26. Chapter 26

Chapter twenty-six

"I bet you're not afraid of anything."

W hen a loud clap of thunder woke Gage, he raised onto an elbow with a groan. His door was open a few inches and he could see a flickering light coming from the living room. Sydney went to bed when he did. She shouldn't be up.

He got out of bed, straightened out his t-shirt, then put on his pants before going to see why she was up. Sydney was on the couch with a blanket around her, hugging her knees. The power had gone out before they went to bed and there was a single candle sitting on the table. In the dark room, it was pretty ineffective.

"Sydney?"

She was startled and she gasped, but quickly recovered. "Oh, sorry. Did I wake you?"

"What are you doing? Why aren't you asleep?"

Lightning lit up the room, followed by a jolt of thunder. Sydney put her head on her knees and spoke into the blanket. "I'm a little freaked out by the storm."

He went to the couch and sat next to her. "You're afraid of the thunder and lightning?"

She looked at him. "Not afraid. Freaked out."

"Right. Okay."

"I know it's stupid."

"No, it's not. And I'm not making fun of you." He moved closer and put his arm around her. "Clementine used to be terrified of thunder."

"But she outgrew it, right?"

"For the most part. It probably helps to have someone like Booker at home to keep the storm boogeyman at bay."

"It seems so much worse out here."

"No buildings to block the wind. It roars up the creek bed and through the trees. Makes it sound worse than it is."

It lightninged and thundered again as the wind continued to howl outside. The rain was falling hard on the metal roof, which amplified the sound. Sydney laid her head on Gage's shoulder.

"Maybe you could just sit with me for a few minutes."

"Of course. As long as you want. How about we light some more candles?"

She nodded, and he got up to gather the candles from around the room. He put several of them on the table in front of the couch, then lit them.

"There we go. Is that better?"

"Yes. Thank you."

He settled back down next to her and put his arm around her again. She leaned into him.

"I bet you're not afraid of anything."

He laughed. "Sure I am."

"Care to share?"

"Hmm. I'm not real fond of high places. Or small places. Cooper and Cabe locked me in the old outhouse behind Cabe's cabin when I was about ten. We were on a trail ride and they left me there, thinking I'd figure out how to get out and ride back home. I didn't. They got back to the ranch for dinner and panicked when my horse wasn't in the barn. Dad and Uncle Rand came to get me after I'd been in there for about four hours."

"Oh, my gosh. I hope they got into big trouble."

"They did. I never saw my dad so mad at any of us, before or since."

"You poor thing. How long did it take you to forgive them?"

"About a year. Mostly Cooper. I knew it was his idea. Cabe was only eight. He wasn't the instigator."

"Well, it's nice to know you're human."

"Of course I'm human. I'm far from perfect, if that's what you're suggesting."

She patted his chest. "Not far. You're closer than most people."

"How do you figure?"

"Well, you're sitting here with me in the middle of the night. That's pretty perfect."

"I guess I have my moments." He kissed the top of her head. "Would you like me to read to you? Take your mind off of the storm."

"You'd do that?"

"Of course."

"Yes, please."

He reached for a paperback book sitting on the table. "I've read a few chapters of this. But I'll start at the beginning. It's an old western. I hope you don't find it too boring."

"I know you have a thing for the old west." She wrapped the blanket tighter around herself and put the end of it over Gage's lap. "But how accurate are these old novels?"

"Depends on the author."

"I suppose it does." She snuggled in closer. "I'm ready."

Gage read for two hours until the storm passed them by. It was still raining, but the thunder and lightning had stopped. They could hear an occasional clap of thunder in the distance. But it no longer seemed to bother Sydney.

"I think the worst is past us. Do you think you can sleep now?"

She sighed. "Yes. Thank you. What time is it?"

Gage checked his watch. "Two."

"Goodness. I'm sorry."

"Don't be sorry. It's a good book."

"I'm very curious about Rusty's family secret."

"We'll read some more tomorrow." He set the book on the table, then looked at her. "Get some sleep." She nodded, then he kissed her. "I'll see you in the morning."

"Thank you for sitting up with me."

"Had we been locked in an outhouse, or stranded on top of a tall building, I'm sure you would've done the same for me."

When Gage woke up, the storm had passed, and the sun was shining through his bedroom window. He checked the time on his watch. It was almost ten. He never slept that late. The flashing numbers on his alarm clock told him the power had been restored.

He sniffed the air. Coffee. And…pancakes. He could get used to having Sydney around.

