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She was in too much of a red haze to pay any attention to what Gavin was doing with the horse or how much Micah was getting into it. The only thing she could do was stand and breathe, trying to calm that spurt of anger.

It was hardly Shane’s fault he’d accidentally stumbled onto one of her sore spots, and she couldn’t be mad athim. They were just . . . different. All the smiling and flirting in the world didn’t change that fact.

She could hardly be mad at him for proving to her what she already knew. She was less. She was a ball of mistakes and failures who had lied to survive among other awful things.

She’d just thought he’d seen something different in her, and that was her own dumb fault.

Cora stopped the downward spiral of negative thoughts. She forced those old nasty voices out of her head. Some mix of Mom and Stephen and her own insecurities.

She wasn’t that girl anymore. She fought her insecurities head-on, and she didn’t take them out on other people like she had on Lilly for so many years.

“All right. You ready for some grub?” Gavin asked.

“Yeah.” Micah bounded over to her, and it soothed some of that roiling in her stomach. She was doing something right. Maybe the whole basketball camp thing still didn’t make any sense to her, but here he was grinning at her like she’d given him the world.

“You know this is supposed to be a punishment, right?” she asked him, running a hand over his hair, and he didn’t flinch or bat her away.

“Well, the shit was gross.”

“Mouth, Micah.”

“They said it!”

She gave Gavin her best “mom” glare, and he tipped his hat. “Sorry ’bout that.”

“Let’s head in to lunch. And I expect you to be incredibly polite and grateful that Mrs. Tyler is providing us with food.”

Micah heaved a sigh she knew meant assent somewhere deep down. Since he was letting her touch him, she slid her arm around his shoulders. Shoulders that would be up to hers in no time at all.

They walked out of the barn, Gavin leading them toward the house. Shane was nowhere to be seen. She didn’t anticipate the mixed reaction she had to that. A little relief she didn’t have to face him knowing she’d been unnecessarily curt with him, a little disappointment that he’d bail.

“After lunch we can do some weed spraying and some brush clearing in the pastures.”

Micah shifted out from under her arm. “That sounds lame.”

“The lamest,” Gavin agreed cheerfully. “But after a good afternoon of that, we’ll feed and water the horses. Then maybe, your mom willing, we’ll get you up for another ride.”

Micah looked up at her expectantly, and she knew she was sunk. Every last free moment of the next however long it would take for this to wear off, she’d be begging from the Tylers for some horse time.

Because you can’t provide for your son yourself, can you?

Oof. Why couldn’t she get that voice out of her head? Well, she’d have to keep working on it until it was gone.Gone.

They walked up to the porch, and Gavin led them inside, but before she could follow him down the hall, she heard Shane say her name.

She stopped to find him standing in the doorway to the living room. “Cora, can I talk to you for a minute?”

She winced because she knew she owed him an apology. Apparently he wasn’t the kind of guy to let a little unexplained rudeness from a woman go.

“Ooh, I think your mom’s in trouble,” Gavin said in a sing-songy voice, which earned him a glare from Shane and Cora, and a laugh from Micah.

“Come on, kid, let’s load up our plates, and maybe we can get two helpings in before we get back to work.”

Cora wished she could insist on going with Micah, but she didn’t avoid hard things anymore. She stepped into the pretty living room area and tried to smile at Shane.

But he was frowning at her. “Did I do something to offend you?”

She closed her eyes. “No.” But that was a lie, and she might have had to lie on occasion, but she wouldn’t on this. “Yes.” She opened her eyes to find Shane frowning even more deeply, and who could blame him? “I mean, it’s my thing. It was nothing really to do with you. So, we’re fine. It’s fine.”