Hummingbird Lake (29 page)

Rose sat on the window seat and leaned against the comfy cushioned backrest. By their own volition, her feet lifted and she stretched out her legs. The seat fit her body so perfectly that it might as well have been built for her.

In that moment, she wanted to remain in Eternity Springs, in this garret suite, attempting to write a book and reconcile with her sister. She wanted it so badly that it frightened her. Reacting, she started to move, to flee this suite as fast as Sage had fled the hot springs park earlier. Even as she flexed her muscles, Celeste
reached down to the window seat and said, “Look. It’s a built-in serving tray. It’s a perfect place to set your cup of tea.”

Her gaze on the oh-so-perfect tray, Rose surrendered. “What’s the security code for the Wi-Fi?”

SEVENTEEN

June

At the end of the third day of the five-day children’s cancer camp program at Angel’s Rest, Colt sat with Ali Timberlake at a table set for four at the Bristlecone Café. Nic Callahan and Sarah Reese had excused themselves moments ago to visit the ladies’ room. As a high school kid bused their plates, Colt gazed glumly out the window toward Angel’s Rest and the footbridge over the creek where Rose Anderson basked in the attention of Connor Keene, cartoonist and wolf on the prowl. “Sage is going to hear about this and it’s going to drive her crazy.”

“Why is that?” Ali asked.

“Because Pencil Boy is the perfect pawn in the War of the Herbs.”

A laugh bubbled from Ali’s lips. “War of the Herbs?”

“Sage and Rosemary. I halfway expect their twin brothers to show up anytime now looking for their true love.”

Ali visibly thought it through. “Parsley and Thyme? Are you a Simon and Garfunkel fan, Rafferty?”

“I’m a sucker who has somehow, without any intentional effort, found himself stuck in the middle between two hardheaded women.”

Ali summoned Glenda Hawkins’ attention with a little
wave and gestured toward her tea glass. “They are both determined.”

“Demented,” he grumbled, taking a swig from his own glass of iced tea.

It had been six weeks since the sisters’ scene at the hot springs at Angel’s Rest. Four weeks since Rose went public with the news of her “extended vacation” and flew a bee right into Sage’s bonnet that had yet to stop buzzing. The two women hadn’t spoken to each other, but from what he observed, they each spent half their day trying to ferret out news about the other. Yet a part of him couldn’t complain, because for the most part, he had been the beneficiary of Sage’s snit about her sister.

She turned to him when she was in turmoil. That had gotten him back into her bed when he first returned to town, and despite a halfhearted attempt or two, she had yet to kick him out. His mistake—and in retrospect it had been a doozy—was to let Sage talk him into approaching Rose for the purpose of subtle interrogation.

He liked Rose Anderson a lot. She was friendly and funny and straightforward. She’d flat out asked him if he was a spy for her sister. He’d confessed that Sage was curious, she’d admitted to a similar state, and he’d launched into his newest part-time job—acting as go-between for the Anderson sisters.

He sighed and said, “So, how did the kids like Cartoon Man?”

“What do you have against Connor Keene?” Ali asked. “He’s a really nice guy.”

“He’s a wolf. He comes on to every woman he meets—doesn’t matter if they’re sixteen or sixty. Single or married or …”

“Sleeping with someone?” Ali arched a brow. “Jealous, Rafferty?”

“He has octopus arms and he needs to keep them off my woman.”

Ali laughed. “Well, he’s great with the children, and he’s been a wonderful addition to the program. He’s even promised that if we do this again next summer, he’ll come back.”

“Oh, joy.”

At that point, Glenda finally managed to break away from the other table of diners and make her way over to refill Ali’s iced tea. Ali smiled up at her and asked, “How are the moving plans going, Glenda?”

“Pretty good. Our builder has promised the house will be ready by mid-August. We intend to be in and settled in time for Billy to start school in September.”

“Any luck finding a buyer for the Bristlecone?” Ali gazed around the restaurant a bit wistfully.

