Grateful

"I'm...sorry," Kane said as his stony heart softened and could actually feel her pain.

"I'd heard of it, of course, but never known anyone who had it let alone died from it. I sort of got a crash course in it the four days Nate was in the hospital although what I learned didn't do any good."

"I'm horrible at this kind of thing," Kane told her. "I want to say something but I'm afraid of saying something...stupid."

"No one really knows what to say, and I can't imagine you saying anything...like that."

"I've never been much for sensitivity, but lately I find myself wanting to change a lot of things about me."

"Why? You seem like a pretty great guy to me," Nelson told him. "Why would you want to change?"

"I suppose it's because I'm smart enough to know that what worked well for me in the Marine Corps isn't as...applicable...to life outside of it. And I guess maybe I'm finally ready to think about settling down, and I don't see too many women finding a guy like me someone they'd care to do that with."

Nelson smiled that same smile at him then said, "Fortunately, it only takes one, right?"

Kane laughed quietly then looked at her, unaware he was staring.

"What? Do I have something on my chin?" she asked as she reached up to wipe off whatever it was.

"Oh. No. Sorry. I didn't mean to stare."

"I realize I don't exactly look my best, but you don't have to rub it in," she said kind of playfully but in a way that made him wonder if she didn't realize how attractive she was.

"You uh, you look pretty great to me," he said.

Kane Archer was supremely confident in nearly everything he said or did, but with Nelson, he felt somehow unsure of himself, and that was a very new and very different kind of feeling. His uncertainty showed in the way he told her that, and now he felt slightly foolish.

"The lighting in here isn't all that good," she said rather quietly.

Kane was staring again, but this time he knew it.

"The lighting is just fine," he told her, his confidence returning. "You look...very nice, Nelson."

She'd been looking at him but suddenly looked down then picked up her cards and said, "Okay. I believe it's my turn."

"Way to go, dumb ass," Kane said to himself. "Did you really have to say that? You gotta be at least fifteen if not twenty years older than her, and there's no way a cute girl like that isn't gonna think what you just said was creepy."

After the hand was over, Nelson told him she thought she could possibly fall asleep, and Kane was actually thankful. He would have felt 'grateful' but that word was popping up much too often lately.

"Um, yeah. Me, too," he told her even though he was still beating himself up for what he thought was an inappropriate comment, no matter how sincerely he'd meant it.

Hoping to recover he said, "I really would feel better if you'd take the recliner."

"Yeah, I couldn't do that," she told him.

"Oh. Okay," he said now feeling even worse.

"No, I couldn't do that because well, with you being a senior citizen and all, it...it just wouldn't be right."

The deadpan look on her face gave way to a smile which turned into a kind of spurt which became a laugh. The look on his face was such that it caused her to laugh even more.

"If you could only see yourself!" Nelson said as she covered her mouth to keep quiet.

When he finally realized she wasn't upset he let go of his earlier perceived fax pas.

"Gee, I try and be nice to you then you treat me like that. Okay, fine," he told her as though he was pretending to be hurt. There was no way he'd ever admit what he'd actually been thinking.

"What? The comment about the lighting?" she asked as though she'd forgotten it already.

"Well, yeah. And then telling you, you know..."

"That I'm not...all that ugly?" she teased with a smile.

"Um, yeah. That one," Kane said as he rubbed the back of his neck. "I'm afraid my inexperience with impressing beautiful women is fully on display."

Suddenly feeling like that comment was even worse, he held up his hands in self defense then said, "And now I'm digging my hole even deeper, maybe I should just quit while I'm only behind."

Nelson laughed softly, smiled at him then said, "Your comment made me feel good."

She paused then told him, "Both of them."

"So...I'm not digging a hole?" he asked.

"Not unless you were just being polite to an exhausted mother of two who feels anything but..."

He could tell she didn't want to say the word so he did.

"Attractive?"

Nelson shook her head then said, "Your word not mine."

"It's true, you know," he told her. "And you have the kind of sense of humor I lo...I...like."

There was that smile from her again.

"Well, goodnight, Kane," she said without taking her eyes off of his.

"Goodnight. I hope you get some sleep."

"I'll be fine. Just knowing my children are safe is worth everything."

She finally broke eye contact then moved a step closer, and before he knew what was happening, Nelson put her hands on his chest then kissed him on the cheek.

