“Why were you going to marry your ex, then?”
Jillian seemed genuinely interested in Katie’s response, and there was no malice in her tone. “For Mason,” she said simply. Even now, her foolish reason humiliated her, and she could feel heat creeping into her cheeks.
“But you love Chad.”
“I do. I know what this all sounds like. But, I do love your brother.”
Jillian shook her head, her lack of comprehension evident. She held her hands up, feigning surrender. “You don’t have to prove a thing to me, Katie. A blind man could tell you two have got some history. I could tell there must be a pretty wild story as soon as I got a call from Liz about Chad, and yet she isn’t the one here, or the one the hospital called. I do plan on hearing that story someday, by the way.” Her eyes gleamed.
Katie nodded. “Of course you do. And I’ll admit, it’s just as wild as you think it is. Not party wild, but definitely ridiculous wild.”
“You are unfortunately going to have a harder time proving yourself to our mom and dad. It’s just the way they are.” Jillian was apologetic, and Katie appreciated her sympathy in that regard.
“I don’t have to prove a thing to them,” she replied bluntly, making Chad’s sister raise her eyebrows. “That’s my biggest problem, Jillian. I’ve spent too much time worrying about what other people think, and trying to prove myself worthy to them. I don’t have to make your parents like me, but I will. One way or another, they’ll at least know I love Chad, and that’s what matters to me.”
The corner of Jillian’s mouth quirked upward. “I knew I liked you for a reason.”
***
The dreariness of the day no longer had the ability to dampen her spirits now, and Katie made her way through the parking lot toward her truck without letting the cold wind cause her to grimace. She hated being cold, but compared to Ontario’s winter temperatures, Nashville didn’t know what cold was. That didn’t mean she didn’t find the evening chill disinviting, though, and she pulled her jacket a little tighter. Still, she wasn’t bothered by it the way she normally would be. It didn’t matter, mostly because Chad was awake, and that was the only thing that really mattered.
Katie unlocked the driver’s side door of her truck and pulled the door open. Elaine had just called. Mason had fallen asleep in one of the double beds in their hotel room. Would she mind coming to stay with him while she and Hayden visited with Chad? Of course not, she’d told her. Katie would have her chance to talk with him during visiting hours later tonight. For now, he needed his family, whether he realized it or not.
The way Elaine and Hayden had taken to Mason over the past week or so had been a godsend. They’d kept him company when Katie didn’t think she would be able to keep it together any longer, and they’d shown him more attention and devotion during that span of time than Katie ever could have expected. She also thought that maybe Mason was as good for Hayden and Elaine as they were for him.
She’d just shoved the key into the ignition when she felt her phone vibrating against her side. She pulled it from her jacket pocket, her eyes widening at the sight of Liz’s phone number on her caller display.
“Hello?”
“You sound as surprised to hear from me as I am at calling you.”
“It’s unexpected, I won’t deny it. Everything all right, Liz?”
“I should be asking you that. How’s Chad?”
“He’s awake, actually. Has been for most of the afternoon. Sorry, I should’ve called you.”
Liz let out a long breath. “That’s a relief. I’m so glad to hear it. Have the doctors said anything more?”
Katie leaned her head back against the headrest; thankful she’d at least shut the door of the truck before answering the call. She idly wondered if starting the truck so she could turn the heat on would be construed as rude to Liz. “You know, I actually think Chad has more updated information from the doctors than we do at this point. Jillian warned me that his stubborn side is about to show.”
Liz laughed at that. “She’s not wrong. But listen, that’s not why I called.”
“Okay?” Something in her tone made Katie lift her head, her ears ringing with alertness.
“Jay called me.”
Katie rolled her eyes. “What did he have to say?”
“Katie, he sounded...I don’t know. He sounded desperate, I guess. I’ve never heard him like that before.”
“That’s only because he came here, to the hospital. He tried to take Mason, and he didn’t like it when Mason wanted to stay here with me in case Chad woke up. Chad’s father put a stop to his antics, to be honest.” She pursed her lips. She shouldn’t find it funny, because it wasn’t, but her memory of Hayden telling Jay not to let the door hit him on the way out was one she would cherish for days to come.
“That doesn’t surprise me nearly as much as behavior.”
“He’s just ticked off because I called him on his bluff about going to court for custody. And if we do, he knows he can’t guarantee he’ll win.”
“I don’t know, Katie.”
“Well, what else did he say?” Liz’s anxiousness was contagious. Katie’s pulse had quickened, she realized. She didn’t need something else to have to stress over right now.
“He started off being nice on the phone, the way he always was before.” Liz paused, and Katie wondered if she found it disconcerting to be discussing how nice her ex-boyfriend had always been to her with his ex-fiancée. “He even made a little innuendo about rekindling our...well, you know I’m only telling you this because you asked. Anyway, he ended up saying that he knew I’d talked to you and that I’d said I would testify against him, if it came to that. I let him go on and on for a little bit longer, but when I advised him that I wouldn’t be changing my mind about doing it, he got really upset. He yelled at me, and he’s never done that before. He told me we were making a huge mistake by going up against him like that.”
