I turned right, following the signs to his room, but drew up short when Lexi stepped out of his room.
She looked my way and glared, walking toward me. She crossed her arms over her chest and jutted her hip out. Full resting bitch face was out, and I was intimidated by it. I hoped it didn’t show as I stared at her.
“What are you doing here?” she asked.
“I’m here to see my boyfriend.”
She snorted and shook her head. “No, you’re not. You’re on the banned list of visitors. He told me last night when he woke up that he didn’t want you coming by anymore. He told me all about you clinging to him and trying to use him to be a father to Noah. You’re disgusting.”
I stared at her, a bad feeling slithering through my gut. I remembered what Jacob said to me about Lexi, and I didn’t think he would have changed his mind like that. “What? No, he didn’t.”
She arched a brow. “Are you calling me a liar?”
I opened my mouth, but nothing came out. I didn’t know what to say, and she seemed to know it based on the smirk on her face.
I didn’t want to say something and cause issues here. I didn’t want issues at work. I couldn’t win either way.
“Why don’t you run along and get out of my way. It’s time for me and my husband to work on our marriage.” She flicked her hair over her shoulder before raking her gaze over me unpleasantly. The look she sent me was one that said I’d been found lacking.
She turned and sashayed back into Jacob’s room, leaving me gaping after her.
I dug into my purse for my phone, pulling up Jacob’s information. I pressed call, but it didn’t go through.
I furrowed my brow and checked that I had service. I did.
I went to texts, and wrote a quick one out, hitting send.
It came back almost immediately as undeliverable.
What the fuck?
I looked around and tried to think of what I could do.
But nothing came to mind.
My stomach turned over itself as I slowly turned and walked back to the elevator, trying to piece together what just happened and what it meant.
35
Jacob
I lay in my hospital bed, wishing I was already home. I got why they kept me, but I was just ready to be done with this already. My season was derailed and there was a good chance my career might be done as well.
I had a lot to think about while I was recovering, that was for sure.
Hovering nurses and doctors weren’t going to tell me anything I didn’t already glean.
I stepped wrong when fielding a ball. I broke my ankle. It was six to eight weeks in a cast and then who knew how long of physical therapy before I might start playing again.
And even after completing all that, there was no guarantee that I’d be back to one-hundred percent. Ever.
It felt like everything I’d worked for in life was gone, done for.
“You’re awake,” a female voice said from the door.
I froze, then slowly turned my head to the door.
My ex-wife was standing there, a smile on her face, eyes wide.
“What the fuck are you doing here?” I asked her, my hands curling into fists. The absolute last person I wanted to see was my ex.
Her head jerked, and she pressed a hand to her chest. “They called me when you were injured. I’ve been with you the whole time. You don’t remember?”
I continued to glare at her. Why the fuck was she called?
“Why’d they call you?”
Lexi stepped further into the room, closing the door behind her.
“Because I’m still listed as your next of kin.”
She strutted toward me, hips swaying, and I got a good look at her.
Fuck. She was seriously here to play this out right now?
I pressed the nurse’s call button, hoping someone would come in and save me.
“I’m guessing this is your way of letting me know you want me the same as I want you.”
I scooted away from the edge of the bed, my gaze pinned on the door, hoping someone would come through it.
“I just forgot to change it,” I told her, looking back at her. “I didn’t realize. I’ll be fixing it shortly. It means absolutely nothing.”
Lexi rolled her eyes. “Jacob, stop pretending. You didn’t take me off your paperwork because you know that we should have never gotten divorced. I’m sorry I didn’t tell you what was wrong so we could work it out then. But we can be together now. Just the two of us.”
Was Lexi always this one-track about everything?
Before I even finished the question in my head, I knew the answer to that. Yes, yes, she was.
She was so used to getting what she wanted that if someone wanted something different, it didn’t matter. She’d needle until she got what she wanted.
Except in this instance.
I flinched as she reached for me, and the door to the room opened. I breathed a sigh of relief as a nurse popped in.
“You rang, Mr. Vaughn?” she said, coming to stand at the end of the bed, her gaze pinging between Lexi and me.
“Yes. I’d like this woman removed from my room. Is it possible to make sure she can’t come in again?”
The nurse nodded. “Yes, we can add her to the banned visitor list with the other person who’s there.”
My brow furrowed. “The other person who’s there?”
The nurse nodded. “I don’t remember the name, but this woman listed her as banned since she has the right as your next of kin.”
A chill swept through my body, and I glared at Lexi, who had the wherewithal to look worried.
“I’d like to change my paperwork. We’re no longer married. Can you tell me who’s on that list?”
The nurse nodded and looked at Lexi. “Ma’am? I’m going to have to ask you to leave.”
Lexi’s expression changed in the blink of an eye. She glared at the nurse before looking at me. “I can’t believe you’d date someone I work with. Of all the things you could have done, you did that. Throwing in my face that I’m trying to repair what’s broken. Did you do it on purpose?”
I sighed. “I’m not throwing anything in your face. We’re divorced. We have been for several months. I just want you to leave me alone.”
