Fix Her Up (The Fix Book 1)

by Carey Heywood

  His hand shakes and he tries to hide it by shoving it into his pocket. I’m an asshole.

  I reach up to squeeze his shoulder and he gives me a nod.

  “Now,” I start. “Tell me what happened.”

  He fills me in on our walk from the entrance to the waiting room. Gideon’s landscaping business slows to a crawl in the wintertime so he popped in to see her while she had been volunteering at the elementary school Eli’s kids go to. The school library recently underwent a remodel, so they were moving around boxes of books. When her leg began swelling, she figured she had pulled a muscle or something.

  He has a way of getting what he wants so even though she didn’t think there was anything wrong, when he saw how swollen her leg had gotten he talked her into getting it looked at.

  “Thank you,” I whisper.

  He manages to give me half a smile, his way of forgiving me for being pissed earlier.

  I take the seat next to Finley, our hands finding each other’s before I’ve finished sitting. Abby sits on the other side of her, talking to Eli.

  Gideon paces near the doors that lead to the treatment rooms. Every time they open we all look.

  “She’s going to be okay,” Finley promises.

  The seats are uncomfortable and don’t have adjustable arms like at the movie theater. If they did, I’d push it up and pull her close.

  “I feel silly now for being so upset earlier.”

  Not caring about our audience I cup her face in my hands. “I love you.”

  Her already puffy red eyes refill with tears. “You do?”

  Her words are barely audible but I hear her all the same.

  “I do,” I affirm.

  She presses her lips together, one tear spilling down her cheek.

  “I think I’ve loved you since you talked me into letting you help with the house,” she whispers.

  “I win. I’ve loved you since you sneezed on me.”

  A burst of laughter escapes her and then with wide eyes she covers her mouth in embarrassment.

  “Life doesn’t run on a schedule. We get the bad right along with the good. So today started off bad. You’re going through things but I’m here to help you and my mom might have a blood clot, which is scary, but her being here in this hospital means they can help her. You just told me you loved me. Right now I can handle the bad stuff because you’re all the good I’ll ever need.”

  Finley stares at me, her lips parted.

  Before either she or I can say anything, Abby loudly informs the entire waiting room that Asher is on the way.

  “See?” I say, cocking my head in her direction. “Now we have a miracle seeing as how my brother listened to a voicemail the same day he got it.”

  Her lips tip up into a sweet smile and I give her a soft kiss. After I settle myself back into my chair she leans over the armrest to lay her head against my shoulder.

  Abby watches us with a sly smile on her face. She doesn’t hide she heard us and knowing my match making little sister, she’s loving every second of it.

  Asher arrives not long after, making me mentally question how fast he drove. As if waiting for all of us to be together, our father appears like a rabbit pulled from a magician’s hat.

  We all stand, circling around him in a family huddle. “It’s a clot. It’s in her thigh. They’ve admitted her and started her on a blood thinner but she needs to stay the night.”

  “Can we see her?” Abby asks, her question followed by grunts of agreement from my brothers.

  “Yes, but only if you all promise not to excite her. She needs her rest.”

  I saw him earlier in the week. Tonight, he looks ten years older. It could be the harsh overhead lights, but his skin looks ashen.

  I give his arm a squeeze. “Okay Dad.”

  “Two at a time,” he says. “Abby and Gideon, you two go in and see her first.”

  Eli opens his mouth but quickly snaps it shut after a warning look from our dad. I can’t tell if he’s on edge because Brooke isn’t here. It’s late so it makes sense that she wouldn’t want the kids up all night in a hospital. Still, I don’t know if that’s an excuse or not, or if she’s still staying at her sister’s. Eli’s sure as shit not about to share.

  Abby looks at Eli, Asher and me. “We won’t take too long.”

  “You’re a good girl,” Dad mutters, patting her back and then says, “There’s a waiting area closer to her new room. Follow me.”

