Angel's Rest

chapter NINETEEN





Nic didn’t think twice about using the credit cards and accessing the bank account Gabe had set up for her to fund her summer in Denver. She didn’t spend foolishly, and besides, he was living rent-free in her house, wasn’t he? Ali had helped her find a pretty duplex to rent ten minutes away from both her perinatologist’s office and the hospital she’d use if she had trouble, and then she nested.

She enrolled in classes her doctor recommended for her. She joined a Mothers of Multiples group, wandered the aisles of Babies “R” Us, and spent a good portion of every day off her feet as directed. Most of all, she tried not to think about Gabe Callahan. Doing so invariably raised her blood pressure, and that wasn’t good for the babies.

She also entertained visitors. Her friends gave her the solitude she requested—up to a point. At least one of them called her every day to check on her and update her about summer events in Eternity Springs. The most welcome news was the return of normal summer sunshine. The town had dried out, the tourists had returned, and the season was in full swing. The June art festival had been a rousing success. The summer solstice 5K run went off without a hitch, and the theater group performed the new play based on the Lost Angel murder mystery to record crowds and Celeste’s disdain. Dear friends that they were, they never said a word about Gabe.

Nor did they settle for just phone calls. Ali welcomed Nic into her world and included her at weekend barbecues and on shopping trips as she and her daughter prepared for her senior year of high school. Sarah visited Nic her second week in town, Celeste the third. Even her mother and aunt flew in from Florida to visit, and they only agreed to return home when Nic promised to call at the first sign of labor. When her doorbell rang the first week of August, Nic figured the rotation was back around to Sage. Instead, she opened the door to find Lori, Chase Timberlake, and Tiger on her doorstep. Nic smiled with delight. “What a great surprise. What are you two doing in Denver? I talked to Celeste a little while ago, but she didn’t mention you were in town.”

Shocked, their wide-eyed gazes locked on her belly, they failed to answer her question. “Whoa, Dr. Nic,” Lori said. “You look like you’re about to pop.”

“Or explode,” Chase said.

“Gee, thanks, you two,” Nic said as she looked up from greeting Tiger, who was circling her and barking with joy. She stepped back to let them in. “I’m so glad you came all this way to tell me I look fat.”

“Not fat,” Chase hastened to say. Unlike Lori, he didn’t know Nic well enough to be aware that she was teasing. “You look gorgeous as always. Just, well, bigger. We’re here because I need to visit my folks and Lori wanted to see you.”

“You look like you’re trying to sneak a beach ball into a rock concert, only you didn’t get the memo to bring the inflatable kind,” Lori said, her lips twitching. “A really big beach ball.”

“Brat.” Nic pulled Lori into her arms for a hug, then gave one to Chase for good measure. Stepping away, she rested her hands on the small of her back. “I am much more sympathetic now to animals who deliver litters. Carrying two is challenge enough. Can you imagine having five?”

Lori shuddered. “I can’t imagine having one. I think when I decide to have kids, I’ll adopt.”

Nic laughed as she cleared the quilt square she’d been working on for the Patchwork Angels Quilting Bee’s second project from the couch, then gestured for her visitors to have a seat. “Make yourselves at home.”

“If it’s okay with you, Dr. Callahan, we thought Lori could visit while I go do my errand at home. I can pick her up in about an hour?”

“That’s fine.”

After Chase departed, Nic sent Lori to the kitchen to pour glasses of lemonade for the two of them, then lowered herself into her chair, propped her feet up on the ottoman, and took note of the time. She needed to stay off her feet for at least half an hour.

Lori returned to the living room a few moments later, handed Nic her drink, then took a seat on the sofa. Nic studied the young woman. Ah, she knew that look. This was obviously not a simple pleasure trip. How many times had she played the role of arbitrator between mother and daughter? Ah, sweetheart, growing up is hard, isn’t it? “So, child of my heart, what is wrong? Are you having boy trouble with Chase?”

“No. He’s a good guy. I’m a little sad that he’ll be leaving Eternity soon. He’s been the best summer romance.”

“Nothing more?”

The girl shrugged. “We’re too young.”

Nic nodded. “How’s your mom doing?”

“Okay. She’s still weird about me being a senior this year, but the summer has been so busy that she’s not acting as crazy as she did there for a little while. She’s not the person I’m worried about now, though. Nic, you have to do something about Gabe.”

“I don’t want to discuss Gabe.”

“Okay, we don’t have to talk about it. You just need to read this letter from Celeste.” Lori pulled an envelope from her bag and handed it to Nic. “She said to tell you she thought it best you read the letter first, then you should call her if you have any questions.”

