Finding Her Courage Read online

  Josh and Maricela finished spray-painting the mason jars and held one out for her inspection. The mirror spray paint gave off an ultra-glossy finish that looked cool with the LED candle flames. “Perfect.” Josh grinned and they went to join Evie and the others who were busy stringing up clotheslines.

  Ty spotted her from over by the hangar and made a beeline in her direction. Camille realized she’d left her water bottle in the dairy barn and hurried to get it. Ty followed her. The crutches were slowing her down.

  Now that she thought about it, she could get fresh water from inside the house. And ice. Way better than a lukewarm water bottle. She went in through the front door and shut it behind her. A minute later it opened and closed again.

  There was a back door that led out of the kitchen and into the yard where a good-sized garden grew fruits and veggies. She went out the door but wasn’t fast enough. Ty’s hand landed on her shoulder.

  “Camille, will you wait a second?”

  She turned to face him, already blushing and hating herself for it. Blushing meant he was getting to her, and Ty was definitely not getting to her. “Did you need something?”

  The innocence in her voice didn’t fool him. “You’ve been avoiding me for two days. Don’t you think it’s time we talked?”

  “I’m not avoiding you. I’ve been right here.”

  “Every time I get close, you run away. Just give me a minute. One minute.”

  Camille sighed. “Okay, fine. One minute.”

  Ty ran a hand through his hair. “I’m sorry I kissed you. I shouldn’t have done that.”

  She’d expected him to defend their kiss, to try to convince her it had been the right thing to do. She was relieved when he didn’t. Mostly. The tiniest corner of her heart dipped a toe into disappointment.

  “Okay then.” She didn’t know what else to say.

  “Do you think we can just forget it and go back to being friends?”

  Easier said than done. “I don’t know.” How could she forget a kiss like that? She’d never admit to sparks, but there had definitely been flickers.

  “I miss your dimples,” he said. “I miss our talks. I miss you. So, if it comes down to being friends or being nothing, I’ll take friends.”

  That was sweet, and difficult to argue with. “I don’t have dimples.”

  Ty grinned. “Trust me. Dimples and you are kind of an item.”

  Her heart started pitter-pattering. She told it to settle down but couldn’t help the giggle that floated out of her.

  “See, there they are.” Ty reached for her hand, but she pulled it back.

  “Do friends usually hold hands? Do you hold hands with Emmitt? Or Dillon?”

  He hesitated. “No.” There was an awkward pause. “Okay. What about dinner? Friends have dinner together, don’t they?”

  She wasn’t gonna let him reason his way into her heart though. “Yes, but I’m not sure that’s a good idea anymore. Dinners are too—” Dangerous? Exciting? “—romantic.”

  A U-shaped crinkle tugged the skin between his eyes. It only lasted a minute, then his face brightened. “What if it wasn’t dinner? What if it was the least romantic thing possible?”

  She tilted her head to the side. “Like what?”

  His eyes danced around as a smile spread across his face. “Bugs.”

  Bugs? Like...bugs?

  “The nature center is hosting Bug Fest this Saturday. Hundreds of bugs from all over the world. You get to see them up close and even touch them. They do it every summer.”

  Ew. Even ladybugs grossed her out. “I don’t know about that.”

  “You’ve gotta admit there’s nothing romantic about it. Plus, there will be tons of kids there. Not exactly date night.”

  He had her there. “I don’t know if we’ve got time for something like that.”

  “Just a couple hours.”

  “Like the horseback riding?” She arched an eyebrow.

  “The nature center doesn’t even have horses, and it’s only a mile or two from here. You can almost see it from the ranch. And we’ve got things pretty under control here, don’t you think?”

  He had a point. The last couple days Ty and everyone here had been true to their word and really pitched in.

  “They open at eight. I can pick you up at your place, we’ll go check it out, then come straight here and get to work.”

  She tried to picture Evie petting a giant cockroach and her stomach churned. But giant cockroaches were probably safer than horses or anything else around here. “Evie might actually get a kick out of it.”

