The Heart of the Matter

by Heather M Green

  What? I had known? Deep down I had known. And I was sure with all that was in me now that Sophie was telling the truth. Oh, Sophie.

  “Kaley bug,” I sniffed, “I’ve got to go.”

  “You know when it comes to brains, you got the short end of the stick, right?”

  I wanted to laugh because under normal circumstances, Sophie would have been so proud of Kaley spouting a music line without even knowing. As it was, I said, “I’m fully aware. The board is still shaking their heads, wondering how I made it through med school. But I need to go.”

  “I’ll let you. But know that I’m thinking of a place to stash your body next to Andy’s.”

  “If I don’t fix this, I’ll draw you a map to the spot and drive us there.”

  “I’m just picking up my rental and then I’ll be there. Thanks for the directions. And thanks for keeping this quiet. I owe you, Adri,” I said into my phone as I pulled out of the rental car lot.

  “Just fix this. She really loves you,” she said with a dramatic sigh as if she couldn’t see what there could possibly be about me to love.

  “A few days ago, I would have believed that, but today I’m not so sure.”

  “Real love doesn’t dissolve over a few days because of a few really big, really bad mistakes. Sophie’s the type to stick around to the end.”

  “I hope so.”

  “Give her something to stick around for.”

  “That’s why I’m here.”

  “Let me know how it goes.”

  Sophie

  “I’m almost finished here and I’ll let you know. Hang on a second, Matt. I think someone just came in the building.” I could have sworn I’d locked the door.

  “I’m sorry, but we’re not-” my words cut off abruptly and I sucked in a breath. Words failed me for the second time in my life and I stood there gaping with my jaw on the floor. Slowly, I raised my phone to my ear. “Matt,” I sniffed, “I’ll have to call you back. Tell Cass and that cute baby hello for me. I’ll see you after Christmas.”

  I slipped my phone in my pocket. “You’re here? Why are you here?” I couldn’t have been more stunned if Brett Eldredge had walked through the door and asked for therapy.

  “Hey, Soph. The place looks great.” He took a small step forward, watching me as he did. I didn’t move. I couldn’t move. He took another step toward me. “So that was Matt on the phone? How is he? New baby, I hear.” Chagrin was a new look for him. With each successive comment, he moved closer until he took my hand in his. Against my will, his warmth radiated up my arm and straight to my heart.

  “What are you doing here, James?”

  “Why didn’t you tell me Matt was married?”

  “Why didn’t you trust me?” My voice broke and tears threatened.

  He reached for my other hand. “I don’t trust easily, in case you hadn’t noticed.” He released one of my hands and brought it to my face, caressing my cheek with his thumb. “I’m so sorry, Sophie,” he whispered.

  I leaned into his hand as tears overflowed and rolled down my cheeks. I felt like my heart had been slowly wasting away with each beat since he’d called me Nicole. There wasn’t much of it left and I knew one word from him would sever it completely, sending it floating free inside me like coming untethered in space. I’d float away into nothingness. I’d become the dark void.

  But he was here, apologizing.

  “You came all the way to Texas?”

  He shrugged. “It was a big mistake. It deserved a big apology.” His gaze penetrated mine. “And it was a mistake, Soph. I didn’t mean it. Will you forgive me?” he pleaded, placing a soft kiss on my forehead.

  “I don’t know, James. Doesn’t it seem like it’s one thing after another with us? Maybe someone’s trying to tell us something.”

  He pulled me roughly to him. “No. Don’t say that. This is me showing you how human I am. It’s all me. And I’m sorry. Maybe you’ll tell me I was your summer fling and wash your hands of me. And I wouldn’t blame you.”

  I peered up at him through my tears. “Don’t think it hasn’t crossed my mind. You’re a jerk,” I told him. But it was half-hearted.

  He nodded solemnly. “I am a jerk. The jerkiest. And a lot of other names too.”

  When I didn’t respond, he put a finger under my chin and tilted my face to look at him. “I love you. I know I don’t show it well, but I’m a work in progress. Don’t give up on me?”

