by Sherie Keys
Caleb’s sweetness and his ability to be so ineffectually carefree stole my heart whenever I was with him. Then, when I was with Hunter, it was magnetic and he always found his way under my skin.
Like Joe told me the night before, I needed to take a break from both Caleb and Hunter so that I could get better first. I really did make myself sick by going crazy over my dilemma with the two.
Peter was no help because he was pretty much on Caleb’s side of course, they hardly knew about Hunter. I didn’t want to face it, so I decided to take a nap as the fever was coming back and leaving me feeling completely exhausted. I took a couple of fever reducing pills and then collapsed into bed. I hated being sick.
* * *
By the time I woke up, I was clammy and my throat was really dry. The fever didn’t really go away. I heard the sound of my microwave door opening and closing. I sat up, half in a fevered daze, and half concerned as to who was in my apartment…probably eating my food. I got up shakily and then made my way into the kitchen. I recognized the black hair and tall build perfectly.
“Hunter?” I said, he turned around and smiled at me. “Is this a dream?” I asked and he looked at me as if I weren’t all together, which I wasn’t. He pressed the start button on the microwave and walked over to me.
“See, when you tell me that you have the flu and have been deathly ill for the past two days, then tell me that you just want to be alone and sleep. I get a little worried that you might die, so I buy soup and break into your apartment,” he said and a slow smile spread across my face.
“No you didn’t…you seriously…you broke in?” I asked, my dry voice sounded all cracked and sickly.
“Yes, I did. I had to flirt with the super to get him to let me in.” I laughed and then fell into a fit of coughs as my throat was extremely prone to dry coughing. “Yeah you definitely need something warm for that throat. Do you have a fever? You look like you need to sit down.” Hunter guided me to the couch and he smiled at me with a fond expression in his eyes, though his smirk was a little mischievous.
“You’re really hot, Mel,” he said and I giggled as softly as possible.
“Can you pass me some Tylenol please?” I asked and Hunter grabbed me the red and white bottle and poured me a glass of water.
“So who’s been taking care of you?” Hunter asked as he watched me take the medicine and waited to take the glass when I was finished.
“My brother, I’ve mostly been sleeping though,” I lied and then I felt a headache coming on. “Really, Hunter, I don’t want to get you sick, especially with you visiting your dad while he’s in such a fragile state,” I said and Hunter studied me for a moment.
“I just want to make sure you’re okay,” he said and I nodded.
“I am, I’ll be fine. If I were, like, hospitalized, that would be different,” I said and Hunter rolled his eyes.
“You might as well be, you can barely look at me straight,” he said and I pressed my lips together; that was for an entirely different reason…entirely.
I felt almost as if I had to get away from Hunter for my own personal safety. But he was looking at me with those blue eyes and he was all concerned and tilting his head at me. God what was wrong with me!
“Have you gotten your flu shot yet?” I asked him and he shook his head at me.
“I don’t really…like doctors,” he said and I put my hands on my hips, even though I was sitting down on the couch, I felt like I got the same effect across clearly.
“See! Hunter, I don’t want to get you sick, really. Thank you for the soup though, I’ll be better soon, in just a few days. My immune system is usually on point,” I said.
He laughed. “Alright, fine, fine. But if you get any worse you tell me, be upfront with me and I’ll come dressed up as a nurse and all,” he said and that mental image caused me to laugh, too. “I need you to be healthy and my vibrant Melanie again,” he said with a small pout and I smiled like a teenage girl.
“You’re too much, Hunter. You’ll kill me with that little pout.”
“I don’t want to kill you, just render you inert enough that I can lock you to my wrist forever,” he said.
“Then we’d be together…forever,” I said and Hunter laughed at my ominous tone. “I don’t think you want to be locked up with me during that time of the month,” I said.
“That’s fine, I’ll take you any way you come,” he said and my heart got all melty.
“Since when are you so damn sweet Hunter? Sheesh,” I said and he smirked at me.
“I’ll let you rest, but eat some soup, you’ll feel better with food in your belly.”
He walked over to the kitchen and poured the soup into a bowl for me then brought it over.
“I’m serious, send me a picture of it at least a third finished.”
I nodded.
“I’ll eat, I’ll eat.”
He gave me a sort of private smile before he kissed the top of my head and then straightened.
“Let me know how you’re feeling, okay?” he reiterated and I promised him that I’d keep him updated.
Hunter left the apartment and I made sure to lock up behind him. I still couldn’t believe he convinced the super to unlock my door. After I ate about half the bowl of soup, I sent Hunter the picture and he sent a text back ordering me to sleep. I did manage to take a refreshing nap and when I woke up someone knocked on my door.
“Why do people just keep visiting me?” I mumbled to myself.
When I opened the door I was very surprised to see my mom on the other side holding a cooler bag in one hand and her purse in the other.
