“Don’t answer now,” he told her. She was faltering and he didn’t want her to refuse before she had time to process the request. “Give yourself time to think about it.”
She nodded. Jake saw her head bob up and down. He wondered if he’d shocked her with his admission.
It had certainly shocked him.
He pulled the car off the parkway and headed toward a place where they could talk. Eventually, he found an abandoned office park. The buildings were in various stages of demolition. The parking lot was cracked and weeds were seeping up through the breakage. He pulled up and cut the engine.
He came around and helped her out.
“What are we doing here?” she asked, looking around.
“Nothing in particular. Just giving us a rest.”
“Good.” She smiled. “Because I have a surprise for you.”
Jake could see she was back to being the playful yet strong woman he’d found her to be that day he’d run into her on the street.
“What’s the surprise?”
“Wait over there for a moment. I have to get it.” He did as she asked. Moments later she took his arm and led him back to the car.
“What is that?” Jake asked when he got in and saw the gadget attached to the steering wheel.
“It’s called a steering wheel knob. It allows you to use less effort to turn the car.”
“You think I need a crutch?” he asked, affronted.
“It’s a safety feature, Jake. Isn’t part of the Hippocratic Oath to do no harm?”
He turned in the seat and stared at her. “You know you should have been a lawyer. You’re wasted as a kindergarten teacher.”
“I’ll take that as a compliment,” Lauren said.
Jake laughed. “You would.”
“It’ll make steering easier for you.”
He frowned at her.
“Don’t knock it until you’ve tried it.”
“So what’s the point?” he asked.
“Safety first,” she said. “It concentrates the force in one place and makes turning a lot simpler. Try it.”
“It’ll ruin the steering wheel.”
“There’s a rubber cushion against the wheel so it will not cause any abrasions. Now stop putting up obstacles and see how it works.”
“Where did you find this thing?”
“I used one when I first learned to drive.”
“Now we learn the truth.”
“It helped,” she said. “My father installed it on the family car and I felt like I knew what I was doing. I’d sit at a light and when it turned green, I’d spin that knob and the car would turn on a dime.”
“Is this your father’s?” Jake asked.
She shook her head. “His was a plain silver knob. They come in colors now.” She pointed to the one on the steering wheel. “I saw some that looked like the wheel of a car with a hub cap in a choice of colors, but I thought you’d like this one with the medical insignia on it.”
“I don’t need a knob.”
“You don’t need to drive either, but you like it. So I’m trying to keep the other cars on the road safe from you. Now drive.”
He smiled. Jake liked getting her upset. So far she hadn’t caught on to his antics, but she was a smart woman and eventually she would. He put the car in gear and, using the knob, turned circles around the empty parking lot.
“Wow,” he said. “I like this.”
He drove faster and turned corners harder.
“Don’t do it too fast,” she said.
“I won’t do it on the road,” he said, taking another fast turn. “Why didn’t you tell me how much fun this was?”
Lauren sat still and said nothing. Jake made several turns around the lot and then slowed down. He drove up and down to show Lauren he wasn’t going to hurt anyone when he was back on the road. She was right about the small knob on the steering wheel. It handled a lot of the force needed to turn the wheel, making it easier for him to use with only one hand.
After he’d driven several miles in the lot, he stopped the car and turned the engine off.
“Thank you, Lauren.”
“You’re welcome,” she said.
Jake saw the small smile that curved the corners of her lips. She did that often when she didn’t want him to know how pleased she was with something he’d accomplished or accepted.
He drove back toward the city. Changing lanes was monumentally easier with the knob than without it. He was amazed at how attuned she was to his needs. He was used to being on the other side, attending to his patients. He never thought he needed anyone to take care of him. But Lauren had shown him that everyone needs someone.
And she wasn’t bad to have around. In fact, he wanted her to stay. She had to say she would stay.
For the first time, he wasn’t looking forward to Cal’s return.
CHAPTER EIGHT
IGNORING A QUESTION wasn’t something Lauren usually did, especially as a doctor. Though Jake’s question wasn’t medical, it required an answer. And it had to be that she couldn’t stay. He was on the road to recovery and she didn’t think he’d relapse if she wasn’t part of his daily routine.
He’d helped her too, Lauren thought. Having someone else to focus on had kept her from thinking about her own problems. She still planned to leave and start over somewhere else, and she couldn’t wait for Caleb to return. She needed a finite date. She was becoming too attached to Jake. And right now she had too much on her mind to begin a relationship.
She was making a giant assumption in thinking she could have a relationship with Jake. He probably wasn’t open to that, despite his statement that he liked having her around. He could say the same of a maid, but she knew that wasn’t the case.
A week later Jake had not asked his question again and Lauren had not brought up the subject. But she had thought about it. Few other things occupied her mind. Each day Jake took Lauren for a drive. At first, Lauren would drive one way and Jake the other. She could hardly remember when things changed and he was driving both ways.
