by Flora Burgos
Chapter 11
SHE WAITED, GIVING them a half hour, figuring that would give them all time to get in place, and then she made her way to the clearing that they had all parked in. She parked next to the dark sedan that she knew the boys were most likely in, climbed out of her car, and walked over to Claire.
"Hey, I know we weren't introduced properly back at the house, but I’m Courtney, Devon's sister. You're Claire, right?"
"Yep, Katy’s cousin."
"So, they've already taken off to rescue her?"
"Yeah, but I don't think they've gotten to her yet."
"Do you mind if I wait with you? Those three guys are my family, and Sean is my best friend."
"Not at all."
The silence and tension were palpable. Claire had an earpiece but kept silent for the most part, so Courtney assumed they were still making their way to wherever Katherine was being held. They climbed into the backseat of the car that Claire had arrived in. Courtney was torn from her musings when Claire jerked up and stopped breathing.
She couldn't take the silence anymore and asked, "What?" But Claire only held up a hand.
Finally, she whispered, "Oh, God. Dad. He actually did it. He has her."
Courtney wrapped her arms around her and pulled her close while Claire cupped a hand to her ear to prevent the earpiece from falling out. Courtney couldn't hear what was being said, but she felt Claire's body jerk in her arms and heard her give a strangled sob.
Courtney began to whisper over and over again like a mantra to both herself and Claire, "It's ok, it's ok, it's ok," while rocking them both and trying desperately to hold on to her emotions.
Claire gasped, and then her body jerked as her heart dropped. Finally, Courtney pulled back slightly and begged, "Please, please tell me what's going on. That's my family, too."
Claire looked up at her and had tortured eyes when she said, "They shot my dad. Katherine isn't responding. She's— Oh my God! She's awake!"
Courtney slumped back against the seat in relief and promptly burst into tears.
The sirens from the emergency vehicles coming for Donald's corpse and to rush Katherine to the hospital shot past the vehicles, and they rushed into action. Courtney began wiping her face and turned to Claire, "I've gotta get out of here. Are you going to be ok?"
Claire didn't know her from Adam, but she needed to not be alone at that moment, so she begged, "Please don't leave me alone. I can't. As soon as someone else gets here, you can go, ok? Just please don't—"
"No, of course not." Courtney interrupted her. Her need to escape was eclipsed by Claire's grief. There was no way she could leave her. She had caused this whole situation, so instead, she sat in the car and waited with her.
Devon, Cole, and Clint came through the woods first and made their way toward the two women. Without a word and honestly shocking Courtney to her bones, she watched her big brother walk straight to Claire and pull her into his arms, where she promptly burst into tears. Clint walked straight to Courtney and hugged her, saying softly in her ear, "You did the right thing, calling us in here. Give your brother your keys and hop in the SUV. He's taking Claire to the hospital in your car to get a feel of her mindset.
It was a good play, sending Clint to talk to her instead of Cole. If the other had come, she would have objected, but Clint had always been like a brother to her and losing him in their breakup had stung like a mother, so sending him to soften her up and having Cole go get in the SUV, in the backseat no less, was a home run.
She walked to her brother and her former nemesis' cousin, handed her brother her keys, and patted Claire on the back. When she felt her touch, Claire turned into her arms and thanked her through her tears. Courtney hugged her back until Devon took her back into his arms. Then she made her way across the clearing to the SUV, where the La Barron brothers waited for her.
She was silent as she climbed in and buckled up, and Clint said, "We're heading to the hospital to meet everyone else, and we'll go from there, yeah?"
Cole didn't respond, but she could feel his gaze bearing down on her, so she nodded and kept her gaze trained out the passenger window, refusing to acknowledge either of them on the ride into town.
THEY HUNG OUT AT THE hospital for two days, waiting on Katherine to be moved out of ICU. Cole was the only one of their group who had broken the hospital rules and snuck into her room even though it was a strict one visitor at a time rule and Ev refused to leave her side. It struck Courtney as odd that he went, but she couldn't ask about it unless she wanted to break her self-imposed silent treatment of him, so she let it go and instead stuck close to Devon and Claire. Devon had since given her back her keys, and she had a plan in place. As soon as she could explain herself to Katherine and make amends to Ev, she was hitting the road. No horses and no rodeo. She had a friend in California who had offered her a winter position on her dude ranch, and Courtney figured she needed to get away. Cut all ties for a few months and see how she felt once she had time to separate herself from everything. She'd had her eyes opened in a rather forceful way with Katherine's abduction, and now it was time to find some peace. The only people who knew her plans were her parents because they were sending some of her belongings to California to be waiting for her when she left the hospital. It was time for her to stop running and instead find herself.
Devon came by to tell her that Ev had finally agreed to leave the hospital long enough to shower, change, and grab a few things, so Courtney took her chance and quietly snuck into the hospital room.
Immediately, she was taken aback. She knew that Ev called Katherine Peach, but she had never really considered it. Her own father called her Firecracker for no reason other than her waspish attitude at times, so she had never really considered it, but the room was absolutely covered in peach-colored roses. Bemused, it occurred to her that she hadn't even been aware that roses came in that color.
