Alaskan Summer (21 page)

Tyler shrugged. “As long as she calls my wife as soon as she gets back. Diane wants to know for herself that both of you survived that storm yesterday.” He looked from one to the other. “Even the kids were praying for you.” He started back to his office but turned to add, “And I didn’t tell her about the engagement.”

Ryan and Laurette stood hand in hand. “We’re grateful for all the prayers that kept us safe,” Laurette said softly. “I’ll tell Diane about Ryan and me this afternoon.”

“Fish-and-chips?” Ryan asked at the bottom of the stairs.

“What else?”

As they sat over lunch, Ryan told her, “I called my mother this morning. She says to give you a big hug. She can’t wait to meet you.” He picked up a piece of fish. “She also asked if she and Harvey could play at the wedding.”

“They’ll come to Sitka?” Rette put her glass down with a bang.

He smiled and nodded. “Said she wouldn’t miss my wedding for anything.” Laurette could see the joy in his eyes.

“I’m sure my parents will come, too. I think my mother’s a little disappointed that I wanted to be married here, but she’s already making plans.”

“Are you sure you don’t want to go home?”

She put her hand over his. “Sitka is home. I belong here with you.”

TWENTY-ONE

There were many tasks to be taken care of the first day back at the SAM office. Laurette picked up a stack of messages and groaned, “Lots to do.” She did take time to call Diane. “We’ll come to dinner as soon as things settle down a bit. I’m going to be busy helping Ruth pack,” she told her friend when Diane insisted they get together to start wedding plans.

She decided to stop at the grocery store for something quick to cook for dinner. When she opened the door into the kitchen, she found Ruth sitting at the table. “Are you waiting for supper?” Laurette asked her.

“Oh, you’re home. I started a list of what I want to take with me.” Ruth patted the pencil and paper in front of her.

“Not a very long list.” Laurette saw a blank piece of paper.

“I don’t know what I need. Will you help me?” Ruth looked like a lost child.

Laurette hugged her old friend and kissed her cheek. “Of course I will. I need to start supper right now, though. Ryan’s coming to eat with us. Maybe he can help.”

“I’ll miss you reading to me at night,” Ruth said wistfully.

“I’ll come visit you, and we’ll read together then.”

“I’d like that.” Ruth’s sweet smile sent a wave of love through Laurette. “I’m glad you’ll take care of my house.”

“Ryan and I will live here when we’re married.”

“Are you getting married soon?”

“At Christmastime. And you must come to the wedding.” Laurette had put the groceries away and started peeling potatoes.

By the time Ryan walked in the back door, pots were steaming on the stove and the table had been set. “Smells a lot better than the canned soup I fixed last night,” he said, giving Laurette a kiss on the cheek. “And how is my favorite girlfriend?” he asked Ruth.

Laurette kept looking at her watch.

“You have a date?” Ryan asked as they cleared the dinner table.

“I told my mother I’d call at eight their time. She’s to have my father in the house.”

“Where does he usually spend the evening? Is there a ritual I should know about? Do I have to stay in the barn?” he teased.

“Sometimes I think my father would rather be in the barn than in front of the television. His farm is his life.”

“Does he have a lot of animals in that barn?”

“No. Just a few chickens, but he loves to tinker on the farm machinery.” She smiled as she washed a plate and handed it to him to dry. “That’s why I learned to fix motors. It was one way I could get my dad’s attention.”

“What about your mother? Does she work on motors, too?”

“No. She cooks, sews, and reads a lot. It may not sound like a good marriage, but it is. They do a lot of things together, but they each have their own things to do as well.”

“You’re going to want your space. Is that what you’re telling me?”

“I want to be with you as much as I can.” She reached up to put soapsuds on the end of his nose. “Now let’s go make that call.” She picked up a towel to dry her hands and wipe his face.

A minute later, Laurette was saying, “Daddy, I want you to meet Ryan.”

“So who is this guy who wants to steal my little girl?” Mr. Martel growled.

“I am not a little girl. I am twenty-three years old.” Laurette rolled her eyes at Ryan.

“Good evening, Mr. Martel. I don’t want to steal your daughter. I only want to ask for her hand in marriage.”

“Isn’t that nice, Fred? He’s an old-fashioned boy to ask our permission,” Laurette’s mother said from the extension phone.

“Daddy, will you be part of my wedding and give me away?”

“I don’t know if I want to give you away.” The laughter in his voice gave away his gruff words.

Ryan smiled at Rette. “I could offer a lifetime supply of salmon in exchange for Laurette.”

Mr. Martel’s loud guffaw raced across the phone line. “You’ll fit right into this family, Ryan. And I’ll take that supply of salmon.”

“Rette may have to catch them. She’s a better fisherman than I am.”

“Will you mind coming to Sitka in the winter?” Laurette asked. “It will be dark, wet, and cold.”

“You’ll be our sunshine, sweetheart,” her mother answered.

“It’s a good time for me,” her father added. “I don’t have a lot of farmwork in the winter.”

“Who will stand up with you?” her mother asked.

“I’ve e-mailed Jenny. She’s the one who talked me into coming to Sitka, and she went to school with Ryan. I have a flower girl and a ring bearer. They’re the children of our boss.”

“Sounds like you’ve made a lot of progress. Will you need my help?”

“Of course, Mom. I have no idea about what to wear. Maybe I’ll have to fly down to look for a dress.”

“I’ll buy the ticket if you’ll go shopping with your mother,” her father offered. “Of course, I’ll expect you to bring me some salmon.”

“I’ll smoke some for you,” Ryan offered.

“Now that’s an offer I can’t refuse. I’m going to get off the phone and let the women talk. Nice to meet you, Ryan. Look forward to seeing you both. Love you, Rette. Let me know when you can fly home.”

