The Big 5-OH!

by Sandra D. Bricker

  “It's probably like riding a bike,” Hallie had reassured her.

  Thinking of her most recent efforts with a bicycle, Liv tossed her head into her hands and laughed out loud, thinking that she sounded a little like a seal.

  “What's so funny?”

  Her neck snapped slightly as she raised her head to find Jared standing in the open doorway, a small white bakery box in his hands.

  “Not much,” she replied.

  “Just the hysterical laughter of a birthday girl?”

  “Something like that. Come on in.”

  Jared crossed the living room and sat beside her on the sofa. He set the box on the coffee table and lifted the lid. Fragrant espresso and chocolate wafted from inside, and Liv peeked over the side to see a small birthday cake flanked with two tiny palm trees sculpted out of dark chocolate.

  “Oh, Jared.”

  “Happy Birthday,” he offered. “I thought we’d put it in your fridge and then have some together tonight.”

  “That's very thoughtful.”

  “So are you up for a day of snorkeling?”

  Liv didn’t look into Jared's eyes as she nodded, and he raised his hand with caution and tipped her face toward him.

  “What is it?”

  “I have to go home.”

  “When?”

  “Tomorrow.”

  Jared didn’t come close to disguising his disappointment. “I thought you were here until Tuesday.”

  “That call was about my job,” she replied, opening her palm to reveal her cell phone. “I have to be back at work on Monday, or they won’t hold my job for me.”

  It seemed as if several minutes passed before Jared uttered, “Oh.”

  “Josie won’t be back until Tuesday, though. Do you think Rand would take care of Boofer in the meantime?”

  “Between the two of us, Boofer will be just fine.”

  “Thank you.”

  “You really want to go back?”

  “I’m working on wanting to,” she said with a grin. “You know, I used to love my job so much. I just feel like such a different person now. It's been a little difficult to start thinking about going back to my old life.”

  “Which is why you came to Florida.”

  “Right. To get myself ready.”

  “And?”

  Liv chuckled. “I’m not ready.”

  “Then I don’t think you should,” he said. It was disguised as a joke, but there was no mistaking the undertone of hope.

  “Oh, Jared,” she said with a sigh, and then she leaned into him and let him slide his arm around her shoulder. Liv wondered how ten short days could have cradled a nest of friendship that felt so natural and comforting. “I have to go back. I need my job. All those months of cancer really took a toll on my financial life. And I only have a few more years before I’m completely vested for retirement.”

  “Hmp.” She looked up at him with curiosity. “Then today is our last day together.”

  Thud! There went her heart again.

  “We’ll make it a day to remember. We’ll go snorkeling, barbecue some steaks, and make some memories out on the water. What do you say?”

  Liv nodded with determination.

  “Sound like a plan?” he asked her.

  “It's a plan,” she agreed.

  But that was the problem with making a plan, Liv remembered. It was like raising a white flag to everything on earth that could fall in the way.

  14

  Prudence dropped her head, and one of her ears fell across her eye. “It's a scary thing,” she told Horatio. “Change.”

  “But there are two very different kinds of change,” her friend explained. “Change in your circumstances is always a little scary. But change from within … that's a blessing to behold.”

  All right, Georgia. Tell him I’ll meet the ambulance at the hospital.”

  Liv looked down at herself. Hallie's bright red bathing suit mocked her from beneath the white eyelet peasant-style coverlet and red Capri pants with white pearl buttons at the cuffs.

  “We’re going to the hospital?” she asked with a wince. “I’m not exactly dressed for anything except a drive to the Gulf.”

  “I’m sorry,” Jared replied, squealing into a U-turn. “It's Clayton. He's having chest pains and shortness of breath. They’re taking him to Fort Myers.”

  “Oh, no.”

  “I’m sorry to derail our plans, Liv. Hopefully, we’ll still get to the marina later this afternoon.”

  “No,” she objected. “Don’t worry about that. Please.”