Katherine broke the silence by speaking up. "A little much, isn't it?"
Courtney swallowed a giggle and responded, "Umm, well, only if you aren't opening a specialty flower shop. Where on earth did he find so many peach-colored roses?"
"I have no idea. It was like this when they wheeled me in here. Of course, I haven't been able to shake him until now."
"Yeah, he was saying good-bye to the guys when I came up here."
"They're quite a bunch, but they seem pretty intimidating. I see you have your hands full."
"Not as much as you'd think. Clint is pretty self-sufficient and tends to be a loner, Cole spends most of his time in D.C., so he is barely ever around, and Devon thinks I’m just helpless and only need a little pocket money to be content."
"Typical male behavior..."
"Yeah."
Courtney was shocked to find herself not hating a conversation with the woman she had always pictured as evil. She spoke at the same time Katherine began to.
"What about—"
"You know, we—"
Awkwardly, they both started to laugh.
"Go ahead," Katherine invited.
It’s now or never. Time to come clean. Admit to her what a terrible person I am and hope that somehow, she can forgive me.
She drew up a deep breath and hurriedly spoke, "Okay, look, I just wanted to tell you myself that I'm sorry. I know I caused all this, but there has never been anything between Ev and me. He is like a brother to me. I grabbed on to him with both hands because of that. No emotion, no sex, and he can’t break my heart, you know?"
"You didn't cause any of this, Courtney. I was gullible and unsure of myself. I knew deep down that Sean loved me, but he had also hurt me before, so I was terrified to trust him again."
"Yeah, I know that feeling well. How much is safe to feel after they've left your heart in tatters before?"
"Cole?"
"How'd you... Ev, right?"
"Well, partially. He was very sparing with the details, and the rest I sort of pieced together myself after Cole came to see me. He still loves you,
too, you know?"
"We're just too different. I don't know, maybe. Ugh, I hate him!"
"Really?" Katherine asked laughingly.
"I avoided the man successfully for years, didn’t have to be around him or his wife other than the day I had the misfortune of finding out they were married, and now I won’t be able to escape him. I swear he'd follow me to the bathroom if my brother weren't there."
"Well, I'd get used to it. You've been hiding behind Sean for years, but Cole won’t buy that now, especially since he is finally free to do what he wants with his life."
"You know, I like you. I guess we're going to have to be friends now," Courtney said ironically.
"Looks like it," Katherine agreed with a grin.
"Ev is going to be back soon, and he's not ready to forgive me yet. The last thing I need is for him to find me here."
"Courtney? If you love him, give it a shot; if you really love him, it’s worth the fight."
Courtney walked over to the bed. Acting way outside of her character but going with her emotions, she bent to kiss Katherine's cheeks.
"You know, I may just do that. Get well soon. I don't know how many more roses should be killed on the altar of love this week."
Courtney walked out of the room with a smile on her face and felt lighter than she had in ages. Somehow, this whole traumatic situation had managed to get her to sort her priorities out. This time, she wasn't running. As soon as Ev and Devon got back, she was going to ask all four of the men in her life to sit down with her so she could tell them what her plans were. She knew it might be hard, but she was sticking with it. She needed to find herself before she tried to figure anything else out.
She only waited for a few minutes until Ev and Devon came back through the hospital waiting room. Taking in a deep breath for courage, she got up and walked to them, pausing in front of Ev and speaking, "Ev, I know you're in a hurry, and I know you don't want to talk to me, and I get it, but can I just talk to you, Dev, Clint, and Cole for a minute? I came to a realization, and I want to let you all know. I refuse to run away again."
Frustration marked his face, but at her words, softness entered it as well. For her to be taking them all on, he knew it was a big deal. Still, he stayed silent.
"Please, Ev? Only a minute. And I've already been in and talked to Katherine and apologized." She smiled ironically. "I actually think we may be sorta-kinda friends now."
That took the rest of the ire out of him, and his shoulders slumped as he responded, “Yeah, Court, of course. What’s up?”
Courtney looked at the La Barron brothers, and seeing that both had their gazes on her, she waved them over. It was impressive to watch the two of them stand and walk toward her. When they reached her, and the four men formed a circle around her, she began, "Look. I talked to a friend of mine. Ev, you remember Sarah?" At his nod, she continued, "Well, she's hired me for the winter months. I'm leaving here and going out to her dude ranch to pitch in. It's short-term." She held up a hand in Cole's direction when he started to speak. "I'm only going to fill in while her girl is on maternity leave, and that's it. And honestly? I need to get my head straight."
She turned to Cole first. "The first time I see you alone without a buffer since you broke my heart, and I fall into bed with you and run away,"—she turned to Ev—"to my best friend and nearly cost him the life of the woman he loves by playing games." She turned to Devon and gestured to Clint. "And you guys are back stateside, what? Hours? Before I call you in a dither needing you to come fix a problem I caused? None of that is fair, and it's not the way a grown-ass woman acts toward the men she loves in various capacities. I've already called Mom and Dad, and they've packed what I need and sent it out. All that's left is for me to say good-bye to all of you and hit the road."
