Chapter 389 – Start of a Long Saturday

Saturday morning, Jack woke up at about six. He grabbed some workout shorts and headed to the gym. Jack ran several miles on the treadmill before heading back to the bedroom. He was just getting out of the shower when Elizabeth walked into the bathroom.

"Morning." Elizabeth said. "Why are you up so early?"

"Habit." Jack said.

"Plans for the day?" Elizabeth asked, as she washed her face.

"Maybe a trail ride if my wife is willing." Jack said with a smirk.

"That can be arranged." Elizabeth said. "Anything else?"

"Just going over reports and results I have ignored for the last few days." Jack said. "Maybe spend some time putting my new sheet music away and organizing the music room. Basically today is a chance to just relax and hide out before we go back to the city tomorrow. No one outside of the family knows we are here, so it is fine. Father Mark will say a family Mass this evening."

"Okay." Elizabeth said. "So if I wanted to work on a project with Gran."

"That would be fine." Jack said. "I really would like a ride this afternoon."

"Okay." Elizabeth said.

Both finished getting ready and headed up to have breakfast. Gran made them omelets and answered Jack's questions about the remodeling that was going to happen. He was glad that Gran had picked out the décor and he wouldn't have to worry about things. Once they had eaten, Jack made up a travel mug of coffee and headed to the stable office for a bit. Gran and Elizabeth sat at the table and pulled out the tote Gran had sent up. They were going to start working on the ribbons to put into books.

"Do you want all the same year or same event?" Gran asked.

"I think doing it by year is going to be the easiest." Elizabeth said.

"Then year it is." Gran said. "I got five large scrapbooks and some nice pens so we can write. I pulled the folders with all the results so those can be written in the book."

"Awesome." Elizabeth said.

Elizabeth sat sheets of paper out for the ribbons to be stacked on. Each sheet had a year written on it. The plan was to start sorting the ribbons so Gran could put them in the book and write as she had time, leaving specs for the ribbons still on display or that the kids had kept. That way if the ones on display were taken down, there would be a spot of them in the book.

By the time that they stopped to get lunch ready, they had sorted through the entire small tote and Elizabeth had put each stack in a manila envelope with sticky note of the year on it. It would make the next steps so much easier. The other thing that happened was Elizabeth recorded a number of stories Gran told about the events or history of the family/farm. Elizabeth hoped to also record James at some point. The recording would be turned into a book to preserve the history of the family. The recordings would also be preserved so future generations could hear the history from Gran and James themselves. Elizabeth hadn't told Jack about the project, but hoped to surprise him with the book for their first anniversary.

… … … …

Saturday morning when Nathan's alarm rang, it was the first time in a long time, he shut it off and rolled back over. He was mentally and emotionally exhausted and didn't want to face the world. Thirty minutes later, frustrated he couldn't go back to sleep, Nathan crawled from his bed and washed up, getting ready for the day. Nathan slowly emerged from his room to find the apartment quiet. He found a note on the table that said Doug and Lee had gone out and would be home by noon. Nathan sighed, made himself coffee and pulled his phone from his pocket. He texted Katie to let know that he needed a few more things and that he was going to be in and out, but to leave the stuff she got for him in the apartment.

After texting Kayla, he texted Trish and let her know he could come get Allie and what time would be best for her. Nathan made himself some breakfast as he waited. Katie was the first to text back letting Nathan know that was fine and she would just let him know when she dropped the stuff off if he wasn't there. Halfway through breakfast, Trish texted back that anytime before noon would be great as the girls had plans for the afternoon. Nathan looked at his watch and texted Trish back that he would be leaving the apartment in the next half hour and was headed her way. Nathan finished his breakfast, left a note for Doug and Lee and headed out.

Nathan made his way to the Burke home, stopping a couple of times to pick up things he needed. When he finally arrived he was impressed with the house. He knew it would be amazing based on what Doug had said, but to see it was something else. He knocked and Trish let him in.

"Thank you so much for everything." Nathan said.

The moment that Allie heard his voice, she dropped what she was doing and ran to Nathan.

"Unca Nate. Unca Nate." Allie cried as she crashed into Nathan's arms.

Nathan immediately scooped her up and held her close. She hugged him tight and Nathan was worried.

"Hey there Allie-girl." Nathan said.

Allie just clung to Nathan and cried.

"It is okay." Nathan said, rubbing her back.

