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He stretched and cranked up Tim McGraw’s “Live Like You Were Dying.” What would his father have done if he’d known he was going to die? Would he have taken the leave he’d accumulated to be with his family or stayed with his unit?
Sweat stung his eyes. Had to be sweat and not tears. When he’d been five, his granddad had told him not to cry about his father. Dad had lived an honorable life. There was nothing better than that.
A car engine broke through the music in his ears. He waved as Carolina pulled into the driveway.
Yanking out his earplugs, he met her as she stepped out of the car. “Checking on my work?”
“Oh, no.” She chewed her lip. “I wouldn’t do that. I trust you.”
“Hey.” He stroked his thumb across her lip to stop her from worrying it to a pulp. “I was joking. What’s wrong?”
She inhaled. Then let out a deep breath. “My mom’s coming home.”
He pulled her in for a hug, then remembered he was all sweaty. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to make you smell like me.”
“I don’t mind.” Tears filled her eyes, making them sparkle.
He stroke his thumb on her cheek. “I thought you wanted your mother to come home.”
“The doctor’s talking about hospice. It’s so…final.”
“Ah, honey.” This time he didn’t care whether he was bathing her in sweat. She needed a hug. “I’m sorry.”
“I… I got in my car and drove. I guess… I should air out the house. When we were here last week, it smelled…” Her shoulders sank.
“You could have called me.” He wrapped an arm around her back and led her up the stairs.
Carolina stopped and looked at the house. “You’ve gotten so much done.”
“I’m trying to beat the rain.” And it was good to be back doing something.
Surprise crossed her face. “Rain?”
At the top of the steps he turned her to face the clouds over the Atlantic. “You missed the forecast?”
“I guess.”
“Are you sure you were capable of driving?” His voice crackled with worry.
“I wasn’t looking at the sky.” Confusion clouded her face. “Or listening to the weather.”
He wished he could drive her home but, for the first time in months, he was driving again and they had two vehicles. It wasn’t practical to leave one in Tybee.
She unlocked the door and they headed inside. “You can smell it, right? That smell of…no one living here?”
He nodded, even though the smell wasn’t that bad. Of course, as an FBI agent, he’d been in some nasty places. “Do you want me to open windows even though we’ll have to close them soon?”
“No. I’ll do it.”
He brushed a kiss on her lips, but her confusion didn’t clear. A chill scuttled down his spine.
Was something else going on?
Back outside, he picked up the pace. What if, now that her mother was out of the hospital, Carolina didn’t have time to be with him? She’d said she loved him, but was that the truth? She hadn’t told him the truth about her father.
He took his confusion out on the old paint. The windows squealed as Carolina opened them. Then a vacuum buzzed.
She had a lot on her plate. Her mother. Her sisters—and didn’t the fact that she’d kept that from everyone still stick in his craw. Now her mother needed hospice. It couldn’t all be about him. About them.
The first fat raindrops began to fall. He worked until he finished the last two spindles. Then he stuck the scraper, wire brush and stiff broom he’d used under one of the carports. He’d better see if Carolina needed help inside.
After kicking off his wet sneakers, he tiptoed into the kitchen, grabbed a towel and went in search of Carolina.
She was scrubbing the main floor bathroom.
“It’s raining. Do you want me to close the windows?” he asked.
She brushed back her hair with her shoulder. “Could you?”
“Sure.”
Scary. Carolina was oblivious to what was going on around her.
A couple of the windows complained as he powered them closed. At least they were clad in vinyl and wouldn’t need painting.
When he headed back to the bathroom, she was dropping cans and sponges into a plastic bucket.
“Done?”
“For now.” She picked up the supplies. “I have to bartend tonight.”
He took it from her. “Is this going in the kitchen?”
She nodded, not looking at him.
He couldn’t read her. “What’s going on?”
“I’m cleaning.” She headed into the living room.
He barely stopped from rolling his eyes. “I know that. Why are you upset?”
