Chapter 20 - leaning

Doctor Baker said that Jeff could return home when he would be able to walk up and down the stairs more than twice a day without getting tired. That took a week.

A week in which Miss Perry marched him up the stairs at the doctor's house several times each day. Annie came to visit at noon, but they didn't get another chance to be alone. So when he entered the house for the first time since the war, after the doctor said his goodbyes, his heart beat like it was the first time he was alone with a woman. He turned to look at Annie, who was standing by the stairs, and smiled hesitantly at him.

"What do you think?"

He looked around the house. "I love what you did with the place," he tilted his head. "Did you... clean it?"

She giggled quietly and rolled her eyes. "Of course I cleaned it, Jeffrey!"

For the past week they tried to talk in private, but there was no repetition of their first meeting - either the doctor checked him, or the doctor's daughter brought him food, or Miss Perry insisted on doing exercises with him while Annie was there (and claimed it was on purpose because Annie distracted him. As always when she was right, he was annoyed and refused to admit it). But they managed to have light conversations, and though he worried about them being awkward and unable to talk, he felt like they were back to the beginning of their marriage - acquaintances, then friends. There was something more, but in the meantime it stayed below the surface.

It was late, and Annie stood next to him to help him up to their room. Only once before they did this together - she insisted on practicing at least once back at the doctor's house, so she would be ready to help him when they were alone. It was probably for the best. Although he had lost weight, he was still heavier than her, and she was pregnant. He almost refused the whole thing just from the thought of having to lean on her when she was carrying his child, but after a quiet conversation with the doctor, she assured him that she was capable of carrying his weight as well. In any case, he tried not to lean on her more than was necessary.

The stairs creaked under their feet, the ascent slower than usual, but thanks to the exercises it wasn't agony. When they reached the top of the stairs, and Annie turned to open the door to their room, Jeff realized that it might not take that long to recover. Maybe next week he will be able to walk by himself.

They walked into the room, and he looked around, only to find that the room remained as it was, as if it was only this morning he went to war. A wide bed in the middle of the room, the ceiling sloping to the far side where the roof cut out of the room, chases, a shower behind a partition, a vanity by the bed. And Annie, saying in his ear, "Welcome home."

Thankfully he was able to dress on his own, and was done before Annie. He sat on the bed and thought: This is it. I'm here, she's here, now the real test begins.

"How... how was your day?"

"Great," she said from behind the partition, her voice muffled as she put on the nightgown. "The kids were so excited to hear you're back. Everyone wants to see you. Not just the kids, actually." She came out from behind the partition. "Everyone wants to see you." She raised her eyebrows at him, and he knew what she meant. People wanted to visit him, but he didn't want to see anyone. He refused even to Abed and Troy, and allowed only Annie to see him. It was bad enough that the woman who carried his child saw his miserable condition, he didn't need all of Greendale to see how weak he was.

She stood in front of the mirror beside the door, running her fingers through her hair, detangling her curls and braiding it over her shoulder. He recalled their first night together, her ruffled braid, wearing his nightshirt which was almost obscene on her, revealing more than concealing. She was now wearing a different shirt, with long sleeves and a silky ribbon that gathered the fabric at the neckline. Annie checked herself in the mirror, unaware that he was looking along. She slid her hands over the fabric on the front, then turned to the side, stretching the shirt on her abdomen. The stomach was slightly rounded than he remembered, and he expected doubt and repulsion to fill him at the clear indication of a baby, but... he didn't feel it. Annie was beautiful, either way.

"What are you thinking?"

"Huh?"

He looked up into her eyes as she turned to face him, her hands gently sliding down her stomach. Her eyelids covered her eyes as she looked down at her body. "About the belly. I got bigger, like I told you."

He snorted. "You didn't get bigger," he rolled his eyes. She looked healthy and glowing. "And as I told you, I'm not complaining." He only complained that she was a foot away, and he wanted to feel her body beneath his hands.

"That's not what I asked," she murmured but didn't press on. He said something wrong, but didn't know how to ask her what was the correct answer. She turned to put creams on her face, and asked lightly, "Do you miss them?"

"Who?" His eyes tracked her hands on her face, nimble and efficient. He wanted her hands on his face, his body. He was desperate for her touch, it was getting pathetic.

