Page 118 of The Choices I've Made
I smiled warmly. I knew the old man had a crush on my Terri. I knew it.
“Then, take care of her,” I said. “And keep me updated. I’ll let you know if I hear from Jake.”
“Thank you, Molly.”
He hung up then, and I looked around the room, so silent and empty. I bit my lip, full of worry. I felt useless, and I had nothing to do. Pulling out my phone, I dialed Jake’s number. Like Henry had said, it rang and rang and finally went to voice mail.
“Where are you?” I asked out loud.
Of course, no one answered.
I called around, asking anyone I could get ahold of if they had seen Jake. I asked the nurse, Betty, who worked at the clinic. She reported he’d left right around the same time as her, wishing her a good weekend, and that was it. He hadn’t been seen around any of the restaurants or stores.
I even drove by his parents’ house and the clinic to be sure he wasn’t in the middle of some sort of mental breakdown.
But he was nowhere to be found.
Returning to the inn to take care of my afternoon duties, I put out the usual spread of light hors d’oeuvres and wine for the few guests who’d returned while I continually checked my phone.
Nothing.
Finally, I got a text from Henry’s number.
Henry: We’re here. Found Dr. Jake. He was already here at the hospital. Praise God! Getting checked in. Call in a bit with updates.
Jake was at the hospital?
It dawned on me why.
Dean.
The only reason he’d drive all the way up the coast was to visit his best friend. He hadn’t spoken much about Dean since that day he offered me a ride to the hospital.
And I’d never asked.
I’d been so caught up in my own issues that I never thought to take a moment to walk in his shoes. Did he feel guilt over the accident? Remorse?
There had once been a time when we confided in each other completely. Hours and hours had been spent exploring every thought and dream. We had known one another inside and out.
But, now, it seemed like we might be skipping a few steps in our rush toward our happily ever after. Our night on the beach, I’d felt it—the pull back to where we’d once been. But we’d both severed it, refusing to discuss the hard topics in favor of what was easy.
Because of that love that still lingered so fiercely between us.
I didn’t know how long I sat in the empty living room after my guests retired to their rooms or ventured back out into town for dinner. I was lost, without a clue on what to do. I moved through the motions of the rest of the evening, going on autopilot as I prepped for the following day.
Until, finally, I had nothing left to do but wait.
It wasn’t until I was about to head back to my room when I saw the headlights from Jake’s car. What normally brought a jolt of excitement to my heart suddenly brought something closer to dread. It had been hours since I heard any news from Henry, and I couldn’t help but fear the worst for my dear friend Terri.
I watched from the stained-glass window near the front door as he made his way inside. He looked tired and weary, like the weight of the world had just been dropped on his shoulders.
I took a deep breath and opened the door.
Our eyes met. It was like staring into a deep well of emotion.
Pain, regret, sadness. It was all there.
He brushed past me, his fingers clinging to mine for the briefest of moments. He smelled of soap and disinfectant, his hands rough from meticulous scrubbing.