I felt like a broken record.
Lexi opened her mouth, but the nurse spoke over her. “If you refuse to leave the room, I can call hospital security to have you escorted out and barred from the premises. He’s made it clear he’d like you to leave, so please leave.”
Her voice was firm and brooked no argument.
Lexi’s nostrils flared, and she glared between the two of us, but she turned and left. Something she was all too good at.
I breathed a sigh of relief as I was left alone again.
I dragged my hand over my face. What the fuck?
Even without the nurse confirming who Lexi had banned, I knew it was Zoe. But what did she mean about them working together? Did they?
As I thought about it, I realized that I’d never asked Zoe which bank she worked at. So she might work with Lexi and I just hadn't realized.
I looked at the small bedside table next to me and grabbed my phone. I found her number in it, but when I pressed call, it didn’t connect.
Weird, but okay. I thumbed through my texts and tried to send a message. But it wouldn’t send.
What the fuck?
I thought about what Lexi said about being there after being called, and a lead weight settled in my gut.
I wouldn’t be surprised if she hadn’t also blocked Zoe on my phone.
Lexi was a class A bitch, and I was glad to be rid of her.
I googled how to unblock a caller on my phone, and saw I was right when I followed the steps. Lexi had blocked Zoe.
After unblocking her number, I pressed call, breathing a sigh of relief when it started ringing immediately.
“Hello?” Zoe asked cautiously.
“Hey. It’s so
good to hear your voice,” I said with a sigh.
A beat of silence greeted my words, then a sniffle.
“Are you okay? What’s wrong?”
Another sniffle. “Yeah, I’m just glad to hear from you.”
“Did you come to the hospital last night?”
“Yeah.” Her voice cracked. “I went back with Chase before they moved you to a room upstairs.”
That meant that Lexi and Zoe had probably seen each other here if what Lexi said was true. And I didn’t doubt that Zoe’d come as soon as she got word I was hurt.
“I hear you had a run-in with my ex.”
Zoe huffed. “You could say that. She barred me from your room earlier. I came by to visit and see if you needed me to do anything. She said I was banned from coming in, and I couldn’t call you!”
I closed my eyes and reminded myself that Lexi was gone, and we were divorced. Plus, murder was frowned upon.
“I’m so sorry,” I told her. “I woke up earlier, and she was here. I didn’t even realize I hadn’t updated my paperwork. That’ll be taken care of shortly. And you’re off the banned list. I can’t believe that she would do that.”
I blew out a breath, shaking my head. “Apparently, she got into my phone, too, blocking your number. That’s why you couldn’t get through.”
Zoe sucked in a breath. “What?”
“Yeah. I can’t believe she’d do that.”
Zoe said nothing at first. Then, “I can.”
“You can?”
“Yeah.” She sighed. “I work at the same branch she does. I never realized that you were married to her. She can be… catty.”
I snorted, rolling my eyes. “That’s a nice way to put she can be a bitch. I always knew that, but she’s never been like that around me. At least not until she asked for a divorce.”
I was longing for some pain meds to knock me back out, so I didn’t have to deal with all this shit. But I knew putting it off wouldn’t help anything.
“Are you okay?” Zoe asked.
“Yeah. I’m in a cast for six to eight weeks. Then physical therapy. So my season is done.”
“I’m sorry,” Zoe said.
“Yeah, me, too. But that means I can see you more. So silver lining.”
She laughed, but I could tell it was strained. I could only imagine what Lexi had said to her, and I hoped it didn’t change Zoe’s feelings for me.
“Do you need help to get home later?” she asked.
“Nah. Derek is coming to get me and help me home. But you’re welcome to come over later.”
“Okay. I’ll probably take you up on that. Is it okay if I bring Noah? He was freaked after watching and wants to see you, but I told him we had to wait until you were settled at home.”
“Yeah, bring him. I’d love to see him, too. Maybe we can do take out or something.”
“Yeah, we’d like that.”
“Great. I’ll call you later when I know when I’ll be home?”
“Okay, great.” She paused. “I love you.”
I sucked in a breath and expected to hear the click of her hanging up, but I didn’t.
She continued. “I just had to say that. Watching you go down yesterday, and not knowing what it would mean put everything in perspective. I know I said it a while back, but not again. But I don’t care if you don’t feel the same. I love you, and I’ll see you later.”
Then the click sounded, left me sitting there with my phone in my hand, staring at the wall in front of me as I whispered, “I love you, too.”
36
Zoe
I hung up with Jacob and sighed, running a hand over my face.
This entire weekend had been a rollercoaster so far.
I shook my head and stood from the bed, pushing my phone into my pocket as I made my way out of my room.
I’d escaped there earlier when I got overwhelmed with questions from Noah and my parents.
I could hear the three of them in the living room, the indistinct murmur of their voices traveling up the stairs, and I took a few moments to get myself together before joining them.
“Did I hear your phone ring?” Mom asked.
I nodded. “Yeah, it was Jacob.”
