Luke's Recovery

by Angela Franklin

  She had to have some sort of super powers. She moved him with ease and was able to have what he needed ready before he even asked for it. Even with her helping him to the bathroom, she always left him to dress and undress in private. Just that small miracle made him feel less weak. He had been holding back from touching her, and it was killing him. Just this morning, they were sitting outside, she was on the porch swing reading while he sat drinking his coffee. With the sunrise glowing behind her, he wanted nothing more than to kiss her. That was a morning ritual. She loved to swing on the porch and read before the day got started, and he loved to watch her.

  “What are you thinking about, Luke?” She looked at him curiously.

  “Just wandering what had that little smile on your face.” Luke loved the look she got sometimes when she read.

  “This book has a man with a mischievous set of twins. Right now, they are trying to pierce their goats’ ears.” She laughed as she told him about it.

  “Wow, I will have to tell Chase not to get goats. Grant and Lily could get in all kinds of trouble.” The sparkle in her eyes made his world seem brighter.

  “Yeah, can you imagen what kind of trouble a kid could get into on a ranch with this much space?” He could see the wheels turning in her mind picturing it.

  “Especially if they had cousins close to the same age.” Luke was picturing kids with her toddling behind Lily and Grant.

  “Yeah, I’m sure it won’t be long till Chasity has one. They will be so cute.” Her smile was genuine, but there was a touch of sadness in her eyes.

  “Think you’ll ever have kids?” Luke left out the with me part.

  “It’s a nice dream, and maybe someday, but that’s kinda hard to do by yourself.” She smiled then stood up stretching. “Anything you want to do today?” She was done with this conversation.

  “Not really, you want to play video games?” It’s just a way to pass the time, but she had gotten pretty good.

  “Sure.” She said holding the door for him.

  *****

  A couple weeks later, Lindy was helping Callie set up for a picnic. They invited most of the fire department this time. Luke had been nothing but nice to her, but her traitorous heart wanted more. The more time they spent together, the more she fell.

  “So, how are things with Luke?” Callie asked her.

  “He’s doing great. His cast comes off next week, then the hard part starts.” Lindy was ready for it to come off. Luke was doing great, but the longer she was here, the more attached she got.

  “I know he’s good health wise. I meant how are things between you two.” Callie wanted to hear something about them being together, but it just wasn’t true.

  “He is a great guy. We have become good friends.” Lindy smiled at her.

  “Friends, but what about ‘we’ll talk about this later’?” She looked confused, but Lindy was too.

  “There was no talk. Nothing happened.” Lindy was disappointed, but that was life.

  “Oh.” Callie’s face said it all.

  “It’s all good. I told you it wasn’t like that. We are friends, that’s progress. We have been in this house together for a month, and no one has had to call an ambulance.” Lindy was trying to make Callie smile, but it wasn’t working.

  “Has he still been touching you?” Callie was holding on to a spark of hope.

  “No. Callie you have to let this go. I know you want everyone to be as happy as you and Chase, but you can’t force what isn’t there.” Callie leaned her head on Lindy’s shoulder.

  “I know, I guess I just hoped maybe he would see in you what I do, and then you could be my sister.” Lindy had only let her mind go there once, when he asked her about kids.

  “We have always been sisters, just not in a legal way. We always will be.” Lindy hugged her, then grabbed a bowl. “Now, let’s go get this food on the table.”

  As she walked out she saw the yard was full. Her and Luke hadn’t been out since he got home. Callie and Chase took care of what they needed from town. It was nice to see everyone here. Luke was in the middle of the group smiling and talking. He needed this even if he wouldn’t admit it.

  “Hey, Lindy, let me take that for you.” Tray took the dish and smiled at her. “It’s good to see you. I wanted to check on you, but I knew you were busy with Luke.”

  “That’s so sweet. I’ve been meaning to talk to you. I wanted to thank you for everything you did for me. I know I was a mess, but you helped me stay calm. I can never thank you enough for that.” Lindy waited till he put the bowl down, then she hugged him. She missed having contact like this. It wouldn’t be long till Luke didn’t need her 24/7, then she would start going out again. Life was too short not to try to be happy.

  “I’m here anytime you need me.” Tray said stepping back.

  “Hey baby, food looks great.” Lindy didn’t know who Luke was talking to till he grabbed her hand.

  “Thanks.” She knew her face was a mask of confusion. Why had Luke called her baby?

  “Everyone, we have an announcement to make before we eat.” Jacob called getting everyone’s attention. Chasity was beaming beside him. “We are going to have a baby!”

  “You called it.” Luke said squeezing her hand. “Did you have insider knowledge?” He narrowed his eyes at her.

  “Of course not, but they look happy.” She couldn’t keep the smile off her face.

  “Come on, we should congratulate them.” Luke released her hand and began pushing the chair. Her hand tingled from his touch. “Slow poke, you better hurry up. If anybody hits my legs we will have to go back and get a pain pill, and since I haven’t had to take one in a week, I would rather not.”

  “Make a path people, his majesty is pushing his throne through.” Luke laughed like she knew he would.

