Stephanie’s cheeks turned pink. “I don’t think I’m brave, not when it comes to some things,” she said. “But thank you for the compliment.”
“If you two are done, breakfast is ready,” his grandmother called from the other side of the kitchen. “I hate to interrupt, but it’s going to get cold.”
He wasn’t sure when she’d gotten up from the table, but he suddenly realized that he was starving and was thankful for the woman that had been both mother and father to him. “Have I told you lately that you’re the best?” he said, getting to his feet. “I don’t know what I’d do without you.”
“Probably starve to death,” his grandmother said. “Now come and help me get the food on the table.”
“Yes, ma'am,” he said, flashing her a big smile.
“I’ll help too,” Stephanie said, jumping to her feet. “I’ll get the plates and silverware if you just point me in the right direction.”
Just as they sat down to eat, Ricky came through the back door, “The road is open for travel,” he declared. “That was one heck of a storm, but it helped with the fire last night. It would have taken us twice as long to get the roof out without the snow.”
“We managed to escape without much damage, thanks to you,” he said. “Take off your boots and jacket and come have some breakfast, I’m sure there’s plenty.”
“Of course there is, I knew you’d end up here soon,” his grandmother said. “Get down an extra plate, Stephanie. Ricky, you’d better call Sue and let her know where you are.”
They devoured the food in a comfortable silence, then Ricky pushed his plate away. “That sure did hit the spot, Gilda,” he said. “Thanks for feeding me. Sometimes, Sue needs a break.”
They all laughed. “It’s my pleasure, there’s nothing I like better than feeding the people I care about,” she said. “I don’t get a chance to cook much anymore, so this has been fun.”
“Would you like some help with the dishes?” Ricky asked. “I don’t mind pitching in.”
“No, that’s fine, you have other work to do,” his grandmother said, waving him off. “We’ll need to get right on repairing the barn; the insurance adjuster will be here later this afternoon to take pictures, and then we can get started. But maybe you could take a look first and see what we’ll need. I can put an order in with the lumber yard so it’s ready as soon as we get the green light to start.”
“You got it,” Ricky said, getting to his feet. “I was thinking about looking for some temporary housing for the horses, too. It’s too cold to leave them in the pasture.”
“Good idea,” his grandmother said, getting to her feet and beginning to clear the table. “As soon as Cooper and Stephanie leave, I’ll help you with that. There are a few people who owe me a favor.”
After Ricky was gone, Cooper got up to help his grandmother. “It sounds like you’ve got everything under control. I don’t think you need us underfoot, but we’ll do the dishes before we leave,” he said, taking the stack of plates from her hand. “You’ve got enough to do without cleaning up after us.”
“And you’ve got a long drive on snowy roads ahead of you, that trumps my problems,” his grandmother said, taking the plates back from him. “I can manage a few dishes, and if it will make you feel better, I’ll have dinner with Ricky and Sue so I don’t have to cook tonight.”
***Stephanie***
It was hard to walk away from Gilda. In the short time they’d been together, she’d managed to find a way into her heart, but as they drove away, Stephanie had the strongest feeling that she would be back. After taking one last glance at the house in the side mirror, she watched through the windshield as they slowly made their way down the driveway and onto the snow-packed dirt road that led back to the highway. Glancing over at Cooper, she saw that he was relaxed at the wheel, a look of complete confidence on his face, and she forced herself to relax.
They made it down the mountain without even slipping once, and she kept her eyes open most of the time, but she still breathed a sigh of relief when they turned onto the paved two-lane road that would lead to the highway. Pleased to see asphalt instead of snow pack, she relaxed for the first time since getting into the truck and was able to enjoy the snow-covered landscape that passed by her window as they headed home.
It wasn’t long before she began to get sleepy and forced herself to sit up straighter, but her eyelids grew heavier andheavier until she finally lost the battle. She woke several hours later as they were driving into town, sat up confused for a moment, then saw Cooper smiling at her and everything flooded back.
“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to fall asleep,” she said, stretching. “I guess I was a lot more tired than I thought I was.”
“We didn’t get much sleep last night,” Cooper said, an even bigger grin on his face. “You might want to get used to taking naps when I’m around.”
She felt her cheeks beginning to flame. “Cooper, behave yourself, we’re not supposed to be together yet,” she said. “You can’t talk like that around other people.”
“I’ll do my best, but I’m a little addicted to seeing you blush,” he said, studying her for a second. “It makes your eyes bluer and the freckles on your nose stand out more.”
“Flattery will get you everywhere,” she said, then laughed. “Just do your best, okay.”
“Don’t worry, I don’t want to screw this up either. I need your recommendation to graduate,” he said. “As hard as it will be, we’ll keep this thing between us secret for a little longer.”
She reached over and took his hand. “We can still see each other, you’ll just have to come to my place,” she said. “No one at the hotel will care what we’re doing as long as we’re discreet. I’m allowed to have overnight guests in the suite; it’s always part of the long- term agreement. And we should be fine going out to dinner or whatever on that side of town, no one knows us there.”
He looked over at her. “You make it sound like we’re having an affair,” he said, a grin on his face. “Secret meetings in hotel rooms, dinners across town where we won’t be recognized, all very thrilling. Now we just need to wear big hats and sunglasses everywhere we go, and the picture will be complete.”
She laughed. “Cooper, it’s only for another week, then we won’t have to hide anymore,” she said. “I’ve already decided tolet Kendra do your evaluation; it seems like the fair thing to do. I couldn’t begin to be impartial now, and it’s important to your future.”
