by Aurora Rey
“The bottle is in your purse at your feet. I can pull over if you want me to get it.”
Nora waved a hand. “I’m not a total invalid.”
She opened the bottle and shook out two pills, washing them down with the water Graham had been encouraging her to drink the entire ride. She closed her eyes again and leaned her head back against the headrest. If she could just get home, settle back into her own space, she’d be able to sort everything out.
When the car stopped moving, Nora opened her eyes. She hadn’t intended to fall asleep, but she must have. She felt groggy and out of sorts. Maybe she should have held off on the pills. She unbuckled her seat belt and reached for the door handle. Her movements were slowed, like being under water. She struggled to keep her vision clear. Before she could get out of the car, Graham rounded the hood and took her hand. Nora’s instinct was to wave her off, but she was unsteady. Attempting to maintain her pride wasn’t worth the chance of falling down in a heap in the middle of the parking lot.
They’d taken about two steps when the front door of the inn flew open. Will and Tisha ran out, looking as though they might fall over each other in their rush to get to her.
Tisha spoke first. “Thank God you’re alive. This one,” she hooked a thumb at Will, “scares me half to death in the kitchen this morning, then tells me you’re in the hospital. I’ve been worried sick.”
“Didn’t you get my message?” Graham asked.
“No.” Will and Tisha spoke in unison.
“Nothing major.” Nora kept her voice light. Hopefully, she could convey more confidence than she felt. “I’m sorry you worried for nothing.”
Tisha looked her up and down. “I worried for plenty. You look like death warmed over.”
Nora cringed at the description, mostly because she knew it was true. “It looks worse than it is.”
“And you’re a liar. Let’s get you inside.” She went to Nora’s other side and put a hand on her back.
Despite Will’s rush to meet them, she hadn’t said anything. Nora studied her, trying to figure out what was going on in her head. Not knowing, combined with Graham’s commentary in the car, left Nora uneasy. Still, she couldn’t ignore what Will had done. “Thank you for coming back here and taking care of things. I don’t know how to repay you.”
Will, who’d seemed to be equal parts relieved and terrified, now looked like she was on the verge of tears. She shook her head. “You don’t…there’s nothing to repay.”
Tisha waved a hand impatiently. “Whatever it is, you two can sort it out later. Let’s get you inside.”
Will looked over at Graham. “Are there things in the car to unload?”
Graham nodded. “All of Aunt Nora’s stuff is in the back seat.”
Will skirted around them, keeping at least ten feet between herself and Nora. Although Nora still had no idea why Will had done what she’d done, it seemed like all she wanted now was to get away as fast as she could.
As much as Nora wanted to be in the sitting room, the pain medication left her groggy. And she didn’t want guests to happen upon her sprawled on one of the sofas. She allowed Tisha and Graham to lead her to her room. She slipped off her shoes and eased onto the bed. Even staying on top of the covers, settling onto the pillows felt heavenly. It took all of her will power not to drift off. “I really am okay. I just need another day to recoup.”
Tisha raised a brow. “You are the most stubborn woman I have ever met.”
Nora was about to protest when Will appeared in the doorway with her bag. “Just set it by the closet. Thank you for bringing it in.”
“You’re welcome.” Will put the bag down. She retreated to the doorway, but didn’t leave entirely.
They’d need to talk, but at the moment, Nora could barely muster the energy to keep her eyes open. “I just need to sleep off the medicine and I’ll be myself again.” She lifted the cast feebly. “Well, mostly.”
“I think rest is an excellent idea,” Graham said. “Holler if you need anything and one of us will come running.”
They hustled out of the room. Nora glanced around, half expecting something in her surroundings to have changed. Everything was just as she’d left it, though. She realized she’d only been gone three days. It felt like so much longer. Was it the accident that made it feel that way? Or seeing Will?
Will. What was she going to do about that? Before she could come up with any answers, sleep took her.
* * *
Will, Graham, and Tisha filed out of Nora’s room. With all the guests out for the moment, Will led them into the sitting room. They stood in a circle and Tisha crossed her arms over her chest. “How is she really?”
Graham took a deep breath. “Okay. The concussion is mild. Other than no contact sports for a couple of months, she doesn’t have any restrictions.”
Tisha cocked her head to the side. “And beach volleyball season is just getting started. She’ll be so disappointed.”
Graham snorted out a laugh. Will took that as a sign that it was safe to chuckle herself. The idea of Nora, even at her most free, diving around in the sand was almost too much. “And her arm?”
“A full break, but a clean one. They were able to set it without surgery, so six weeks in a cast should do the trick.”
Tisha shook her head. “Six weeks without her right hand? She’s going to go absolutely crazy.”
Graham smiled at that. “I know. She’s pretty banged up at the moment. Even though she won’t admit it, I’m hoping she lets it keep her in bed a couple of days. Then we can deal with the rest.”
Will didn’t know what the next few days or weeks would hold, but she’d find a way to be useful one way or another. “My shifts this week are all on the 11:00 and 3:00 tours, so I can come for a couple of hours in the morning to help with breakfast and cleaning rooms. I’ll see if I can keep that schedule for at least a few weeks.”
