Liam yawned sleepily and cuddled even closer against him.
Smiling down at him, Zane stroked Liam’s downy soft head.
The moment so affectionate, so unexpected, it brought tears to Nora’s eyes.
Zane continued in a tone that was both pragmatic and gentle, “And I’ve got just the idea on how to make that happen.”
* * *
“THAT WAS BRILLIANT, getting them involved with the West Texas Warriors Assistance nonprofit,” Nora complimented Zane, as they walked out to the parking lot. Aware this was beginning to feel like a date, when it most certainly was not, she forced herself to put aside her increasingly warm feelings for the sexy soldier.
He opened the door for her, then stepped back to give her room to settle the sleeping Liam back in his car seat. “My family and the others running it can use the help, especially this time of year.”
Nora straightened and shut the door. To her relief, Liam continued sleeping.
Tilting her head back, she looked Zane in the eye. “I know Bess Monroe, the nurse who runs the rehab unit. I’ll call her tomorrow and see what we can do to set things up between us.”
Zane flashed another flirty grin. “I can help with that, you know.”
Awareness swept through her. Fighting the urge to touch him, Nora took a step back. “I appreciate your Good Samaritan spirit.”
“But?” The street lamps brought out the wheat-gold hue of his hair.
Resisting the urge to run her fingers through the thick strands, Nora frowned. “I can’t go down this road with you again, Zane.” And working closely with him, on anything, would lead to just that. A fact he seemed to know all too well.
He regarded her with barely veiled bemusement. “Our relationship doesn’t have to end badly. In fact—” he shrugged his broad shoulders laconically “—it doesn’t have to end at all.”
Nora tossed her bag into the car. “I think, given the very different things we want in life, that it already has,” she said, casting him a probing sidelong glance. “In any case, Thanksgiving is tomorrow. It will be a very busy day at Laramie Gardens, with all the guests and family coming in.”
“I’m guessing it won’t be a happy occasion for everyone.”
Nora dipped her head, acknowledging wearily this was true. For every happy heart, there would be a broken one to mend. “I’m going to need all my energy to see them through it. So we better call it a night.”
Apparently not quite ready to give up just yet, he watched her climb behind the wheel. “Sure you don’t need my help getting Liam in the house, or seeing you get some dinner?”
Need?
No. She could do whatever was required all by herself.
Want was a different matter entirely.
* * *
“I HEARD MY dad had another episode last night,” Lynn Russell informed Nora the next morning.
Nora ushered the sixty-year-old noted actress into her private office. Although currently filming a television series in NYC, the glamorous redhead had flown back to enjoy the holiday with her dad.
“He suffered a period of brief confusion last night.”
“Wasn’t that the second time since he’s been here?”
“In the course of two weeks. Yes.”
Lynn settled in a chair on the other side of Nora’s desk. “Do you know why?”
“We initially chalked the first incident up to simple fatigue. He was exhausted by the plane ride and long drive here. Neither of which is easy for someone his age.”
“And the one last night?”
Nora regarded the medical chart in front of her. “We’re not sure. He hasn’t had much of an appetite since he moved in. So his blood sugar was a little off. We got the levels back to normal after he finished eating his dinner. And it was normal again this morning.”
“So that’s not likely it.”
“Probably not. But with folks his age, we keep a close tab on that just the same. He could also have been sundowning a little.”
Lynn turned off her phone and set her bag on the floor. “What’s that?”
“It’s a type of confusion that occurs later in the day. It can be an early symptom of Alzheimer’s or dementia. But I’ve also seen it brought about simply by a change in environment in an elderly person.”
“So, if it’s just the move back to Texas causing this...?”
“Then his occasional disorientation will ease as he adjusts to life here at Laramie Gardens and everything becomes more familiar to him.”
Lynn tapped her fingers, thinking. “And if not?”
Nora sobered. “Then treatment might be required. Which is why we have a geriatric specialist, Dr. Ron Wheeler, coming in tomorrow morning to go over his medical records and examine him. But not to worry, your dad is in fine spirits this morning. So you should have a nice holiday together.”
Her expression regretful, Lynn walked with Nora to the door. “I wish I could have convinced Dad to stay with me in New York City and continue to have home care help to assist him in my absence. But he was insistent he return to the place where I grew up and he and my mother spent their entire married life.”
Together, they moved down the hall. “I can see where that would be comforting.”
Lynn shook her head sadly. “He’s never gotten over losing her two years ago.”
Nora recalled Esther, who had worked side by side with her husband at the Laramie bookstore they founded. A kinder, more devoted couple could not have been found. “How long were they married?” She paused just outside Mr. Pierce’s door.
“Sixty-three years.” Lynn smiled and waved at her dad, who was standing in front of a bookcase of leather-bound classics. Treasure Island, Moby-Dick, A Christmas Carol, Gunga Din, The Catcher in the Rye, Don Quixote... Mr. Pierce had quite the collection. And he was deeply attached to them all.
“Wow,” Nora said. “I can hardly imagine what it would be like to be married that long.”
“I know.” Lynn grinned as she headed in to see her father. “Not many couples make it that long these days.”
Certainly, Nora thought, not she and Zane.
* * *
“IS LIEUTENANT LOCKHART coming for the feast this evening?” Miss Mim asked.
“We invited him to attend,” Miss Sadie said helpfully.
Nora cradled Liam against her shoulder, all the while keeping an eye on the dining
