“I don’t know what I can do, Kayla, but I promise to try and help. From everything you said, it sounds like your father is desperate. I do know that your stepmother is sick and in the hospital so maybe he just needs to be reminded.” Adam picked up our empty dishes and took them to the kitchen.
His suggestion had merit. My father was acting completely out of character, but my gut told me that he wouldn’t do anything different to ease my plight.
Covering a giant yawn, my body listed to the side until my head hit the arm of the couch. My eyes weighed a ton and struggled to stay open.
Warm fingers brushed the hair from the side of my face, pulling the trapped pieces free from my mouth. “Kayla, I think it’s time for bed. You can sleep in my bed and I’ll take the couch. I’ll wake you up in the morning so that you can return to the hospital with me.”
He helped to sit me upright, and when he realized that my balance was shot, he wrapped an arm around my waist and nearly carried me to his room. Sitting me on the side of his bed, I knew I should have suggested that I sleep on the couch, but I barely managed to mumble my thanks before I collapsed with my feet hanging over the side.
His soft chuckle broke through my haze enough to feel his hands pulling off my sandals and lifting my legs onto the bed. He pulled a cover over me, surrounding me in warmth.
Early morning sun streamed through a crack in the curtains, hitting me in the face when everything from the past few days came crashing down. I curled up into the fetal position, my eyes irritated. But the tears I’d been holding back for so long refused to fall. My chest ached from heaving, but without tears, I didn’t get the release I craved.
Instead, my mind wandered to the various problems I had. It had always been easier for me to compartmentalize my issues by creating lists. It was how I was able to deal with all the crap from my stepmother. Having a list, a plan of action, allowed me to suppress my emotions, to remain blank in the face of all my difficulties.
One. I needed a place to stay. Kris and Ryan were in town, but I didn’t know how to contact them. I could call my Aunt Susan and find out, but then I would have to tell her everything and that was something I didn’t want to do. She would go to my father and then I would end up losing everything. There had to be another way.
Two. I would need a way to pay for everything. I had a hundred dollars, but once that was gone, I would have nothing else. Chloe could be in the hospital for months, but I didn’t know how long my father would keep me there with her.
I was deciding on what would be number three, when a knock sounded on the door.
“Kayla, are you awake? We will need to leave for the hospital in less than an hour.”
I swung my legs over the side of the bed and stood, stretching my arms over my head before padding over to the door. Opening it a crack, I stuck my head out. “Thanks, Dr. Joh—, I mean, Adam. Is the bathroom free?”
He stepped out of the bathroom and into my line of sight. He must have finished his shower before knocking on my door but hadn’t finished with the bathroom. His hands were busy with a towel, drying his wet tresses. The odd drop of water from his curls ran down and over the muscles on his bare chest until they were swallowed in the trail of light brown hair running from just below his belly button to the waistband of his dress pants that sat low on his narrow hips.
Having spent many hours in the company of bare chested Kris and Ryan, I couldn’t help comparing Adam’s to theirs. He stood nearly as tall as them, with broad shoulders, and although he was in good shape with some muscle definition, his days spent in study and in the hospital gave him a leaner frame.
“It is.”
Raising my eyes, I flushed, matching the color staining his own cheeks when I realized that he caught me staring. “Sorry,” I murmured. My eyes dropped to the hardwood flooring as I fled around him and toward the bathroom.
His hand touched my arm, stilling me mid-stride. I bit my lip, but was unable to raise my gaze to his eyes. “I put out a fresh towel for you.” He dropped his hand, letting me continue to the bathroom.
Gratitude raced through me when he didn’t say anything about my staring. But as I swung the bathroom door closed, I heard him say, “And thanks for the ego boost. I needed it.”
I sunk to the floor with my back against the door. Both hands covered my fiery cheeks, but I was grinning from ear to ear. The weight on my shoulder felt a tiny bit lighter.
