Page 67 of Daddy, Take Me Away
The ride home was quieter than the one up the mountain, but neither seemed to be bothered by the silence. Micah was content to simply look out the window and replay every moment of the incredible day they’d shared, her fingers tracing the diamonds at her throat.
Chapter Twelve
Stone
Time was flying by too fast. They’d spent two additional days in what they both referred to as Lydia’s house. Micah wasn’t the only one who felt a little sad this morning when she’d returned the key to the flowerpot. They’d both stood in the middle of the front yard looking up at the dormer window on the second floor. To anyone driving by, they might have appeared to be a bit silly waving goodbye to an empty house, but Stone knew better.
This house hadn’t been empty since the moment Lydia had been carried across the threshold by her husband Captain Ethan Rosewood all those years ago. He’d gotten drawn into the research along with Micah, touring the local library as well as the historical society and the museum that honored the events of Fort Davis and the men who’d stood guard and protected America’s western frontier. He’d smiled when Micah pointed out that while she wasn’t a Rosewood, she still felt an intense connection as her middle name was Rose. He’d held his Little girl when she cried after discovering that Lydia had lost her husband in one of the many battles fought to protect the mail coaches that carried something far more valuable than money, as the only news from families far away came in letters and newspapers carried across the country to the people who’d chosen to make the west their home.
“That’s why she stays here,” Micah said. “This was where she was closest to Ethan, where she was the happiest.”
Stone couldn’t argue with that. He knew that if, God forbid, he lost Micah, he’d never fully recover. He’d want to seek out those places where they’d found joy in simply being with each other.
“I’m glad you finished the book, Daddy. It made Lydia happy,” she said as he helped her into the Jeep after a final wave goodbye.
“I’m glad I did too. How about we plan on coming back some day?”
“Really? Even if there’s not much more to see here?”
“There’s always something to see, babygirl. We can sit in the rocker and read another book, and I’d be just as happy as I have been on our daily excursions. All it takes to make me happy is to know you are.”
She leaned over and hugged his neck, pulling him toward her and smacking his lips with hers. “I’d love that, Daddy. We can gather more memories together and share them with Lydia the next time we come.”
Satisfied that she was no longer as sad, Stone started the Jeep and turned toward their second of three destinations. As he drove, he hoped his Little girl would enjoy the next adventure as much as she had enjoyed Lydia’s world.
“Hang gliding?”
“Nope.”
“Zip lining?”
“Nope.”
“I know! We’re going to drive those big three-wheelers up the mountain!”
Stone almost shuddered at the thought. “And find ourselves in traction in some hospital bed? No thank you.” She’d been attempting to guess the agenda for the past hour and hadn’t yet, though in a way her last guess came closest.
“I give up!” she said with an exasperated sigh.
“Would a pit stop make you feel better?” he asked, spotting a sign up ahead.
Micah obviously spotted it too because she sat up straighter and lifted Mr. Quackers so he could look out the window. “I scream, you scream, we all scream for ice cream!”
“Do ducks actually eat ice-cream?” Stone teased, flipping on his blinker to signal a turn.
“Don’t worry, I’ll help him eat his share,” Micah stated. “He wants chocolate but I can’t decide between vanilla and strawberry. I guess we’ll just have to get three scoops.”
“Or one scoop of Neapolitan,” Stone suggested.
“What’s the fun of that? I mean, squashing my chili burger was okay, but squishing three flavors of ice cream is simply sacrilegious, Daddy!”
Chuckling, Stone pulled into the lot. If the contents of the twin bay-windows were any indication, the store seemed to offer far more than just the “best ice cream east of the Pecos” as the sign had declared. There were two old-fashioned gas pumps out front and, glancing at the gauge of the Jeep, he pulled to a stop in front of one of them.
“Can I go in while you get gas?” Micah asked, unbuckling her seat belt.
Knowing the fumes made her feel a bit sick, Stone looked around the lot and made a decision. “How about I go in with you first and then come back and get the gas?”
“We’re not in the big bad city, Daddy,” she said.