Katie thought she could hear a faint tremble in Liz’s voice. Jay had gotten under her skin. “And what did you say to that?”
“I told him that making threatening phone calls wasn’t going to help his case at all. He cursed, then hung up.”
“He’s just angry, Liz. It’s all right. But thank you for telling me.”
When Liz finally ended the call, Katie regretted not confiding in her that Jay had been the one behind the article and photograph in the newspaper. Perhaps she wouldn’t have known what she was referring to, if she didn’t read The Tennessean, but Katie doubted it. She wanted so badly for someone else to know what he was capable of, and what kind of mess he’d purposely created to keep her away from Chad.
But what good would it do? Tangling someone else into the situation wouldn’t help; it could only hinder it. In the end, she was glad she’d kept the information to herself.
Katie turned the key in the ignition, letting out a deep breath as the engine roared to life. She reached across and made sure the passenger door was locked, then the driver’s side, just to be safe. She had one more important phone call to make, and then she would go to her son. She let out a huge puff of air, a knot tying in her stomach at the thought of doing what she was about to do. It wasn’t that she didn’t want to, she just hoped it was enough.
It occurred to her that this wasn’t the first time Jay had confided that she was making a big mistake. Katie fought the urge to laugh. Hell, she’d made countless big mistakes in a very short amount of time. They all had.
She just hoped, for Mason’s sake, that this wasn’t the biggest one of all.
Chapter Eight
“So, what did Dr. Vale say?”
Katie’s legs were slung over the side of the armchair in Chad’s hospital room, which was surprisingly comfortable considering how worn out and lumpy it looked. The awful creak it made when it rocked forward didn’t do much for its appeal, either, but it was better than sitting bolt upright in one of the vinyl-covered chairs from the waiting room. The chair had been pulled over
as close to Chad’s bed as possible, which not only prevented it from creaking but also put Katie close enough to be able to hold Chad’s hand carefully while resting her forearm on the bed.
“I don’t want to talk about that, Katie.”
Chad was significantly more alert than he’d been yesterday after first regaining consciousness, but his eyes were still glazed with the effects of the pain medication coursing through his bloodstream. He seemed comfortable enough, and he had a button he could press if he required another dosage of the morphine. Katie had yet to see him press it, though.
“Well, I do,” she argued, running her thumb across his index finger. She memorized the creases and calluses on the underside of his hand, converting to memory the roughness and the heat of his skin under her fingertips. She would never take his touch for granted again.
“I’ll be fine, Katie.”
She also noticed that he said her name every chance he got. It made her wonder if he’d made a similar vow to himself about taking things for granted, too.
“I know you will be. You’re too damn stubborn not to be,” she replied, and the corner of her mouth twitched.
“I love you, too.”
He said it in a joking manner, but the words still affected her deeply. Hearing them only solidified for her how close she’d come to losing him. How far he still had to go. She bit down on the inside of her lip, still tracing small circles on his hand. “Dr. Vale told me about the rehabilitation you’ll need to go through. Well, some of it, but—”
“Rehab, physiotherapy, medications.” The joking quality had disappeared from his voice. He sounded stronger than the previous day, but his throat was still raw from lack of use and his previous intubation, causing a gritty quality to his voice.
Katie spoke cautiously. “All those things will help get you up and walking again, eventually without the use of gait aids. You can do this, Chad.”
“Gait aids. Jesus Christ.” He turned his head away from her. Kati could tell that, if he could, he would walk away from her right now to avoid the conversation. Instead, training his focus on the muted green wall instead of her face would have to suffice. “Who called my father?” he asked without turning back to her.
“Liz did.”
He scoffed. “She never could leave well enough alone.”
Snippets of the things Jillian had revealed surfaced in Katie’s mind. Liz saved him when we couldn’t. “I was the one who asked Liz to do it. If you want to blame someone for that, blame me.”
Chad brought his gaze back around to stare at her. Even through his bruises and swollen eyelids, she could see the incredulousness in his expression. He was shocked that she was outright defending Liz.
That made two of them.
“I told her to. The doctors called me first, and you didn’t have anyone designated as an emergency contact.”
Chad was obviously mulling something around in his medication-fogged brain. “How did they know to call you?”
Like rapid fire, Katie felt her cheeks heat up. She could still see the heart and words he’d drawn by her name on the scrap of paper he’d carried in his wallet for weeks. “When the ambulance brought you in, you still had my phone number in your wallet.” She didn’t elaborate, feeling as though revealing that she knew about him writing The One by her name was somehow a breach of his privacy. “They took a chance by calling me, and they probably shouldn’t have, but they thought...I mean, the doctors said...”
Katie opened and closed her mouth, unable to say the words out loud. “It doesn’t matter now,” she stated once she regained her composure. “You’re going to be okay, Chad. We’ll get through this together.”
“Maybe I should be, but I’m not really worried about that.”
Katie’s forehead wrinkled in confusion, her hand instinctively squeezing his a little tighter before she realized and loosened her grip again. “What is it, then? Because there’s something, I can see it. Is it your family?”