  “Does that make you the Queen?” Jacob asked her.

  “More like a servant.” She would love to be his queen, but that was a dream not meant to come true.

  “Prettiest servant I’ve ever seen.” Tray was being a flirt.

  “Congratulations. I am so happy for both of you.” Lindy hugged them both, then stepped back.

  “Just a few weeks ago we were talking and Lindy said she thought y’all would have one soon. I couldn’t be happier for the two of you.” Luke shook Jacob’s hand, and Chasity leaned down to hug him.

  “Now can we eat?” Chase called from near the food tables.

  “Definitely.” Jacob said as the crowd moved that way.

  There was so much food it took two tables for regular food, then another for dessert. Lindy went through the line with Callie, then followed her to the table. The twins were trying to walk some, so Callie sat them on a blanket. She knew everyone would feed them as they wobbled around. Chase sat down beside Callie, and Tray sat down beside her. She figured Luke would want to sit with the other guys, but he rolled over to the end of the table next to her.

  “Have you been able to settle things with your insurance yet?” Tray asked her.

  “Yeah, I should get the check soon.” Lindy was so glad she finally had it all straightened out.

  “That’s great. Have you talked to any contractors about rebuilding?” He was just making conversation, but she had hoped to put this off.

  “Actually, I’m not going to rebuild.” She bit her lip.

  “Oh, where did you find a space available?” Callie asked.

  “I didn’t. I’m not going to reopen the boutique.” She started eating again, hoping everyone would let it go.

  “I thought the boutique had been doing good.” She could see how confused Callie was.

  “It was.” She was trying to avoid this.

  “Baby,” Luke said taking her hand. “Why aren’t you going to rebuild it?” There he went with the baby again.

  “Look, it’s fine. It’s just not an option right now.” Lindy tried to pull her hand back.

  “Lindsey, answer me, why?” Luke’s tone was compelling and she couldn’t avoid it.
>
  “It’s just not logical. I’m going to take the money, and buy a house, then, when you don’t need me, I’m going to go back to the hospital and get my RN’s.” Everyone was quiet, she might as well have told them she was going to marry the devil.

  “But you loved your boutique.” Callie looked like she was on the verge of tears.

  “I don’t want to talk about this. Everything is fine, don’t worry about it. Now, we need to eat before it gets cold.” Lindy gave her best smile hoping to reassure them.

  Luke picked up her hand and kissed her knuckles, then he smiled at her and went back to eating. She tried to pull her hand back, but Luke twined their fingers together and refused to let go. Whatever he thought he was doing, he wasn’t doing it discreetly. Callie looked at their hands, then raised her eyebrows. Lindy shrugged and went back to her dinner. Several of the others gave them curious looks, but she ignored them. She didn’t have answers for herself, let alone them. After the cookout ended, the night went just like always, she helped Luke to bed, then went to bed herself. That man was so damn confusing.

  *****

  Thank God, the cast came off today, he didn’t know how much longer he could take not being able to touch her. When Tray flirted with her, he had to do something so that he would know she was off limits. He knew he was confusing her, but he had promised himself he wouldn’t do anything until he could walk again. After this cast came off, he would be on crutches, but he was counting that as walking.

  “You ready to get that off?” The doctor asked tapping on his cast.

  “Absolutely.” Luke hated it, and his leg itched.

  “After we get it off, I’m going to do x-rays to make sure everything is good.” The doctor told him, and he nodded.

  It took a while for the doctor to get the cast off. After he got the left one off, Luke started moving it back and forth, and wiggling his foot. It felt good to have some movement back, but he could feel the weakness in it. The right leg only had an air cast, and the doctor put a special brace on it before he was allowed to get in the chair for x-rays. He felt like a new born colt trying to get his feet under him.

  “Okay, the x-rays look good. The rod in the right leg looks like it stayed in position, and the bones around it healed properly. The left leg looks great, just take it easy until you get the muscles built back up. That brace needs to stay on the right leg anytime you aren’t in therapy. Your therapy will start tomorrow. It will be brutal, but I will give you some lower grade pain pills to ease it until the muscles build up. Do you have any questions?” Luke’s mind didn’t seem to be working, he just stared at the doctor.

  “Will you need to see him again?” Thank God for Lindy, he knew he needed her.

  “We will set up an appointment for a month from now, and I will see where we are then.” The doctor replied then left the room.

  “Ready to blow this popsicle stand?” Lindy’s smile was contagious and he grinned back.

  “Heck yeah.” Luke carefully eased off the table and grabbed the crutches.

  “Try to keep pressure off the right leg as much as you can till you start therapy,” Lindy said folding his chair and pushing it behind him.

  It was a slow go for Luke. His left leg wasn’t liking all of his weight being on it after so long of not being able to use it. By the time they made it to the car he was thankful they brought hers. There was no way he could have gotten himself into his big truck. On the ride home, he kept moving his leg. It felt good to have it free, but also odd.

  “How you doing over there?” Lindy asked as they rode through town.

