Page 40 of The Coppersmith Farmhouse (Jamison Valley 1)
She nodded hesitantly and slowly walked to him.
Jess came up the steps and snapped his fingers for Oakley to follow.
“Come here, little bit,” Jess said, kneeling down by the dog and reaching out his hand.
When he called Roe “little bit,” it warmed my heart. No one except for me, not even Ben, had called her by a pet name. I loved that she had that kind of special affection from Jess.
“See? Nice,” he said, helping her pet the dog’s head.
She gave him a little smile but was still apprehensive.
“Let’s get going, okay? You and Oakley can get to know each other a little while later,” I said.
An hour later, we were driving on a bumpy gravel road that wound up the side of the mountains through the thick, green forest. The trees cleared and we pulled into a wide, gravel parking lot on the shore of Wade Lake.
I sucked in a short breath as my eyes traveled over the scenery. We had just driven to heaven.
The lake stretched out in front of us. The water was flawless, like glass, and not a breath of wind in the air disturbed its peaceful surface. The forest sloped down steeply to meet the water’s edge, its pristine, mirrored surface reflecting the green trees and blue sky.
Magnificent.
“Pretty, huh,” Jess asked.
“You could say that.” I was in total awe of the beauty before me.
With the boat in the water, a life jacket on Roe and Oakley dancing from side to side, we set out into the lake.
The wind breezed through my hair as we sliced through the still waters, the only sounds the buzz of the engine and the whir of the air rushing past us.
Jess took us through the main part of the lake and then down a channel hidden behind a large hill. He slowed, then cut the engine so we were drifting and bobbing in the middle of the lake. Beautiful blue water beneath us gently slapped against the aluminum boat. Green forest walled us in at a distance. The mountain air was cool and refreshing but the sun shone brightly, keeping us warm.
I was loving fishing and we hadn’t even put a pole in the water.
Jess taught us to fish while he showed us around the lake. There were five different channels in Wade Lake. When Roe would get restless in one spot, he’d buzz us around to a new one.
Jess caught three fish. Roe caught two. I was content to watch and pet Oakley.
Rowen was so excited the first time her pole jerked that she jumped up and let go of the rod. If Jess hadn’t had secured it to the boat, it would have gone overboard. Then while she was reeling in her line, she started bouncing up and down so much Jess worried she’d lose the fish. He let her abandon the reeling and took over so she could grip the edge of the boat and peer over the edge, waiting to see her catch.
She didn’t even try reeling with the second fish. She just leaped up in her seat and thrust the pole at Jess so she could assume her perch and watch him bring up the fish, Oakley right at her side, both staring intently down at the water.
After about ten minutes in the boat, Roe had warmed up to Oakley and they had become fast friends. He was a sweet dog with a mild temperament and he obeyed orders better than any dog I’d ever seen before.
Jess told me that Oakley wasn’t actually his dog, but instead belonged to the station. He spent most of his time with Jess or a deputy during the day but his bed was at the station and he’d stay the nights there with whoever was on shift to take dispatch calls.
Along with fishing, we spent a lot of time looking for wildlife. Jess would usually spot the animals and birds and show us where to look. In total, we saw five deer, a turtle near one of the shores, a mama duck and her six ducklings and a flying bald eagle.
But no other people. Today, the lake was ours. Just Rowen, Jess and me surrounded by beauty only God could create.
Bliss.
As we were driving back to the farmhouse, Roe asleep in the back seat, I reached over and grabbed Jess’s hand.
“Thanks, honey,” I said, giving it a squeeze.
He laced his fingers with mine. “Great day.”
Yes. It absolutely was. “The best.”