“They’re fine, and you’re fine. That’s all that matters to me.” She watched him wince slightly as he struggled to move his head into a more comfortable position on the pillow.
“You just have to worry about yourself right now. If it’s the hospital costs, or your singing career, your album—”
“It’s all of the above, Katie. But I’ll deal with it. I’m not worried about it.”
He could say that, but Katie knew him well enough to know when something was weighing heavily on him. And Lord knows he had enough to perseverate about right now. She shifted in the armchair, lowering her gaze to her free hand in her lap. “It’s okay to think about those things, Chad. But don’t let them overpower what’s important right now, and that’s your recovery. You’ve got to take the time to heal. Everything else, well, you won’t have to deal with it alone. I’m here, doing everything I can for you, so all you have to focus on—”
“What did you do?” Chad asked suddenly. His eyes, though glassy, were intently set on her.
Katie hesitated, and she knew he picked up on it. “What makes you think I did something?”
“It’s the way you said it. And it’s written on your face.” He paused and swallowed hard. It crossed Katie’s mind to suggest he press the button for more pain medication, but she thought better of it. “I’m going to ask you again,” he said slowly. “What did you do?”
“I helped you the only way I could.”
Chad stared back at her blankly. “And what exactly does that mean?”
She raised her head from the backrest on the chair and turned, checking to make sure no one was near the entrance to the room, where she’d left the door ajar about an inch or two. When she turned back to face him, Katie felt oddly like she was about to confess a deep, dark sin.
“I took a mortgage out on the farm,” she stated simply. Her eyes never wavered from his, but her stomach constricted violently at her own admission. Katie had been fearful about calling the bank and applying for the loan to begin with. But admitting it to Chad? Somehow, that was more difficult than the transaction itself.
Chad was silent for a long time. When Katie was sure he wasn’t even going to respond, she watched as his lips parted. He licked his lips to moisten them. “Katie, why would you do such a thing?”
“You have enough to focus on without the stress of medical bills.”
“You paid my—” His eyes were wide. “That farm was your father’s, Katie. You can’t—”
“If my father had met you, Chad, he would have done the same thing.” Her eyes glistened slightly at the thought of her beloved father. A pang of loneliness cut through her. God, she missed him. “So, in essence, I did it for him, too.”
A sigh crossed Chad’s lips, and he swallowed. “You can’t just—”
“Chad, I already did. The money was wired here yesterday evening, and I dealt with everything this morning. From there, like I said, we’ll figure out. Together.”
Chad’s jaw was clenched, and he looked around the room in defeat. “I never wanted you to have to do something like that with the farm. Not for me.”
Katie shrugged, giving him an encouraging grin. “To be honest, I wasn’t really sure what I was going to do with it, anyway. I personally can’t think of a better way to use it.”
Chad didn’t respond.
She’d known he wouldn’t be thrilled about her paying his medical bills. She was also well aware the mortgage on the farm would need to be paid off, but at least they could pay it in increments over time, which helped bide Chad the time he needed to heal and progress through rehabilitation appropriately. For right now, that was all she wanted for him, to have one less thing to worry about. Others things remained to be dealt with, though.
“You need to hear your father out,” she said quietly.
Chad’s hand was still entwined with hers, and she felt it twitch against her own. Just like that, the veil of defenses had risen again. “That’s another thing you don’t need to be worrying about. You don’t underst
and, Katie.”
“But maybe you don’t understand,” she continued, fortified by Chad’s reluctant acceptance of her monetary aid. “He loves you, Chad.”
“He’s got a funny way of showing it,” he snapped.
“There are a lot of people who could say the same thing about me.”
Chad’s eyes narrowed as much as they could, considering his facial swelling. “Don’t say that. It’s different, you and I. They don’t know our story, or what we’ve been through.”
“That’s my point, exactly. Maybe we don’t always have the whole story. If he talks to you, I want you to listen to him.”
Chad stared at her, his jaw clenching again, and she knew he was choosing his fighting argument. “I can’t—”
“You can have your father back, Chad.” Katie set her gaze on him, steady. “I can’t.”
Chad promptly pressed his lips together again, wisely choosing to respond with only a weak squeeze of his hand.
Perhaps it hadn’t been quite a fair statement to make, but Katie had at least achieved what she hoped to.
She’d given him something to think about.
Chapter Nine
Over the next week, two things happened, and both of them allowed for degrees of comfort, one physical and the other emotional.
Perhaps it was purely out of respect, or maybe because of Katie’s pep talk earlier the previous week, but Chad, albeit reluctantly, insisted that his parents and sister stay in his apartment instead of paying for a hotel room.
“You and Mason are more than welcome there, too.” His offer to Katie had proven much more tender and soft-spoken than when he’d offered his apartment to his parents. In actual fact, it was Jillian he’d spoken to, letting her be the one to advise his parents of his offer. Thankfully, they agreed, but Hayden had shown just as much reluctance in accepting the invitation as Chad has shown in offering it.
The other thing that occurred was Dr. Vale’s decision to transfer Chad out of the Intensive Care Unit.
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