Small Town Girls Don't Marry Their Best Friends: Contemporary Christian Romance (Beaches of Trumanville Book 3)

by Carol Moncado

  He looked around with his hands on his hips. “Well, I guess we have our work cut out for us to get this furnished and listed. Where do you want to start?”

  Tessa just shook her head. “I don’t even know.”

  On one hand, it didn’t surprise Gray that Pop Pop had already renovated the house or known that he and Tessa would be the ones who’d married to keep the property in the family.

  On the other, he wondered why the man hadn’t just talked to them in the first place.

  Whoever did the work did an excellent job. Gray couldn’t even guess at how long it had taken or when it had been finished. Maybe the same people who’d worked on the other house after it was finished?

  But they needed a game plan for now. “The first question is do we want to go buy new or lightly used furniture just to get something in here? Or do we scour antique stores and flea markets and estate sales to find something that makes a cohesive whole in keeping with the time period of the house? I’m almost positive it was built in 1910 or thereabouts.”

  Tessa started back downstairs. “Yes. To both. We find lovely furniture to put in it now while looking for what we want to make it more 1910 farmhouse and less modern suburbia. Once we have everything we need to make it 1910 farmhouse, we take the modern suburbia furniture to Pop Pop’s house and use it there.”

  “So don’t furnish our house at the moment, just this one, but choose furniture we like for our house to use here for now?”

  “Yeah. Something like that.”

  Gray nodded slowly as he looked around the empty living room. “Makes sense. Can’t say that I’ve ever been to an estate sale though.”

  “There’s a barn out back. Didn’t we play in it sometimes as kids?”

  “We ran all over this property. I’d imagine we did.” He had memories of playing in lots of older farm buildings as a kid. The Beaches might have moved to town a century earlier, but his mom’s parents hadn’t. He and Sean spent as much time on Pop Pop’s farm as they had his grandparent’s place two farms over.

  “I feel like I remember some furniture out there. Want to look and see? Maybe there’s some that can be restored.” She started for the back door, leaving Gray to trail behind.

  He looked around, taking in the details as he followed. A couple of minor things needed fixing, but he could do them himself or find out who the contractor was if he needed to match anything.

  The barn looked better than he expected. Pop Pop must have had some work done to it at some point as well.

  Tessa had been moving quickly, though, and was nearly to the door.

  “Wait for me,” he called. He wanted to try everything first, just in case. “Why don’t we check the attics first?” Pop Pop wouldn’t have sent them to those unless he knew they were safe.

  “Spoilsport.” She didn’t listen, just as he’d expected, but at least she resorted to the long-ago nickname when he’d been the one to play it safe around old buildings they found in the woods.

  He picked up his pace, but by the time he made it into the dust-filled barn, she was already clambering up the ladder to the hay loft.

  “Tess,” he groaned. “Be careful.” He stood at the bottom, glancing at the debris of some sort laying around. It didn’t look like pieces of the barn, but who knew? Once she made it to the top, Gray followed.

  “I knew it!” she called back. “There’s all kinds of great stuff up here.”

  “Awesome.” The ladder seemed secure enough, as did the barn. He didn’t think it was nearly as old as the house, though. “Why don’t we get Sean and some of the other guys out here to help bring it all down instead of traipsing around up here?” And maybe a structural engineer to ascertain how soon the whole thing could crumble around them.

  He emerged at the top of the ladder to see an area filled with odds and ends hiding behind layers of dust floating in the air, visible because of the in-tact windows. The place looked much better than he expected.

  So did the furniture. Had it been moved much more recently?

  “This stuff is so cool.” Tessa was looking at what appeared to be a dresser. “I don’t think it’s been out here this whole time, though. It looks too neat for that.”

  “Maybe.”

  She pulled her phone out of her pocket and snapped a few photos before moving on to the next thing.