“Not yet. We’re not in a hurry, though, because thankfully our plans don’t hinge on our ability to sell the Bristlecone first.” As she topped off Colt’s glass, she glanced out the window and clicked her tongue. “There’s that wonderful Mr. Keene. He is such a nice man. So handsome, too. Don’t you think?”

“He’s adorable,” Colt drawled in a dry tone.

Ali laughed as Sarah and Nic rejoined their table. “If you’ll bring me our check, Glenda, we need to get moving.”

“Don’t we get to have dessert?” Nic protested. She looked at Sarah. “Didn’t you make a chocolate cake for Glenda this morning?”

“I did.”

“Then we need to stay and—”

“Nope.” Ali grinned without remorse. “I promised Gabe I’d have you home by eight.”

Nic threw Colt a pleading look. “Don’t you want dessert, Colt?”

“Not enough to risk the wrath of Sage if we’re late.” He stood. “C’mon, Mrs. Callahan. I’ll walk you home.”

“Okay.” Nic sighed audibly as she stood. Then she
gave Ali a genuine smile and added, “I had fun this afternoon, Ali. Working with those children was a joy.”

“It was a joy for them, too,” Ali replied. “You can always count on kids loving animals.”

“We got lucky to have two litters of kittens for the show-and-tell part of the program.”

“Speaking of litters,” Sarah said, “you have five minutes to walk home before you’re officially late.”

Colt kissed first Sarah’s cheek, then Ali’s, and said, “Thanks for the meal. Y’all have a good night.”

As they exited the restaurant, Colt gave the Angel’s Rest footbridge one last look, and he was disheartened to see that Rose and Mr. Hollywood were still chatting up a storm.
I hope she knows what she’s doing
. To distract himself, he asked Nic, “So, you don’t seem worried about how your girls and Sage are getting along?”

“I’m not. This is the third time Sage has babysat for me. She did fine the other times.”

Colt wondered if Nic knew that Sage got so nervous ahead of time that she couldn’t keep a thing in her stomach. He decided it was probably best he didn’t share that little fact.

The walk to the Callahans’ took less than five minutes. They entered the house through the front door to find Sage sitting on the family room floor stacking wooden blocks for the romper-clad beauties to knock over. At eight months old and crawling, the blue-eyed twins sported short blond curls and various bruises that had Colt glancing from the babies to Sage to Nic in concern. Neither of the women appeared to be concerned, so he deduced that he need not be, either.

“Hey, you two,” Sage said, looking up from the stack of blocks. “How did it go?”

“Great,” Nic said as Gabe wandered out from the kitchen, a dish towel slung over his shoulder. “I had a
wonderful time. The kittens were a total hit with the children. How did things go here?”

“We did just fine,” Gabe told his wife. Hearing their mother’s voice, the twins made a U-turn and crawled toward their mama. “Sage even juggled feeding them by herself when they woke up early from their naps and I wasn’t back yet from helping you.”

“Oh no.” Nic winced.

Sage stood, brushed cracker crumbs off her jeans, and smiled. “I enjoyed it. I’m glad I was able to help. I don’t think Meg and Cari are too traumatized by my inexpert care.” Meeting Colt’s gaze, she asked, “How was the mad scientist’s presentation?”

“Dry ice is always a hit with the kids.” Then, because he saw the tightness around her eyes, he said, “You ready to go?”

“Sure.” Sage kissed Nic’s babies good-bye, hugged both Nic and Gabe, then strolled casually out the door. She maintained her slow, carefree step until she was out of the Callahans’ line of sight. At that point she sagged against the neighbor’s front gate, bent over double, and drew in deep, shuddering breaths. Colt patiently waited her out, giving her his silent support, and when she’d once again gathered her strength, he clasped her hand in his and continued their walk, saying, “It’s a beautiful night, isn’t it?”

“Yes,” she replied, giving a shaky laugh. They traveled half a block before she replied. “Why do you do it, Rafferty?”

“Do what?”

“Put up with my … weirdness. Why haven’t you run as hard and fast as you can the other way?”

They strolled down Pinyon Street past Community Presbyterian Church, and when he spied the park bench surrounded by roses in the church’s garden area, he steered her toward it. “Why am I not running?” he repeated.
“That’s easy, Cinnamon. It’s because I love you.”

