Choosing Happiness (17 page)

"That peddle on the right, push it down until I say." She stepped out of the way. Jake put one foot on the pedal and pressed down, after a moment the bed started to drop slowly. "That's good." Andrea moved back to the side of the bed and sat on the edge of the bed easily, but looked up at Jake. "I'm gonna need help to get back in."

Jake helped her shift around until she was sitting, the bed and pillows propping her into an upright position He grabbed the pillow the night nurse had given him from the chair and used it to prop up the arm in a sling, taking the weight off her neck.

"Comfortable?" Jake asked once they had her situated.

"As can be expected," she said.

"Is there any way I can help?"

"No. Don't worry about it."

Jake busied himself straightening up. He turned the bed table sideways so it sat beside the bed instead of extending over it. He put the TV remote beside the water pitcher and cup the nurse had brought in early that morning and moved the recliner back where it belonged.

"Ben's on his way. He said stopping for food would take a few minutes but he'll get you something edible."

"Good."

"After he gets here, I'll go for a bit."

"You don't have to stay-" she said.

"I'll go home and get a shower before coming back.” He continued as if she hadn’t spoken. “Is there anything I can bring you? Something from home, something to do while you're here? Your lunch order?"

Andrea laughed and realized there was no point in trying to talk him out of coming back. "Don't you have to go to work?"

"I took some time off."

"Jake, you didn't have to do that." Her eyes were wide.

"Yeah," he looked her in the eye. "I did."

"But you haven't been there long. Are you sure it won't cause problems?"

"It won't. Even if it did, I'd take the time."

Andrea shook her head, not sure how to respond.

"So what do you want me to bring you?" Jake asked again, changing the subject.

She took a deep breath and thought about it for a few minutes. "All I can think of off-hand is a hair brush, my tablet, and my pills off my night stand."

Jake picked up his phone and quickly pulled up the note pad app and started a list. "What about lunch? What do you want me to bring you?"

"Do you know what happened to my purse?" The phone in his hand reminded her. He looked up at her and blinked.

"Probably in evidence at the station. I'll talk to Ramon and see if I can get it or anything out of it for you."

"All right. There's nothing urgent while I'm in here, it's not like I could get my phone out of it, but replacing my wallet and my ID would be a pain in the ass."

"Do you want me to pick you up a new phone?"

"Nah, I don't know which one I want yet, but can you grab my laptop while you’re at my place? There's Wi-Fi here and I’ll do some research so maybe I’ll have some idea which one I want by the time I get out."

"Can do." He added the computer to the list. "Does Ben have keys to your place?"

"No, Mom does, but you won't need them. It's not locked."

"Your house isn't locked?" He looked up at her, frowning.

"No, it never is."

"You never lock your door?"

"Not unless I'm going out of town."

Jake shook his head, not wanting to get into that here. "All right, I'll pick these up for you. You're sure that's all?"

"That's all for now. If they keep me more than a day or so I'll probably come up with more."

Jake nodded. "I take it since you've not answered me twice now that you don't have an order for lunch?"

"Nothing specific, just not the food here."

Jake laughed and slipped his phone into his pocket. He opened his mouth as if to say something, but closed it again when a knock sounded on the door.

"It's open," Andrea called.

"Hey, Andy," Ben pushed the door open and stepped inside, Jeanie close behind him.

"Glad to see you looking better this morning," Jeanie put in.

"Hey, guys," Andrea smiled, happy to see the two of them.

Ben lifted the white plastic bag he was carrying and set it on the foot of the bed. "Breakfast as ordered."

Jake turned the bed table again, maneuvering it close enough for Andrea to eat. He pulled the square foam box from the bag and set it on the table, opening it for her. Inside was a large, fluffy pile of scrambled eggs, several slices of bacon and a couple pieces of toast. He dug into the bag again and found the plastic wrapped fork and napkin packet. Opening it, he set them both, along with the enclosed salt and pepper packets, where Andrea could easily reach them.

"Oh, this looks good, Ben, thanks." Andrea picked up the fork and took a bite of the eggs.

"No problem, I live to serve." Ben took a deep bow.

