The next day, Elizabeth walked down the packed-snow trail that led from Jack’s Caribou Vacation Cabins to Pickens Stables next door. She brought her anatomy textbook with her, hoping to get a head start on reading for her upcoming class, and a box of chocolate cupcake tea that she intended to be a pick-me-up for Charlene.

As she walked over, her teeth chattered, more from nervousness than cold. She’d met Charlene Pickens just the one brief time, and because it had entailed Elizabeth falling on her ass in the snow, it hadn’t been the most graceful of introductions. Because of her last name, it was inevitable, too, that questions would come up about Nate, and that opinions would be given. At this point, she was almost numb to it. It was just something to be gotten through, but it was something to which she never looked forward.

The Pickenses’ home was ranch-style with a deep front porch and two narrow dormer windows jutting out of the roof. A wooden carved horse statue stood on the porch next to the door, and on the other side was a well-worn bench that looked like a friendly spot to sit in good weather.

Rob Pickens answered the door.

“You’re the nurse?” he asked cheerfully.

“I’m Elizabeth,” she said. “And yes—I mean, I’m not a nurse yet.” She wanted to make sure Rob and Charlene hadn’t been misinformed about her qualifications. “I’m starting pre-nursing classes. I’m also a bartender. At the Sled Dog?”

“That’s right, Kristy mentioned that. Well, if you can handle bartending at interior Alaska’s busiest brewery, then you can certainly handle my wife! Come on in. I’ll show you around, and then I need to head out to the barn. Charlene’s pretty well set for now. We just got home from the hospital a couple of hours ago. She’s dead set against having you change any bedpans today, so most likely, the two of you’ll just get to know each other a bit. The heavy lifting can start tomorrow. Not that she’s heavy, mind you, I simply meant the physical part of the work.”

“Understood,” Elizabeth said, appreciating his efforts to be friendly.

Rob brought her to Charlene, who was set up in a hospital bed that had been placed in the den, which was off the kitchen and faced the back of the property with a view of the barn. Rob had arranged the bed so she could watch the action in the stable or the flat screen TV, whichever she preferred. He’d made a little bedside station for her, too. Pretty much anything she might need through the course of the day was right there—cell phone, a Sudoku book, a glass of water, a romance novel, a clutter of orange prescription bottles, and a two-way radio.

After a quick tour of the house, Rob showed Elizabeth where things were in the kitchen, and she watched as he filled an electric kettle with water.

“Does she like tea?” Elizabeth asked, bringing out the box she’d brought.

“She loves it,” Rob said. “Nice of you to think of it. And that looks good! You’ll have some, too, right?”

“Sure!” She’d picked the flavor because it was one of her favorites. “I drink a lot of tea in winter, that’s for sure.”

“So does Charlene. She also likes her little snacks.” He showed her a cabinet bursting with all manner of pretzels, potato chips, cookies, and candy.

“Oh, I do not!” Charlene called from the den. “Just a little treat here and there.”

“Sure, honey,” Rob called back, winking at Elizabeth.

“But I wouldn’t mind some chocolate,” Charlene said.

Elizabeth carried in the tea, while Rob brought a bag of individually wrapped chocolate squares. Charlene’s eyes lit up when she saw them.

“A man who knows me well.” She gave Rob a loving smile. “Thank you, darling.”

“May I now be excused, dear?” he asked her.

“You may.”

As he kissed her forehead and set off, Elizabeth wondered if they were performing a bit for her benefit and decided it didn’t matter. Affection and kindness between a couple was something she hadn’t witnessed much growing up.

Once Rob was gone, Charlene turned her attention to Elizabeth and directed her to sit in the comfortable armchair next to her makeshift bed. Outside the large picture window, the sky threatened a new snowfall, but with a fire in the fireplace and a muted Hallmark channel movie on the television screen, the den was plenty cozy.

“I heard you fell from your horse,” Elizabeth said. “I was sorry to hear it.”

“You and me both.” Charlene blew on her tea and took a sip. “Is this chocolate tea? It’s delicious!”

“Good, I’m glad you like it!” Elizabeth took a sip as well. “It’s one of my favorites.”

Charlene took another sip and watched Rob trudge his way out to the barn. “I can’t stand being unable to help. I’ve worked just about every day of my life since I turned sixteen. Sitting around is not in my nature. It’s going to be a long few months not being able to contribute.”

Charlene had fractured her femur, along with a bone in her ankle, and had dislocated her shoulder. She hadn’t needed surgery, but she’d be unable to work in the stables for several months.

“Hopefully you’ll be better by spring,” Elizabeth said. “Just pretend you’re in hibernation.”

“I’d rather be like that one-eared bear that runs around all winter and skip hibernation altogether. That rascal pulled up all the carrots from my garden last spring and ate them all!” She laughed, but her smile quickly faded. “I just hope my bones heal properly. I’m fifty-seven, and I already was dealing with the aches and pains of getting older while doing hard, physical labor.” She sighed. “I’ll tell you. Getting old is not for the faint of heart.”

“But it beats the alternative, right?”

Charlene smiled. “That it does. So, tell me about yourself, Elizabeth. Did you know I went to school with your father?”

And there it was.

“Oh, yeah?” Elizabeth said, sinking into the dreaded position of having to hear yet another perspective on her notorious father. “All the way through?”

“All the way through,” Charlene said. She stared out the window, deep in memory. “He took on a bully for me once. Third grade. Billy Borton took my lunch money. Your dad went after him and knocked him to the ground and began to pummel him until Billy gave it back.” She kept her eyes on Elizabeth. “When your dad gave me back the money, I asked him why he’d helped me. He said flat out, ‘Stealing’s wrong.’ As if he hadn’t had an option but to help right the wrong.”

