There wasn’t a sign of Limpy in the waiting room. Perhaps they had taken him back to an examination room already. He did seem a bit crotchety, not that she really knew the man. Maybe he was just being grumpy because he was in pain. How many times had she or Monica read the story of the lion with a thorn in his paw to Eric? Hopefully when Limpy felt better, his mood would improve and he wouldn’t be so grumpy. She walked back into the corridor and stood, wondering what she should do next.
“Can I help you?”
“Who, me?” Abbey spun around toward the reception desk and pointed at her chest.
The receptionist nodded.
“Well… I was wondering where Mr. Harrington was.” Abbey smoothed her hands over her skirt before folding them in front of her.
The receptionist looked down at some paperwork. “They just wheeled a Harrington back to one of the examination rooms. Are you family?”
“Um… not exactly. I’m here to give him a ride home.” Abbey felt her cheeks grow warm. Why did she say home? Well, she’d give him a ride home if he wanted one. Preferably she’d just dump him—well, she didn’t mean dump. She’d let him off at his car and be done with him. Their insurance companies could take it from there.
“Why don’t you have a seat in the waiting room.” The receptionist pointed towards the area Abbey had just come from. “Would you like me to let Mr. Harrington know you’re here?”
“No! That will be all right. Thanks.” Abbey pulled her purse strap further up on her shoulder and hastily made her way back to the waiting room.
Vending machines and pay phones occupied one corner of the waiting room. Abbey thought about calling Monica and letting her know what happened, but decided it wouldn’t make any difference if she told her now or waited until later and opted for later.
Vociferous laughter drew Abbey’s attention. Half a dozen leather clad men, some of which had hair longer than hers, were commandeering one section of the waiting room. Several of them looked like they might be waiting to be seen. The one laughing loudly, assuming a spread-eagle stance, hand clenched, bellowed, “Did you see the way he went flying through that window?”
Laughter erupted among the group.
Abbey looked around at all the available seats and decided to sit as far away as possible from the crowd. An older woman sat on the far side of the room. The woman wasn’t as little as Abbey first thought, probably because she was hunched over a book. When one of the men noticed Abbey and whistled, it took all of five strides to land herself in an empty seat next to the grandmotherly-looking woman.
“Hello.” Abbey tried to smile.
The woman glanced at her, then the group of men and back at Abbey, and patted her hand, offering a welcoming smile. “Hello. Don’t let them bother you, dear.”
Abbey noticed a Bible in her lap and heaved a sigh. “You’re a Christian, too? That’s great.”
“Yes.” She smiled at Abbey and extended a hand that Abbey readily shook. “My name’s Doris, what’s yours?”
“Abbey.”
“Are you waiting for somebody, dear?”
“Well, not exactly.” At Doris’ look of confusion, Abbey went on, “It’s kind of a long story. I had an accident.”
“Oh, my dear, are you all right?”
Abbey’s heart melted at the older woman’s concern. “Yes, I’m fine. But I hit this guy…”
Doris gasped.
Abbey patted Doris’ hand. “He’s okay. Well, he was okay.”
“I don’t understand, dear. What do you mean was?”
Inhaling a deep breath, Abbey continued, “I was so excited he wasn’t hurt that I went to hug him and he backed up and fell down the side of the embankment.”
“Oh,” was all Doris said.
“The guy probably thinks I’m a raving lunatic. He wouldn’t even let me help him up after he fell.”
Doris chuckled.
“What’s so funny?” Why was this woman laughing? She couldn’t have been there to see the whole fiasco. Although, when Abbey thought about it—it did seem a little funny now that it was over. Somehow, she doubted Limpy would agree.
“That sounds like Bruce,” Doris said, still chuckling to herself.
“Bruce?” Maybe she should ask Doris why she was here.
“Yes, Bruce Harrington. He wouldn’t happen to be the man you ‘rear-ended’ today, would he?” Doris asked.
“It might be.”
Doris’s face sobered.
“Well, the officer said his name was Harrington. I didn’t know what his first name was,” Abbey admitted, shrugging. “Do you know him?”
“Oh, yes. I work for Bruce.”
“You do?” Abbey squeaked, feeling her face grow warm.
“He’s a sweet boy, takes a bit to warm up to though. Been a bit too serious since his father died.”
“His father died?” Abbey blinked away tears that threatened to come. Having lost her own father to cancer, she could understand what pain it must have caused Bruce. Every year at Father’s Day, Abbey found herself tearing up at the mention of dad or father, even if it wasn’t a reference to hers.
“It’s been awhile, dear. Nearly eight years ago.” Doris shrugged. “Bruce seemed to change after that—not as happy-go-lucky as he used to be. It’s a shame. He was such a happy boy.”
“Sounds like you’ve known him for some time.”
“Yes, I used to work for his parents and stayed on with his mother after his father died. Then she remarried and moved to Illinois. Now I clean on Tuesdays and Thursdays for Bruce and fix him dinner. He’s not home long enough to make a mess. It doesn’t give me much to do.”
A woman in low-cut, faded jeans and a T-shirt came into the room, waltzed over to a tall slim man with a beard and shoved him. “What the heck do you think you were doing—throwing Jerry out of the window?”