Nic set the envelope down without opening it.

“She said it’s important,” Lori added. “A matter of life and death.”

Nic pursed her lips and frowned. She didn’t want to read the letter. She didn’t care what defense her women friends mounted in his behalf; it wouldn’t change the way she felt.

“Please, Nic?”

Nic scowled. How downright sneaky of Celeste. She knew that Nic had no will against Lori’s puppy dog eyes. She’d never been able to tell that girl no about anything. Releasing a long, heavy sigh, she picked up the envelope, removed the letter, and began reading.

Pam had called Celeste because she was worried about Gabe. She’d told Celeste that when Gabe was keeping vigil with her at her husband’s hospital bed, he had confessed a frightful tale about a near suicide attempt last fall. As Nic read the details, her blood ran cold.

That had been right before she’d met Gabe. Oh, my. The information landed a solid blow against her anger at her husband.

“Now he’s holed up at Eagle’s Way again all alone,” Lori said. “You know how you said that Tiger had claimed Gabe as his person? Well, now the dog’s cut him loose. Tiger won’t stay with him. That’s why we brought him down to you.”

Nic worriedly eyed the dog. “Gabe didn’t mistreat Tiger. I can’t believe he’d do that.”

“No, that’s not it at all. I think Tiger is as fed up with Gabe as you are. Now, though, Gabe doesn’t have anybody. As far as I can tell, he just sits around brooding. Sage went up to Eagle’s Way on an errand for Celeste. She said he wouldn’t talk to her, he looked like he’d been drinking, and he hadn’t shaved in a while. You have to talk to him.”

Nic stood up and started to pace the room until she remembered she was supposed to be sitting down and returned to her chair. Lori didn’t understand what she was asking. “If he’s shutting people out, what makes you think I’ll be able to reach him?”

“Because he loves you! It’s obvious.”

Nic rubbed her belly with both hands. She didn’t want to call him. She’d sworn to herself that she wouldn’t contact him until the babies were born, and even then all she intended to say was that they were healthy. But if he’d really considered killing himself in the past …

“Please, Nic.”

She blew out a sigh, took a sip of lemonade, and said, “Oh, all right. Hand me the phone.”


Gabe sat on a boulder beside the bubbling mountain creek downhill from Eagle’s Way and tried to work up the enthusiasm to fish. Davenport was coming out on Saturday and he’d promised him trout for supper. Considering that he’d yet to stock the freezer with a single fish since his return to Eagle’s Way, he needed to get a hook in the water.

But fishing wasn’t any fun anymore. Not without Nic. Without his family.

Gabe watched a small green leaf turn and swirl its way downstream

“Carried along to its destiny by forces beyond its control,” came a voice from behind him. “Do you feel that way, John Gabriel?”

Startled, he almost fell off the boulder. “Celeste? Where did you come from?”

She waved toward where her Honda Gold Wing stood in the parking area, not fifty yards from where he sat. How had he not heard her arrive?

Immediately a more pressing thought occurred. Why had she come? His blood turned to ice as the likely reason exploded like a nuclear bomb in his brain. Nic. Celeste had his phone number. She’d have called unless it was something big. Something bad.

Had Nic gone into labor? It was too early. Despite the miracle of modern medicine, the babies might not survive this early. Was that why Celeste had come? To deliver that news?

Gabe shoved off the rock and turned to face her, his hands fisted at his sides, bracing himself against the news he’d anticipated for weeks. “What happened?”

“Nic and the babies are just fine, Gabe. I spoke with her this morning. You, on the other hand …” Celeste clucked her tongue. “Aren’t you a sorry sight. Have you misplaced your razor?”

Gabe dragged his hand down the two-week-old beard he’d started growing for no good reason and ignored her question to ask one of his own. “Is there a problem at Angel’s Rest?”

“No, no problem. You’ve brought in good people to do the necessary work.”

“In that case, what brings you to Eagle’s Way?”

“It’s a good day for a drive, and besides, I have a gift for you.”

“A gift? What for?”

“We’ll talk first. Walk with me back to the house, will you? You’ll have better luck fishing later. I have a feeling.”

Talk. Ugh. Gabe nodded, picked up his fishing pole, and followed Celeste back toward the house. It appeared that the time had come for the talk he’d expected from Nic’s friends since the day Nic left town and he’d quit answering the phone. He wasn’t surprised that they’d sent Celeste. Sarah would go after him with a shotgun. Sage would look at him with those big, sad green eyes and sigh at his stupidity.

Celeste, on the other hand, was certain to ask questions. Probing, personal, rip-his-heart-out-to-answer inquiries into his emotional health. Still, he guessed he should be grateful he’d had this much of a reprieve.

