Despite being weak and in pain, he hated being in bed all the time. Thankfully, the doctor prescribed something to help him sleep, as well as something for his headaches. Though, that didn’t mean Addie got much sleep.
Cade had been home for four days and, though the temptation to have him close was strong, she’d insisted he use the bed in his room where he was more likely to get the rest he needed. And he had slept a lot, but she’d caught him more than once attempting to get up to help with chores.
“You need to stay in bed,” she had scolded the second morning since he’d returned.
He had glared at her with slightly unfocused eyes. “The animals need to be fed.”
“And they will be,” she told him as she maneuvered him back into his bed. “Zack’s already left to take care of it.”
Cade’s lips had thinned, but he didn’t argue further as she pulled the blanket back over him.
Thankfully—despite his assertions of not staying long—Zack had hung around to help Addie with the farm chores and to make sure Cade was okay. She appreciated his help with the farm, and with Cade.
“I thought I told you not to be here when I got home,” Cade had said to Zack later on the second day.
Zack’s eyebrows had shot up in faux surprise, but his tone was dripping with sarcastic humor. “What? And miss out on all your friendly conversation?”
Nothing Cade did or said seemed to phase his old friend, which worked out well for Addie. When Cade was awake and grumpy, and Zack was back from chores, he would wander into Cade’s room to catch up and give her a break, but she never went far. Somehow, Zack’s good-natured comradery eventually softened Cade’s mood and they’d end up talking and joking for hours—well, at least as long as Cade could stay awake. She loved to hear them bicker like brothers and how their voices turned soft and low when they’d talk about home. It sounded like a wonderful, beautiful place and her heart had ached at how much Cade missed it. She heard the hurt in his voice when he’d said he would probably never go back. She wished he could, at least to work things out with his brother.
Zack being with them also seemed to heal something inside Cade. Though he was cranky because of his injury and the bedrest situation, Cade also seemed happier, calmer, and more confident than before. Not that he didn’t already have a measure of those things, but this was deeper, more personal, and she was glad to see it.
She was also thankful for Zack’s company when Mark stopped by the morning after Cade returned home. A female deputy accompanied Mark—the woman they’d talked to after Addie’s house had been vandalized—to get their statements about what had happened at the festival.
“Miss Malory, if he’s able, we’d like to get Mr. Brody’s statement.” Mark’s formality had surprised her, but considering the situation, it had been totally appropriate. “Mr. MacEntier? We’d also like to speak with you as well.”
Addie had glanced over her shoulder to find Zack standing in the dining room entry, his thick arms folded over his brawny chest.
She’d played the good hostess—invited them in and offered coffee—while they all sat in her dining room and Zack recounted what he remembered. By the time he’d finished, Cade had been awake and, though he was a little groggy, he had no trouble recounting the events that led to his injuries.
The two deputies hadn’t been her only visitors over the last few days. Jorje Rivera stopped by yesterday afternoon. Another surprise, but not a bad one.
“Hola, señorita,” he’d said quietly when she opened the door, his dark head bowed and his soft brown eyes looking unsure.
“Hello, Jorje,” she replied. “What can I do for you?”
“I…” he shuffled his feet then straightened his shoulders, “I came to check on Señor Brody and to speak with you both.”
Her eyebrows climbed upward. “May I ask what about?” Jorje didn’t frighten her; in fact, the handsome young man had been the only one of the three who used to work for her that didn’t make her uncomfortable.
“I would prefer to tell you both at the same time. Is he able to talk?”
“Well, yes, he is, and he’s awake right now. Come in,” she said, stepping back to allow him entry. “I’ll take you to see him.”
Cade had smiled when he saw Jorje and once they’d all settled down—Addie on the bed beside Cade and Jorje in a chair at the end of the bed—Jorje finally spoke. “I’d like to apologize for my part in everything that happened the other night and…to thank you, Señor Brody, for standing up for me with the police.”
“I’m the one who should be thanking you,” Cade replied. “Things would’ve gone a lot worse for me if you hadn’t stopped them when you did.”
“Mierda…I shouldn’t have even been there,” Jorje murmured.
“I’m glad you were,” Addie said and he looked up. “No matter how you got there.” She smiled to let him know she meant what she said.
He shifted, looking uncomfortable.
“You’re not like them, Jorje,” Addie said. “Why do you hang out with them?”
Jorje shrugged. “I don’t know. When I first moved here, Ted said he’d help me find work and he did, but it was never…good.”
“You mean you did all the work while he screwed around,” Cade said.
“Him and JR,” Addie added.
Jorje nodded. “I never approved of what they did or how Ted treated you, señorita, but I needed the work. I didn’t know how to disagree with Ted without losing my job…but then, I lost it anyway.” He gave her a halfway grin that spoke volumes about the shame he felt.
“I never blamed you, Jorje. Ted made his own decisions. I’d thought you’d stay the day I fired him, though.”
Jorje nodded. “I wanted to, but
