Chapter 4
“Thank you so much for dropping her off Mrs. Louise. I would have come and picked her up but Austin has the truck this weekend.”
“It’s not a problem Y/N. JJ loves coming to the farm and seeing all the animals.” The two women turn and watch as the two little girls run around the front of the house.
“Have a nice day, Y/N. Let me know when you have some more eggs and I’d love to stop by and buy some from you.” Mrs. Louise waves over her daughter as she heads over to her van.
“Of course Mrs. Louise! Thank you for supporting us!” I hug Katie as she comes pounding up the steps. The two of is wave to Mrs. Louise and JJ until their van becomes nothing but a dust cloud.
“Katie sweetie. I have a friend over and they’re going to be staying with us for a long time, ok?” I bend down till I’m eye to eye with Katie. Her eyes go big with excitement. I can practically feel her body vibrating with joy.
“Really? Where are they? Can I see them?”
“Not right now. They’re still sleeping but you need to understand something.” Katie calms down once she hears how serious my tone is. Her eyebrows knit together, giving me a weary look.
“Ok.”
“You can’t tell anyone about him, ok? No one at school, in town, at church, the diner. Nowhere. You can not tell a single person ok?”
“But why?”
“Because,” I struggle to come up with a reason that might freak her out. How do you tell your little sister the person here is a wanted criminal? “He’s different and I don’t want people talking about him. I care very deeply about him.” I smile at her as I watch her nod her head with the most serious look a little kid can have.
“Ok.”
“Promise? Pinky promise?” I hold out my pinky knowing Katie would never break a pinky promise. She thinks pinky promises are the most sacred thing in the world. Austin told her if she broke a pinky promise then it would kill an angel. The damn kid can be such a devil sometimes.
“Pinky promise!” She links her pinky with mine and bolts into the house. I hear her little feet scurrying around the house trying to find Bucky until I hear her scream. Not one of fright but more excitement but I still go running into the house.
“Katie? Sweetie, where are you?” I shout from the mudroom as I kick off my boots. I walk into the kitchen and my heart warms. Katies standing in front of Bucky, holding his metal arm with envious eyes.
“Katie. Don’t touch people without their permission!” I scowl. Bucky stands awkwardly with a coffee mug in his right hand and his metal hand in Katies.
“Y/N/N!! He has a cool arm!! Look at it!!” Katie holds up Bucky's arm with such excitement neither of us can hold back our laughter. Katie looks between the two of us with a questioning look.
“I know who you are.” Katie randomly blurts out. I quickly look at Bucky with wide eyes. How could she possibly know him?
“I saw you in a museum when my class went to Washington D.C. You’re Bucky, Captain America's best friend!” Her serious look soon turns into a bright smile as she dances around Bucky.
“I think you’re super cool! You’re really brave for going into that war Mr. Bucky. A lot of the boys in my school are too scared to join the Army.”
Bucky smiles down at her, a genuine smile. “Thank you Katie. And I’m sure once the boys at your school get bigger they won’t be so scared.”
“If you say so.” Katie rolls her eyes as she stops in front of Bucky and picks his hand back up. “What happened to your arm Mr. Bucky?”
“I lost it in the war sweetie.”
“Oh. I’m sorry.” Katie leans forward and presses a small kiss on Bucky's metal hand. His shocked eyes shoot to mine, not knowing what to do. I shrug my shoulders not knowing why she would do that.
“What was that for Katie?” I walk over to the two and rest a hand on Katie's shoulder.
“You said a kiss always makes boo-boo’s better. I thought that maybe if I give Mr. Bucky a kiss then his boo-boo would get better.” Katies looks at the two of us with such wide hopeful eyes I can help the tears that cloud my vision.
“How about you go take a shower and then go get the eggs, ok?”
“Ok! Bye Mr. Bucky!” Katie runs up the stairs, probably going to my bathroom for a shower leaving Bucky and I in the kitchen.
“She’s too innocent for this world.” He says barely above a whisper.
“I know.” I mumble back.
“Are your other siblings going to react the same way?” Bucky turns to face me and takes a sip of his coffee. I’m not going to lie. This man looks like he’s been up for hours and that a cup of coffee wouldn’t make a difference.
“I’m not sure. Austin might kill me and call me crazy, same with Ryan. Josh is probably going to be just as amazed with your arm as Katie was.” I turn and pour myself another cup of coffee before joining Bucky at the table.
“I guess that’s what everyone notices first. The arm.” Bucky looks at his left arm with such disgust you’d think he would rip it off if he could.
“No it’s not James. The first thing people don’t always notice is your arm.”
“Yea? Then what is it?” His voice comes out cold and sharp. I know he’s not angry at me but more himself. I hate that he’s angry about something he had no control over.
“Your eyes. Your eyes were the first thing I noticed. How bright they are. How blue they are. They’re beautiful.” I stare at him over the top of my mug, watching the gears turn in his head.
“Thank you.” He whispers to me.
“You’re welcome.”
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Word Count: 1033