“You still haven’t told me what happened between you and Jenny last night. Did you work things out?”
He’d put off lowering the boom on Aubrey’s hopes and dreams as long as he could, and Clay braced himself for the backlash he knew would come. “I told her it would be best if we didn’t see each other anymore.”
The tension that instantly filled the room was so thick, a knife could cut it, and he didn’t dare turn around and risk facing the full brunt of her wrath.
“You did what?” she asked.
Fortunately, a nurse entered the room, and he was safe—for a little while anyway. Her presence didn’t stop Aubrey from glaring at him every chance she got, though. She signed her discharge papers with a snarl on her face and the hardened determination of a judge ordering someone to prison. When the nurse brought in a wheelchair to transport Aubrey downstairs, he thanked her and volunteered to do it himself. She agreed, and Clay was glad she wouldn’t have to listen to their bickering, which he was certain would continue at the next available opportunity. When he wheeled Aubrey from the room and into an empty elevator, she started where she left off.
“Clay, I’ve always bragged to people about how smart you are, but you’re proving me wrong with the way you’ve been acting lately. Why are you being such a moron about this? I don’t get it.”
He held on to the railing as the elevator jerked once before starting on its way down the shaft. “I told you when I moved here that you were going to be my number one priority, and I have too much on my plate without adding more distractions.”
Aubrey furiously shook her head. “Jenny isn’t a distraction. She’s the best thing that ever happened to you, and you’re just being stubborn, as usual.”
The elevator stopped on the second floor, and the doors opened. An elderly couple smiled at them as they stepped inside, and Clay held his breath, hoping and praying Aubrey wouldn’t continue arguing with him and end up embarrassing them both. The doors closed, and all was quiet inside the elevator until they reached the ground floor. The couple stepped off and went to the right, but Clay wheeled Aubrey to the left, toward the exit that would take them to the parking lot. Unfortunately, there was no one else around.
“I’ve seen the way you are with Jenny, and you’ve been happier the past two months than you’ve probably ever been in your life. If you stopped seeing her because of me, then you’re crazier than I thought. I can take care of myself, Clay. I might have MS, but that doesn’t mean I’m helpless.”
Clay stopped just outside the door and pulled the brake handle on the wheelchair to keep it from rolling. “No one said you were, but I’m not leaving you by yourself again. I’ve already looked into hiring a home health nurse to sit with you while I work. Now, stay here while I get the truck.”
Her jaw slacked, and she looked like she could spit nails, but Clay ignored her and walked to his truck. He drove it under the portico and put it in park before hopping out and walking around to the passenger side so he could help Aubrey climb in. Her face was still beet red, and her lips were pressed so tightly together, they appeared almost white. Once she was securely buckled in the passenger seat, Clay rolled the wheelchair inside the hospital and got behind the steering wheel again.
“I can’t believe you would do such a thing without my permission,” she rattled on. “This is my life, Clay. How I live it is up to me—not you. If I want to hire a nurse, I’m fully capable of doing that myself. I’ve been feeling much better since my first infusion treatment, so I don’t need you coddling me.”
Clay drove away from the parking lot and headed to their house. Thunderstorms passed through the area during the night, and it was still sprinkling rain and the roads were a mess. When his truck tires hit a patch of water beside the road and almost locked up, he slowed down. “I’m not coddling you. I’m being a responsible older brother and doing what Mom and Dad would want me to do.”
She crossed her arms and jutted her chin. “No, you’re being a jerk, plain and simple. I love you, and I know you might think you’re doing the right thing by me, but you’re ruining your life in the process, and I won’t stand for that. If you don’t work things out with Jenny, I’ll never forgive you.”
Clay chuckled. He assumed she was joking, but when he saw the stern look on her face, he knew she was serious, and that irritated him. He thought doing the right thing would make him look like a hero in her eyes—and Jenny’s—but so far, everything he tried to do just made things worse. “I don’t know what you and Jenny want from me. I give up.”
Aubrey threw her hands in the air. “We want you to be happy, and you’re happiest when you’re with Jenny. She told me she loves you, and I know you feel the same way about her, so the two of you should be together right now. Don’t you miss her?”
That was a crazy question. “Of course, I do.”
Aubrey slapped a hand on her knee. “Then go find her and tell her you were acting ridiculous and that you want her back. Problem solved.”
Clay decided to keep his mouth shut during the remainder of the drive home. Nothing he said would sink into that thick skull of hers, and he didn’t know why he kept having to explain himself repeatedly. He focused on keeping his truck away from the water pockets on the side of the road, and he groaned when it rained harder the closer they got to home. When he turned into their driveway, he knew he’d have to wait a few minutes before he could get Aubrey safely inside, and being stuck in such close quarters with her fiery temper wasn’t appealing at all. “We need to wait until the rain dies down a bit. I don’t want you to slip and fall.”
She nodded, and they sat in silence for several long minutes. The soggy weather made him sleepy, and he almost nodded off when Aubrey moved beside him and stirred him awake again.
“Clay, can we please talk about this like two civilized adults? I know you might find this hard to believe, but I worry about you all the time, and it made me so happy seeing you smile when you and Jenny were a couple. I was just telling her yesterday that I wished Mom and Dad could’ve met her. I know they would love her too.”