“Can I get you something to eat or drink?” he asked, attempting to put off the moment.

“No, thanks. Let’s sit beside the pool, shall we? It’s so peaceful and beautiful there. You did a lovely job with the design, Gabe. Both here and at Angel’s Rest.”

“Thanks.”

Rather than take a seat in one of the lounge chairs, Celeste sat at the pool’s edge, removed her boots and socks, and rolled up her pant legs. She plopped her feet into the water, smiled, and said, “Come sit with me.”

After working with her for months, Gabe knew it would be a waste of time to argue, so he did as she asked. “Okay, let me have it.”

“You think I’ve come to scold you?”

“Of course. I deserve it, don’t I?”

Celeste gave his leg a motherly pat and suggested, “Why don’t you tell me what you think?”

“Okay, I will. If I could turn back the clock, I’d do it in a heartbeat. I’m doing the only thing I can do. I’m giving her time. Nic left me. She doesn’t want to see me or talk to me, and she has every right to feel the way she feels. I can’t do anything to change it. Not now. Right now my hands are tied because I will not cause her stress and put the babies at risk in any way.”

“And once she has the babies? What then?”

“Then I figure out a way to fix it. Fix us. I’m going to fight for her, Celeste.”

“And you intend to do that how?”

“That, I’m not so sure about. I have to convince her that I’m here for the duration. That I’m committed. That I’m not like her father or her ex or even the man I was that stormy night in June. I will not fail her again. I have to find a way to convince her that she can trust me.” He paused and gave Celeste a sidelong look. “Any suggestions on how I can pull off that miracle?”

“I have a particular interest in miracles,” she replied, offering a beatific smile. “Tell you what, Gabriel. Try to convince me that Nic’s heart is safe with you, and I’ll see what miraculous advice I have to offer. How are you a different man from the one who abandoned her at the hospital?”

Gabe took a few moments to organize his thoughts before he shrugged and said, “Maybe it’s not that I’m a different man, but that I’ve managed to put the pieces of myself back together again. It’s been a slow, steady process that occurred beneath my own personal radar, not as some great moment of revelation. Nic’s leaving me was a kick to the gut that opened my eyes. I knew I had dealt with my past because I cared about the future. I’m whole again. Well, except for the fact that the person who completes me is living in Denver at the moment.”

“What does your being whole have to do with the safety of Nicole’s heart?”

“Everything.” Gabe splashed the water gently with his heel and watched the ripples radiate outward. “I’m strong again, Celeste. When I first came to Eternity Springs, I was so weak that a snowflake could have knocked me down. Actually, a snowflake did knock me down. This town and these people helped me climb back onto my feet. I know that if we were to rerun that drive to the hospital right now, I’d still be afraid of losing the babies, of losing Nic, but I wouldn’t run. I will be there for her from here on out. Every single time. I can’t prove it. I have no big, splashy sign to show her. I just know it in my bones. So tell me, Celeste, how can I convince Nic of something so intangible? How can I convince her to trust me again?”

“Your instincts are good. You are smart to be patient. All her energies and concerns right now are focused on the babies. When the time does come that she is willing to revisit your relationship, Nic needs to know that she can depend on you. I suspect you’ll have to win her back one small act at a time.”

“I’m willing to do that. I just need her to give me the opportunity to prove myself.” He lifted his gaze to where an eagle soared against the cerulean sky. “I love her, Celeste. I didn’t think it could happen again, but it has. I love her.”

Celeste’s smile turned positively smug. “Of course you love her. You have loved her for some time now. I’m glad you finally realize it. Your heart has healed, Gabe Callahan. In fact, I consider you the first success of our healing center, and to mark the occasion, here’s the gift I mentioned earlier.”

She pulled something from her pocket, a silver medal dangling from a silver chain. “What’s this? A Saint Christopher medal?” he asked.

“No, dear. This is the official healing center blazon, awarded to those who have embraced healing’s grace. Wear it next to your heart, Gabe Callahan. Carry the grace you found here with you whatever life path you travel.”

“Angel’s wings?” he asked, touched by her gift.

“What else?”

“Did Sage design this? It looks like her work.” When Celeste nodded, he added, “It’s beautiful. Thank you.”

He wasn’t one to wear necklaces, but as he slipped it over his head and the medal rested against his chest, he admitted that it felt right. “I’ll wear it always.”

He wrapped an arm around Celeste and gave her a quick hug, then asked, “I don’t suppose you have one of those ready and waiting for Nic, do you?”