  Her white flip-flops smacked out a goofy little rhythm as she tried to keep up with Jared, up the sidewalk and down the long linoleum hallway of the hospital. In the elevator, she raked her hair with all ten fingers, and then she scurried out behind Jared.

  Georgia's scowling face was the first thing that drew Liv's attention as she and Jared arrived at the desk. Georgia looked as if she’d just bitten into a big, bold, sour lemon and didn’t mind letting on how she felt about it.

  “He's in Exam Room 3,” Georgia explained as she interlocked her arm with Jared's and whipped him around and down the hall. “They’re doing an EKG right now. His rhythm is erratic, and his pulse is 122.”

  “Okay,” Jared said, and then he turned around toward Liv as he continued to walk backward. “Have a seat over there. I’ll be back as soon as I know something.”

  Liv nodded, and then he was gone.

  Slipping down into one of the leather chairs in the lobby, Liv caught the eyes of a little girl, reclining across her mother's lap while Mom smoothed her dark brown hair in long, gentle strokes. Liv smiled first, and the girl returned the smile with a tired, honey-coated effort.

  “I got a fever,” the little girl stated, and it took Liv a moment to realize the comment was directed at her.

  “You do?” she returned. “I’m sorry to hear that.”

  The girl's mom grinned at Liv in a knowing way, and then Liv cocked her head and leaned toward the little girl.

  “You just rest. They’ll see you very soon.”

  “My name's Sarah,” she said. “I’m seven.”

  “Hi, Sarah. I’m Liv.” She decided to skip the age update.

  “That's a funny name.”

  “It's short for Olivia.”

  “Oh. I don’t have a short-for.”

  “You don’t need one. Sarah is a beautiful name.”

  “I was named after a lady in the Bible. She wanted a baby real bad, but she never could have one. Then when she was really, really old, God said she could have one, and she laughed at Him.”

  “I remember that story,” Liv replied. “I think I might have laughed too.”

  “Yeah, but God did it anyway. He's like that.”

  Liv exchanged a glance with the girl's mother, and then she leaned her chin on the palm of her hand and said, “Sarah, you’re a very sweet little girl.”

  “I’m much sweeter when I’m not 102.”

  “Is that your temperature?”

  “Yep. Anything over 101, we have to come to the hospital.”

  “Do you get fevers a lot?”

  “Yeah, I do. My immunes don’t work so good.”

  Sarah's mom leaned down and kissed her daughter's temple. “We normally go to the pediatric clinic, but the wait was so long there this morning that I decided to come here. I’m not sure that was the best move because we’ve been waiting for over two hours.”

  “Can I get her something? Maybe some juice?”

  “Really? That would be so great. I didn’t bring anything.”

  “Absolutely.”

  A small cubbyhole around the corner held a limited selection in vending machines, so Liv took the elevator to the second floor and sought out the cafeteria for something more.

  Little Sarah's flushed face and deep brown eyes preyed upon her mind as she walked the buffet line and chose boxes of orange, apple, and cranberry juice. She’d been working the operating room for so long tha
t Liv seldom had the opportunity to deal directly with patients, much less children. Something about meeting Sarah made her wonder if a move from the O.R. to the pediatrics clinic in her hospital might be something to think about.

  In the elevator Liv leaned back against the padded tapestry wall and smiled. Suddenly, that one little glimmer of hope about making a change that might bring her life into focus again was starting something within her—a fire. And she could almost feel the warmth from the spark the moment had created. A simple consideration had been stoked into a fullblown revelation in just a few minutes, and Liv felt certain it was the leading of God. It had been such a long time since she’d experienced answered prayer, but she still could recognize it right away.

  Leaving Jared behind was going to be such a difficult thing for her, but having a plan—something hopeful to go back to—at least took the sting out of it. For the time being, anyway.

  “I didn’t know what you’d like,” Liv said as she crouched before Sarah. “Orange, cranberry, or apple?”

  “Apple, please.”

  Liv poked the straw through the top of the box and slipped the plastic off the straw. “Sip slowly, okay?”

