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“Not right now. I’ll get him settled. He’ll probably take a nap. If he gets too antsy, I’ll give him his video games. You have two babies who need their mama. This baby has flown the nest.”

Lilly pulled her into a hard hug. “Expertly. Now listen, if you need anything we’re all here to help. And before you say you don’tneedhelp, I just meant if you want it. You need an hour to yourself, or want us to run an errand or whatever. Help because we love both of you and want to be of some use to you.”

Somehow those words struck Cora all wrong, reminding her of Shane when she shouldn’t be thinking about him at all. She’d made her decision. For her and Micah. No more Shane thoughts.

“I’ll be sure to let you know,” she said to Lilly, fairly pushing her sister out the door, since it’d be the only way she left.

Once she got Lilly gone, Cora turned to the living room. Micah had sprawled out on the couch and was already turning on the TV. She’d give him another few days of laziness before she started poking him to do something requiring a little more brainpower.

The doctor had said Micah might still be sluggish for a day or two, but then he’d probably bounce back. Aside from his arm, which would take weeks to heal. Cora tried not to think too hard about the timeline.

“You want a blanket?” she asked, brushing her fingertips across the top of his head.

“Nah.”

“You wanttheblanket?”

Micah eyed her, then slid his gaze to the TV and shrugged. Cora smiled in spite of her exhaustion. She went to the closet and dug out Micah’s old safety blanket. It was ratty and so worn she couldn’t even see the pattern anymore, which was probably for the best considering it had been a Noah’s ark pattern, the baby animals something Micah would most definitely not appreciate now.

She placed it over Micah’s shoulder of his bad arm. He didn’t move except for the tips of his fingers wiggling till he touched the edge of the fabric.

“You hungry?”

“Yeah. Pizza rolls?” he asked hopefully.

“And broccoli?”

“I broke myarm.”

“Doing something you weren’t supposed to do. Broccoli for pizza rolls.”

“Fine,” he grumbled, trying to get comfortable on the couch as he flipped channels. “Mom . . . How come Shane hasn’t been around?”

“Oh, well.” Cora blinked. She hadn’t expected Micah to bring it up. She wasn’t ready to get into it yet. Maybe when he was better. She went to the kitchen to make the pizza rolls. “I’m sure you’ll see him next time you go to the ranch. Do you want some water?”

“But why isn’t he here?” Micah persisted.

“I . . .” Okay, so maybe she had to discuss this right now.

“I ruined it, didn’t I? I told, and I ruined it. He said I didn’t, but he’s nothere.”

“No. No. Nothing . . . Nothing is ruined,” Cora said, and she knew she was completely unconvincing, standing in the kitchen giving him no actual details.

“He’s not here, and he said . . .” Micah struggled into a sitting position on the couch so he could look over the back at her in the kitchen. “Mom, you have to tell me what’s going on.”

“Okay.” Okay, she could do that. Somehow. “I just . . .” She couldn’t think of what to say. Because, well, things had changed because Micah had told. Which wasn’t hisfault, but he’d think it was. How could he not?

She walked over to the couch, slowly. Really slowly, not because she was drawing out the inevitable, but because she was buying time to figure out what to say.

If she told him . . . If she told him the truth, she was afraid he’d apply it to himself. That he wouldn’t want to tell anyone about his past.

But he hadn’t been in charge. He hadn’t been the adult. He hadn’tletit happen. How on earth did she explain that to a twelve-year-old?

“Mom, come on.”

She perched herself on the edge of the couch. “It’s just adult stuff, honey.” That was a good enough answer, surely. “Nothing to do with you.”

“Except everything was fine until I told him.”