He tried to be as nice as possible, and he hoped she wouldn't try to change his mind because he wasn't in the mood to argue with her or anyone else for that matter. His eyelids felt extremely heavy, and all he could concentrate on at the moment was laying his head on the side of the bed and taking a nap before Aubrey woke up.
"All right. Don't hesitate to call me if you need me. I'll get here as fast as I can. Keep me posted on how she's doing, okay?" she asked.
Clay nodded, and she pulled the curtain aside a bit and left. Through the tiny opening, he saw her walking slowly to the exit leading to the parking lot. He didn't miss the hint of disappointment he saw in her eyes, and although he appreciated her concern, he wanted to give Aubrey his undivided attention, and he couldn't do that with someone else in the room with them. He'd already disappointed Aubrey enough by not being there for her, and he wouldn't make that mistake again.
Chapter 18
Jenny
Jenny took a step back and inspected her work. She'd spent the past hour organizing the spice jars inside her kitchen cabinet, and now they were all in a crisp line in alphabetical order. The other baking items inside the cabinet, like sugar and oils, were placed according to height.
She sighed. Jenny, you really need a hobby. She checked her wristwatch. It was nearing three o'clock in the afternoon, and so far, she'd received only one text message from Clay since Aubrey's hospital admittance the night before. He let her know Aubrey was resting and heavily medicated, and that was all. There wasn't even a hello or goodbye.
She considered calling him, but she didn't want to be a pest, so she vetoed that idea. But being home with nothing to keep her mind occupied was making her worry even more. If she were Kelly, she would've called work to see if there were any shifts open, but she hadn't gotten that desperate—yet.
Jenny plodded to the den, where she started organizing the magazines on her coffee table by name and issue date. Once she realized what she was doing, she mixed them up again and fell backward onto the sofa. "Ugh! Jenny, stop it!"
Aubrey's incident replayed over and over again in her mind, and she shuddered to think what could've happened if Aubrey hadn't managed to call Clay. She'd seen it happen before while caring for her patients at the hospital, so she knew dehydration wasn't something to play around with and had to be dealt with quickly. She'd seen the stress on Clay's face while he tended to the people he brought into the emergency room, but that was nothing compared to the sheer panic she witnessed while he took care of his little sister. Remembering it made her heart ache all over again.
Someone rang the doorbell, and Jenny jumped to her feet and raced to the front door. Clay! Finally! She hurriedly swung the door open, but her smile turned upside down when she saw Kelly standing on her threshold. "Oh… hey."
Kelly put her hands on her hips and furrowed a brow. "It's a good thing I'm your best friend, because anyone else probably would've taken offense to that tone and disappointed look on your face." She smiled brightly as she bypassed Jenny and walked inside.
"I'm sorry. I thought you might be Clay."
Kelly set her purse on the table in the foyer. "Well, that's pretty obvious. What have you been doing? Did you just wake up?"
She made a sweeping motion over Jenny's attire, and Jenny frowned when she looked down and noticed she was still in her pajamas. "No. I've been up since six o'clock this morning. I've been busy, and I guess I forgot to change clothes."
Kelly shook her head as she walked toward the kitchen. "Come on. I'm making you some coffee, and then we're going to the mall. I need you to help me pick out a couple of new dresses."
Jenny begrudgingly followed her and almost ran into her when Kelly suddenly stopped in the middle of the kitchen.
"Oh my. It's worse than I thought," she remarked. "I'm guessing Clay's sister hasn't improved since I talked to you last night?"
Jenny followed her gaze to the open cabinet where the alphabetically organized spices were all neatly lined up like little ducks in a row. Kelly gave her a sarcastic smirk, and Jenny made a mental note to keep her away from the bathroom, where she'd also organized her medicine cabinet and sorted her shampoos, conditioners, and other beauty products by name brand. "I have no idea because Clay won't talk to me. He texted me once to let me know Aubrey is still under heavy sedation, but that's it."
Kelly draped an arm around her waist and coaxed her back to the den. "I see. Okay, I definitely want you to change clothes and come shopping with me right now. We’ll stop for coffee on the way to the mall. I understand that you're worried, but this isn't healthy, and you need something to keep you occupied."
