by L. A. Miller
“Is he on albuterol?” He asked taking Tristan from Bailey.
She stood with him and she and Beckett walked with him as he bypassed the protesting nurse.
“Yes…he takes daily doses of steroids and uses the inhaler as necessary.”
“When was his last attack?” He asked finding an empty bed.
“Uh….a few days ago….we just moved from California….”
“What’s his name?”
“Tristan.”
“Tristan.” He said looking at him. “I’m Dr. Greene…..I’m going to have them get you on a machine to help you breath ok?”
Tristan looked up at him and nodded then looked at Bailey again. She stepped forward taking his hand and Beckett stood behind her with his hands on her shoulders. Dr. Greene looked up at Bailey and she could see the concern in his eyes.
“I’ll be right back.”
She nodded then watched as he walked away giving orders to the nurse’s station then headed back to them.
“I’m late for surgery….the nurses know what needs to be done and the doctor on staff will be here shortly…..I’ll swing by and check on your son when I’m done.”
“Tristan’s my brother.” Bailey said holding her hand out. “Thank you Dr. Greene.”
He took her hand and Beckett noticed the way he seemed to be studying her. He had obviously thought they were a family. He didn’t like the way the doctor was now checking her out.
“Yes Dr. Green thank you.” Beckett said offering his hand as he kept another around Bailey’s waist. “My fiancé and I are very grateful.”
Beckett noticed the look of disappointment in Dr. Greene’s eyes when he said the word fiancé and it caused him to smile.
“The nurses should be bringing you back the paperwork to admit him.” He said as he stepped back to allow a nurse to slide the machine into place. She looked up at the doctor then back at Beckett and Bailey.
“He hasn’t been admitted yet?” She said about to protest.
“I just admitted him.” Dr. Greene announced. “They’ll help finalize the rest of the paperwork.” He said firmly preventing the nurse from any further complaints about procedures. With one more glance at Tristan Dr. Greene turned and left.
Beckett pulled up a chair for Bailey to sit on then he pulled up one alongside of her. They both sat in silence watching the nurse go through all the vital checks while Tristan continued to struggle to breathe. Bailey sensed Beckett’s impatience and while still holding Tristan’s hand she reached over and took his. When she grabbed it he looked up at her startled at first then squeezed it and put his other hand over it. He didn’t relax until he saw the machine hooked up to Tristan and finally he found relief in his struggle to breathe. When the nurse appeared for the paperwork he offered to fill it out but Bailey knew his medical history.
“And what about insurance?” The nurse asked reviewing the paperwork.
“Oh.” Bailey said pulling out his medical card from California. “He should have emergency medical coverage in case we are out of state.”
“If not.” Beckett said handing her his card. “Send the medical bills here….my office will handle it.”
“Beckett.” Bailey began to protest but one look from him silenced her.
“Bailey…in three weeks you become my responsibility…and since Tristan and Alexis are your responsibility then they will be mine too.”
“Beckett….I can’t let you do this.” She argued as the nurse left.
“Sorry but it’s part of the arrangement.” He grinned as he took hold of Tristan’s other hand. “Hey buddy….feeling better?” He asked leaning down and looking into his face. Tristan nodded then closed his eyes exhausted he now slept.
Bailey watched as Beckett pulled his chair over to the opposite side of the bed so he could sit and hold Tristan’s hand. Touched she sat and placed her chin on the mattress watching Tristan finally breathe freely.
“How many times have you done this?” Beckett asked.
“More than I can count.” She said. “The first time….he was 2….I was so scared…..I thought he was choking on something…..we were at Alexis’s school open house and he wanted a cookie. I told him he had to wait because he had been acting funny and I thought he was getting sick…I was afraid he would throw up. I had been talking to Alexis’s teacher when he came up to me and couldn’t breathe…..I thought he snuck a cookie and got it clogged…there was a mother there who was a nurse and she recognized the symptoms…..another parent had an inhaler and she used it on Tristan.”
“But times like these….the inhaler doesn’t work?”
“I don’t know why…..he does his daily steroids each morning….it supposed to strengthen his lungs and help the attacks from getting this bad….I haven’t seen it improve.”
“Do you know what brings them on?”
“If he’s overheated….overtired…..over exited.”
“Like a day of horseback riding and Chucky Cheese.” Beckett said suddenly feeling guilty.
“Beckett…it wasn’t your fault…I kept an eye on him….there were no signs with this one.” She said as she reached across the bed and took his hand. “It’s no one’s fault.”
“Doesn’t make it easier seeing him lying here…so little.”
“I know.” She said looking back at Tristan. “At first…when he was diagnosed they didn’t think he could live a normal life…he was supposed to curtail his activities…..they even suggested I home school him. I refused to accept that so I began to read up on the illness. I put him into swimming first and it seemed to help with his lungs. His coach had grown up with asthma so he helped me recognizing the signs. He even taught Tristan ways to control his own breathing. As he got older he began to let me know when it was coming on. Then last year they just started happening for no reason….we must have been in the emergency room at least once a week.”
“Must have made it harder on you….trying to keep a job and raise Alexis.”