  Her room is two floors up and down a long hall. The waiting room is half the size of the one in the emergency room but empty and has a loveseat.

  I claim that one for Finley and me. Without the armrest between us, we’re both more comfortable. Asher comes to sit on the other side of her.

  “Hey Finley,” he greets her.

  She smiles at him. During our stay at his cabin she won him over.

  “Stop flirting with my girl,” I grumble giving him a grin.

  “Then you shouldn’t have picked such a pretty one.” He grins.

  Eli paces in front of us, his phone to his ear. He’s talking to Brooke but whatever he says I can’t hear.

  “Eli, you and Asher are up,” Abby says, coming into the waiting room.

  “Where’s Dad?” Asher asks, standing.

  It’s Gideon who answers. “They’re setting up a cot for him. He’s staying the night with Mom.”

  Eli ends his call and shoves his phone into his pocket before looking at Asher. “Let’s go.”

  As soon as they’re gone I turn to Abby. “How is she?”

  She frowns. “Her leg looks awful but you know Mom. They’re going to need to strap her down to keep her in that bed.”

  I grin. That sounds like our mom.

  Abby leans forward to give me a hug. “I’m not sure why I’m so exhausted. All we did was sit around.”

  Finley rubs her back as Abby smiles sleepily at her.

  I squeeze my little sister tight before looking at Gideon. “Give her a ride home and see her inside.”

  He nods, putting his hand on her shoulder and turning her from my arms and into his.

  “I’ll call you later,” Abby says to Finley before Gideon leads her away.

  As soon as they’re gone, Finley and I reclaim our loveseat.

  “How are you really?” She asks, her face upturned toward me.

  Since we’re alone I tell her the truth. I blow out a breath. “Until Dad came out I was worried.”

  “I would be, too, if it was my mom. I never thought about what would happen if either one of them had to go to the hospital now that I’m so far away.”

  “Do you ever think of moving back?” I ask her, a little worried at what her answer could be.

  With every task we complete on her house I wonder if we’re one step closer to her leaving me when it’s all done.

  “No,” she replies forcefully.

  “You haven’t lived through a full winter yet,” I tease.

  “You’ll keep me warm,” she teases back, squeezing her arms around me.

  I kiss her temple. “I sure will.”

  It’s not long before Asher and Eli return. “Mom’s ready for you.”

  I stand, pulling up Finley with me. She freezes when I point both of us in the direction of her room.

  “Oh, I’ll wait here,” she says.

  “Nope.” I give her hand a little tug. “You’re coming with.”

  Her eyes go wide. “Your mom wants to see you, not me.”

  “Go on with him,” Asher says. “He’s too stubborn to fight. Trust me, I know and mom asked to see you.”

  Finley pulls in a breath. “In that case.”

  I take her hand and lift it to my lips. My dad’s cot is set up on the far side of the room. He gives us a wave as we walk in.

  The room is dim, only the light above her bed and the glow from the TV are on.

  Even though I’ve been taller than her since tenth grade, she’s always been larger than life to me. It’s a shock to see how small
she looks in her hospital bed.

  “You’re so sweet to come,” my mom ignores me and greets Finley.

  “I’m so sorry to hear you aren’t feeling well. I hope the medicine works quickly.” She leans down, lightly squeezing my mom’s forearm.

  I lean over her bed to kiss her cheek. Her hand comes up to pat my face as I do.

  “Love you Mom.”

  “Love you my sweet boy,” she whispers back.

  19

  Finley

  “This is silly,” Daisy grumbles.

  “Would you rather spend another day in the office of the store?” Noah counters.

  She looks away which is answer enough for Noah.

  “You’re doing me a favor,” I put in. “It gets so boring during the day.”

  She frowns but manages to do it sweetly, which is a skill. “You’re only saying that.”

  I sit down next to her. “I’m not.”

  She looks back at Noah. “You all worry too much.”

  He smiles down at her. “Wonder where we got that from?”