"Thank you again. For everything."

Kane managed to get out, "Oh, sure. No problem," before she turned and walked away leaving him standing there wondering what had just happened.

Was it a 'peck of gratitude', whatever that might be? Or was it possible she was...

He shook his head and told himself, "No, that's not possible—old man."

And for the first time in his life he felt old. Not quite 'Wilbur Taylor old' just...old.

He was getting ready to lay down when Nelson walked back in and said, "Are you really not going to sleep in the recliner?"

"No. No, I'm not," he told her after standing up straight and smiling when he saw her.

"Are you sure?" she asked as she clutched the blanket he'd given her.

"I'm sure. One-hundred percent."

"Well, if you're really sure."

Kane walked over to the recliner then said, "Let me show you a trick. This thing gets stuck sometimes."

Nelson came over and watched him jiggle the handle until it released.

"Ah, okay," she said. "Good to know."

"I apologize for it being in such poor condition. Then again, I apologize for the entire house being empty and..."

"You apologize too much," Nelson said with a sweet smile as she cut him off. "You just need...a woman's touch around here."

"I won't argue with you on that," Kane freely admitted. "I can't even coordinate colors let alone decide what else to put in here. Any help would be much appreciated."

"I said you needed a woman's touch," Nelson said with that same sweet smile. "I didn't say anything about it being mine."

Kane put his hands on his hips and shook his head.

"What?" Nelson asked sweetly.

"I don't know. I guess maybe I've just never been so intimidated by anyone in my entire life before."

"I'm 5' 6" and you're what?" Six-two?"

"Six feet even, but okay," he replied.

"And I intimidate you?" she asked as seriously as she could.

Kane squinted and winced before saying, "Yeah, you kinda do."

Nelson smiled at him then said, "Would it be due to my..."

She struck a silly pose then said, "Striking beauty? Or is it more my...razor-sharp wit?"

Even in his shirt and in the now-very dim light, she was beautiful. He'd noticed it all along, but the more time he spent around her the more obvious it became.

"Both," Kane said quietly and with a gentle smile. "Goodnight, Nelson."

He not only noticed the way she looked but also the way she looked at him before saying 'goodnight' again, too. He watched her get into the recliner then start fumbling with the arm before it finally gave in sending her back all at once.

She yelped then put her hand over her mouth and said, "Sorry!"

Kane chuckled then told her, "Be careful over there. Don't hurt yourself."

"Smart ass!" she said in a loud whisper.

"How do you know my middle name?" he quipped back.

Nelson giggled for the first time, and Kane laughed before they both said 'goodnight' yet again.

He set one of the lanterns next to her while holding another. When he placed it beside him she reached out and touched his arm causing him to look at her from just a foot or so away.

"You okay?" he asked causing her to quickly pull her hand back.

"Oh, yes. I'm...fine," she said as she broke eye contact.

"Okay," Kane replied not knowing what else to say, but feeling like he should know.

"I'll uh, I'll just be over there. In the corner," he told her.

"Right. Yes. Okay. Thank you," Nelson replied without looking at him.

"Well, goodnight," he said a fourth or was it a fifth time?

The last thing he saw was Nelson turning over on her side as he lay down and turned off the lantern.

The sound of a gentle hiss woke him several hours later causing him to reach full-alert status in a second as he realized it was the sound of the camp stove.

He looked over and saw Nelson in the kitchen in the light of the propane flame.

"I'm sorry if I woke you up," she said quietly. "I was just dying for a cup of coffee."

"No, not at all," he told her even though she had woke him from a dead sleep.

"You boiling enough water for two cups?" he asked.

"As a matter of fact, I am," she said with the brightest smile he'd seen yet.

Kane looked at his watch and noticed it was 0530.

"Are you always up this early?" he asked as he turned on one of the lanterns.

"I am," she replied. "I get up so I can get ready before the kids get up for school, and during the summer I can't turn it off. You?"

"Um, yeah. I'm normally up by five so I guess I slept in this morning."

"Slacker!" Nelson teased. "You need to learn to relax."

"I'm trying," he admitted. "Like many other things."

"Right. Your 'other things' you think you need to change."

"Note to self. Never tell Nelson anything personal ever again," he said.

She laughed quietly then said, "I don't think you should try and be someone you're not."

