Westward Holiday

by Linda Bridey

  He took his clothes and a few other things and left their room. As he laid his clothes on a chair in the other spare room, a wave of grief washed over Jake and stole his breath away. He sat down on the bed as his eyes stung with tears. Fighting them back, Jake undressed and got under the covers. Sleep was a long time coming as his traitorous body yearned for his deceitful wife’s touch.

  Rebecca and Jake avoided each other as much as possible. When they had to speak, it was in clipped words tinged with anger. Neither one of them would let the other see how much they were hurting. Jake informed Rebecca that she was still going to play the piano and she agreed provided that he would still pay her.

  To everyone except Sammi, it seemed like everything was fine between them. Sammi could read their body language and it told her that something was very amiss with the couple. Rebecca took to going to their apartment as soon as she was done playing. When Jake went up to bed, her bedroom door was always shut.

  Rebecca cried herself to sleep every night and Jake didn’t sleep much at all. Sometimes he went back down to his office and slept with his feet propped up on his desk. He began to look somewhat haggard and started not feeling well. Sammi commented on how badly he looked. Jake told her it was nothing and not to worry about him, but worry she did.

  When he couldn’t shake the sore throat, sneezing, and coughing that had gripped him, Jake walked over to the clinic to see Marcus. Hannah took one look at Jake and brought him into an examination room right away. Marcus came in and began his assessment.

  Jake started coughing when he tried to take a deep breath for Marcus to listen to his lungs and had trouble stopping. “What is it, Marcus?” Jake asked when the coughing subsided.

  “Influenza, Jake. There’s been a small outbreak in town. It strikes fast and hard. You need to go home and rest. It’s going to get worse before it gets better, I’m afraid. Drink plenty of fluids to avoid getting dehydrated. I’m going to give you a packet of medicine to make into a tea that will help your body fight it,” Marcus said.

  “Marcus, I can’t rest. I’ve got a business to run. Especially after being closed for our honeymoon and now with the holidays coming up there’s too much money to lose,” Jake said. When Marcus said he had the same illness that had robbed his mother of her vitality, he became scared.

  “Jake, by tomorrow you’re gonna be lucky if you can get out of bed, much less run the bar. Let Rebecca and Sammi do it. You really don’t have a choice,” Marcus said.

  “Oh, yes I do. I’ll close it until I’m better and absorb the cost. There’s no way I’m letting her run it,” Jake said. Unbidden tears came to his eyes.

  “Jake, what’s wrong?” Marcus said. “You know I won’t say anything. What’s going on?”

  After a few moments of indecision, Jake poured out his story while Marcus listened with compassion. When Jake was done, he blew his nose and coughed.

  Marcus said, “Jake, talk to her. Don’t let this fester or it’ll drive you apart forever and that’s not the kind of marriage anyone wants to have. I’m sorry you’re hurting right now, but try to work it out.”

  “She’s made her position very clear, Marcus. I don’t think there’s anything to discuss,” Jake said.

  “There’s always something to discuss, Jake,” Marcus said.

  “Thanks for the tea and all, Marcus,” Jake said and abruptly left the examination room. He couldn’t talk about it anymore. Marcus was a good friend, but he just didn’t understand the situation.

  Marcus’ prediction about Jake’s health was spot on. The next morning, Jake’s head pounded and his stomach cramped and he vomited until his ribs were sore. It was make worse by the burning in his lungs and nasal congestion that had set in overnight. He told Rebecca that he wasn’t opening the bar. He dragged himself downstairs to put a sign on the door stating, “Closed until Further Notice”. Then he went back upstairs and crawled under the covers shivering as his fever raged.

  He remembered the tea that Marcus had sent home with him, but he didn’t feel like making it. All that day he alternated between sleeping, vomiting, and shivering. Marcus came at the end of the day to check on him. Jake’s condition greatly concerned him.

  “Are you drinking the tea I gave you?” Marcus asked.

  “No.”

  “Why not?”

  Jake put a hand to his stomach as a cramp hit him. “I’m just not up to making it.”

  “Then have Rebecca make it,” Marcus said.