  Gray concerned himself with checking out the floor of the loft before the furniture. He tested it and heard a few creaks, but nothing felt soft under his weight. “We’re not taking anything down,” he called as she moved toward the back of the building. “Not without help.”

  “I know.” Her exasperated tone worried him a little, but he didn’t think she’d do anything stupid.

  After about half an hour of exploring, she’d started sneezing almost non-stop, but refused to take his shirt to breathe through.

  “Let’s go, Tess. We’ll have someone come back and help us get all of this down to sort through and decide what to do with all of it.”

  “Fine.” She was closer to the ladder than he was and started down before he could tell her to let him go first, or get her to put down the box she was carrying. The ladder had seemed sturdy enough, but if a rung gave out, he wanted it either to be him it gave out underneath or to be at the bottom to catch her.

  Blowing out a breath, he headed for the ladder. He was still steps away when he heard a scream and a thud.

  Gray’s heart stopped as he hurried the last few feet and looked down.

  Tessa lay on her back, her arms spread and legs twisted at an awkward angle near the base of the ladder, her eyes closed as her head rested against one of those pieces of debris.

  “Tessa!” His heart restarted, now going a million miles a minute as he started carefully down the ladder. The last thing she needed was him to fall on top of her.

  It took everything in him to go slowly, but he did. His mind raced. How long would an ambulance take? Would it be faster to drive her? Should he move her?

  By the time he reached the floor, tears had filled his eyes. He needed his best friend, his wife, to be okay.

  He wasn’t sure he’d survive if she wasn’t.

  7

  Groaning filled Tessa’s ears even as she heard Gray calling her name.

  What happened?

  Her hips were twisted to the side and her arms spread open. Her head wasn’t lying flat and hurt like the dickens.

  All of her hurt like the dickens.

  “Tess!” The heartbreak in Gray’s voice made her wonder what she must look like from the hayloft.

  “Gray?” She tried to move but the pain was too much.

  “Don’t move.” She both felt and heard him step next to her. “What happened, TessaBear? Where does it hurt?”

  “I missed the bottom rung.” The ladder held up fine, despite Gray’s concerns. Pure clumsiness had landed her on the floor.

  Moving hurt, but she needed him to know she was okay.

  Mostly.

  With a mighty groan, she rolled to the side and pushed herself into a seating position before he could stop her.

  “I’m okay, Grayton.” He used a nickname for her. She used his seldom mentioned full first name. “Feel pretty stupid and I’m going to be sore for days, but I’m okay.”

  “We’re going to the hospital. Do you want me to take you or call an ambulance?”

  She closed her eyes and sighed. “Any chance I can just go home and take some medicine and sleep?”

  “Nope. You hit your head and are bleeding. You might have blacked out for a few seconds. You’re going in.”

  “I didn’t black out.” She was pretty sure she hadn’t anyway. Her head barely hurt at all. “I had the wind knocked out of me, but I didn’t lose time.”

  “Thank God.” He sat down next to her, somehow managing to situate himself so she was leaning against his bended knee. “Sit for a few more minutes, and then I’ll pull the car up here.”

  At least they had Sean’s SUV in case they’d wanted t
o move somethings. As a mid-size, she wouldn’t have to climb up or sit too far down when getting in and out. She had a feeling both would hurt.

  “I’m fine.”

  “You’re not fine so don’t try to convince me of that.” He leaned away from her and pulled off his shirt, pressing it to the side of her head. “You’re bleeding. I’m hoping it’s just superficial, but it needs to be checked out.”

  How could Tessa only be aware of her husband in his shirtless state and so close to her?

  So aware she had to wet her lips twice before she could speak. “Go get the car. I’ll wait here.” She reached up and covered his hand where it held the shirt to her head. “I’ll be fine for the three minutes you’ll be gone. And I just want to go home. Let the bleeding stop. If it doesn’t, or if I start feeling worse, I’ll let you know.”

  “Fine.” He leaned in and brushed a feather-light kiss against the side of her head. “I’ll be right back.”

