CHAPTER 10
Dee
Only a few hours ago, I was hung-over. A total trainwreck. This life-and-death encounter had sobered me up fast. In fact, I felt horribly guilty about getting plastered last night. I could have done something really dumb that endangered my life. As I watched Ty stir, I vowed never to lose my precious baby. And to never again do anything that could take me away from her. I didn’t want to be my mother, the drunkard who passed out nightly and abandoned us for days at a time during her binges. Even worse was the possibility that she’d end up with her father. I trembled at the thought.
The face of another man broke into my dark thoughts. Drake. My gorgeous new boss. Though I still wasn’t sure if he’d taken advantage of me, he’d been there for me last night and he’d been there for me today. Somehow his presence helped me weather this nerve-wracking storm. He comforted me, made me feel safe. And he’d put up with both my drunken stupor and my deep-rooted fears. Even my tears. When I hugged him, I felt myself melt into him and didn’t want to let him go.
While watching over Tyson, I called my sister to let her know what had happened. She was greatly relieved to hear that her treasured niece was going to be okay. Between Zumba classes, she was going to run to the house and grab a few of Ty’s favorite things as well as her PJs. I told her to also pack a small bag for me with a few necessities because there was no way I was going to leave my baby alone in the hospital. Not even for a night. Lulu promised she would be here later in the afternoon.
Soon after I hung up with Lulu, a hospital attendant stopped by carrying a huge basket with a large “Get Well” balloon attached to it. Inside, were adorable hand-drawn cards from Tyson’s kindergarten classmates. Each one put a big smile on my face, and I knew she would love them. I made a call to her teacher to thank her and update her on Ty’s condition. While I spoke with her, a warm feeling saturated me. I felt blessed I would be teaching art at this school in the fall and be among these lovely children and teachers. Mrs. Dunne was thrilled to hear that Tyson would likely be back in school sometime tomorrow. The hospital was sending us home with a couple of adrenaline-filled Epipens, one for me and one for her teacher, that could be used to inject her should she get stung by a bee again and have another severe reaction.
As I was reading through the cards, a familiar little raspy voice sounded in my ears.
“Mommy! I’m thirsty!”
Joy filled every molecule of my being. My little girl was awake. Leaping to my feet, I placed the basket of cards on the chair. Fighting back happy tears, I ran over to her and smothered her with kisses.
“Oh, cupcake, I’m so happy you’re okay.” I reached for the sippy cup on the nightstand and held it to her lips. “Drink slowly, my baby girl.” Sitting up, she guzzled the water.
“How do you feel, my love?” I asked as she took her last sip.
“Much better, Mommy.” She took a deep breath and exhaled loudly. “I can breathe perfectly fine. What are all these weird machines and what’s this yucky thingy up my nose?”
“They’re just some machines to help your heart beat better and make it easier for you to breathe. They’re going to come out soon.”
My feisty little girl screwed up her face. “No, now! I want to go back to school.”
My gaze turned to the basket of cards. I stood up and fetched it. I set the basket on the bed.
“Look at what all your friends made.”
“Cool!” She began leafing through the colorful cards and then started laughing. “Look! Chandra drew a picture of us.”
“Let me see.” Chandra was her best friend, whose house she had slept over. It was a stick figure drawing of two little girls holding hands, one with short curly hair, the other with long braids.
“It looks just like you! Oh and by the way, your teacher, Mrs. Dunne, sends you a big hug.”
“She told me that the bee that stung me is going to die. Is he going to go to heaven, Mommy?” Her eyes grew wide with worry.
My sweet little girl loved all creatures, great and small. She was perpetually rescuing ladybugs and stray animals, and loved to leave food for birds and squirrels. I told her the bee probably wasn’t going to die, but if he did he was going to go to honeycomb heaven to be with all his brothers and sisters.
The afternoon whizzed by. Nurse after nurse stopped by to meet my sweet, precocious daughter, who by now could recite the bee-sting story in full drama queen mode. With the television tuned to the Peanuts channel, we both had lunch, which was surprisingly good for hospital food, and devoured the extra Jell-Os with whip cream. Lulu stopped by with all the things I requested and brought along a cute stuffed teddy bear to add to Tyson’s collection; she loved it and named him Honeybear. My sister stayed for about an hour. Just after her departure, Tyson’s doctor stopped by to remove all her tubes, including the breathing aid in her nose. He put cartoon character Band-Aids on her arms where the IVs had been. Hanson Entertainment’s Danger Rangers, one of Tyson’s favorite shows. My mind drifted to Drake for a minute and a hot tingle shot through me.
“You know, I’m working for the man whose company makes Danger Rangers.”
“That’s so cool, Mommy. Do you think I could meet them?”
“I think I can arrange that, Mighty Girl.”
My heart skipped a beat as ticklish shivers skittered down my spine. Drake!
“Yay!” shouted Tyson.
I shifted my body so that I was facing Drake at the doorway. His sparkling blue eyes, which were close in color to Tyson’s, met mine and a dazzling smile lit up his swoon-worthy face. My heart thudded, and butterflies fluttered in my stomach.
“Um, uh, honey, this is Drake Hanson. The man I told you I work for.”
“Hi,” said Drake with a wave of his hand.
“Hi, Mr. Handsome!”
I flushed. Oh, God was he!
“I’ve brought along a few things I thought you might like.”
Drake stepped into the room and my eyes popped as a hospital attendant wheeled in a dolly piled high with toys, all inspired by Hanson cartoons.
“Wowee!” exclaimed my overjoyed little girl.
“Drake, you shouldn’t have.”
I was totally, utterly blown away by my boss’s kindness. For a guy who wasn’t crazy about kids, he sure had a weird way of showing it.
“Drake, seriously, I don’t know how to thank you.” For the second time today, I found myself uttering these words.
A devilish grin crossed Drake’s face. “I do. Have dinner with me.”
“B-but, I’m staying overnight at the hospital. I can’t leave Tyson.”
Drake flicked the tip of my nose, a small gesture that set every cell on fire. “You won’t have to. We’re not going anywhere.”