He hadn’t thought about that, and imagining his parents meeting Jenny filled him with a sense of peace. He knew without a doubt in his mind they would take to her right away if they were still alive, and he couldn’t help wondering what they would think of his actions over the past couple of days?
“I’ll admit that what I’m dealing with is frightening,” Aubrey continued. “There’s a lot of uncertainty about the future, but I refuse to let that ruin the present, and you shouldn’t either. I believe we can find a way to deal with this that will make everyone happy.”
Clay wrapped his hands around the steering wheel. “I’m listening.”
Aubrey turned in her seat to face him. “I know you worry about leaving me alone while you work, so I’ll agree to hire a home health nurse to stop by three times a week to check on me. I’m talking about a quick visit and not spending the day with me until you get off work. After two or three months, if the infusion treatments work as well as the first one has and I haven’t had any more setbacks, I want to cut the visits back to once a week.”
He mulled it over in his mind. It didn’t sound like a bad idea. It would take some getting used to, but it might work.
“I love you, Clay, but I can’t handle you hovering over me. I don’t want MS to keep me from doing what every other able-bodied woman my age is doing—working, going out, even dating.”
That idea didn’t sit well with him, but he didn’t say anything. She was a beautiful young woman with a lot to offer, and no matter how much it nagged at him, he knew there were men out there wanting to date her.
“We can’t let this disease tear us apart, Clay. If we do, then it wins, and I won’t let that happen. I plan on living my life like everyone else, and I want you to do the same thing. Call Jenny and apologize before it’s too late. Don’t let her get away because I promise you’ll regret it for the rest of your life if you do. It’s not impossible f
or you to look after me and have a relationship too, but you’ve got to focus more on Jenny than me. I’m a big girl, and I can take care of myself.”
Clay looked across the seat at Aubrey and grinned. She reminded him so much of their mom, from the freckles on her nose to her fierce temper and stubborn pride. “You know I love you, right?”
Aubrey reached over the console and squeezed his hand. “I know that, and I love you too and always will, no matter how much you get on my nerves. Now, stop wasting time and call Jenny.”
Clay laughed at her determination, but he froze when he pulled his cell phone from his pants pocket and went to key in Jenny’s number. What would he do if she didn’t forgive him? He’d acted like such a jerk, and he couldn’t blame her if she didn’t want anything else to do with him. He shook his head. No, he wouldn’t give up that easy. Even if he had to beg, he would find some way to get her back and make up for his actions.
He dialed her number and put the phone to his ear, and his heart pounded harder and faster with each ring. After several failed attempts, he hung up. “She’s not answering. She probably sees my number on the caller ID and doesn’t want to talk to me. I wouldn’t be surprised if she blocked my number.”
Aubrey squinted. “Maybe she doesn’t have service wherever she is. Any idea where that could be?” Clay considered the possibilities, and one place in particular stuck out in his mind. It was a long shot, but he had to take the chance.
Chapter 24
Jenny
She’d never seen Lake Arrowhead look more beautiful and serene.
As Jenny stood in her favorite spot on the mountainside overlooking the lake, she was awestruck by the beauty of her surroundings. It never failed to lift her spirits when she made the long journey, and she saw something new every time she visited. Today she spotted a bald eagle nesting in one of the tall trees beside the lake, and her breath caught and held when it spread its wings and soared through the sky. It was a peaceful feeling, watching the majestic bird float on the breeze as if it weighed nothing, and she wished she could trade places with it and fly away, leaving her troubles behind.
She’d stopped by the hospital early that morning so she could talk to her boss about using her vacation days, and he agreed, so she was officially off work for a week, but she had no idea what to do with her time. She thought about going camping, but she hated to do that alone, especially in the forest at nighttime. Her next option was to stay at one of her favorite resorts and indulge in a few spa treatments, but that wouldn’t be much fun without Kelly.
So, here she was, using her time for bike riding on the mountain and reminiscing in one of her secret hiding places. Memories of her time there with Clay drifted through her mind for what seemed like the millionth time. She closed her eyes and smiled when she thought about their first kiss and how much fun it was to race down the mountain with him on their bikes. She laughed when she recalled how she slowed down intentionally just to let him win, although she’d never admit to it.
Jenny wiped the tears from her cheeks and took a deep breath. Now that she and Clay were through, uncertainty clouded her mind and made her anxious over the future. The thought of returning to work and running into him on a daily basis was too much to bear and made her feel sick inside. She knew time would heal the hurt, but she needed space from him to work through it, and that wouldn’t happen as long as they were at the same hospital.
She thought for a brief moment about changing hospitals, but that was too extreme, and she didn’t want to leave Kelly and her other friends and coworkers behind. Jenny put her hands on her hips, tilted her head to the sky, and soaked in the sunlight. The ground was still muddy from the rain, but at least the sky was clear and the sun was shining for the time being. She cleared her mind of every worry and doubt so she could enjoy her time there before she had to leave.