Jeanie elbowed him in the ribs when he stood back up. "Knock it off, you oaf." She told him, then turned to Andrea. "Really, it's no big deal."

"It is to me. The food here is not good." Andrea took another bite. Jake watched her for a few minutes, making sure she was eating before he spoke up.

"Well, now that you're in good company, I think I'll go." He picked up his things where he’d scattered them around the room and put them in his pockets. "I'll be back later with the things on your list." He leaned over and gave Andrea a soft kiss on top of the head. "I'll see you guys later," he said to Ben and Jeanie on his way out.

~~~

T
hey watched him go then Ben turned back to Andrea. "Did he stay all night?"

"I think so. He was asleep in that chair when I woke up." She pointed her plastic fork at the recliner.

"That little shit!" He said under his breath. "Mom said he told her he was going to stay a while then go home for the night."

"I guess not." Andrea took a bite of bacon.

Ben shook his head. "Don't know what I'm gonna do with that boy."

J
ake knocked lightly on the open door before stepping inside. "Hey?" He kept his voice soft in case Andrea was sleeping.

"Hello," Jeanie's voice was just as soft. He walked past the bathroom and found Jeanie sitting in the reclining chair against the wall, a book open in her lap. Andrea lay sleeping in the partially reclined bed. Jake set the plastic bag he was carrying on the table extending over the foot of the bed and the leather laptop bag in the seat of one of the extra chairs.

"How long's she been out?" He kept his voice soft.

Jeanie glanced up at the clock on the wall. "About an hour."

Jake scowled slightly. "How long have you been here alone?"

"Most of the morning.” She closed her book. "Ben only stayed for about half an hour, but he should be here to pick me up soon."

"Why didn't you just bring your car?"

"Ben took it with him this morning. The brakes have been squealing and he wanted to take a look at them."

Jake nodded and looked back at Andrea. "How's she been?"

Jeanie looked over at her sister-in-law, lying motionless in the bed. "Good. The surgeon came by and talked to her for a little bit, explained to her the damage the bullet did and what they had to do to repair it. It was a bunch of gibberish to me, but she seemed to understand him."

Jake nodded. He’d heard it all when she first came out of surgery, but he knew Andrea would want to hear it herself now that she was awake and mostly clear headed.

"She and I talked for a bit but she got tired and decided to take a nap," Jeanie continued.

"And you've been sitting here doing nothing since?"

"Not doing nothing, I've been reading." She lifted her book.

"Is it good?" He nodded toward the book.

"It's keeping me entertained, which is mostly all I ask from a book."

"Well that's good then." He sat in one of the empty chairs, not sure what else to say.

"Ben wasn't happy when he learned you were here all night." Jeanie broke the silence.

"He'll get over it." Jake was unconcerned. "I didn't disturb her or keep her from resting. He's got nothing to complain about."

"I don't really think it was her he was concerned about." Jeanie watched him.

Jake grunted. "I got more rest here than I would have gotten at home anyway. If he's gonna start worrying like a mother hen, maybe you should give him a kid or two to worry over."

Jeanie ignored the comment about kids. She tilted her head and looked at him a moment "I’d agree that probably you got more sleep here than at home, and I’m sure he knows it, too. What that means is probably what's getting to him. Especially considering recent events and his role in them."

Jake looked at her a moment. "You're smarter than I'd given Ben credit for."

"Oh really?" She lifted one brow at him.

Jake shrugged. “For a long time the only kind of girl he was interested in was beautiful and brainless. I used to call it Ben's personal soap opera."

Jeanie laughed softly. "And you were picking up the intelligent base rats?"

Jake looked chagrined. "Well, no," he admitted. "But I didn't try to have relationships with them either. He did."

"So you were a love 'em and leave 'em kind of guy?" She looked amused.

"I was a 'get what I needed without getting tangled up in their drama' kind of guy. I never led anyone on or promised anything I wasn't willing to give, but I was perfectly willing to take what they were offering."

Jeanie nodded. "At least you were honest about it."