"Your soldiers."

"I don't... maybe. Some. The better ones. Garrett was fine. And Joey who... looked like Abed. But completely different."

"Really? You had a soldier who looked like Abed? How peculiar..."

"You think that's strange? I had a soldier who looked like Stephenso-" He remembered at the last moment that it wasn't just a funny anecdote, pondered for a moment whether he wanted to tell it to Annie, and after receiving a curious look from her, decided it was inevitable. "I met Rich's brother," he said, picking his words. "He was my lieutenant."

Annie turned to him, abandoning the cream. "What? His younger brother?"

"Yes. Rick Stephenson."

"And you didn't think to mention it in your letter?"

"What is there to tell?"

She bit the inside of her cheek, shook her head and let it go. "Never mind." And she finally got into bed. She put out the candle, helped him settle under the blanket on his side, and lay down beside him, her arm folded under her head.

"I met Rick only once, at the wedding... tell me about him, please."

Jeff was lying on his back in a position that was good for his bandaged ribs, and Annie was lying beside him as if she had never left. But it was different.

Before, she would snuggle with him, and in the last week before the war he managed to get her to forgo her sleeping clothes more than once. She was now fully dressed and twenty inches away. He was worried that if she touched him, his abdomen, he wouldn't be able to bear it - like he didn't when she touched his bandages a week ago. He painfully wanted her, his body responding to her touch and proximity as if he had never known a woman's touch. Although she touched him at the doctor's house this past week, it wasn't intimate, and it wasn't when they were alone, in their bedroom.

He gathered his wits and answered her. "Rick was assigned to help me on the first day, but I didn't realize who he was to you right away. When I asked him about his brother, he showed me a picture of him..."

"A picture of Rich?"

"Yes." He remembered the despair that engulfed him upon seeing the smiling face on the crumpled page.

"Your perfect husband wasn't only a piously righteous man, he also looked like an angel," Jeff said to the ceiling, and the bitterness gripped his voice despite him. "The world lost an amazing specimen the day he died."

She breathed quietly, not moving, and finally he glanced at her. Moonlit from the window, he saw her staring intently, her eyebrows furrowed, her lips pressed tight.

"Why are you looking at me like that?"

"Was it always there?" Annie asked quietly.

"What?"

"This... jealousy. Self-depreciation. Or is it something that has evolved over time? Since the war? Or since the injury?"

Her eyes held his, and though he was dressed, bandaged, and under the blanket, he felt entirely bare. He averted his eyes, unable to stand her piercing gaze. "I don't know what you..."

"My perfect husband," Annie said. "This isn't the first time I've heard you talk about Rich that way." She shifted closer on the bed, only slightly, but the mattress sank and he felt himself inclining toward her, even without intending to. "He was my first husband, my first love, but he wasn't perfect. And you don't have to compare yourself to him."

Jeff closed his eyes, and all the pain, all the bitterness, the self-pity he had felt in the last few months had risen from the darkness. He didn't want to admit it, but she was right. He compared himself to Rich dozens of times, and he always came up short.

"Am I right?" she whispered, her voice close. "That's how you feel?"

A beat.

"Yes."

Her arm slid over his chest and she grabbed his opposite shoulder, using his weight to bring herself closer, and her cheek rested on his other shoulder. One leg crept over his leg and wrapped around it, until her whole body was coiled around him like grapevine tendrils. He didn't stay still - he pushed his arm under her and circled her waist, pulling her to him until he could feel the bump of her stomach pressed against the bandages on his side. He turned his head without opening his eyes, and pressed his lips to her head.

"I forgot what you look like," he murmured to her hair. "I didn't have a picture, and even though I thought about you every night, I couldn't remember your face."

"You thought about me every night?" He could hear the smile in her voice, and his body loosened when he finally hugged her like he wanted to.

"Like a fool. Still, I couldn't remember what you looked like."

"Should I be offended?" She asked lightly, her fingers drawing patterns on his shoulder, and he exhaled with relief to the familiar sensation, though streams of desire flowed from her fingers southward through his body. He knew there was no room for it, not when they were still like strangers, and not when his body wasn't even strong enough to climb the stairs by himself, but that didn't stop him from desiring her. Especially in the current position, her leg tangled with his, her thigh rubbing against sensitive areas. He swallowed.