  At least her phone was in her front pocket. She hadn’t landed on it.

  Thank heavens for small favors.

  Gray trotted toward the barn door then disappeared from view.

  Tessa closed her eyes. At least while she’d been distracted by his chest, she hadn’t noticed the pain quite as much.

  It wasn’t the first time she’d seen Gray without a shirt. They’d gone to the Aquatic Center in Serenity Landing together all the time as teens.

  They’d even been swimming the summer before.

  So why had it affected her this time?

  He was in great shape, she knew that. Was it because he was her husband? Because she was noticing him differently than she ever had before?

  By why choose that minute to do so?

  Before she could analyze it further, she tried to take a deep breath and realized just how hard it was to do. Hopefully, she hadn’t broken any ribs, but the way it hurt, she couldn’t be sure.

  The SUV crunched to a stop outside. Her legs hurt and her ankle throbbed, but she didn’t think anything was broken or even twisted that badly.

  She doubted he’d let her even try to walk.

  She just needed to make sure he didn’t try to go to the hospital anyway.

  When he came back into the barn, Gray knelt next to her and slid an arm under her legs, the other one coming to rest behind her back.

  It took everything in her, but Tessa managed to keep the scream inside. “Let me get up myself. The pressure on the spot I hit hurts.”

  She could see the pain and concern in Gray’s eyes. Too bad. This wasn’t the time to be worried about his feelings. She needed to do what she had to so it didn’t hurt any worse. If he knew how bad it was, he wouldn’t take her home.

  Tessa didn’t have a fear of hospitals or anything, but she wasn’t fond of them either. She’d promised Gray she’d let him know if it got worse, and she would.

  It took several minutes of thinking and psyching herself up to move before she actually did.

  “Are you sure...”

  She glared at Gray. “I just need to figure out how to stand up with the least amount of discomfort.” Pain, really.

  Finally, she managed then walked slowly toward the door. Little more than a shuffle, it seemed to take a long time to get there.

  The passenger door already stood open just a few feet outside. She turned backward, sitting down then twisting herself into the seat. Gritting her teeth, she managed to yelp a little bit instead of screaming like she wanted to.

  Gray drove down the road toward her great-grandfather’s farm but could easily pass it.

  She could see him thinking about driving on past. There wouldn’t be much she could do to stop him. “Just take me home, Gray. I’ll let you know if it gets worse.”

  He muttered something under his breath but turned into the driveway.

  Taking a few deep breaths, she got herself out of the car. Moving around would help, wouldn’t it?

  Gray still hadn’t put a shirt on when he stood at her side and walked next to and then behind her as she walked up the path then the steps to the porch. Once inside, she went straight to the kitchen and sat gingerly in one of the chairs.

  Her husband trotted up the stairs, likely to get something for her head and possibly a shirt for himself.

  Too bad.

  Where had that thought come from?

  Could she be attracted to Gray on a fundamental level beyond just his best-friendness?

  And, if so, why had her subconscious chosen this moment to bring it to her attention?

  What was he thinking? Gray should have taken her straight to the hospital, but Tessa insisted she didn’t need to, and he never could argue with her when she put her foot down.

  Usually.

  Every once in a while he did. This should have been one of those times.

  But when he moved his t-shirt from her head, the bleeding did appear to have slowed significantly. The cut wasn’t as bad as he’d thought, though it looked like there would be a bump before long.

  “How is it?”

  “I’ve seen worse,” he admitted. “I’ve had worse.” With the scars to prove it. Growing up occasionally free ranging on a farm would do that.

  “Told you.” She didn’t lean back in the chair, clearly not wanting the pressure on her back.

  “Can I look at your back, Tess?” Two weeks ago, he wouldn’t have thought twice about it. Asked? Of course. But neither one of them would have thought it was weird.

  Now, he was far more hesitant than he should be.

  She took a breath and leaned forward, her forearms resting on the table.