  “That’s a yes?”

  “That’s a yes.”

  His lopsided smile spread, and Camille’s heart fluttered. She started to wobble on her crutches and realized she’d been on her feet way too long. Ty helped her over to a bench. “Do you need anything?”

  “I’m fine. My ankle’s back to normal size now, it just starts to ache after a little while.”

  “You’re sure?”

  She never had gotten her water. “Actually, a drink would be nice.”

  “Coming right up.”

  He went inside, and Camille relaxed. She was glad they’d made up. She’d hated avoiding him the last two days. He was right, it was much better being friends than being nothing.

  Her phone buzzed and she looked down at Nikki’s incoming message.

  We got an offer! Tell Ty. We can sign the papers this week.

  Camille’s throat went dry. When Ty returned with her drink, she swallowed the water in two giant gulps. “I guess you were thirsty. Want some more?” But she shook her head. Water wouldn’t help right now. He was looking closely at her. “Something wrong? You look a little flush.”

  She forced a smile and brightened her voice. “Nope. Want to help me figure out the chairs?”

  “Sure.”

  She stood up, and they started for the stables.

  * * *

  Dillon came into the hangar. “We got a booking for Saturday.”

  Ty looked over from inside the Piper Cub. “Flying lesson?”

  “Yep. Said she heard Phoebe Saylor was getting married here and wants to see the place. She’s getting married next year and thought it might be fun to jump out of a plane after they say their I dos.”

  Skydiving? Huh. Ty wasn’t a certified instructor, but Josh had been a parachutist. He wondered how hard it would be for Josh to get certified, or if he’d even want to. He added that to his backburner list.

  “Maybe things will finally start picking up again,” said Dillon. They’d had only one lesson all last week.

  “If she asks, tell her we can work out the skydiving thing.” Ty would figure something out. He always did.

  When Dillon didn’t respond, Ty glanced over at him. He was standing with a strange expression on his face. “Have you seen Camille today?”

  “Yeah, she’s in the house. I told her we should probably spruce things up inside too, in case one of the guests wants to use an actual bathroom instead of those fancy porta potties. Why?”

  Dillon shrugged. “No reason. It’s just that I talked to Nikki and...” He put his hands in his pockets and bounced on his feet.

  Ty leaned out of the plane and looked at him. “What?”

  Dill didn’t normally fidget. “Bug Fest, huh? How very unromantic of you.” He broke into a grin and the fidgeting eased.

  “Unromantic was kind of the point.”

  “Yeah, well, there’s unromantic, and then there’s no-chance-in-the-world. It’s a whole other level of unromantic I didn’t even know existed until I heard about your Bug Fest idea.”

  Ty groaned. The matchmaker in Dillon just couldn’t help himself, could he? “Is that it?” If all Dill wanted to do was tease him about Camille, Ty had better things to do.

  There was a
brief pause. Totally unnatural for Dillon’s blabbermouth. “I ran into Liam yesterday.”

  Oh, great. No wonder Dill was acting strangely. “He told you about Mia?”

  Dill nodded. He waited for Ty to say something, but Ty had nothing to say. “I’m fine.” He really was too. He realized now that Mia wasn’t to blame. It takes two to end a relationship. Anyway, Mia was gone, but Camille was still here. There was still time.

  “So, Mia has nothing to do with choosing Bug Fest over dinner?”

  “Camille liked the Bug Fest idea. It’ll be fun for Evie.”

  Dillon shrugged. “I’m just doing my duty as your younger brother and pointing out all your mistakes. Isn’t that what we’re for?” Ty threw a rag at him, and Dillon ran out of the barn.

  What would Dill say if he pointed out that Camille and Nikki were both leaving Sweetheart when this wedding was over? He suspected Dillon wouldn’t like it any more than he did. When Camille walked into the hangar, he kicked his thousand-watt smile up to full volume.

  “Hey.” He jumped out of the Piper to greet her.

