by Aurora Rey
Part of her wanted to be irritated with Graham for putting her in this situation in the first place. She knew better, though. Seeing Will wouldn’t be hard if her feelings weren’t such a tangled mess. The reality was that she was as hung up on Will now as she’d ever been. And Will clearly didn’t feel the same.
Nora tapped the address of the restaurant into her phone, poking at the screen angrily until the directions appeared. She closed her eyes and counted to ten. It would be fine. They’d eat, keeping the attention on Graham. And then she’d get in her car and have eight blessed hours of peace and quiet to get herself together. And then she’d be home and too busy to think about anything but work until Labor Day.
When she got to the restaurant, Nora stopped in the restroom to freshen her makeup. By the time she found the table, everyone had been seated, leaving a place for her between Colleen and Will. She took a deep breath and steeled herself.
Fortunately, Graham was bubbly with excitement. Between graduation and her imminent start date as a real member of the Dolphin Fleet, she didn’t need much prompting to keep the conversation going. Nora joined in the toast to Graham’s accomplishments, then managed to enjoy a beautifully done crab pasta. And not once did she find herself staring at Will’s hand, resting on the table and close enough for her to touch. Okay, maybe once.
She swore she could feel Will’s body radiating heat, smell her cologne. Nora caught herself closing her eyes when Will spoke, just to savor the sound of her voice. Fortunately, no one else seemed to notice. She wondered if Will felt even a hint of the yearning she did.
Over panna cotta, she asked Graham about her start date and when she planned to arrive.
“Did I tell you I found a place? It’s a room in a three-bedroom unit not too far from the inn.”
Nora shook her head. “I do wish you’d reconsider staying with me.”
“I imposed longer than I felt comfortable. I’ll be super close and we can get together all the time.”
“I know, but—”
“I don’t want to cramp your style.” Before Nora could open her mouth to protest, Graham winked at her. “And I don’t want you cramping mine.”
Nora hadn’t given too much thought to Graham’s style, except when she was worried about Will being a part of it. She studied the niece she’d continued to think of as a young woman in need of protecting. In truth, Graham had proven she had a good head on her shoulders. Nora chuckled. Given the mess she’d gotten herself into, perhaps she was the one in need of a protective eye. “Point taken.”
After a mild argument over the check, Peter pressed his credit card onto the waitress. “Thank you so much for the meal, and for including me in such a special day,” Will said.
Graham gave Will a knowing look, although Nora didn’t know exactly what meaning it held. “You’re practically part of the family.”
Nora twisted her napkin under the table. “I hate to eat and run, but I feel like I should hit the road.”
“We’ll walk out with you.” Graham stood and the rest of the table followed suit. Outside, Graham linked an arm through Nora’s and then through Will’s. “Are you sure you have to drive back tonight?”
“I do. Tisha got her niece to help her cover today, but I promised I’d be home. We’ve got a full house tonight and most of the rest of the week.”
“I’m sure you’re close to full steam,” Will said.
Nora smiled. “Pretty close. It’s not peak until June, but we won’t slow down until September.”
Graham eased her arms free and made a point of walking over to where her parents stood. Will shrugged. “Not subtle, that one.”
Nora laughed. “No, she’s not.”
“I guess I’ll see you around town?”
Nora couldn’t tell if Will was being dismissive or angling for something more. “I’m sure we’ll cross paths. Have a safe trip back.”
Will nodded. “You, too.”
Nora hesitated. She couldn’t help but feel as though she hovered on the precipice of something. She didn’t know what, and she certainly wasn’t about to act on it. Especially in front of her family. She settled on a smile. The least she could do was try to convey there were no hard feelings. “Bye.”
Will searched her face, then leaned in and kissed her lightly on the cheek. “Bye.”
As quickly as the kiss began, it ended. Will stepped back and Graham enveloped Nora in a hug. “I just need to pack up my place here. I should be there in a few days.”
