by Kate Morris
“Nothing could surprise me more,” she replies, smiling.
“Here she is, Paige,” Reagan announces as she enters the music room. “I’m off. Hope he’s dead.”
“Wow,” Cory remarks with a loud laugh. “What a caring doctor, Little Doc.”
“Yeah, yeah. Cry me a river. Guy’s a murdering asshole. I actually hope he dies painfully,” she says and waves while leaving the room.
He looks at Paige and smiles gently. “She’s so cute.”
“Reagan?” Paige asks.
He laughs again. “No. Well, um, sure. Guess I’ve never thought of her as anything but a mean older sister. I meant Charlie.”
Cory takes her tiny hand between his huge forefinger and thumb and gives it a little shake. Paige swallows hard and has to look away. There is a definite wistfulness in his brown eyes as he looks down at the baby.
“So?” he asks, looking back up at her. “Walk date?”
“Sure,” she complies because Paige really doesn’t think she’s going to get away with not agreeing to his request.
“Then it’s a date,” he says with a wide smile and presses a quick kiss to her forehead.
Paige just rolls her eyes because she knew he’d take it too far. He shouldn’t push his luck like that. Simon is just now starting to forgive them. Her brother’s happiness she puts above her own.
“Hey, brother, watcha’ up to?” Cory states in his usual, loud and boisterous manner down the hall. A moment later, her brother enters the room with a scowl.
“Idiot,” he remarks and smooths down his ruffled hair, probably Cory’s handiwork.
Paige smiles because she knows he is just kidding, and it’s a good thing, better than what those two have been doing, which was either avoidance or arguing or fighting in the dirt.
“Everything ok?” she asks him anyway.
“Yes, fine. Cory said he’s taking you for a walk later?”
“I don’t know. Maybe. We don’t have to. I understand if…”
“No, that would be fine.”
This surprises her, “Really?”
“Sure. He’s been fairly warned,” Simon tells her as he collects a book from one of the shelves.
Paige smiles at him and rocks Charlie, who was just fed by her mother and is ready for her morning nap. A stab of guilt runs through her when she looks down at the baby in her arms. She hasn’t told her brother about the miscarriage yet, and someday she’ll need to. She doesn’t ever want to hide anything from him. He’s the only family she has left.
“Simon…” she starts but loses her nerve.
He doesn’t glance up from perusing whatever he’s looking for in his book and asks, “Yes?”
“Uh…never mind.”
This causes him to look at her. “What is it?”
“Nothing. We’ll talk later when the house is less full,” she lies.
“You can tell me…”
“How’s Sam? I didn’t get to see her the other day in town.”
“Samantha is fine. Healthy, color was good. Her leg is healing well, nearly healed, I guess. No reason for concern. She went back to Dave’s, though.”
Paige doesn’t laugh at his description of Sam because she doesn’t want to hurt his feelings, but his reply wasn’t exactly what she’d been looking for.
“Oh, that’s good,” she says instead. “Did you get to spend any time together? Alone?”
“No, not really. We were working at the clinic, of course. There isn’t a lot of time for small talk when you’re administering stitches or treating Scarlet Fever.”
This is discouraging news. She wants Simon to be happy, and Paige knows his happiness depends on Samantha being in his life. They have a bond, a dependency that he shares with no one else on this planet, not even her.
“Perhaps you can speak with her when you go to town tomorrow for a clinic day,” she suggests.
“She’s not coming,” he says and slams the book shut and replaces it to its spot on the shelf.
“Why not?”
“She said she and her uncle were having a clinic day at the compound since they’ve both been gone so much and need to see their patients over there or some such nonsense.”
Paige sighs. Her little friend has made it quite clear how she feels about Simon, and it isn’t good. Paige has seen it, too. She is distant and almost cold towards him.
