Page 15 of Sunset Tides
At first, she thought it might be another migraine, so against her normal routine, she forced herself to take a preemptive nap. The migraine never came, but nausea and other unpleasant symptoms rolled in on Wednesday.
By Thursday, her situation had grown worse, or as Chip put it, “explosive.” She had to cancel their plans again, and he assured her he was happy to spend the weekend playing nurse.
Claire felt horribly guilty. Not only had she repeatedly ruined Chip’s attempts at being romantic, but then he had to pick up her responsibilities at the hotel, too. She insisted that she could care for herself and that he needed to stay away so he wouldn’t get sick, but he wouldn’t hear it. He was at her house day and night, ready with drinks, popsicles, broth and crackers.
Between delirious bouts of sleep where she disappeared from the world, he also apparently doused her bathroom in bleach, leaving it a sparkling clean palace for her to run into.
By Monday, she was more or less functional again and insisted he return to work. The next day, she felt strong enough to show up at The Grand Madrona herself.
At first, she felt okay. She’d had a burst of energy in the morning that fooled her into thinking she was better. At lunch time, though, she started to struggle. Margie called to chat and Claire could barely focus on the conversation.
Unfortunately for Claire, Margie noticed. “Do you remember her music?”
Claire took a sip of water before answering. “I’m sorry, whose music?”
“Valerie Villano! I know country isn’t your style, but she’s a San Juan Island girl. I met her last summer and…”
Claire stood from her desk and the room started spinning. She dropped her phone, trying to steady herself on a nearby wall.
She could still hear Margie chattering away, but when she stooped to pick up the phone, she somehow slammed her head into the desk.
“What was that?” Margie’s voice blared through the phone, loud and clear.
“Nothing,” Claire said. “Just dropped the phone. Hang on, I need to find it…”
When she finally fumbled it back into her hands, Margie was gone. Claire assumed they’d been disconnected, but moments later, Chip burst into the office.
“Claire, are you okay? Margie just called me, she said you weren’t making sense and – ”
“No, it’s nothing.” Claire had just struggled her way back into her chair. “Don’t overreact. I just need a little nap. I dropped the phone, that’s all.”
“You’re bleeding.”
“What?” She reached a hand up to her forehead and felt a sharp pain. Her hand was covered in blood. “That’s not good.”
“I’m taking you to the hospital.”
“I don’t have time to go to the hospital!” Claire said, trying to sound firm, but her voice only sounded high and weak.
He knelt down so they were eye to eye. His voice was gentle. “Honey, at the very least, you need stitches. Let’s just see what the doctor thinks, okay?”
Claire let out a sigh. Stitches shouldn’t take long, at least. “Fine.”
She stood, and Chip helped steady her. Somehow, with him around, she felt dizzier. She told herself it was probably from him fussing too much, though it concerned her that she needed his help all the way to the car.
Chapter Nine
Lucy got a call from Chip on her drive home from Grindstone. She answered on Bluetooth and loudly yelled, “What’s up, dude?”
“Hey Lucy. Are you busy?”
She frowned. Generally, she could count on a jovial response from him, or at least a bit of teasing. He didn’t sound right. “Just driving. Why?”
“I don’t want you to panic,” he said.
Lucy immediately felt fear building in her chest. “What happened?”
“Nothing bad. Are you in the car? Maybe you should pull over.”