"Maybe I want to be someone new," Kane replied just as quietly.

"In that case, fine. But you shouldn't change in the hopes of finding someone to...what did you say? Settle down with?"

"Maybe I'm just more aware of my faults than anyone else," he told her.

"Or maybe you're just imagining that your strengths are faults," she countered.

Before he could reply, the water was at a full boil, and Nelson said, "How many spoonfuls?"

She spooned the coffee into his canteen cup which she'd used to heat the water in then dumped half into a mug for herself.

"Cheers!" she said as they touched their 'cups' together.

"Is that coffee?" they heard Wilbur say as he walked in.

"Yes, sir," Kane said. "We'll heat some more water for you. How'd you sleep?"

"Me? I had a Tempurpedic mattress to sleep. Best night I've had in years," he said with a smile. "I'm gonna get one of those whenever we settle up with the insurance company."

"Oh, speaking of that, let me take another peek outside," Kane said.

The water level was way down and although the road was still fully covered, even Nelson's house was no longer underwater. It was 'totaled' but not underwater.

Both of them took a look, and Wilbur said, "I'll be darned. We might be able to drive out here pretty soon."

"Again, there's no hurry," Kane told him. "But whenever you're ready, I'll be happy to take you anywhere you need to go."

"Georgia's a heck of a drive," Wilbur told him.

"It's not like I've got a job to get to," Kane reminded him.

"That's mighty kind of you, young man, but once we get phone service back, I'll give my son a call and see, okay?"

"That might take days. In the meantime, just let me know how I can help," Kane told him.

Just then Emma walked in and asked how things looked.

"Better," her husband said optimistically even though their home had been effectively destroyed.

"It's all just stuff," Emma said cheerfully before kissing her husband.

"You two are so sweet," Nelson told them.

"Been married to this little filly 48 years come April," Wilbur said proudly. "And she's just as pretty as the day I met her."

Emma laughed and said, "Cataracts. He's got 'em bad."

"No, I see just fine, honey," he told her as he smiled at her before giving her a hug.

"That's what I miss the most," Nelson said almost absentmindedly.

"And that's what I hope to have one day," Kane said in the same tone of voice before saying, "I uh, I need to pull these plywood shutters off and get rid of the sandbags."

"Well, I'll give you a hand," Wilbur said immediately.

"Oh, no. You have some coffee first. If I still need help, I'll give you a holler."

"Okay. Suit yourself," he replied. "Maybe we can get some breakfast started in the meantime."

"Yes. I'll get going on that right now," Emma said. She was going to ask Nelson to give her a hand but saw her following Kane to the back door and just smiled.

"Need a hand?" she asked even though she'd just heard what he said to Wilbur.

"You'll just get dirty and sweaty," he warned her.

"What? And you won't?" she came back with.

"Okay. Good point."

"What can I do?" she asked.

"Well, you could stack these sandbags," he said as he shouldered the pile and knocked it over. "I'll go grab my crowbar and hammer and get busy 'letting the sun shine in'."

Nelson laughed at his silliness then set her cup down and said, "Let me just grab my shoes and I'll get started."

By the time the kids got up, all of the plywood was down and the sandbags were in a nice, orderly pile next to each door.

"Nice work," Kane told her.

"Yeah, I know," Nelson teased as she smiled him in the shirt that was still too big and now also very dirty.

As comical as she looked, Kane also thought to himself he'd never seen a more beautiful or desirable woman, and had to force himself not to stare again.

"Thank you," he told her sincerely.

"My pleasure," she said with another warm smile.

"That didn't take too long," Wilbur said when they came back inside.

"I think they make a very good team," Emma noted as she smiled at Nelson.

Nelson smiled but said to Emma while looking at Kane, "Well, okay. Thank you, but a younger man would have taken a lot less time. Just sayin'."

Kane pulled his head back slightly and raised his eyebrows.

"Well, a more experienced woman wouldn't have taken nearly so long, either."

He looked right at Nelson then used her line.

"Just sayin'."

"Okay, you two. Go wash up and get ready to eat," Emma said as though she was talking to her own children.

"I'll let Kane go first. You know, so he can take his time. Because he needs a lot of that."

"And yet I managed not to get dirty," he said, his arms folded in front of him.

"That's because someone gave the girl the dirty job," Nelson informed him.