He hadn’t quite told me the full truth when he said that we had to leave in less than an hour. Instead, on the way to the hospital, with my suitcase trailing behind me, he took me into a local diner for breakfast.
While he plied me with food, reminding me that breakfast was the most important meal of the day and how I needed to keep up my strength and health for Chloe, I found it difficult to begin a discussion with him. Without the overwhelming fatigue from the night before lowering all my anxieties, my lack of social graces and ability to make small talk took front and center. But Adam managed to draw me out of my protective shell.
Swallowing a mouthful of coffee, he smiled confidently, but his fingers tapped the side of his mug, revealing his nerves. The slight tell allowed me to relax, knowing he wasn’t as comfortable in social situations as he pretended. “Last night, you mentioned an aunt with whom you were staying. Would she be able to help?”
The waitress took that moment to place our breakfast platters in front of us, and I breathed a sigh of relief for the disruption. As soon as the waitress left, I shoved a forkful of apple pancake and bacon into my mouth. “Mmmm. This is so good. How did you find this place?”
He stared down his nose at me, but I continued to eat as if I hadn’t been trying to change the subject. Reaching across the table, he tapped my nose. “I’ll let it go for now, but we do need to figure out a place for you to stay. Not that I wouldn’t mind you staying at my place, but my hours are all over the place, and I don’t know how the hospital would feel about it.”
“Thanks, Adam.” I smiled before shoving another forkful into my mouth.
By the time I pushed my plate away, he’d managed to coax a number of stories about my Aunt Susan and my summers with her. I explained how she wouldn’t be able to help me without ramifications and he grudgingly agreed. The one thing I didn’t reveal was my relationship or possibly former relationship with Kris and Ryan. That was information I kept to myself.
After a quick trip to the bathroom, I found Adam waiting by the door with my suitcase. “But, the bill?”
“It’s all taken care of.”
I opened my mouth to protest, but he covered it with his hand. “Just say thank you. I may be a poor resident, but I have more than you. I can easily afford breakfast for the two of us.” His eyes twinkled as mine tried to give him the ‘look.’
Instead he chuckled, but didn’t remove his hand. So I did what I would have done if it was Kris or Ryan holding their hand over my mouth to keep me quiet.
I licked it.
His eyes widen, and he pulled his away. “I can’t believe you just did that.” He chuckled, and I joined in. The longer I spent with him, the more relaxed I became. He was different than Kris and Ryan, but being with him felt similar. He didn’t feel like someone I’d just met.
As he held the door open for me, I realized how blessed I was that he was Chloe’s doctor.
I sat on a stool in front of Chloe’s pod with my hand inside, allowing her to grip my pinkie finger. Besides touch, Chloe’s nurse encouraged me to talk to her, to get her used to hearing my voice.
It was long and lonely sitting in front of her pod with only the occasional appearance from the nurse. She explained that she monitored Chloe’s condition from the banks of monitors and only touched her when it was necessary. Some babies liked to be touched while others had a negative reaction when they were this young. Until I arrived, Chloe was one of the babies who didn’t react positively to touch.
Each time the nurse arrived to attend to her, Chloe’s alarms would ring. Wanting to
help, I asked the nurse to teach me what she could, so that I could help care for Chloe. The nurse nodded and smiled before telling me what an amazing sister I was.
“Hello. It’s Kayla, correct?”
I jumped and nearly fell off my stool, having been lost in thought, relieving my final moments with Kris and Ryan before everything went apeshit—there really wasn’t any other word for it. Blood rushed to my cheeks as I discovered a middle aged woman with a warm, caring smile looking at me. “Yes, I’m Kayla.”
She held out her hand to shake mine before grabbing one of the plastic chairs from where they were stacked against the wall. She placed it in front of me and sat, holding a clipboard and a tablet on her lap. “I understand that you are the caregiver for Chloe while your stepmother is in the hospital.” She raised her eyes to look at me.
“Yes.” I bit my lip, wondering who she was.