  Jake said, “No. I don’t want her doing anything for me.”

  Marcus was starting to get angry. “Jake, you’re gonna have to put aside your pride at least until you’re well. You’re already weak and without the medicine your chances of surviving are slimmer. This is serious. You are very sick. Do you understand?”

  Jake glared at Marcus with fever-glazed eyes and said, “Fine,” through clenched teeth.

  “Good. I’ll talk to Rebecca,” Marcus said. “Get some rest.”

  Jake lay back against the pillows. “Sure.”

  Marcus frowned at him and went to find Rebecca. She was in the kitchen.

  “Hey, Rebecca,” Marcus said. He could see the strain of strong emotional upheaval in her face.

  “Hello, Marcus. How is he?” Rebecca asked. Despite their estrangement, Rebecca still loved Jake and was very worried about him.

  “Not good. Look, I know that you guys are having problems and I’m sorry about that, but the fact is that he needs to be looked after closely right now. I’ve given him a tea to make and drink several times every day but he’s not up to it. I’ve brought more of the tea and some chest rub, too. Can you please give both to him?”

  “Yes, of course,” Rebecca said.

  “I talked to him about it and he agreed to let you help him. He needs rest and keep him covered up real well. Use cold compresses to break that fever, too. Give him as many other fluids as he’ll drink. Broth would be ideal. No alcohol. That won’t help him any,” Marcus said.

  Rebecca said, “I understand. I’ll take good care of him. I don’t want to lose him, Marcus. I don’t know what he told you and you don’t need to say. I want you to know that I still love him as much as ever.”

  Marcus gave her a small smile. “I think you should tell him that.”

  “I’ve tried but he won’t listen,” Rebecca said. “He’s shut himself off from me and he won’t let me in.”

  Marcus sighed as he remembered when he and Claire had gone through a similar situation. “Don’t give up hope. Keep trying. I’ll be back to check on him tomorrow.”

  “Thank you, Marcus,” Rebecca said as she took the medicine Marcus handed her.

  As soon as he left, Rebecca set about making the tea. When it was done, she took it in to Jake and woke him. He hauled himself up in bed and gave her a resentful look.

  Rebecca drew on her ability to keep her poise as she said, “I know that you do not want my help, but you need it right now and despite what you may think, I do care. Now drink this, please.”

  Jake said nothing as he took the tea from her and tried to drink it. It took him a while because with every sip he took, his stomach protested and he had to concentrate on keeping it down before he took the next sip. When he was done, Jake was exhausted. He gave the cup back to Rebecca. She rubbed the liniment Marcus had given her over Jake’s chest.

  “Thank you,” he said grudgingly as he lay down again.

  “You’re welcome,” Rebecca said. “I’ll be back to check on you soon.”

  Jake didn’t respond as sleep rose up to claim him again. Rebecca looked at the man she loved with tears in her eyes. She knew that influenza was very dangerous and she didn’t think she could stand it if she lost him for good. Rebecca also hoped that it wouldn’t settle into pneumonia. If that happened, there could be lasting complications and it would lessen Jake’s chances of surviving even more.

  She wanted to take him in her arms and comfort him. Rebecca missed Jake in every way and wanted to go back in time so
she could right things between them. If she could do that, she would never have said all those horrible things to Jake. There had to be something she could do to prove to him that she hadn’t meant any of the things she’d said.

  All that night as she took care of Jake, Rebecca thought about it and came up with a plan. In the morning after she’d given Jake his medicine and he’d fallen asleep again, Rebecca donned her coat and walked to the sheriff’s office.

  Mitch and Jack warmly greeted her.

  “How’s Jake doing?” Mitch asked. The news of Jake’s illness was common knowledge now.

  “Not very well. I need help,” Rebecca said.

  Jack asked, “What can we do?”

  “Jake can’t run the bar right now and I can’t do it by myself because I’m taking care of him. Is there any way that you think we could get some people to help serve drinks? Sammi can do her bouncer job, of course, but we’re going to need bartenders. We really can’t afford to be closed right now,” she said.