  “All right.”

  “What do you say?” Sarah's mom asked her daughter.

  “Thank you, Liv.”

  “You’re very welcome, Sarah.” Liv ran her hand over Sarah's hair, and then she kissed her finger and pressed it against the girl's hot cheek. “You feel better, okay?”

  When Liv got to her feet again and turned around, Georgia was leaning against the desk watching her. Liv took a moment to take a deep breath and press her coverlet with the palms of both hands before walking toward her.

  “Too bad Jared missed that,” Georgia said with a whisper. “I’m assuming that was the plan?”

  “You know what they say about assuming, don’t you, Georgia?” The quip had just crackled out of her, and Liv was both appalled and amused at her uncharacteristic bravado. “Now if you’ll excuse me, I have a call to make.”

  “Well, Clayton has asked for you, if you can spare him the time.”

  “Where is he?”

  “Exam Room 3,” she replied, pointing the way down the hall.

  Liv made her third or fourth wish about being dressed differently as she slap-slap-slapped down the hallway in her flip-flops. But all thoughts of silly clothing and rubber shoes disintegrated when she turned the corner and saw Clayton. His suntanned face was ashen, his eyes clamped shut, and he was tethered to several machines with tubes and sensors.

  Jared looked up from beside Clayton's bed, and their gazes locked for a long and lingering few seconds.

  “How is he?” she finally asked, and Jared clenched his square jaw.

  “Holding his own for the moment.”

  “Was it a heart attack?”

  “Yes. I’ve called in a specialist, and we’re going to prep him for surgery.”

  “I’m in the room, you know,” Clayton said, his eyes still pressed shut.

  Liv chuckled and rubbed her hand over his arm.

  “How are you feeling, Clayton?”

  “How do you think I feel?” he asked, snapping open his eyes. “Then I hear you’re here and that you didn’t even come to see me.”

  “They were sort of busy saving your life,” Liv replied with a smile. “I thought I’d hold onto my greetings until after that was taken care of.”

  The corner of Clayton's mouth quivered before he gave in to it and let out a chunky laugh that ended abruptly and turned into a cough.

  “Is there anything I can get you?” Liv asked him, and Clayton shook his head.

  “Nothing I’d ask ya for in mixed company,” he replied, eyeing Jared with a serious glare.

  “Well, I’ll be right down the hall if you think of anything.”

  “You gotta go so soon? I thought you might distract me from this surgery talk.”

  “You just do whatever Jared tells you to do. And I won’t go far.”

  Just as she started to pull away her hand, Clayton reached out and grabbed it. When she looked into his eyes, he winked at her and squeezed her hand before letting it go.

  “Glad you’re here,” he said in a raspy whisper.

  “You feel better, will you?”

  “Workin’ on that.”

  Jared gave her a nod before she stepped out into the hallway. “I’ll be out in a little while.”

  Instead of heading for the lobby, Liv turned in the opposite direction while digging in her bag for her cell phone. She took a deep breath as she dialed, and then released it slowly and leaned back against the wall while she waited for an answer.

  “Becky. It's Olivia Wallace.”

  “Olivia! I’d begun to think you’d disappeared from the planet.”

  “I know, I’m sorry. I’ve been on a little vacation in Florida. In fact, I’m still here.”

  “I see. That poses a problem because I was really hoping you would come back to work on Monday. When do you return from Florida?”

  “Becky, I’ve been thinking about it, and I’m going to see if I can change my plane reservation to come back this weekend. I’ll be back at work on Monday.”

  “You will?”

  “Yes. I appreciate your patience with me.”

  “I’ll let Valerie know you’ll be back, Olivia. I think she’ll be very happy.”

  “Becky, can you tell me something?” Liv began, and then she paused to pull the words together in her head. “You mentioned staffing problems in one of your messages, and I was wondering if you could tell me … how widespread are the shortages?”

  “Oh, we’re down an employee or two in virtually every department at the moment, Olivia.”

  “What about the pediatric clinic? Are you short there too?”