Silence greeted my words, and I looked at my family.
They knew I wasn’t able to see him earlier, and hadn’t been able to call him. They all looked at me expectantly.
“Well?” Dad asked.
“He’s being released today. Derek is taking him home.” I looked at Noah. “He said we can head over later.”
Noah nodded.
“Did he say anything about that woman barring you from his room?” Mom asked.
I nodded, and walked over to the armchair, curling one leg under me as I sat, sighing. “Yeah. He hadn’t updated his paperwork, so they called her when he was taken in. That’s why she was there. He said she’d shown back up today, and she was the reason I was banned from the room. It’s been taken care of. Not that it helps for right now.” I raised a shoulder. “Either way, she’s gone.”
“Whether or not she should have been there, that’s a crappy move,” Mom said, making a tsking noise. “I can’t believe someone would block another person from the room without the patient knowing.”
“It happens more than you’d think.”
“It’s still wrong,” she muttered.
We lapsed into silence, and I ran my gaze over Noah. He was fidgeting where he was sitting. He’d been so upset when we got home the night before, and this morning hadn’t been much better. With my parents here, he’d been more distracted. But now that we were sitting and waiting, I could tell he needed something else.
Before I could suggest anything, Dad spoke up, “Noah, you want to throw the ball around the backyard?”
Noah glanced at me before looking back at Dad and nodding.
“Go get your glove. I’ll get mine from the car.”
Dad kissed Mom on the cheek, then went out for his glove.
“Those two,” Mom said, shaking her head. “I’m sure they both dream about baseball every night.”
I nodded. She was probably right.
“Now that it’s just the two of us,” Mom said, sliding down the couch until she was sitting on the end closest to me, “why don’t you tell me what’s bothering you? And don’t say it’s Jacob being injured, because that’s a given.”
I blew out a breath and ran a hand through my hair.
I knew I needed to come clean about why I had wanted the job at the bank and what I was still feeling about Noah and Jewel. But it was hard.
We were all in a rut when Jewel died, and I felt like I had to keep this facade in place to show I was okay because of Noah.
“I think I need to quit my job,” I blurted out.
That wasn’t where I wanted to start this conversation, but it was definitely a starting point.
Mom stared at me for a few moments. “Why?”
I told her about Lexi the night before and explained how I worked with her.
Mom said nothing at first. “And that’s a reason for you to quit?”
I squirmed under her gaze. “Not really…” I sighed. “There’s more to it than that?”
She arched a brow. “Really? I would have never known.”
“And Noah wonders where my sarcasm comes from…”
Mom smiled. “You were saying?”
“When Paul and I broke up, one of the reasons we did was because he said I didn’t have any ambition. He told me I was stuck in a rut and happy to be there. That I’d never pull myself out of it.”
Mom’s eyes widened.
I continued. “That really stuck with me. So I decided to get a job.”
Mom sucked in a breath. “That’s why you got the job at the bank?”
I nodded. “Yeah. I couldn’t get his words out of my head. It had me wondering if I was just coasting through, knowing that I’d get the Java Hut from you two.”
“But you love that place!”
I nod
ded. “Yeah, I do. And working at the bank has helped me realize that. As much as I shouldn’t have put stock into what he said, I can’t say that he didn’t have some good points. I wasn’t in a good place after Jewel. I was a mess, but I put on a show because of Noah. I didn’t want him to know I was struggling when he was also struggling.”
“You know he wouldn’t have thought any less of you struggling.”
I nodded. “Yeah. But I didn’t feel like it at the time. So when Paul said all that, he hit my worst fears. I couldn’t stay at the coffee shop without knowing that I was making the right choice.”
Mom shook her head. “You always were the more stubborn one when you put your mind to it.” She stared at me for a few beats before asking, “Does this mean that you’re ready to come back to the Java Hut?”
I nodded. “Yeah. As much as I have enjoyed being at the bank because I got to meet Liv, I can’t see myself there in thirty years. And if I’m being honest, I don’t know that I can work with the ex-wife of the man that I’m in love with.”
Mom nodded. “I can see that. Just don’t go rushing into anything with this. Your dad and I are fine to keep working for the next few years if you want to take more time to figure out if you want the business or not.”
I shook my head. “No, that’s not what I want. I’ve been thinking about this for a while, and after seeing Jacob get injured, it’s just put into perspective that I shouldn’t let someone else’s opinion of me influence what I want in my life. I enjoy working at the coffee shop. I like the customers. I like the people there. I like how kookie the place is. I miss it.”
Mom grinned. “If you’re sure…”
I nodded. “I am. I want to mention it to Jacob when I see him later to get his thoughts, but I plan on putting my notice in later this week.”
We smiled at each other, and I could feel myself tearing up as my mom’s eyes water.
“How about we go check on those boys, make sure they haven’t broken any windows?” she asked, clearing her throat.
I nodded. “You got it.”
Once we were standing, before I could walk to the backyard, my mom pulled me into her arms and hugged me tightly.
The Slider (Boys of Summer Book 5) Page 17