  “Good. It feels strange being able to move them again.” Luke knew she would understand.

  “You’ll get your land legs back soon, just be patient.” That was easy for her to say. She had no idea how bad he wanted her.

  “Do you think I will have any trouble out of the right leg? I know it will take more time, but will it ever be the same?” They had grown close, and he hoped she would be honest with him.

  “Some people still have some limitations, or possibly a limp. You are young and healthy, and you will do everything you can to get there. It won’t be exactly like before, it will occasionally hurt, and it may not be as strong as before, but that depends on the person and the body.” Lindy seemed to have total confidence in him.

  “Do you think I can ever go back to being a firefighter?” Luke knew the answer, but he had to ask.

  “Honestly, I don’t think so. I don’t know the regulations or anything, but no matter how hard you work, I don’t think you can go back.” Well, he was expecting that, but it was still a blow.

  “What about riding horses, do you think that is possible?” Without the fire department, that was all he really had.

  “I don’t see why not. You will have to be more careful getting on and off, but you can ride. Many doctors actually use horses for therapy on people who have diseases that limit mobility.” She was so knowledgeable about all of this.

  His mind wondered as she drove. Not being able to go back to the firehouse would be hard, it was what he loved to do. But he couldn’t give up. If he even had a hope of being with Lindy, he had to do his best to get over this. Therapy would be brutal, but he would survive. The harder he worked, the quicker he could be with Lindy.

  “Let me help you out of the car.” Lindy said when they pulled up to his place.

  “I can do it, remember I don’t have the cast now.” Luke winked at her.

  “That is true, but you also haven’t put weight on either leg in a long time. Just let me stand there in case your leg buckles.” Unfortunately, she was right, while the left leg was healed, it was weak and could very easily buckle. He nodded and waited for her.

  “Alright Superman, I’m gonna hold the door and be here if you need me.” She gave him a smile and his heart skipped a beat.

  “Well, I am made of metal now, does that make you Lois Lane?” It was either that or kryptonite. Maybe she was both to him, especially when she laughed like she was now.

  Taking a deep breath, he carefully moved the right leg out of the car. Just picking it up over the ledge of the door took effort. It would definitely be a beast when therapy started. He was able to move his left leg out easier. He braced himself and used the car to help push himself up to his feet. His leg started to give and she was there, like an angel swooping in to hold him. Once he was steady, she stepped back and opened the back door. She pulled out his crutches and handed them to him.

  “Ready to head in the house now Clark?” She said when he was stable.

  “I think I like Superman better.” Luke said as he carefully moved toward the house.

  “Really? I like Clark better. He seems more down to earth and he has flaws.” Lindy answered staying close in case he needed her.

  “You do realize they are the same person, right?” He loved when they had these crazy conversations that didn’t really sound logical to anyone but them.

  “Of course, but when he’s Clark he doesn’t act perfect. Who wants perfect? It’s boring. Personally, I would rather have a man I could love flaws and all.” Sometimes these random conversations gave him a lot of insight into who she was and what she really wanted.

  “I thought all women wanted their guy to be perfect.” That’s what he had always believed.

  “I can’t speak for all women, but for me, what makes a man perfect are the imperfections that make him, him.” This conversation had gotten serious, but she didn’t shy away. She answered him honestly.

  “That’s good to know.” His mind was spinning.

  “When you feel up to going out, you can try your new-found knowledge on the female population. Just don’t tell them I gave away the secret.” Lindy was laughing, her green eyes sparkling as she opened the door for him to go in the house.

  She didn’t know it, but she had just given him everything he needed to keep her. She was joking about him going out and using her secrets, but he was committing what she said to memory. He would
use the information against her, but he was sure he could make her happy when all was said and done.

  Chapter 7

  By Friday, Luke was on Lindy’s last nerve. The physical therapist had been pushing harder than she thought was necessary, but that wasn’t up to her. Luke refused to take pain pills after the sessions and she could tell he was in a lot of pain. Being in pain made him ill, and he was starting fights every day. After the therapist left that day, he started again. Remembering a conversation from before she took this job, she picked up the phone and dialed a number she really didn’t want to dial.

  “Hello.” The deep voice answered.

  “Hey, Chase, it’s Lindy.” She couldn’t believe she was resorting to this.

  “Hey, is everything okay?” She could hear the confusion in his voice.

  “Luke is fine, but… (Dammit Lindy, where the hell are you?).” She sighed knowing he was looking for something to fight about.

  “Why is he yelling at you?” Chase asked.

  “Remember when you said if he wanted to fight and I didn’t, to call you?” She waited for his yes, then continued. “Well, I’m calling.”

  “Why is he itching for a fight?” His confusion had changed to concern.

  “The physical therapist is pushing him hard, and he refuses to take any pain meds, so the pain is making him want to fight.” Lindy was trying to stay in professional mode, but if she didn’t get a break soon she was gonna start taking it personal and things would get worse.

  “Is this the first time he’s wanted to fight?” She was getting tired of the questions, but she knew it was just Luke’s irritation rubbing off on her.