  “Let me check,” Becky said, and Liv could hear the turning of pages through her cell phone. “Yes, we’re down two nurses and one doctor.”

  “Do you think there would be any chance that I could transfer to the clinic?”

  “Well … I don’t know. I’d have to look into that.”

  “I’ll be back on Monday morning at 7 a.m. Maybe I could come and sit down with you on my lunch break, and we could have a chat about what I’d need to do to make that happen?”

  “I’m writing you on my calendar right now.”

  “Thank you so much.”

  A little surge of excitement coursed through her as Liv made her way back toward the lobby. It was a relief to find that Sarah and her mom were no longer seated there, but she stopped at the desk just to make sure.

  “The little girl and her mother,” she said to the nurse behind the desk. “Are they being seen?”

  “About ten minutes ago, yes.”

  “Great. Thank you very much.”

  Liv dialed her phone and folded into one of the leather chairs in the lobby.

  “Yes, I have a flight from Fort Myers to Cincinnati on Tuesday. But I need to change that to tomorrow. Can you help me with that?”

  “I’m so sorry, Liv. I just can’t leave him right now.”

  “I understand, I really do,” Liv said, and then she moved in closer to Jared. On a whisper, she added, “But please don’t make me go with Georgia. I can call a taxi.”

  “Don’t be ridiculous,” he replied. “She lives five miles from our neighborhood.”

  “You don’t understand, Jared. She hates me.”

  “Hates you! She doesn’t hate you.”

  “Are you really that dense?” she asked, wringing her hands.

  “Olivia. It's a ride home. That's all.”

  Liv imagined a dozen different terrors in the space of those next ten seconds.

  Georgia laughed maniacally as she sped the wrong way down a one-way street at more than a hundred miles per hour. Sprouting horns through her platinum blonde hair, she clenched the steering wheel and turned toward Liv with narrowed, glowing red eyes.

  “Did you really think I was going to let you take him from me? Did you?
DID YOU??”

  “Please, Jared. I’d much rather call a taxi.”

  “A taxi!” Georgia exclaimed, as she walked over to them. “Don’t be silly.” Turning to Jared, she smiled like the cat thanking her host for the luscious canary appetizer. “I’ll see her safely home. Are you ready, Olivia?”

  Liv's heart bounced against her chest, and she turned to Jared, wide-eyed and hopeful that he would read the horror there.

  Jared stepped forward, put a hand on each of her shoulders, and looked down into her eyes. “I can’t tell you how sorry I am about this. But I just can’t leave him until Dr. Morgan arrives to consult. I’m guessing Clayton will need surgery sooner rather than later.”

  Liv sighed. “I understand.”

  “Don’t be that way,” he replied with a grin. “Don’t understand. It's your birthday, and all of our plans—”

  “Jared, as you know, I’ve had far worse things happen to me on my birthday than spending it alone with a flatulent dog.”

  He laughed out loud and pulled her into an embrace. Liv didn’t care if Georgia was watching—and oh, she was watching all right! Liv slipped her arms around Jared's neck and returned the hug.

  “Call me when you’re through?” she murmured into his ear. “No matter when it is. Okay?”

  “I promise. If you’ll do something for me.”

  Liv stepped back and looked at him. “All right. What?”

  “Put the candles on that cake and make a wish before the day ends.”

  “Oh, I’d rather wait.”

  “It has to be on your birthday, Liv. Promise.”

  “I promise.”

  “And I’ll still try and make it there before the day fades completely away.”

  “I hope so,” she said. “My flight home is tomorrow at noon.”

  “Ah,” he groaned. “Really?”

  “I had to.”

  “Liv, I’m so sorry.”

  “Ready then?” Georgia asked her, and Liv nodded.

  Jared squeezed her elbow, and his hand brushed all the way down her arm and to her fingertips as Liv turned and followed Georgia toward the door. She grieved the sparks of their lost touch as their fingers parted, and she looked back only once and only long enough to return Jared's smile.