by Renee Dyer
If he didn’t get the message in my handshake, he should get the message I’m sending now.
Grams’ checkup goes well and he says I can take her home. He promises to have her discharge paperwork completed shortly. I walk him out, telling the ladies I need to make another call. I let him know I need a little time to allow the police time to set up our escape plan. If he’s aggravated by this, he doesn’t show it. He simply says he’ll stall the paperwork until he sees the police show up. I thank him and give him a gentle handshake. I don’t mind him when he doesn’t have his eyes on my girl.
Walking back in the room, two sets of eyes train in on me. They know something’s up and I’m no liar.
I explain the plan and assure them I’ll get them out of the hospital without any problems from the paparazzi. There’s a fire in Adriana’s eyes, a fierceness I’ve seen before when she’s gone into protector mode, and I know it’s for my Grams. I want to scoop her up into my arms and kiss her stupid for caring for Grams this much already. Grams smiles at me and tells me she knows I’ll take care of everything. Her belief in me makes me stagger on my feet. I only hope I can pull this off.
It wasn’t as hard as I thought it would be. The plan went smoothly. Having a plain-clothes officer move the rental to an employee only entrance while the uniformed officers “spoke” to the paparazzi about not harassing the patients or visitors of the hospital was perfect. The paparazzi assumed I called the police and all the while, I was driving safely away from them with the two ladies I love.
“How’d they know I was in the hospital?” Grams asks as I get her settled on her couch. I wish I knew for sure. I know the leak had to come from my show and I’m livid about it. I don’t want to tell her that so I shrug.
“Is it always like that for you?” Adriana asks. I’m scared to see the expression on her face, but when I look at her, she simply appears to be curious.
“Most of the time,” I answer honestly. “If they think there’s a story, they’ll chase me to the fires of hell.”
“They must have such lonely lives,” she says quietly. I’m not sure if she thinks I’ll be upset by her words, but I’m not. I’m anything but that. I’m in awe of her. These people were verbally attacking us and she has compassion for them. In their awfulness, she can wonder what kind of life they live and feel sorry for them. It makes me care for her more than I already do.
“They probably do. I can’t imagine they have much time for themselves while always chasing the next story.”
“It’s sad when you think about it. I just don’t understand what makes someone decide on that line of work in the first place.” I don’t have an answer for her and the smile Grams is directing at her tells me that she is impressed by her too. Once again, I find myself thankful that Grams insisted I find adventure that June morning and that I listened instead of driving off onto the unknown road, looking to get lost some more. What I found is so much more precious.
We enjoy a simple lunch and Grams heads up to nap. I could tell she was getting tired and I’m glad I didn’t have to ask her to go lie down. She can be such a stubborn woman, but for now at least, she seems to be listening to the doctor or her body. I’m grateful for that. While she naps, I make sure that there is food for dinner and get online to check in with Eddie. I can’t stop myself from glancing at Adriana every now and again. She looks so comfy on Grams’ couch, her feet tucked up under her with her Kindle in front of her face.
I move my position so that I can see her. It brings me so much enjoyment to watch the myriad of emotions play out on her face as she reads. It’s like watching a movie. Her face lights up when she’s reading a happy scene. I can see it in her beaming smile and the sunshine pouring through her beautiful eyes. When she reads a sad scene, her lips turn down and it looks like there are storm clouds brewing in the depths of her irises. She pulls her brows in and occasionally bites her lower lip. Even though I can tell she’s feeling the book, feeling the emotions through written words, I can’t help but get turned on every time I see her pull her lip between her teeth. My dick jumps at the thought of me pulling that lip out and nipping at it myself.
Once again, I have to shake myself from my wayward thoughts of the beauty that is only a room’s length from me. I know I will do anything to keep her in my life this time. Eddie’s IM’s do nothing to warn me away from her. She has my heart and no one else ever will. I understand his hesitancy in wanting me to give her another chance since he’s the one who’s been by me side watching me fall apart, but it’s different now. Something has changed and I can’t explain that to him.
