CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO

I AWOKE THE next morning to the sound of gentle tapping on the door; and for a moment, as the sleep cleared from my head, I wasn't sure where exactly I was. Panic quickly vanished as Dr. MacNeill's voice called to me.

"Christy? Sorry to wake you so early, but we'd better be off soon."

"That's fine," I called back, brushing the covers aside and getting to my feet. "I'll be down in a minute."

"Breakfast's on the table." There was a hesitation, and then I heard him going down the stairs.

The morning air was chilly, and I washed up and changed hastily, seeing that my skirt and shirt-waist had been laid carefully over the back of the chair. As I wriggled into the skirt, it occurred to me that Dr. MacNeill must have come into the room and set out my clothes for me. I wasn't sure whether to be embarrassed that my petticoats had been in plain sight, but it was too cold and I was far too hungry to worry about it.

After making the bed as well as I could, I hurried downstairs to the kitchen. The wonderful smell of hash and flapjacks scented the air, spiced with the steam of fresh coffee. The Doctor looked amusingly domestic, stirring the frying potatoes with one hand while taking the coffee off the burner. All that was missing was a frilled white apron tied around his waist.

I muffled the snort that the image provoked, and the Doctor turned to look at me inquiringly. Trying to keep a straight face, I lowered my head and joined him at the counter, taking out the plates and silverware and setting the table.

Breakfast was consumed in quite a different mood than last evening's meal. The awkwardness was gone, though we said almost as little as before at first. I, for one, was too occupied in the food to see much merit in conversation – it tasted even better than it looked.

Dr. MacNeill, however, was inclined to be chatty. "I probably shouldn't ask, but that intent look of yours is too curious to ignore. What are you thinking?"

"I'm thinking that you're a better cook than Miss Ida. You missed your calling, Doctor – you ought to have been a chef."

My flippant reply startled a laugh out of him.

I might have let the moment pass by, but my resolution to be bolder was still strong. "Don't tell Miss Ida that I said that."

"I wouldn't dare."

"Come to think of it," I added, gesturing to the clean kitchen, "I think you could give her a run for her money as a housekeeper too."

"More compliments, Christy? You're up to something."

Not for the first time, I wished he was just a little bit more obtuse. I flashed a smile. "And why would you say that, Doctor?"

"Oh, just a feeling."

"I didn't realize I was that predictable."

"You aren't. I find most women fairly confusing, but I believe you trump them all."

"How flattering."

He smiled. "You may consider that a compliment in return, Miss Huddleston. Complex people are by far the most fascinating."

"I can agree with that, at least," I said, thinking of my difficulty in solving the puzzle of his own disposition.

All too soon, breakfast was finished and I could see that the Doctor was anxious to have me at home before the sun rose. I was no less eager myself, as I feared that Miss Alice was worrying for me – I hoped she had considered that Dr. MacNeill would take care of me, no matter that I had not been able to return to the mission.

After helping my host clear the dishes away, I gave the borrowed clothes a quick wash and hung them over the grate. We both wrapped up warmly to ward off the cold – I accepted his scarf again, privately pleased by his fussing over my health, even if he was a Doctor.

Bundled up and ready to face whatever the capricious weather chose to challenge us with, we were off. I followed him closely, placing my boots one after the other into his footprints, which had sunk deeply into the fresh snow. We walked swiftly and quietly, and he led me off the worn trail, carefully avoiding all the nearby cabins. I understood his need for discretion – his reputation was as important and as fragile as mine.

When we arrived at the mission house after an hour's speedy walking, I was out of breath and half-frozen, but the sight of dim lamplight from Miss Alice's room quickened my steps. I had been afraid that she might have kept a worried vigil all night, and from the looks of it, she had.

The front door opened without a creak, and the Doctor waved me inside. There was no fire in the parlor grate, but the instant we came through the hall, I could hear Miss Alice's distinctive tread on the staircase. She appeared before us seconds later, still in her nightclothes with her golden hair bound in a long braid.

