She dug her nails into her palms.
“You’re lucky you didn’t make it in yesterday morning. We had a jet go off the runway,” Ryan rattled on. “Typical November weather.”
“Anyone who grew up in this region should know better than to fly in the day of any event, especially at this time of year.” Margaret turned in her seat, unable to sit still a moment longer. “Unless it was your intent all along to miss the funeral.”
She had only a second to brace herself before Cole fixed his brilliant blue eyes on her, and to be startled at the sight of him on crutches.
“You remember Margaret Fisher.” Ryan gestured to her with a broad sweep of a hand. “She went to high school with us.”
It didn’t surprise Margaret that Ryan would feel the need to clarify. After all, it wasn’t as if they’d run in the same social circle back then. Ryan and Cole had been popular, while she’d been studious, shy and completely forgettable. A part of her had wondered if he’d ever mentioned his involvement with her to his friends. Apparently not.
Cole’s expression gave nothing away. “Of course, I remember Meg.”
“Meg?” Ryan lifted a brow. “I don’t know that I’ve ever heard anyone call her that before.”
That’s because no one else ever had, only Cole.
“I meant, Margaret,” Cole returned easily.
Ryan’s eyes held a curious gleam and Margaret got the feeling he knew there was more to the story than a simple verbal faux pas.
“You’re looking well,” Cole said to her when the silence lengthened.
Other than the crutches and the brace on his right knee, she supposed she could say the same about him. His hair was a little longer now, brushing his collar in a stylish cut. The hand-tailored dark suit he wore emphasized broad shoulders and lean hips. Surprisingly, he’d foregone a tie and left his gray shirt unbuttoned at the neck.
While she grudgingly admitted he looked…attractive…she had no use for him or for the words that came so easy to his tongue. Margaret lifted her chin. “Your friend appears to be too much of a gentleman to tell you—but this is a private business meeting.”
She could have cheered when her tone came out cool with just the slightest amount of indifference.
Cole’s brows pulled together and he shot Ryan a puzzled glance. “You told me this was the time you’d set aside to go over Ty and Janae’s will.”
Margaret narrowed her gaze and focused on Cole. “You must really be doing badly if you came all this way just to see if they left you anything.”
For a second she regretted speaking so frankly. Being brash wasn’t her style. Then she recalled how Cole had treated her and she decided she was being too kind.
“I’m doing quite well, not that it’s any of your concern.” Cole’s expression darkened. He turned to Ryan. “What the hell is going on here?”
A look of guilt crossed the attorney’s face and the gaze he shot her was filled with apology.
Margaret had always been intuitive. The unique gift that had failed her only once before was now telling her that something was about to go wrong. Dreadfully wrong.
“Ryan?” Margaret choked out the attorney’s name, finding breathing suddenly difficult.
“Neither of you have the complete picture, not yet.” Ryan gestured for Cole to take a seat then exhaled a harsh breath. “That’s the way Ty and Janae wanted it.”
Then this wasn’t a chance meeting, but something orchestrated from the grave by Margaret’s oldest and dearest friend. Oh, Janae, what have you done?
“I think I’d better sit down.” With lips pressed tightly together, Cole moved carefully across the slippery wood floor and eased himself into the only empty chair in the room, the one next to hers.
Though a big part of her life revolved around physical rehabilitation, she didn’t comment on his unsteady gait or ask about his injury. Quite simply she didn’t care. She couldn’t care. Not about him. Or his gimpy leg.
The only thing she wanted to know was why he was at this meeting…and how soon he’d be leaving.
Chapter Two
“I’m sure you’re wondering why you’re both here today.” Ryan leaned forward across the desktop, his gaze shifting from Cole to Meg.
Cole decided the comment must have been directed toward Meg, because he knew exactly why he was here. Over Labor Day, Ty and Janae had told him they were finally getting around to making a will. When Janae said she’d love him to raise Charlie if anything happened to them, something in her eyes had confirmed his long-held suspicions.
Of course, he’d said yes. He’d been a part of Charlie’s life since the boy was born. The only way Cole would let anyone else raise the child was over his dead body.
He glanced at Meg. Her eyes were focused on Ryan, her head held high. Just like the girl he remembered, she projected an air of supreme confidence. She’d always had high expectations of herself…and others. When she discovered he didn’t measure up, she’d turned on him.
Cole clenched his teeth. The funny thing was, right now that memory hurt more than his leg.
The attorney steepled his fingers beneath his chin. If he noticed the tension in the room, it didn’t show. “I’m not sure you know this, but Janae and Ty came to my office last month and made changes to their will.”
The comment didn’t concern Cole other than he felt happy they’d followed through on what they’d discussed with him. He wished Ryan would get to the point, so he could pick up Charlie and get out of here. While he’d been prepared to see Meg at the funeral, running into her today had thrown him.
Damn Ryan for not giving him a heads-up. Then Cole realized the attorney couldn’t have known it would be an issue for him to see her again. The only people who knew he and Meg had once been involved were Janae and Cole’s brother, Cade.
When he’d first seen Meg his breath had caught in his throat. She was even more beautiful than she’d been in high school. Despite knowing he was playing with fire, Cole couldn’t resist slanting another glance in her direction.
The beauty, which had showed such promise at sixteen, had been fulfilled. The red in her hair had deepened to a rich auburn, the vibrant color a perfect foil for her creamy complexion. From what he could see, her curves were still there, only more womanly than girlish. Her legs were as he remembered: long, slender and sexy as hell.
Ryan cleared his throat and Cole realized he’d been staring like a lovesick seventeen-year-old. Which he wasn’t. Not seventeen. Certainly not lovesick.
“What k-kind of changes did they make?” Margaret asked.
Cole heard the uncertainty in her tone. Obviously Janae or Ty had promised her something. Though he couldn’t imagine there would be much of anything left. The infertility treatments they’d been undergoing had taken all of their savings and then some.
Cole shifted position, hoping to take some pressure off his knee. The surgeon had warned him that if he flew so soon after surgery he was asking for trouble. Dr. Jones had been right. Even the extra leg room in first class hadn’t helped.
He thought of the bottle of pain pills in his luggage with a twinge of regret but then realized even if they were in his pocket right now, he wouldn’t take them. A man had to be alert to care for an active six-year-old.