She opened her mouth to protest, but Kelly was quick to stop her.
"No excuses. The mall is only a couple of blocks from the hospital, so we can get there in a hurry if we need to. Go get dressed."
Kelly gave her a little push toward the hallway to her bedroom, and Jenny's shoulders drooped as she did as she commanded. She knew there was no use trying to argue with her once her mind was made up. As soon as she closed her bedroom door behind her, Jenny pulled her cell phone from her pajama pants pocket and checked to see if Clay had texted while she was busy with Kelly.
Still nothing.
Feeling defeated, she tossed it on top of her bed and went to the closet to find something to wear to the mall. She knew Clay was busy with Aubrey and that he was worried sick about her, but to go from several calls and texts a day to just one text didn't feel right. If the tables were turned, she knew she'd want Clay by her side to help her through it, but perhaps they were just different in that respect.
Jenny pulled a pair of jeans and a T-shirt from her closet and put them on. After numerous shopping trips with Kelly, she'd learned the hard way to dress as comfortably as possible, since Kelly was the world's worst when it came to clothes shopping. Jenny smiled. If only Kelly gave as much attention to finding a boyfriend as she did to finding the perfect dress.
She put on her sneakers and brushed her hair and teeth but didn't bother putting on makeup because she didn't feel like bothering with it. Her heart wasn't into going anywhere, especially shopping, and she would've been so much happier staying home where she could curl up on the couch with a blanket and a good book to keep her company.
She looked at her reflection in the bathroom mirror and pinched her cheeks to give them some color before dabbing a tiny bit of perfume on her neck. When she rejoined Kelly in the den a few minutes later, she was surprised to find her tidying up the room. The magazines were in a neat stack on top of the coffee table and the pillows on the sofa and loveseat were fluffed and sorted by size and color. "And you think I'm bad with the spice bottles."
Kelly grinned and blushed like she'd been caught doing something naughty. "You were taking too long, so I had to entertain myself."
Jenny snorted as she and Kelly walked to the front door. "Whatever you say."
They picked up their purses, and Jenny checked her cell phone one last time before putting it in her purse and zipping it shut. She was determined not to spend the entire trip with Kelly fretting over a call or text from Clay because that wouldn't be fair to either one of them.
"Ready?" Kelly asked.
Jenny glanced around the house one last time and nodded. "Yep. Let's get this show on the road."
Jenny pushed her plate away and took a sip of her soda. While Kelly talked nonstop about the "gorgeous new orthopedic surgeon" at the hospital, she checked out the people around them. It was dinnertime, and the food court inside the mall was filled to the max. After spending most of her time with screaming children and cantankerous elderly people at work, she thought she'd be used to it by now, but some of the patrons at the food court made her patients look like saints. When the couple two tables down from them started arguing loudly—again—and the woman stormed off, she rolled her eyes heavenward and sighed.
"Are you even listening to me?"
Jenny put her cup down and turned to Kelly. "Of course," she fibbed.
Kelly
twirled the sesame noodles on her plate with her fork and gave her a sarcastic look. "Okay. What did I just say to you?"
Uh-oh.
"You were telling me what a wonderful friend I am and that you understand why I'm so distracted today. You also said you forgive me because you love me so much." Jenny flashed her a winning smile, and Kelly shook her head and laughed. "I really am sorry, Kel. I'm sure I'm not the best company today."
Kelly put down her fork and propped her elbows on top of the table. "It's all right. I know you have a lot on your mind. Do you want me to call the hospital and get an update on Aubrey? Maybe there's a good reason he hasn't called or texted again."
Jenny crossed her arms over her chest and leaned back in the chair. "No, you don't have to do that. I don't know why, but I have this feeling he's ignoring me on purpose."
Kelly gave her a curious look. "Why would he do that?"
She shrugged. "He's always been very protective of Aubrey, and I think he's mad over what happened because he wasn't home with her at the time. He was with me."
