Page 59 of Wicked Flirt
He sat down again, his chest aching. She must be out of her mind with anxiety after being shut up in her safe little house for the past two and a half months. He brushed her hair back and kissed her forehead. “As soon as I talk to the doctor, I’ll find out how soon we can get you out of here.” He pulled out his phone and tapped on an app for a solitaire game. “Focus on this. It’ll help you stay calm.”
She started playing, her fingers clutching the phone so tightly they were white.
He went in search of a doctor. A nurse told him one would be with them shortly. Not good enough. He methodically worked through the ward in search of whoever had admitted his mom so he could get answers. Finally he found the right nurse and got the full story. His mom had attempted to take a walk around the block. She’d had a panic attack on the front porch, got dizzy, and fell down the steps. A passing jogger, Jen, had found her like that, bleeding and unconscious, and had called for an ambulance. Jen had been nice enough to stay with her. His mom had basically shut down, whispering her answers to the paramedics’ questions and begging them to call him so she could go home again.
Why hadn’t she called him for her first venture out? He’d purposely been living near home half the week just for her. Why wouldn’t she let him be there for her? He wasn’t enough. His love wasn’t enough.
His mom wouldn’t let him fix things.
Lexi wouldn’t let him fix things either.
He was beyond aggravated. He was done. What was the point in trying when he couldn’t make anything work out?
He returned to his mom, who was trembling, her teeth chattering despite the blanket.
“It’s so cold in here,” she whispered.
It wasn’t cold. She was scared. It broke his heart. He took off his leather jacket and draped it over her like a blanket.
She relaxed a little. “I wanted to be brave. Lexi invited me to visit her anytime. She even offered me a job.” Her voice cracked. “I tried just a small first step to go out, but I couldn’t do it.”
What the hell?He sat next to her and spoke as calmly as possible. “This is because of Lexi?”
“We’re friends, and I think she really needed me to help with her new job. She said I was the first person who came to mind. She knew I was an experienced secretary, and we get along so well.”
This was Lexi’s fault. She should’ve run the idea by him first. He could’ve told her his mom wasn’t ready to go out. At the very least Lexi should’ve been with his mom when she ventured out for the first time.
“You were very brave,” he told his mom. “Baby steps. This is why I wanted you to call that doctor who specializes in issues like yours. You start with phone sessions and then work up to more.”
“But I don’t know the doctor. I know Lexi.”
He ground his teeth, more furious with Lexi with every word out of his mom’s mouth. “What was your plan? Walk around the block and then what?”
“I was thinking of driving to her apartment for lunch tomorrow. She works from home.”
He closed his eyes for a moment at the terrifying idea of his mom driving and then having a panic attack, crashing her car. She hadn’t driven in months. He leaned close, his voice urgent. “Mom, please get in touch with me when you’re ready to go out again. I can drive you, walk with you, anything you need.”
“I didn’t want to bother you. You’re so busy.”
He straightened. “I told you I was living in town half the week. I made myself available to you.”
“Lexi says you live just down the hall. I know she’s the real reason you moved here part-time. That’s okay. I’m thrilled. I hope by the time you get married I’ll be up to dancing at your wedding.”
A big assumption there, but his mom had always wanted him settled down. It occurred to him that Lexi was both the cause and the solution to the problem with his mom. Lexi had given his mom a reason to leave the house, even if she’d gone about it completely wrong. What was he supposed to do now? Lexi was done with him, and maybe he was done with her too. He didn’t need this kind of aggravation. She’d really screwed things up for his mom.
“Can you get me some Tylenol?” his mom whispered. “My head hurts so much.”
Shit. What if she had some kind of head injury? She’d hit it hard enough to lose consciousness. Who knew how long his beloved mother had been lying there on the cold sidewalk bleeding and bruised?
“I’ll take care of it,” he growled. Then he stood, yanked the curtain back, and raised hell getting a doctor over to her pronto.
Two hours later, he was finally able to sign her out with a checklist of concussion symptoms to look for. The doctor thought she was okay, nothing serious. Except every time Marcus looked at his mom’s bruised face, her swollen eye, and cut lip, he wanted to howl.
The nurses settled his mom into a wheelchair—hospital policy—and he pushed her through the busy waiting room of the ER.
“Marcus!” someone called.
He turned to see Lexi rushing over to them. He scowled. She had no right to be here. This was her fault.
