Chapter 6
Nora
I paced the floor, turning the same impossible fact over until I was sick of it. Cole had helped Grandma. Cole had bought her groceries and fixed things around the house. He had been there.
It didn’t fit. Not with the man Dad had spent years describing, and not with the man who looked at my last name like it tasted bad.
I scoffed. “No way.”
I wanted answers now, before I could talk myself into waiting, and I hoped he was home to give them to me.
Since he didn’t live far, I walked. The faster I walked, the easier it was to stay angry instead of thinking about why the whole thing hurt.
I caught a glimpse of him in his garage, and my heart pounded.
As soon as I stepped into his yard, he stepped out of his garage and stood there staring at me, a slight frown on his face.
“Twice in one day?” he said. “Either I’m lucky or you’re mad.”
I stopped in front of him. “What do you want with my family?”
His frown deepened. “What?”
“Grandma Ellen? What’s that about?” I demanded, hands on my hips as I stared into his steely eyes.
“I have no idea what you’re talking about.”
“I just found out you were helping her. Buying groceries. Fixing things. Why?”
He raised a brow. “You came over here mad because I helped her?”
My shoulders dropped. I rubbed my hand across my forehead in frustration. “I’d like to know why. You hate my dad. Why would you help his mother?”
His mouth parted as he stared at me. “You want to know why I helped an old woman who needed it when her family wasn’t around?”
My face went hot. I wanted to snap back, but I couldn’t argue with what he’d just said. I hadn’t known how bad things were. I also hadn’t been here.
My cheeks burned. “Oh, please don’t give me that. I didn’t know. That’s not the same as not caring.”
“Whatever you think, I wasn’t trying to get anything from your family. Everyone around here called her Miss Ellen. I’d been helping her for months before I even heard the last name Adams, and I had no idea she was Gregory’s mother.”
My throat tightened. Tears pricked my eyes.
“And it wouldn’t have mattered. She was the kindest woman I knew. Don’t come here judging me for things I did when no one else gave a shit,” he hissed.
The tears finally spilled over, blurring my vision. “You don’t know a thing about my family.”
He scoffed. “I already know everything I need to.”
I angrily brushed the tears from my face and took a step back, tears still streaming. “I loved my grandma. Don’t you dare think for one second that I didn’t.”
With that, I stormed off, still crying as the neighbors looked on. I half walked, half ran, and once I reached the house, I choked out a sob as soon as I stepped inside.
I cried until I didn’t have the energy for more. Every time I closed my eyes, I pictured the stupid, ordinary things I’d missed. A grocery run. Something broken around the house. Sitting at her kitchen table long enough to notice she needed help. Cole had done those things. I hadn’t.
The guilt made me feel sick. I’d been busy in the city, busy trying to make my parents proud, while the one person who’d always been proud of me was here alone. Now there was nothing useful left for me to do with an apology.
I curled up on the couch, feeling sorry for myself and like a complete idiot for accusing Cole of… helping?
He was there when I wasn’t. He made her feel like she had family around when no one else was there. I should have been thanking him.
So why had I needed his kindness to have an angle? I’d spent seven years hearing the same story about Cole. It was easier to believe that version than admit something didn’t fit.
It still didn’t prove anything about what happened with Dad. For all I knew, helping Grandma could’ve been penance, his way of making something right.
Whatever it was, I owed him an apology.
* * *
Monday rolled around quickly, and I found myself a bit nervous to confront him. It was a wonder he still wanted to work for me. I’d expected him to call over the weekend, telling me to find someone else.
But as I turned into the driveway of the inn, I noticed his van was there. I saw two other men but no sign of Cole yet. I stepped outside and walked toward the inn, moving quickly to get the front door open since they had the materials ready for the renovation.
“Good morning,” I said, smiling.
“Morning, ma’am,” they both said in unison.
Just as I opened the door, Cole came around from the back. He had his head down but looked up and met my gaze. Heat rushed into my cheeks as I stood there staring at him.
His jaw clenched before he said, “Good morning, Ms. Adams.”
Ms. Adams. Right. I’d finally gotten the professional distance I’d claimed to want, and I hated how much I noticed it.
“You can just call me Nora, please,” I said.
“I’d prefer to keep things professional,” he said, about to walk past me. “Better that way.”
“Cole,” I said, stopping him in his tracks.
He paused before turning to me. I took a breath. “I’m sorry.”
“For what?” he asked. “What exactly?”
“For what I said the other day. The truth is, I should’ve been thanking you for being there for my Gran. I had no right to come at you like that.”
“I don’t need your thanks,” he said, and my cheeks burned with embarrassment.
“I’m trying to make this right.”
“Then let me do the job.”
I stared at him for a second.
He looked toward the inn. “We’re starting on the roof. We’ll do it as quickly and efficiently as possible.”
I swallowed. “Okay.”
“Anything else?”
I met his gaze and shook my head. “That’s all.”
He nodded and left me standing there. I wished I’d thought it through before I went charging over to his house.