Nora focused on Graham. “And you’ll let me take you to a celebratory dinner for landing your first real job.”
“I definitely won’t say no to that.”
She hugged Colleen and Peter next. “You pick a week you can come out this summer and I’ll hold a room for you.”
“If you don’t hassle us about letting us pay, we might make it two,” Colleen said.
“You drive a hard bargain. We’ll see.” Nora offered a final wave and climbed into her car. She was anxious to get home, but had a sense of foreboding. As much as she enjoyed driving, the task suddenly felt daunting rather than promising. She must be tired. And truth be told, she had a feeling the next eight hours would involve thinking about Will more than clearing her head.
As with any task she didn’t relish, Nora resolved herself to tackle it head on. She squared her shoulders and started the engine. Perhaps some show tunes instead of NPR or an audiobook. She queued up a station and hit the road.
She’d just pulled out of the restaurant parking lot when she caught movement in her peripheral vision. Although it felt like slow motion, she could do nothing to stop the SUV coming at the side of her car. Nor could she get out of the way.
A thousand thoughts raced through her mind, ranging from her poor car, to the guests waiting for her at home, to just how far she was from home. She heard the impact before she felt it, but then she felt nothing. As her mind faded to black, she wondered if Will was already gone.
Chapter Twenty-five
Will climbed into her car and sat for a moment. If she gave Nora a couple minutes head start, she wouldn’t have the chance of ending up right behind her. Wondering if Nora was looking at her in the rear view mirror. Wanting her to and feeling awkward about it the whole time.
When she thought enough time had passed, Will pulled out of her spot, just in time to see Nora turning out of the restaurant parking lot. Even though they were going the same way—practically to the same place—something about her disappearing from view made Will profoundly sad. If seeing Nora again had reinforced her feelings, it also left her with absolutely no idea what to do about them. Nora had been almost painfully pleasant, and completely detached. It would have been almost easier had Nora ignored her.
The sound of crunching metal and breaking glass sent a stab of ice into Will’s chest. It couldn’t be. There had to be a hundred cars in earshot, the odds of it being Nora were tiny. But something in the pit of Will’s stomach insisted otherwise. She threw her own car back into park and, after a mad tangle with her seat belt, leapt from the driver’s seat. She could see Graham already running in the direction of the noise.
Will saw the SUV first. Hulking and black, it blocked her view of whatever it had hit. A few more steps and Nora’s dark green hatchback came into view. Or, what was left of it. The SUV had T-boned Nora’s car, crushing the passenger’s side completely. Will choked down the bile in her throat and kept running. Her legs felt like lead pushing through water.
After what felt like an eternity, she reached Nora’s car. Graham was there, too, yelling Nora’s name. Will’s own voice had vanished. She opened her mouth, but no sound came out. Graham yanked open Nora’s door. Powder from the airbags swirled in a cloud around Nora’s head, which bent forward at an awkward angle.
“Don’t move her.” Will heard her own voice more than she was aware of speaking the words. “She might have a neck injury.”
Graham’s body froze and she turned her face to Will. Fear shone in her eyes
. “She’s unconscious.”
Will’s lifeguard training, which had included basic emergency response, kicked in. “Call 911. Let me make sure she’s breathing.”
Graham stumbled back and Will stepped forward. She leaned into the car and pressed fingers to Nora’s neck. The thud of Nora’s pulse helped to calm her own. “Nora. It’s Will. Can you hear me?”
Nora’s eyes fluttered and she moved her head slightly. She mumbled something Will couldn’t decipher.
“Don’t move. You’ve been in an accident. Help is on the way.” Will swallowed, willing her voice to remain calm. “You’re going to be okay.”
Nora’s left hand fumbled and Will took it. The warmth and gentle pressure as Nora squeezed it brought tears of relief to her eyes. “Don’t go,” Nora said.
