“I will. And I’ll be back later.”

“Okay.”

After Emmett left, Molly took a seat on the other side of the bed. “I think I’m going to stop at the bookstore and get you an e-reader. It’ll be much easier than flipping through magazines or attempting to read a book. And you’ve been wanting to try one.”

“Okay.”

“When will you be released?” Carter asked.

“The doctor said probably in a few days. I’m anxious to get out of here and back home. Though that will bring its own set of challenges.”

“Nothing you can’t handle, Georgia.”

She smiled at him. “Thank you, Carter. In the meantime, there’s a project meeting coming up in a few days—you’ll have to chair for me.”

“I can handle it.”

Molly frowned and slanted a look at Carter. “You’re involved with the town square project?”

“Yeah. But your mother’s been the one who got it all off the ground.”

“And now I’m going to be stuck at home for the next few months,” Georgia said. “I’m worried, Carter. You know we’re at a critical point in all of this. And without me to push and shove and make sure everyone’s doing their job, I’m concerned things won’t move forward. Then there’s the marketing aspect of it all as far as the launch, and working with City Council . . .”

He patted her hand. “Georgia, I don’t want you to stress about any of this. We’ll take care of it.”

“I know you’ll crunch the numbers and make sure the budget stays on track. But we need an organized genius, someone to run roughshod over everyone else.”

“I’ll find someone. No one as good as you, Georgia, but I’ll find someone. Until you get back on your feet, so you can finish up the project yourself.”

Georgia’s face lit up. “Molly can help you.”

Molly’s gaze shot to her mother. “What?”

“You can help Carter with the town square project.”

Carter had never seen Molly look so panicked. But in this case, he was staying out of it.

“Uh, Mom, I’m staying here to help you when you get home.”

“And you’ll have plenty of time to do both. Once I get settled at home, it’s not like you’ll be working. With you taking a leave of absence from your job in Austin, you and your dad can’t just hover over me twenty-four hours a day.”

“Yes, I can. That’s what I intend to do. Dad has to work, you know.”

“Your dad is taking extended vacation, which he can certainly do since he owns the company. Plus I’ll have nursing help. And the project isn’t a full-time thing, is it, Carter?”

Okay, maybe he was getting involved. “Not really.”

“Then it’s settled. You’ll need to get Molly up to speed with everything that’s been going on.” She yawned. “Why don’t you two grab something to eat and discuss it? I’m going to take a nap.”

Carter looked at Molly, who gave him the same kind of helpless look she’d given her mother.

“I guess we’re working together,” he said.

THE VERY LAST thing Molly had wanted was to stay in Hope, but her mother’s accident had changed all that. She had contacted her boss in Austin and told her that she’d have to remain in Hope for an unknown period of time to see to her mother’s welfare, and she didn’t know when she’d be back. Her boss said she’d have to hire someone to replace Molly.

Molly could accept that, and she could always find another job somewhere else. She was planning to drive down to Austin this weekend to pick up her things and close up her apartment. She’d bring everything back to Hope, and when her mom was well enough, she’d figure out where she was going after that.

Right now, her mother was a priority.

Working with Carter? Now that wasn’t something she’d planned on, but she’d make the sacrifice, because she wasn’t going to do anything to upset her mom at a time when she needed to concentrate on healing.

“What are you hungry for?” Carter asked as they walked through the front doors of the hospital.

“What?”

“Food, Molly.”

“Oh. I’m not really hungry. I’ve been mostly eating at the cafeteria here the past few days.”

“It’s time to fix that. You need something else.”

“I don’t really want to be gone that long.”

“You won’t be. We’ll grab something quick.”

“Okay.”

She got in his car and he drove them a few short blocks to a Mexican restaurant.

“They serve it up pretty fast here, so we’ll be in and out in a hurry,” he said as the hostess led them to their table.

She took a quick glance at the menu, deciding on enchiladas. When the waitress came they ordered drinks and their dinner simultaneously.

“I’m sorry about your mom,” Carter said.

“Me, too.”

“Did you call Luke and Emma?”

She shook her head. “We decided not to, because they’d turn around and come back from their honeymoon, and there’s really nothing either of them could do for her right now. It’s best they just enjoy themselves. They’ll find out when they get home.”

“Emma might end up pissed you didn’t tell her.”

Their waitress brought their drinks, along with chips and salsa. Molly’s stomach gnawed with hunger. She hadn’t eaten much today, so she dug in. “She might, but Dad and I are happier knowing she can enjoy her honeymoon worry free. She can be mad at me when she comes home.”

“It was a good call.”

“Thanks. We thought so as well.”

She felt his gaze on her, but it was so hard for her to look back. What would they say to each other that hadn’t already been said? The night of Emma and Luke’s wedding, she’d laid it all out—everything she’d wanted to say to him all these years.

It hadn’t made her feel any better. If anything, she’d felt worse than ever before.

“You don’t have to work with me, Molly. I know how hard that’ll be for you. I can make other arrangements.”

Now she did look up. “I’ll do it. Because my mom needs me to, and I need her not to feel stressed about anything right now. I think the two of us can figure out how to move around in the same circle without . . .”