The Way We Were (A Jeffrey Dean Morgan Story)

Chapter 30

*Ronnie's POV*

After a long tiring day at work, I had just collapsed in my car with a tired sigh. I grabbed my cell phone to see that Jeffrey hadn't texted me all day. I was hoping that everything was alright. I took the short drive to his house and soon the wooden fence line was coming into view. I pulled into the long driveway and some of the cattle followed me down the fence line.

I parked next to Jeffrey's truck and turned off my car. I slowly got out of my car and locked it. I let out a shaky breath. Something about this still made me nervous. What if she ended up liking him better? What if she didn't want to go home with me? "Mommy!" Charlie's voice broke my thoughts as I heard the wooden screen door bang.

A small body collided with mine and I grunted from the impact. I instantly picked her up and held her tightly. "Hi baby," I whispered as tears pricked my eyes. I didn't realize how much I had missed her until she was actually back in my arms again. I placed her down to see Jeffrey coming down the porch steps wiping his hands on a towel.

"I was wondering what she went speeding out the door for, I didn't realize you were out here. I didn't know what time you would be coming," he said throwing the towel over his shoulder. I smiled and placed my hands lightly on my hips. "This is about my normal time," I told him as Charlie took off through the fields.

He nodded and followed Charlie with his eyes. A smile was placed across his lips. "How'd she do?" I asked him as I leaned against my car. He leaned against my car right beside me and crossed his arms over his chest. "She did great. I was a little worried at first with how quiet she was, but we had fun," he said.

I nodded as I took my hair out of my ponytail. "I'm glad she had fun. We should get going though, she has school in the morning," I said as I pushed myself off the side of the car. Jeffrey's arm quickly reached out and stopped me. I looked down at his hand. His hands were large. One wrapped all the way around my arm easily.

I slowly looked up and his eyes locked with mine. "Do you mind staying just a little bit longer? I made dinner, enough for all of us, I would hate for it to go to waste," he said. His grip was gentle. I didn't say anything as I looked over at Charlie who was still running around. His thumb rubbed against my skin.

"Come on, it's just dinner," he whispered. I sighed and looked back over at him. "Okay, dinner, fine," I said. He smiled and released my arm as he hollered out for Charlie. She came running over and grabbed mine and Jeffrey's hands as we walked back towards the house. She giggled and picked her feet up.

"Swing me!" She squealed. Jeffrey and I looked at each other and shrugged before flying Charlie through the air. She giggled and we did it again sending her a little higher before walking up the porch steps. Jeffrey grabbed the screen door and held it open for Charlie and me as we walked through it.

The door slammed behind him and he kicked off his work boots. I took off my shoes and gently placed them to the side. I followed Charlie through the house and to the kitchen where there was something boiling on the stove. I sniffed and I instantly recognized what was cooking on the stove.

"I made chicken and dumplings, I hope you like them," Jeffrey said as he went over to the stove and started stirring them. I smiled sadly and tried to hide it. He knew. He knew that it was my favorite meal and he knew that I was picky about the way they were made and that I only liked his.

"Sounds great, is there anything I can do to help?" I asked him. He shook his head and held a spoon out to me. "Absolutely not, just try these," he said as he blew on the spoon cooling it off. I took the bite cautiously and had to hold back a moan as the flavor hit my taste buds. They were delicious.