Chapter Two

 

The chair was uncomfortable and I fidgeted in the seat. My leg was aching after a long day and I wanted to cry. I kept the smile on my face, but I didn’t know how much longer I could do it. We hadn’t eaten yet and I was already in bad shape. Chances were good by the time they brought the food out I wouldn’t be able to eat it. The pain always stole my appetite and drove me to bed. Working alone today was too much. Winifred wouldn’t be back tomorrow either, and I didn’t know what I was going to do. I rubbed my temple to make sure no tears were leaking out of my eyes.

“I was thinking if we put a small, but efficient kitchen in this area,” he paused and held up a finger. “Hang on a second, I forgot something in the kitchen. I’ll be right back.”

He stood and I smiled, nodding my acknowledgement, but as soon as he was gone, I leaned over on the table and tried to relieve the pain in my hip. It spasmed and I sucked in a breath, the pain something I was used to after all these months, but when I was tired, I couldn’t always pretend it didn’t exist.

A hand settled on my shoulder. “Rosie, are you okay?”

It was Sarafina, I didn’t have to look up to recognize her unusual accent. “I’m fine,” I promised.

She raised a brow. “You don’t look fine,” she said, squatting down near the table. “I’ve seen this expression before. You’re in pain.”

I lifted my head slightly and held my finger to my lips. “Please don’t make a big deal about it. I don’t want Sawyer to know. He’s being nice by helping me with the daycare.”

Another hand settled on my other shoulder and I closed my eyes. It was Sawyer. “If you think I can’t see how much you’re hurting, you’re delusional. The pain is etched across your face.”

I sat up and grimaced again when fire burned through my hip. “I’m tired. Once we’re done eating, I’ll go to bed,” I promised, putting on a brave face.

He addressed Sarafina. “I’m going to take her up to her room. Radley will bring our food up when it’s ready. Can you man the restaurant if he’s gone for a few minutes?”

“Absolutely. Take her home. These chairs aren’t exactly comfortable.” She smiled encouragingly at me and I thanked her with my eyes.

He pulled my chair away from the table carefully and handed me my purse and the two crutches. I was about to put my hands in them when he scooped me up off the chair. I let out a surprised, ‘hey’, as I grabbed his chest, holding on for dear life.

“You’re safe, beautiful. You’ll never make it all the way up there on your crutches. Let me carry you,” he said. Sarafina handed me the crutches I dropped and I grasped them, thanking her with a smile.

“I hope you feel better by morning,” she said, then pointed toward the elevator. “Dinner will be up in short order.”

Sawyer strode with me to the elevator and using one finger poked the up button. Thankfully, it was already at the basement level and the doors opened, allowing us entrance. He stepped in and pushed the button for the employee floor.

“You can put me down now,” I whispered, my cheeks heated to the color of a Red Hot candy. “You’re going to throw your back out.”

He laughed, shaking his head as he did so. “Rose, I lift boxes of fish heavier than you are. Relax and I’ll have you home in a few minutes.” I grimaced when he shifted me and he froze. “You’re in terrible pain, aren’t you?” he asked as tears leaked from my eyes.

“My hip is spasming,” I hissed through clenched teeth, not even able to suck in a full breath of air. “I need to take some meds and get ice. Then I’ll be okay.”

The doors started to slide open and he rammed one foot in, forcing it open the rest of the way. He hurried to my apartment door and I swiped the card until the lock clicked open. He pushed the handle down and we awkwardly made our way into the small space. He went to the side of the bed and lowered me down slowly until I was leaning up against the pillows. The crutches went in the corner and he motioned around the space. “Where is the medicine you need?”

I leaned my head back on the pillow, taking a shallow breath. “Kitchen cupboard, second one from the fridge. The bottle will say for muscle spasms on it, just one.”

He strode across the apartment to the kitchen and opened the cupboard finding the bottle. He took the lid off and shook one out before he put it back. “Anything else?” he asked, his back to me.

I sighed. What did it matter? Like I was going to see him again in anything but a professional manner after tonight. No sense suffering out of some kind of misguided pride or idea he might stick around and be part of my life.