“Hey, we were drunk. It was an accident,” the man countered in defense, waved his hand in dismissal and said, “Aw, forget it.” Then strode out of the waiting room.
Abbey tried to ignore their conversation. Even if it was a private conversation, they were voicing it loud enough for everyone to hear—whether or not they wanted to.
“Looks like they were partying kind of early,” Abbey commented to Doris.
“No, I believe it carried over from last night. It broke out into a friendly fight this morning. From what I understand, they’ve been waiting for their friend to get out of surgery.”
“I hope he’s okay.” Abbey said a silent prayer that he would be and added on one for his salvation. In case he wasn’t a Christian, it never hurt to pray.
“There’s Bruce,” Doris announced cheerfully and stood, walking over to greet him. He was in a wheelchair.
Abbey gulped and followed behind Doris—as far behind her as she could.
“There’s someone here to see you.” Doris turned to look for her.
Bruce's expression quickly changed from a faint smile to an outright glare. “You! What in tar nation are you doing here?”
“Figures,” one of the men with the group in the corner proclaimed in a loud voice, “she’s married.”
It distracted Abbey only a moment, she turned back around to see the backside of the nurse wheeling Bruce out of the waiting area and into the open foyer. She hurried to catch up with them. Doris was already alongside him, chattering in a low voice while giving him a stern look. If one didn’t know better, they would have thought she was his mother.
When Abbey approached them, Bruce looked up and glared at her. “You were going to tell me what you were doing here?”
“I was? Oh, yeah, I was,” Abbey stammered. “I came to apologize for what happened. It’s been a really horrible day.”
“You can say that again,” he muttered.
Abbey ignored his snide comment. “I didn’t mean to run into you.”
“With your car?”
“No. Yes. I mean, you’ve got me all flustered.” Abbey planted her hands firmly on her hips.
/>
“I doubt that it takes much to get you that way.”
“Bruce,” Doris admonished with a light rap to his upper arm.
Bruce frowned at Doris, then turned back to meet her gaze. “I’m sorry. You were saying?”
“I was trying to tell you I’m sorry you got hurt. If I could change everything that happened I would.” Tears welled up in Abbey’s eyes, her throat constricted.
“Abbey even drove all the way down here to see if you needed a ride home,” Doris said in her defense.
Bruce’s right leg was wrapped in bandages to his knee. Abbey wanted to cry. It bothered her that he was hurt, because she was the one who had caused him this pain. If only she hadn’t tried to drive earlier when she’d been emotional about Gary manipulating her out of her promotion and job.
“Don’t cry. I hate it when women cry.” Bruce asked Doris to bring her car around to pick him up and instructed the nurse to wheel him outside to wait.
Abbey followed alongside him, wiping away droplets of moisture with her forefinger. “Will you forgive me?”
“Yes,” was all he said.
Abbey stood in silence a moment. “Is there anything I can do to make it up to you? Maybe pick up your car for you or something?”
Bruce laughed. “I could use an assistant and a chauffeur. Not that you could help.”
“I might be able to. I’ve worked in an office for years and I can definitely drive.”
Bruce’s arched eyebrow was all she needed to know that he doubted her ability. After this morning, she couldn’t blame him for having reservations.
“I was a teenager then, my first year of driving.” Abbey crossed her heart. “Honest.”
“I’ll have to take your word for it.”
Abbey smiled.
“Good. I was serious about driving you around.” Pointing to his bandaged leg, she continued, “It honestly doesn’t look like you’ll be able to drive yourself for awhile. And maybe I can help you with the other part, too.”
Abbey’s mind was already working overtime. She could apply for unemployment, if need be, and go job hunting in between driving Bruce from place to place. Chances were, he would only need a ride to and from work. How hard could that be? He might even give her a name of someone she might contact about a job. Referrals went a lot further than cold contacts.
“Don’t you already have a job? Or are you planning to take an extended vacation to be at my beck and call?”
Abbey laughed. How many women wouldn’t take a lifetime off to be at his beck and call? He was kind of handsome with that lopsided grin he was giving her—at least she thought it was a lopsided grin. Maybe he was smirking, again.
“I’ve got some time off. Actually, I’m kind of between jobs. Maybe you’ll be so impressed with me, you’ll beg me to come to work for you.” Abbey chuckled.
“My assistant will be back from maternity leave in a few weeks.”
There he went raising his left eyebrow again. Made him look cynical and more intellectual.
“Why are you looking at me like that?”
Abbey bit back a response as Doris pulled up, got out of the car and came around to their side. Abbey opened the back door of the passenger’s side for him. “You have a habit of arching your left eyebrow.”
"What are you talking about?" Bruce used his crutches to balance himself as he stood.
“You’re doing it again,” Abbey said in a sing-song voice.
Bruce stopped and stared at her, then reached for his wallet, extracted a business card, and handed it to her, all the while keeping his balance with the crutches. “Call me later and we’ll discuss the details of tomorrow’s itinerary.”
Doris smiled and gave her a hug. “We best get you home,” she said, closing the door for Bruce. “Good luck, Abbey. Things have a way of working out.”