“Maybe next week,” she says, trying to be hopeful while secretly planning to get the sisters involved. They’re always plotting and manipulating people. They’ll have a better idea how to handle Sam and get her back over here so that Simon can woo her. Also, she’ll have to work with Simon to take action and pursue Sam. She has seen him in action; he doesn’t have a clue.
“I doubt it. She’s not interested in coming to town anymore or here.”
“Then I’ll just have to find a reason to go over there to invite her,” she says decidedly. “Perhaps you can deliver the message.”
“We have a radio now,” he points out with his usual flair for logic and sensibility. “There would be no reason for an in-person invitation.”
Paige grins. She loves him so much. He is so innocent and honest and blunt to a fault, of course.
“She’s asleep,” he says, indicating Charlie. “You should put her down now. Holding her all the time is a bad habit according to Herb and everything I’ve read in the books I borrowed from Sam’s uncle.”
“Alright,” she says reluctantly. “If I have to.”
Simon steps closer and observes the baby more keenly. “She makes me nervous.”
“What?” Paige asks with a chuckle.
His facial expression is one of pure discomfort. “Yes, all babies do. She’s just…so small.”
“You delivered her,” Paige reminds him. “You didn’t seem rattled by her then.”
“Yes, well, then she was a lot more helpless. Now, I don’t know. She’s got agendas, ya’ know?”
Paige laughs loudly, nearly waking Charlie. “Simon!”
“She does,” he insists. “She has a mind of her own already, and she fully expects everyone to be able to read it.”
“That much is true, I suspect,” she agrees and reaches out to grasp his hand. “You’ll be a great dad someday, I bet. And your kids will be little baby geniuses.”
He snorts. “Not if they’re half me. I don’t exactly have a lot of options in the wife department. And the last time I checked, one does need a partner for such pursuits.”
She rolls her eyes, tugs on his hand for assistance and stands. “Don’t worry, little brother. She’ll come around.”
He doesn’t even question who she means but nods nervously and hurries from the room. Paige takes Charlie to the back of the house to Hannah and Kelly’s room where the crib is located. They usually put the babies down in this room because it’s quiet and darker during the day. Plus, they can hear them crying from the kitchen which is where they spend most of their time. She joins Hannah and Sue there and cuts vegetables for them. Tonight will be a feast of roasted pheasant that Cory shot before dawn, potatoes au gratin, which Sue has come to be an aficionado at making, and roasted vegetables. They finished picking the last of the cabbage from the summer garden and canned it a few days ago even with everything that was going on. Sue laughed and said that life had to go on, even if the men were in the middle of a war.
Just last week, they traded with the man with whom they exchange canned goods and meat for his salt. He’s a kind person and someone who really believes that things will turn around. She’s not so sure about that.
Cory comes in a few hours later as she’s kneading bread and pulling off small pieces, rolling them into balls and placing them in a glass baking dish for rolls for the evening meal. They’ll rise one more time before baking. She’s learned a lot about the fine art of bread making since coming to the farm, more than she’d ever known about it before. She used to go downtown in her college town and buy bread from a local bread shop. It was really good, and the
place smelled up the whole block. She’d make vegetable sandwiches with it and pack them in her lunch for school, too. That bread was nothing compared to the freshly-ground wheat bread the McClanes make. It is positively transcendent.
“Hey, Red,” he says without preamble or greeting the other women.
Arianna speaks up with a big smile from the island where she is reluctantly grating cheese from a large block of white cheddar, “Hi, Cory!”
“Hey, kiddo,” he says and ruffles the sandy brown hair on top of her head. “Wanna catch that walk now?”
He’s looking and talking directly to her, which makes Paige a little uncomfortable in front of the girls.
“I’m kind of in the middle of this,” she answers.
“Aw, phooey,” Sue says. “Go on. Get some fresh air.”
“But what about Charlie? Reagan hasn’t come back in yet from the shed.”
“She’s researching with Grandpa,” Hannah answers because above all else, she is the one who knows where everyone is on the farm and what they’re up to. “Go for your walk. We’ve got this.”