Kelly tilted her head. "You think he blames you? That's crazy, Jen. It wasn't your fault."
Jenny looked up at the ceiling. A few weeks remained before Christmas, but the mall was already decorated for the holidays. White plastic stars and snowflakes hung from the rafters on the ceiling and Christmas music streamed from speakers bolted in every nook and cranny of the huge building. "I don't think he blames me for what happened, but I do think he's distancing himself from me because I take his attention away from Aubrey."
Kelly frowned. "I know he loves Aubrey, but he can't stop living his own life."
Jenny unzipped her purse and checked her phone. She'd managed to keep it out of sight throughout their two-hour shopping venture, but that didn't stop her from listening like a hawk for the faintest ring or beep. She felt like crying when she saw there were no missed calls or texts. "It's what we do, Kel. It’s our job. We've always put other people's needs before our own, so I can't fault him for that. If it was my family member who was sick, I would do the same thing."
Kelly pushed her plate away and removed a small makeup bag from her purse so she could reapply her lipstick. "I don't think that's true. I mean, yes, I know you would take care of your family, but I don't believe you'd let it control your life. There's only so much we can do as nurses, and we do our jobs to the best of our ability, but we need a life outside the hospital, too, or else we'll never be happy."
Jenny knew she was right, but Clay might think otherwise. Maybe it was easy for him to put his life on hold for the time being—or forever—so he could take care of Aubrey. She honestly didn’t know, but she didn't feel it was her place to judge him.
"I have an idea," Kelly said. "Let's stay up late and watch some old movies. We can stop by the grocery store on the way back to your house and buy ice cream. Rocky Road makes everything better."
Jenny attempted to smile as she stuffed her cell phone inside her purse. " Okay, but it's your turn to buy the ice cream. I bought two gallons of it the last time we did this when that cute intern you liked so much left for another hospital on the other side of town, and you cried for two days straight."
Kelly giggled. "Ahh, yes. Richard Drake. You have to admit, not seeing his cute behind in those dress slacks every day is worth shedding a tear over."
Jenny rolled her eyes as she hooked her purse strap over her left shoulder and gathered her plate and cup to take to the trash can. "I felt worse when the good-looking cardio surgeon who used to flirt with us all the time got married to that hussy head nurse from the sixth floor and moved to Florida."
Kelly laughed. "Me too!"
As they stood to leave, Jenny felt the tiniest glimmer of hope. She would keep going… no matter what happened between her and Clay.
Chapter 19
Clay
After a long and fretful night, Clay was finally able to catch a few minutes of shuteye as he rested his head on the edge of Aubrey's hospital bed and closed his eyelids. But it wasn't a restful sleep. The images of his sister's motionless body lying on the den sofa haunted his every thought, and the sound of her soft, raspy voice calling his name gave him chills.
He wished more than anything that he could go back in time and do things differently because he'd never leave her side. He’d even put together a tentative plan for her quitting her accounting job and taking her to work with him every day, but he doubted his boss would understand his reasoning. During the night, after the doctor resorted to giving her a heavy dosage of medication to ease her pain, he used the only thing he had available, a couple of napkins, to write a list of things he intended to change.
At the top of the list was spending every second taking care of her needs and hiring a home health nurse to sit with her when he had to work. He knew it sounded extreme, but he didn't care because there was no way he could live with the guilt if something else happened to her on his watch that could've been prevented.
"Clay?"
At first, he thought he was dreaming again, but when someone touched his arm, he woke with a start to find it really was Aubrey saying his name and not just his imagination. His heart leaped to his throat as he sat up straight and grasped her hand. "Hey, you. I was starting to wonder if you were going to wake up or if you would just keep ignoring me."
He tried to joke with her, hoping he sounded a lot happier than he felt inside so she wouldn't worry. She looked so small and pale against the white sheets on the hospital bed, and when she tried to grip his hand, he could tell she was very weak.
"What are you doing here?" she asked. "You should be home getting some rest."
Clay moved his chair closer because her voice was so low and inaudible, he could barely hear it. "There's no way I'm leaving you here alone, and don't even try to argue with me about it."