Graham nodded. “I’m meeting with Chris tomorrow and will see if I can schedule earlier to be around in the evenings.”
“If no one is in your room, I can stay over in case she or the guests need anything during the night.” Will spoke the thought as it occurred to her, then immediately regretted it.
Both Graham and Tisha turned their gazes to Will. “Let’s talk about that, shall we?” Graham said with a mischievous twinkle in her eye.
“Um.” She might have confided her desire to be close if only Graham had been in the room. But despite their newfound understanding, Will still didn’t feel like she could disclose the full situation to Tisha. “It makes sense. You have a new place to settle into and roommates to get to know.”
Graham shook her head. “I’m not arguing. I’m just curious about whether you’re going to admit the real reason.”
“Agreed.” Tisha moved her hands to her hips. “I’m thinking you’re in love with Nora, yeah? Is she in love with you, too?”
It was a loaded question if ever there was one. Even if Will was inclined to confide in Tisha, she honestly didn’t know what to say. For better or worse, Graham chimed in. “Yes.”
Tisha looked from Graham to Will and then back to Graham. “But?”
Graham put her hands on her own hips. “What makes you think there’s a but?”
Tisha looked at her blandly and Will found herself relieved that, even though the conversation was about her, she sat on the periphery. “Because you answered instead of that one.” She hooked a finger at Will.
“It’s complicated,” Graham said.
Will couldn’t suppress a snort of laughter. She did her best to cover it up with a cough.
“Considering I find her in the kitchen and Nora’s told me whatever was going on in the winter is over, I got that far myself.”
Will tried to process the fact that Tisha knew about what had happened between her and Nora. Graham sighed. “There was a misunderstanding that was all my fault and—”
“It wasn’t your fault.” Will redirected her attention to Graham. “You d
idn’t do anything wrong.”
Graham rolled her eyes. “There was a misunderstanding that had to do with me and I’ve been trying to fix it.”
Tisha nodded slowly. “Nora kept it from you.”
“Uh, yeah. And I reacted badly because of my own stuff. Anyway I’m over it and I wish they’d just go back to how things were.”
Tisha turned her gaze toward Will. “And how were things, exactly?”
Will wrestled with how much to share. Despite her initial hesitation, Tisha and Graham knew Nora better than anyone save, perhaps, her sister. Confiding in them might not win her Nora back, but she wasn’t above asking for their help. And if Tisha were dead set against it, better to know than be undermined when she wasn’t looking. “We were seeing each other, spending a lot of time together.” Will couldn’t bring herself to say “sleeping together,” but figured it was implied.
Tisha’s face gave nothing away. “How long?”
“It started in February.”
“February?” Graham’s tone pitched high, but she quickly recovered. “What happened?”
So they were doing this. Will took a deep breath. “There was a huge storm and Nora’s water heater blew. I stayed to help minimize the damage and the snow got so high Nora invited me to stay rather than try to fight my way home. We had dinner, talked. It just sort of happened.” That was all true. Even though she’d hoped for it, she hadn’t plotted or tried to manipulate the situation.
“I’m not really surprised,” Graham said.
Will wished she and Graham were back on entirely solid footing, because the desire to laugh out loud at that assertion was strong. “Really?”
Graham gave her an exasperated look. “I mean, in retrospect. You two definitely had chemistry. But it would take something like a snow storm for Aunt Nora to let her guard down.”
Tisha hummed her agreement. “And when did your misunderstanding happen?”
Again, Graham answered before Will could. “Early April. I came for the weekend as a surprise. Only the real surprise was on me.”
Will winced at the description. But she knew better than to apologize again. “I figured I was the last thing Nora needed to deal with, so I bailed.”
“And then she,” Tisha wagged a finger at Graham, “meddled.”
“I tried to fix what I messed up.”
Will shook her head. “And I realized I messed up, too. I don’t know if Nora will take me back, but I want to make it up to her.” As she said the words, Will realized just how much she meant them. “I want to be here.”
Graham smiled. “And you should be.”
“Let me go check the reservation book.” Tisha disappeared in the direction of the kitchen.
Will turned her attention to Graham. “Thank you for lending me your car. I’m glad I was here.”
“Considering Tisha didn’t get my message, I am, too. And I know it means a lot to Aunt Nora.”
Will swallowed. “I hope you don’t think I’m trying to take advantage of the situation.”
Graham rolled her eyes. “You are the only person I know who would sacrifice all her free time as a gesture for the woman she loves and then worry about being seen as selfish.”
Will frowned. “You know what I mean.”
“I do. And I’d never wish an accident on anyone, but since that’s what happened, I think it’s a perfect chance for you to stick around.”
Will scrubbed a hand over her face. “But is that what Nora wants?”
“She might not be quite ready to admit it, but I believe in my heart that it is.” Graham leaned in and bumped her shoulder into Will’s. “That doesn’t mean she might not be cranky in the meantime.”
Will laughed. She could handle cranky. If she believed she was truly helping, and that there was even a sliver of hope for her and Nora, she could handle anything. “I promise I won’t be scared off again.”