Her voice rang out like church bells. “Have faith, young man. Have faith.” She paused, then added, “It wouldn’t hurt to say a few prayers, too.”

Gabe asked Celeste to join him for lunch, but she declined, citing other errands on her schedule. He waved as she roared off on her motorcycle, shaking his head slightly at the sight. He hoped he was as active as she was when he was her age.

She’d made him feel better, he reflected as he walked toward the house. She had lifted his spirits and given him hope. The woman certainly had a way about her that spoke to the troubled areas of a soul.

He was in the middle of making a turkey sandwich when he heard his phone ring. He licked mayonnaise from his fingers, then checked the number: Nic. “Hello?”

“Are you suicidal?”

His heart leapt to hear her voice. “What?”

“People in town think you’re depressed. They say you’re not eating or taking care of yourself.”

Gabe’s stare locked on his turkey sandwich. “I’m fine. How are you, Nic? How are the babies?”

“Why aren’t you in town?” she asked with an edge in her voice. “Why are you holed up at Eagle’s Way?”

“I miss you.”

“Answer my question.”

“I just did. I miss you, Nic. Town is lonely without you. It’s crowded with tourists, too, and for some reason that only makes me miss you more.”

After a long pause, she said, “Your sister-in-law told Celeste that you almost killed yourself last fall. There’s some concern you’ve, um, relapsed. Everyone is very worried about you.”

“Everyone?” He waited a long pause, but when she failed to respond, he added, “No one needs to worry. I’m not depressed and I’m certainly not suicidal. I don’t want you to be concerned about my mental health. Except for missing you, I’m fine, I promise. In fact, Celeste came by a little while ago. You can talk to her. She’ll back me up. Now, since I have you on the phone, can I ask how you’re doing? How the babies are doing? I think about you every day and—”

“Stop it, Gabe,” she interrupted. “I’m not ready for this. The only reason I called was because I can’t say no to Lori.”

“Then I guess that attending childbirth classes with you is out of the question?”

“Doing what?”

“I assume you’re signed up for childbirth classes and I was hoping you’d let me go with you. Otherwise I’m going to go to the classes at the hospital over in Gunnison.”

“Wait. Hold on. I don’t get it.”

“I want to be part of their lives, Nicole. I’m not going to push you, but I want you to know that I’m committed. I will be there for them, and for you, to whatever extent you’ll allow. I know you have good reason not to believe me, so I’m not going to ask that of you. I’ll let my actions prove my words.”

He held his breath waiting for her response. For a long moment she said nothing. When she finally did speak, she broke his heart. “You hurt me, Gabe.”

“I know.” He swallowed hard, and in that moment he truly despised himself. “I’m so, so sorry.”

He heard the line click, then a dial tone. He sighed and rubbed the back of his neck. Then, wrapping his hand around the angel’s wings medallion, he murmured, “Well, at least that’s a start.”


Nic rejoiced in every week that crawled by. Never mind that her belly grew so big that she felt like she needed a sling to help tote it around. She refused to complain about the heartburn and insomnia and fatigue and pressure. She followed the perinatologist’s instructions to the letter and had Sage on speed dial for the endless questions she had and for the reassurances she needed on a daily basis. Whatever reason Sage had for turning her back on medicine, Nic was both grateful and thankful that she’d put friendship ahead of it.

As August marched on, she began to believe she might reach her new goal of delivering her babies closer to home. Sage, her doctor in Denver, and Dr. Marshall had all assured her that if she made it to thirty-seven weeks, the Gunnison facility could care for her near-term twins just fine. The only thing preventing her from heading for the hills the moment her doctor gave her the okay was her indecision regarding what to do about Gabe.

Calling him that day had created a real chink in her armor against him. Before, she’d been able to put him out of her mind. Afterward, he had haunted her thoughts. When he called a week after Lori and Chase’s visit, she’d taken his call.

He’d asked about her health and that of the babies. Then he’d told her about attending the childbirth class in Gunnison. He’d actually done it. She couldn’t believe it. A little flicker of warmth sparked to life in her heart and remained burning long after the phone call ended.

Nic was watching a video when her doorbell rang during the last week of August. She hauled herself to her feet and waddled to the door. She peered into the peephole and saw Ali Timberlake standing on her front step. She swung open the door. “What a wonderful surprise.”

Ali smiled sheepishly. “Sorry to show up unannounced like this, but I’m in a bind and I’m hoping you can help me.”

“I’ll help you any way I can, though I am a bit limited.” She smiled ruefully and gestured to the huge expanse that was her belly.

