Chapter 30 #2
That was as far as I got before she lunged across the bar, snatched up a fistful of cocktail straws, and pelted them at me. “Gross, gross, gross!”
I ducked, laughing hard as the straws scattered across the floor and countertop—two of them landing in my coffee as I pressed a hand to my chest and worked to catch my breath between giggles. “What? All I’m saying is that your brother’s…talented.”
Norah threw another straw, this one solo, dead center at my forehead. “Shut up!”
I plucked a straw from the counter and tossed it back at her halfheartedly, fully amused by her horror as I trashed the ones that had landed in my coffee. “All right, fine, I’ll stop scarring you for life.”
“Thank God,” she muttered, but her smirk gave her away as she scooped up the rest of the straws from the counter.
The fun and lightness of the moment lingered between us, softening as I lifted my mug again, swirling what was left of my coffee. “In less life-scarring news…” I sucked in a breath. “My car’s fixed.”
Norah’s hand stilled on a collection of straws as she arranged them back into the container. Her blank stare met me head-on. “Does this mean you’re leaving?”
The question hung there longer than it should have, but I didn’t know how to answer it. I tried to cover up my indecision with a shrug, but my chest tightened all the same. “It means I can.”
“I’m sensing a ‘but’ here.”
I pushed away from the bar rail, mug in hand, and crossed to the sink.
The last of the lukewarm liquid swirled down the drain as I tipped the cup, buying myself a few extra seconds.
After washing the cup and resting it upside down on the rack, I braced my hands on the counter and drew in a slow breath before turning back to her.
“But…” My shoulders lifted helplessly before dropping.
“I don’t know if I want to leave. I mean, what if Heaven isn’t it?
What if Tarnation was the destination all along?
Everyone here has been…” I drew in a breath and relaxed.
“...so good to me. And then there’s your brother.
” My voice dipped, going softer. “Zane’s…
everything. And I’m not sure I’m ready to give up on the chance to…
” I paused, thinking of how to put into words what I was feeling. “See what could be between us.”
Norah’s mouth tugged sideways at that, like she couldn’t decide whether to smile or grimace.
“Well…Zane’s a decent guy—for a brother, anyway.
” She blew out a breath then, shaking her head.
“But forget him for a second because this isn’t about him, it’s about you.
If you’re not ready to go, then don’t. Nobody’s kicking you out of town because we weren’t your first choice. ”
I huffed a chuckle at that, and her gaze softened, steady on mine.
“And honestly? I’d hate to see you go.”
As nice and comforting as it was to hear her say that, those pesky doubts still pressed in. “Yeah, but Laurel’s going to be back soon and will be wanting her shifts again. Then what? I’ll be jobless.”
Norah rolled her eyes and tamped down the straws in the container, evening them out. “Please. Red isn’t about to let you go. He’ll find a way to keep you.”
“Okay, but I also can’t live in the guest room on your family’s ranch forever, either.” I crossed my arms under my chest, twisting to rest my hip against the counter. “Your mom’s probably wondering now when I’m going to pack up and make myself scarce.”
“You really think my mom would pass up having another woman around to fuss over and tip the scales in the McKade household?” Norah asked and tucked an errant strand of hair behind her ear. “We need all the estrogen we can get to balance out the testosterone my two knucklehead brothers produce.”
I shook my head. “Still…it’s not a permanent solution.”
A slow, pleased look spread across Norah’s face. “Good thing I’ve been looking for one of those, then. Hear me out…” She crossed her arms over the newspaper spread out on the bar and leaned in as she looked at me expectantly. “You and me…we get a place together.”
I blinked, caught off guard. “Like be…roommates?”
“Exactly,” she said as her eyes danced with excitement. “Two birds, one stone. You need somewhere to land, and I need to escape Luke’s ‘dad mode.’ Why not make it work for both of us?”
“You’re serious.” The words weren’t exactly a question or a statement, just…pure disbelief.
“Why would I joke about this? Come on, it’s perfect!”
Her certainty left me quiet for a moment as my thoughts tumbled over themselves. It felt like someone had just handed me the exact puzzle piece I’d been searching for without even asking what picture I was trying to put together.
Norah’s laugh snapped me back. “Geez, keep a girl waiting, why don’t ya.”
That pulled a laugh from me too, and I nodded enthusiastically. “Okay. Yeah, let’s do it.”
“Yes! Oh my God, this is going to be amazing.” Norah clapped her hands together like I’d just given her the best news of her life. “We can have wine nights, pizza nights, making fun of Luke nights.” She flared her hands out in an arch through the air in front of her. “Endless possibilities.”
Her excitement was so contagious that I couldn’t help but laugh again as I stood there watching her rattle off plans like she’d been sitting on this idea forever.
Her voice softened in the background, though, as something inside me finally…
settled. A realization that I wasn’t stuck anymore—not just in Tarnation, but in life.
I had choices, real ones, and I was finally brave enough to take them.
And if Zane happened to be a part of whatever came next…well…
That was a choice I’d be glad to make, too.