“Your brother called me, I had the day off today and thought I’d come and visit you,” she said as hello and simply walked past me, right into the apartment.
“Oh…okay then,” I said and then glanced at the clock, it was practically three in the afternoon. “What did you do today?” I asked her and saw that she went right into my kitchen and was unloading food into my fridge.
“I went to run a few errands, I would have been here earlier, but you know how traffic in the city is. I’m glad to have made it even now,” she said and I walked over to the kitchen to see what she was doing.
“Mom…what are you doing?” I asked her and she looked at me as if her actions were completely normal. Yeah, we had a heart to heart when I went home for dinner, but she hadn’t been to my apartment since I moved in.
“I made you an entire pot of soup, I know you love my dumpling soup,” she said and I perked up admittedly at the fact that she seemed to have made me an entire vat of dumpling soup.
“You’re the best. I know once I start drinking that I’ll get better,” I said and she chuckled fondly.
“It always did the trick when you were younger,” she said and I smiled, remembering the colds that were cured almost miraculously by my mom’s dumpling soup.
“I hope you’re drinking plenty of water and electrolytes, you look like you have a fever,” she said as she put the last container of soup into my fridge. She looked at me with concern and I nodded.
“I’ve been doing nothing but liquids,” I said and she pulled out a blue bottle of Energy Aide.
“Mhm, that’s what I thought, I brought you some anyway,” she said and I couldn’t help but love my mom in that moment. She was still taking care of me when I was sick. As if we didn’t have a huge rift between us not too long ago.
“Thank you, Mommy,” I said and she laughed at me.
“You’re welcome, now go and get dressed, a little bit of fresh air and movement will do wonders,” she said and I nodded then got up to go and change and make myself presentable enough to be outside.
My mom and I walked to a nearby park behind an old Catholic church. We were arm in arm and it felt nice just being with her, like old times.
“So your father has been visiting that library almost every day and reading all the books you’ve painted for. He’s really proud of you and I am, too,” she said and I almost t
eared up; that’s been the exact thing I’ve wanted to hear from my parents for such a long time.
“You should come by for dinner again soon and call more often. We miss you, you know,” she said and I nodded.
“I’ll call and visit. I have to admit though, that I’ve been really…preoccupied,” I said and she looked at me curiously.
“Those two boys you’re dating?” she asked and I nodded.
“Joe says they’re what got me sick,” I admitted and my mom looked at me with a slight frown.
“That’s because you haven’t made your decision yet. I thought you knew?” she asked and I shrugged.
“I thought I did, too…but it’s hard, I really, really like both of them, I just don’t know who I want exactly,” I said and then sighed heavily. “If I could roll them into one person I would marry that guy,” I said and my mom laughed.
“Well, tell me about both of them, in depth,” she said and I took a deep breath.
“Hunter is a smart ass, but he’s actually really sweet and genuine and kind of magnetic. He’s gorgeous, tall, fit, you know…the basics. He’s also kind of a billionaire and we always have really great conversations, you know…he’s real with me. He let me into some of the things he’s never told anyone before and I…I feel like I love him every time I’m around him,” I said and my mom nodded and inclined her head to tell me to go on.
“Caleb is like the walking reincarnation of James Dean, he’s more built and a little shorter than Hunter. He has a big family and a great life…he’s a billionaire, too. They both work on Wall Street incidentally. He’s kind and funny, and a little quirky sometimes, very sweet, and carefree. He’s like a breath of fresh air and it feels like he steals my heart out of my chest every time I’m with him.”
“Well…could you imagine yourself married to either of them? Not to say that marriage is what you have to look for, if you’re not ready to be married that’s perfectly fine. But if you’re going to have a partner and be in a relationship, could you imagine yourself married to them? Living with them?”
I thought about that for a moment and then realized that I did sort of live with both of them as I went away with Hunter and Caleb.
“I really don’t know, Mom, it’s quite simply a toss-up.”
The Final Chapter
Melanie
After mom and I got back to my apartment, I had an entire bowl of her soup and even managed to stomach the dumplings, what with my coughing fits and all.
“Alright, I’m off, back home to feed your father,” she said and she kissed my forehead before I walked her out and promised to call.
My mom’s soup was magic. After a few days of using that as my only medicine and drinking the Energy Aide, I was already getting better. No antibiotics needed. That made me wonder what was really in her soup. Come Sunday, I was able to finish my last painting and even clean up the apartment, as I had completely let everything be as it was while I was sick.
Monday I felt completely back to normal, I went to submit my project and afterwards Hunter called me.
“Hey beautiful, I’m glad to hear you’re doing better,” he said and I smiled at the sound of his voice.
“Yeah, me too, finally. I hate being sick, but I had to admit, having people break into my apartment to bring me some soup was nice,” I said and he laughed.