When he returned to his bed a few hours ago, he hadn't bothered taking off his pants. So he was basically dressed for the day. He put on a flannel shirt and combed his hair. Then he brushed his teeth and considered cleaning up his facial hair. He decided against the latter. He'd do that tomorrow before going into the office.

He left his room and found Sydney flipping pancakes. "I was hoping the smell of coffee would bring you out."

Gage went to the coffee pot and poured himself a cup. "Pancakes, huh?"

"I'm sorry, there's not anything to go with them."

"I don't need anything else." He sat at the table and she put a plate with three pancakes in front of him. He poured some syrup over them and took a bite. "Sydney, you are too good to me."

She shrugged. "I cooked a few meals. No big deal."

"It's a big deal to me."

She sat across from him. "How are you feeling today?"

"Pretty good. I think I'm almost back." He took another bite of pancakes. "Which means you can go home today."

"I'll stay the day and go after dinner."

Gage smiled. "I like that plan."

"I'm not being a nuisance?"

"I like having you here. Which is saying a lot. Because I like my alone time."

Sydney smiled. "I know you do. So, I'm quite flattered." She ate some of her pancake. "The rain washed away all the snow. So we could take another walk. But we'll have to stick to the road. It's pretty muddy out there."

"A walk sounds good."

"We could walk to Cooper's and say hi to them."

"Yeah. We could do that. Or we could turn around right before we get to their house." He smiled. "After relaying the outhouse story to you, I'm a little pissed at him all over again."

"That's understandable. Maybe we could come back here after our walk and finish the book."

Gage shook his head. "I hope you're not too disappointed in Rusty's family secret."

"It has to be good, right?"

"I don't know. I guess we'll find out."

As they were finishing their breakfast, Gage heard a vehicle pull up out front. He got up and looked out the window. "Huh."

"Who is it?"

"Corbyn and Rose." He opened the front door. "Hey, guys."

Corbyn came up the steps. "I've been trying to call you since yesterday."

"My phone was a casualty of the tree."

Rose came up behind Corbyn, then went to Gage and hugged him. "I'm sorry you got hurt."

He patted her head. "I'm fine. All better."

Corbyn nodded. "I'll be the judge of that."

Gage nodded. "Come on in."

They went inside and Corbyn motioned toward the couch. "Have a seat. I just want to take your vitals and check your ribs."

Gage sat, and Corbyn took his blood pressure, temperature, and pulse rate. "Okay. You're about back to normal. Have you been moving around a little?"

"We've taken a couple of walks. It wears me out, though. I've also taken a couple of naps."

"That's to be expected. Lift up your shirt."

Gage lifted his t-shirt and both Sydney and Rose took in a breath. Sydney shook her head.

"Oh, my gosh. I had no idea you were bruised like that."

Corbyn felt around, causing Gage to suck in some air of his own. Corbyn smiled. "Sorry." He backed away. "You'll be sore another week or so. Maybe two. But it's looking pretty good."

Sydney cocked her head. "That looks good?"

"He's healing on the inside. The bruising will go away before the pain does. But considering a tree fell on him three days ago. He's doing fine."

Gage pulled down his shirt and leaned back on the couch as Rose came to sit by him. She took his hand. "That looks like it really hurts."

He smiled. "It does. But only when I move the wrong way. Or, sometimes, at all." He laughed. "I'm kidding. It's feeling better than it did."

"Good."

He looked at Corbyn. "Do you want some coffee? Or water. I think that's all I have. Except for beer. But I guess it's a little early for that."

"A little bit. Yeah. We actually need to go. We're expected at Grandma and Grandpa's for lunch."

"Will you tell them my phone is dead, and that's why I haven't called them?"

"Yes." He looked at Sydney. "Is your phone dead, too?"

She shook her head, and Gage raised a hand. "Okay. I know. I'm a terrible son."

"I'll tell them you send your love."

"Thank you."

Corbyn gave Sydney a smile. "Thanks for taking care of him."

"My pleasure."

"I was slightly surprised to find you still here."

Gage scowled. "Hey. I'm not that hard to get along with."

"When you're healthy, no. But when you're not feeling well, you're a bit of a pain in the…butt."

Gage looked at Rose. "That's so not true."

She giggled. "I remember when you had the flu last year."

"Whatever. Go on. Get out of here."

Rose hugged him. "It's okay to be grumpy when you're sick. We still love you."

"Thank you. I love you too."