Page 14 of Midnight Clear

“It’s that time of year,” Colt said, moving toward her and guiding her back toward the bed before she could protest. “Freddie Lawrence came in this morning with the same thing. Doesn’t she work for you?”

Sophie groaned. “That’s all I need is all my employees out sick at the same time. I need to be there.”

“I heard about your mom moving to Florida,” Colt said, changing the subject. “That must have been a shock.”

“That’s an understatement,” she said.

Hank’s brows rose in surprise. He hadn’t heard that bit of gossip yet. No wonder she’d been so upset at breakfast.

“Moms can be a handful,” Colt said. “I know ours is. You grow up with them caring for you and having their undivided attention, and then all of a sudden you become an adult and they start getting a little rebellious. It’s like reverse teenage years. I think she’s paying us back for all the grief we gave her.”

Colt pulled back the covers on the bed and Sophie crawled inside.

“I’ve heard some stories of the things the five of you did as kids,” Sophie said. “You probably deserve it.”

“You’re probably right,” Colt said. “And you most definitely have a fever. A hundred and two point one. Hank, why don’t you and Zoe see if you can find some tea and toast, and give us a few minutes here?”

Sophie hadn’t looked him in the eyes since she’d come out and seen them all standing there. He couldn’t tell if the flush in her cheeks was from embarrassment of the things she’d been saying to him or if it was just the fever.

“But I don’t like tea,” he heard Sophie say as they left.

ChapterFive

The flu.

Hank sighed as he drove toward home. His brother might have been younger by two years, but he was an excellent doctor and he said the flu was going around. There was nothing Sophie could do but drink fluids and wait it out.

Zoe had called Sophie’s mother to come over, and Hank had waited there with Sophie until Maggie had shown up. If she’d been surprised to see Hank there, she hadn’t shown it. All she’d said was, “How’s she doing?”

“Grumpy and fit to be tied,” Hank said.

“That sounds about right,” Maggie said. “Let me give you a tip if you want to get anywhere with my daughter. Her head is hard as a rock and it’s not easy for her to let other people do things for her.”

Hank’s lips twitched in amusement. “So I’ve noticed. I’ve been told I have a hard head a time or two as well. But I have the patience of Job.”

“Not too much patience I hope,” Maggie said. “I’m leaving town Friday.”

It had to be the weirdest conversation he’d ever had, and he wasn’t entirely sure they were talking about the same thing.

“I guess I have my work cut out for me,” Hank said.

She’d nodded and headed back to see her daughter, and Hank had left with Colt and Zoe.

“Thanks for coming to see her, Colt,” Hank said. “I owe you one.”

“You owe me more than one,” he said. “Why don’t you invite her for Christmas dinner. With her mom leaving she might not have anyone to spend it with.”

“He’s so thoughtful,” Zoe said, looking at her husband with adoration. “He always remembers the little things. Unlike me who can never remember anything.”

Since Zoe spent most of her time on book deadlines and her head lost in a story, Hank could see why she wasn’t good at remembering everyday details.

“You have other qualities,” Colt said, kissing her forehead.

“Y’all get a room,” Hank said. “I’m going home.”

The snow was steady—nothing out of the ordinary—but it was enough for the tourists to get their money’s worth of ski runs. It picked up as he headed toward the mountain and crossed onto O’Hara land. His family had owned part of the mountain, along with a couple of lakes and land for as far as the eye could see, since his great-great grandparents had settled here from Ireland. Generations had been raised on that land, and now a new generation of O’Haras was learning what legacy meant.

He checked the time, noting it was just after nine o’clock. Between meetings and Sophie, he’d not gotten the chance to talk to his mother. So on impulse, he took the right fork in the road instead of the left. The road had been plowed so it was easy travel up the hill to his parents’ house.

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