When Grams comes back downstairs, she looks much more rested. Her smile is genuine and her color is almost back to normal. When she starts heading for the kitchen, I ask her to sit and I’ll get her what she needs. Her huffed out, “Poppycock,” brings a smile to my face. She is not going to be an easy person to deal with as she heals. However, she does let me get her a water with a lemon slice as she goes to sit down to chat with Adriana.
They talk and giggle like two teenage girls. I don’t know that I’ve ever seen this side of Grams with anyone.
We relax for a while as Adriana tells us about her photography business and some of her favorite shoots. Watching her hands fly through the air the more excited she gets, I can’t help but chuckle a little. She still reminds me of a child on Christmas morning coming in to the bounty that Santa has left, pure jubilation pouring through her words and actions as she tells her tales. She smiles and laughs as she recounts blunders that she and Alahna have had along the way, but through it all, I see nothing but love in her eyes. Her work brings her such joy and I envy that.
I leave my girls chatting while I start the grill. Adriana wanted to help me with dinner, but I’m enjoying the relationship that’s growing between my two favorite ladies so I tell her that I’ve got it. While the grill heats, I throw together a simple garden salad and slice the bread I stopped to pick up on the way home.
Home.
I’m still in shock that I have Adriana here with me, in the place that has brought me so much peace and happiness. Yes, there were moments of fear and panic, worry that I would be ripped from the place that became home to me.
Over a simple grilled chicken dinner, I find complete peace being here with Grams and Adriana. It feels like this is how it’s supposed to be. Conversation flows easily. We laugh at each other. It feels like dinner ends too soon. I clean the table against Grams complaints, but there’s no way I’m letting her do anything. I know she isn’t happy being sent off to the living room, but I need her to heal.
Adriana helps me clean up and we fall into a seamless routine. She scrapes the dishes as I pack up leftovers. She washes dishes and I dry and put them away. There’s no need to ask what the other will do. We fall into the same routine we had at her place when I stayed there. I wrap her in a gentle hug and kiss her cheek.
“Thank you.” Those two words hold so much meaning for me. They’re for her getting help for Grams, for flying here to make sure Grams wasn’t alone, for being here with me, for so many things I’m still processing. Her angelic smile lights up the room.
We’re almost done cleaning up when I hear the front door open and loud steps quickly roaming through the house. What the hell?
“Mom, Mom! Where are you? I went to the hospital and they said you had been discharged.”
My blood runs cold and I drop the glass in my hand. Somewhere in the fog I’ve disappeared into, I hear the shattering as it hits the floor and Adriana’s startled gasp. I feel her hand on my arm so I know I’m awake and not dreaming. I’d know that voice anywhere. Even after all these years. It’s followed me from my worst nightmares into this moment and now I’m paralyzed in fear.
He’s finally come for me.
Chapter Fifteen
Rose- a.k.a. Grams
Mikos’ cries for me and his heavy steps echo through the house. I hear the concern in his voice, but what concerns me is what will happen when he and Tuc
ker come face to face. For years, I’ve prayed they would find a way back to each other, but this is not the reunion I had in mind.
His tall frame, so similar to Tucker’s, stops in front of me and I watch as his eyes roam over me, making sure I’m in one piece. We both jump at the sound of shattering glass.
Now he knows we’re not alone.
I stare into his dark, brown eyes and plead with him to stay with me. I want to give Tucker a minute to come to terms with Mikos being here and decide whether he wants to see him, but Mikos starts to head for the kitchen.
“Please don’t,” I beg.
“Why, Mama?” I hear the confusion and alarm in his voice and it tears at my heart. He thinks someone is here who might harm me. How do I tell him the only one here doing harm right now is him? His eyes implore me to tell him what’s going on, but I can’t force the words past my throat. It feels like a betrayal to my grandson and I want to cry out when he turns from me.