She shook her head and closed her eyes. "What happened? I can only recall bits and pieces, and the last thing I remember is being in the emergency room."
Clay swallowed hard past the lump in his throat. "You were given sodium chloride intravenously for the dehydration until you were able to tolerate drinking clear liquids. You felt better for a while, but the pain in your joints returned, and the doctor prescribed a strong medication to ease the pain and help you sleep. How are you feeling?"
She licked her lips and tried to swallow, but he noticed she had some difficulty. "I'm not hurting as bad, but I feel a little dizzy."
Clay retrieved a cup of water beside her bed and held it to her lips so she could drink. "That's normal. The medicine he prescribed can cause some dizziness, but that will go away soon. What's important right now is for you to get as much rest as possible."
She nodded slowly, and he kept a close eye on the machines that routinely beeped as they tracked her blood pressure and pulse rate. Her blood pressure was low and not where he hoped it would be, but her heartbeat was strong. Someone knocked on the door, and when Clay called for them to enter, it was the nurse assigned to Aubrey, stopping by to check her vitals. He moved away from the bed to give her room to work, and as he stood by the window and watched, his insides churned but not from hunger. It was guilt, plain and simple.
He took his place beside her again when the nurse left the room several minutes later, and Aubrey seemed a bit more alert by that time. Her eyes were open, and when she attempted to sit up, he pressed the button on the bed rail that would raise the head of the bed. Her face paled a couple of times when the mechanism made the bed jerk, but when she was still again, her color returned.
"Where's Jenny?" she asked. "Has she been by to check on me?"
Clay grasped her hand and focused on it so he wouldn't have to look in her eyes. "She’s off work today. I texted to let her know you were resting and that she didn't need to come."
He didn't have to look at Aubrey to know she was upset because he immediately felt her body tense up.
"Why would you do that? I'd like to see her, and she's probably worried about me."
&nbs
p; Clay shook his head. "That doesn't matter, Aubrey. You wouldn't be in this situation if I hadn't been on a date with Jenny, and I don't want her here."
He said it more abruptly than he meant to, and he felt like an inconsiderate jerk when he saw her eyes well with tears. Clay sat on the edge of the bed so he could look at her more closely. "I'm sorry, Aubrey, but I think it would be best for everyone involved if she and I didn't see each other anymore. You’re my main focus, and I don't need any distractions."
Aubrey pressed the button on the bed rail and brought the head of her bed to an upright, 90-degree angle, and he cowered when he noticed the look of contempt in her eyes. She pulled her hand out of his grasp and laced her fingers together on top of her lap. He knew what was coming, and he braced himself. She might be younger than him, but she was ten times more stubborn.
“Clay, I love you, and I know you’re concerned about my health, but there’s no way I would ever let you give up what you have with Jenny because of me. I’ll be fine. This is a minor setback, and I’ll get through it. She’s the best thing that’s ever happened to you, and you’re not flipping your life upside down for me. I mean that.”
He knew there was no way he could ever make her understand the way he felt. “Aubrey, I’ve messed up a lot in my life, and the one thing I regret the most is leaving you after high school. I was so anxious to get away from dad and his high hopes of me becoming a lawyer that I completely forgot you needed your big brother. I won’t let that happen again—not for Jenny or anyone else. You’re too important to me.”
She nodded. “I know, and I get that. You’re important to me too, and that’s why I’m not letting you do this. I’m an adult, so I can make my own decisions regarding my health, and if it comes down to it, I’ll hire a nurse to take care of me.”
Her hardheadedness was starting to annoy him, and Clay stood and walked back to the window so she wouldn’t see the emotions written all over his face. He gazed out the window at the construction site across the lot from the hospital where a new children’s clinic was being built. “We’ve already discussed this. Your insurance won’t cover hiring a nurse, and you can’t afford it on your salary. The easiest and most sensible thing to do is let me take care of you. I can find someone qualified to stay with you while I’m at work.”
Falling In Love: A Sweet Traveling Romance Novel (All Roads Lead To Love Book 2) Page 11