“There’s a bottle with a yellow lid. I need one of those, too,” I answered. I closed my eyes and waited while he opened the fridge and took out my water bottle, carrying it all to the bed.

“Hold out your hand,” he said and I did. He laid three pills in it and handed me the water bottle. He pointed at the thick white pill. “It said to take one for pain. If you already took one, don’t take another. I thought it might help.”

I looked down at it and shrugged. “Can’t hurt.” I tossed them all on my tongue and washed them down. He took the bottle from me and set it on the bedside table, then retrieved an icepack from the freezer and handed it to me. While I fixed it to my hip, he sat on the end of the bed, expectantly. Whatever he thought was going to happen, wasn’t. Especially if he expected me to talk about my leg.

His phone rang and he tugged it from his pocket and answered. There were a bunch of yes and no answers, as well as a few ‘not a bad idea’ responses before he hung up. He smiled, and mine rang a second later. I rolled my eyes; it was Kate.

“Hi, Kate,” I answered, forcing my voice into a chipper tone.

“Hello, Rosie. I hear from Sarafina you aren’t feeling the greatest.”

“Just the usual,” I answered, to avoid telling her the truth.

“What’s the problem and why did it flare up?” she asked, even as I could hear Gideon chuckle in the background. Like she needed to ask.

“You know how the nerves can cause some issues if I’m not caref—”

“Or you’ve worked too hard,” she interrupted.

“Or I’ve worked too hard. It’s no problem, though. I took some extra meds and I’ll be okay by morning.”

Kate sighed and I heard another click as if someone else picked up. “Rosie, this is Gideon.”

“Hi, Gideon,” I answered resigned. “Are you both going to gang up on me now?”

I heard them both laugh, as well as the man at the end of my bed. “No,” he said, “but I am going to insist you let Kate help you in the daycare until Winifred comes back. You can’t be there alone. Beyond the logistics of your leg, what if something happened to a child? You can’t be the only one there shouldering all the burden.”

“I can handle it. I don’t like asking other people to do extra work and with Kate’s heart—”

“My heart is fine,” Kate interrupted again. “I have a machine to make sure of it. You don’t have anything but common sense to prevent your issues. I’ll be there bright and early, no arguments.”

I shook my head and rolled my eyes. “No arguments,” I agreed. Gideon said goodbye and hung up, but Kate stayed on the line.

“Tell me honestly, Rosie. Do we need to book a flight to Honolulu? Is your leg getting worse?” she asked, concern evident in her voice.

I crossed my arm over my chest and refused to look at Sawyer. “It’s hard to tell, Kate. I think it’s only gone downhill a bit because I’ve been working alone a lot over the past month as little Flynn has been sick. If it doesn’t start improving once work gets back to normal, then I’ll have to go see him. I won’t last too many more months if it doesn’t. I can fake normalcy for only so long. Case in point, tonight.”

She laughed over the line. “For once, she’s honest!” she exclaimed and drew a giggle even from me. “Keep me posted, you know Gideon can have us there in two hours in the chopper. You can’t risk losing your leg to nerve damage because you’re being stubborn. Got it?”

“Yes, mommy,” I assured her, chuckling at her indignant snortle.

“I’ll see you tomorrow morning. Enjoy your dinner with Sawyer.”

I could tell she was itching to ask, but wasn’t going to, knowing he was in the apartment. “I will, see you in the morning.”

I hung up the phone and lowered it to my lap. He made eye contact and I smiled, rolled my eyes, and huffed. “Bosses.”

His smile was forced and he laid his hand on my calf. “They might be your bosses, but they were calling as your family. Kate was frantic when she called me. She’s incredibly worried about you.”

I hated he understood how much pain I was in. I could tell by the look in his eye. “She’s a worrier, always has been. It can’t be good for her heart, which is why I don’t make a big deal of something until I can’t go it alone any longer.”

“Which tells me you were hurting long before we left the apartment. I should have seen it when you wanted both crutches,” he said, blaming himself for something beyond his control.

