Page 78 of Outsider

“Okay,” I say quietly.

“Gina … I think she…” He lets the sentence trail and sighs. “Last night … she wanted someone to talk to. She asked me to stay with her for a bit, so … I did. She needed a friend. The rest…” He shrugs. “I fell asleep. I … we … did not. That’s all.”

We stare at each other a moment. A sense of respect moves through me. A slow rise of admiration. An uncomfortable tinge of embarrassment. “I wasn’t going to ask,” I tell him. “I just didn’t want you to feel awkward this morning.”

“I saw the questions,” he says. “On your face.”

“Thank you for staying with her.”

“It was not a hardship. She’s…” He doesn’t complete the sentence. Something unexpected flashes in his eyes.

“A complicated woman,” I finish for him. “And she’s led a complicated life.”

Tilting his head, he approaches me and lowers his voice. “I know she is in trouble. I know she is wanted by the police. Maybe by someone else, too, no? When I asked her about it, she wouldn’t say. Wouldn’t speak of it. But she’s frightened, Katie.”

Looking at him, I’m reminded that good men still exist in a world that sorely needs them. “I know.”

“Katie, she was shot. She brought a gun into my home. Pointed it at me when I was trying to help her. I need to know if she’s brought danger here. I need to know if my children are safe.”

They are questions I should have answered by now. That I didn’t makes me feel as if I’ve taken advantage of his kindness and generosity. “I can’t get into all the details with you, Adam. What I can tell you is that it’s a police matter. Tomasetti is involved. We’re trying to work through it.”

“What about the people looking for her? Why is she so afraid of them?”

“I think they’re dangerous. The rest … if it wasn’t for this storm, I would have taken Gina somewhere else.”

“These men … they are police?”

“Yes.” When he continues to stare at me, his expression rigid, I reach into my pocket for my cell. “Look, I can call Tomasetti right now. You’ve already gone above and beyond. I can’t ask you to—”

Adam reaches out and lowers my hand. “They are bad men? Who would harm her?”

“Yes. But you are under no obligation.”

“Katie, her heart is good.”

“Not perfect,” I say.

“No one is.” He gives a decisive nod. “Where there is darkness, let me bring Your light. Let me not seek as much to be consoled as to console.”

Remembering more than is wise, understanding more than I should, I finish the prayer, “For it is in giving that one receives.”

“Don’t make the call. I can give her refuge. Here.”

I stare at him, wondering if his decision is because of all those Amish norms—or if he’s a man who’s feeling protective of an attractive woman.…

“It’s just for another day or two,” I say. “You’re certain?”

He nods. “Where there is despair, let me bring hope.”

I look away, take a moment to tuck all of the gnarly emotions coming at me back into their proper place.

“Now, I’ve got to get to work.” He starts toward the mudroom.

I hold up my hand. “Hang on.” Quickly, I go to the cabinet, pull out the biggest mug I can find, and fill it with coffee. “Take it with you,” I say as I hand it to him. “It’s cold out there.”

Taking the cup, he starts for the back door.

I find the bottle of Gentleman Jack hidden haphazardly behind a bag of cornmeal in the pantry. I’m in the process of pouring it down the sink when Gina emerges from the living room. Her hair is a wild tangle of black curls, her face pale, eyes warning of a foul mood.