Page 14 of Wanted

At this point, I can no longer stop the waterworks.

“Why did you lie, love? I would have fallen in love with you anyway. You made it easy for me, remember? There are so many questions I want to ask you, but as you can see, my mind continues to wander.”

I wipe my cheeks with the back of my hands in a vain attempt to compose myself, but it’s pointless.

“Please, wake up. We’ll sort this mess out together but to do that you have to heal, babe, please.”

I hear someone clear her throat, I look up to see the slender figure of Catherine, who looks at me with eyes full of tears.

“Sorry,” is the first thing that comes out of my mouth.

She opens her mouth but seems to change her mind about what she was going to say.

“Johanna is outside waiting to see Lionel,” she tells me and I reply with a nod. “Jackson is here too, he wants to speak with you for a moment.”

I get up and go to the door where I find Lionel’s mother, dressed in navy pants, a white and blue gingham shirt, and a long light blue cardigan. She looks like she just walked off the pages of a fashion magazine. The woman exudes sophistication, although I bet this is one of her most informal outfits.

Catherine leads me by the arm toward a corner, where Jackson is waiting.

“Jackson has arranged for you to take a shower and get some rest,” she tells me while they both stare at me.

I almost feel like I’m being judged by my appearance.

“I don’t want to go anywhere. What if he wakes up and I’m not next to him?” I counter.

My willpower keeps me in place, I’ll be in this hospital until my husband leaves.

And when that happens, we will do it together.

I’m sure of it.

“Easy, hellion,” Jackson replies with a half-smile. “The hospital administration allowed us to use an on-call room. We brought you some lunch, and you can take a nap if you want to.”

I stretch out my hand to thank them. I really need a shower, but sleeping doesn’t sound like something I feel up to doing.

A shower takes no more than ten minutes, I could even do it in five. I can eat in three.

In the blink of an eye, I would be back here, even before Mrs. Kral ends her visit. She always stays more or less forty minutes each time.

“What did you want to talk to me about?”

In the haze of confusion in my mind, Catherine’s words flash again and again.

“We should talk after you have rested a bit, I have some questions…”

Jackson guides us through a maze of stairs and hallways to what looks like a suite. First, we enter an office. In it there are a large wooden desk and some chairs. Jackson points to a door, but only Catherine walks with me. It’s a room with one single bed against the wall. Catherine points to a door beyond, and then I realize my small suitcase is next to that same door, waiting for me.

The hot water feels delicious on my sore muscles. In the suitcase I found one of the soaps I made, pretty sure it was my mother who put it there because it wasn’t me. The scent of honey and lavender takes me back home, to the place I thought I would never leave, much less to face a situation like this.

I wish I could stay here forever, in this warm and aromatic cloud, but reality awaits me. Time does not stop simply because I need a break. The world keeps spinning, and some issues need to be addressed.

I turn off the shower faucet, and with one last deep breath, I prepare myself for what’s next.

Fifteen minutes later, I leave the room wearing a simple long cotton dress and find them both sitting with their heads close together. Jackson says something to his wife that makes her smile and even blush. For a moment, I stand on the threshold, watching, feeling like an intruder, but at the same time unable to move, or make a noise.

They make a beautiful couple, they make it seem so easy.

Jackson looks up, clears his throat, and shifts in his seat, giving his wife a sideways glance, who continues to giggle like a schoolgirl.

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