Then, as if she were commenting on the weather, she added, “I think he’s been talking with his wife again.”
My head snapped toward her so fast I nearly gave myself whiplash.
“I thought he was divorced,” Babs said, her voice a shade too bright to be casual.
Mrs. Grady hesitated just long enough to make it feel intentional. Then her expression turned…wistful. “Courtney still works at my real estate office, so they’ve stayed in touch. She’s just the prettiest little thing and such a sweetheart.” She held up her fingers, crossed. “I don’t want to get ahead of myself, but Noah’s making some changes in his life. I think they can still find their way back to each other.”
Wait what?
I must have imagined that look he’d give me earlier.
Had I imagined that energy, too?
Babs shifted in her seat across the aisle, her mouth tightening. Her glance flicked toward me briefly, and then back to Mrs. Grady.
“What happened, if you don’t mind my asking?”
Mrs. Grady leaned in, lowering her voice. “They met in med school—both so smart, so like-minded. He proposed between internships. Oh, their wedding was lovely, like something you’d see in a magazine. After graduation, they agreed one doctor in the family was enough. Courtney stayed home at first, made sure Noah had the perfect place to come home to.”
My throat tightened.
“She made a huge sacrifice,” she went on. “When residency took up most of Noah’s time, she came to work for me. He worked such long hours. Trauma. The worst kinds of people and cases. The honeymoon ended too soon, that’s for sure.”
Her mouth pulled tight. “We’d hoped he’d get matched with dermatology or plastic surgery—something more manageable. In the end, he said he felt…called.” She gave a small sigh. “I think I spent more evenings with Courtney than Noah did.”
“And now?” Babs asked softly.
Mrs. Grady hesitated—just a beat too long. “Well. He’s reassessing things.”
That pause said more than anything else had.
And just like that, the giddy warmth I’d been carrying all afternoon thinned to something brittle.
Tay’s voice crackled through the speaker, bright and breezy. “Up ahead and to the right, you’ll notice the Grand Mesa. It’s the largest flat-topped mountain in the world. Spans over five hundred square miles and tops out above eleven thousand feet.”
Trying to pretend I hadn’t duped myself again, I leaned forward, squinting at the flat blue mountain in the distance.
I was just going to have to go back to thinking of him as a casual friend again. I wish that were as easy as it sounded.
I couldn’t allow myself to dwell on how nice he smelled. Or how his eyes could look right through me, but in a good way.
Or about the way he’d stayed with me most of last night…or that for some reason, I’d trusted him completely.
Nope. Not dwelling on any of that.
So, here I was. Window seat. Slightly overdressed. Trying not to be crushed by the absence of a man when I really shouldn’t be.
“It doesn’t look that big. Are you sure?” Denise called out, daring to question our faithful guide.
Tay let out a good-natured laugh. “I know, right? It’s deceiving from this distance—but yep, I’m sure. Once you get closer, you realize it’s absolutely massive. Think of it like a table: really wide and really flat. You’re just seeing the edge from here.”
She paused for effect, then added, “It’s home to more than three hundred alpine lakes, and fun fact—most of Grand Junction’s drinking water actually comes from up there. So, if you’ve had a glass of water today…hopefully, you’ve had more than one…” Tay took a moment to pin her gaze on me.
I rolled my eyes, but then held my water bottle up as proof that I’d learned my lesson.
“Very good.” Tay nodded in approval before picking up her spiel. “Anyway, chances are that your water has flowed down from the Grand Mesa. One of Colorado’s best-kept secrets.”
“Like the monument!” Marla offered.
