Romantic love story

Chapter Sixteen: Terry's Puppy

When Brian's vehicle pulled away, Terry could almost hear Maddie breathe a sigh of relief.

She'd made it through the day, and had earned some peace and quiet on the living room sofa while the rest of them cleaned house. Maddie had wanted to help, but all Terry would let her do was raise her feet when he vacuumed the carpet near the couch. He picked up the napkin Macho had ripped to pieces before being caught, the crumbs that had fallen from plates, the sand that had been tracked in from the beach, all the things that announced a party had just taken place.

A fly fishing, cook-out-on-the-beach kind of a party, with good friends and good food.

Terry retrieved Maddie's bedding from the master bedroom, gave it to her and let her get ready for bed in her own way. He watched as she spread the blankets over the cushions, arranged her pillow, then disappeared into the office with her toothbrush to use the half bath and brush her teeth. It had been a big day for her. She had been introduced to the church-going members of Three Mile Bay, and they, to her.

Except for a little carsickness and some paleness, Maddie had come through it with flying colors. Okay, maybe not flying colors, but she'd managed to survive the day without hiding in the office. That had to count for something.

After the dirty dishes had been cleaned, dried, and put away, John went into the office to play with his laptop, while Izzy started getting the girls ready for bed. Terry stepped outside to move the now cool firepit into the garage, and lingered to look into the heavens.

Stars spilled across the dark sky like diamonds on rich, black velvet. It was the kind of night that made Terry smile. Tired though he was, he could appreciate all that beauty. God was indeed rich, to splurge on so many stars.

The thought eased some of the weariness from his mind. It had been a good day. Long, and not without surprises, but good.

He rounded into the house, locked the back door, then went into the living room to make sure the front was secure for the night. On the couch, Maddie sat in her shirt and jeans, intently scribbling in her notebook. It did his heart good to see her so content. He checked the locks and turned on the outdoor security light.

Not wanting to interrupt, he left off saying "good night," and headed to the master bedroom to make sure he'd gotten all of Maddie's things off of John and Izzy's bed.

"Hey, Terry," John caught him as he passed by the open office door, "hold on a sec, I've got some news." John resumed talking to whoever it was on the other end of his cell phone. "Are you sure about this? That's a lot of distance to cover in under a week."

Curious, Terry came inside, snagged a chair and sat down.

"I know, but you've only got one driver, Abby. You're going to need a lot of breaks, and even then you've got a four-year-old who won't like sitting for most of the day."

Terry breathed a silent prayer of thanks. They were coming!

"Then you've already made the hotel reservations?" John nodded while he listened. "Okay, but that's a lot of driving, Abby. Are you sure? Okay, I'll try not to worry, but we're definitely going to pray about this. So when do you think you'll arrive in Three Mile Bay?" John leaned forward, punched some keys onto his laptop. "Late Saturday afternoon. Okay, have you called Dick yet? Uh-huh. I'll let you get to it then. Get a good night's sleep, and call us after you check in each night. I don't mind if you do wake us up-- call. It'll help your mother to know you've made it all right."

John dragged a hand through his blonde hair. "Give Ricky a hug from Gramps, and tell Jake the house will be ready. Yeah, after tomorrow, it'll be ready. What's that?" John smiled deeply, then feigned a casual, "Just some last minute details-- you'll see for yourself when you get here. Okay, good night, Sweetheart."