North Dakota Weddings (65 page)

“That’s just what Jack told me.” At the thought, Rayne looked around. “Say, where’d he go?”

Jack wasn’t anywhere to be seen. Rayne began to worry. “Jack!”

Though Paul was doing everything humanly possible, the water coming from the hose wasn’t nearly enough to dampen the flames. “Paul, have you seen Jack?”

He shook his head, concentrating on focusing the water on the fire. “No! I could use his help, too. We need to spray water over the house, keep it wet in case some embers hit the roof.”

“I’ll help you with that.” Rayne looked at her mother. “Where are the fire trucks?”

Rayne’s mother pulled her red-eyed gaze from her husband, her expression somber. Rayne’s father looked pale and stricken. “You take care of Daddy. I’ll see to everything else.”

Her mother nodded her agreement and walked over to Rayne’s father. She ushered him toward the house. He looked crushed. How could he give up so easily? Rayne knew that her mother was far more concerned about her father’s health than she was about the farm.

Her mother escorted her father through the front door. The fact that he would go so willingly surprised Rayne and could only mean that he wasn’t feeling well.
Lord, please let the emergency crews get here quickly
. She didn’t even hear any sirens.

Then, to her horror…

The wind kicked up, and she watched as an ember from the barn floated across the distance and landed on the roof of the house.

“No! Paul, the house!” Rayne yelled. “Focus on the house.”

Where did her father keep another water hose?

Suddenly, it was as if the heavens opened up and dumped rain on all of them. Only it wasn’t coming from the sky. Water soared to an incredible height then came tumbling down onto the house, effectively stamping out the ember that had landed on the roof. As the water continued, Rayne felt confident the house would be too wet to catch fire. As the sirens finally sounded in the distance, she wasn’t sure the firefighters could top what she was seeing.

But where was the water coming from? She dashed around to the back of the house and found Jack standing next to a pump. He’d apparently tapped into the well pump, going directly to the source for the water, and plugged his pump into the house. Scattered around him were the junk parts from an old wheel line irrigation system her father had attempted to fix.

He grinned at her. “Well, what do you think?”

Relief washed over her. Love for this man flooded her heart. “I think you just saved the day in more ways than one.”

That evening, after all the fire crews had left the Flemming home, the scent of smoke and wet ashes lingered in the air.

Crickets chirped, and stars shone brightly in the night sky as though nothing out of the ordinary had happened. As though the barn hadn’t burned, or Rayne hadn’t lost her job, or Jack hadn’t fired her. None of those things seemed to matter now.

Jack smiled at the peace that flooded his thoughts, and continued to rock the swing where he and Rayne nestled on the Flemming porch. He knew she remained overwhelmed with the events of the day, but all he cared about was that she was in his arms.

At last.

They were together. Jack vowed to allow nothing to keep them apart again. Not FountainTech or any other company for that matter, not a farm or parents who wanted her to marry a farmer. Nor would Jack allow his career plans to stand in the way of their happiness.

He chuckled to himself, remembering Paul’s lecture as the guy drove him to Rayne’s secret place. She’d only imagined it was secret.

“What’s so funny?” Rayne asked, her head against his shoulder.

“Would you believe Paul?”

Rayne pulled away from Jack and sat forward, twisting to stare back at him. “How is Paul funny?”

Her hair was crumpled against the side of her head. Jack reached out to run his fingers through it. He could tell she was beyond tired and probably needed rest. But he couldn’t bear to let her out of his sight. At least not yet.

“When Paul drove me to find you at your secret place, he gave me a lecture on treating you right, what sort of woman you are, your likes and dislikes. Rayne, the guy loves you.”

Rayne sighed, clearly not pleased. “I talked to Paul already about how I feel.”

“I know, Rayne. Don’t get upset. Paul loves you enough to give you up and even make sure that the man who won your heart won’t hurt you. I don’t think I could have done the same.”

Rayne smiled softly. “You’re saying Paul knew that he was bringing you to see me because you love me?”

“Yep.”

Rayne frowned. “He’ll make some woman a wonderful husband some day.”

“Well, since you brought it up…” Jack’s heart drummed like he was in a rock band. He cleared his throat.

She looked at him, studying his gaze, a question in her eyes. Did she realize he had a question for her? “With everything that’s happened today, I haven’t found the right time to talk to you.”

Come on, man, do this right
. Jack feared the timing was all wrong, but he wouldn’t leave anything else to chance. Wouldn’t let her slip away again. He pushed himself out of the swing then bent down on one knee.

Rayne leaned forward, her hair hanging over her face, but he could see the shy smile on her lips and the reflection of moisture in her eyes. It was all the fuel he needed to proceed.

He placed a hand over his heart. “Rayne Flemming, my soul was dry and cracked until you came into my life and gently watered it, nurturing me back to life. Will you marry me?”

She threw her head back and laughed then gave him a teasing punch. “Some people might think that was corny, but”—she drew near and pressed her forehead to his—“not me. I loved it.” Emotion was thick in her throat as she continued. “You know, my family didn’t want me to take the job, to pursue my dreams, believing it would tear our family apart. My parents and their parents before them were all farmers. This farm belonged to them. If I left, who would continue on in the same house that has been in the family for generations? Who would farm the land? But in following my dreams, I found you, and you filled a need they could never have anticipated. You saved their home. You saved the farmhouse, Jack.”