  I flung myself into his arms, wrapping my own securely around his waist. “Never,” I whispered fiercely.

  His arms came around me and he buried his face in my hair. Eventually, he pulled back.

  “Will you show me your place?”

  I sniffed and wiped my cheeks, smiling up at him. “Sure.” I took his hand and led him on a tour of the clinic. I loved sharing this part of myself with him. And he was very attentive, asking all the right questions and showing a genuine interest in my passion.

  When we ended where we began, he pulled me into his arms. “I’m proud of you. You’ve done well.”

  “Thank you. I’m super excited about it. And Matt is going to be perfect to work with.”

  He ran a knuckle gently across my cheek and smiled down at me. “I’m really, truly happy for you, Soph. You never gave up on your dream.” He leaned down and kissed the tip of my nose. “What are your plans tonight?”

  “That depends on your plans.”

  “I fly out Sunday night.” He raised an arm and looked at his watch. “I’m completely yours for the next forty-eight hours, give or take. If that’s okay.” His eyes dropped to my lips.

  “Sounds like a good plan,” I murmured, going up on my toes to graze his lips. “Are you hungry?”

  “Starving. Show me your town, San Antonio.”

  I gave him one last squeeze and grinned in unabashed excitement. “Prepare to be awed, cowboy.”

  James

  “This does not look like a restaurant,” I said, staring up at the stone mission.

  “That’s because it isn’t. You said to show you my town. Have you ever been to the Alamo?”

  My brows pulled down in confused disbelief. “This is the Alamo?”

  “Smaller than you expected?” Sophie spread her arms wide. “Everyone should see this at least once in their lives. It’s part of who we are as Americans.”

  “I guess there’s one thing that isn’t bigger in Texas,” I joked.

  “I’ll pretend you didn’t say that and ask if you knew ‘Alamo’ is Spanish for cottonwood? They named it that because of the cottonwood trees surrounding it.”

  “Interesting.”

  “The singer, Phil Collins, donated over fifteen million dollars worth of artifacts to the Alamo.”

  “Next you’ll tell me it has a basement.”

  Sophie grinned. “It does.”

  I returned her grin and added a raised brow. “No. There isn’t. You can’t make me fall for that one.”

  “Seriously. It’s used for storage, an employee break room, that kind of stuff. It isn’t open to the public.”

  “I’m still not sure I believe you, but okay.” I took her hand. “Let’s go see your Alamo.”

  We walked along the river hand in hand, taking in the sights, sounds, and smells of shops and restaurants with a Mexican flare. Awestruck, I stumbled into Sophie for the third time and put an arm around her to keep her from falling into the water.

  “I’m not complaining about our present circumstances,” she laughed, wrapping her arms around me. “But you’d better look down more often or we’ll both end up getting dunked.”

  “This place is amazing,” I said, glancing around us, trying to take it all in. “It’s a totally different world down here.”

  “Now you know why Oregon was such a shock.”

  “Where are you taking me to dinner?”

  “Only to the most delicious Tex-Mex restaurant on the Riverwalk.”

  “I’m counting on it. Don’t disappoint me.”

&nbs
p; “Thanks for requesting a table outside. This view is stunning,” I said, taking a chip from the bowl in the center of the table and dipping it into the homemade salsa.

  “I wouldn’t be a proper tour guide if I didn’t give you the full experience.”

  “You have made good on your promise. I have yet to be disappointed. But you still owe me.”

  “How so?” She watched me curiously before dipping a chip in the salsa and taking a bite.

  “Months ago, I gave you five facts about Oregon, but you haven’t given me any about Texas.”

  She leaned forward, her arms resting on the table. “Huge oversight on my part. Are you going to time me?”

  I tossed a chip into my mouth and looked at my watch. “Go!”

  “Wait! I wasn’t ready.”

  “That’s not how this works. You don’t get time to think. You just do.” I glanced down at my watch. “Go!”