“I’ve been thinking about that movie we were supposed to go to,” Jake said while he drove out of the city one Saturday afternoon.
“What were you thinking?”
“Why don’t we go tonight? We could get something to eat and then drive to a movie.”
Lauren thought about it. “You do know what tonight is,” she said.
He frowned. “Saturday?”
“That’s right.”
“What’s wrong with Saturday?”
“It’s date night. There will be lots of couples going to movies. Shouldn’t we wait for a weeknight?” she said. She didn’t mention that young lovers liked to hold on to each other in dark theaters.
“That’s all right,” he said. “I mean, we know this is not a date. If you don’t want to go, we can—”
“That’s not it,” Lauren interrupted. “I only wanted to remind you that you’re likely to find more going on in the theater than on the screen.”
“I think I can handle that. Now what shall we see?”
Jake had chosen the movie they watched in the apartment. So over a light dinner in a Jersey diner, Lauren checked her phone and found several current movies that were playing. She tried to avoid the most popular movies but in the end Jake said he’d really like to see the recently released action adventure that was advertised on television and billboards all over the city.
The line for the movie wrapped around the building. Lauren held on to Jake’s right arm. People talked around them, their voices blending into white noise. Inside the apartment, Jake sometimes wore a sling. It was an indicator to Lauren that he was in pain. When they went out he’d take it with them but rarely put it on. With her holding his arm, no one knew he couldn’t move it.
“It looks like
this is a good choice,” Jake said.
“The marketing machine for this movie has been ramped up and spewing out teasers for a month. You see it advertised everywhere.”
Jake shrugged as if he hadn’t noticed until today. He watched some television, but lately he’d been spending a lot of time on the video hookup he had with the hospital. She secretly thought he was also writing.
“You’ll love it,” Lauren said. “It has—”
“Lori!” Someone called her name.
She looked around. Because she was holding on to Jake, her movement pulled him with her.
“Lori, that is you.”
Coming toward her was the last person she wanted to see. He could blow everything if she didn’t control the conversation. They hadn’t seen each other in a year and Lauren was surprised when he grabbed her and pulled her into a bear hug. Her arm was nearly wrenched from Jake’s and she felt him flinch as if in pain.
“Hello, Richard,” she said.
He was with a beautiful woman, who curled her arm around his.
“What are you doing here? I thought you moved to LA.”
“I did. I’m just visiting.” The woman at his side pulled on his arm and he glanced at her and then back at Lauren. “Oh, Lori, this is Amber West.”
Her voice was as strong as her grip on Richard’s arm. “Nice to meet you,” she said.
Lauren turned to Jake. “Jake, this is Richard Peterson, my ex-husband.”
She kept her eyes on Jake. He didn’t react, but put his left hand over hers. Lauren knew it wasn’t a message he was sending to her ex-husband, but a way of preventing him from shaking hands.
“So, I guess we’re all here to see the movie,” Amber said. Her voice was slightly high. She had drop-dead-gorgeous model looks and her makeup was flawless. Lauren didn’t judge her or Richard. Their separation and divorce had been amicable. Naliani was the catalyst that had forced them to confront the truth. They were no longer in love and parting was beneficial to them both. While Lauren mourned their lost child, she never mourned her marriage.
The line began to move and Lauren sighed with relief. She said it was nice to see Richard again and acknowledged Amber. Jake kept her arm in his as they went into the darkened theater. Lauren saw her ex-husband and his new girlfriend and moved as far from them as she could get.
“Are these all right?” she asked Jake, indicating seats near the rear of the theater.
“Are you all right?” he asked. “We can leave if you want.”
She shook her head and sat down in the reclining chair that theatergoers expected these days. Pushing back, she raised the concealed footrest.
“How about some popcorn?”
Lauren moved to get up, but Jake stopped her. “I’ll get it,” he said.
She didn’t argue with him. He needed to be independent. This was his way of showing her he could do for himself. It was also his way of letting her know that he was conquering the world by no longer trying to hide his arm.
He left and when he returned, the sling was over his right arm. Nestled inside it were two soft drinks. His left hand held a king-size tub of popcorn. Lauren took the tub and then one of the drinks. Jake sat down with the other. She noticed a smug look on his face. It was a baby step, but he’d taken it and conquered it. She wanted to congratulate him, but knew he would tell her that he wasn’t trying to prove anything. She gave him a smile, silently communicating her thoughts. She realized he couldn’t know what she was thinking, but she felt he understood that she was pleased for him.
The lights dimmed and the movie began. They sat back and watched. The story was about an ordinary man and wife on the brink of divorce who make a wrong turn and get caught up in plans for a deadly terrorist attack. The chase begins and from then on it’s nonstop action as they get separated and try to find each other, depending on each other to stay alive, and stay a step away from the terrorists trying to kill them. At one point, Lauren noticed Jake tense. On the screen an explosion took place. Several people were lying on the ground bleeding. She put her hand on his and a second later realized he’d curled one finger of his right hand over hers. She stared at his hand, forgetting the action on the screen. Jake didn’t seem to notice. By the end of the two hours, the main characters were back in love and glad to be alive.
