by T. L. Haddix
“I don’t think so, either. We’ve been knitting,” Sarah said, holding up the square they’d started. “I think I might be able to figure this out now, thanks to Haley’s guidance. I can’t thank you enough, dear.”
“I’ve enjoyed helping. Do you have access to the Internet? There are tons of videos out there that are great learning tools.”
“She’s quite proficient at using the computer,” Owen said proudly. “I’m the old-fashioned pens and papers member of the team.”
“You do as well as I do and you know it,” Sarah told him with a flirtatious glance. “And with five children, twelve grandchildren, and various assorted siblings, nieces, nephews, and the like, I’ve had to learn to use a computer to stay in touch. Otherwise, I’d never hear from anyone.” She stood. “I suppose we’d best head out. Haley, I’ve so enjoyed meeting you.”
Haley wrote her e-mail address and phone number down on a scrap of paper from her purse. “If you have questions about the knitting, please don’t hesitate to contact me. I’d be more than happy to help any way I can.”
“Thank you.” Sarah took the paper with a smile. “I’ll send you a message tonight to get you in my contact list. Maybe we’ll see you again sometime soon?”
“Maybe.”
“I’m sure I’ll see you,” Noah said as he took the bag of books Sarah handed him. “I’ll be in with Eli from time to time.”
“Noah tells me that you’re making excellent progress with Eli,” Owen said as Haley stood and gathered her own books.
“I think so. He’s got a lot of factors working in his favor for recovery, first and foremost being that he wants to conquer the new reality he faces. That’s a huge part of the battle.”
Owen nodded sagely. “Sometimes a man can be his own worst enemy, get in the way of his own happiness. I’m pleased to hear that Eli isn’t traveling that path.”
“He still could,” Noah mused pensively. “Getting the prosthesis is weighing heavily on his mind. How can we help him come to terms with that? Do you have any advice, Haley?”
“Follow his lead on things—don’t make a big deal of it if he doesn’t, do acknowledge his fears and don’t dismiss them, give him time to grieve. Don’t try to force him to come to terms with things on your timeline—and I’m not suggesting you would do that, any of you, but it does happen. This is a very personal loss, what he’s going through, and what you all are experiencing with him. I get the impression he’s handling the weight of it well enough for now, but it could hit him and hard. If it does, just support him and love him.”
“Sophie’s coming in today for a visit,” Sarah said as they walked toward the checkout desk, “so that’ll help him. They’ve always been close.”
“Who’s Sophie?” Haley asked, eyeing with curiosity the dark scowl that had crossed Noah’s face at the mention of the woman’s name.
“Trouble, that’s who,” he growled. “What the hell does she want?”
“Noah! Don’t be rude,” Sarah said, scolding him firmly. “And Sophie is… well, Eli’s late wife was her cousin. They were raised almost as sisters, so I suppose you’d say she’s Eli’s sister-in-law or close enough to it.”
“She’s a very sweet girl,” Owen said, shooting his grandson a chastising look. “She and Eli have been good friends for years. Don’t let Noah’s overreaction make you think otherwise. She’s flying up to Lexington from Houston, then driving in for the night.”
Haley ignored the voice inside her that whispered of jealousy. “That’ll be a nice thing for him, then. I should head out. I have several errands to run before my grandfather gets home. It was so nice meeting you both, and seeing you again,” she told Noah with a smile.
He was still clearly perturbed by the news about Sophie, but he nodded. “You, too.”
Sarah surprised her by giving her a little hug. “You should come up to the farm one Sunday, have dinner with us.”
Owen added his agreement. “Absolutely, you should. We’d love to have you. We’re there every Sunday.”
Between the amused, indulgent smile Noah wasn’t trying to hide and what she’d learned about his grandparents over the last couple of days, it didn’t take much for Haley to guess they were trying to pull her into their matchmaking.