  “Texas has the largest herd of whitetail deer. More wool comes from Texas than any other state in the U.S.. Dr Pepper was invented here. The armadillo is the official state mammal. There are more species of bats here than in any other state. We held the world’s first rodeo. Done!”

  “Wow. At the buzzer. You did it. And those were even more useless than the facts I gave you about Oregon. I can’t use any of those. At least with mine, there were two you could use, if I remember correctly.

  “I get double points because I came up with more than five,” she argued.

  I shook my head. “Nice try.”

  “Well, here’s one you can use. Did you know that in Texas, you can get married by proxy?”

  “Meaning?”

  “The bride or groom can have someone attend the ceremony in his or her place.”

  “People don’t actually do that,” I said in disbelief.

  “I don’t know how often it happens now days. Maybe it was when people were away at war.”

  “Maybe. You can bet when I get married, I’ll be there.”

  “I will be too.” A look of horror crossed her face. “I mean...I won’t be there with you. I wasn’t fishing for a proposal. At my own wedding, I’ll be there.”

  When I chuckled at her agitation, she mumbled, “Never mind.”

  Our food arrived then and Sophie exhaled in relief, and we dug in. “Mmm. This is delicious,” I raved. “You’ve got to try this.” I held my fork out to her for a bite.

  She scrunched her nose. “Goat? I’m not sure.”

  “Try it.”

  She leaned in and slid the bite from the fork. She chewed slowly, savoring the flavors of meat and spices expertly blended together. “Hmm. Different.”

  “Different? That’s all you’re going to say about it?”

  “You kind of can’t tell it’s not beef or something.”

  “Beef? No way. It’s totally different. Maybe closer to lamb.”

  “Do you know goat meat is the most consumed meat per capita worldwide?”

  “No. But I’m not surprised that you do.” He wiped his mouth with a napkin and took a sip of his water. “What’s the plan for the rest of the evening?”

  “Did you get a hotel? Because you could stay at my parents house.”

  “Thanks, but I didn’t know what kind of reception I’d get showing up unannounced, so I’m in a hotel. Besides, I don’t think your dad likes me very well. I’m sure he wouldn’t be thrilled about me invading their home.”

  Sophie waved off his comment. “He’s not one to hold a grudge. Though he may have met you at the door with his shotgun.” When my eyes widened, Sophie laughed. “Gotcha! He only did that with one guy I dated.” My eyes widened further. “He deserved the warning,” she assured me.

  Sophie

  “Do you want to come back to my apartment and watch a movie or something?” I asked as we walked hand in hand to our cars after our delicious meal.

  “Anything so I don’t have to say goodnight to you yet and go sit in a lonely hotel room.”

  “Adri will be excited to see you again.”

  We stopped between our cars and James wrapped his arms loosely around my waist. I wrapped my arms around him and looked into his eyes.

  “What are you thinking?” James asked.

  “I’m so happy you are here,” I answered, smiling wide. “It’s kind of surreal, but I think I could get used to it.”

  “Thanks for showing me around today. I guess your city’s okay.”

  “Okay? Come on. You can do better than that.”

  “I can’t tell you everything we saw. I was too busy watching you excitedly play tour guide. Best looking tour guide I’ve ever seen.”

  I blushed and looked down.

  “Soph?”

  I raised my eyes to meet his.

  “I love you.”

  “I love you too,” I whispered right before his lips covered mine.

  Chapter 13

  Sophie

  Sophie:We made it (2 recipients)

  Adri: Good. Send me a pic of the ring. Merry Christmas!

  Kaley: So glad :) Can’t wait to see you!! Come over.

  Sophie to Adri: Don’t get ahead of yourself. Merry Christmas back. Love you. I’ll keep you posted.

  Sophie to Kaley: Let me unpack then I’ll be over. :)

  “Sophie! Get over here and give me a hug,” Kaley squealed as she flew down her front porch steps and wrapped me in her arms. “Does James know you’re here yet?”

