Page 19 of Marrying Chrissy

Chapter Seven

“Uh oh. What happened?” There was no missing the dark expression on Emma’s face the moment Chrissy walked into the house. Instead of responding, Emma held up her inhaler and continued the breathing treatment she was in the middle of. Chrissy patted her knee. “All right. I’m going to go shower and get this coffee smell off me. I’ll be back.”

Emma nodded as she breathed in the steam. The image of her in pajamas with the breathing treatment didn’t exactly make Chrissy feel confident about leaving again later in the evening. By the time she finished showering, she’d already decided to text and cancel dinner with Wyatt. She just hadn’t actually done it yet.

With her phone in hand, she wandered back to the living room where Emma had finished her breathing treatment and was perusing the channels on TV—all five of them—with a frown on her face.

“You look like they just canceled your favorite show.” Chrissy plopped herself down on the couch. “Where’s Mom?”

“She ran down to the store. She said she’d be back in twenty minutes.”

They’d already been through the list of channels three times when Chrissy took the remote and set it on the coffee table. “I could’ve stopped on my way back from work.”

Emma didn’t respond. Instead, she watched the laundry detergent commercial on TV with the attention of her favorite movie.

Chrissy sighed and turned the TV off entirely. “You’re starting to freak me out. Did the doctor call you or something?” Organ rejection was constantly in the back of Chrissy’s mind. What if the doctor had gotten some tests back and found evidence that things weren’t going as smoothly as they thought? What if this was more than just bronchitis? All those old worries about losing her sister flooded Chrissy.

Emma looked at her and must’ve seen the emotion in her eyes because she put an arm around Chrissy and pulled her close. “No, it’s nothing like that. I’m sorry, I forget that’s the first place you and Mom go to.” She let her head rest against Chrissy’s. “My boss called and asked me to quit my job. He’s paying me for all of my vacation days, plus another week.” She paused. “He said he feels like it’s a liability for me to work there, and he’s worried about my health.”

“He’s not wrong.”

“Yeah, I know.” Emma moved her arm to cover a cough and slouched against the back of the couch. “I need to find another job now. How many places are going to hire someone who gets sick all the time?”

“Well, for one thing, hopefully you won’t be getting sick all the time now that you’re not working at the vet’s office.” Chrissy cringed when Emma flinched. “I’m sorry. Seriously, I know how much you loved that job. It’s what you always wanted to do, and after all you’ve been through, it’s not fair that you have to give that up.” Memories of Emma taking care of the neighborhood pets and bringing home stray after stray came to mind. Emma never had a plan B because becoming a vet tech was always the goal.

Truthfully, Chrissy had envied Emma and her drive. It would’ve been nice to have a goal like that to shoot for. She never thought she’d be working at a coffee shop long-term.

The reality of a third of their combined income disappearing hit Chrissy hard. Hopefully Emma would get another job, but she was sick now and needed to take time to rest. Realistically, Chrissy should probably look for a second job. Different options raced through her mind until Emma elbowed her.

“I thought you had a hot date tonight.”

Wyatt. Right, she should probably text him and cancel before it got much later. Chrissy ignored the flash of disappointment. “Are you kidding? I thought we’d hang out and watch one of your favorite movies.”

Emma pinned her down with a knowing look. “We do that nearly every night. You can’t keep putting your life on hold because of me. Go on your date and get out for a while.”

“I second that.” Mom’s voice snagged their attention as she pushed the front door open the rest of the way and stepped inside. “I’m making a casserole tonight. If it were me, I’d be going somewhere else for dinner.” She winked. “We’ve got this.”

Chrissy wanted to protest, but with the two of them looking at her, she knew she wasn’t going to win. Besides, she did want to see Wyatt again. When she was around him, she was somehow able to forget many of the worries that plagued her daily. It was freeing, in a way, even as some guilt pummeled her for feeling that way at all.

She finally caved under their matching scrutiny. “Fine. I’ll go. But you have to promise me you’ll call if anything comes up and I need to come home. Okay?”

Only after she’d gotten a verbal promise from them both did Chrissy text Wyatt and let him know that she was still good for pizza. Frankly, even though her mom was a great cook, Chrissy never was a fan of her casseroles.

~*~

Chrissy took a bite of pizza and relished the double cheese melted over pepperoni and black olives. Oh, man, she’d missed this. She didn’t realize how much she was focused on her pizza until Wyatt’s chuckles grounded her. “Sorry. I haven’t had pizza in way too long.”

“Really?” He looked surprised. “I try to eat it every Friday night. Maybe it’s not the healthiest meal, but it’s worth it. If you don’t like pizza, we could’ve gone somewhere else.”

“It’s not a matter of not liking it. It’s Emma…She’s got a pretty restrictive diet now, and pizza used to be one of her favorite foods. So Mom and I make a point of not eating it around her, either.” She shrugged. “It’s worth it to keep her healthy.”

His mood seemed to sober a little. “You and your mom do a lot for Emma.”

She might have taken offense at his words, except there was admiration in his voice.

“We do a lot for each other. It’s just the three of us, really. There was a time we thought we were going to lose Emma. It’s nothing short of a miracle that she’s still with us now.” She paused. “God spared her life. Not eating pizza seems like such an incredibly small price to pay.”

“I’m glad she’s doing a little better tonight.” He paused. “I admit to knowing little about transplants and what happens afterward. Will she be on this medication long term?”

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