"No. I remembered you were beautiful, otherwise there was no way to explain my behavior from the moment I met you."

She huffed in amusement. "Like what?"

"Ignoring any woman who tried to catch my attention. Dropping a woman who already caught it. Marriage..."

"And a baby," she whispered, pressing her stomach to him just so, to emphasize the point. It felt too good.

"And a baby," he agreed. "But you have no need for concern. You are more beautiful than anything I could've imagined..."

"Maybe you don't have a particularly strong imagination," she teased.

"What? I'm not- I'm trying to compliment you, woman! Take the compliment!"

Annie giggled, a cheerful but exhausted sound, and he assumed it was because of the pregnancy, and the week they had. "Thank you, Jeffrey." She pulled herself up, leaning against the pillow next to him, and kissed his cheek. He turned his face and caught her lips.

Annie sighed and sank a little, her nose rubbing against his as she adjusted the posture, her mouth opening to receive his tongue and taste it.

Annie...

He craved her, wanted to make love to her now and later and all night long, but his body wasn't up to the task. He hardly held himself from grunting when his ribs creaked, since she clung to him and used his body as an anchor. She always did it and it never bothered him, but now his body was broken, and as much as he wanted to ignore the pain and draw every bit of pleasure from her lips - it was difficult.

So he didn't protest when she backed away, her hair falling on her forehead and her eyes inquiring. "I hurt you," she didn't really ask. "You're... afraid to move. Stiff as a stone. We should stop."

He sighed. "A little pain never killed a man in need," he murmured, but she had already returned to their previous position, cheek on his shoulder and arm thrown over his chest. She gave up on the leg this time and he should have been grateful, but apparently he liked torturing himself, because he wished she didn't.

"Are you a man in need?" Annie asked quietly, and he knew she wouldn't kiss him again tonight.

"No doubt you could feel it."

She didn't reply, and now he was sure she did and chose not to comment on it. "I'm leaning on the broken side," she said instead. "Is that alright? Do you think you can sleep like this or should I change sides?"

"It's fine," he said honestly. "Just don't make sudden movements, and don't poke your elbows in me."

"I can't guarantee I won't do it in my sleep," she whispered to his shoulder, her lips placing an almost imperceptible kiss on the cloth.

"Then maybe we shouldn't sleep in the same bed..."

She slapped his shoulder on the healthy side. "You can't mean that!"

He laughed and his arm tightened around her, his hand squeezing the flesh of her waist. "No." He sighed, thinking of all the lonely nights, the yearning dreams, the things he muttered in his sleep that the nurse had heard and deduced his longing for his wife. "Every night," he whispered to the dark room, "I wanted you between my arms."

She didn't answer, and her breath was slow and quiet. She must have fallen asleep. He closed his eyes and tried to sleep, savoring her warmth, her softness against his body, like a hearth in a woman's shape that wrapped him with healing heat. He was tired. It's been a long time since he had a good night's sleep.

The room darkened as the moon disappeared between the mists, and dreams almost took him as Annie whispered back: "...I wanted to be between your arms every night."

:::

"Augh, can you not?"

Jeff groaned, stopped tasting her tongue and raised his mouth barely an inch, but remained hovering above her. He was leaning on the wall beside the stairs in their house, his hand on the back of her neck, his fingers in her hair. Her back against the wall, she smiled at him breathless, warm and flushed, and he closed his eyes in response. Annie found it amusing how much he disliked Nurse Perry.

Annie bit her lip and kissed his cheek, forcing herself to step out from under the stronghold of his body, and greet Brita who was standing in the open door of their house.

"Hello, Brita," Annie smiled warmly at her, wiping her mouth discreetly and smoothing her hair, in an attempt not to look as if a hungry man just devoured her mouth, and was still famished.

"This is my house," Jeff grumbled behind her. "A man is still allowed to kiss his wife in his own house, is he not?"

"It's a free country," Brita shot back. "But have you ever heard of manners?"

"In her defense," Annie told Jeff, still smiling at Brita, "she knocked on the door."

"And we ignored it," Jeff said behind her, "which is the acceptable signal of don't come in."

"I thought maybe Annie had gone out and you were still asleep, and I didn't want to lose precious time to do more exercises."

