been their English teacher,” Autumn retorted. “I'm going to have to ask them.”

“You do that. But I think I'm right.”

“We'll see about that.”

“We should start the movie.” Jon's statement sounded almost like a reprimand.

What was that about? She and Josh were only teasing each other, not arguing or purposely delaying the movie. Jon was altogether too serious too much of the time, at least when she was around him. It made her wonder about the stories she'd heard at Samaritan about his dating escapades. He didn't strike her as a particularly fun date. Could have been his money they found so fun. While Jon put the DVD in the player, she examined her thoughts. She was probably reacting to the small turnout today and the feeling that she was being pushed at him. He'd only wanted to start the movie.