"It was the only job I thought you can handle," Kane shot back trying not to laugh.

"Why is Mom acting so weird?" everyone heard Joey ask Cassie. No one had noticed them walk in.

"Duh! She likes him," her sister said.

"What? I...do...I do not," their mother said as her face turned a light shade of red.

"See? I told you," Cassie said with a sense of smug satisfaction.

"Better go wash up. And cool off," Kane said to Nelson. "It seems to have gotten awfully warm in here all of a sudden."

She have him a 'watch it, buster' look then smiled and headed to the bathroom hoping there was enough water to at least wash her hands and face.

"Any idea on how long the city will be getting the electricity turned back on?" Kane asked Wilbur.

"I was with the water department, but I'm pretty familiar with their procedures. If this flooding was just local, we might see power back on today, but I'd say 2-3 days is a better estimate."

Wilbur glanced over at the radio that hadn't been on since they moved in with Kane, and asked if it worked.

"Wow. That's embarrassing," Kane said as he walked over and flipped it on.

"I think someone's been distracted," Emma said to Wilbur while looking at her host and smiling.

"Nah. I'm too old for her to take seriously," Kane said just in case Emma was being serious.

"That's not what I'm seeing," she said, the smile still on her face.

Everyone stopped talking when they heard something about power being restored.

"Beaumont Electric crews are working around the clock, and so far, we have power restored to about 25% of the area. We'll keep you updated as that changes."

"Not bad," Wilbur said. "Let's just hope the flooding didn't do any serious damage with the power lines near us."

Nelson came back in wearing a different shirt and asked what she'd missed.

Kane filled her in thinking it would cheer her up, but she got a distant look in her eyes causing him to ask if everything was okay.

"Sure. Yes, everything's fine," she said, the smile back on her face. But it wasn't quite the same as before.

After breakfast, all of them took a walk down the hill and noticed the road was visible again. It was still flooded in places, but they could make out the crown here and there.

When they got to the Taylor's place, Wilbur put his arm around his wife who was trying not to cry.

"Remember, it's just stuff, honey," he told her.

"I know. I have the most important thing right here next to me," she said as she took his hand.

"Do you want me to go in and take a look around?" Kane asked.

"No. That's okay. There's only a few things we need. We put all of our important documents like insurance policies in a plastic bin. If that's where we left it, then there isn't much else to worry about as I'm pretty sure everything else is ruined."

Nelson was standing next to Kane with the kids on her right. Once again, she found herself longing for the kind of love she'd once had but that had been taken from her with the passing of her husband.

"You want to take a look at your place?" Kane asked her.

"Maybe later," she said. "There's no hurry."

"Do you have insurance documents and phone numbers?" he asked.

"Um, sure. Yes, I have all that," she said unconvincingly.

"Can we see if any of our stuff is still okay?" Cassie asked.

"It's too dangerous to go inside yet, honey," her mom said.

Kane knew it wasn't that dangerous, especially for him, but he didn't say a word.

"So is that it?" he asked after no one wanted to go inside either house.

It was and the six of them, along with Cocoa Puff, headed back up the hill.

"Isn't it amazing what a few feet means in terms of the way things affect our lives?" Nelson said as they passed a home that got flooded when the water level 'only' reached their front porch while the house next to and 'above' it, was completely undamaged.

"Like baseball, it's a game of inches," he told her as he thought about combat and how it was so often a life-or-death game of inches.

The hot water tank was now empty, there was no running water, and people were beginning to get rather ripe as they approached the warm, humid house. When they got to the top of the hill, Kane asked a question.

"Assuming we can get the plastic bin you mentioned, how would you feel about heading to Georgia unannounced?"

"Our son is probably worried about us, and from his standpoint, he'd be thrilled. But there's no way on earth we're putting you out like that. It's very kind of you, Kane, but we just can't ask you to do that."

"You're not asking me. I'm offering."

"But what about Nelson and the children?" Emma asked.

"She's more than welcome to come with us—if she'd like to, that is," Kane said as he looked at her. Even now, she looked beautiful to him, and the thought of seeing her when she was able to change into something else was a very pleasant thought.

The sound of her voice interrupted his thoughts.

"I have nothing to do and nowhere to go. But I also have no money and no...anything. Unless we could find my purse. Then I'd at least have a driver's license and credit cards—if they're not ruined."