Chapter 5 - The Sanctuary of Pine and Salt
Over the next three weeks, Nathan did not return to Seattle.
The business world was stunned. Headlines in Forbes and The Wall Street Journal speculated wildly about the sudden, indefinite leave of absence taken by the founder of Sterling Technologies. Rumors of illness, corporate coups, and secret acquisitions swirled through Wall Street, but Nathan ignored every call, every email, every frantic text from his board of directors.
He bought the blue house in Aurora Field.
He didn't tear it down. He didn't turn it into a sterile mega-mansion. He hired local contractors to fix the roof, reinforce the porch, repair the plumbing, and paint the fence a bright, clean white. He bought the vacant lot next door and commissioned a local carpenter to build a massive wooden playground with swings, slides, and a lookout tower that overlooked the pines.
Every morning at seven, Nathan woke up in the small guest room, made pancakes using Clara’s hand-written recipe book he had found in the pantry, and sat with Hazel and Lily at the small kitchen table.
“You’re getting better at pancakes,” Hazel remarked one morning, critically inspecting a round, golden flapjack. “Last week they looked like flat rocks.”
“Thank you, Hazel,” Nathan smiled, setting a plate of strawberries between them. “High praise from the chief food critic.”
Lily picked up a strawberry, turning it over in her small fingers. “Daddy?”
The room went completely still.
Nathan froze, a spatula still in his hand. It was the first time either of them had used the word.
He slowly turned around, dropping to his knees beside Lily’s chair, his heart hammering violently against his ribs. “Yes, Lily?”
Lily looked at him with those deep, clear brown eyes that belonged to Clara. “Are you going to leave when the rain comes back?”
Nathan felt a sharp, aching wave of tenderness flood his chest. He reached out, gently cupping her small, warm cheek in his hand.
“No, sweetheart,” Nathan said, his voice thick with emotion. “I am never, ever leaving you. Wherever we go, whatever we do, we stay together. I promise you on my life.”
Lily stared at him for a long moment, then leaned forward and rested her forehead against his shoulder. Nathan closed his eyes, wrapping his arms around both girls, holding them tightly against his chest as the warm morning sun streamed through the kitchen window.
May you like
Standing in the doorway, Donna watched them with a quiet, satisfied smile, holding a basket of fresh laundry.
“He passed the test, Clara,” Donna whispered up toward the sky. “He’s a real father now.”