Will held on until the ambulance arrived. It couldn’t have been more than a couple of minutes. She reluctantly let go so they could do their job. After checking her vitals and extricating Nora from the vehicle, they situated her on a stretcher with a brace around her neck. As they wheeled her to the waiting ambulance, Will realized that Nora’s sister and brother-in-law had made their way over. Graham stood between them with a look of horror etched on her face.
“It’s a precaution.” Will spoke to Graham and her parents, but wanted to reassure herself as much as them. “It’s better to be overly careful if there’s a chance of neck injury.”
Will returned her attention to Nora and the paramedics. Nora’s eyes were closed again, but she had a wince on her face that told Will she was conscious. That was a good sign. She took her hand once more and squeezed. “They’re going to take you to the hospital. We’ll all be there in just a few minutes.”
“Don’t go.” There was more force behind the words this time, making Will feel about a million times better.
“You can ride with her if you want,” one of the paramedics said.
Will looked to Graham and her family. Although both Colleen and Peter looked confused, Graham nodded. “Go. We’ll be right behind you.”
Will climbed into the ambulance and, at the paramedic’s instruction, took a seat on the narrow bench across from Nora. She reached over and took Nora’s hand. Nora’s eyes opened fully this time. Although she couldn’t turn her head, her eyes angled in Will’s direction. Will shifted so she would be in her line of sight. They locked gazes. Will might have imagined it, but she’d have sworn a ghost of a smile passed over Nora’s lips. “You’re here.”
“I am. And I’m not going anywhere.”
“I hurt everywhere.”
“I know. You’re going to be all right, though. Everything is going to be all right.”
Nora closed her eyes again. Will closed her own for a second. The back of the ambulance offered a surprisingly bumpy ride. Having never ridden in one in her life, it struck her as odd. She filed the detail away.
If Nora was awake and able to speak, she likely didn’t have life-threatening injuries. Although there was still the worry about internal bleeding. The little she knew about that came from hospital shows. In those cases, people who seemed fine wound up dead moments later—not where she wanted her brain to go right now. No, Nora had to be okay. Despite the unyielding tension in her chest, Will allowed herself to believe it.
On top of that, Nora seemed glad she was there. Wanted her there. That meant almost as much. Okay, maybe not almost, but it was huge. Maybe there was a glimmer of hope for them after all.
When they arrived at the hospital, Nora was wheeled off for X-rays and other tests. Will stood with a nurse, attempting to answer questions about Nora’s health history. She realized quickly how little she knew. Before she could wallow in it, Graham, Colleen, and Peter arrived. Colleen took over answering questions while Graham fished Nora’s insurance card from the purse she’d thought to grab from Nora’s car.
Once the admitting nurse let them go, Graham grabbed Will by the arm. “Was she conscious in the ambulance? Did she say anything?”
Graham, Colleen, and Peter all looked at her expectantly. “She was, and she knew who I was. She also said she was in pain, which is probably a good thing. It means there probably isn’t any nerve damage.”
“That’s good,” Graham said.
“Very good,” Colleen added.
Graham shook her head. “You were so calm in the moment. I thought Emerson had the medical training.”
Will smiled. “I was a lifeguard. Not that it gave me anything official, but I learned a lot about keeping my cool.”
“Well, you did that in spades.” Graham put an arm around her. “I’m glad you were there.”
Will still didn’t know what, if anything, Graham’s parents knew about her relationship with Nora. “It all worked out okay.”
“I did tell them,” Graham whispered in her ear. “On the ride over. It’s cool.”
The statement raised more questions than it answered, but Will merely nodded. “Okay.”
Graham looked over Will’s shoulder. “I think we might be in the way here.”
Will realized they were standing in the middle of the registration area, forcing people to go around them to get to the desk or the waiting area. “Right.”
They moved to the waiting room and sat in a pair of ugly plastic chairs connected at the seat by a thick metal bar. “Are you mad that I told them?”