  Evie was with her. She started moving toward the plane, but Camille pulled her back. She had that frantic look on her face.

  “I need your help in the house. Some of the lights I put up won’t turn on, and I can’t figure out what’s wrong with them.” Her fingernails were bitten all the way down, and it looked like she’d started in on the skin around them.

  “You checked the bulbs?”

  “All two thousand of them.”

  Two thousand? No wonder she was so jittery. Evie tried to get away again, but Camille kept a firm grip. It was easier now that her crutches were gone, though he noticed she was still balancing most of her weight on one foot.

  “Everyone’s disappeared. I can’t find Dillon, Emmitt, Maricela...” She started counting people off on her fingers. Evie finally managed to scoot away from her. “I knew you were in here fiddling with that plane again. Can you please help me?”

  “I think everyone’s just running around playing catch up.” Wednesday had always been catch-up day for them, and with so much work going into the wedding, some of the normal ranch stuff had slipped past them.

  “Yeah, but the wedding’s in a week and a half, and we need lights that work.” Here came the shuffle he’d grown so used to. Left foot, right foot, repeat. Followed by a few twists of her wedding ring.

  Ty told himself it didn’t matter that she still wore it. They were just friends after all. But his heart strained on the next few beats. “Just give me a minute, okay? I promise we’ll get the lights working.”

  “Today?”

  “Today.”

  She nodded, relieved, then turned her eyes toward the plane. Her mouth dropped open and her eyes blew up like balloons. “Evie!”

  Ty turned and saw Evie trying to climb into the plane. She was halfway up.

  Camille rushed over and pulled Evie down, but Evie wiggled free and tried to go back up. Camille pulled her into a hug so tight there was no escape. “What are you doing? Don’t you know planes are dangerous?”

  Ty didn’t bother pointing out that this plane was safely on the ground and completely turned off. It was no more dangerous right now than a loaf of bread. None of that would matter to Camille. All she’d ever be able to see was the big bad plane, and the big bad pilot who made it fly.

  Camille relaxed her grip, and Evie pointed to the plane. When Camille did not give the response Evie was hoping for, she took Ty’s hand and tried pulling him toward it.

  “Evie, hang on a second.” Ty kneeled down so that she didn’t have to look up at him. In her eyes was a look he’d seen before in his own reflection. A combination of curiosity and longing. “Do you want to go up in the plane?” Evie nodded, and a hint of desperation flashed behind the curiosity. This wasn’t just something Evie wanted to do; it was something she needed to do.

  But Camille was already shaking her head. “Absolutely not.”

  The smart play would be to back Camille up, but maybe this wasn’t just about Camille. Maybe God had sent Evie here for a reason. Now the rest was up to him. He stood and faced Camille, holding on to Evie’s hand so she didn’t go running off.

  It went against all his instincts, but if he and God were friends again, he was ready to put his trust in Him. “You and I are friends, right?” Ty asked.

  Camille blinked. “Yes...”

  “So as your friend, I’m telling you that right here, in this hangar, this plane is safe. And even if you’re still scared of it, Evie clearly isn’t. If she wants to sit in it for a minute, don’t you owe it to her to let her try?”

  He knew he was asking for a fight, but Camille’s bottom lip began to quiver. She looked at Evie. “I just don’t understand. Evie, sweetie, do you really want to go in the plane?” Evie nodded. Camille’s voice trembled. “But...why?”

  Evie kept her silence, but Ty thought he might be able to help. He dropped Evie’s hand and went over to Camille, locking eyes with her. “Do you remember when I told you that I keep flying to honor those who can’t anymore?” She nodded. “Well, maybe this is Evie’s way of honoring her father. Of keeping him close to her heart.”

  A tiny light went off in Camille’s eyes. Her hands started shaking, and she swallowed three times before she said anything. “Okay. Evie, if you really want to sit in the plane, you can.” Her voice cracked on the last word. She grabbed Ty’s hand and squeezed it hard. “Don’t turn it on. Don’t let her fall.”

