Michele was feeling better and had been staying with Patrick at his place since he’d had to care for the boys for the past week and a half while Addison recovered. The boys seemed to be doing well. They were worried about Addison, of course, but thankfully, they didn’t really know all that much about what had taken place that night, other that their mother had gotten hurt. Michele had been a tremendous help with them, and they seemed to have taken a liking to her. Patrick took them to see their mother, daily, who was currently still in hospital, learning to function on her own again. She’d suffered broken ribs and a broken arm in addition to a severe head injury. Hammons had apparently been able to deliver quite a few blows to her head before Hartman could get a clear enough shot. The docs told Patrick that headaches seemed to be improving some but she still couldn’t be exposed to much light and noise seemed to really bother her. She was always glad to see the kids, and although Patrick hated taking them there to see their mother like that, he believed it was helping with her recovery, and the boys were just as happy to see Addie, as she was to see them. They’d proudly decorated her room with flowers, pictures, and cards that Michele had helped them make.
Patrick had mostly been able to work from home but was set to go back to work within the next few days, which he looked forward to. The only good thing to come out of any of this was that his family’s situation had garnered so much attention lately that the higher-ups had decided not to transfer him after all, despite his and Michele’s relationship.
Speaking of their relationship, it had been so far so good, and while he couldn’t say exactly what the future might hold, he knew he wanted to be there for his daughter the way he’d been for the boys. He loved Michele in his own way. It was just hard sometimes to imagine what their life together would be like after spending over a decade loving Addison, but he knew he had to try, not only for the baby on its way but also because Addison herself had so clearly moved on and it was probably time that he did the same.
Addie shook her head at the nurse’s insistence that she eat. She wasn’t hungry, she promised her, but the nurse kept at it until Addison picked up the tray and flung it across the room. She hated behaving that way. It wasn’t like her, but she couldn’t help herself. She was angry, and the pain was overwhelming. She didn’t want to be here in this hospital, in this bed, unable to do anything without help. She didn’t ask for any of this, and she certainly didn’t deserve all of the pain she’d endured. So why her? All she wanted was to be home with her boys—not here—not in this condition where the nightmares always came and she wasn’t sure whether she was dreaming or awake.
The boys came to visit daily, and that was the only sliver of the day she was truly herself. She put on a brave face for them. She masked the pain she was in, she smiled, and sometimes, she even laughed, but it wasn’t the same. Nothing was the same.
She had a steady stream of visitors, but the nurses would only let them stay for a few minutes before kicking them out, telling them she needed her rest. Except for William, that is. They let William stay long as he wanted. He’d wheel himself into her room and stay for hours, holding her hand, often times without speaking at all. He was better off than she was, only suffering a few broken ribs he’d said, a broken arm, and a collapsed lung. Addison didn’t quite understand that because she’d watched Hammons beat William ten times worse than she herself had been beaten, or at least what she remembered of it anyway.
Jess visited too. She had also been helping Patrick with the boys by taking them on fun outings and once to her house for a sleepover. She was intent on hearing all of the details of what had happened, causing Addie to snap because she just wasn’t ready to go there. Most of it had been reported in the news anyway, so she really didn’t understand Jess’s need to quiz her on the matter. But that was just Jess; she always believed in talking about things, and she insisted that you needed to process things by getting the out. But Addie didn’t see it that way. When it came to a lot of the situations in her life, she’d always found that silence was golden. And so when Jess kept at it and didn’t seem to get that she was in no condition to discuss any of it, Addie let her have it. Afterwards, she felt terrible for talking to her best friend like that, but she hadn’t been able to hold it in any longer. She did not want to fucking talk about any of it. Why couldn’t any of them get that? There was only one person who seemed to understand her, and it scared her to think that she’d probably only end up hurting him too, in the long run. The doctors and the therapists told her that this kind of behavior was typical for head-injury patients. Anger, sudden outbursts and the inability to concentrate were all par for the course, they’d explained. Lucky her.
Sondra had visited her almost every day and had even brought the baby up once. On one of her visits in an attempt to cheer Addison up or something of the sort, she told her the story of who the little guy’s father was. As it turned out, he was a very well-known and very married politician who visited Sondra and the baby often, never promising more than that. Admittedly, Addie could now see how much the baby looked like him. She told Addie that she was head over heels in love with a man who would probably never love her back, but she assured her that was okay because between work and the baby, that was all she could really handle, anyway. She made Addie laugh by telling her she’d never wanted a happy-ever-after, anyways.
Only Sondra could say something like that and make it funny. Addie was grateful for Sondra’s friendship, even though it had started out as anything but friendly. Sondra was one of those rare people in this word who were real. She never tried to be anything other than what she was, and Addie figured she could learn a thing or two from that. On her visit earlier, she’d brought with her an offer that Addison couldn’t quite push out of her mind. They both laughed over Addison even being willing to listen to her even utter the word “offer” after the last one. But this one, as she’d later decided, didn’t sound half bad. She could use a change; that much she knew. And the more she thought about it, the more she realized that, after everything she had been through, Sondra’s idea was one of the few things that beckoned her to try, to keep going, and to keep trying, no matter how much it hurt.