It had been easier when I could tell myself he was the asshole in all this. If he was the problem, I didn’t have to question much else. Unfortunately, he kept being decent in ways that made my old opinion harder to hold onto, and I couldn’t even blame him for wanting to keep things professional.
With nothing much to do but watch, I glanced over at Harper’s place and decided to stop by and say hi. I climbed the small steps to her porch and knocked.
Harper opened the door, her face breaking into a smile when she saw me. I couldn’t help but smile too.
“Hi!” she chirped, eyes wide and expressive. “So glad to see you again. Please tell me you came over because you’re bored too.”
“Good to see you too. The men have started the repairs on the inn, so I thought I’d stop by and say hi. I needed a break from staring at the mess.”
“Oh, of course. Please—come in.”
I smiled as I sidestepped her into a house that smelled like an assortment of flowers. The place was cozy in a way that looked intentional instead of expensive. The oversized sofa was a soft gray-oatmeal color, plush enough that nobody could mistake it for decoration.
I liked it immediately.
“Your place looks amazing,” I said.
“Thank you. I don’t have much to do, so I mostly focus on making this place a home. Can I get you something to drink? I have coffee.”
I shook my head, smiling. “I’m good, thank you.”
“Okay, let’s sit and chat then, shall we?” She grinned as she made her way to the sofa. I smiled as I followed behind.
“What did you do before you moved here?” I asked.
“I planned events in L.A. Weddings, corporate launches, parties for people with more money than sense. Then I got burned out and moved here. I wanted quiet. This is maybe too quiet.”
“And now?”
“Now I’m bored.”
“You could start planning events here.”
Harper glanced around. “In a town with six thousand people? I swear everybody knows everybody. I’m glad you got Sullivan. He’s really good at his job.”
I smiled. “So everyone keeps telling me. I hate that they’re right.”
Harper studied me for a second. “You don’t sound very happy about it.”
I drew in a breath. “It’s kinda complicated. He has a bit of history with my family.”
“Ah, I see… I’m sure that won’t get in the way of his work.”
“I’m hoping it won’t,” I said, shifting a little on the sofa.
“People in town talk about him a lot. I think the men are a bit jealous of him,” she said, raising a brow.
“Oh yeah?”
“Can you blame them? He’s hot and he knows what he’s doing. Not really my type, though—I prefer them a little rougher around the edges.”
I laughed. “I wouldn’t have guessed.”
She grinned. “Why?”
I rubbed my forehead. “I don’t know. It’s just surprising, is all.”
Harper was petite, no more than five feet. I guess I imagined her type being someone put together and gentle.
Apparently Harper didn’t believe in easing into personal questions.
“Do you have a boyfriend?” she asked, and my gaze snapped toward her.
“Um, no… the dating pool was horrible in New York, so I kinda just gave up on that.”
Her eyes widened. “Really?”
“Yeah, my last boyfriend was in college. It didn’t last long, though.”
“You could get anyone you wanted with a face and body like that.”
My cheeks warmed. “I—er, um…”
Harper laughed. “You’re blushing!”
I waved her off playfully and tucked my hair behind my ear. “I’m not!”
She was grinning, and I was getting flustered. “When was the last time you even had sex? And don’t tell me it was in college,” she said, rolling her eyes.
I swallowed hard. “I, um…” I trailed off, wondering if I should confess to someone who was basically a stranger. Harper was nice, but I didn’t want too much too soon.
I hesitated too long. Her eyes widened, and there it was. I’d answered without saying a word.
“Fuck, you’re a virgin!” she exclaimed, mouth wide open.
My face went hot.
“No way!”
“Please don’t laugh!” I begged.
“I’m not laughing. I’m just shocked. If I had your body at twenty-five, I’d have fucked half the town.”
I giggled despite myself and shrugged. “I don’t know. It just never felt like the right time.”
“You don’t need a right time. You just need a man to do it with.”
I scoffed. “I’m not gonna sleep with just anyone.”
“Of course not. I’m saying pick somebody you actually want. Then make a move.”
“Me?” I gawked.
“Why the hell not? One good night and you’ll be ready for round two.”
I rubbed the back of my neck and sighed. “There aren’t a lot of attractive men in Misty Pines, I gotta say.”
Harper raised a brow. “You’ve got one working on your inn.”
Of course she picked Cole. My own brain had been circling the same problem since yesterday, which was exactly why I didn’t need Harper helping.
I choked on a laugh. “Cole? No way! He barely wants to call me by my first name.”
Harper grinned. “You noticed that, huh?”
I shook my head. “He’s off limits.”
“How come? Wait—the whole family history thing?”
“It’s complicated. It’s seven years of family bullshit, and I don’t want to get into it.”
“You don’t have to date him. Just sleep with him once.”
“Oh God, I’m not doing that!” I laughed. “I can barely deal with him with his clothes on.”
Harper shrugged, raising a brow. “Don’t knock it til you try it.”