Trish showed Nathan into the house where they could sit down. Nathan just looked at Trish confused, but she didn't seem fazed by Allie's outburst. Nathan moved Allie off his shoulder and dried her tears.

"Can you go play for a bit?" Nathan asked. "I need to talk to Miss Trish."

"No leave." Allie cried.

"I won't leave you here." Nathan said.

Allie looked back at the puzzles unsure.

"We will sit right here where you can see us." Nathan said.

Finally, Allie nodded and Nathan sat her back on her feet. Allie went back to her puzzles, but kept looking over to make sure that Nathan was still there.

"Sorry." Nathan said. "She has never been clingy like that before."

"It is okay." Trish said. "She knows that things are different and her world has been thrown out of kilter. You are something familiar and safe. She has had a couple of outbursts, but we just reminded her that she was safe and offered to call you. A few minutes, a hug and some reassurance and she was fine. We tried to get her distracted by something and it really helped. Both James and I expected it. If it happens again, just do what you did – give her a hug, let her know that you were there and reassure her that you weren't leaving. I think getting back into a routine will be good. We have been all over the place the last couple of days."

"Okay." Nathan said. "Doug said you had been shopping and got her some clothes."

"Yes." Trish said. "There wasn't much that was salvageable from the apartment. So we got her new clothes. Yes, I got her a swimsuit among other things. I also picked up some shorts since it is still warm out. I also got pants, shirts, a couple of sweatshirts and plenty of socks and underwear. I also got her three pairs of pajamas. It should be plenty to get you started."

"Thank you so much, Trish." Nathan said. "I was feeling overwhelmed but this helps out a lot."

"You are welcome." Trish said. "We are here to help any way that we can. We know you weren't ready for this and so we tried to make it easier for you."

"Between the stuff you got and what Katie is getting." Nathan said. "We should be pretty set for now. At least until we know better how things are going to go with Colleen."

"Good." Trish said. "Let us know if there is anything else that we can help you with. I got your message about the cooler and we can pack up the stuff I picked up for Allie in one that we have. You can borrow it as long as needed."

"Thank you." Nathan said.

Nathan and Trish sat and talked for close to an hour before they started packing up everything and loading up the Jeep. Trish transferred the car seat and showed Nathan how to buckle it in if needed to move it again. She put the duffle bag that she got for Allie in the back of the Jeep. She then filled the cooler while Nathan helped Allie to pick up the puzzles and stuffed animals she had gotten. Once everything was loaded, Trish showed Nathan how to buckle Allie into the car seat. Trish gave her a kiss on the head and stepped back.

"Tell Miss Trish thank you for letting you stay." Nathan said.

"Thank you." Allie said.

"You are welcome." Trish said. "You be good for your Uncle Nathan."

Trish then turned to Nathan.

"Let us know if you need anything." Trish said. "Katie and I will be around if you need someone to watch Allie next week while you are in class or even if you just need some advice."

"Thank you." Nathan said. "I was hoping to be able to use the drop in daycare center while we are in class until we can figure out something more permanent."

"Let me make some calls and I will let you know." Trish said.

"Again, thank you for all your help." Nathan said.

"Of course." Trish said. "That is what family does."

Nathan nodded, got in the Jeep and pulled out of the driveway. After they left the Burkes, Nathan and Allie stopped for some additional groceries before heading back to the apartment. He parked in the garage and again was grateful for the carts so he could get everything plus Allie up to the apartment.

… … … …

Jack also had a productive morning. He was able to get through all of the reports, results and other paperwork he needed to say on top of. He also made formal offers on the two ponies. Jack was also able to make several phone calls about potential horses that were going to be coming up for sale. He was hoping to make some private deals ahead of the sale after the Breeder's Cup. Jack also made a bid on a piece of property not far away from the ranch. Looking at the satellite images and plat maps, he thought it would be a great place to build a true cross country course. It could mean more shows and opportunities for people to ride. He knew that it would take a few years to get the course built and ready, but Jack felt it was worth it in Jack's eyes.

The last thing that Jack did was check the status of the Ipad system that was being installed. He learned that the first shipment of Ipads had already been installed in Ocala and the integrated database would be ready sometime that fall. Jack was glad that they were ahead of schedule on that. He made the final arrangements to have all the stables in Saratoga wired for high speed internet over the winter.

As Jack was leaving, he ran into Katie and Opal.