She sucked in a breath and sank down onto the bench. “No, you
think
you might be
falling
in love with me.”

“No. I’ve landed, and I’m sure. I love you, Sage. I want to make a life with you.”

“Tell me this isn’t a marriage proposal!”

The horror in her tone made him wince. “I don’t have to worry about becoming egotistical when I’m hanging around you, do I?”

Sage leaned back against the bench and closed her eyes. “I don’t mean to be insulting.”

“I know.”

“I just … I’m a terrible bet, Rafferty. I am such a basket case and I’m so afraid I’m going to hurt you. I like you too much for that.”

“See, I’m making progress.”

She sighed. “You don’t give up, do you? You’re like Angel Creek, always pounding away at the creek bed. Even during winter when the creek is frozen over, the current is still there beneath the ice, slowly eroding the rocks.”

Colt sat beside her and linked her fingers with his. He didn’t say any more, simply offered her his constant support. Following a few moments of silence, she asked, “Would you take me home, Rafferty?”

He wanted to release a frustrated sigh, but he refrained and reminded himself that he thrived on challenge.

They made small talk as they walked to the car and during the short drive out to Hummingbird Lake. He pulled into her driveway and switched off the ignition, and when Sage climbed out of the car, it didn’t surprise him that she headed away from the house rather than toward it. The fishing pier was one of her favorite places around.

“Do you want me to hang around?” he asked.

“Please. I have something I need to say, Colt.”

This time he couldn’t stop the sigh. He’d known he was taking a risk by telling her that he loved her, but he’d believed she was ready to hear it. Judging by the serious expression on her face, he’d been wrong. Now he suspected she was going to try to dump him.
Not gonna happen, Cinnamon. You can try, but I’m not letting you win this one. I might make a strategic retreat, but this relationship is far from over
.

At the end of the pier, Sage spent a moment staring out at the water and the glorious orange, pink, and purple sunset crowning Murphy Mountain to the west. Colt saw her draw a deep breath, and he braced himself.

Turning, Sage drew a deep breath, then shocked Colt down to his soles.

Sage’s knees had gone watery. Her mouth was dry and her heart pounded and a whole flock of butterflies had taken up residence in her belly. She couldn’t believe she was going to do this. Colt Rafferty was a good man and she might well be able to ruin his life.

She blew out a breath, then said, “The last thing I want to do is to hurt you, and I’m afraid that’s exactly what I’m going to do. You see … oh, I can’t believe I’m doing this. I know it’s a mistake. Colt, I love you, too.”

His mouth dropped open. Sage laughed nervously. “Careful, Rafferty. You’re around the water. You’ll end up with a mouth full of bugs if you’re not careful.”

“Say it again, Cinnamon.”

She relaxed a little bit. It wasn’t often that she managed to surprise this man, so she took a moment to enjoy it before replying, “You’ll end up with a mouthful of—”

“Oh, forget about it,” he interrupted as he dragged her into his arms for a thorough kiss.

He finally lifted his mouth from hers, but he kept her wrapped in his embrace. Sage felt so safe in his arms, so much at home, that it gave her courage to say, “I love you, Colt, and I want to tell you why I’m such a basket case.”

Against her ear, his warm breath murmured, “I love you, too, Sage, and I want to hear it.”

“I’ve never told another soul.”

“Okay.” He waited.

If I tell him everything and he still wants me, then maybe, just maybe, we might have a chance
.

She had to try to make him understand, although she doubted that would be possible. How could anyone who wasn’t there that day ever understand? And yet, she suspected that this man, more than anyone she knew, might come close. “You are the first person who hasn’t given up on me, Rafferty.”

“I’m not going to give up on you, Anderson.”

“I’m afraid. I have so much baggage.”

“Actually, I’ve figured that one out.” Sage managed to smile a little at the dryness in his tone before he added gently, “Talk to me, sweetheart.”

Now she pulled out of his arms and paced the narrow width of the fishing pier. “I don’t know how to start.”