  I laughed and returned her hug. “I’ve missed you. And no. He doesn’t know. I didn’t tell him we got an earlier flight. I thought I’d surprise him.”

  “He’s going to die! I wish I could be there,” she giggled.

  “I thought it was a good idea, but now I’m not so sure. I’m starting to feel a little nervous about the whole ‘being in his presence again’ thing.”

  “It’s only been a few days since you saw him.”

  “I know. But something always seems to go wrong. I’m waiting for something to go wrong. What if he’s not as excited to see me as I am to see him? What if he has someone with him again like last time? What if he-”

  “Sophie,” Kaley laughed and squeezed me. “Calm down. Of course he’ll be thrilled to see you. I’m just glad you came here first because he won’t let you out of his sight once he sees you. You have nothing to worry about. Promise.”

  I nodded my head once. “Nothing to worry about. Okay.”

  “So what’s the plan now that you’re here?”

  “Celebrate Christmas, of course. I’ve got something for you in the car. Just a sec.” I eased out of her embrace and made my way back to my car to grab gifts for her and her family.

  “You didn’t need to get us anything,” she said with a smile as I walked toward her, my arms full of gifts. “Come into the house where it’s warmer.”

  I followed her into the house to the living room. “Where are the boys?” I asked, placing the gifts under their Christmas tree.

  “Ice skating. Mark took them so I’d have time to wrap gifts,” she said with a sigh.

  “Good dad,” I commented.

  “Better husband,” she grinned.

  “Where’s the wrapping paper? I’ll help,” I offered.

  “I didn’t ask you to come over so I could put you to work. I want to talk,” she said mischievously and plopped on the couch, patting the cushion next to her in invitation. “Tell me how your flight was and how big your nephews are getting.”

  “Flight was good. Seems shorter every time. I can’t believe how big Dylan is after only one month. I miss out on so much living so far away,” I complained. “I’m sure my parents feel the same.”

  “You could remedy that, you know,” she grinned mischievously.

  “You forget I’m getting ready to open my clinic. Kind of stuck in the Lone Star State.” We sat lost in our own thoughts for a moment. “Enough about my work.” I waved my thoughts of work away with a swipe of my hand and stood. There would be time enough to think about all things physical therapy after Chr
istmas. “You want gossip,” I teased. “I can wrap and gossip at the same time. I’m pretty talented that way. I can even chew gum and walk.”

  Kaley laughed as she got to her feet. “Alright. I’m spread out at the kitchen table. Let’s see these mad skills you brag about.”

  We moved into the kitchen where it looked like a gift wrap factory blew up. All surfaces, including countertops, were strewn with paper, ribbons, boxes, and bags.

  “Wow. You get into your work.”

  “This used to be a kitchen,” she agreed. “There are gifts in here somewhere.”

  “I believe you. I’ll start digging.” I lifted two rolls of paper and a bag of bows off the table. “Ah, ha,” I cried, victorious. “This one thought it could hide.” I repositioned the gift wrap under the Iron Man action figure and began to cut and tape.

  “I think I bought every superhero ever made.”

  “At least you’ll be protected when villians come to take over the world.”

  “Ha. Ha. Tell me about his trip to see you!”

  I couldn’t help the dreamy look that covered my face. “Did you know he was coming? I couldn’t believe it! And he apologized.”

  “I should hope so,” Kaley said quietly, head bowed, furiously attempting to curl a ribbon.

  “It’s okay, Kaley,” I told her, placing a hand over hers. “We talked it out. We had good food. Saw the sights. And... you are making a mess of that bow.” I squeezed her hand, smiling when she cringed at the mess of ribbon that aspired to be a bow. I went back to wrapping a gift and sighed happily. “It was the perfect two days. I dragged him around the city. We went to my apartment after dinner and watched a movie where I fell asleep in his arms. I didn’t even wake up when he left for his hotel. Sunday, we went to church with my parents before he caught his flight. It was perfect.”

  “It sounds perfect. So romantic. I’ll admit, I didn’t think he had it in him. But he owed you.”