“My work was pretty good about it….my boss Christine loved Tristan….she used to call him her little boyfriend.”
“The job you lost?”
“Yeah…..one night a large party came in…..they were drunk before they even got to our place….Christine wanted to turn them away but one of the men was the owners son so she was forced to seat them in my section….I can deal with drunks….deal with the rude comments and innuendos…..but that group went too far that night….while serving them dinner I had more than one hand slid up my skirt.” She said watching Tristan breath. She didn’t see the way Beckett’s jaw started flexing. “When they ordered more drinks I knew things were going to get ugly fast. I told Christine she needed to call the owner but she was worried about her job. Jackson McCallin, the owners son, he had a way of bullying all the girls and if one ever went to his father to complain they found themselves out of a job. When I arrived with the drinks Jackson took advantage and both of his hands started up my skirt. I decided to cool him off and dumped the tray of drinks in his lap.” She said now looking at Beckett. “It cost me my job but it was worth it …..at the time.”
“Why didn’t you file charges against him?” Beckett asked trying to control his anger.
“It was my word against his buddies. I went to a lawyer and he said I probably had a case but with the money Jackson’s family had they would fight it in court for years.”
“So he got off Scott free?”
“Basically yes….I got a severance pay and was told I could use them for a recommendation but the word was already out….his family had a lot of ties….they made it hard to find a decent job.”
“That’s not right; he should pay for what he did.”
“He will one day, I may not see it but he will one day. I didn’t have time in my life to worry about him or whatever injustice was done to me…..I had kids to raise.”
“So what…you believe in karma?”
“Kind of….there’s a reason things happen to us…it makes us who we are�
��.and it leads us down different paths. If I hadn’t lost my job then I wouldn’t have been in such dire straits and when my grandmother came to the door I would have booted her out”
“So Jackson did me a favor.” He said looking at it in her eyes. “If it wasn’t for him you wouldn’t be marrying me.”
“Exactly.” She smiled.
“Then instead of sending my brothers after him maybe I should send him a thank you note.”
“That won’t be necessary.” She smiled.
The way he was now looking at her made her heart rate increase. Sitting on the opposite side of the bed with one hand holding Tristan’s and the other holding hers she could almost believe in the illusion. She was about to bring up the incident earlier when his phone went off breaking the moment. Releasing her hand he glanced at his phone and frowning answered.
“Hello Macy.” He said standing.
Bailey watched as he left the room closing the glass slider behind him. Though she couldn’t hear the words she could see by his body language he was not enjoying his call. When he looked up to see her watching she quickly looked away. The next time she dared to peek over he was gone and her reality came crashing back. As much as she was attracted to him there would always be Macy in the background. She had to keep reminding herself of that or she would find herself swept up into the fantasy world where she had met the man of her dreams. The Prince Charming she would read to Alexis about every night who would ride into her life, sweeping her off her feet and saving the day. But Bailey knew fairy tales didn’t exist and Beckett belonged to another.
“Sorry.” He said coming back into the room.
“Trouble?” She asked trying to sound as if it really didn’t matter.
“No….Macy is shooting a spread down in Cabo and she got another job in Europe for a few weeks.” He said not really knowing why he was explaining to her Macy’s itinerary.
“She’s lucky.” Bailey said stroking Tristan’s arm. “To be able to travel like that with her job…it must be very exciting.”
Beckett couldn’t help but compare the two women and their life style. Macy’s must seem romantic to Bailey because she never really got a chance to live. Still in looking at the two it was Bailey whose life was so much richer. It was her life that Macy, truth be told, would envy.
“You’ve never traveled?”
“Once when I was little we went to Disneyworld for a week. But most of our vacations were renting cabins up in Mammoth or road trips throughout the South West.” She smiled “My dad would pack us all in a minivan and we would just drive. When we found somewhere we wanted to stay he would find us a campground and we would set up tent for a day, sometimes a few days.”
With his family business Beckett and his brothers had traveled all over the United States. After hooking up with Macy he expanded his travel to Europe and the Caribbean.
“Then I suppose the kids were overwhelmed with the flight from California?” He said looking now at Tristan. Once again he held his hand gently stoking his soft skin.
“Overwhelmed isn’t even close….I spent most of the morning answering all their questions and when they saw Grandmothers jet their jaws dropped.” She smiled. “About as low as mine.” She laughed. “Needless to say they think that’s how people fly. I daresay they will be disappointed if we ever take a trip and we fly commercial.”
“You wouldn’t have too you could always have access to our company jet.”
Bailey looked at him for a moment then back at Tristan. “I doubt we will be doing any traveling in the next year.”
“Bailey you would always have access to the jet even after the divorce.” He said sincerely.
“I don’t think that would be a good idea.” She said now looking at him.
Before she could explain they were interrupted by her grandmother’s arrival. She came rushing into the room with a nurse on her tail protesting.
“Ms. Montgomery….only two are allowed in a room…you will need to wait in the lobby.”
“Young lady…that is my grandson and I have no intention of waiting in the lobby.”
Beckett looked at Bailey wanting to continue the conversation and then at Regina who insisted on staying. He stood offering his chair to Regina.