Before I can speak, Tucker walks out with Adriana walking behind him. He stops at the sight of the man he hasn’t seen in eleven years; the man who caused him pain and countless nightmares. He thinks I don’t know how bad it was for him, but I always saw what he tried to hide from me. I know the hatred he carries in his heart for the man he should love the most. I want to run to him and comfort him like I’ve done since he was a boy, hug the terror I see from his face, but I know there is nothing I can do to remove the pain from this moment. Not for either of my boys.
“Tucker.” The word barely leaves Mikos’ lips as I watch him take a step toward his son. I know it’s a mistake, but there’s no chance to warn him.
“You get the fuck out of this house, now!” Tucker roars at Mikos. His chest is puffed up and anger burns in his eyes.
“Tucker,” I warn. He knows I don’t allow foul language in my presence and I’m trying to stop this scene from escalating. The sight of Tucker clenching and unclenching his fists is frightening me. He’s told me about the red haze before and how he gets so angry he lets it take over to the point where he stops thinking. He lets his fists think for him. It’s been a long time since I’ve gotten a call that he’s been in a fight, but I can see the tether on his controlled temper snapping.
He doesn’t look away from his father or acknowledge that I’ve spoken to him in anyway. He simply continues to stare Mikos down and that scares me more than any action Tucker could have taken. “I said get out! You are not welcome here!” I’ve never seen Tucker’s face so twisted in hatred. He looks evil.
“Son, please.”
“Son?” The horrified expression that crosses Tucker’s face is quickly replaced with rage and I feel my pulse quicken. A train wreck is happening in slow motion in front of me and I feel powerless to stop it. “Don’t you ever fucking call me that again! Do you hear me?”
“Tucker!”
“Sorry, Grams, but how dare he? How dare he?” he asks me, the last word rushing out in a whisper as Tucker looks my way with such pain in his eyes. My heart breaks for the man standing before me because all I see is the boy who couldn’t understand why his daddy left him.
If he only knew Mikos lived a couple towns over from us the entire time…
My sweet Tucker would have never come back from knowing that. As much as I wanted Mikos to be with his son and I wanted Tucker to feel loved by his father, Mikos was in no position to raise a child. He took to the bottle after Lily passed away and became a mean drunk. It’s only by the grace of God that he had a best friend who made sure he got to work every day. Otherwise, I think he’d be dead right now, too. Although he had to make it through the days dry, his nights were spent cozied up to a bottle of whiskey. I tried to help him, but he was beyond my reach for so long. I wish I knew what finally got through to my boy. I’m grateful every day for whatever it is, but by the time it happened, my Mikos felt it was too late for him to make amends. Tucker had moved to L.A. to make a name for himself. I could never bring myself to tell him his dad had been here all along.
“You lost the right to call me son the day you walked out. Don’t think you can walk in here now and start acting like you care. I know you’re only good at one thing… leaving.”
I watch these two men I love standoff in a silent battle and the silence threatens to drown me. I wish I were stronger so I could step in and help them to see where they are wrong about the other, but I’m too weak right now. All I can do is watch them tear each other apart, even more than they already have. Mikos’ dark eyes look defeated as he stares at his son. I can see how he pleads with Tucker; see the forgiveness he’s begging for in the depth of his stare, his relaxed stance, and how he lets his hands fall lax at his sides. He’s trying to show Tucker that he comes to him a beaten man. But, Tucker’s blue eyes have gone glacial. His arms are crossed over his chest, screaming at how closed off he is. I see the pain of sixteen years reflected in every blink of his eyes.
It feels like that’s how long ago it was that Mikos dropped Tucker off with me. I knew that day that my life and Tucker’s would change. I guess I just didn’t realize just how much.
“I know how you must feel about me, Tucker, and I don’t blame you, but I love my mother. I intend to stay and make sure she’s alright.” I see the fight in Mikos’ eyes, feel the tension raise in the room, and know this will not end well. Mikos is stubborn, but Tucker is so much more so.
