Page 61 of The Banned Books Club
She smiled. He was thirty-eight going on fifty-eight. She always told him he was the oldest, wisest soul in the room. “I am, for the most part.”
“So...it’s not as bad as you anticipated?”
“It’s every bit as bad. But...” She stood up to peer over the fence into Cormac’s backyard before sitting down again. “There’ve been some welcome surprises, too.”
“I’m happy to hear it. Just wanted to let you know that everything’s going well around here. You don’t have to worry about the business. We’re closing out our biggest season ever. I still wish you could go to Glacier with me, but I’ll send you the pictures I take so you can enjoy the sights along with me.”
She was afraid that would make her more jealous than happy, but it was such a kind gesture that she couldn’t say no. “Thank you. Give my love to Coty and kiss Ingrid for me.”
“Coty and Ingrid send their love right back,” he said and disconnected.
She checked her watch. It was nearly midnight. But she was tempted to call Margot anyway, just in case she could reach her sister. She wanted to talk to someone who would actually understand the significance of what’d happened tonight. She was still so shocked by Cormac’s appearance.
Again, she got up and looked over the fence. He was definitely still awake. She saw him pass in front of the kitchen window, but it looked like he might be shirtless, which meant he was probably preparing for bed.
She told herself to leave him alone—leave the whole thing as it was—but she didn’t know if she’d have a better opportunity to thank him and to tell him that she didn’t expect him to stand up for her. She actually preferred he didn’t so she wouldn’t have to worry about the impact on his life. It was enough that he believed her; she didn’t want him to go to war with his family.
She went back inside to get the Duke sweatshirt he’d loaned her. He’d put her shirt on the fence last night, but she’d been hanging on to his, secretly hoping for the chance to speak with him again. Now she was glad she’d held off returning it for a day or two. She could go to his place under the guise of returning it and thank him for what he’d done tonight at the same time.
The temperature seemed a lot colder once she stepped back outside. She knew she probably shouldn’t go over so late—he certainly wouldn’t be expecting company. But she knew she wouldn’t sleep well if she didn’t get the chance to say what was on her mind.
Once she let herself through the gate and walked around to his front door, she knocked softly and heard his dog bark as she shifted nervously on her feet.
A curtain moved; he was looking out at her. She dug her fingernails into her palms because she felt awkward. She couldn’t imagine he’d be happy to see her.
He held his dog back while opening the door. “Hey.”
She cleared her throat. “Sorry to bother you so late, but... Well, the light was on...”
“I’m up. No problem. Would you like to come in?”
She almost refused. She felt terrible barging in on him so late. But he was having to hang on to his dog, and she felt what she had to say might be better received if he didn’t have to worry about that. “Sure. For a sec.”
“Duke,” he said to his dog as he encouraged him to move out of the way so she could get inside. Then he closed the door and straightened while his rottweiler smelled her feet and legs.
“This has been washed,” she said, handing him his sweatshirt. “Thank you for letting me use it.”
“No problem. I left your shirt on the fence last night. I assume you got it.”
“I did.”
“I’m sorry about what happened at the restaurant earlier. Once I became aware that Edith and Louisa were planning to crash the reunion, I did what I could to talk them out of it. But they wouldn’t listen to me. Showing up probably made an even bigger scene, though. I just...didn’t know what else to do.”
He could’ve let it play out. Instead, he’d come to stop his sisters, despite what it would cost him on a personal level. “What you did was...courageous. I’m grateful. But I also want to make it clear that you should never do that sort of thing again.”
He blinked in apparent surprise. “Why not?”
“Because I don’t want to leave you in a worse place than you were when I came home. I’ll be in town only until... Well, youlivein Wakefield, are building a life and a business here. It’d be better for me to just weather the storm, you know? I’d rather not get in the way of your relationships, especially with your family.”
He looked slightly baffled. “Even with my father?”
“Of course. It was never my intent to strip him of everything he had. I just... I wanted to get out of his class. I couldn’t be comfortable there after...after what he did. And it was only fair that I get the grade I deserved on that paper so I could go to college.”
“But you dropped out, anyway.”
“I was too messed up at that time. I couldn’t function like the other students.”
He frowned but she continued before he could comment.
