Page 16 of Someone to Watch Over Me

I’m overcome with tears and emotions that surge to the surface with the force of a tsunami. Before I know it, I’m sobbing as I stand next to his bed, frantically trying to get myself together.

“Aw, sweet Lexi.” He gives my hand a squeeze. “I’m so sorry I did this to you.”

When I look at his face, I’m stunned to see tears in his eyes, too. “Don’t be sorry. You couldn’t help it.”

“Maybe not, but it was the very last thing you needed to come home to.”

“It’s not about me.”

“Sure it is.”

“No, it’s about you and whatever you need to recover.”

“I’m going to be just fine in a few weeks. I got very lucky. My dad died of a similar event when he was just forty-two.”

“I didn’t know that happened to your dad until Cora told me. I’m so sorry.” I know his mother suffers from dementia and is in a nearby care home, but he doesn’t say much about her situation. I sense it’s painful for him to talk about, so I don’t ask about it.

“It was a very tough loss for all of us. Both my older sisters have had extensive cardiac workups. Mine was next, scheduled for November.” He gazes up at me. “If you hadn’t moved in, I would’ve died on that floor, Lex. You saved my life. I’m so thankful to you.”

“Oh God, stop. You’ve done more for me than I could ever do for you.”

“Not true. You just paid me back in spades and put a down payment on fifty more years of me owing you everything.”

“All I did was call for help.”

“Which was the thing I most needed at the time.”

“Are you in a lot of pain?”

“It’s not terrible, but I’m told that’s thanks to very good drugs.”

“Yay for drugs.”

“The worst is my throat. They said that’s from being intubated.”

“Ouch.”

His smile goes a long way toward calming me. It’s had that effect on me since the night we reconnected, almost twenty years after high school. Hell, who am I kidding? It’s had that effect on me since I was fifteen and had a desperate crush on a boy who barely knew I existed.

He knows I exist now. In fact, he’s holding my hand and looking at me as if I matter very much to him.

“Is Cora still here?”

“She did an all-nighter, so I sent her home to get some sleep. Our other sister, Lydia, and her husband are at a hotel.”

“Where does Lydia live?”

“Outside of Minneapolis.”

“I didn’t know you had another sister.”

“She’s seven years older than me and has lived in Minnesota since she left for college. We aren’t as close as I am with Cora.”

“I see. Does Lydia have kids?”

“Two boys in college.” When he shifts, looking for a more comfortable position in the bed, he lets out a groan that puts me on alert. “Ugh. I hate this.”

“Do you want me to get a nurse?”

---