Nate's Healing by Suzanne D. Williams

Author:Suzanne D. Williams
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: historical fiction, hictorical romance, 19th century, western, saga, Christian fiction, religious fiction, short stories, 90 minute reads, clean & wholesome
Publisher: Suzanne D. Williams
Published: 2016-06-14T00:00:00+00:00

Nate spent hours staring at Georgianna’s house without the gumption to go there for fear of seeing her sadness again, and gradually, the days, long and empty, blended one into the next. People grew used to seeing him in his chair, treating him like he’d always been there and was no better or worse for it.

Despite the doctor’s words he might try to stand, he made no effort to do so. What would be the purpose? He had no one to impress.

He spotted Georgianna once, strolling down the street. Perhaps, he imagined it, but she looked to have grown even heavier in his absence. He didn’t say so to anyone. It was no matter to him if she gained one hundred pounds. He found her beautiful inside and had discovered that was far greater.

With her, he’d been a fraction of his old self, had had hope of good things tomorrow. She’d made him smile and laugh, relieved his eternal loneliness. Now, he could take or leave the next hour, the next month, the next holiday.

Summer in its prime, he made no effort to change how things were, but fell into a pattern. A horrible storm shook him from it. It’d been building for days, the clouds gathering, the winds whipping fierce. By the time the rains came, it seemed certain this bout of weather would destroy the city.

It tore shingles from roofs, trim from eaves, and ripped down fences. The excessive water flooded the streets, making of the soil a morass and travel impossible. He heard through his family members of lakes swollen far over their banks, cattle drowned, helpless to escape, of people displaced, seeking shelter. But he also witnessed the damage to Georgianna’s garden.

Calf-deep in waterlogged vegetables, her hair springing this way and that around her head, she plucked wilted plants from the muck. His chest tight, Nate rolled onto the stoop, and she looked up, sadness settled deep in her gaze.

“It’s all gone,” she said. “It won’t be the first time I’ve lost everything.”

Discomfort formed. Did she refer to their relationship or what had brought her here?

“I’m good at starting over,” she continued. “But never you mind, Nate Sawyer, I can manage it on my own.” She glanced away.

On her own. With that, she made it clear who her words were for, and knowing it, he was compelled to prove her wrong. Rolling forward, he parked his chair beside a post, slid to the edge of the seat, and curved his fingers around it. He counted to three beneath his breath, gathering his strength, then giving his greatest effort, pulled upright.

He wobbled, his knees knocking, and the ache of his weight tore at his arms. But he could feel, for the first time, a hint of a tingle in his limbs. “Do ... do it on your own then,” he said, his chin lifted.

She glanced up again and gasped. “Nate.”

Dropping everything, her bucket, her tools, she sprinted along the fence and out the garden gate. Climbing the porch steps, she grasped hold of his arm, adding her strength to his.

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