Page 33 of Shimmering Emeralds
“I bet.” I nodded as I selected a cup for Meg’s coffee and moved to stand in front of the machine.
“Don’t forget to push the button to switch it away from decaf. Meg likes her coffee to be super-high octane, and I don’t think any of us want to deal with her if she doesn’t get her dose of caffeine.”
I appreciated Alex trying to help me out, but I couldn’t keep from noticing the questioning look he angled over at me after I pushed the proper button and said, “Oh, I know how she likes it.”
As I replayed the words in my head, I immediately realized how naughty they sounded. That hadn’t been my intention at all, but now that they were out there, trying to take them back would likely only bring more attention to the unintentional innuendo.
I’d probably raised enough of a red flag in Alex’s mind that he would mention it to Claire. After that, it wouldn’t be long until Claire asked Meg about it. Then the chances of our low-key, low-profile budding reunion being successful would be blown to bits. I would scare Meg off before I really even had a chance to get her to fully reopen her heart to me.
Once Meg’s coffee finished dripping, I picked up the cup and followed Alex back toward Harper’s room. The fresh, hot coffee might gain me entrance, but I would need to work to make sure Meg wanted me to stay as much as I needed to be there.
Outing us to her brother-in-law most definitely wasn’t the way to do that. It was time for me to go into full damage-control and wooing mode.
29
Meg
Claire continued her efforts of pumping me for information about Levi, but I wasn’t willing to share. He had always been my special secret. My instinct to keep him all to myself hadn’t changed after our years of separation.
“You gotta give me something here, Meg.” Claire complained. “Are you interested in him? Why is he still here? Why were the two of you in the same tiny bed?”
Even if I wanted to answer her barrage of questions, I wouldn’t know where to begin. Luckily, I was saved from having to try when the men returned with our steaming cups of coffee.
“Perfect timing.” I beamed a smile at Levi before angling my gaze over to Claire. Her sour expression made it appear that she had just been forced to gulp down a gallon of undiluted lemon juice, making it obvious she didn’t appreciate the interruption to her interrogation of me nearly as much as I did.
The men delivered us our cups. Alex leaned down to press a kiss to Claire’s cheek as he handed over her coffee. It was an easy, comfortable gesture that made me squirm in my seat both because I’d never had that relaxed level of intimacy with anyone and because I still couldn’t quite grasp the realization that my sister seemed to have completely moved on from her husband’s indiscretions.
I was still holding a significant grudge about it, and he wasn’t even my husband. In theory, I understood what happened, but that didn’t make it any easier to accept. Part of me wished I could be as easy-going and forgiving as my sister. I just hoped she wasn’t being too much of a pushover. If I sensed that Alex was taking advantage of her forgiveness, I would make him regret the day he was born.
“Ready to go check on our little one?” Alex asked Claire.
Her downturned expression made it obvious that she wanted to stay here and grill me some more, but she reluctantly nodded her head. Alex moved to begin pushing her wheelchair out of the room, but I stopped their progress by voicing the questions that suddenly popped into my mind.
Feeling guilty for being so self-centered and not checking sooner, I asked, “Where is Hannah? Is she staying with her Aunt Avery?”
“Yep,” Claire confirmed before adding, “Avery has been a godsend, jumping in to help out whenever we need her.”
I tried to smile, but could tell the expression didn’t make it all the way to my eyes. I owed Alex’s sister, Avery, an apology over the horrible way I treated both siblings while Claire was missing. In the time since Claire’s return, I’d managed to forge a tentative peace treaty with Alex––even though our relationship would likely never be the same as it was before that horrific year. Avery still visibly bristled any time I came near.
She and I had both just been protecting our siblings, but now that the danger was over, I needed to reach out to my sister’s sister-in-law to make amends. I had been the abrasive one who caused the gap in our friendship, so I needed to be the one to bridge it back together. It wasn’t like I was overflowing with close female friendships, so losing Avery’s was not something I should accept without at least trying to make it right.
“I owe her an apology,” I admitted quietly.
Claire gave me a warm, understanding smile. “She knows you’ve got your hands full right now.”
I nodded, silently vowing to reach out to her after Harper was awake and back to her normal life. Thinking of my daughter’s regular life raised a new concern in my mind. Furrowing my brows together, I asked my sister, “Are the kids back in school? I need to get Harper’s assignments so she doesn’t fall behind.”
Claire peered over at me. “Don’t worry about that right now. The kids were all given some time off from school to recuperate and regroup after the accident, but they are getting back into their normal routines now. Once Harper is ready to return to school, I’m sure you’ll be able to schedule a meeting with her teacher and the school’s administration to make a plan to get her back on track with her peers.”
I nodded, trying to accept Claire’s words at face value. The terrifying thoughts that Harper might not wake up in time to catch up with her classmates, or that she could wake up and not have the mental capacity to rejoin them in class nearly overwhelmed me. I forced my mind to latch on to Claire’s calm, confident reassurance that Harper would be back in school soon, learning and playing with her friends.
Suddenly, Claire’s gaze darted from me to Harper. “I could swear I just saw her eyes open! It was only in my peripheral vision, but I know I saw some movement.”
“That’s something new!” I couldn’t keep from looking at Levi for his reaction. He nodded, beaming a thrilled smile in my direction. We shared a long moment grinning at each other over this latest development.
Forcing my gaze back to Claire, who was staring at Harper as if she could will her to move again, I said, “The doctors consider these random movements to simply be reflexes, but I have to believe that they are good signs.”
“Oh, absolutely.” Claire nodded vehemently, even though she didn’t have any more medical training than I did. Sounding confident, she added, “Harper will be back with us in no time. I just know it.”