Brita got a task from the doctor and took it to heart: to bring Jeff back to health and fitness, like he was before, and as she explained to Annie, he had to do exercises every day. And he needed help to do them - help that Brita intended to provide.

"Next time think again before you—" Jeff raised his voice, but Annie cleared her throat. Those two squabbled like children.

"What Jeffrey is trying to say," Annie said, "is that we thank you for your time. And I do need to head out." She passed Brita on the way to the door. The nurse whispered loudly, "Tell me if he's holding you captive, alright?"

"I heard that!"

Annie couldn't help but laugh, stopping before she left the house. "You will behave yourselves, won't you?" She looked between them. Brita looked offended, while Jeff smirked at the floor, and she was glad to see that expression on his face, an expression that said that some of the gloom that had enveloped him since he returned began to dissipate.

"Jeffrey?" She deliberately called him by the full name, so he knew she was serious.

"I promise I'll behave," he smiled at her from the wall he was leaning on, a smug, arrogant smile, and her heart leapt. She bit her cheek and thought, this man would be the end of me... if he won't end Brita first.

:::

Annie set a table for three, but had to set for one more when the door opened and Abed stood behind Troy. Jeff finally allowed visits.

Troy hugged Jeff and there were tears in his eyes, but he didn't cry, just told Jeff, "Welcome, Sheriff. Good to see you alive."

Abed, on the other hand, just stood there while Jeff patted his shoulder and said in earnest, "Good to see you, lad. Both of you." To Troy, he said quietly, "Thank you for everything you did for Annie," which Annie heard but acted as if she didn't, and went to check that the food was ready.

"How's your article going?" She asked Abed as they sat around the table.

"Going well. We're almost done. Rachel wants to go through it one more time. She promises this is the last time."

"Have you heard there is an open gold mine near Greendale?" Troy said, chewing excitedly.

"Yes," Abed said. "I wrote about it in the newspaper."

"What?" Jeff frowned. "I've never heard of a mine. Where is it?"

"Across the lake, not far," Abed told him. "I'll bring you the paper with the article."

Troy said, "Woody James discovered this. Turns out he's been wandering outside of town quite a bit, the little brat."

"Woody?" Annie asked, her forehead wrinkling. "Woody... Nicole's son?"

"Nicole James," Abed nodded. "The woman who said you and Troy were having an-"

Troy shut Abed's mouth with his hand, and his eyes rounded as he looked at Jeff, but there was no way Jeff could miss that. Annie turned red and looked down at her plate.

Abed batted away Troy's hand as if it were a branch in his path. "Why did you silence me?"

Annie glanced up in time to see Troy wiggling his eyebrows in an attempt to suggest to Abed that Jeff was listening, but it was ridiculous. There was no affair, and Jeff had already heard Abed which was even more suspicious.

"Troy, that's fine," Annie said with a sigh. "Nicole told the women that we were having an affair, because Troy accompanied me everywhere for three months. She lied, Sheila banned her from the gathering, and that was it." She stole a glance at Jeff who looked at her with piercing eyes, eyebrows knitted together. He didn't think she was lying; it was... dismay.

"Troy," Jeff said in a restrained voice, "I told you to protect her. This Nicole is the first woman who spread rumors about Annie! I gave you one job-"

"I tried," Troy said quickly. "But I didn't even understand what was happening! It happened so fast! Then all the women yelled at her and I swear to God, I thought they were going to shove her in the middle of the circle and stone her..."

Abed commented, "Stoning isn't done anymore. It happened only in the Bible."

"That's what they looked like! And besides, I didn't think for a moment that Annie and I looked like we..."

"You didn't," Abed told him. "I know what an affair is supposed to look like. The couple should sneak about. Not walk together in broad daylight carrying pots and sacks."

Annie looked at Jeff again. He sat in his chair without eating, his hand holding the fork with such force that his joints began to pale. He didn't look mad, but he certainly wasn't happy.

She reached down and touched his wrist gently, stroking the taut skin, trying to catch his eye. He let go of his fork as his eyes met hers.

"Is everything alright?" She asked quietly as Abed and Troy went on discussing the matter.

He huffed. "Nicole James... No matter what I do, she manages to give you grief."