Nineteen
William picked up his crutches and stared at his reflection in the mirror before hobbling toward Addie’s room. They were getting ready to release him, even though he wasn’t quite sure how he felt about it. He’d already bought himself a few extra days and could easy have paid for more, but something in Addison’s demeanor told him that maybe he should go. The last thing he wanted to do was to leave her, but just because he was no longer considered a patient didn’t mean he couldn’t spend nearly every waking moment there with her.
The thing about Addison that he understood so well was her need for space. She’d been through a lot. Hell, they’d all been through a lot, but the blatant truth was that it was his fault. Sure, what had happened to them at the hands of Scott Hammons wasn’t exactly William’s fault per se, but the fact was that being with a man like him would always make anyone he loved a target. If she chose a life with him, there would always be the possibility that something like this could happen again. Men of William’s stature, incredibly wealthy public figures, didn’t get to live like everyone else. The lifestyle came with a lot of perks, sure, but it also came with an incredible price too. It was a very different way to live, and the loss of anonymity alone was enough to make most people opt out. He had chosen this life. It was what he knew, but to ask someone else to make that choice, to give up so much . . . Well, it was a lot to ask of a person. William knew Addison loved him; he knew that. But he also knew that she was as smart as they came, and so it had to be weighing on her mind whether or not this was really what she wanted, not just for her but for her children. It was a lot to ask.
He knocked quietly on the door and entered the room to find Addison sitting up in bed, staring out the window. She didn’t turn, but he could tell that she knew he was there. Propping his crutches against the bed, h
e sat down and placed his hand on her thigh. When she turned, he saw the tears in her eyes. “Hey, hey, hey, come here.”
She wiped her eyes and stared at him.
“I heard you did really well in physical therapy today. They say with effort like that you’ll be out of here in no time,” William remarked.
“Yeah.”
William traced I love you on her thigh with his finger, hoping she got the message. “What’s up?”
Addie laid her head back against the bed and closed her eyes. “William, there’s something I need to talk to you about.”
He ran his hand down her thigh and back up again and then met her gaze. “All right.”
Addie opened her eyes and glared at his mouth. “Sondra made me an offer I can’t refuse.”
He frowned. “Another one, huh?” he asked and then smiled wryly. “Well, I can’t wait to hear this one.”
“The agency wants to open in new markets, and they want to send me to do some of the upfront leg work.” Addie said, not taking her eyes from his.”
“Wow. Okay?”
“Well, I talked it over with Patrick, and he’s given me permission to take the boys. So I’m going to tell her yes. I’m . . . I’m guessing we’ll leave within the next month or so, once I get back on my feet.”
“Well, all right. I mean if that’s what you want to do, then I think it’s a great idea.”
“Really?” Addison asked, as she crossed her arms and cocked her head to the side. Clearly, she wasn’t buying it.
William grinned. “Yeah, if that’s what you want. But I’m going to go ahead and take a moment to call you out on your own bullshit. If you wanna go, that’s great. I’m behind you one-hundred percent; although, I think we both know why you’re really doing this. You’re running, Addison. You’re scared and you’re running, which is fine, but if you think I’m gonna let you off the hook, just like that, well, you’ve got another thing coming.”
Addie raised her eyebrows. “I’m not scared, and I’m not running.”
William mirrored her demeanor, sighed, and called her bluff. “All right, then. Let me come with you. Where are we going, anyway?”
“Come with me? Are you kidding? You can’t come with me.” Addie laughed.
He deadpanned. “The hell I can’t.”
“Your life is here. Your work is here.”
“My life is with you. My work can be anywhere I want it to be.”
“But . . .” Addie exhaled and pinched the bridge of her nose.
“I’m the boss, remember? I can work from anywhere. I also have the ability to fly where I want, when I want. Location and distance are non-issues in our relationship, Addison. So if you want to call this off—if you want to run—you’re going to have to do better than that because I’m not him. I’ll fight for you every goddamned step of the way,” he said, winking at her. “Keep that in mind, all right?”
Addie turned and stared out the window again, but she couldn’t hide the smile on her face, hard as she tried.
William reached for her hand. “It’s okay to be scared, you know. I think it’s a part of this whole love thing; it just sort of comes with the territory.”
“Are you scared?” she asked, quietly.
William inhaled and hesitated before speaking. “Am I scared? Hmmm, yeah, I guess you could say there are a few things that scare me.”
She turned her head to face him. “And they are?”
He smiled. “Well, for starters, I’m scared of losing you. I’m scared that this . . . that my life is too much for you and that you’ll want to leave or that maybe you already do. I’m scared that your children won’t like me, because I have no idea what I’m doing in that department. I’m scared that you won’t let me give you everything I have to give. But mostly, I’m scared that if it takes me the rest of my life, even if that’s another hundred years or more that it still won’t be enough time to show you how I truly feel about you.”
