Page 23 of Still The One

‘Ah,’ I say with a nod. ‘Smart man. On that note, I brought you some stuff too.’ I make my way to the empty chair near his bed and set my bag down, unloading things one by one and setting them on the tray in front of him.

Once the items are fully displayed, he looks to me with a hint of worry. ‘Does this mean I’m on my own for entertainment now?’ He frowns.

‘Why do you look disappointed about that?’

He shrugs his one good shoulder. ‘I was sort of looking forward to hearing the rest of Matthew Perry’s story. I’m intrigued by MattMan.’

My jaw drops. I had mentioned Matthew’s last social media post only one time, in the middle of two paragraphs in his book. I can’t believe he remembered that. ‘You really were listening?’

He nods. ‘A guy’s not got a lot to do while in a coma, except listen.’

‘Do you remember anything else?’ I ask, sort of nervous to hear his reply but ready for it.

‘A lot of things. Just not what brought me here.’

‘I’ve got the remedy for that.’ Matty’s voice startles us as he makes his way into the room, In-N-Out bag in one hand, his phone in the other. ‘Red Bull sent me the video – and this.’ He sets a Red Bull bag with handles on the end of Foster’s bed. I peek in, seeing a couple of cases of Red Bull and enough merch to decorate this whole room.

‘The video?’ I ask, confused.

‘Of his wreck.’

I suck in a breath. Of course, I should have expected it to be on film. Most of these events are televised. ‘Should he watch that, considering his condition?’

Matty looks him over, then looks at me. ‘He’s alive, and a grown man, why shouldn’t he watch it? We already know how it ends.’

How can I argue that logic? ‘Yeah, but what if it horrifies him?’

‘What if it helps him regain his memory,’ he counters.

I clench my teeth together, nervous for Foster. ‘What if it makes him never want to ride again?’

Matty waves a hand at me, implying I’m being ridiculous. ‘We could “what if” all day. Question is, do you want to see it?’ he asks Foster, now leaning over his bed, his phone planted in front of his face.

Foster grimaces, obviously not completely sure of his answer. ‘For now, I’m going to pass. Let’s get beyond the hospital, then maybe I’ll take a look.’

Wow. He’s matured. Usually, he’d be all over watching himself on film. But he’s choosing his peace of not remembering over his ego.

‘Alright,’ Matty says, shoving his phone into his pocket.

‘Plus, look at her.’ Foster nods my way. ‘She’s terrified and she’s standing on solid ground. I can’t make her worry about me more than she already is.’

‘That’s right,’ Matty says. ‘How could I forget that you always hated his job.’

‘Not hate. I worried. About exactly this scenario,’ I say, motioning toward the injured Foster.

‘Hey,’ Foster says, reaching out and touching my hand. ‘I lived, and according to Nurse Chelsea, I’ll even get to walk out of this place. You don’t need to worry any more.’

‘Easier said than done,’ I mumble, staring down at his hand wrapped around mine; and for a second, I undeniably feel that spark that I always did with Foster. The longer we’re in contact, the stronger it is. ‘I was there in the immediate aftermath and I’m still trying to forget that part.’

He says nothing, but his eyes say thank you. I only nod.

Despite the rumors about the bisque, Foster downs it like he’s been on a forty-day fast. I opt for one of the burgers Matty brought – because Foster sweetly also ordered me the bisque, and having made that mistake before, it was a real quick ‘no thanks’ from me. But the blueberry crumble dessert he also requested is to die for. I won’t lie when I say I begged Miguel, the house chef, to sneak me the recipe that he claims was his great-grandmother’s favorite finger food for guests, and I now make it at home and sometimes eat it as a meal in itself.

‘Aww,’ Chelsea says when she walks in for her next round of vitals. ‘I’m so glad to see you two reunited. You’re just adorable together. This must have been so hard to see, Eve.’

‘Yeah,’ I respond, hoping she doesn’t say anything further.

‘So, how many years have you cuties been married?’

---