“She’s fine. She has me and I’m staying with her this week. After that, I have a nurse hired to stay as long as she needs. Like I said, you can leave. No one here needs you.” I can see Tucker’s comments for what they are—an attempt to cause Mikos pain after the years of pain he felt.
“That’s ridiculous. I’ve already talked to my boss and I’ve taken a leave of absence. When you’re ready to fly back to your show, I’ll take over. No stranger will be taking care of my mother.”
“If you think I’m leaving Grams here with you, then you’re out of your damn mind.” I don’t bother correcting his language this time. I’m too tired to fight with them and I don’t think either will listen to me.
I notice Adriana standing a few feet away from them. Her eyes are darting back and forth between them as they argue over who is best to take care of me and I wonder if she’s paying attention to what they’re saying or to the similarities between them. It’s uncanny how much Tucker resembles Mikos, not just in height and build, but in looks too. If he hadn’t inherited his eye color and dimples from his mother, then he’d be a perfect replica of his father. His strong jaw, the shape of his eyes, the fullness of his lips, the slope of his cheeks, it’s all identical to his father.
Does Tucker see the resemblance and resent himself for it?
I can’t stop the thought. There were many nights I heard him cry behind his closed door. He thinks I don’t know, but I did. I wanted to give him his privacy to work through it. Had he been a girl, I would have treated him differently, but I know males need to feel so tough. I never called him out on it. Now, I’m questioning those decisions.
Bringing myself back to the present, I’m faced with my son and grandson screaming at each other over who is best to care for me. I understand why Tucker doesn’t trust Mikos to stay with me, but I also know Mikos has always been a momma’s boy. Watching them tear each other apart is too much for me right now. It’s sapping the last of my energy reserves, but I can’t find enough strength to ask them to stop. Instead, I sit here, quietly praying to God to intervene. I need to rest. Placing my face in my hands so I don’t have to watch at least, I pray again for this to end soon and hope that no one throws any punches.
I sit there for what seems like an eternity, listening to the screams around me. “Enough!” Adriana yells, bringing my face flying up out of my hands. When I can focus my eyes, I see this tiny woman standing between two giants, her arms stretched out, a hand on each of their chests and fire burning in her eyes. Her head swivels back and forth and I know I never want to be the person she’s angry at. Her lips are pursed in a scowl and ev
en though I’m tired, I feel like a little bit of life has been breathed into me at watching her take on these two men.
“What the hell is wrong with you two? Rose just came home from the hospital from having a heart attack. Are you trying to give her another one?” She never lowers her hands and she never raises her voice, but her tone speaks of her disappointment in both of them. Tucker looks from me to her and I see the war raging in his eyes. This is killing him in more ways than Adriana is possibly aware of. Mikos has a smirk on his face, obviously amused by this tiny woman who just diffused a bomb that was about to detonate.
“Sweetness, I… he… Grams.” He looks at the floor. It’s obvious to me there is too much emotion going on for him to let anyone see right now and I hate that I’m too weak to go to him and comfort him. The stress of the fight has wiped me out completely.
I watch as she brings her focus to Tucker, but still keeps her hands firmly planted on both their chests. “Tucker, look at me please.” Slowly, he lifts his head and I watch as they connect on a level that I wasn’t sure he’d ever be capable of. “I lost my dad three years ago and the one thing I pray every day is that I could have one more moment with him, one more hug, one more chance to tell him I love him. Life is precious and shouldn’t be wasted. I know your situation was different from mine and I can never imagine what it was like for you, but did you ever think that maybe it’s time to let it go? Carrying this anger and hurt will only drag you down.”
I see Tucker’s nostrils flaring from where I sit and I can tell he’s getting angry again. He isn’t hearing what she’s really saying to him. If he were, he’d see how much she cares for him.
“Thank you, Miss. I didn’t get your name.”
I watch a flip switch in Adriana. The compassion she had on her face for Tucker falls off her face now. Hardness takes over. “My name is Adriana, not that my name is the important thing right now. You, Mr. Stavros—”