  She smirks but doesn’t argue. Noah motions for me to follow him. Before I get up, I pat her arm. After she gives me a small smile I stand up and move to where Noah is waiting for me.

  “Don’t let her guilt trip you.” Noah pulls me close.

  “She’s not going to guilt trip me,” I argue.

  He gives me a look and I don’t tell him that guilt trip only really works on direct family members.

  “Thank you for letting her stay with you,” he says, kissing my forehead.

  “It’s no trouble.” I tilt my chin up so he’ll kiss my lips instead.

  He takes the hint and drops his lips to mine. I hope this feeling never goes away. That’s the part that’s scaring me the most about my relationship with Noah. People change. Allen did.

  I’m not sure I could recover if Noah ever did. As much as I love him, and I do, I’m still holding a piece of my heart back from him.

  “Go get some work done,” I order.

  He kisses me again before saying, “Call me if she gives you any trouble.”

  His mother was released from the hospital two days ago. After she was admitted, the doctor determined the blood thinner was not taking care of the blood clot as they had hoped it would.

  They did a procedure to break it up. The blood thinner worked a bit too well afterward and she had issues bleeding. While they straightened out the dosage, she remained in the hospital. She was there a week, Mr. Thompson slept in her room each night.

  She went home after her release and promptly told Mr. Thompson he’d make her a murderer and a widow if he didn’t stop hovering. He believed her enough to try and bring her to the store with him the next day.

  There, both Mr. Thompson and her oldest fussed over her. She refused to go back which is why she’s here with me today. Technically, she’s well enough to be home by herself but it seems to be a Thompson trait to worry. Since I work from home, I offered to let her hang out with me.

  She can camp out on the sofa and watch TV or nap while I work. The kitchen and bathroom are close to the den. She’s supposed to move around a bit but not do any stairs.

  I watch him from the door, waving as he pulls away. Closing the door once he’s out of sight, I lean my back against it and pull in a breath. Allen’s mom never liked me. Mrs. Thompson, or Daisy as she’s told me to call her, seems to like me but that’s how Allen’s mom was in the beginning too.

  “You can do this,” I murmur to myself.

  Stepping into my office I log into my work computer. It’s on the slow side so I like to putter around in the morning while it gets going. It’s a laptop so I can work from the den.

  “Up for company?” I ask. “I don’t want you to think I’m fussing but I was thinking about working in here today if that’s okay with you.”

  She smiles. “Of course I’d love your company. It’ll give me a chance to get to know you better.”

  “I’m boring,” I admit.

  She shakes her head. “That’s not what Noah thinks.”

  My cheeks redden as I wonder what he’s told his mother about me. “He’s wonderful.”

  She smiles outright. “I’m happy you think that.”

  I motion to the kitchen. “Can I get you anything to eat, to drink?”

  She shakes her head and I say, “I’m going to grab my computer. I’ll be right back.”

  My boss knows Daisy is with me so I’m off of phone duty today so I leave my headset on my desk.

  The steamer trunk I cleaned and painted is a much better resting place for my laptop than the old crates I used before.

  “So, what would you like to do today?”

  She tilts her head to the side and I know instantly that’s where Noah picked that up. “I’d like to know more about you.”

  I fight back a cringe but must not do a good job of it when she laughs, “I’m not going to bite.”

  “I’m sorry,” I giggle. “I feel like I’m fifteen again meeting my first boyfriend’s parents.”

  “Were they awful?” She inquires. “Leave you scarred for life?”

  I shake my head. “No, they were great.”

  She lifts her chin. “See, nothing to worry about.”

  She has a point. “What would you like to know?”

  Leaning closer to me, she gives my knee a squeeze. “Everything.”

  “Oh geez,” I laugh. “If you wanted to take a nap you could have just said so.”

  She grins. “Don’t be silly.”

  “Well, where should I start?” I ask.

  “Noah said that before you moved here, you had never worked on a house before. What gave you the courage to tackle this house?”