Abbey waved as she watched them leave the hospital parking lot.
“So, did you and your boyfriend make up?”
Abbey turned around. The tall, thin man from the waiting room stood outside smoking. He walked closer and she waved a hand in front of her face to keep from inhaling the smoke. “Excuse me?”
She assumed he sensed her dislike of smoke because he flicked his cigarette onto the parking lot. “I asked if you and your boyfriend made up.”
“He’s not my boyfriend,” Abbey said pointing over her shoulder in the direction Bruce and Doris had just driven. “Actually, we ran into each other today. Or should I say, I ran into him… with my car.”
“Man, you’re kidding? You hit him?”
Abbey nodded, feeling her face grow warm at the admission.
“And he forgave you?”
“Yes.” Abbey sighed, thankfully he had.
“I wish my friend would forgive me. His girlfriend is ticked, too.” He looked remorseful, his face etched with pain. "I’m the one who threw him out the window. At the time I was angry. Can’t even remember why now, but it seemed important at the time.”
Tattoos covered the arms of the man standing before her, while he looked rough and scary he seemed sincere. Good sense told her she should be afraid, standing here talking to him, instead she felt peace.
“Have you asked your friend to forgive you?”
“No, he’s still in recovery. They won’t let any of us see him.” He put his hands in his pockets and glanced back towards the Emergency Room doors.
Abbey’s heart melted, sharing in his pain. “Do you mind if I pray for your friend?”
The man looked back at her and shook his head.
“What’s his name?”
“Jerry. We been friends longer than I can remember.”
“Can I hold your hands while I pray for both of you?”
Abbey readily accepted the hands he extended, then bowed her head and closed her eyes. “Dear Heavenly Father, please help Jerry to recover quickly and help him to forgive his friend for acting in anger. Help to restore their relationship and help them to forgive each other as you so readily forgive us when we come to you and ask for forgiveness. Amen.”
When Abbey let go of his hands and looked up, he was staring at her, his eyes were misty.
“Just share your heart with your friend and ask him to forgive you. That’s all you can do. The rest is up to him.”
“Thank you. I ain’t ever had anybody pray for me before.”
Abbey smiled. “I’m glad I got the opportunity to.”
He nodded and headed back inside the hospital.
Sighing, Abbey walked to her car. “Now if my friend will forgive me and nothing else happens, I can wake up and face tomorrow. It’s got to be better than today!”
Chapter Three
Remembering to pick up milk, Abbey stopped at the grocery store on her way home. A handmade ‘Help Wanted: Third Shift’ sign caught her attention as the electronic door opened. At least someone was hiring.
What about Bruce? What was it he said about his assistant? Maybe she could convince him to hire her. Abbey’s hopes plummeted when she remembered—maternity leave. That meant his assistant would be coming back, otherwise he would have said something like, “She quit to have a baby.” Maternity meant it was only a matter of time until ‘mommy’ returned to work.
Red, luscious strawberries caught her attention as she walked through the produce aisle. Abbey grabbed a couple pints of large berries, thankful they were on sale. She headed for the dairy section. It was hard to take her mind off work, or the lack of it. Their meager incomes afforded them with the necessities of life, leaving neither of them any savings worth mentioning. Abbey had done all she could to help her childhood friend raise her son. Eric was like family to her and she hadn’t minded the sacrifices made to get by. They counted on Abbey and she wasn’t about to let them down. One way or another, she would find a job.
Abbey put her milk and strawberries on the conveyer belt, then retrieved money from her wallet to pay for her purchases.
“Hello, how are you today?” The cashier greeted her readi
ly with a smile.
“Fine.” Things weren’t fine. But what do you tell a total stranger? Just wonderful considering I quit or got fired, depending on how you looked at it or whose version of the story you listened to. Then of course, there was the accident. But, hey, I’m having a wonderful day, and you?
Abbey didn’t say any of those things, although she wanted to. Sometimes dumping on others helped to get the rigmarole off one’s chest. “I see you’re hiring?”
“Yeah, want a job?” The checker’s eyes lit up and she laughed. “They’ve tried to get a couple of us to switch to third shift, but there’s no way. I can’t afford to pay a babysitter so I can work, then pay them more just so I can get some sleep, too.”
“You’ve got little ones at home?”
She nodded. “My youngest is three. The other two are in school all day.”
Abbey understood why she didn’t want to work nights, remembering how short Eric’s naps were when he was that young. Monica had worked third shift until he started school. It was rough, but between the two of them Eric had never gone to a babysitter.
“Do you know if it’s full time or part time?” There was no way she could work full time at night and look for a job, plus drive Bruce around during the day. If she could work part time, at least she would have some money coming in until she found another job. Something was always better than nothing.
“I think they’re hiring both.” The cashier turned around to the service desk. “Hey, Ruby, we hiring full or part time nights?”
“Both,” a short, stocky redhead answered.
As if she might not have heard, the cashier turned back around towards Abbey. “Both. You can always fill out an application.”
Abbey nodded.
“Just go on over to Ruby and she’ll take care of you.”
“Thanks.”
Accidental Meeting Page 2