a cup of warm milk would help both of them get some sleep.

Then he called Cassie’s house. He was relieved when Cole answered. He explained what had happened.

“We can be over there in an hour if she needs us,” Cole said.

“I think she needs a good night’s sleep more. Come in the morning, why don’t you?”

“We’ll be there,” Cole promised. “Cassie and I will call the others.”

“I’d appreciate it,” Grady said, relieved not to have to go through the explanation of the night’s events again and again.

“Grady?”

“Yes?”

“I’m glad you’re there for her. She’s going to need you.”

“I’m not so sure about that,” Grady said. “I can’t help thinking that when she thinks it through, she’ll blame me for setting it all into motion.”

“No,” Cole said. “She’s going to blame herself for not protecting Caleb’s legacy. It’s up to all of us, you included, to make sure she understands how wrong that is, that this was out of her control.”

With Cole’s words still echoing in his head, Grady was less surprised when Karen walked into the kitchen, her face drawn, her eyes dull. She accepted a mug of warm milk, then sank wearily onto a chair.

“I’ve been thinking,” she said dully. “I have to rebuild. It’s what Caleb would want.”

Grady wanted to shout that Caleb was dead, that his wishes no longer mattered, but he couldn’t. She wasn’t ready to hear that.

Instead, he simply asked, “What do you want?”

She blinked in surprise at the question. “To rebuild,” she said a little too readily.

“Really?”

“Of course.”

He started to point out that the ranch was draining the life out of her, just as it had from Caleb, but he kept silent. She wasn’t ready to hear that, either. To his deep regret, he realized that maybe she never would be.

* * *

Karen spent the night wrapped in Grady’s arms. He didn’t make love to her, as if he understood that her emotions were too fragile right now to bear it. She loved him for understanding that much about her. In fact, she loved him for being beside her all during the long ordeal of the fire and its aftermath. The truth was, she would probably go on loving him forever.

Unfortunately, she couldn’t tell him that, or be with him. She had a duty to Caleb to honor first. It seemed she might never be free of that terrible sense of obligation.

In the morning, when Cassie, Cole, Gina and Emma arrived together on Grady’s doorstep, she was passed from embrace to embrace. She felt as limp as a rag doll, but she forced a smile to reassure them all that she was okay.

“Okay, then, what are your plans?” Emma asked briskly as they sat around the table, while Gina instinctively moved to the stove to whip up a hearty breakfast.

Grady looked at her across the table. “You can stay here for as long as you like,” he said.

She was tempted. Oh, how she was tempted, but she shook her head. “There’s another room in the bunkhouse. I’ll move in there while the house is being rebuilt.”

When everyone stared at her incredulously, she returned their gazes with a touch of defiance. “What?” she demanded.

“Why are you doing that?” Cassie demanded. “You know you don’t want to.”

“Of course, I do. Caleb—”

“Is dead,” Cassie snapped, then cast a belligerent look at the others. “I’m sorry, but it’s true and it’s what the rest of you are thinking.”

“Still, I owe it to him,” Karen insisted. A glance at Grady made her sigh. He looked resigned. No, worse than that, he looked unbearably sad.

“I’m sorry,” she added in a whisper meant for him alone.

He gave a curt nod. “I know.”

No one seemed to know what to say after that. Gina’s breakfast cooled on the plates in front of them, until she finally stood impatiently, gathered up the plates and scraped the leftovers into the trash.

“Leave the dishes,” Grady said. “I’ll do them later.”

“Then I guess we should be on our way,” Cole said, casting a sympathetic look at Grady and a worried one toward Karen.

“Can you give me a lift home?” Karen asked him.

“I’ll take you home,” Grady said tersely.

“But—”

“I’ll take you,” he repeated.

She nodded, then hugged the others. “Thanks for coming over.”

“If you need anything, anything at all, call us,” Emma said fiercely. “And I expect you in town later today to go shopping. You’ll need some clothes.”

Karen realized that hadn’t even occurred to her. She didn’t own so much as a toothbrush. Suddenly it was all too much for her. The last bit of stoic resolve collapsed. The tears she’d been battling since last night poured down her cheeks. Great, gulping sobs welled up deep inside.

It was Grady who gathered her in his arms. Grady who murmured soothing reassurances when the others reluctantly left. Karen cried until there were no tears left, until Grady’s shirt was soaked and her face was swollen.

“Oh, God, I must look awful,” she said with a hitch in her voice.

“You look beautiful,” he said.

“Liar.”

“Not about that,” he insisted. “You will always be beautiful to me.”

She lifted her gaze to his, saw his heart in his eyes. “I love you,” she said. “But I have to do this. Please tell me that you understand.”

“I don’t,” he said, wiping the tears from her cheeks. “Not really. But it doesn’t matter. It’s enough that you believe this is what you have to do.”

“I don’t know what will happen,” she told him honestly. “I can’t ask you to wait. In fact, you should probably give up on me.”

He smiled at that. “Never.” His caress lingered on her cheek. “When the house is built and you’re ready to move on with your life, I’ll be waiting.”

The promise gave her strength. Maybe what she was about to do was sheer folly, but she knew that she wouldn’t be free until she had done it. A new house, a thriving ranch, would be her gift to Caleb’s memory. Maybe then she would finally be able to walk away and into

Вы читаете One Last Chance
Добавить отзыв
ВСЕ ОТЗЫВЫ О КНИГЕ В ИЗБРАННОЕ

0

Вы можете отметить интересные вам фрагменты текста, которые будут доступны по уникальной ссылке в адресной строке браузера.

Отметить Добавить цитату