Ben stepped into the room, glancing at the bed and seeing Andrea sleeping he turned to where Jake and Jeanie sat.

"Speak of the devil," Jake nodded at Ben.

"You're not telling her all my secrets, are you, man?"

"You shouldn't keep secrets from your wife," Jeanie put in.

"I was just telling her that she's a lot smarter than any other woman I've ever seen you with," Jake said. “She’s defiantly not part of the cast of Ben's soap opera."

Ben rolled his eyes at the old insult and turned to look at Jeanie. "You ready to go, babe?"

"Sure." She stood up, picking up her purse from the floor beside her chair and tucking her book inside.

"I want to talk to you." Ben pinned Jake with a look.

"Not now. Take your wife to get something to eat after leaving her here all morning," Jake said pleasantly.

"That's what I'm going to do. Later, I'll catch up to you and make you listen."

"Yes, papa." Jake couldn't resist the urge to dig. Ben shot him a look full of fire before leaving quietly with Jeanie. Jake stayed in his chair, thinking about what Ben likely had to say until the sound of sheets rustling drew him back to the present. He looked up at Andrea to find her watching him.

"Hey." A smile formed on his lips.

"Hey, you," she rasped, turning her head to look for something.

Jake quickly stood and poured her a cup of water. He held it where she could take a sip from the straw.

"Better?" he asked.

Andrea nodded and reached for the button to raise the head of the bed. "How long have you been back?"

Jake glanced up at the clock. "About twenty minutes. You missed Ben and Jeanie by about five minutes, they just left."

Andrea made a face. "Ben's being pushy," she grumped. The bed stopped moving and Andrea blinked slowly, still trying to get her brain functioning after sleep. "What's in the bag?" she asked, looking at the bag he'd set on the table near her feet.

"Food," he said. "You hungry? It's probably still hot."

Andrea nodded and tried to sit up, wincing.

"Let me help." Jake grabbed the stack of pillows that had been set aside and helped her sit upright and propped the sling up on another. He pulled the insulated box out and set it on the table in front of her.

"Where did you go?"

"I found this place," he smiled at her. "They have the best food." He moved the table up her legs so she could easily reach it and opened the box. "I went in and explained to Peg that I needed something for you. Something you could eat easily with one hand. This is what she brought me."

Andrea looked in the open box and found that Peg had sent one of her favorites, fish and chips. They were finger foods that she could easily eat with one hand. Picking up a piece of fish, she took a bite. "Oh," she said, her mouth still full. "Still warm and she even salted it for me."

Jake smiled and sat down to watch her eat.

"Oh, that was good," Andrea said a few minutes later as she licked the last of the oil and salt from her fingers. "I can't believe you went to the diner to get me lunch"

"Why not?" he asked. "I knew if I had Peg give me something you'd find it edible."

Andrea laughed. "You're right."

***

A
couple hours later, Jake could see Andrea was starting to tire when a firm knock sounded on the door.

“Yes?” Andrea called.

After a few seconds someone appeared. It was a tall man, Jake guessed a couple inches over six feet. He was slender without being too thin, at least as far as Jake could tell through the scrubs he was wearing. But it was the clear bright blue eyes that caught his attention. Blue eyes were common, but there was something different about these, Jake wasn’t sure what.

“Doctor Whirley!” The surprise in Andrea’s voice made Jake turn back to her. “I’m surprised to see you.” Jake realized why those eyes had caught his attention. This was the doctor who had treated Andrea when she’d come in the night before.

“Hey, I wanted to come up and see how you’re doing.” He gave her an easy smile.

“Better than last night.” She looked down at her shoulder then back at the visitor.

“You look better than you did when they brought you in.” Dr. Whirley said watching her face.

“You were on call?”

The doctor shook his head. “Not on call, in charge. When you came in every one dropped what they could and you were the center of our attention.” He moved closer to the bed. “I’m glad it wasn’t as bad as we feared.”

Andrea gave him a half-hearted smile “Well, I kind of earned it. I took a chance and it paid off, but I’m gonna pay for it for a while, too.”

“Has the surgeon been by yet?”

“Yes, I saw Dr. Shaw this morning.”