by Jenna Tyler
I smile back at him. “Ah. A man who knows what I like. Yes, let's go.”
“You handled him nicely. It kind of turned me on,” he says as we walk out of the ICU and head off to find the cafeteria. Peering up at him, I know he's just trying to lighten my mood and make me feel better. But now the thought of sex is creeping into my head. My brain starts to chant…Charlie. Charlie. Charlie. This is definitely not the time or the place for sex, although it would be a first for me to have sex in a hospital and it could release some tension. No! No! No! Charlie needs to wake up and be okay before anything like that happens.
“You are a sicko, you know that? And I’ve had years of practice dealing with him.” He just smiles as we continue our journey through the hospital, hunting down some coffee.
Eighteen
Returning to the ICU with coffee running through our systems, Dr. Chambers meets us outside of Charlie's room. It dawns on me that Drew's dad knew we were coming and that's how they had a bracelet ready for him. I wonder how Drew got his dad here so quickly. My thoughts are interrupted. “Charlotte's brain seems to be completely intact and functioning properly. When she wakes up, we will check her again, but everything looks good up there.”
I breathe out a sigh of relief. No brain damage. Now we just need to see what the other doctors have to say. Just as I'm about to ask if I can go in to see her again, Marcus pops his head out of the room. He looks to see who is around and then his eyes lock on me. “I think she's starting to wake up.”
I shove past Drew and his dad, and rush in to see Charlie. Her eyes aren't open yet, but she's stirring. I look over at Marcus and see him smiling with teary eyes, holding Charlie's hand. It warms my heart to see him have such emotions over his daughter. He's never been an emotional guy, but I know that deep down he cares.
Looking back at Charlie, I see her starting to open her eyes. I quickly reach over and turn off the light that is directly over her head. I never understood what those stupid lights were for. They shine right into a patient's eyes. It would be better to have those swivel lights like in a hotel room with a 3-way bulb.
Before Charlie completely opens her eyes, she tries to talk. I pat her on her arm, “No, sweetie, you can't talk. You have a tube in your throat.” She shakes her head at me and frowns.
Marcus looks at me. “I think she wants it out, Bec.”
“No shit, Marcus. Go get a doctor or a nurse.”
He comes back with a nurse and she looks at all of the machinery. I assume she is checking her vitals. “I'll be right back with the doctor and see if we can't take the tube out, okay?” The nurse says politely and walks out of the room.
Moving my attention back to Charlie, her eyes look a little scared now. “You're going to be okay, angel. Don't you worry. Are you feeling any pain? I can get the nurse back in here to give you pain meds.” Charlie shakes her head and gives me an okay sign with her fingers.
The nurse walks back in with a different doctor following behind her. He sees Charlie's okay sign still up and says, “Well, that's a good sign. Much better than the one my wife shows me all the time. I'm Dr. Phillips.” We all snicker, except for Charlie. The doctor holds his hand out to shake Marcus' hand and then mine. “Let's take a look to see if we can yank that thing out of you.”
Marcus and I look at each other, not knowing what to think of this doctor's choice of words. It’s probably not the best bedside manner, but at least he's not uptight and spewing a bunch of medical jargon that we can't understand.
“Everything looks good. Let's take it out. Whaddya say?” He looks to Charlie and she gives him a thumbs up. “Great. Your throat is going to be sore for a while, but it will subside in a few days. We're going to need you to take a deep breath and then blow out really hard on the count of three, okay?” The nurse moves around to the other side, making Marcus move out of the way.
I step back to move out of the way of the doctor and I move to the foot of the bed. I hold on to Charlie's foot so she can feel me. They disconnect some things and then they ask if she's ready. She gives the thumbs up again and I can't help but smile. She's such a sassy little trooper.
“Okay. On the count of three, Charlotte. One. Two…” Charlie takes in a deep breath. “Three.” She blows out really hard and they pull the tube out of her throat. She coughs and the nurse is ready with a cup of water for her to sip on. She takes a sip and motions for me to come back over to her. Dr. Phillips tells us all that she needs to take it easy on the talking until her throat heals a little. She gives him another thumbs up and we all giggle.