“That’s a really nice thing that you are doing for your family, Kayla. When the mother is ill, usually the father is having to run back and forth between two hospitals or the baby is only seen a few times a week.” She dropped her eyes back to her paperwork. “Now, I understand that this all happened very quickly and that you have now found yourself without a place to stay.”
My heart jumped in my chest. How did this woman know? I didn’t think that she was a doctor, but she was certainly someone in an official capacity. “Um, yes.”
She shifted her focus to me. A small sad smile on her face. “I understand that there is some sensitivity surrounding this which is why Dr. Johnson came and spoke to me personally.”
What? How could he? My heart thumped and then stopped as I glanced around, wishing I could see him to find out some answers. What did he tell this woman whom I could only assume was some type of social worker?
A hand landed on my knee. “It’s okay, Kayla. I’ve known Dr. Johnson for a few years now. He knows that I will always do what is best for my clients, and Chloe is now assigned to me. Every baby in here receives a social worker to help provide the families with services they may need.”
Her smile and her touch allowed my heart to restart at a normal, but I still felt a little uneasy.
“I just realized I forgot to introduce myself. I’m Anne. Now, I’ve also heard that finances may be an issue, so before I came to see you, I spoke to the head nurse and we went over all the upcoming discharge numbers. You see, we have some rooms built as part of the unit for parents to use as their child gets closer to discharge. It allows them to be here twenty-four hours a day to learn to become comfortable with the needs of their baby.” She stood and waved for me to join her.
“We found that we had a few extra rooms and have decided that one of them will be yours for the duration.”
I was glad I hadn’t joined her in standing because I don’t think my knees would have supported me. A tear rolled down my cheek, and I hastily turned my back on Anne to focus on Chloe. “Did you hear that Chloe? They have a place for me, so I will always be here for you,” I whispered as I wiped my face.
I pulled my finger out of her fist and told her that I would be right back before turning back to Anne with a smile on my face.
“Well, Kayla. Grab your suitcase and let’s go check out your new room.”
Chapter Fifteen
I sat on my bed and stared in awe at the room around me. It contained not only a queen size bed, but also a dresser, and even an en suite bathroom. I wanted to pinch myself. It was a hotel room within the hospital, and I was only steps away from Chloe. The only thing missing was a TV so I would have something to do when not with my sister.
My cheeks ached from smiling as I flopped back against the pillows.
“Knock. Knock.” My partially closed door swung open, and Adam walked in, carrying two food trays stacked one on top of the other. “I stopped by Chloe to check on you, but the nurse said that Anne had been by to show you the room. She also mentioned that you hadn’t eaten yet today.” His eyes narrowed as they stared at me, but I saw the slight twinkle he couldn’t hide.
Pushing myself upright, I swung my legs over the side of the bed to stand, but Adam motioned for me to sit still. He crossed the room and placed the two trays on the bed beside me. “Mind if I join you?”
I pushed myself back enough to raise my legs and sit crisscross. “Please. And thank you.”
“For what?” He settled himself on the bed and lifted the lids from the food trays.
My stomach growled at the delicious smell of meatloaf. This didn’t remind me of normal hospital food. As my eyebrows raised, he chuckled. “It smells good and tastes pretty good, but it’s still hospital food.”
My lips curved into a smile, but as the taste of warm savory meatloaf melted on my tongue, I moaned. I didn’t know much about hospital food, but this tasted great to me.
Swallowing, I smacked my lips. “If this is hospital food, then I don’t know what people are complaining about.” He chuckled and the piece of meatloaf fell off his fork. He rolled his eyes as his cheeks pinked, but I loved it. The simple proof that he was a mere mortal instead of the superhero I was beginning to think he was, made me less afraid of him. Whatever remaining walls I had between us fell.
“I was thanking you for finding me this room. It’s amazing. But now that I’ve tasted this food. I thank you for it as well.”
His cheeks darkened further. “Eat, Kayla, before it gets cold.” Even as he put the forkful of food into his mouth, I noticed that his grin never faded.