"I just sent Margaret a text." Katie said. "I was going to walk Opal up before I left for a few hours to head into town."

"I can take her." Jack said.

"Thank you." Katie said. "If you have plans, Connie said Opal could join her over at the track office. She had her two year old nephew over there today and would be working in the office all day."

"Okay." Jack said. "I will keep that in mind."

"Be good." Katie said, looking at Opal.

Opal nodded her head. Katie left and Jack and Opal headed to the house.

"Are you excited to start school?" Jack asked.

"Sí." Opal said. (Yes.)

"I see Carlo and Marco have been using Spanish again." Jack said.

Opal nodded with the biggest grin as she skipped circles around Jack as he walked. Jack just smiled and shook his head as Opal jabbered on in a mix of English and Spanish. Jack couldn't believe how much the girl had blossomed since coming to the ranch. She was an energetic, outgoing child who loved to talk, sing and dance around. Much different then the shy child who was afraid to speak out of turn that had arrived just two months ago. Jack was amazing at the transformation and was sure that Katie much preferred the outgoing child that Jack was watching.

… … … …

When Nathan got up to the apartment, he was surprised to find Doug, Lee and Katie assembling furniture in the living room. They had pushed the couches out of the way to make room.

"What are you guys doing?" Nathan asked.

"Putting furniture together, silly." Doug said. "Can't you see that?"

Doug made a face at Allie and she laughed.

"Silly Unca Nate." Allie said. "I can see that."

Nathan shook his head. He knew that it was going to be interesting living with Doug, Lee and a small child.

"Here is your tote of toys, Allie." Nathan said. "Why don't you go sit and play while we work to put this together and get your bedroom area set up."

Allie took the tote and nodded. She went and sat over by the couch as Nathan took her stuff to his room and put the groceries away. He wasn't used to having help and it was a bit overwhelming to see everyone helping him.

Once everything was put together and moved to Nathan's room, Katie helped Nathan organize things and set up Allie's area. Nathan was happy with the way that it turned out. She kind of had her own space at least for the time being and he still felt like she wasn't completely taking over his room. When they were done, Katie left and Nathan made Allie some lunch. He wasn't really hungry, but sat with her at the table and munched a small plate he also made himself. Lee made a sandwich and sat with them as well. As Allie ate, Nathan looked at Lee.

"Are you going to be around for a while?" Nathan asked.

"Yeah." Lee said. "Doug and I planned to maybe watch some baseball or the races this afternoon. The plan was really to just hang out this weekend and deal with school stuff on Monday. Why?"

"I need to go check on things." Nathan said. "And I can't take her." (Motioning toward Allie.)

It took Lee a moment, but then nodded in understanding as he realized what Nathan was talking about.

"She can stay here." Lee said. "No problem."

"Thank you." Nathan said. "I know it isn't your responsibility. I just don't know what to do."

"It is okay." Lee said, stopping Nathan. "It is a few hours. We were planning on staying here anyway, like I said. We said we would help. I mean it. We will help you figure it out."

"Thank you." Nathan said.

Nathan took a deep breath and slowly let it out before turning to Allie.

"Allie-girl." Nathan said.

She looked up at him with those big gray eyes of hers. The look on her face melted Nathan's heart. Nathan wasn't sure how she was going to react, but he needed to let her know what was going to happen.

"I have to go out for a while." Nathan said. "And I need you to stay here with Lee and Doug."

Allie's bottom lip started to quiver and Nathan thought for sure he was in for another melt down. Another meltdown was the last thing that Nathan wanted to deal with. But it was Lee who came in with the save for Nathan.

"Hey, Allie." Lee said.

Allie just looked at him, but then looked back at Nathan. Nathan nodded that it was okay. Allie looked back to Lee, but it looked like she was still going to cry.

"How about we watch a movie?" Lee said. "I will make some popcorn and you can choose any movie that you want."

"Nemo!" Allie squealed, clapping her hands.

"Okay." Lee said. "We can watch Nemo."

"Thank you." Nathan said.

Nathan cleaned up their lunch while Lee made some popcorn. Nathan then showed Allie his watch and showed her when he should be back and if not, he would call Lee. He asked her to be good, kissed her head and left. Nathan was so grateful that Lee and Doug were there to help him. When he got to the Jeep, he took a deep breath before he got in and headed to the hospital."

… … … …