"Not true," Annie quickly said, stroking his arm soothingly. "She wasn't successful. It was awful when she said it, and I felt horrible, but... Greendale's women were on my side. None of them thought she was telling the truth. They defended me. They defended Troy too," she added on second thought. "He would have been slighted as well if she had managed to spread this gossip."

"But this woman... she needs to be punished."

"I'm not sure she doesn't suffer as it is. There has to be a reason that makes her behave like this. Her son roams around who knows where - Woody is in my classroom only half the time, and no matter what I say, I can't change it. Who knows what causes him to behave that way."

"It's not an excuse to harass you. And you know it."

"But she isn't harassing me now." She moved her hand to squeeze his bicep. "So there's no reason to distress yourself over me." She leaned against him and kissed his cheek, her lips finding the stubble that began to return from the moment he let them grow, to her delight. She loved him with stubble. She loved him in any shape, but stubble was a nice addition.

"In other news," Troy said aloud, forcing them to turn their attention back to him, "We conquered California!"

Annie cheered. "That's wonderful! Did you hear, Jeff?"

"Ah-ha. We were close to conquering it, before..."

"You got injured?" Abed asked. "Well, the war goes on without you."

Annie left her hand on his arm and was glad he wasn't there anymore.

"And speaking of the war," Troy said, "I heard you brought a nurse with you - a woman who studied medicine!"

"Is that what she told you?" Jeff snorted. "That she studied medicine?"

"Um, no," Troy admitted. "I haven't met her yet. She moved into the inn yesterday, but I haven't seen her yet. I tried to ask Shirley about her, but ever since Andre came back it's hard to talk to her... either she's with him or she's talking about him."

Annie nodded. She hadn't yet met Shirley's husband, but it wasn't for lack of trying. It seems that the time he hadn't spent with Shirley and the boys, he was away around town, on his business. Perhaps meeting with the mayor, or at the bank - places Annie didn't frequent in her day-to-day routine.

"But you can tell me about the nurse!" Troy told Jeff with enthusiasm. "You see her every day!"

"Not by my choice," Jeff said dryly.

Annie wasn't sure what to make of it. Initially, she thought he couldn't stand Miss Perry, but after a week with the two, she realized that he was strangely fond of her - because she let him taunt her without consequences (except her own taunts, which glided over him like oil). They were almost friends, but Annie suspected Jeff wasn't in a hurry to admit it. For him, she was truly the most irritating woman in the world, and he believed the way he treated her was perfectly reasonable.

"A terrible woman. She says she studied medicine, but I haven't seen a diploma yet. What woman can learn the entirety of modern medicine, anyway?"

Annie slapped his arm. "Are you saying a woman isn't smart enough to learn anything a man can?"

Jeff jumped as if he forgot she was there. "Oh, no, of course not, I'm not talking about you. You can study medicine three times over, if you'd choose to. But women like Brita, whose skull is an empty shell..."

"You're being ridiculous. Maybe Brita doesn't mind you talking about her that way, but Troy doesn't know her, and he'll think she's a bumbling fool, from your description."

"She doesn't have the necessary tenderness to treat patients," Jeff objected.

"And yet she helped you a lot."

"And it hurt every time, believe you me!"

Annie gave up, throwing her hands in the air at Troy and Abed, and from the corner of her eye saw Jeff's smirk.

Troy chuckled, and Abed said, "Hmm, yes. But is she beautiful?"

"What does it matter?" Annie protested while Jeff mocked: "What does it matter?"

Abed tilted his head. "It's good to see you back to yourselves."

"Yes, she is quite pretty," Annie answered, smiling at her plate. "Quite beautiful. I was a little surprised to find she wasn't married."

Jeff muttered something in the vain of "...pretty when she's silent..." and she slapped him again, but this time he managed to grab her hand in time, surprising her with his quick response. His body really started to come back to itself, and she thanked God for it.

At the end of the evening Troy hugged Jeff again. "I hope you can return to the sheriff's office soon, boss."

To her surprise and delight, Jeff agreed.

:::

"This can't be real," Brita complained as she caught them for the third time. "You're doing it on purpose."

Jeff grumbled. "I assure you that nothing I do with my wife is done with the thought of you, Miss Perry."