“What I need is company. Caitlin is away at summer camp and Mac is working ridiculous hours with his new job. I need a distraction. Will you please come give me your opinion of the new paint color I’m considering for the family room?”

“Sure,” Nic replied, glad to be able to return the favor of friendship. Ali had been a lifesaver to her this summer. “Come on in while I see if I can find some shoes I can still fit my fat feet into.”

“You look gorgeous.”

Nic laughed. “You’re a good friend. A liar, but a good friend.”

Ali lived in a lovely two-story house in an established, old-money neighborhood. Nic didn’t mind tagging along on this trip, although she couldn’t see herself being of any real help to Ali when it came to decorating. The woman was the epitome of style, class, and good taste.

Ali parked her car in the garage and said, “We’ll go around to the backyard and enter through the back door. Follow me.”

She led Nic through a whimsical black iron gate and around to the backyard. The first thing she noticed was the pool. The second was the people, and finally she saw the presents just as the crowd of friendly faces shouted, “Surprise!”

A baby shower. Her dear, wonderful friends were throwing her a baby shower. She glanced around the circle. Sage, Sarah, and Celeste, of course. Lori, LaNelle, Wendy Davis, Lisa Myers, all the members of the Patchwork Angels Quilting Bee. Choked up, all she could manage was, “Oh, you guys.”

“You didn’t think we’d skip giving you a shower just because we had to drive a little, did you?” Sarah asked, grabbing Nic’s hand in hers and tugging her toward the chair sitting beneath the shade of a pool umbrella.

“Honestly, I never thought about it.” She’d been too busy worrying about preventing labor to think about normal stuff.

For the next hour, Nic opened gifts and oohed and aahed over infant gowns, receiving blankets, booties, and bibs—two of everything, of course. Since she had chosen not to learn her babies’ genders ahead of time, the gifts were mostly in either/or shades of yellow and green. Sarah gave her the coolest twin stroller ever made, and Sage presented her with car seats. Celeste gave her two gorgeous christening gowns in addition to layettes made of fabric in a pattern of gold angel wings. Nic was excited and thrilled and overwhelmed with the outpouring of affection from her friends. When she’d opened everything but the last two large, identical boxes, she saw Sage and Sarah share a look before they scooted them over to her. “What is it?” she asked.

“They weren’t sure if they should bring these,” Celeste said. “I told them they were exactly what you needed to see.”

Nic unwrapped two hand-carved rocker cradles that were so beautiful they brought tears to her eyes. This was Colt Rafferty’s work. “I thought you told me Colt didn’t make it to Eternity again this summer after all.”

“He didn’t.” Sage lifted her chin in disdain. “That’s four summers in a row and he still has the audacity to enter the art contest as a local.”

“Let it go, Sage,” Sarah said. Turning to Nic, she explained, “Someone tracked Colt down and got him to make these special.”

“Someone?” Nic asked.

Sarah’s teeth tugged at her lower lip. “Read the card.”

Nic opened the white envelope that was tied to the end of one cradle and slipped out a folded note card.

It’s a poor second-best to being held in your arms. Love, Gabe.

“Oh, wow,” she murmured. This had been a big step for Gabe, and she knew it.

During the rest of the party, Nic’s gaze returned time and again to the cradles. She couldn’t believe that the same man who’d ditched her at the hospital had gone to extraordinary effort to offer such perfect gifts for their babies.

Eventually, someone made note of the time and the long drive ahead for those returning to Eternity Springs that night, so guests began to take their leave. Before long, only the hostesses of the shower—Nic’s four closest friends—remained, and the post-party cleanup began in earnest. While Sage and Sarah chased down scraps of ribbon and paper that had blown toward the back of the yard and Celeste began stacking gifts inside the two cradles, Ali asked Nic, “How are you doing? Can I get you anything else?”

“I’m good. I’m wonderful. This was so nice of you all to do. I can’t thank you enough.”

“You are very welcome. It’s been a lot of fun.”

Celeste walked over and smiled at Nic and Ali. “I think we’re just about done. Ali, we need you to tell us where to take the trash bags, and Nic, it’s time for you to make a decision. Where do you want your gifts? At your place here in town or at home in Eternity Springs?”

Nic’s gaze zoomed in on the cradles. Sarah had mentioned earlier that Gabe was still living up at Eagle’s Way. She licked her lips, then looked at Sage, who silently read the question in her eyes and nodded. Yes, it will be safe for your babies to be born closer to home.

Sarah slipped her arm through Nic’s and said, “Whatever you want, Nic. Know that I have your back.”

Nic drew a deep breath, then made her decision. “Home. Take it all home to Eternity Springs. We’ll be there the beginning of next week.”