Addie wiped the tears from her eyes with the back of her hand and offered up a slight smile. “Touché.”
As Penny closed the front door behind the last of the members of the garden party committee, she exhaled a sigh of relief. She hadn’t been certain which way it would go. These days, she wasn’t certain of much. Sitting down at the bar, she put her head in her hands. After having just hosted a luncheon for thirty-five ladies, she was exhausted. Ever since everything had happened, she’d been a mess. Her son was no longer speaking to her, and her husband wasn’t too far off. Any communication they had was fairly selective these days, and he’d been spending all of his time at his apartment in the city. Addison refused to see her and even went as far barring her from the hospital. Her friends were constantly asking how she was doing, and Penny was afraid that she’d only be able to keep up her front for so long. People were going to start talking, as if they weren’t already.
She tried going through Patrick’s mistress, but she’d given Penny a run for her money. Penny had thought Addison was bad all these years; well, this woman put her to shame. Penny wasn’t one to give up, and this lady was going to be the mother of her granddaughter, so she’d keep trying, if she had to. But admittedly, part of her wondered if that baby was her son’s at all. If it were her, she’d be demanding a paternity test ASAP. She was going to have to talk to Patrick about that when and if her son ever started speaking to her again.
She’d heard from her husband that Addison had been released from the hospital and that she and the boys had been staying with that Hartman character. She was going to have to talk to Patrick about that too. She couldn’t see how her son could be okay with that. Not to mention the fact that her relationship with her grandsons would probably never be the same.
Penny had started seeing a therapist after the incident at the lake house, which had since, unfortunately, been put on the market. Penny hated to see that house go—she always did love it so—but her husband hadn’t given her a choice in the matter. Anyhow, at her husband’s insistence, she started seeing this therapist, which she clearly didn’t need, especially after he’d tried to diagnose her with something called NPD in addition to Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, which she was pretty sure she suffered from. While she liked the guy and agreed with the PTSD theory, she vehemently denied having Narcissistic Personality Disorder. Dr. Brandt explained that she appeared to be a classic case and that there was treatment for this sort of thing but it required first admitting that there was a problem. Needless to say she hadn’t been back. Therapists were a dime a dozen, anyway; she just needed a second opinion.
Addison met Jess for coffee at their usual spot about six weeks after she’d been released from the hospital. They’d spoken several times since the incident in the hospital but never about how Addie had treated her that day. The weather was finally starting to warm up a bit, which may have been the reason the coffee shop didn’t seem as busy as it usually did. As Addie opened the door, it suddenly took her by surprise just how much she was going to miss this. She considered how much their lives had changed since they’d first started meeting here, and she smiled to herself, thinking back on it all. She pictured them meeting here as girlfriends in college before kids, before marriage, and then with babies in strollers, and then toddlers they couldn’t contain, and suddenly, everything came rushing back to her. In some ways, it felt as though this were yet another one of the transitions that time often brought with it. But in others it also felt like an ending of sorts. Or maybe it was just a beginning that hadn’t quite happened yet. That’s the thing about life and all of its ups and downs. Usually you don’t quite know where it is you are, until you’ve arrived.
Addie stepped just inside the door and stood watching Jess for a moment before approaching the table. Jess was writing in a notebook, and Addie couldn’t help but notice how tired her friend looked. It made her feel bad because she’d been so wrapped up in her own problems lately she hadn’t even stopped to consider that her best friend might need an ear too.
J
essica looked up, meeting Addie’s gaze head on, and suddenly her serious expression gave way to a smile. She stood and waved her over.
Jess nodded at the two cups on the table. “I got here early, so I went ahead and ordered for you.”
Addie kissed her cheek and sat down. “Thank you. So . . . how are you? I feel like we haven’t actually talked about you for a while. And I really want to apologize for that, among other things.’
“I’m fine. You know it’s just more of the same for me, anyway. There’s no need to apologize,” she replied, waving Addie off.
“But there is. That day in the hospital . . . The way I acted was totally uncalled for. I never should have talked to you like that, and I’ve regretted it ever since. I love you, and I’m so sorry, Jessica.”
“Oh that. Come on. I knew you’d been through a lot, and I was pressing. I was the one who was out of line. Plus, I knew you didn’t really mean any of it.”
Addie inhaled. “How are you, Jess? Something’s going on . . .”
Jessica looked away. “I’m fine. The kids are driving me crazy, and I’m working on a new project that’s been keeping me up, but enough about me.” She smiled. “I really did come here to hear about you. This time next week you’re off, huh?”
“Project? What sort of project? A PTA thing? You know you need to get the other moms to do at least half of the work you’re doing,” Addie insisted.
Jess threw her head back and laughed. “No, it’s not a PTA thing. I’ll tell you all about it, but first, I want to hear about you. This time next week you’ll be in Switzerland. How crazy is that? And how’s everything going with Mr. Handsome.”
Breaking Bedrock (Book Two) Page 15