Chapter Thirteen

 

 

All Grey could hear was the hum of the heater and the sound of his own heart beating in his ear. He meant what he said about doing things differently. “I would’ve stayed home more. I never would’ve left you while you were still recovering from your surgery.”

Cora looked hesitant as she pulled her lower lip in between her teeth; a quirk that always drove him to distraction. Even now, it made him want to kiss her until every worry faded away.

She nodded, her gaze finally settling on his face. “I would have done things differently, too. I don’t know that it would’ve changed the ending to our story, but at least I wouldn’t have so many regrets.” Her voice broke.

Grey took another step closer. He slowly studied her face, from her expressive eyes down to her red lips and back again. Before he gave himself a chance to analyze what he was feeling, or talk himself out of it, he lowered his head and allowed his lips to gently caress hers. That kiss was their only point of contact until Cora’s hand traveled across his shoulder and rested on the back of his neck.

He wrapped his arm around her waist, drawing her closer and deepening the kiss. Everything else faded away. In that moment, there was no worrying about getting on a plane tomorrow, or what it might mean once they got back home. There was no divorce. In that moment, there was only holding Cora and marveling at how right it felt, more so than anything he’d experienced since they’d gone their separate ways.

When their kiss ended, he placed another to her forehead.

She pressed her palms against his chest. “Grey…”

And the doubt in her voice brought all those things that had faded away crashing back into the room with them. He knew everything she was going to say, and his own doubts only echoed them back.

Cora took a step backwards. “I can’t do this.” She looked at him then, her eyes pleading for him to understand. “We can’t do this. Not again.”

Grey wanted to argue with her but said nothing for several moments. Finally, he took in a deep breath and ran his fingers through his hair. “Common sense tells me that you’re right.” He reached for her hand. “But I don’t want to go through the rest of my life wondering if it might have turned out differently if we’d only given us another shot.”

His words brought tears to her eyes. “And if we fail? I don’t know that I can go through losing us again. Grey, those first two years after the divorce were horrible. I lost my best friend, my husband, and the only real family I ever had.” She sniffed. “This weekend was wonderful in many ways, but it was also a reminder of what I don’t have any more. I can’t step into that world only to have it crumble out from under me again.”

Grey’s chest ached. “I don’t want to add another notch to the regret list, and I think walking away from each other will do just that.”

“Then where does that leave us?” The words were spoken sadly as she withdrew her hand from his and buried it in her pocket.

Grey’s mind struggled to make sense of their situation. In that moment, he knew Dare had been right. Grey was still very much in love with his ex-wife. The only thing he was certain of was that if he let her go now, it would prove to be one of the biggest mistakes he could make.

“Maybe we failed at marriage,” he began, “but I think this weekend has proved that we still have a connection.”

He paused, and when she didn’t deny his words, it bolstered his courage to continue.

“I have it on good authority that our friendship truce will remain in effect even across state lines. In fact, it’s even more effective in Texas than it is in Colorado. Or so I’ve heard.”

The sadness in her eyes gave way to a flicker of humor. She crossed her arms in front of her. “And I’m pretty sure the friendship truce does not include what just happened here moments ago.”

He wanted to point out that there’d been many, many times in the past when he’d kissed her, his best friend, and quite thoroughly. But he didn’t think it’d help build his case now, so he kept that thought to himself.

“So, if we add in a no kissing clause to the friendship truce, you might consider extending it?” He tried to act casual while he was desperately hoping and praying for her to agree.

Grey wished he could get even a tiny view into what she was thinking as she seemed to mull over his words.

Cora finally gave a definitive nod. “Yes.”

That one word had him breathing a sigh of relief. Maybe it wasn’t exactly what he was hoping for, but it was a new beginning. They had to start somewhere.

“In that case, I’ll bid you good night. See you tomorrow, friend.”

“Good night, Grey.”

Her smile was the last thing he saw as she started up the stairs and disappeared into the darkness.

 

~*~

 

Cora stared at her reflection in the bathroom mirror. Being held in Grey’s arms was one of the most amazing, and most confusing, things she’d ever experienced. A big part of her wanted to stay there and pretend like the rest of the world didn’t exist.

For a few brief moments, she’d even been able to imagine all was right between them, and that they’d never had to sign those divorce papers or say goodbye.

But all of that did happen, and her heart ached with the memories. Living through it once had been nightmare enough. She didn’t think she could open herself up to going through it a second time, and especially not with Grey. Not after being reminded of what they used to have together.

She wasn’t so naïve as to believe that his suggestion of extending their friendship truce was an easy solution. At the same time, she couldn’t risk losing everything again, and she didn’t want to let go of what they’d managed to recover over the weekend.

Cora yawned and crawled into bed with a sigh. Being friends was a good compromise. Their amazing kiss earlier came to mind again. It would be a good compromise as long as they didn’t keep doing that.