“I really appreciate that offer, but given that Eli’s my patient, I don’t think it would be appropriate,” she told them with some regret.
Owen winked at her. “He won’t be your patient forever, young lady. The invitation stands. Every Sunday, one o’clock. Sarah can e-mail you the directions.”
“We’ll see,” Haley said. “Take care.”
As she used one of the self-serve stations to check out, she couldn’t help but chuckle at thoughts of the encounter. If nothing else, she’d have an entertaining story for Eli on Wednesday.
Her phone rang as she walked out the door, and seeing it was Jenna, she let it go to voice mail. She’d call her back later. Right now, she was still focused on enjoying being idle, even if she was on her way to the grocery store. When she realized that she’d started classifying calls from her friend as work, she huffed out a laugh.
“I’m not sure what that says about the state of your friendship, Haley,” she told her reflection in the rearview mirror.
While she drove to the store, she wondered about Eli’s sister-in-law. Given Noah’s reaction, she knew there was more to the story than she was aware of, and she was curious as to what that might be.
“You’re altogether too curious about the Campbells, part and parcel, for your own good,” she said as she parked the Hulk. “Especially Eli. He’s just your patient. You’d do well to remember that.”
Maybe by the time Wednesday came around, if she practiced and worked hard at it, she’d be able to put him back firmly where he belonged in her mind. She simply didn’t think she’d be successful. No, she didn’t think she’d have a prayer of a chance of keeping Eli Campbell where he needed to stay, and she was going to have to learn to deal with that.
Chapter Twenty-Two
“She seems like a very nice girl,” Sarah said as they got in the car a few minutes later. “Noah, what do you think of her?”
He reached over and touched her cheek, then backed the car out. “I can see the wheels turning in your head. You’re plotting. And Eli likes her.”
“I can see why,” Owen said. “She seemed very compassionate.”
“I think she is compassionate. But he likes her.” Noah caught his grandfather’s eye in the rearview mirror. “He’s not feeling very confident right now, though. And there is that whole patient thing to worry about.”
“Well, confidence will come as he heals. And time will take care of the conflict of interest.” Sarah studied him carefully. “You’re sure he’s interested in her?”
Noah grinned. “Oh, yeah.”
“Hmmm. Well, that’s interesting. Very interesting, indeed. We’ll have to see what we can do to help things along.” She gave a very self-satisfied sigh, and her smile was full of mischievous energy. “With any luck, we’ll have several grandbabies to play with within a couple of years.”
“Grandma… You two are something else, you know that?” Noah asked. He tried to change the subject. “Do you need to make any other stops while we’re out?”
She patted his hand. “Only the store on the way home like we’d planned.”
“I think the knitting is what’s doing it,” Owen added from the backseat. “I wonder what would happen if I took it up, too? Maybe that might get the most stubborn of the lot to start considering his future. What do you think, Sarah?”
Noah scowled at them both as they laughed. “Very funny. I’m perfectly content with my life the way it is, thank you very much.”
“I said the same thing before I met your grandmother,” Owen promptly responded. �
�Why settle for being content if you can be blissfully happy?”
But Noah knew it wasn’t that simple. His mind drifted to Sophie, venturing into territory he’d prefer not to revisit. He still bore scars from their short-lived, ill-fated relationship, scars that hurt. As he thought about the fact that in all likelihood, he’d be seeing her tomorrow, he gave a silent groan. To Noah, Sophie was something he had to endure.
“Content’s safer. I’ll take safety over risk any day,” he said quietly.
“That’s my little Owen,” Sarah said with a disgruntled huff. The words weren’t entirely complimentary.
Talk turned to the surprise wedding Sydney and Sawyer were planning for the following weekend at the farm. Sydney had pulled him and his grandparents into the planning, leaving the rest of the family in the dark. If they pulled it off, it would be a great surprise, one that Noah was secretly looking forward to. That said, his mind never ventured far from the idea of Sophie.
