Page 111 of Delicate Escape

We feasted on steak and a vegetable medley that had every color of the rainbow. Potatoes au gratin that had me jonesing to get my hands on the recipe, and rolls that had the consistency of clouds. Rhodes had brought her peanut butter poke cake for dessert, and there wasn’t a crumb left.

After dinner, we all helped clear the table, but Nora shooed everyone but me out of the kitchen. My stomach did a flip at being alone with her in the space, but she sent me a sheepish smile. “It’s selfish. They all want to get to know you better. But Shep’s my baby, and I feel like I deserve first dibs.”

I scraped a few food scraps into Nora’s compost bin as I tried not to let the nerves take hold once again. “He loves you so much.”

That was easy to see. There was a tenderness in the way Shep was around his mom. A gentleness. But more than that, gratitude.

Nora’s gaze moved to the window, watching all her childrengathered on the back deck, laughing as Keely put on some sort of show. “He’s a good man.”

“The best,” I said, handing her the plate to rinse.

Nora moved in a way that said she’d memorized the layout of the kitchen long ago and could move through it with her eyes closed. “But he takes too much on his shoulders.”

I was quiet for a moment as I scraped more plates. “I think a part of him will always feel like he needs to prove his worth.” My fingers tightened on the dish I held, struggling with whether or not to say what I wanted to. But I held tightly to all the things Shep had reminded me of. Most of all that I hadn’t escaped tonotlive.

“We all carry with us the weight of our experiences. The hard things change us. Sometimes, they scar us. But it’s never all bad. They grow our empathy, understanding, and the way we care for others around us. Shep cares for the people in his orbit more than anyone I’ve ever known. He just needs a reminder now and then that he doesn’t have to be perfect for us to love him.”

I froze at the last words that tumbled out of my mouth. I hadn’t meant to say them, but there was no denying they were true.

Nora’s hands stilled, covered in soap suds, as she turned to me. “You love him?”

I swallowed hard. “I do.” I let out a shaky breath. “Your son reminded me there are good men in this world when I desperately needed that reminder. He’s made me brave. Made me reach for things I never thought I’d be able to have again.”

Unshed tears glistened in Nora’s eyes. “Thea.”

“You raised an amazing son.”

Nora dropped the plate into the sink and moved to me in a blur. She pulled me into her arms and hugged me tightly, not letting go. “I’ve seen a change in him this past month. An ease he hasn’t had before. It’s you. You make him brave right back. Brave to trust that he’senoughjust as he is.”

My throat burned and my eyes filled. “He’s more than enough. He’s everything.”

Nora pulled back, a few tears slipping free. “And so are you,my beautiful girl. It’s so clear to see. Your kindness, your care, yourstrength. I don’t know what you’ve been through, but I hate that it happened to you.”

“It just makes me appreciate what I have now that much more.”

Nora sniffed. “Want you to have it all. And if you ever need an ear or a hug or someone to cluck over you for a little while, I’m always here.”

My own tears spilled then. At her kindness. At the offer to give me something I’d never really had before. “Thank you,” I whispered. “It means more than you’ll ever know.”

“Everything okay in here?”

Shep’s deep voice cut across the kitchen, making both Nora and me jump. Then we both promptly dissolved into laughter.

Nora wiped at her face and waved her son off. “We’re fine. Just getting a little emotional with our girl talk.”

Shep instantly moved to me, his big body curving around mine as his thumbs stroked across my cheeks, clearing my tears. “You’re crying.”

I shook my head. “I’m happy.”

He frowned down at me as if not totally believing my words.

I wrapped my hands around his waist and squeezed. “Happy,” I echoed. “And you gave that to me.”

Shep’s rough hands cupped my face. “You gave it to yourself. I just love being a piece of the puzzle.”

42

SHEP

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