Charlie grabs a hold of my arm and pulls me in for a hug. There is nothing I want to do more than squeeze her, but I can't because I might cause her pain. She plants a kiss on my cheek and whispers, “Thanks for being here, Mom.”
I take her hand in mine and kiss the back of it. “Where else would I be, angel?”
“How long have I been in here?” she asks.
“Since last night,” I reply. “They called me as soon as you were brought in.”
“How did you get here so quickly?” I glance up at Marcus, and Charlie gets the hint. We always could read each other with just a look. She looks over at her dad and grabs his arm, pulling him in to her the same way she did to me. “Thanks for being here, Dad.”
“I'm just happy you're okay, pumpkin.” Marcus looks like he might tear up again. “I'm going to go grab a drink from somewhere. I'll be right back.”
“Okay, Dad.”
Marcus heads toward the door and I see him quickly wipe his eyes before disappearing out the door. Turning back to Charlie, I see her beautiful face. Her coloring has come back to normal and she's perked up.
“I've never seen your dad get as emotional as I have today. It's nice to see.” Charlie looks at me with a gimme a break kind of look. “No, seriously. I can tell he was really worried about you.”
“Duh, Mom. I could've died.”
“I know that, but even still, he never shows emotions and I've seen him cry twice today.” I can't help myself from leaning over and hugging my baby girl again.
“So, Mom, how did you get here so quickly?” She's still whispering and being a good little patient.
I look down at my hands, knowing that I'm blushing and she can read me like a book. “Drew brought me,” I say, without giving away any more information.
“Mom? How did Drew get you here so quickly?” Charlie makes me chuckle the way she tries to pry information out of me.
I peek back up at her. “On a plane, Charlie. Duh.” We use the term “duh” too often, I've realized. I think it's her that brings it out of me.
“Mom!” she shouts in a whisper. It's really too cute.
“Hey, easy on the voice there,” I scold her. “Okay. I flew on his private jet.” She gasps, carefully. “It is really beautiful. It has a bedroom and everything.”
Charlie smacks me on the arm and whisper shouts again, “Lucky!” I miss dishing with her face-to-face. It's been a few months since we've done this because she left for college early and then I moved across the country.
“What's he like? Is he as perfect as he looks on Google?” Blushing, I look back down at anything except her. “Mom. He is, isn't he? How the hell did you find him?”
Looking back up at her, I can't help the wide grin that forms on my face. “Oh, Charlie. He's very near perfect, as far as I can tell. I never knew love could feel like this.” I'm feeling giddy, like a school girl.
Her eyes widen at what I've just said. “You love him, Mom?” My face falters a little. I didn’t actually admit it, did I? I think back to what I've just said. Yep, I did.
My grin reappears. “Yes. I believe I really do.”
“Wow,” she says in her hushed whisper. “I can't believe you love him. It's so soon.”
“I know it is and I keep trying to be rational about it, but this draw to him is wicked crazy.”
She laughs. “Did you just say ‘wicked crazy’?” I nod and we chuckle. “Does he know th
at you love him?”
“Well, I haven't told him that I love him yet, but I'm pretty sure he knows how I feel. And I'm pretty sure he feels the same way. I think he's afraid that if he says it too soon, I'll pull away. I'm just being stubborn and don't want to say it first. So here we are, madly in love and refusing to say it out of fear.” We chuckle again.
“Good. You've always told me not to say it first. To make the guy chase you.” Well, at least she's remembered something I taught her. A girl should never seem desperate, even if she really wants the guy. Some guys like the thrill of the chase, too.
“And that's what I've tried to do with him. He keeps coming back for more, though. I must be doing something right. This is definitely something different for both of us. Neither one of us have ever felt this way with anyone else.” It sounds so cliché, but it really is true.
“So it can happen, then?” she asks. “What happens in those books?”
I smile at her and nod. “Yes, I guess it can. I'm not so crazy after all.” She smiles at me and I think she's wondering if it will happen for her.