“What are you up to now? I have a pretty open schedule, do you want to come by my job, then we can go out for lunch together?” he asked and I liked the idea of seeing Hunter that day.
“Sure, tell me how to get to your office and I’ll be there in a bit,” I said.
We ended the call and Hunter gave me the instructions to get to his broker firm in Bates Tower. He was on the sixty-third floor. I caught a cab to Wall Street and then walked over to Bates Tower.
I got a security pass to go up to C&B Brokers. I rode the elevator up to the sixty-third floor and when the elevator doors opened, I was met with a sign on the wall across from the elevators that said, ‘Caldwell & Berkshire.’ My eyebrows furrowed as I could swear I’ve heard the name Caldwell somewhere before.
I walked down the short hall to reception and asked for directions to Hunter’s office. The front desk woman called Hunter’s assistant who said it was okay to send me back. I was shown through a huge room of people on phones in pretty nice cubicle set ups. Then I was led down a small hallway that housed two offices. The front desk assistant led me past one office that had a gold plated name plate on the door. My blood ran cold when I read the name… Caleb Caldwell.
I practically walked on the woman’s heels until we reached Hunter’s office. She knocked on the door and as soon as Hunter opened it I practically ran him over to get inside.
“Hey, eager to see me?” he asked, only slightly confused and mostly honored.
“Ah…yeah, I am. And I’m hungry,” I said as Hunter closed his door and walked over to me to press a kiss to my lips.
“If I get sick, you have to bring me some of your mom’s magic soup,” he said and I laughed, almost too nervously, it sounded a bit hysteric.
“No, I’m ninety-nine percent sure that I’m flu free. So, you ready to go?” I asked him and he chuckled at me, though his expression was less humored and more bemused.
“I have to actually finish something up with my partner really quickly so, it’ll just be a sec,” he said and I nodded.
I swore my heart was about to jump out of my chest as the panic seized me.
“Your partner…is he the one who looks like James Dean?” I asked. How much of a chance was there that a different Caleb Caldwell worked on Wall Street as a part owner of a broker’s firm.
“Yeah, did you see him out in the hall or something?” Hunter asked with a chuckle and I nodded, a little too vigorously. “He didn’t try to hit on you did he? The guy can make almost any woman turn into a puddle at his feet, trust me I’ve seen him in action many times,” Hunter said and I swallowed hard.
“You guys hang out…?” I asked him and he nodded.
“Yeah, we’re business partners, why wouldn’t we hang out? I hope he didn’t try to work his charm on you, you’re mine,” he said and that’s when I started feeling a little faint.
“Um—” I was cut off by a swift knock on Hunter’s office door and I quickly backed towards the bathroom door I spotted. “I need to…use the…”
I pointed to the door and Hunter nodded, he had fully realized that I was acting strangely. I hurried into the bathroom before Hunter answered his door and then I turned on the switch for the fan so that the sound of my hyperventilating wouldn’t be overheard.
I felt like throwing up and then hurling myself out of a window. How had I not put two and two together before? Both Hunter and Caleb were stock brokers on Wall Street who part owned a broker’s firm, they were both billionaire’s, and come to think of it, their schedules fit together perfectly! Hunter would have the end of the week off usually, while Caleb had the beginning of the week off. Oh my god, I was such a moron! Not to mention I was in way over my head and I didn’t even know it.
What was I going to do? I couldn’t just go out there and act like everything was fine, not knowing what I now knew. My goodness, Hunter and Caleb probably hung out and talked about their dating lives! I paused and forced myself to think rationally. But they couldn’t have, because surely they’d both realize that they were dating the same woman. Maybe they weren’t that close, but still, I was in deep shit.
“Hey, Mel…are you okay?” Hunter’s voice snapped me out of my panic a little bit and I forced myself to calm down and open the door.
“Yeah. I’m fine, um, did you get the stuff finished up with your partner?” I asked and tried to hide myself in the bathroom as much as possible. Hunter looked at me with a confused and slightly worried expression on his face.
“Yeah, he’s in his office…” Hunter said and I nodded then came out of the bathroom.
“So where are we going for lunch then?” I asked and Hunter pursed
his lips at me while he studied me a bit, but he otherwise didn’t say anything.
“Well, I know you must be sick of soup by now, so I thought we could go for really good hot dogs,” I nodded and then forced a smile.
“Hot dogs sound great,” I said and Hunter nodded at me and gave me a cautious smile.
“Alright then, let’s get going,” he said and then he grabbed his keys and wallet from his desk.
“You gave your driver the day off again?” I asked and Hunter shrugged.
“Ever since we started dating, I’ve kind of gotten used to driving around myself. It felt weird having a driver who knew all my whereabouts and stuff,” Hunter said.