Page 90 of The Coppersmith Farmhouse (Jamison Valley 1)
I crossed my hands on his chest, resting my chin on my knuckles so I could maintain my view of Jess’s amazing blue eyes while we talked. “You know what I’ve been wondering? Ben said in his letter that he loved it here. In Prescott, and in the house. And he had you. Why would he move to Spokane?”
Jess cupped the back of my head and wrapped his other arm around my shoulders.
Oh no. That wasn’t a good sign.
“Ben was married.”
I sucked in a short breath. I’d had no idea the man who had been like a grandfather to me had ever been married.
“His wife, Claire, was great. Sweet. Kind. Loving. Spent time at church making meals for the shut-ins. Made quilts for folks stuck in the hospital. Always made dinner for me if I was over, enough for me to take plenty home when I left. Always taking care of people.” He gave me a squeeze. “Kind of like you.”
I tipped my chin to give him a light kiss on his chest.
“I asked Ben once why they didn’t have kids. I guess Claire couldn’t. Always figured that was part of the reason he took me under his wing,” Jess said.
“Hmm . . . maybe,” I whispered but I knew it wasn’t true. Ben could have had a hundred kids and still would have looked out for Jess. That’s just the type of man he was.
“Anyway. Claire was having some problems with one of her legs. Can’t remember what. But they took her in for surgery. I remember coming over after she was home and bringing her flowers. She looked happy, rested. Just fine. Then two days later, a blood clot worked itself loose and traveled to her brain. Had a massive stroke and died.”
Tears started running down my face, falling onto his chest.
“Ben loved Claire. With everything he had. She was his world. I don’t think he could take being here without her. So about a month after she died, he found a job in Spokane and moved. Didn’t hardly take a thing with him. Donated most everything to Claire’s church. Asked me to take over care of the farmhouse.”
I was heartbroken for Ben. I wish I had known but I understood why he hadn’t told me. Even after twenty years, the loss of his wife had still been too painful to discuss.
“It makes sense why he kept this place,” I whispered, drying my eyes.
“Yeah. Claire’s buried over by the big grove of trees. The one on the north corner of the property.”
“Oh my god. She is?” I whispered.
“Yeah.”
I dropped my forehead to Jess’s chest. “In Ben’s will, he asked to be cremated and his remains given to me. His will said to keep them until I knew where to put them. I didn’t know what he meant. So I packed them up and now they’re up in the attic. Now we can put them where they belong.”
The ache in my chest got stronger and I gave in to a new batch of tears. Tears of loss for Ben. For me. Tears of elation that Ben could finally rest with his beloved Claire.
Jess stroked my damp hair and kissed the top of my head. He whispered reassurances that everything would be all right. And he held me in his strong arms until my crying subsided and turned into small hiccups.
“Will you take me there tomorrow?” I asked.
“Yeah.”
“Thanks, honey.”
“Anything for my girl.”
Jess
“This is a beautiful place,” Georgia said.
We stood by Claire’s white tombstone, surrounded by a tall grove of trees with swaying prairie grasses at our feet, the snowcapped mountains as a backdrop.
“It sure is,” I agreed.
I often thought of Ben and what he’d taught me when I was young. All of the things a father would teach a son. The most important lesson Ben had ever taught me was the one he’d done without words. It was how he loved his wife.
Ben didn’