Graham grinned. “Good.”
Chapter Twenty-nine
Nora brushed a piece of hair from her eyes and let out a huff. She glanced at the clock. It had taken her twenty minutes to strip and make one bed. And she was exhausted. She glared at the cast, already beginning to look dingy. This was going to be a long four weeks.
She scooped up the linens and headed for the hall. Three rooms to go. She found Will hovering near the door.
“Hi.” Will offered her a bright smile.
“Hi.” Despite Nora’s protests, Will continued to appear morning and night. And when there was a room open, she stayed the night as well. She was pretty sure that, if Will wasn’t at her actual job, she was at the inn.
“Tisha said you were turning over rooms so she could wash dishes. I thought you might like a hand.”
“Will, you really don’t—”
Will lifted a hand. “How many times have we discussed this? I want to be here. I would enjoy being here more if you stopped harassing me about it.”
Nora narrowed her eyes. Her instinct was to argue anyway. She loathed the idea of being so helpless. Or of Will showing up day after day out of some sense of obligation, or misplaced loyalty. “I just wish I could understand why.”
Will closed her eyes for a moment. When she opened them, she looked directly into Nora’s. “I don’t know if we can ever go back to how things were. But I’ve decided that I want to try.”
Nora smiled slightly, but shook her head. “You can never go back.”
She expected Will to accept that answer, but instead she lifted her chin. “Not back, then. Forward. Being with you is the happiest I’ve ever been. I think I made you happy, too. Despite initially running away with my tail between my legs, I’ve come to my senses. I’m not going to be so easily scared away again, and I’m not going to disappear.”
Nora opened her mouth to speak, but no words came out.
Will flashed a grin. “Why don’t you take those downstairs and let me take over from here? You can put up your feet for a minute or start getting ready for happy hour.”
Without waiting for a response, Will brushed past her and disappeared into one of the rooms. Nora stood there, trying to figure out how she felt about being steamrolled. It was kind of nice. Nice, Nora realized, because it wasn’t really steamrolling. It was more like she and Will were evenly matched. Not something she had a lot of experience with. And not that she had any intention of putting her feet up, but when was the last time someone in her life even told her she should?
Jordyn had gotten her to loosen up. At the time, she’d relished playing at being carefree. In hindsight, it had all been a ploy to get her to let down her guard. Which was why she took such pains to keep it up now. But being with Will was different. Sure, Will tried to get her to relax sometimes, but the motivation never seemed to be reckless abandon. If anything, Will seemed to thrive on responsibility.
Nora started downstairs, then abruptly stopped. Being with Will. Had she really just thought that phrase? And not even as a question, but more of a passing thing. What was she supposed to do with that?
“Why are you still standing there? You’re supposed to be resting.”
The sound of Will’s voice snapped her back to reality. She turned around to find Will standing in the hall with an armful of sheets. “I thought I’d wait for a second set so I can put them on to wash.”
Will looked at her curiously, but didn’t question her. She handed her the pile. “Okay. Take these. I’ll be down with the rest soon. Now, seriously, go relax.”
Nora carried the linens downstairs and to the laundry room. She shoved them into the machine, added detergent, set the cycle. She stood there for a moment, watching the machine fill with water and begin to spin. It was kind of hypnotic, actually. She lingered, allowing the repetitive sound and motion to empty her mind of thoughts.
“What are you doing?”
Nora jumped. She whirled around and found Tisha standing in the doorway, looking at her like she’d lost her mind. Nora straightened her posture and lifted her chin. “Laundry.”
> Tisha peered around her. “That cycle started twelve minutes ago.”
Had she really been standing there for twelve minutes? “I guess my mind wandered.”
“Clearly.”
“Will insisted on taking care of the rest of the rooms, so I can take over the happy hour setup.”
Tisha angled her head. “Or you could take it easy for a few minutes.”
Nora let out a noise that sounded more like a growl than a sigh. “Why is everyone so adamant that I take it easy? I’m fine.”
Tisha regarded her blandly. “You’re barely two weeks out of a serious accident. Your body needs to recover.”
“Aside from this,” Nora waved her cast with annoyance, “I am recovered. What I’m not okay with is everyone treating me like a child.”
“Then maybe you should stop acting like one.”
“What is that supposed to mean?”
“It means you’re short-tempered, stubborn, and teetering on the verge of a tantrum when you don’t get your way.”
The insult stung. A lot. “I am not.”
Tisha raised a brow. “Are, too?”
How could she have walked into that so easily? Nora took a deep breath. Her own agitation didn’t justify lashing out at the people trying to help her. “I’m sorry. I don’t mean to be difficult. I hate having to rely so much on other people.”
“Other people or just Will?”
* * *
Will carried the remaining linens down the stairs. She headed to the laundry room to drop them off, but stopped when she heard voices. Nora was still there and Tisha was with her. Will hesitated, not wanting to break into their conversation, but not sure where else to go. And then she heard her name. And it was Tisha who’d said it. Will held onto the pile of sheets, but tiptoed closer. She slid to the left to stay out of view and angled her head, as though that would help her hear better.
