Suddenly, the words his mom said sank in. She and Cora spoke on the phone? He had no idea. How often? He’d just assumed they didn’t speak to her any more than he did.
Grey shook Dare’s hand before pulling him in for a hug. “Good to see you, little brother. You staying out of trouble?”
Dare grinned. “You know me better than that. Since when did I stay out of trouble?”
“Since never.” Grey laughed. Moving away from San Antonio had been the right decision, but he missed seeing Dare more often.
He turned to find Flynn with a hand extended. “Glad you were able to hike in. We lost power in the middle of the night. But there are fireplaces in every bedroom and plenty of food. We’re getting by just fine.” Abby walked up to stand beside him, their daughter in her arms. Little Emma had the same wavy brown hair that her momma did.
Grey smiled at them both. “It’s good to see you Abby.” He reached out and patted Emma on the back. “My goodness, she’s gotten big.”
Abby nodded. “She wants to do everything her big brother does, so it’s been a challenge lately.” She hugged the little girl to her. “It’s worth it, though.” She nuzzled Emma’s cheek. “It’s good to see you, too.” She looked at Cora curiously.
“Oh, I’m sorry. Abby, this is Cora. Cora, this Flynn’s wife, Abby.” He introduced Emma and then looked around for his nephew. “Where is Zac?”
He’d barely gotten the words out before the little boy ran into the room and jumped right into Grey’s arms. It was only moments, though, until he wrinkled his nose and started squirming to get back down again. “You’re all wet.”
Grey laughed at his nephew. “We just walked through the snow for two hours, kiddo.” He held his hand to the boy’s chest. “Snow is up to here out there. If it’d snowed much more, you’d have to use a snorkel if you went outside.”
That had Zac laughing and probably coming up with something mischievous to do. He reminded Grey of Dare a lot at that age.
Cora offered a shy smile. “It’s really nice to meet you, Abby. Your children are beautiful.”
“Thank you.” Abby looked at her husband. The impassive expression on Flynn’s face caused her smile to falter.
Grey scanned the large main room. It was the same cabin they’d stayed in every time they came here for vacation when he was a kid. Furniture had changed, but the emotional ties had not. He looked at Dare who was standing nearby. “It doesn’t feel the same without Grandpa here, does it?”
Dare shook his head sadly. “You’re right, it sure doesn’t.” He lowered his voice. “Everything going okay?” He flicked his gaze to Cora making it clear what he was talking about.
“Better than I’d expected, I guess. Though I think I was about as nervous about this combination here as I was anything.”
There was no doubt Dare knew exactly what he was talking about.
Mom cleared her throat loudly, garnering everyone’s attention. “I can’t begin to tell you how wonderful it is to have you all under one roof. I know this would’ve meant a lot to Grandpa.” She paused a moment. “When the lawyer first told me about his wish for all of us to meet here, I was as surprised as the rest of you. But I think it’s fitting that we celebrate what would have been his ninetieth birthday in one of his favorite places.”
They all nodded solemnly.
Mom continued. “Your grandpa was a good man who was here for this family no matter what. He’d be okay with us mourning the fact that he and Mamaw are both gone now, but he’d also want us to remember the many good times we’ve had together. He’d want us to remember how important family is, because no matter what’s going on in life, we always have each other.” She scanned her family with a satisfied look on her face. “I, for one, am thankful we all got here safely.”
Grey wasn’t sure what Mom expected from this weekend. He just hoped that the tension in the room would stay at a minimum so she wasn’t disappointed.
Mom held up her hand. “Now, before Grey and Cora catch their death from standing around in wet clothes, they should go change and warm up by the fire.” She put one arm around each of them. “Did you two get anything to eat?”
“We had a protein bar this morning, but we sure could use something else about now.” Grey’s stomach rumbled. Cora had to be starving, too. “I’ve heard rumors that you guys have food here.”
Mom smiled brightly. “There are enough sandwich fixings in the fridge to last for days. Although we’re going to need to move everything into coolers outside soon with the electricity out.”
“We can take care of that after we eat,” Flynn said.
Mom patted Cora kindly on the shoulder. “Follow me upstairs, and I’ll show you which room is yours.”
Cora nodded, obviously relieved. She retrieved her suitcase from its spot on the rug and, with one final glance in Grey’s direction, the two women disappeared.
They’d barely gone out of earshot before Flynn tilted his head in Cora’s direction. “I’m sorry you’re having to deal with this, Grey. It’s completely inappropriate for her to be here. She shouldn’t have been included in this. She’s not family.”
Grey knew his brother wouldn’t be happy about Cora, but his bluntness was still a shock. “Grandpa invited her, Flynn.”
“Just because he asked her to be here doesn’t mean she should’ve accepted.” He shook his head as though he couldn’t believe she’d have the audacity to do such a thing.
