Crimson Highway by David Wickenhauser (brene brown rising strong TXT) 📗

“The battery has depleted,” he said, not surprised, considering that it had been several days.

“Come on. Let’s see if someone has a compatible charger for this phone,” Hugh said.

It turned out that Mary had a similar phone, so Hugh borrowed her charger, and plugged it in.

“What do you need that for?” Jenny asked Hugh. “I really don’t want to have anything to do with my uncle, at all, anymore, ever,” she added emphatically.

Hugh turned to Jenny and, putting both hands on her shoulders, looked her right in the eyes. “A lot had happened to me up there in the hills. The short version is that I feel convicted about forgiveness. I want to call your uncle, and ask his forgiveness for all the injuries and deaths I had been responsible for—even going all the way back to your father. Especially going all the way back to your father.”

“You don’t have to do that, Hugh. It wasn’t your fault. I know that now—even with my Dad,” Jenny begged. “You don’t know my uncle. He won’t accept your forgiveness. He’s gone crazy over this.”

“I still have to try, Jenny. It’s the right thing to do.”

Reluctantly, Jenny gave in. “OK. I think I understand.”

“Hey, Hugh,” Jenny said, changing the subject. “It’s about the time when I take my before-lunch swim. Would you like to join me?”

“I don’t feel like swimming,” Hugh replied. “But, I’ll come along to keep you company.”

“Good, meet me on the deck in ten minutes.”

Hugh went out to the pool. It had been installed after he had already left the ranch for the Marines, so he had never really gotten into the habit of swimming in it. And besides, he was more of a horse camping and hunting kind of guy. Lounging around a pool wasn’t really his sort of thing.

Then he saw something that might just be what could change his mind about that.

As Jenny walked up the stairs to the pool deck she began to shed the large T-shirt that she always wore walking through the house from her bedroom.

Hugh’s first thought was that his peering through the binoculars at Jenny from two miles away did indeed leave out an infinite universe of detail about the beauty that he now saw standing before him.

Hugh just stood there, not knowing what to say.

Becoming slightly uncomfortable with Hugh’s staring silence, Jenny began to blush.

“Is everything OK?” she asked, concerned about Hugh’s expression.

“Jennifer McDonald, you do indeed continue to greatly surprise me,” Hugh exclaimed.

Hugh saw Jenny act startled at that, but he misunderstood the reason why.

“Go ahead, and show me how you swim,” Hugh said.

Jenny dove into the pool, once again leaving barely a ripple in the water as she passed through the surface. She then put on a swimming demonstration like Hugh had seen her do through his binoculars.

Only, there was one big difference between seeing Jenny swim from a two-mile distance, and seeing her in the flesh, up close.

Better be careful, he told himself.

 Jenny finished her laps, stepped out of the pool, then lay down on the lounge chair next to Hugh.

“Pretty impressive,” Hugh told Jenny. “Your swimming, I mean.”

“Thank you. I’ve always enjoyed doing that. It was the best part of high school for me.”

They remained silent for awhile. Jenny was just enjoying her new-found experience of getting exercise and soaking up some rays of sun. Hugh’s thoughts turned serious as he pondered what he needed to do over the next few days: About his truck, about Jenny, about her uncle.

Occasionally, Hugh would glance over at Jenny, admiring this sleek young beauty who had turned his life upside down. She lay there with her eyes closed. Or, at least, Hugh thought her eyes were closed.

“I hope you’re getting a good look,” Jenny surprised him by saying.

It reminded Hugh of the same circumstance when he had admired Jenny as she washed his windows at that truck stop. And, he did the same thing this time as he had done back then. He blushed.

“Darn, Jenny. You shouldn’t do that to a guy,” Hugh complained, only half-seriously.

“Sorry,” Jenny replied. But she didn’t look the least bit sorry.

“Jenny, look,” Hugh said. “I’ll just come right out and say it. You are the most beautiful girl I have ever known. Or even ever seen, for that matter. OK? I said it. So, I don’t think there is anything wrong with me admiring you.”

“Nope. Not at all,” Jenny admitted, with a smile on her lips, and a twinkle in her eye.

Geesh! Women! Hugh thought, but kept it to himself.

Back in the house, while Jenny went upstairs to change out of her swimsuit, Hugh checked the battery level on Jenny’s uncle’s cell phone. There was sufficient power to use the phone, so he waited for Jenny to come back down the stairs before making the call to her uncle.

When Jenny came down the stairs, Hugh showed her the phone, and said, “Let’s go someplace quiet and private so I can call your uncle.”

Jenny’s expression told Hugh that she still didn’t like the idea, but she followed him out to the back yard bench where he had seen her sitting down that first day from the ridge.

“Here, let me help you in case you fall down again,” Hugh teased, making like to help Jenny sit on the bench.

Jenny looked at Hugh, then recognition dawned on her. "You’d be able to spot him looking down on us right now," she repeated softly to herself, remembering what Martha had said to her that day.

“What’s that?” Hugh asked.

“Oh, nothing. I just can’t get over how well your mom knows you. You big stinker,” Jenny replied.

Hugh examined the main screen of the smart phone. He was looking for the icon for