"Christy? Thank heaven!" She hurried forward and embraced me; I held tight and assured her that I had come to no harm. Composing herself, she let me go and stepped back, noticing Dr. MacNeill lingering by the doorway.

"She's fine," he said, not moving from his post. "She had a dip in a snowbank yesterday, and it was too cold to bring her back to the mission. She stayed the night with me, and as far as I know, we managed to avoid anyone's notice."

The expression on Miss Alice's face was difficult to interpret as she looked between the two of us. She centered her piercing gaze on the Doctor for a long moment; he met her look with equal steadiness, and she finally smiled. "Well done, Neil. Christy, dear, it sounds as though you've had quite an adventure. Would you like to rest awhile?"

I declined, and Miss Alice ushered me to a seat at the table before sitting down herself. "Will you stay for some breakfast, Neil?"

"Not today, thanks -- we ate already. The sooner I get home, the better." He nodded to me. "Goodbye, Alice, Miss Huddleston."

"Goodbye," I echoed.

In a moment he was gone, and Miss Alice and I were left sitting at the table together. I avoided her gaze assiduously, blushing for some inexplicable reason.

Miss Alice made no comment on it, pouring me a cup of coffee. She was simply waiting for me to say what I had to say, and of course, I couldn't keep silent for long.

"Miss Alice, I swear nothing happened. I mean, Dr. MacNeill was a perfect gentleman, and I wouldn't have stayed over there if I hadn't fallen into that snowdrift – it was my fault anyway, because I wasn't paying enough attention, and I slept upstairs in his room while he was downstairs in his lab, so it wasn't at all improper, and we tried to stay off the main path this morning so it wouldn't look as if we had done something wrong – and we didn't do anything wrong, of course – but I know that sometimes a situation looks worse than it really is, and I'm sorry if you were worrying for me at all, but..."

"Miss Huddleston," Miss Alice said, cutting off my garbled confession, "still thy words before I am knocked over from so many clamoring to be heard all at once." She smiled. "I know that Dr. MacNeill is an honorable man and that you are too sensible to allow yourself to be drawn into something you know is not right. But that is not what makes you anxious."

I looked down. "I wasn't sure how you would feel about....That is, Dr. MacNeill and your daughter..."

"My dear child," she said tenderly, stretching her arm across the table to take my hand, "is that what you are afraid of? That I would disapprove of a relationship between Neil and yourself?"

"He was your son-in-law."

"Yes, he was – but many years have passed since his marriage to Margaret." She paused. "If I ever harbored any reservations about such a union, my concerns have long since been gone. A possible marriage to David was a more pressing concern."

"David! Why didn't you say anything?"

"It was not my place," she said matter-of-factly. "You were meant to discover it in your own time, in God's own time."

"And I made a muddle of it."

"Strip that bitterness from your voice, Christy Huddleston. You have not heard the last from David, nor is that any reason for you to turn away what opportunities have been given to you now."

"Then you believe he is right for me?"

She shook her head. "What I think should not matter to you; you must not look to me for answers." After a slight pause, her expression softened and she gave my hand a little squeeze. "But between you and I, I have no objections to making you my daughter-in-law by extension."

"Then you give us your blessing?"

She looked surprised. "You are engaged?"

I blushed hotly. "No, no – I meant, if we..if that should happen sometime, I would like your approval."

"You do not need my approval."

"But I would like it."

She smiled. "Then of course you shall have it."

I reached out and hugged her. "I love you, Miss Alice."

She patted my head, smoothing back a few stray curls with all the care of an affectionate mother. "And I love thee."

A/N: Hi – I'm still alive. ; ) I haven't abandoned the story, but as you can probably tell, the gaps between posts are going to be longer. RL is pretty demanding right now, and I can't churn out a chapter every week or so anymore. I'll still try to do every other week from now on, though.

Anyway, about the chapter: I know it was really short and more than a bit maudlin, but I figured if I didn't post what I had soon, I would never get around to it.

Thanks for your support, reviews, and patience!