Jenny was spooked when she overheard someone coughing in the direction of the trail. She always carried pepper spray with her when she hiked alone, and she slid the small canister from her pants pocket when the person coughed again and it sounded even closer. She scanned her surroundings for another escape route, just in case the person used the worn path leading to her hiding spot, and her heart beat so fast, she could almost hear it. When the stranger burst through the bushes, she was relieved to find out it was no stranger at all. “Clay? What are you doing here?”
He took a couple of steps before bending over and grasping his knees. His face was pale, his pants legs were caked in mud, and he appeared on the verge of passing out. Jenny returned the pepper spray to her pocket and rushed over to help him. “Are you all right?”
Clay gasped for air and held up a hand to signal he couldn’t talk. She rubbed his back, which may not have been the best idea, since feeling the strong muscles flexing beneath his T-shirt was a bitter reminder of what she was missing. After several minutes, he could breathe without difficulty, and when he could stand, Jenny distanced herself as quickly as possible. “Did you jog all the way up here? How did you find me?”
Clay lifted the front of his shirt to wipe the sweat from his brow and seeing his tanned, chiseled stomach only made her feel worse. Jenny turned her attention to the lake and tried to shut off the rush of emotions swirling through her heart and mind, but that was easier said than done.
“I walked, but the mud made it kind of tricky, and I got stuck a few times. I noticed a bike propped against a tree on the path, and when I got closer, I knew it was yours because you brought it the last time we were here. I tried calling you, but you never answered. I hoped you were here without a signal and not just ignoring me.”
She bit her tongue to keep from laughing as she pulled her cell phone from her pants pocket to check for calls. Jenny waved the phone in the air. “No signal.”
He joined her at the edge of the clearing, and each step he took toward her made her pulse quicken until she was the one having a hard time breathing.
“When you check your voice mail, please skip over the ones from me,” he replied. “I’m embarrassed to admit there are at least eight of them, and they all sound pathetic.”
Jenny put the cell phone back in her pocket. “Why do you say that?”
Clay moved to stand in front of her, leaving her no other choice but to look at him. Even with the muddy clothes, the leaves jutting from his hair, and the dirt sticking to his skin, he was still the most handsome man she’d ever met.
“Because I’m begging you to forgive me, and it doesn’t sound very manly. That doesn’t matter to me though. I’ll get on my knees and beg if I have to. I know I’ve been acting like such an idiot, and I’m so sorry.”
He held her hands and brought them to his lips, and his warm breath on her skin nearly caused her knees to buckle.
“I know I can be as stubborn as a mule sometimes, but I promise I’ll work on that. I’ve missed you so much, Jenny, and I don’t want to lose you.”
She held on tight to keep from swaying precariously back and forth. She could tell he meant what he said by the tone of his voice and the intensity of his gaze, but part of her was still cautious. “What made you change your mind?”
He breathed deeply. “Aubrey doesn’t mince words, and she let me know in no uncertain terms that I was being a jerk and only thinking of myself. I try so hard to do what’s right, but I get so focused that I don’t see how it might be hurting other people, especially the ones I love. Aubrey reminded me she’s not a child and that we both need to live our own lives.”
Jenny gave him a skeptical look. “Are you sure you can do that with everything going on in her life? I know how much you worry about her.”
Clay moved behind her and put his arms around her waist. It felt so right, she didn’t care one iota about how dirty he was. He could’ve been dripping in mud and muck from the top of his head to the tips of his toes and she still would’ve held him as close to her as possible.
“We had to compromise on some things. She agreed to hire a home health nurse to check
on her while I’m working, but only if I stop hovering over her and give my word not to try and take charge again. She’ll keep taking the infusion treatments, and if she doesn’t have any more setbacks, we might drop the home health nurse visits back to once a week.”
Jenny nodded. “That sounds doable. If nothing else, it will allow you both to have a life.”
Clay tightened his grip on her waist and kissed the top of her head. “That’s the plan. She also told me she’d never forgive me if I let you get away, but I have no intention of letting that happen. That is, if you can find it in your heart to forgive me for acting like such a fool. I love you, Jenny, and I don’t want to be apart from you ever again.”
A cool breeze brushed over her skin, but she was warm and content in his embrace. As far as she was concerned, she had the best spot in the whole world. “I love you too, and I do forgive you. I know you were just worried about Aubrey. You had her best interests at heart, and I can’t fault you for that. Your compassion for other people is one of the many things that drew me to you in the first place.”
He nuzzled her ear and made her tremble. “Hmm, what else were you attracted to? My winning personality? My dashing good looks? The fact that I’m so humble?”
Jenny laughed. “Oh, your humbleness, most definitely.”
His deep laughter next to her ear sent a rush of heat coursing through her veins. He moved her hair to the side and kissed her earlobe before sliding his mouth down the side of her neck while Jenny closed her eyes and laid her head on his shoulder.
“We shared our first kiss in this very spot,” he murmured. “When you kissed me, I knew it. I was yours.”
The sweet sentiment made her smile. “I believe it was the other way around. You kissed me.”
He laughed again before pressing his hands to her stomach and pulling her even closer. “Let’s call it even and say we both made a move at the same time.”
Falling In Love: A Sweet Traveling Romance Novel (All Roads Lead To Love Book 2) Page 14