  Gray grasped her shirt and bunched it in his hands, exposing the skin of her back. To the right of her spine was a red spot, a few inches in diameter, but nothing that looked too horribly bad.

  Her ribs probably weren’t broken or she’d be in a lot more pain than she was, though he knew she was trying to hide a lot of it.

  “How is it?”

  “It hurts.” Her head bobbed lightly, and he could imagine her eyes screwed tightly shut.

  “It doesn’t look bad but remember your promise.”

  They just sat there for a while. Gray didn’t keep track but somewhere around thirty minutes. Tessa didn’t move much and didn’t say anything. He just watched her to make sure she didn’t fall over.

  She finally broke the silence. “I think I need something to eat. All I had earlier was a nectarine.”

  “Tess.” It came out sounding far more like a reprimand than he meant it to, but she often forgot breakfast and regretted it later. “What do you want me to make you?”

  “Are there any protein bars or anything?”

  “Maybe.” He searched through the pantry but didn’t find anything. They hadn’t gone shopping since the wedding. He’d planned to bring it up after they went to the Beach House. “What about a BelVita?” Weren’t they supposed to be protein bar-ish? The package promised four hours of natural energy.

  “Sure.”

  Gray opened the package and pulled one of the oval crackers out, placing it in Tessa’s outstretched hand.

  She didn’t look up but nibbled on it.

  “Better?” he asked after she finished the second one.

  “A little.”

  He wasn’t convinced. “Are you sure you didn’t pass out? Black out? Lose time?”

  Her hesitation told him all he needed to know.

  “Tell me, Tess.”

  “I’m feeling dizzy. Graying around the edges of my vision, but not blacking out.” She sucked in a breath. “It’s happened a couple of times.”

  He stood and grabbed his brother’s keys off the counter, grateful for Sean’s SUV. “We’re going to the hospital. Do you want me to help you or do it yourself?”

  “Myself. I’m afraid you’ll hurt rather than help.”

  Just hearing the words pained Gray. He would never intentionally hurt her, but knowing he could do nothing to help at the moment actually hurt him.

  Instead, he went o
utside and drove over the grass so she didn’t have to walk any farther than necessary when she reached the bottom of the stairs.

  “Pop Pop would yell at you,” she told him as she reached the bottom.

  Gray chuckled. Pop Pop hated having anyone drive on the grass in front of the house. “Not if it meant his favorite great-granddaughter was able to get in the car easier when she’s in pain.”

  “True.”

  He watched as she debated how to get in the car then climbed in the same way she had earlier. The grimace said it hurt this time too.

  He could only imagine reaching for the seatbelt would be worse, so Gray buckled it for her.

  “How’s that?” he asked as he moved back. “Do you need to recline more? Are you centered all right?”

  She closed her eyes and nodded. “I’m fine.”

  Tessa surprised him with a kiss on his cheek.

  Gray stilled but turned slightly to see her eyes still closed.

  “Thank you,” she said again, louder this time, but not by much.

  “My pleasure.” He found his voice had taken on an unfamiliar low, gravely sound. “Though I’d rather not ever have to do this again.”

  “I’d rather you didn’t have to do it again either.”

  Neither one of them said anything else so he closed her door and went around to the other side.

  Gray shifted into gear. “I’m going to do my best to get you there without running over any of the potholes between here and the highway.”

  “It won’t be easy.”

  He chuckled. “I’ll find a way.” The nearly mile stretch between Pop Pop’s drive and the closest bigger road had never been well maintained, likely since it came to a dead end just past the Beach House and there were only five houses on it to start with, including his grandparents’ old house where his cousin lived.

  Driving slowly, he managed to swerve around the potholes. Most were only annoying if gone over at full speed and not true holes, but he avoided them anyway.

  He reached the road and turned.

  With each little bump, he could tell she tried to avoid letting him know how much it hurt.

  But when he slammed on the brakes, she screamed.