Annie giggled under his mouth and her hands on his chest loosened. She sat in his lap on his favorite couch, her hands on the collar of his shirt. His hands slid down her back, and she had been kissing him cheerfully and resolutely, like she kissed him last night as he pulled her to lie over him, before she had to roll off him to avoid crushing his rib. It was frustrating. But not as frustrating as Brita, coming in just as Annie started to open his shirt. Not that anything was going to happen, since he was still as weak as a newborn calf, but nonetheless. He wanted to know how far she would have taken it. Damnation, was it bad to want her hands under his shirt?

Annie got up from the chair, kissing his lips one last time - briefly - so as not to make a show for Brita. "I apologize. I do take advantage of every moment I can before I have to go, and I didn't think about you coming in and seeing us... Forgive me, Brita."

"Don't apologize to her!" Jeff shout-whispered. "She still doesn't realize what 'No Response' means after you knock!"

Annie covered her mouth with her hand, laughing at the face the nurse made at him. "I'm going to do a charity round," she informed them both. "Don't kill each other when I'm gone."

And sadly, she left the house.

Miss Perry approached him right away, but he had a different idea. "Go get something to drink," he almost commanded. He needed a few minutes to cool down. He didn't want her to touch him when his blood was still boiling with lust, it was embarrassing enough that she saw his daily weakness. To his relief, the woman obeyed, and returned to the parlor after taking herself a drink, which let his body return to a state of calm.

"Are you ready?"

He was.

She did the exercises that Dr. Baker demonstrated, moving his legs in repeated motions. She tried to explain to him about this new science, but he wasn't as interested in medicine as she was, and though he insulted her about it many times, at least she had a passion for it. He could appreciate a person who loved what they did. He just wasn't going to tell her that.

After a few exercises she helped him stand and they went back to walking, him leaning on her. It was less strenuous as time went by. He still had to lean on someone, just in case, but his muscles grew stronger.

Brita murmured something under her breath.

"What was that?"

She looked at him, surprised he heard her. "Nothing. Doesn't matter."

They hadn't talked for an hour, and now that the exercises got easier, he was bored. "Humor me."

"Well, since you ask so prettily..." she retorted.

"Please?"

She sighed. "Okay, but promise not to make fun of me."

"I promise not to make fun of you behind your back."

She didn't notice the loophole. "Fine, so the innkeeper is always with her husband, Andre."

"Shirley," Jeff helped.

"Whatever. I tried to ask her for help finding fabrics, I need a new pettico- a new garment, and all she said was 'I have to ask Andre.' And when I left the inn, there was a young couple in the parlor, a cute girl who wrote anything that strange skinny guy said…"

Jeff tried to figure out where she was going with this.

"And it's not that I'm complaining, yes? Most of the men are at war, but not all of them. Then I come here and see you two... you know..."

Jeff blinked a few times. By the fifth blink, he thought he got it. "Shirley and Andre, Abed and Rachel, Annie and I... and you."

"Yes. Me... me, Alone."

"Oh."

After a while, Brita murmured, "Sorry my troubles aren't very entertaining."

Jeff didn't respond. They went up the stairs and then down, the second time faster, and he still said nothing. He thought of Brita Perry, the awkward blonde nurse, and yes, she was beautiful - but she was closer to his age than Annie, and she was still single. And not by her own choice - after all, she wanted Rick. And while she was used to being alone - she was practically the only woman in the camp, and she accompanied him almost by herself during the journey back to Greendale - but solitude was a miserable state. And Rick broke her heart.

"I'm sorry," Jeff finally said. "About Rick."

The blonde woman smiled half-heartedly, and shrugged. "It's alright. I'm fine."

She wasn't, but he didn't argue. If it was Annie, maybe he would have said something, but Annie's troubles were his. Brita's troubles, on the other hand, were Someone Else's Problem. Regardless, he said: "Still. And look... I know it's not any replacement, but Annie likes you. Maybe ask her to show you the town, get to know the people. At least you won't have to talk to me all the time." That almost sounded nice. He was impressed with himself.

Brita nodded. "Surprisingly, it's a good idea. I'll ask her. Thornton girls should stand together!" She raised her fist in the air, and he gave her a skeptical look that made her take the fist down immediately. "Anyway... thanks."

