Leave it for the Rain: A Love She Couldn't Remember—A Woman He Couldn't Forget (Grayson Brothers Book 6) by Wendy Lindstrom
Authors: Wendy Lindstrom
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slapping her palm on the railing.
The horse flinched and back-stepped three paces.
“I’m sorry, girl. It’s all right,” Rebecca cooed, instantly regretting her outburst. She lifted her hands to the horse and clucked softly. “Come, Star. Come on, girl. It’s all right.”
As the horse moved back to the rail, showing her trust, Rebecca lovingly stroked the mare’s neck.
“She knows you,” her mother said. “She doesn’t know your name either, but she knows you. And you know her. Perhaps instead of trying to remember our names you should simply feel your connection with those around you. You are surrounded by love, Rebecca, and there’s no need to feel anxious or afraid.”
The idea filled Rebecca with hope. If she could connect with others as she had with her mare, perhaps she could begin to remember them. Perhaps she could anticipate her fiancé’s visits with joy rather than dread. She wanted to feel like the girl—like the woman —he talked about with such devotion rather than like an imposter intruding on his private life.
o0o
For three days Adam had been turned away at Rebecca’s door. She needed a few days to herself, her mother had said, but Adam wondered if Radford might have something to do with that decision. They had worked the mill together without incident, but they, and their crew, carried on without their usual lighthearted banter. Every man there understood the seriousness of Rebecca’s injury and the pain it was causing her and her family.
All Adam understood was that the woman he loved needed to be rescued from the fear and sense of loss she was experiencing. She didn’t deserve any of this pain or heartache.
And so he’d stayed away to give her time to rest and recover without feeling she was being hauled back into their relationship. Putting himself in her place, Adam realized how unnerving it must feel for her to be engaged to a man she didn’t know. It unnerved him, too, but in a much different way. What if she never got her memory back?
The thought was unbearable, so he shoved it from his mind. He lifted three long planks onto the pallet and grunted from the effort.
Boyd stopped to help stack the last few pieces of lumber. “You’re going to get a sore back working like this.”
“I need the hard labor today.”
“But you won’t want the backache tonight, so ease up.” Boyd nudged Adam’s shoulder. “Don’t be a hardhead like me. Manhandling this lumber isn’t going to solve anything.”
“You’re perceptive, I’ll give you that,” Adam said. “With that skill you might have made a good lawman like Duke.”
Boyd laughed, his teeth catching the sunlight as he shoved his damp brown hair off his forehead. “Can you imagine me a lawman?”
“Based on your character? Yes. Based on your personality? No.”
Boyd laughed again. “Sad but true. I’m more likely to cause trouble than stop it.” His smile faded and he locked his perceptive gaze on Adam. “Rebecca’s accident wasn’t your fault. Stop punishing yourself over this. It won’t help anything.”
Boyd could have smacked Adam with one of the eight-foot pieces of cut lumber and stunned him less.
“Adam, she came to the lumberyard on a busy day,” Boyd continued, “and she made the mistake of being in the wrong place at the wrong time. Not her fault. Not yours. It was an accident.”
Adam shook his head. “I shouldn’t have let her come here—”
“That wasn’t your decision,” Boyd said, cutting him off. “Rebecca’s been coming to the mill since she was four years old. She knows the dangers. She’s been told numerous times to stay near the gate or to make sure she’s with one of us. She’s as hardheaded as her father.”
“Radford knows that Rebecca came here to bring me lunch. She wouldn’t have been here if not for me.”
“Radford is scared sideways. He can’t think past the end of his nose right now, and that’s why Kyle, Duke, and I are going to send him back to the
The horse flinched and back-stepped three paces.
“I’m sorry, girl. It’s all right,” Rebecca cooed, instantly regretting her outburst. She lifted her hands to the horse and clucked softly. “Come, Star. Come on, girl. It’s all right.”
As the horse moved back to the rail, showing her trust, Rebecca lovingly stroked the mare’s neck.
“She knows you,” her mother said. “She doesn’t know your name either, but she knows you. And you know her. Perhaps instead of trying to remember our names you should simply feel your connection with those around you. You are surrounded by love, Rebecca, and there’s no need to feel anxious or afraid.”
The idea filled Rebecca with hope. If she could connect with others as she had with her mare, perhaps she could begin to remember them. Perhaps she could anticipate her fiancé’s visits with joy rather than dread. She wanted to feel like the girl—like the woman —he talked about with such devotion rather than like an imposter intruding on his private life.
o0o
For three days Adam had been turned away at Rebecca’s door. She needed a few days to herself, her mother had said, but Adam wondered if Radford might have something to do with that decision. They had worked the mill together without incident, but they, and their crew, carried on without their usual lighthearted banter. Every man there understood the seriousness of Rebecca’s injury and the pain it was causing her and her family.
All Adam understood was that the woman he loved needed to be rescued from the fear and sense of loss she was experiencing. She didn’t deserve any of this pain or heartache.
And so he’d stayed away to give her time to rest and recover without feeling she was being hauled back into their relationship. Putting himself in her place, Adam realized how unnerving it must feel for her to be engaged to a man she didn’t know. It unnerved him, too, but in a much different way. What if she never got her memory back?
The thought was unbearable, so he shoved it from his mind. He lifted three long planks onto the pallet and grunted from the effort.
Boyd stopped to help stack the last few pieces of lumber. “You’re going to get a sore back working like this.”
“I need the hard labor today.”
“But you won’t want the backache tonight, so ease up.” Boyd nudged Adam’s shoulder. “Don’t be a hardhead like me. Manhandling this lumber isn’t going to solve anything.”
“You’re perceptive, I’ll give you that,” Adam said. “With that skill you might have made a good lawman like Duke.”
Boyd laughed, his teeth catching the sunlight as he shoved his damp brown hair off his forehead. “Can you imagine me a lawman?”
“Based on your character? Yes. Based on your personality? No.”
Boyd laughed again. “Sad but true. I’m more likely to cause trouble than stop it.” His smile faded and he locked his perceptive gaze on Adam. “Rebecca’s accident wasn’t your fault. Stop punishing yourself over this. It won’t help anything.”
Boyd could have smacked Adam with one of the eight-foot pieces of cut lumber and stunned him less.
“Adam, she came to the lumberyard on a busy day,” Boyd continued, “and she made the mistake of being in the wrong place at the wrong time. Not her fault. Not yours. It was an accident.”
Adam shook his head. “I shouldn’t have let her come here—”
“That wasn’t your decision,” Boyd said, cutting him off. “Rebecca’s been coming to the mill since she was four years old. She knows the dangers. She’s been told numerous times to stay near the gate or to make sure she’s with one of us. She’s as hardheaded as her father.”
“Radford knows that Rebecca came here to bring me lunch. She wouldn’t have been here if not for me.”
“Radford is scared sideways. He can’t think past the end of his nose right now, and that’s why Kyle, Duke, and I are going to send him back to the
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