His knee aching now, he climbed up to sit next to Rayne on the bench, keeping his face near hers. “So, is that a yes?”

Rayne smiled softly and wrapped her arms around his neck, just the way he’d grown to love, tugged him forward and kissed him, long and thoroughly.

He had his answer.

Rayne pressed her head against Jack’s chest, cherishing the warmth and love she felt there, floating on the dreamy high produced by his proposal as he brushed his fingers through her hair.

The screen door creaked. “Oh Rayne. I’m sorry to interrupt,” her mother said.

Pulled from the moment, Rayne disentangled herself from Jack. “Is everything all right?”

“Yes, it’s just that…your dad wanted a few words with you.”

Rayne stood and looked down at Jack. “You coming?”

He smiled up at her. “I’ll wait. You probably need some time alone with you family to deal with the loss of the barn.”

“I’ll just be a minute.” Rayne followed her mother into the den. Surprisingly, her mother had a peaceful expression on her face.

Her father sat forward, his hands clasped between his knees as though he was preparing words for Rayne. She swallowed. She had some news for her parents, too.

How would they take it?

Rayne dropped into the chair next to the sofa where her father waited. Though circles rimmed his eyes, his face was a mixture of pain and joy.

“What’s wrong, Dad?”

“Nothing and everything.” He slid over to the corner of the sofa and took Rayne’s hands in his. “There’s something I need to tell you.”

“What’s wrong?”

He stuck his hand up. “Don’t imagine the worst now; just let me say what I have to say.”

“Okay.” Rayne couldn’t remember her father ever speaking to her in this manner. It scared her.

“When I had the heart attack, my mind filled with all manner of thoughts. What would your mother do without me? How would she work the farm? Who would look after you since you’re not married?”

Rayne opened her mouth to object, but her father thrust his hand up again. She kept her words to herself.

He seemed to relax a bit, having eased into his spiel, and slid to sit against the sofa back. “When a man has a close call, when he almost dies, he thinks crazy thoughts. I even thought that maybe God would use my heart attack to bring you home to us.”

His audacious words astounded Rayne, but she held her tongue, knowing he had more to say.

A moist sheen filled his eyes, and he pursed his lips, waiting until he could speak. Rayne’s eyes watered as well, unable to watch her father so near tears.

“Oh Rayne. I’ve been so arrogant.”

Her mother stepped into the room at that moment with a carafe Rayne assumed was coffee. She’d apparently already set a tray of cups and condiments on the coffee table. Rayne hadn’t even noticed until that moment. Her mother gave her a soft smile, and Rayne once again focused on her father.

“When the barn caught on fire and I feared we’d lose the house, too, I realized that as important as these things are—they’ve been in our family for generations—they mean nothing to me compared to you.”

“Oh Daddy,” Rayne said, her voice trembling through the rush of tears.

“Baby, I’ve been selfish, refusing to see that God had other plans for you. He gave you this incredible artistic gift, and now I realize He wants you to use it for something special. You’ve been doing the right thing all along.” Her father looked down at his hands as though he feared her reaction.

“What your father is trying to say”—her mother, who’d been leaning against the doorway, now dropped onto the sofa next to Rayne’s father and took his hand—“is that with all that’s happened, God opened our eyes.”

Her father smiled. “And when I saw that water spraying from your boss’s pump, saving the house from the embers that traveled from the barn, I saw how special your work is. And it takes strength and character to follow your dreams. You’ve done that. I couldn’t be more proud of you, Rayne.”

He stood and tugged Rayne to her feet and into a hug. Unable to help herself, she sobbed, releasing all the pent-up anguish she’d held inside because she wanted—no, needed—her parents’ approval.

When her father let her go, he gripped her shoulders and looked gently into her eyes. In his, she saw the approving look she’d been missing for several years now. It felt good and nurtured her thirsty soul.

She swiped at her cheeks. “You have no idea how much it means to me to hear you say this. No idea how important this was to me.” And Rayne had no idea until that moment how crushed she’d been, living without their approval.

Her mother hugged her as well.

Rayne stood back and eyed them both. “I’ve got some news for you, too.”

“This wouldn’t have anything to do with Jack, would it?” Her father grinned.

T
he corn stood tall in the fields of the Flemming farm by the time Rayne waited in the foyer of the small church where she would marry Jack.

Only a few minutes and a short bridal march down the aisle separated Rayne from her future husband—a man with a good heart. The sort of heart she’d been waiting for. So what if it happened to be packaged inside an incredibly handsome man? She hadn’t been looking for him, but then, she’d heard that was sometimes how a person found his or her spouse.

Heidi had agreed to be Rayne’s matron of honor and stepped out of the little room where she’d dressed, revealing her beautiful mauve silk and taffeta dress. When she saw Rayne, she gasped. “You look gorgeous. As in every man’s dream gorgeous. Jack is a lucky guy.”

Rayne’s father lifted her hand to his lips and kissed it. “My little girl getting married. Never thought I’d see the day.”

“Oh, of course you did, Daddy.” Smiling, she stifled any words regarding her father’s previous expectations that she’d marry Paul.

Fortunately, Paul had already found a lovely young woman from a neighboring farm to lavish his attentions on. Rayne had never doubted he would make a wonderful husband but just not for her.