:::

It's been two weeks since Jeff returned home, and Annie discovered that part of their new routine was Brita, who visited them every day without skipping. Jeff was peeved by the woman, but he loved the exercises. He was used to working out, and she saw his joy every time he managed to conquer a new goal.

The only downside was that it seemed like every time he wanted to celebrate those goals with her, Brita was there. Annie wasn't disgruntled, but she would be glad when it was over.

She was preparing dinner in the kitchen, when Jeff shouted her name.

"What? What is it?" She rushed to the parlor, and saw him standing at the bottom of the stairs with his hands in the air, and Brita standing with her hands folded, smiling with amusement.

"Everything's in order, I see?"

"Come here, little one," Jeff called to her, and Annie almost skipped across the floor, squealing when he gathered her between his arms and his mouth landed on hers with an animated kiss.

"Jeff," she laughed under his mouth, but clung to his neck, and he didn't fall, nor stumble, just stood there holding her waist and kissing her for a whole minute before Brita cleared her throat.

"What did I miss?" Annie asked, breathless. "Except that you can plant a good one on me without falling."

"I walked down the stairs by myself, little one," Jeff said, proud of himself. So small, but so big: independence. He was used to being independent, and that was a vast part of who he was for years. He was finally beginning to regain some of his independence back.

"Why do you call her 'little one'? She's not a child!" that was Brita, annoyed for some reason. Annie pulled away from Jeff, shrugged, and retreated to the kitchen to see if the bread was ready.

"I know she's not a child," Jeff replied, slightly more upset than usual, and Annie wondered if Brita had poked a sore spot. "That's not why I call her that!"

"Then why?"

"Because she's so short."

"She's not that short..."

"Shorter than you."

Annie listened to the exchange from the kitchen, turned the stove off and left the door open to let the bread cool slowly. When she went back, she touched Brita's shoulder. "I appreciate that you worry about me, but you're tilting at windmills." It was a pet name. She liked it, and she loved that Jeff had a pet name for her.

Jeff followed her back to the kitchen, his steps measured, without support. His voice was worried when he said quietly to her, "You know it's because you're short, don't you? I don't think you're a..."

She chuckled. "I know. Don't worry."

Brita stayed for dinner. She couldn't have one continuous conversation with Shirley while eating at the inn, and jumped at the opportunity not to eat there. At the end of the meal Jeff announced that he was going upstairs - alone. Annie smiled at him until his steps disappeared into the second floor.

Brita helped her clean up, and entertained Annie with stories about her life in New York. She was lonely, just like Annie used to be, so Annie happily agreed when Brita asked her to show her the town.

They decided to go the next day.

:::

Brita wore a coat, a scarf and a cap to town at a wintery noon, and after a while added gloves from one of her pockets. Looking at the state of the clothes, Annie decided to take her to the seamstress. Their nurse urgently needed a new set of clothings.

"You said it just to upset him, didn't you?" Annie asked as they walked down the street from the classroom to the market.

"Said what?"

"'She's not a child'. He knows that."

"I'm not sure about that." Brita was serious. She leaned into Annie and lowered her voice. "I think he thinks you're a girl who needs to be protected from everything, not a strong, independent woman. Maybe it stems from his issues with his mother..."

"Wow," Annie shook her head, squinting in the face of Brita's remarkably thought-through teachings about a man she had known for a month. "You're serious."

"Yes. Maybe I'm wrong, maybe it's because of his dad. I don't know. I had pretty ordinary parents, so I can't attest to it myself, but notice how protective he is of you..."

"I like that he's protective of me," Annie told her. "And when he overdoes it, I tell him." She knew it was a tendency with problematic potential.

"Oh." Brita sighed. "He's lucky to have a loving wife like you."

"I agree with you there."

"I wish I had love like you two..."

Sheila and Vicki approached them, and Annie made introductions. Sheila Baker had met Brita - through her husband, the doctor - but didn't get the chance to speak with her yet. Annie gave a short and flattering version of Brita's life story, and let Vicki explain the women's charity organization. Then they walked to the butcher, made acquaintance with the butcher's apprentice who took his place during the war, bought meat, and finally went to the seamstress and ordered Brita a new dress and other wardrobe items that had begun to fall apart. Annie left the seamstress a note asking that half of the payment would be put on her. Until Brita got her first salary from the doctor, she was without any means whatsoever.