He’d learned long ago that she could haunt him as much as any ghost if he let her. Maybe now that she was hanging around, now that Eli was in town, it was time to exorcise her once and for all. All he had to do was figure out how in the world to go about doing it.
Chapter Twenty-Three
The relief Eli felt at being able to drive himself around again mostly eclipsed the negative emotions surrounding the prosthesis. When he parked the new-to-him SUV in front of the physical therapy clinic Wednesday morning, he patted the dashboard.
His parents had insisted on purchasing the gently used vehicle for him, as his separation pay hadn’t come in yet. But it should be in his account any day now, and as soon as it was, he’d reimburse them. He didn’t expect that would be easy—John had insisted the money they’d used was his.
“We set aside funds for all three of you for college. You never used it. It’s your money. Noah used his to stake the woodshop. Don’t you even try to give this back to us.” He’d used both hands to playfully choke Eli, then pulled him in for a tight hug. “Besides, it’s your birthday.”
Eli’d returned the embrace, shaking his head as he laughed. “We’ll see about that, Dad.” He figured he had about a fifty percent chance of succeeding, but he had to try. If nothing else, he’d hire Noah to redo the kitchen for Zanny and repay them that way.
Several times since he’d gotten home, he’d caught her glancing through kitchen design magazines. From what he’d gathered, she and Noah had held an in-depth conversation on the flight to Germany regarding his brother’s vision for the room. Though she insisted she didn’t want a remodel, Eli wasn’t so sure. If she did… well. He’d make sure it happened. It was the least he could do.
Moving carefully, he got out and opened the door behind his seat to access the walker he’d been upgraded to. As happy as he was to have gotten rid of the crutches, he wasn’t so sure about the contraption.
“With any luck, I’ll only need it for a few weeks,” he said as he locked the SUV and headed inside. Walking on two feet again was awkward. Even though the lobby was empty, he felt like people were watching as he went into the physical therapy center. He’d finally gotten used to being on the crutches, on being seen on the crutches, and now he had to get used to this.
He had the feeling getting used to things he’d not expected was going to be on his horizon for some time to come.
“Well, look at you!” Lou said as he came in the door. She smiled and clasped her hands together under her chin. “How was your weekend, sweetie?”
“Long, eventful, good. Yours?”
“Boring and hot. I’ll let Haley know you’re here. She’s finishing up with someone, and she shouldn’t be long.”
“Thanks, Lou.” As he took a seat, he thought about Molly. She’d gone back to Lexington with him Sunday as part of a convoy—Eli’d rode down with Sophie, John and Zanny had driven in their car, and Molly in hers. She’d be starting classes this week for her last semester of college, and even though she’d be home often enough, Eli knew he’d miss her.
The door swung open before he could finish that line of thought, and Haley was standing there, grinning at him. “Hey, hey. Check you out. Come on back.”
Eli was helpless to prevent a grin in response. “I hear you had an encounter with some crazy people at the library Saturday.”
She laughed, though she paid close attention to his gait as he walked through the door. “I wouldn’t say that exactly. Your grandparents seem like absolute sweethearts. How goes Sarah’s knitting?”
Eli stopped in the hall outside the therapy room and sent her a mock frown. “How goes the knitting, indeed. You’ve created a monster. She had Mom go to a yarn store Monday and pick her up several different kinds of the stuff and some needles you apparently recommended. I think she spent more on that than I did on my laptop. She’ll have the farmhouse covered in knitting and crocheting before we can blink, and us bound to posts and pillars inside until we agree to produce her some grandbabies.”
Haley laughed with delight. “Good for her. Someone needs to keep you grandkids in line.”
It took every bit of self-control he had not to steal a kiss right then. With her cheeks flushed from the laughter, her eyes twinkling with merriment, and a soft-looking strand of hair down along the side of her neck, she was stunning. Before he could do anything reckless, he forced himself to continue into the room.