  Before his dad dropped off his mom, Noah started a fire in the den. My eyes dance around the room. I live here, I work here, and some days it still feels like a dream.

  “My marriage wasn’t a happy one but the divorce still rocked me. I didn’t know which way was up. One day I watched this show. You may have seen it. It’s a husband and wife from Texas who transform houses.”

  “Shiplap,” she exclaims, making me laugh.

  “Yes, they sure love installing or uncovering those wooden planks on walls,” I agree.

  “It’s a great show. The houses they fix up always look so pretty in the reveal,” she murmurs.

  I nod. “I needed to escape the reality of what I thought was going to be my unhappily ever after. That show struck a cord deep within me. I felt like I was living in the before and if I could fix up a house I could fix up myself along the way.”

  Her eyes move over my face, assessing me before she asks. “Did it work?”

  For some reason her question makes me want to cry. I suck in a breath.

  “I think the house is now in better shape than I am.”

  “Noah told me you’ve been a bit blue,” she confesses.

  One thing I like about Noah is the fact that he’s close with his family. I remind myself of this to stop from worrying what his mom thinks of me for crying over my ex the way I did.

  My nose starts stinging and I get up to grab a tissue. “I’m sorry. I don’t know why I’m crying.”

  When I sit back down she pats my knee. “I’d be more concerned if you weren’t.”

  I gulp and dab at the corners of my eyes. “But we’re divorced.”

  She shrugs. “A divorce does not erase a marriage. You were so focused on all this work you’ve done you weren’t able to mourn its end. Now you are.”

  I nod.

  She gives me a gentle smile. “Give yourself time.”

  “I will,” I promise.

  Changing the subject so I can work and not spend the day crying in front of Noah’s mom, I ask, “I’m sure I can find the house show on demand, would you like to watch some?”

  She agrees and I get the show going. Deciding to make a plate of food for both of us, I head to the kitchen. I figure this way if she’s hungry she doesn’t need to ask if it’
s already within arm’s reach.

  She likes coffee so I refill my mug and pour another for her. Once I’ve got the spread laid out, I focus on getting some work done.

  Every so often, I sneak a glance at the food, pleased when I notice a muffin missing.

  I try not to baby her each time she gets up. She’s supposed to be taking it easy but she isn’t on full bed rest. It’s important for her to be moving around.

  Knowing this doesn’t stop me from worrying she’ll fall or have some sort of relapse while I’m supposed to be keeping an eye on her.

  “I think this one is my favorite so far,” she says.

  “Oh yeah?” I ask. “What part do you like best?”

  “The built in with all the mugs. I might ask Asher to make one of those for me.”

  “I love the giant mantels. Someday I want to do something to these.”

  My eyes move around the room. “Noah showed you pictures, right? Of what this house looked like before he helped me renovate it?”

  She nods. “We questioned his sanity at first, until Abby mentioned how he couldn’t take his eyes off you.”

  For some reason that has me blushing while I mentally kick myself for not catching on. “Even after months and months of work, this place is still such a blank slate. I have floors, walls, plumbing that doesn’t leak, appliances, and furniture. Every time I start to think about changing paint colors or hanging pictures on the wall my mind goes blank.”

  “There’s no rush dear,” Daisy replies. “When Noah’s dad and I were first starting out, we didn’t have much. Over time, as pieces caught our eye, we decorated.”

  “You don’t think it looks bad do you?” I press. “All these empty walls?”

  She shakes her head. “Absolutely not.”

  We start another episode. Her eyes are on the screen. From the corner of mine, I watch her, liking her more and more.

  Before she catches me staring at her, I get back to work.

  “Hello,” Noah calls, surprising both of us as he comes in through the kitchen door.

  “Hey,” I reply, smiling broadly at him.

  “Are you checking up on me?” Daisy accuses.

  “Yes I am,” he admits with a smile and then lifts a bag. “And I brought lunch.”

  Her eyes move to the bag. “It smells good. What is it?”