Page 111 of Double Daddies
“You like eggs,” I remind her, reaching over and stroking her shoulder.
“I used to.” She puts the smallest bite possible on her fork and lifts it to her mouth. “I can’t stand the smell right now.”
“You need the protein,” I remind her, feeling a little silly reminding a nurse of what her body needs. “But we can come up with another plan for the future.”
At that moment, Ryle comes over and drops crumbled bacon onto her eggs. “I took a guess. Did I guess right?”
Cami looks up at him bashfully. “Yes. Thank you.” Then she glances at me, but I just squeeze her shoulder reassuringly.
I drop my hand to her lower back and rub circles there. With my other hand, I lift my coffee cup to my lips and drink deep. She was downplaying it earlier—the coffee is fantastic. So much so that it doesn’t make sense to me why Ryle ever bothers going to a coffee shop. One day, I might venture to ask him.
Cami is now eating with reluctant determination and eventually finishes her bacon and eggs. She pushes her plate back and makes a face.
“You did it. I think you deserve a reward.”
This perks her up immediately, as I suspected it would.
“What kind of reward?”
I look to Ryle and see him watching us with a bemused smile. “Well? What do you think?”
“What kind of reward do you want?” he counters.
She opens her mouth to answer, and as I’m waiting to hear what wish she wants granted, her face suddenly goes paler. Thenit suffuses with color right before she leaps to her feet and bolts from the room.
“Uh-oh,” Ryle says, and we’re both on our feet.
I take off after her with him just behind me. Before I make it to the bathroom, I can already hear her returning her breakfast. I stop and pivot to face him. “Could you make some tea? Peppermint, if you have it.”
“On it.” As Ryle heads back to the kitchen, I make my way to the bathroom.
I knock softly on the door. “Cami? I’m right out here. Do you need anything.”
She groans in response.
Gently, I turn the knob and nudge the door open until I can see her kneeling on the tile. I walk in and crouch beside her, placing a hand on her back. “Hey, baby. I’m right here. Do you think you’re done?”
With another long moan, she nods.
I stand up and walk to the sink, pulling the drawers open until I find a washcloth. I turn on the faucet and wait until the water is warm before I dampen the rag. Then I return to Cami and gently mop her face. “There. Any better?”
She nods but looks miserable.
“Want me to help you brush your teeth?”
She doesn’t nod at me this time, just looks at me with pained eyes that break my heart.
I reach for a toothbrush—there are two unopened ones on the counter. Did he buy them sometime between last night and today or is he just a wishful thinker?—and snap it out of the packaging before getting the toothpaste tube and putting a generous amount on the bristles.
“Can you stand?”
She stumbles to her feet, but as soon as she’s on them, she sways.
I reach out a hand to steady her and move next to her so that she can lean on me. “Say ‘ah’.”
Cami obediently opens her mouth, and I brush her teeth for her. Then I fill a water cup and hand it to her. It looks like it takes every last bit of her remaining energy to spit.
“Come on, let’s get you sitting down. Ryle made tea. Do you think you can walk?”