“When we left the apartment, my leg was tired. It didn’t start to hurt until we sat down. Sometimes sitting still for a few minutes causes the muscles to freeze up and then spasm when you move wrong, or don’t get out of the position causing the pain. It’s not your fault.”

“I still should have seen the fatigue and known enough to let you rest. I’m truly sorry for being insensitive,” he apologized.

I sat up carefully and took his hand off my leg. “Sawyer, it’s not your fault. Don’t apologize. If I thought it was bad enough, I would have begged off. This leg turns on a dime and there’s no way to predict it.”

He squeezed my hand and held my gaze, the look in his eyes indiscernible. “Next time, if you’re hurting, tell me, please.”

I let go of his hand and glanced toward the door. “There probably shouldn’t be a next time, Sawyer. We can be friends, but it should be from a distance.”

He bolted upright from the end of the bed and stalked to the side where I half-sat half-laid. “There will be a next time and there’s no reason we can’t be friends, up close and personal. I’m not blind and I’m not deaf. I’ve gathered something happened in your past life to bring you here. No one shows up out of the blue at Kupid’s Cove and doesn’t leave, especially not someone like you. Maybe I don’t know the details, yet, but I’m not going to make you do anything you don’t want to do. I just want to be your friend. Can we start there?” he asked.

I nodded in resignation as the doorbell rang. He went to get dinner from Radley and I thunked my forehead on my palm. What have I done and how am I going to undo it?

 

 

“My dear, you’ve eaten all my mahi-mahi,” he teased, the plates nearly empty as they cluttered the table.

“I’m struggling to admit you were right about the fish. Give me time,” I said, laughing as he sipped the beer Radley had brought him. Considering the pain meds I took earlier, I passed on alcohol for the night.

“I don’t care all too much about being right. I care about introducing people to new foods and doing it in a way they enjoy. I’m glad me and my mahi-mahi won you over,” he joked, winking.

I leaned back in my special desk chair I use at the table and rubbed my belly. The icepack was still attached to my hip, and the medication was starting to make me fade. The edges of the room were getting fuzzy and I couldn’t stop yawning.

I put my hand over my mouth until the yawn ended. “Excuse me,” I apologized. “It’s not you, it’s me,” I assured him.

He chuckled and leaned over, kissing my cheek. He stood before I had a second to react, and grabbed the dishes off the table to stack on the tray. “Sure, the old ‘it’s not you it’s me’ line. I can take a hint.”

He was joking, but I put my hand on his arm and he paused in his work. “I had a great time tonight, but I’m exhausted. I’m not trying to be rude.”

He knelt in front of me and swiveled the chair until I faced him. “I know you’re not being rude, Rose. If anything, I’ve overstayed my welcome, but I’m worried about you. I wanted to be sure you had a good meal before I left you for the evening. Let me help you to bed and then I’ll take my leave. Can you stand up?”

I motioned at the crutches laying on the chair behind me. “I can with those.”

He stood, but instead of getting the crutches he picked me up again and swung me into his arms. I clutched his shirt and held on tight around his neck. “This is getting to be a habit,” I said breathlessly.

He took his time carrying me to the bed then laid me down slowly, as if he was savoring every minute of me in his arms. He leaned down and braced his hands on each side of my face. “You’re a habit I could get addicted to quickly, Rose,” he whispered.

I hadn’t let go of his shirt, but the medication made me too tired to do much about his obvious interest in me. “We never talked about the daycare kitchen,” I mumbled, my words running together as my eyes started to close.

His face loomed in my vision. “We can talk about it in a few days when your leg is feeling better, and you’ve had some sleep. Rest now, pretty lady,” he ordered, laying his lips on mine in a kiss I didn’t consent to, but didn’t stop.