“Oh, thanks, guys,” she answers and rushes to the mudroom to wash her hands.
“Grab a jacket,” he says from the doorway. “It’s getting kinda’ chilly out.”
“Great,” she complains and pulls on a warm coat she wears in the barn when she’s doing chores. Cory picked it up for her a while back. It’s a light brown suede with a shearling wool lining that keeps her warm and almost covers her derriere. He reaches above her head and pulls down a brown stocking cap.
Instead of handing it to her, Cory pulls it down over her head and pats the top gently. “There, that’ll keep you warm.”
She smiles self-consciously because she probably looks like a mismatched homeless person all bundled up. She’s not sure her Arizona blood will ever thicken up enough to handle cold weather. He told her once about traveling through Ohio and Pennsylvania and how cold it got and how deep the snow piled up. He said a few times it came up to his stallion’s knees. She’s glad it doesn’t usually snow quite that much around here.
“Ready?” he asks and holds out his hand, which she dodges. Cory chuckles and leads her out the mudroom door into the side yard.
From there, they head past the barns and into the woods. They aren’t twenty minutes into their walk when it starts snowing lightly. She doesn’t like the cold weather, but the snowfall through the forest is lovely. It comes down in gently floating flakes that twirl slowly and even seem to ascend again and make their surroundings seem more like a snow globe than reality.
“Wow, not the best day for this,” he remarks.
“I don’t know. It’s kind of pretty out here. Peaceful for a change. And quiet!”
He laughs. “Yeah, I know what you mean.”
Cory takes her hand in his, and Paige looks around to make sure Simon can’t see them.
“Professor’s in the shed with the other docs,” he tells her. “Besides, we sort of came to an agreement recently.”
“Oh, really? You and Simon?”
“Yeah, I guess you could say it happened this fall when we had to save each other’s asses so many times in one fight or another.”
“Wait, what? You guys didn’t tell me about that,” she says with worry.
“Not worth telling,” he answers nonchalantly. “Just the usual.”
“The usual.”
He shrugs in answer and flashes one of his brilliant, bright white smiles her way.
“Watch your step,” he warns and helps her over a small fallen log in the path.
They discuss the highwaymen, the battles, and the jerk in the milking parlor chained to the wall.
“Just stay outta’ there, ok?” he asks, to which she nods. “We’ll take him enough food and water to live on until we get the answers we need. If he wakes up from this fever.”
“Then what?”
He sends her a look that instantly lets her know the car dealer’s fate. Paige looks away with a nod of understanding.
“I saw your boyfriend left a few nights ago,” Cory remarks.
“Gee, thanks for having such fantastically low expectations of me,” she jokes and gets a laugh. “I’m glad Parker and his men finally left for good. Took them long enough. It just feels weird when people are on the farm that don’t belong here.”
“Yeah, you should’ve been here when your aunt’s people were here. That was about as screwed up as it could get. Glad we got to keep Sam and Huntley and your dork brother, though.”
“Yeah, me, too,” she agrees with a chuckle.
Cory squeezes her hand gently and tugs her up against his hip. They crest a hill, coming around parallel to the back of the farm. Then Cory leads the way down the other side onto a path she hasn’t run before.
“Where’s this go? Reagan and I never run this way,” she says.
“That’s because I told her not to,” he answers over his shoulder.
“Why? Is it dangerous? Bears or something? Or someone?”
Cory chuckles and takes her hand again as the path widens and slightly flattens back out.
“Not exactly,” he says and stops.
“What’s going on? Did you hear something?”
She looks up at him, but Cory is already looking at her, staring actually. He seems a little nervous.
“What is it?”
He shakes his head and continues on their walk until they come to an opening in the woods, a clearing. Just below them is a small cottage painted white with a blue metal roof.
“What is that place?” she whispers, trying to be stealthy. She noticed he had a rifle slung over his shoulder when they left, but that’s normal.
“Come on,” he says softly. “Let’s check it out.”