Nobody said anything for what felt like an eternity before Devon broke the silence with a totally Devon comment, "Well, fuck me sideways. When the hell did you turn logical, Firecracker? I need you to be a little psycho. It’s the only way this comedic older brother bit works for me!” She snickered, and Devon yanked her into his arms to give her a tight hug. "I'm proud of you, sis. You need this. Find yourself." He looked up and over her shoulder, and she could almost swear that he was glaring down Cole. "The people who really love you will be here waiting on you when you get back. But your crazy ass better call, yeah? And not just to complain about period cramps and shit either because that shit is whacked."
That’s my big brother. He can lighten a moment while getting his point across. He has my back.
When Devon released Courtney, Clint pulled her into his arms next. "Welp, little sister, I guess I'll have to complain to Dev about my period pains for you for the next few months!" Gently, he kissed her cheek. "All joking aside, I'm proud of you. Take care of yourself, kiddo, and come home prepared to party because I haven't had the pleasure of hanging with a drunk Courtney in years."
She was still smiling when he released her and stepped back as well. Devon and Clint walked away together to take the seats they had been sitting in for the last two days, against the wall. Courtney had no clue where Claire was, and it just occurred to her that she hadn't seen her for several hours, so when Ev pulled her in for his hug before he spoke, she said, "Do me a favor? Can you give Claire my number? Let her know I'm here if she needs someone to talk to who isn't in the middle of everything?"
Ev squeezed her tighter for a moment and then said, "See? That right there is why you will always be my best bud. You wade into drama and rescue people without a thought to yourself and still think of yourself as some selfish, horrible person."
She snorted. "Ev, just saying, very recent activity on my part lends evidence to the fact that I am a not so great person."
Without releasing her, he pulled back slightly. "Court, you walked in on a bad situation that you had no clue about and fanned a fire that was already on the brink of re-ignition. It wasn't your fault."
"Ev, if you don't marry that girl, then when I get done with this job, I'm coming back here and putting my boot up your ass."
He leaned down to kiss her cheek and then released her to pull a box out of his pocket to show her. "Woman, what do you think I went home for? Had to get the ring!"
Courtney's eyes welled up with happy tears, and after he closed the box, she threw herself into his arms and kissed his cheek. "Good job, hot stuff! Y'all better invite me to the wedding!"
His eyes twinkled as he reached up a hand and brushed a fingertip against the apple of her cheek. "Darlin', if you miss it, I'm revoking your friendship status. Drive safe and keep in touch, yeah?"
"Yeah," she whispered back and watched as he sauntered to the hospital room where the love of his life lay. Then she sighed and resigned herself to the hardest conversation yet.
Before she could speak, he held up a hand. "Don't. Let me do the talking, ok?"
All she could do was nod and wait for him to continue.
"Shit's bad between us. I get it. And I finally see that it may be bad in a way that we can't get past, at least not without work, but maybe not at all. So, take your trip, but maybe keep in touch? Even just a text here and there saying you are still alive, so I don't worry myself sick. I'll go back to D.C. and do my thing. You go to Cali and do yours. And when we come back for Katy and Sean's wedding, we’ll talk, yeah? Cards on the table, bare it all, no more secrets, talk everything out and decide one way or the other, once and for all, what we're doing. Does that work?"
Just like that, a weight was lifted off her chest. It had been years since they had been together, but he still got her. He knew what the purpose of this trip was, and he was giving it to her. "Yeah," she whispered, and surprising both of them, she was the one who initiated contact between them and threw herself into his arms.
Her tears overflowed, and he pulled back just the slightest bit to put his hands on her face, and then even further so he could swipe his thumb across her cheeks, trying to wipe away her tears. "Baby Girl, there're too many. I can't
get them all."
Her forehead dropped and collided with his chest, his hands still holding her face. "God, how did this become our lives?" she asked on a sob.
Bending, he brushed his lips across her hair and said, "Doesn't matter, B.G. The only thing that matters now is that we go forward. You go clear your head, I go tie up some loose ends, and we meet when those two crazy asses set a date to figure the rest out. In the meantime, we focus on being friends, and you figure your heart out, yeah?"
She nodded against his chest and then pulled back and surprised him once more when she stood on her tiptoes and brushed her lips to his. After, she pulled back and stared at him for moments before pulling away and wiping her face. Then she threw a hand in the air toward her brother and Clint, turned, and walked away.
Chapter 12
Five months later
THE TIME SHE HAD SPENT on Sarah's ranch was exactly what she needed. She had gone from being in a relationship with Cole to a very serious, and she saw now, very dependent friendship with Ev, to spiraling on her own. While she was away, she had stayed in contact with Ev and her brother, but the most surprising constant conversations that she had were with Katherine, who she had managed to become very close to. They bonded over bitching about Ev and his bad habits in the beginning, and from there a true friendship had blossomed, so much so that Courtney was going to be standing up in their wedding, on Katherine's side.