 

 

The daycare was in the basement of the hotel, housed in a small, converted conference room. Since we had to squeak out every square inch of space available, we bought tables with built in highchairs. When the kids weren’t eating, we could use the same tables for other play and keep the kids in one place. They worked out great, at least for the younger kids, and saved space we didn’t have. When we opened the center, our intention was to make it a trial run, to see if the service would be taken advantage of by the employees, and to test the waters as a service to offer guests. Since we have remained small, we don’t need a full-time director. Instead, I’m the acting director since I work full-time in the center. Gideon and I meet several times a week to discuss how things are going, what we could improve on, and the logistics of expanding the center. In order to expand, we’d have to move it out of the basement. I saw three benefits to a move, one of them being having a functioning kitchen. It wasn’t always easy to distract the kids when they were hungry, but the food didn’t get to us from the main kitchen in a timely manner. The other benefit would be windows. There were no windows in the basement or any way to take the kids outside to play. The third benefit to moving would be having bathrooms inside the center. Right now, the bathrooms are directly across the hall, which isn’t a big deal, unless you’re working alone.

Thankfully, today I wasn’t alone. Kate had come in at seven as promised and we’d been running after the toddlers and rocking babies all day. When Winifred isn’t here we have one less kid, so it helps, but we still have five, the youngest being the marketing director’s son and daughter, then Lei’s special needs son, Bim, who is two and a half, and Kate’s little girl Hope. We have several more on staff who are waiting to put their kids in the center, which meant I would have to have a sit-down meeting with Gideon in the next few days about the proposed expansion.

I helped Bim stack blocks into a tower, something he struggled with because of his lack of stimulation as a young baby. He has blossomed since Lei and Niko adopted him a year ago, but with two club feet and what they now realize are clubbed fingers, he struggles with small, intricate tasks. He added a block to the tower and when it didn’t topple over, he clapped enthusiastically. “Yay!” he yelled, his face glowing.

“Yay for Bim,” Kate called from where she sat reading to Hope while the other’s napped. I lifted Bim from the highchair and sat him on the floor next to Hope.

“I better get ready for snack time,” I said, rubbing Hope’s head as I walked past.

In a few minutes Kate joined me as I cut up apples and cheese cubes. “How’s the leg?” she asked as she lined up juice boxes on the small counter.

“Better. Thanks for coming today. I should have backed out of dinner last night, but I didn’t realize how bad it was until I sat in those chairs at Kupid’s Table. Who knew they were torture devices?”

Kate laughed and put her hand on her hip. “I’ll have you know those chairs cost big bucks and everyone thinks they’re luxurious.”

I grinned. “Big bucks doesn’t necessarily mean something is comfortable, but the others are probably right. The seats are long and my legs are short. They don’t always bother me, only when my leg is sore.”

“Or, say if you weren’t sitting in them at nine at night with a date?” she asked slyly.

I rolled my eyes. “It wasn’t a date, Kate. It was a working dinner. At least it started out to be.”

She paused in her work. “How did it end up?”

I waved my hands for a moment. “I meant it was still a working dinner, but we didn’t get much work done. We ate dinner and he left. Forget it.”

Kate rubbed my back for a few moments while I stared at the cutting board full of cheese and held back tears. “You’re struggling again, aren’t you? Are you sleeping?”

I bit my lip. “Friday marks the day my life should have changed for the better. Instead, it changed for the worse.” I sucked up a breath. “Well, except for coming here and being with everyone. I’m sorry,” I apologized, forcing those thoughts back into the recesses of my mind.

She shook her head and kept an eye on the babies for a moment. “Don’t apologize, Rosie. I know exactly what you meant and what you didn’t mean. Whatever I can do for you, I will. Gideon and I are concerned about this job being too stressful—”

I grasped her arm frantically. “No, I’m okay. Don’t take the job away from me, please. I need it. I have to be here.”

She pulled me into a hug, my chin over her shoulder. “No, we aren’t taking it away from you. We’re worried about your leg. It would make us feel better if you saw the doctor again. Let him check it out. It’s been a few months and maybe he’ll have some new treatment options.”

I stepped out of her arms and finished with the cheese, carrying it to the table. “I can’t afford the doctor again,” I said, holding up my hand, “and Gideon can’t keep paying for it. He can’t.”

The babies started clamoring for food, and diaper changes, and we drifted off to take care of our charges. While I heated bottles and sang songs, I forced myself not to think about Friday, and the loss of the one thing I wanted most in this world.