Will shook her head. “Not at all. It’s just…” She struggled for a simple answer. “I’m not sure Nora would want them to know. And I’m even less sure there is an ‘us’ to talk about.”
Graham reached over and patted her leg. “It’s going to be fine. My mom didn’t seem at all surprised. On top of that, she seemed happy. I think she worries about her sister being lonely.”
“Yeah, but—”
“No but. You make Aunt Nora happy. And unless you’ve been lying to me, she makes you happy, too. If both of you could stop being so stubborn, I’m pretty sure you could live happily ever after.”
If only it was as easy as all that. Will sighed. “We’ll see.”
“Colleen Connor?” A doctor looked around the room expectantly.
Will and Graham hurried over to where Graham’s parents stood. Will tried to focus, but her mind swirled with the implications of Colleen and Peter knowing about her relationship, of them not having a problem with it. She made out “broken wrist,” “bruised ribs,” and “overnight for observation.” The doctor vanished almost as quickly as she came and Will kicked herself for not catching all of the details. “Now what?”
Graham smiled at her. “Now we wait until she’s been moved to a room.”
Will nodded. A room. That meant Nora didn’t need the ICU. Just that knowledge sent a wave of relief through her.
“Why don’t we take a walk?”
As much as she feared missing any news, she didn’t want to spend the next however long hovering and pacing. “Sounds good.”
They exited the sliding glass doors and took a right, taking the sidewalk that led to the parking garage. Graham guided them around the perimeter of the hospital, chatting about her new place and her excitement over working together again. Will didn’t know if it was Graham’s intention, but the enthusiastic chatter provided a perfect distraction. The next thing she knew, Graham’s phone rang and they were heading back in to go up to Nora’s room.
By the time they got there, Colleen and Peter were there, but Nora was not.
Colleen said, “They took her for an MRI. Basic concussion protocol.”
“Of course.” Will didn’t know if it was or not, but she nodded. Nodding gave her a sense of control somehow.
“She’ll be back up shortly. I think we’re going to go get a cup of coffee.”
Graham nodded as well. “That’s a good idea. Take a little walk, too. It was good to get some air.”
Will continued to nod.
“Do either of you want anything?”
Will appreciated the offer, although she wondered if it came from manners or an attempt to include her
. “I’m okay, but thanks.”
“I’ll take a hot tea,” Graham said.
“You got it.” Peter kissed Graham on the temple and he and Colleen left.
Will and Graham were left alone in Nora’s empty room. Will gave into the urge to pace, an urge she’d barely held in check while Graham’s parents were present. Her mind went in a dozen different directions, leaving her with a twitchy nervous energy. “I think I should go back.”
Graham, who’d begun flipping through a magazine looked up at her. “What?”
“To P-town. To Failte. I think I should go.”
“Right now?”
The pieces began falling into place. “She was so anxious to get back tonight because she has guests.”
Graham frowned. “You’re right. Tisha is there, though. It’s not like the place is unstaffed.”
Will nodded slowly. That was good. Still. Every selfish bone in her body screamed for her to stay, to sit by Nora’s bed and not take her eyes off her. Hold her hand and keep her promise not to go anywhere. But her heart told her to think about what would matter most to Nora. Knowing there was an extra pair of hands at home would give her peace of mind. It would allow her to focus on healing and not hurrying back to work.
Will swallowed. At this point, she had no idea how long healing would take. She hated the idea of being hundreds of miles away. It wouldn’t be that long. They’d ruled out internal bleeding and were doing the MRI as a precaution. Given Nora’s coherence right after the accident, it was unlikely there was anything worse than a mild concussion.
“If she has a full house—and I’m guessing she does—it’s more work that Tisha can handle on her own. I want her to know everything is taken care of.”
Graham sighed. “I’m sure it would mean a lot to her, but it’s late. Shouldn’t you at least get some sleep first?” She quirked a brow. “I don’t think I could handle two car accidents in twenty-four hours.”