  “I promise she’ll be okay.” He squeezed her hand back, and Camille gave him a nod. He turned to Evie. “Okay, up we go.” He lifted her into the plane, putting her right in the pilot’s seat.

  Evie sat there, pushing the buttons and twisting the control wheel. Camille looked ready to faint. “Don’t worry, the key’s not in it.”

  Evie touched everything. She couldn’t stop. When she turned back to them, the biggest smile Ty had ever seen stretched across her face. It lit up her eyes like there were spotlights shining out of them.

  Ty turned to gauge Camille’s reaction, and his heart almost stopped. Her mouth was hanging open, and her face had gone completely white. Ty rushed to her side and put his arm around her waist. Camille whispered to him. “I need air.”

  Evie was fine where she was, lost in a world of her own. He walked Camille to the hangar doors, and she leaned against the wall sucking in air. He still had a clear view of Evie from here. If she started to climb down, he could get to her in a second.

  “Are you okay?” He was worried about the way Camille’s whole body seemed to be shaking. He kept one hand on her just in case her knees buckled. She was watching Evie, and then before he even realized what was happening, she was kissing him.

  * * *

  Camille had been fighting the urge to kiss Ty since the last time. She’d tried to convince herself she didn’t need the warmth of his breath or the comfort of his lips, but she’d done a terrible job of it. This kiss now was only proof of that.

  She pulled away and saw the surprised look on Ty’s face. She’d surprised herself too. Evie turned and waved to them, her grin still firmly in check. That long-lost grin Camille had almost given up on, even if she’d told herself she hadn’t.

  “I don’t know what to say.” She heard the cracks in her voice and thought maybe they’d always been there; she’d just done a good job of covering them up until now.

  “Neither do I.” Ty was shaking a little. “What happened to being friends?”

  How did she explain everything going through her head without sounding ridiculous? For two years she’d been trying to get Evie to smile, and for two years she’d failed. It turned out that Evie’s smile had been there the whole time; it just needed the right person to bring it out. And that person was Ty.

  “I’ve been waiting two years for Evie to smile again. And thanks to you, she has. I
can’t tell you how grateful I am.”

  Ty frowned. Not quite the reaction she was hoping for. “Camille, my feelings for you haven’t changed, but I don’t want you to kiss me because you’re grateful. Or because you think you owe me something.”

  She was messing this up. Camille put her hands on his shoulders, afraid he’d walk away before she could get everything out. “That’s not why I kissed you.” She drew in a deep breath. “You’re right. I like you. I was just scared to admit it.”

  Ty took her hand. “And now?”

  That was the ultimate question, wasn’t it? “Now, I’m still scared, but I don’t care anymore.” A lie detector went off inside her gut. She cared plenty; she was just trying harder to push those cares aside. “I know it can’t last, but maybe that’s okay. Maybe it doesn’t have to last to be worth it.”

  Ty drew his eyes together. “Why can’t it last?”

  But he must’ve known why. “My life is in Chicago. And your life is here.” It was the easy answer, and the only one she could give right now.

  “What if—”

  But Camille cut him off. “Let’s have dinner Friday night.”

  He blinked. “Instead of Bug Fest on Saturday?”

  “In addition to it.”

  He grinned. “So, your plan is to spend as much time together as possible?”

  She hesitated. “More like, enjoy the time we have while it’s here.”

  Ty’s smile faltered. “I can live with that. For now.”

  Chapter Eleven

  The next day, a set of hands grabbed Camille from behind and hustled her into the main barn. Nikki folded her arms, tapped her foot and tilted her head to the side. It was classic Nikki. I’m your younger sister and I’m not letting you off the hook. “I just talked to Dillon. What gives?”

  What were Camille’s chances of getting out of this if she played dumb? “I don’t know what you mean.” But she knew it hadn’t worked before the last word was out of her mouth.

  Nikki’s fingers extended and folded over as she counted things off. “A, you know exactly what I mean. B, we’re running out of time. And C, what are you thinking?”