“Regardless of the threat she now poses with those new needles, I have to say it thrilled her to meet you. Both of them, actually. Grandpa was as excited as she was. You left them with a good impression.”
Haley tucked the loose strand back behind her ear. “I was honest. That’s all.”
“And that’s such a common commodity these days,” he said with an eye roll.
“I can’t argue with that,” she said dryly. “Have a seat and tell me how things are going with the prosthesis.”
He sat, then extended his leg. “Haley, meet Fido. Fido, Haley.”
She laughed so fast she snorted, then raised one of her hands up to cover her mouth. “You were serious.”
“Sure. Why not?” he asked with a smile. “If people can name their vehicles, why not a prosthesis? I’m driving again, by the way.”
“How does that feel, being back behind the wheel?” she asked as she inspected the fit of the top of the prosthesis around his leg.
“Good. Freeing.”
She tilted her head to study his leg. “And your feelings about the prosthesis?”
Eli shrugged, fully intending to tell her he was fine with the concept, that he’d moved past any despair or anger associated with the amputation, but the words wouldn’t come out. Instead, he choked up. All he could do was stare at her for several tense moments, then look away.
“I hate it,” he admitted in a low voice. “I know I should be thanking God every day that I have what I have, and for the most part, I am, but damn it all, Haley. I want my foot back. But it’s gone. We’re burying it this weekend. That’s going to be weird. Not often a man gets to attend part of his own funeral.”
A soft, strong hand came to rest on his, clasping tightly. She didn’t say anything as he regained his composure, just held on. For a couple of long minutes they sat like that, not speaking. Finally, he was able to draw in a deep breath and blow off some of the tension.
“Sorry.”
“Hush. You have no reason to apologize to me for being human. And nothing to be ashamed of, either. Frankly, you’re holding up better than I would in the same circumstances.” She gave his hand one last squeeze, then straightened.
Eli glanced at her, then back down to his legs. “I’m used to being a proactive guy. With this, I feel like I’m just rolling with the punches, reacting and trying to keep up.”
“I know. I wish I could do more to help you with that.”
“That’s a demon
I have to battle on my own, I think. And you do help.” He sighed. “Work me hard, please. Make me too tired to feel pity for myself.”
She shot him a chiding look. “There’s a difference between pity and grief. Believe me, I’ll not let you get away with pity. But I’ll be more than happy to try to distract you. Tell me how Fido feels physically.”
By the time they made it to the main room, she’d made good on her promise—he was soaked with sweat. And she wasn’t finished with him, either.
“I want to see you on the parallel bars. We need to do some gait training and make sure you don’t develop any bad habits. Lower-limb amputees are more likely to develop osteoporosis, no matter how good or bad their overall physical condition is. We need to try everything we can to prevent that.”
“You’ve been talking to my sister,” he teased. “Molly has me on a regimen of calcium and magnesium supplements, probiotics, fish oil… I feel like a walking—pardon a pun—ad for a men’s health magazine.”
Haley sent him a saucy grin as she settled a belt around his waist. “No pun today, buddy. You’re on your feet. Both of them. Even if you’re still getting used to the idea of Fido,” she finished softly. “I want you to watch out for any soreness that develops. Okay?”
“Yes, ma’am.”
She gave him instructions on how to properly approach making steps, then after she was satisfied with his physical response, stood back. “Good. Come at me. So, do you mind satisfying some of my curiosity?”
Chastising himself for being a dirty-minded pervert at the ideas her words conjured, Eli shook his head. “Not at all.”
“Who’s Sophie?”
That wasn’t the question he’d been expecting. Seeing his surprise, she continued. “Your grandparents mentioned her Saturday, and Noah turned into a thundercloud. I know she’s your sort-of sister-in-law. And because I’m hopelessly nosy, I’m curious as to what the story there is between her and your brother. Please tell me if it’s not any of my business, which it isn’t. But if you tell me it isn’t, I’ll hush.”