  Jack said, “I can think of at least four guys who’d be willin’ to help out with that. Leave it to me. I’ll also run you over some chicken soup for Jake, ok?”

  Rebecca said, “I can’t thank you enough.”

  “Don’t mention it,” Jack said.

  Gus was the first person Jack asked to help out since he tended bar for Jake a lot. Seth, Joe, Luke, and Jamie would all pitch in as well. She couldn’t drink, but she could serve booze and would do a good job of coaxing people to buy more to drink. They sat down with Rebecca and set up a schedule. Sammi was glad to be back at work. Ben had offered to help, but Rebecca had told him everything was covered. Though Ben had so far been a model guest, she still didn’t trust him.

  When Jake heard music coming from downstairs, he thought he was hearing things. It continued and he wondered what was going on. He called out for Rebecca and promptly started coughing from the strain it caused his lungs.

  “What is it?” she asked as she sat down on the bed beside him.

  Jake swore he saw love in her eyes and then dismissed it. It must be his fever. “Is the bar open?”

  Rebecca straightened her back. “Yes. We need to be open so we have some guest bartenders.”

  Jake’s face turned red as his temper matched his fever. “Close it now,” he demanded.

  Rebecca’s gaze met his. “No. I know that you think the worst of me, but my motives are pure. I know we can’t afford to stay closed indefinitely, so we worked out a schedule and we’re open for business.”

  “The money’s real important to you, isn’t it?” Jake said. His words were heavy with sarcasm.

  Rebecca’s fist came down hard on the bed. “Yes, but not for the reasons you think! I can’t tell you how much I regret the things I said to you because they weren’t true! Whether you believe me or not, I have come to love the bar, too. I was foolish and let my brother goad me into saying stupid things. That’s all they were; stupid statements that I shouldn’t have ever uttered. Never mind. It doesn’t matter!”

  Jake saw her eyes brighten with tears before she left and he felt a sharp shaft of regret for an instant and then hardened his heart again. He told himself that it was just a trick to get back into his good graces again.

  All of the people who took turns tending bar had a blast. Joe had to buy more shot glasses to replace the ones he broke when he tried to juggle them the way Jake did.

  “How the hell does he do that?” Joe said.

  Seth laughed. “He’s been doing it since he was a kid. I don’t think it’s something you can learn overnight.”

  “I guess not,” Joe said.

  Sammi came by the bar and shoved a guy out and then said, “Joe, you’re great. You all are, but I miss Jake.”

  Seth nodded. “Me, too. He’d better pull through or I’ll kill Marcus.”

  “Now, now, Seth,” Joe said. “You know that boy’s got his hands full with sick people right now. He and Hannah have been doin’ all they can for everyone. They’ve even got Sadie helping. Lydia Benson, too.”

  “I know. It still amazes me sometimes that my little brother is a doctor now,” Seth said proudly.

  Marcus came to see Jake every day, the same as he did for his sickest patients. Calvin wanted to visit his son, but Marcus forbade him from doing so because his health was already frail and if he contracted the disease, it would kill Calvin.

  By the time a week had passed, Jake began to show signs of improvement. His cough wasn’t as deep and his fever had abated. However, he was still very weak and his head still hurt. Rebecca hated to see that Jake had lost weight and had dark circles under his eyes. Even so, he was still so very handsome and Rebecca ached for him.

  By the time Jake was back on his feet, Christmas was only a few days away. When he opened the bar himself and let his patrons in, they were ecstatic to have their favorite bartender back. That night, he didn’t dance, but he did pound on the piano and quiet the crowd.

  “I have the best friends in the world and I can’t thank all of you for helping to keep the Watering Hole going while I was sick. I’m not sure how I’ll repay you all, but I’ll think of something.” Jake cut a glance at Rebecca and said, “I’d also like to thank Rebecca for organizing all of this and for nursing me back to health. I know it wasn’t easy and I wasn’t always the best patient, but I appreciate everything you did.” He felt that he should give her the credit she deserved, even if her motives weren’t exactly altruistic.

  She smiled a little too brightly and said, “You’re very welcome.” She left the bar then until it was time for her to play.

