Come To Stay

Come To Stay-08

Chapter Eight

Aubrey laid the fork beside her untouched salad. "I sincerely doubt that my asking will have any effect on Reeve's decision."

"But you will try?" Marola Whitson entreated.

"Yes," Aubrey agreed, nodding reluctantly, when what she wanted was to keep Reeve to herself for the rest of her life.

As Aubrey returned to the beach house, she knew what she had to do. Reeve's mother had made the position clear. Aubrey's responsibilities went far beyond the physical therapy Reeve required. He was almost to the point of walking on his own now. Her last duty would be to bring him back into the mainstream of life.

Hands clenching the steering wheel, Aubrey drove to the shoulder of the highway and stopped completely.
The scenery was spectacular. Huge waves pounded the rocky shoreline. Large gulls swooped low in a sky that was cloudless. Heaving a sigh, Aubrey lowered her face until her brow pressed against her coiled hands. What Marola Whitson was really asking was that Aubrey relinquish her love. Of course, she had been subtle, but she was genuinely concerned that Reeve fit back into the lifestyle he had known before the accident. One that excluded Aubrey.

★★★

Reeve was in the hallway when Aubrey rounded the corner, eager to escape to her room unseen. She stopped abruptly when she saw him.

Large-knuckled hands gripped the walker. Slowly, Aubrey raised her eyes to meet his. "How was your appointment?"

"Fine."

A smiling knowledge lurked behind his dark eyes. "You don't look pleased about it. What's the matter, did the dentist find a cavity?"

"I wasn't at the dentist."

His mouth curved in a smile, the look deliberately casual. "I suppose my mother's been at it again."

Aubrey attempted to disguise her surprise. "How'd you know where I was?"

"I didn't. But I happen to know my mother. I didn't think she'd let this party thing drop so easily." He shifted his weight, and Aubrey recognized that he was getting tired.

"Go back to your room and I'll bring us coffee." Reeve agreed, and Aubrey returned a few minutes later with two cups of hot coffee and freshly baked cookies from Bliss.

When Reeve saw the tray he lifted one dark brow. "You expect this is going to take a while?" The look he gave her was both amused and curious.

"It could," Aubrey responded noncommittally.

Her hand shook a little as she handed a cup to Reeve.

"You are nervous." The sharp gaze followed her movements.

"Not really," she said, attempting to smooth over her telltale tremble. With her cup resting on her knee, Aubrey sat across from Reeve, who was at his desk.

"All right, let's have it. What's Mother said to you?"

"Nothing so terrible."

"I can imagine."

"Don't," Aubrey said quickly, in defense of the older woman. "You've spent a hellish nine months; I don't think you realize how hard this has been on your parents."

His mouth narrowed slightly. "I admit things haven't been easy for any of us."

"Now that you're walking again, your mother needs the assurance that things are going to be the way they once were."

Reeve rubbed his hands together, the movement marked with frustration. "I'm not the man I was nine months ago."

"You are and you aren't," Aubrey murmured, staring into the steaming black liquid. Reeve's frown was curious.