“Please keep us from messing this up too,” she prayed. As her eyelids fell, the emotional storm of the day faded away into blissful sleep.

The next thing she knew, sunshine was spilling through her window. She woke slowly until the smell of bacon wafted under the door to her room and had her stomach growling in moments. The thought of a warm breakfast inspired her to dress in record time. Pogo waited at the door of her room, probably just as drawn to the amazing smells, too. As they descended the stairs, music reached Cora’s ears.

Travis Tritt’s song, “Anymore” pulled her into the kitchen. She crossed the threshold to find Maria dancing with Grey. Dare was grinning as the music continued to play from his phone. He glanced up when Cora walked into the room.

“Hey! My dance partner finally arrived.” He set the phone on the counter before holding his hand out with a smile.

Cora chuckled as she placed her hand in his and let him sweep her into a dance. “What is all of this?” she asked above the music.

Maria’s face was joyful as she said, “Dare created a playlist of Grandpa Jackson’s favorite songs.”

Dare shrugged. “After last night, I thought we could all do with a reminder of why we’d come here in the first place.”

“That’s a great idea.” Flynn’s voice from the doorway had all four of them stopping in their tracks. It was difficult to know what to expect after everything the night before. In his arms, he held little Emma, who was rubbing her eyes as she took in the scene.

Maria brightened as she stepped away from Grey and reached for her granddaughter. “Come here, sweetie. Come dance with Grandma.” Emma wrapped her little arms around Maria’s neck as she swayed to the music.

“I wanna dance!” Zac flew into the kitchen, a tornado of energy.

Dare winked at Cora and turned to the boy. “Come here, buddy. Let’s show them how it’s done.”

Abby entered then, a smile on her face. “Well, isn’t this fun to wake up to.” She gave a little yelp when Flynn took her hand, made her twirl, and then began to dance with her.

Grey moved to stand beside Cora. “I guess that leaves you and me. Would you care to dance?”

The hopeful look on his face, and the laughter and smiles of everyone around her, quickly diffused her hesitation. As his arm went around her waist and his hand closed over hers, Cora’s pulse sped up.

There was no doubt about it: being in his arms affected her in a way nothing else could. Less than a day into their renewed friendship truce and already she was having to curb her reactions. She reminded herself that it would be easier once they returned to real life.

They’d barely started dancing when the song ended, and another began. The moment George Strait’s “All My Ex’s Live in Texas” came on, the room filled with laughter. Grey’s chuckle reached her ears as he said for all to hear, “I’m just glad I only have one.”

Cora’s face warmed, and she let her forehead rest against Grey’s chest to hide what she knew was the start of an embarrassing blush. When she finally looked up into his green eyes, she found amusement and an echo of something else she used to see in his eyes years ago.

The oven timer went off, and Cora welcomed the interruption. She stepped out of his arms to help Maria finish breakfast preparations.

Fifteen minutes later, they all sat around the dining room table with plates full of scrambled eggs, bacon, and fresh biscuits.

There was very little talking as everyone enjoyed the meal. Maria wiped her hand on her napkin and looked around the table. “Thank you for this morning. It means a lot,” she said with a watery smile. “So, what is our plan of attack?”

Cora admired Maria for being able to transition into getting ready to go. With any luck, the roads would be plowed sometime this morning. It was a good idea to do what they could to be prepared.

Flynn was the first to speak up. “I thought we guys could start shoveling out the cars.”

Grey nodded. “Agreed. Then we’ll make sure everything is packed and ready to bring downstairs. That way, when the snowplows do come through, we’ll be ready to load the vehicles and get going.” He set his fork down. “Cora and I are going to need a ride.”

“We’ll have you covered,” Dare assured him.

With their goals in mind, everyone focused on finishing breakfast. Afterward, Cora helped Maria with the dishes. Then they worked to put all the food into the fridge again now that the electricity was running. They heard the front door open followed by Dare calling out, “Cora? You downstairs?”

She and Maria exchanged a worried glance and ran into the living room. All three of the guys had returned from digging out the vehicles. Flynn and Dare were on either side of Grey, both offering support as Grey hobbled forward on one leg. A red stain radiated from a tear in his jeans just below the knee.

“What happened?” Maria followed them to the dining room where they eased Grey into a chair.

Cora retrieved several towels from the kitchen and returned in time to hear Dare’s explanation.

“We needed another shovel. Grey volunteered to go find one.”

“And I did.” He lifted his leg for emphasis then cringed. “Apparently someone left one lying by the side of the cabin before all the snow hit. I tripped over the handle and landed on the edge of the shovel.”

Cora cringed and looked at Dare. “Would you mind grabbing my medical bag from my room? It’s on the dresser.”

“Sure thing.”