Annie clasped the bags to her side and told Brita what she was about to say before Sheila: "Jeff doesn't love me."

"Pfff! You're joking."

Annie turned her face to Brita. "No, it's the truth. I never told him I loved him. And I ask that you don't tell him either."

Brita stared at her in amazement, her lower lip hanging, and Annie thought she looked like a lovely fish, or Mary Antoinette. "But... he loves you."

"He likes me, and he cares for me, and he desires me." Annie said. "But he doesn't love me. He doesn't believe in love. I was able to 'catch him' just because we got married out of necessity. Otherwise we would have never gotten married, two parallel lines that never meet. In the first months of our marriage Jeff took care to tell me again and again that we didn't marry for love, that love is a lie. He may have problems... but he's honest."

"Tell him you love him, Da-doy!" Brita widened her eyes. "What's the problem?"

Annie shook her head. "He will laugh, or worse, pity me, or worse, tell me to look for love elsewhere." Annie took a shaky breath. It hurt to think about, the reasons she couldn't tell him. She could see him clearly telling her that him not loving her was another reason she should search for someone better than him. She didn't want anyone else, and wasn't going to let him use her love to push her away. "And I ask you not to tell him."

"Fine," Brita sighed. "I'll keep my lips sealed."

"Miss Annie! Miss Annie!" They walked past the sheriff's office, out of which Troy was walking briskly to them.

"Brita, meet the Deputy, incumbent Sheriff, Troy Barnes," Annie introduced. "Troy - Miss Brita Perry, the nurse."

He stopped in front of them, removed the sheriff's hat and bowed deeply as if they were in the royal court and not in Greendale's muddy street. "Ladies! What a lucky meeting!"

Annie smiled in surprise as Troy took Brita's gloved hand and kissed the back of it, before springing back up. "We finally meet!" He told Brita. "Did you know we live in the same place?"

"Truly?" Brita seemed fascinated by Troy, and rightly so. He was a handsome young man, charming, and warm. Annie looked between them and hoped her gut was right - this match would manage without her. "Then how come I didn't see you until now?"

"I work as sheriff until he gets back," Troy told her. "I get up early, and come back late."

"You are hard working," Brita glanced at Annie: 'All this and he has a job!'

Troy laughed and leaned to her, confiding. "Yes, and I'm also trying to evade Shirley. She wants me to babysit her boys for one night and I... well... I don't really know how to take care of babies."

"Ben is three years old," Annie interrupted. "He's not a baby. But why didn't she ask me?"

"Miss Annie, well..."

"Shirley is the innkeeper, right?" Brita asked. "Because I think I know the answer to that."

Annie saw their shared looks, the pity in the corners of the eyes, and realized. "Oh. Because of Jeffrey."

She could keep an eye on a toddler and on Jeff at the same time. Jeff didn't need babysitting, in fact. He just needed help walking from place to place, and it was getting better.

But Shirley wanted to make Jeff's return easier, and well... maybe she was right. They needed time alone, and Jeff just got used to being home again, being married again, he didn't need a child ahead of time. She sighed internally.

"Pleasure to meet you, Miss Brita," Troy said at the end of a conversation between them that Annie had missed. Brita's smile was sweet and genuine, and Troy touched his brim and couldn't avert his eyes from the blonde nurse. "You're not at all what I expected you to be."

Brita was at least six years older than Troy, an independent woman, and Troy was a hopeless romantic, but... Annie was rooting for them.

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AN:

Things I researched for this fic: American Frontier, 19th century dresses, the Mexican–American war, endearments&insults, weapons, nurses, physical therapy, and telegraphs.

Things I didn't research (or hardly): 19th century men's clothing, injuries recovery time.

Don't learn medicine from this fic. I think I got it mostly right, but don't take my word for it...

Thank you so much for your reviews! I'm glad to know you have fun with this one, and thanks for letting me know!

I got back to my job this week, but I dedicated my last days of Unpaid Leave to finishing this story - and it's done! There are 28 chapters total. So I just need to translate them. Hopefully I can manage a chapter every 2 weeks or so.

Up next: Jeff's still struggling, some shady men come to town, and possibly a Lemon. Not much Brita, so we're mostly back to normal :P (there'll be shenanigans in the future... stay tuned)

DFTBA