“Did he come with you or did he just send you on his plane?”
“He came with me. He arranged everything for me to be here. He even talked to my boss and had his dad, who's a neurologist, come to check on you. He was there with me when I got the call.” My face falls when I think about that horrible late night phone call. “That was the worst phone call of my life, Charlie.” Tears begin to form again. “I never want to experience that again.”
Charlie puts her hand out for me to take. “I'm sorry, Mom.”
“What happened anyway? No one told me anything, except that you were in an accident.”
She takes a deep breath. “I don't remember everything, but I do remember that I was at a stop light and this man came up to my car and knocked on the window.” My heart is beating out of my chest just hearing that someone approached her car. You always hear of carjackings on the news, but I never knew of anyone that it had happened to. “It was late so I just ignored him, thinking it was just a bum looking for a handout, but then he started cussing at me to open up or he'd break the window and drag me out.” Jesus, I don't know if I want to hear anymore. This asshole was threatening to hurt my baby. The anger in me is building and the pain I feel for her having to deal with this is overwhelming. A tear escapes and Charlie clutches my hand harder. “Do you want me to finish?”
“I think so, but it's killing me to hear it.”
“There's not much more to tell.” I nod for her to continue. “I refused to look at the guy, but I should've so I could identify him. I was just too scared, and then he started beating on my car and window. That's when I freaked out and just slammed on the gas to get out of there. I don't remember anything after that.” Leaning over, I hug her as tight as I can without hurting her and I kiss her on the forehead. I can't believe she went through something like that. I've never been through something so scary.
“You should've thrown the car in reverse, backed up, then put it back into drive and ran over the fucker. Jesus, Charlie! There's no telling what that asshole was going to do to you. I can't even think about it.” I'm so mad and frustrated at the whole situation. And since she never got a look at him, he's probably going to do it to someone else. Maybe even countless times. It's infuriating!
“Mom, I'm okay. At least I think I'm okay.” Charlie tries to lean up to kiss me, but can't quite make it. Realizing I don't really know anything that's wrong with her because I've just been focused on being with her, my anger turns into a nervous feeling down deep in my belly.
Just then, there's a light knock on the door and it cracks open a tiny bit. Drew peeks his head in. “Can I come in?” The nervous feeling I just had instantly goes away and a little fire ignites. I look to Charlie and she raises her arm up as high as she can get it, giving a thumbs up once again. Drew closes the door behind him and walks over to us. I hear Charlie take in a sharp breath as he gets closer. Yes, Charlie. Nearly perfect, isn't he? He wraps an arm around my waist and gives me a kiss on the cheek, which I lean into. I've missed his touch. He whispers into my ear, “I've missed you too, baby.”
“No whispering in my presence. Well, except for me because I have to.” Charlie is showing her true self to Drew right out of the gate. You've got to love her sass.
Drew smiles. “You must be the infamous, Charlie. I've heard a...” Drew pauses. He hasn't heard a lot about her because we haven't been together long enough for him to have heard much, “little about you.” We all giggle. “It's nice to finally meet you.”
Charlie lets go of my hand to shake Drew's. “Likewise. You look good online, but better in person,” she says and I'm a little taken aback by her bluntness so soon.
“Charlie!” I scold her.
Drew just laughs. “I see the apple doesn't fall far from the tree.” He winks at Charlie and gives me a little squeeze. “Babe, if you're okay, I was going to run out and get us some lunch and grab my laptop.” I nod. “What would you like to eat?” I shrug. I'm not really in the mood to eat, but I know I need to.
“Something light. A salad maybe, with honey mustard dressing. Or a turkey and swiss sandwich.” He smiles, knowing I always eat turkey and swiss.
“Mustard and light on the mayo?” I smile back him. He knows how I like my sandwich already. Can he be any more adorable? “Charlie, when you're able to dive into some food, I'm buying.” She shoots him another thumbs up and he gives her another wink.