“That’s ironic,” Elizabeth said.

“Maybe, but I always thought a person’s character was pretty well established from the time they were a kid.” She paused. “I guess what I’m saying is I always found it hard to believe he was guilty. Of stealing the money, anyway. The other part, of bending the rules, that sounded like him. But not the stealing part.”

Elizabeth was too stunned to reply. Charlene’s was not the prevailing view around town, to put it mildly.

“I see that I’ve embarrassed you,” Charlene said.

“No,” Elizabeth said. “More like surprised me. I was too young to see my dad as a person—he was just a giant in my eyes. And now no one says anything nice about him.”

“I was always surprised so few people stuck by him because he was a pretty popular man around town,” Charlene said. “Then again, I guess I didn’t either, did I?”

“I doubt your story of his third-grade heroism would have mattered much to the judge during sentencing,” Elizabeth said.

“No, but it might have mattered to your father. And it might have reminded people he had some good in him.”

“He’s getting out of prison this week,” Elizabeth said. “That’s why I needed those few days off, which I’m sorry about—asking for time off before I even started!”

“It wasn’t asking off,” Charlene said. “It was clarifying availability! Anyway, tell your father he’s welcome to come on by and visit if he’s got time on his hands.”

Elizabeth did feel embarrassment then, at the tears that rushed forward. Kindness concerning her father was rare. “Oh, he’ll have time on his hands,” she said. “And I’ll tell him. He’ll appreciate it, I’m sure. My brother and I are listing our house for sale so he and my dad can move to Anchorage and get a fresh start, but that might take a little bit of time to come together.”

“Maybe he’d like to help Rob in the barn in the meantime. We could use the help now that I’m out of commission.”

Elizabeth’s heart pounded. That would be too wonderful to imagine. “I’ll ask.”

“Enough about your father,” Charlene pointed at the open bag of chocolates. “Take a chocolate and tell me about you.”

“Oh, gosh,” Elizabeth said. “There’s not much to tell. I tend bar at the Sled Dog, and I’m starting classes at the community college for pre-nursing. That’s the other reason my schedule’s a bit hit-or-miss.”

“Your schedule’s fine,” Charlene said. “Please don’t give it a moment’s thought. Rob’s insisting on doing the heavy lifting, so I doubt you’ll have to help bathe or dress me.”

“But that’s what I’m here for!”

“Tell that to Rob,” Charlene said.

“I will!”  

“You know,” Charlene said, tilting confidentially toward Elizabeth. “Mostly I need companionship. Just to have someone in the house to talk to, and someone to get up and fetch me things and cook and do the laundry and all that. I felt surprisingly anxious in the hospital. Panicked, almost. And very vulnerable. There hasn’t been one day in my adult life that I’ve been unable to take care of myself, except maybe for right after I had Danny. But that was eighteen years ago, and I’m not used to being so helpless.”

Elizabeth gave her hand a quick squeeze. “I can imagine. But I’ll be here whenever Rob can’t, as much as possible, and I can even study.” She tapped the cover of her anatomy textbook.

“You’re sweet,” Charlene said. “You’re how old, Elizabeth?”

“Twenty-five.”

“Hmm. Not too young for Jack,” she mused.  

“Oh! We’re not, uh—”

“Sure you’re not.”

“We’re not, seriously,” Elizabeth said, blushing.

“Well, why not? Jack’s thirty-six. He should be married and having babies. What?” Charlene said when Elizabeth laughed. “He didn’t build that big old house just to live there alone. He’d like a family—I know he would.”

“Well, I don’t know,” Elizabeth said. “He met me through work, so I don’t think he’s supposed to date people he’s helped on the job.” It was the best excuse she could come up with—it sounded better than, He doesn’t want me because I’m not good enough for him because my last name is mud.

“Oh, pish.”

“He told me as much.”

“Please,” Charlene said. “I saw the two of you the other day. There was energy between you. I can tell these things.”

Elizabeth stared into the depths of her mug of tea. The knowing in Charlene’s eyes matched her own powerful intuition about Jack—that sense of rightness and destiny that she still couldn’t allow herself to trust.

She looked up again at Charlene. “I don’t know about all that.”

“I do. I fell in love with Rob in an instant, too.”

“You did?” Elizabeth noticed the too that Charlene had added in there, but she couldn’t bring herself to admit to anything like that. “How did you and Rob meet?”

“We were both freshmen at the U. I bumped into him coming out of a bathroom at an old honky-tonk on Student Row that’s not there anymore.” She smiled. “I was coming out of the ladies room, looking back over my shoulder talking to my friend, and I ran right into him and spilled his beer. I just froze, because I looked into his eyes and just … fell. There’s no other word for it. I fell in love with him right there in the hallway of that grungy old bar.”

I fell, too, Elizabeth thought. Literally and figuratively, the day I waved at Jack on the path.  

“Did Rob feel it, too?” she asked.

“He did, but it was complicated. It took us a while to find our way to each other, but eventually we did, and I thank my lucky stars every day.”

“I’m not sure Jack feels anything like that,” Elizabeth said, remembering his words. We can’t do this.

“Jack’s  got a heart of gold and a lot of love to give. He really does stand above all the rest. But he’s a man and therefore dense.” A glint of fun came into Charlene’s eyes. “And now I’m thinking this can be my project while I’m laid up in bed. Make Jack Barnes realize what’s in front of him. So, my young caregiver, let’s brainstorm.”

They spent the rest of Elizabeth’s visit doing just that.