If only it was that easy, Lauren thought. Relationships were complicated. She glanced in the direction where Richard and Amber had been seated but they were gone. She’d once been in love with Richard, planned to spend her life with him, but things changed.
Jake got up. Both drink cups were empty. The tub held the dregs of popcorn kernels, some unpopped. They placed the cups inside and joined the exiting crowds.
“What did you think?” he asked when they were on the street.
Lauren wanted to bring up the movement of his hand, but she decided this wasn’t the time. If he was aware of it, he’d say something.
“I liked it,” she told him. “Some of the action sequences were improbable, but I like action movies, so I always forgive Hollywood for doing the impossible. What did you think?”
“I think that the trauma of surviving terrorists will not make a couple fall in love.”
He focused on the love plot. That wasn’t something she would have expected, but Jake was always doing the unexpected.
“They were already in love. They just didn’t know it,” she said.
“You don’t really believe that, do you?”
“Of course I do. Just because a couple has problems doesn’t mean they don’t love each other.”
“What about you and Richard. Did you have problems and were still in love?”
Lauren closed her eyes for a second. She’d walked right into that one. “We did,” she said carefully. “But there came a time when we were no longer in love and living together didn’t make sense. As you can see, we parted as friends.”
“It looked like you two are more than friends.”
Lauren had been surprised when Richard hugged her. They’d often greet each other that way when they were married, but they were no longer the same people. She was with Jake. The fact that Richard didn’t know she wasn’t dating Jake was beside the point. He had a date. Hugging an ex-wife or even an ex-girlfriend when you were with someone else seemed inappropriate.
“I guess we are more than friends,” she said. “We were married. I was once in love with him.”
Jake stopped and turned to her. “And you’re not now?”
She shook her head. “No, now we’re just friends.”
“More than friends,” he corrected her.
He was acting like a jealous lover. They’d shared one kiss and one almost kiss. They had no relationship, so he couldn’t be jealous.
“You and I are also more than friends.”
“We are?” His eyebrows rose. “How’s that?”
“We’ve kissed.”
* * *
IT WASN’T LIKELY that Jake would forget kissing Lauren. Given the fact that he wanted to kiss her again. All the feelings he thought dead came back to life when she was around. The kiss had been in the back of his mind for weeks. And that night, he’d tested the waters. They’d proved addictive, but so far he’d had enough self-control to resist.
He’d almost caved sitting in the darkened theater, especially after meeting her ex-husband.
She had an ex-husband.
He appeared to have moved on, if Jake read the woman on his arm correctly. Yet Lauren was taking longer in her recovery. Jake had seen it in her eyes when she first spoke of her past. Lately, he believed the darkness in her had lifted somewhat. Each of them had their own demons. She’d forced his out of him, though she told him she’d never been a companion before. Jake had had nurses and personal assistants. Lauren acted more like a nurse, aware of changes in him. In the theater, she took his hand when the expl
osion happened. Jake knew it was coming. The charges had been set. They had to go off sometime. Lauren was right there, silently helping him through anything that he might be affected by.
He wanted her to stay, but he couldn’t force that outcome. They hadn’t talked about it since he suggested it. There was a lot he wanted to discuss.
“Tired?” he asked when they were back in the apartment.
“Not much,” she said.
“Good. Let’s talk.”
Jake led her to the sofa in the room with the huge windows overlooking the city. She slipped her feet out of her shoes and made herself comfortable.
“What do you want to chat about?”
“Ex-husbands.”
He watched Lauren carefully, noticing her go still for a few seconds.
“I have an ex-husband.”
“You don’t have to tell me about him. It’s not my business, but I didn’t know you’d been married.”
She didn’t have to say that there was a world of things he didn’t know about her. Jake knew there was.
“Richard is an architect. We were married for several years,” she said.
Nonspecific, Jake thought, but let it go.
“We grew apart. After the divorce, he moved to Los Angeles.”
“I’m sure there’s more to it than that.”
Lauren got up and walked about the room. She paused in front of the massive windows, then moved past the piano before turning to face Jake. She wore a short-sleeved blouse and long pants that had his eyes focusing on her legs. It took her a while to begin to speak. Jake waited.
“We met at a party. He gave me his number and I called him.”
Jake believed that. He thought of how she’d nearly accosted him on the street and here she’d ended up standing across the room from him in his own apartment.
“We dated for nearly a year before he asked me to marry him. I was in love or thought I was. And so we were married.”
“Then what?”
Lauren didn’t speak for a long time. Finally she looked around and moved to pick up her purse before taking the chair across from him. Leaning forward, she put her elbows on her knees and lowered her face to her hands. Jake didn’t know if she was about to cry or what. They hadn’t turned on bright lights, but neither was the room dark.
Healing the Doctor's Heart Page 10