  It was easy to see that something wasn’t quite right between them, but no one commented on it except for Joe. He got Jake in the office that night and read him the riot act.

  “What’s the matter with you?” Joe said. “That’s your wife and she put in a hell of a lot of time and work to keep this place going and in getting you better. You act like you’re strangers or something. Now, what gives?”

  Jake told Joe the whole story. When he was done, Joe took a page from Seth’s book and smacked Jake in the back of the head.

  “You idiot! You backed her into a corner. What’s a cougar do when she gets backed into a corner? She strikes back. You don’t understand women. That’s your problem. I’ve spent some time with Ben and I like him, but I’ve seen the way he antagonizes her. I’m not sure what their history is there, but they don’t care for each other very much. Ya’ll need to listen to your wife. Really listen to her,” Joe said.

  Later on Jake sat in the office thinking over what Joe had said to him. Could he have overreacted to what he’d heard Rebecca say that night? Jake had always prided himself on being a reasonable man and looking back on it, he realized that he hadn’t been behaving reasonably. He decided to take Joe’s advice and that night when he went upstairs, he knocked on Rebecca’s door even though it was late.

  “Come in,” Rebecca said. Her pulse rate climbed when her husband entered the room.

  “Hi. Can we talk?” Jake asked.

  “Certainly. Is everything all right?” she asked as she kept covered up.

  Seeing Rebecca in the bed where they’d made love made Jake’s stomach clench with desire. His memory replayed images of their entwined bodies and he had to force them from his mind and concentrate hard on what he’d come to say.

  He sat down on the farthest corner of the bed from her. “Yes. No. I don’t know. Rebecca, I need to know the absolute truth about the way you feel about the bar. Did I blow things out of proportion or was I right?”

  Rebecca’s chin rose and her jade green eyes bore into his as she said, “I have grown to love the Watering Hole, Jake and all of the people who come here. The only reason I ever said any of those things was because Ben had gotten to me. He’s always been able to do that. Ever since we were little, he’s been out to make me feel inferior and I get defensive. I wanted to say something impressive. I was foolish and cruel and I’m sorry.”

  Jake said, “
You’re not the only one who was stupid and foolish, Rebecca. I certainly was. I’m so sorry.”

  “Thank you, Jake,” Rebecca said coolly. “Have a pleasant night.”

  Her dismissal confused him. When he would have moved closer, Rebecca put out a hand and said, “Don’t, Jake. Did you really think that an apology from you would make up for the way you’ve hurt me? Did you think that the way you treated me the whole time you were ill could suddenly be erased by a few simple words? If you did, then you have thought wrong.”

  Jake ran a hand over his face and said, “I guess I was hoping for more reconciliation than that.”

  Rebecca looked down as she whispered, “I’m afraid that’s all the reconciliation I can give, Jake.”

  “Do you mean for forever?” Jake asked. “Rebecca, I know I’ve been an ass, but I still love you.”

  “Don’t you dare say that to me!” Rebecca shouted. “Everything you’ve done or said for the past two weeks has said otherwise. You have glared at me when I gave you medicine and treated me as nothing more than a nuisance you had to put up with because you needed me to take care of you. And now you come to me and tell me you love me? No, no, no, Jake. You can’t turn feelings on and off like that. Get out of my room!”

  Jake rose from the bed, but instead of leaving, he moved close to Rebecca and said, “You’re right, Rebecca. I’ve treated you like crap and I’m sorry for that. Maybe you don’t believe me right now, but I’ll make it up to you.”

  Before she could object, he cupped the back of her head and pressed his lips to hers. She struggled against his grip at first and hit his chest with her fists, but his sensual assault never quit as he gently coaxed a response from her. Rebecca craved him and she could feel his desire for her. Suddenly she put her arms around his neck and kissed him back. Her hands roamed over his chest and shoulders as he sweetly plundered her mouth.

  Jake groaned and pressed her back into the mattress. He was on fire as Rebecca took his weight and arched her back. The silky skin of her thigh drew his hand and he moved it upwards. Abruptly Rebecca started pushing him away, struggling mightily against him.