Meal time was pleasant, and it amazed me that I felt so at ease with him. It was as if we’d always known each other. There was never an awkward silence in our conversation. The only other time I’d ever experienced something like this was with Kris and Ryan. Not even with Ryan’s two brothers, Brad and Michael, did conversation flow this easy.
After he covered our empty trays and stacked them on top of each other, he leaned back against one of the pillows. “Do you have any hot plans for tonight?”
“N-no.” Until his question, I didn’t realize how I’d blocked out everything but the moment I was currently in. What would I do every night? I was used to being alone, but how long would I survive staying in the hospital without interaction with the outside world? And money? I still needed to find a way to purchase my meals. I couldn’t expect to always be given a meal tray like tonight.
“Well, tonight’s your lucky night.” He wiggled his eyebrows as he crossed his arms behind his head. The sleeves of his shirt pulled tight revealing the definition I’d noticed earlier when he’d come out of his bathroom without a shirt on. “I’m on call so, if you’re up for some company, I can swing by after my rounds are done.”
My heart beat a little dance of joy. “I would love that.”
“Great.” He stood and picked up one of the tray lids, but a buzz sounded from his waist. “You’re in luck. I was just paged, so I’ll get rid of these. I’ll see you later.”
He leaned across the bed as I leaned over to grab the second tray lid. My head tilted back to look him in the eye as I opened my mouth to offer him some help. But somehow, in our movements, his lips landed on the edge of my forehead, mostly on my hair, but I felt them graze my skin. My cheeks heated, and I dropped my chin, hoping he wouldn’t see and get the wrong idea. But, thankfully, his pager buzzed again.
“Gotta run.” He grabbed the trays and swiftly crossed the room as I leaned back against my pillows. My lower lip squished firmly between my teeth.
What was going on with me? Why was I blushing instead of feeling upset that he’d kissed the top of my head? I should have felt upset, maybe even offended that he’d taken such liberties, but instead it felt natural, familiar.
As I stood and stretched before heading back to spend some time with Chloe, I realized why it hadn’t bothered me. He treated me the same way Kris and Ryan did. My lips lost their smile as memories washed over me, memories of them performing the same maneuver. Their lips landing on my forehead, my temple, my lips.
My heart clenche
d, and I suddenly found it difficult to breathe. Dropping to the floor, I wrapped my arms around my knees which pressed into my shaking chest. At some point, the pulsating, fiery hole inside my chest where the two of them had lived would have to heal and close, wouldn’t it? At least, I hoped so, because I didn’t know how long I could last this way.
Once I pulled myself together, I returned to Chloe’s side. A new nurse greeted me and explained how the day nurse informed her off all the things she’d taught me. Telling me that she’d be at the station watching if I needed her, she then left me alone with Chloe and my stool.
I put my hand through the plastic holes and slowly stroked down the side of Chloe’s body watching the monitors for any sign of distress like they’d showed me. When nothing happened expect for Chloe’s body relaxing under my touch, I slowly lost myself into the rhythmic motion of massaging my baby sister as I told her all about our other siblings.
Fingertips brushed across my neck and shoulder, causing me to jump with my heart in my throat.
“Sorry, Kayla. I didn’t realize how lost in thought you were.”
With my heart continuing to thump widely, I met Adam’s concerned emerald eyes. “It’s okay. I get that way sometimes. Once my heart settles, we’ll be good.”
He grabbed my wrist, his fingers on my pulse as he counted. His small smile grew when my heart, instead of slowing, sped under his scrutiny. “Interesting,” he muttered as he dropped my hand.
I turned back to Chloe, not wanting to even think about what he must have thought. It didn’t mean anything, I just wasn’t used to anyone but Kris or Ryan truly caring for me. Besides, it wasn’t as if he wouldn’t have that effect on any other female. He must have had girls falling at his feet all the time.
Hers From The Start: A Collection of First In Series Reverse Harem Page 84