“Does someone live there? Are we off McClane land?”
“Not yet. And no.”
Paige nods and follows after him. He leads her up onto the porch, which perfectly overlooks a small stream. Then he opens the door and goes inside, and Paige follows after him. There is furniture, a small kitchen, rugs on the hardwood floors. There is even a wood-burning stove with a fire already lit.
“Cory, I don’t think we should be in here…”
When she turns around, Cory is kneeling on one knee behind her. At first, she thinks he is hurt or picking something up from the floor.
“It’s not the ocean,” he says gently and in a humble tone. “It’s not beachside. It’s not even a coastal town, but it’s yours if you want it.”
“What?” Paige whispers and looks around confusedly not understanding him at all. Then she spots a painting on the wall in the dining area. It is an exact replica of the little cottage by the sea she’d drawn. Her sketchpad of architectural drawings had gone missing. He’d been the one to find and return it to her. He must’ve been the one who’d also taken it.
“Sam,” he answers her unspoken question about the painting.
“Oh,” she whispers. “What…what is all this?”
“Your cottage. I built it by the water so you could still hear it. I know it’s not the ocean, but it’s running water.”
“My cottage?” she asks with disbelief as she continues to look around the room. “You…you built me a house?”
When she looks back at Cory, he is holding up a gold ring with an emerald in the center.
“I love you. I’d build you a castle if you asked,” he admits without reservation or hesitation. “I want us to live here. I’ve already asked your brother and got his blessing. I talked to Herb and my brother, too. They’ve both given us their blessing. You’re the last one I needed to talk to, and coincidentally, the most important.”
Paige swallows hard, her mouth suddenly dry.
“You know how I feel about you,” he continues. “There’ll never be another woman for me, Red. I love you more than I ever thought I could love anyone, especially after Em. You were the last thing I was expecting to come home to, and I know now that God sent me home to find you, that h
e put you here for me.”
“Cory,” she says weakly and feels tears pooling in her eyes.
“Marry me, Paige Madison Murphy,” he requests, using her actual name and not the many nicknames he’s assigned her.
That feeling of fear and anxiety at the thought of losing him creeps into her brain.
“Don’t think,” he says. “Don’t try to look at all the reasons this won’t work. I’m scared, too. You think I’m not? Well, I am. I’m afraid I’ll lose you tomorrow. And you know what? I could. Nothing is guaranteed in this life. But at least we’ll be together in it, to fight for our lives together in it until God deems it otherwise.”
“Cory,” she repeats with a soft frown of nerves.
“Just marry me,” he urges. “Let me take care of you. I’ll protect you.”
“Who’s going to protect you? You’re so reckless, Cory. You could get yourself killed tomorrow.”
“Don’t let fear ruin this. You know what we have is special. Don’t worry about what could happen. Just live this life with me, whatever or however long it’s going to be. Marry me.”
Paige steps hesitantly forward and nods as tears spill over. The words won’t come, so she nods more vigorously. Cory jumps to his feet and hugs her tightly to his chest.
“Yes?” he asks with hope.
“Yes,” she says with resolve and gets lifted clean off the ground and spun in a circle.
Then he places her gently back on her feet and kisses her soundly. When he pulls back, she wipes at her cheeks.
“This is crazy and stupid,” she decides.
“Well, it is me we’re talking about,” he says with a boyish grin. “What’d ya’ expect?”
She smiles and leans up for another kiss. “I love you, too.”
“Of course, you do. Now, let’s see if this thing fits,” he says and holds up the ring she forgot about.
“It’s so pretty,” she comments. “Where’d you get this?”
“Part of the family jewels,” he says.
Paige chuckles. “Yeah, right.”
“No, it is. We keep a stash in Doc’s safe in the house in case we ever need to trade for things. Hasn’t happened yet, but we’ve all hit the safe for engagement rings. Sam found this and some other jewelry on that run when she cut her leg last month. It’s all in the safe now, too.”