She knelt on the floor, towels in hand. “Let’s see what we’ve got here.” In full nurse mode, Cora pulled the torn fabric apart so she could see the wound inside. “Wow, they must have sharpened that shovel.” She dabbed at his skin with the towel to clear away some blood. “This could’ve been a lot worse. You’ll need stitches, but it didn’t nick an artery.”

Dare returned then and set her bag down beside her. “Here you go.”

“Thank you.” She dug in her kit for the pair of scissors she knew always fell toward the bottom. Using them, she cut away his pants leg to see the wound better. “I need to clean it.” She lifted the bottle of alcohol to show him and knew it was going to be very painful. “You ready?”

“Just do it.” Grey hissed as she poured the liquid over the cut. “Dare?”

“Yeah, man?”

“Next time you go get the snow shovel.”

That had everyone chuckling, which eased the tension in the room. If there was one thing Cora had learned from working in the ER, it was that a sense of humor was vital. She smiled when the three brothers started to rib each other about who had received the worst injury growing up.

While they compared broken limbs and busted lips, Cora cleaned up the wound. It was bleeding less but was going to require four or five stitches to close it. “I can sew it up, Grey, but all I have is a topical numbing agent. If you want, I can bandage this, and we can see if the airport has a medical area that’s better equipped.”

Grey immediately shook his head. “They’re going to be overtaxed as it is after this blizzard. They may not have any more supplies than you do. The topical will be fine. Let’s just get this done so these jokers,” he pointed to his brothers, “can finish digging the cars out.”

Cora didn’t have to ask him if he was sure, she could see the determination on his face. “You got it.”

Abby and the kids came downstairs. Abby went to wait with Maria and Emma while Zac, on the other hand, happily sat on his daddy’s lap to watch. “Cool!” He held his thumb out. “Just like me.”

Grey chuckled. “Yep, we’ll match.” Then he gave Cora a nod to let her know he was ready.

“I’ll need you to sit on the floor. Can someone grab a pillow for him to lean against, please?” There was a time in the past when Cora would’ve been all nerves working like this in front of the entire family. Now, however, she was able to push all that to the back of her mind and focus on the task in front of her.

While someone retrieved the pillow, Cora put a towel on the floor beneath Grey’s leg. Then she opened one of the large, sterile pads and laid that on top of the towel. She opened a sealed package that contained some gloves and put them on. His wound was oozing a steady trickle of blood. She cleaned it again then used gauze to wipe the area clear. Before blood could cover the skin again, she applied iodine all around the cut including a good six inches in any direction. “Okay, that’s going to make this as sterile as I can. Now, this lidocaine will numb the skin some.”

Cora met his eyes to let him know it was still going to hurt as she stitched. He nodded his understanding. She applied the lidocaine, waited for it to take effect, and began.

With each stitch, the blood flow lessened until the wound was finally closed. She used some more iodine to rinse the area and alcohol wipes to clean the rest of his leg, including the trails the blood had left behind. When she was done, she dried the wound with gauze before applying more and wrapping it with a stretchy bandage to keep it in place.

“All right, there we go.” She pulled her gloves off, turning them inside out in the process. “I’ve got acetaminophen in here. Would you like some?”

Grey flexed his leg, accepted help from Dare and Flynn, and got to his feet. “I think that may not be a bad idea.”

Maria appeared moments later with a glass of water. Grey swallowed the medication while Cora cleaned up the towel and trash.

Dare put an arm around her shoulders. “That was impressive, Cora. Remind me to bring you along on all of our excursions.” He was teasing her, but his expression was serious.

“It’s not a big deal.” Now that she was done, and everyone was either thanking her or watching her with awe, she felt her cheeks warm. “I’m just glad I could help, and that it wasn’t any worse.” She turned to Grey. “You should probably see a doctor when you get home, though. Have it looked at and maybe even get some antibiotics to make sure you don’t get an infection.”

“I’ll keep that in mind.” He leaned forward then, and Cora thought he was going to kiss her cheek, but he stopped and smiled instead. “Thank you.”

“You’re welcome.” If her cheeks hadn’t been warm before, they were practically on fire now. “Just watch those snow shovels in the future, huh?”

He grinned. “Yes, ma’am.”

“Come on, Grey.” Maria patted him on the arm and started leading him toward the living room. “Let’s go get you set up on the couch until it’s time to go.” She turned as they left and gave Cora a proud smile.

Relief flooded her system as the adrenaline ebbed. Cora let out a deep breath. Only then did she realize Dare was standing beside her.

“For the record?” He paused until he had her full attention. “Who knew having a nurse in the family would come in so handy. It’s been great seeing you this weekend, Cora. I sincerely hope it won’t be another five years.” With that, he winked and went to help Flynn with the rest of the shoveling.

Cora stared after him as his words repeated themselves in her head. Dare still considered her family? She knew Maria often said the same thing. Working this whole friendship thing out with Grey wasn’t going to be easy, but for the first time in a long time, Cora didn’t feel so alone.