“Regina….here…I’ll go sit in the lobby.” He offered and she immediately took his seat.
“Beckett, there’s no need for you to wait, I’ll make sure Bailey and Tristan get home.” She said dismissing him.
“I’d rather stay.” He said looking now at Bailey.
The nurse who had witnessed this and feeling sorry for Beckett decided to bend the rules.
“You can stay with your son sir….I’m sure Dr. Greene would make the allowance.” She said and no one corrected her. He watched as she started to bring him a chair and grabbing it from her he placed it next to Bailey. Sitting down he noticed the way Regina studied him and he expected her to protest but she just seemed to smile and looked back at Tristan.
“What has the doctor said?” She asked now looking at Bailey.
“He hasn’t seen Tristan yet….but his breathing is back to normal.” She said watching Tristan. “They should be taking him off the machine soon and then will probably watch him for a while to make sure his breathing remains normal before we can take him home.”
“Why didn’t you come to me?” Regina asked
“There wasn’t time.” Beckett interrupted. “Selene came running down the stairs as I was heading to my room. She told me what was happening and I reacted. I thought it was best to get him here.”
“Bailey….you could have called me.” She reprimanded her.
“I’m sorry.” She said looking at her. “There really wasn’t much you could do.”
“He’s my grandson….I have a right.”
Bailey looked at her and felt her anger start to rise. “Then where have you been the last five years of his life.” She watched Regina react as if she was slapped. “Where were you the first time he couldn’t breathe and I didn’t know what was happening…or all the nights I had to sit with him in the emergency room after pulling a double shift at work….I’m sorry grandmother for not thinking to call you but I have done this alone for his whole life.” She said as the tears formed in her eyes.
She felt Beckett’s hand placed over hers in support and she looked at him then back at her grandmother.
“I’m sorry.” Bailey said. “That was uncalled for.” She apologized.
“No.” Regina said. “You are right…I should have been there…..I made a mistake leaving you alone all these years…..but I’m trying to correct that…you are not alone any longer Bailey.”
The tears now fell and Beckett gripped her hand tighter as he looked at Regina. He knew the effort it had taken for her to admit that and also how graceful Bailey had been in her apology. Both women were trying to bridge the gap but it wouldn’t happen overnight. At that moment the doctor on call came into the room. He frowned seeing the amount of visitors but the nurse who followed quickly informed him.
“Dr. Greene admitted him and gave permission for his parents and grandmother to be here.”
“Dr. Greene doesn’t run the emergency room.” He said frowning.
“No but I still hold seniority.” Dr. Greene said now entering the room. “I’ll take over.” He said taking the chart from the junior doctor. They all watched as the red faced doctor left the room and Dr. Greene turned now to the nurse.
“I’m sorry sir but I didn’t have the heart to turn a family member out.”
“You did the right thing Nurse Stewart.” He smiled then turned to look at Regina. “I’m Dr. Greene….I admitted your grandson.”
“I’m Regina Montgomery.” She replied. “Can you tell me Dr. Greene what caused this?”
He looked at the charts then over at Bailey who seemed to be the only one who understood what was going on.
“No ma’am, we can run tests on him but I’m sure based on his history these have already been run o
n him.” He said looking at Bailey.
“They have…he hasn’t tested positive to anything and we never found out what triggers it except for exhaustion or if he’s physically run down.”
“So your excursion today to Chucky Cheese set this off?” Regina said now looking at Beckett.
Bailey felt Beckett tense and jumped to his defense. “No, it wasn’t Beckett’s fault…Tristan was fine….this attack just came on suddenly.”
Regina looked at Bailey and the way she defended Beckett. She now turned to Dr. Greene who had also watched the exchange. He too came to Beckett’s defense.
“In cases like this there usually isn’t a specific trigger.” He said walking over to Tristan’s side. He removed the mouthpiece from his face and watched Tristan’s breathing as he slept. Satisfied he looked at Bailey. “I would like to keep him overnight just to make sure he doesn’t relapse….I’m going to schedule a specialist to check in on him in the morning and we can determine the best course to proceed.”
“Alright….I’d like to stay with him.” Bailey said. “In case he wakes up.”
“The rooms come with a place for you to sleep….there’s also a recliner if you want to stay with her.” Dr. Greene said addressing Beckett.
“That won’t be necessary…I’ll be staying with her….Beckett you can go ahead and head home.” She said once again dismissing him.
He ignored Regina and looked at Bailey. “I’ll stay with you if you want?”
Bailey was touched by his offer but knew it would only confuse their relationship more if she let him. She also knew her grandmother wanted him to leave for some reason and didn’t want any more confrontations between them.
“Thank you but that won’t be necessary.” She said and saw the disappointment in his face.
“Alright…but if you need me….I want you to call me.” He said grabbing her cell phone. He programmed his phone number into it then handed it back to her.
“I will.” She said as he stood.
Despite Regina’s watchful eye he leaned over and kissed Baileys cheek. Beckett then stood looked at Regina and with a nod he turned and left. Regina raised one eyebrow as she looked at Bailey and Dr. Greene watching this scene also raised his eyebrow.