Drew leans over to give me a kiss and he discreetly rubs his hand down my ass. “I'll be right back, love.” Then he's quickly out the door and I'm left tingling all over.
Nineteen
“Mom!” Charlie scream whispers and I turn my attention back to her. “He's totally hot! And totally in love with you.” She smacks me on the arm.
“Oww,” I yelp.
“You two act like you're an old married couple already. And I saw the way his presence calmed you down and you turned to mush.” Damn, this kid is perceptive, even after what she's been through. “Just get hitched and be done with it,” she huffs.
“Well, actually, we're moving in together.” Charlie's mouth drops open, but I can see a slight smile. “He’s asked me, but every time I go to tell him yes, we get interrupted. But we haven't spent more than one night apart since our first date. Of course, that was just a couple days ago.” I laugh at how ridiculous this all sounds. Our first date was three days ago! Under normal circumstances, this is way too fast. But I know I love him and this connection is unbreakable.
“Don't waste any time, Mom.” She laughs, but that is exactly what I'm thinking. Why waste another minute without him with me. We hate being apart and are more relaxed when the other one is there. I'm sure he travels a lot so I will be home by myself quite often anyway. And I want to spend every moment I can with him when he's home. What's wrong with that? It's not like I have to be careful because I have young children to look out for. My child is grown and out of the house. It's time for me again.
“I don't plan on it,” I retort. “It's about time that I've found love, real love, and that I'm happy again. Aren't you happy for me?”
“I am. Truly, I am. I've never seen you like this before and I love seeing you happy. I mean, it is fast and everything, but nothing should hold you back if it's what you really want.” I feel her sincerity and I'm glad she is okay with everything. “Plus, now I will have a hot, rich step-dad.” She grins so wide when she thinks she's being funny. Her eyes are getting droopy and maybe her head is a little loopy. I think she needs some rest.
“Angel, close your eyes and get some rest. I'll be here when you wake up.” I bend over to give her a kiss on the cheek.
“Thanks, Mom. I love you.”
“I love you, too, sweet girl.”
She closes her eyes and drifts off. I stay in her room for a little while after she falls asleep, then I make my way out into the corridor. Nurses and doctors are walking around or are at their computers
. I recognize the nurse that brought us in here, but I don't remember her name. Walking up to her, I ask, “Excuse me. Can I talk to the doctor treating my daughter? I'd like to know what kind of injuries she has and what is going on.”
“Absolutely. I'll find out where he is and send him to you as soon as possible. He could be doing rounds so it might be a while.”
“That's fine. Charlie is sleeping right now. Can you point me to the nearest waiting room?”
“Sure. Take a right into that first doorway right there.” She points at the first room on the right, just past the nurse's station, that has a door open and a light on.
“Thank you.”
When I walk in, Marcus is sitting there munching on some vending machine junk food. “What are you doing in here?” I ask him, while I go to the vending machines to look at what they have.
“What does it look like I'm doing, Bec?” I just shake my head. He's always a jerk.
“Well, it appears you're still being an asshole. Good thing you grew up. What are you? Six now?” Marcus can really get under my skin sometimes. I'm pretty sure he pushes my buttons on purpose.
“What? Does being with your new boyfriend make you too good for the rest of us?” Now I just roll my eyes. He can't hear or see that since he's sitting down behind me in a corner, but it still makes me feel good to do it. I can't help but be nasty to him when he's like this. Where's that emotional guy from earlier?
Turning around to look at him, I sigh. “Marcus.” He lifts his head up slightly to look at me, “I was too good for you when we met, I was too good for you when we married, and I was too good for you when I left your ass.” He just sits there looking at me, expressionless, like I was talking to a brick wall.
When he doesn't respond in any kind of way, I turn back around to the vending machine. I decide I just want a soda since Drew will be back any minute with food. When I open my bag, I see danish upon danish. I take them out and place them on a little table so I can dig around in my bag for some change. I hear Marcus get up and, out of the corner of my eye, I see him go throw his trash away. He disappears out of my peripheral vision, and then I feel him behind me…too close for my liking. “Go away, Marcus.”