Ryan smiled at Rette and turned off his extension phone. She visited with her mother for another ten minutes. When she put the phone down and turned to him, he sat by Ruth with the Bible, reading to her.

“I’ve been replaced,” she joked.

The three of them read and discussed the Scriptures until Ruth said she felt tired.

Left alone, the young couple sat holding hands and planning their future.

❧

The work at SAM continued at a brisk pace. Some cruise ships would keep stopping in Sitka until the middle of October. Most would move to southern waters sometime in September.

The silver salmon run started in late August. John needed to fish and appealed to Laurette. “Could you get Mother ready to move? I have the papers from the home telling her what she should bring.”

“What about the house? Aren’t there family things that should be packed for your children?”

“Thank you for thinking of them. I talked to my daughter, Marty, last night. She can’t get away until the first of the year. I’ll try to help you pack, and I do have a place to store things at my house until she can go through them. I know you’ll want to change things so it’s your home.”

“I won’t make any drastic changes for a while. I want Ruth to still feel like it’s home when she comes to visit.”

“I thank God for you every day. You’ve made our lives much easier. Mother loves you and has come to depend on you. I worried about what would happen when you left Sitka.”

“I thank God He gave me a reason to stay,” she replied.

Laurette spent hours helping Ruth go through clothes and decide what to keep. Her picture albums took days. Laurette framed pictures of Ruth’s family to go on the wall of her new room. She would take her big chair and television. Ryan gave her a large print King James Bible and called it his housewarming gift when they helped John move her to the Pioneer Home.

A few days later Diane called to invite Ryan and Laurette to dinner. Rette moaned, “I haven’t had any time to look for a job. Getting Ruth moved has taken all my spare time.”

“Don’t worry about it right now. Just come to dinner on Saturday. We’re having a celebration.”

“Did I miss a birthday?”

“No. Just come and be surprised.”

“I don’t know what she’s up to. I wonder if this will turn out to be a wedding shower,” Laurette fussed to Ryan.

“As long as there’s food, I don’t care,” Ryan told her.

She poked him in the ribs. “Just like a man. Only thinks of his stomach.”

“Speaking of dinner, you want to go out to eat tonight?”

“No thanks. I’m still trying to get our house settled.”

“You’ve got months to do that,” he protested.

“I hope to be working.”

He grimaced. “Me, too, but so far I’ve had no response to my inquiries. I did have someone call about my offer to sell my trailer.”

“We’ve agreed that the money from that will buy you a piano.”

“Gives me an idea. If you won’t go out with me, I’ll go play at the Dockside Hotel tonight.”

❧

Saturday, Ryan picked Laurette up at what would someday be their home. “I bought some flowers for Diane.”

“And I picked up some books for David and Katie.”

The dinner was delicious and the company lively. “That mouse stays in the cage,” Diane had insisted before they sat down.

“Do we get cake now, Mommy?” Katie asked, bouncing up and down.

Diane nodded as she cleared plates from the table. “I don’t need help,” she told Laurette. “Go sit by Ryan.”

Ryan took Laurette’s hand when she did as she was told. They watched as Diane brought a fancy cake to the table. Laurette gave Ryan a puzzled look as Diane put the cake in front of Tyler.

“This is Daddy’s celebration,” David said with a beaming face. “And we didn’t tell, Mommy. We kept the secret.”

“Yes, you did, and I’m proud of you.” She stood behind her husband. “But I am more proud to announce that Tyler has been promoted.”

“What’s this?” Ryan asked.

“I’ve been promoted to the head office. I’ll be taking a supervisory position,” Tyler said quietly.

“That’s wonderful. Will you still work the cruise ship side?”

“No. I’m going to handle freight.”

“Now don’t you two start talking shop,” Diane scolded. “I want you to tell them the rest of the story, Tyler.”

Tyler smiled at the young couple. “I’ve recommended you to take my place in Sitka,” he told Ryan.

Laurette looked at Ryan’s surprised face and reached up to touch his cheek. “An answer to prayer?”

He nodded and put his arm around her shoulders. “A full-time job.” His voice held wonder as he pulled her close to him.

“How soon do you move?” Laurette asked Diane.

“Tyler is supposed to start in Ketchikan the first of December.” She held up her hand. “But we’ll be here for your wedding. We have to sell this house and find one to move into. I don’t think the kids and I will move until the first of the year. Now I have a question for you.”

Laurette wondered what else could happen.

“I’m going to be quitting my job, and I’d like you to consider taking over.”

“I told you I don’t know how to teach school.”

“We’ll talk about that. You don’t need a teaching certificate, and the curriculum is all set up. You just monitor the kids’ progress as they go through the workbooks. You can do it,” Diane insisted.

“I think she should do it,” Ryan stated, pulling Rette close to him. “It would be better than waiting on tables,” he told her.

“Could we have our cake now?” Katie demanded.

“So many decisions. It makes my mind whirl,” Laurette told Diane when she thanked her friend for a pleasant evening. She carried a piece of cake on a plate to share with Ryan later.

“You’d make a good teacher,” Diane told her friend.

Ryan and Laurette sat in his Volkswagen and talked a long time that evening. “The Lord has been good to us. You told me to put my trust in Jesus, and He would guide us. And I think He has put the teaching job in front of you for a reason. I’d like you to think about it,” Ryan told Laurette. “You’re good with kids. You can do it.”

“There aren’t many students enrolled. I’d have to supervise two or three grades.”

“Think about it.” He brushed the hair back from her face.

“What will your job be in the winter?”

“I may have to go to Ketchikan a few times. We’ll be setting up schedules with the cruise lines for next year.”

He gave her a hug. “Will you work for me next summer?”