Page 14 of Love's Patient Journey
“Got to go, man. I just wanted to stop by and welcome you home. Glad you’re sticking around for a while.” They patted each other’s backs—man code for the hug needs to end.
“Thanks, Shep. That means a lot.”
“See you later, man. And don’t give mom too hard a time, she means well.”
Ryan knew that his mom only wanted the best for them all. In her defense, raising the four of them wasn’t easy. His parents were good people. His dad had to travel a lot for his job as a pharmaceutical sales rep, but his mom was always around. She said that her “job” was to raise the four of them. He liked knowing that she’d always be there if he needed her. He liked coming home after school to find her in the kitchen working on dinner. Her rules were tough sometimes, but they had to be because Ryan and his two brothers could cause some trouble. Maddie had her parents wrapped around her finger; really, shehad all of them under her spell. She was probably the rottenest one out of the bunch. He needed to call her and catch up with her at college; he hadn’t seen her in almost a year. Ryan decided that not only was he getting out of the Navy to lay claim to Jenna and Zac, but he was going to build stronger relationships with his family. That was going to start now, all of it. Jenna was in for a rude awakening if she thought that he’d just leave her alone. He’d given her a day, and that was enough time. He was done waiting.
Chapter 5
Jenna couldn’t seem to get off the sofa. She felt like a truck had run her over, and she had a fever of over a hundred degrees. She called her doctor, but he told her just to rest and take Tylenol. He said that she probably caught Zac’s virus, and it just needed to run its course. Thank God Zac still wasn’t too energetic from his round of the virus. He was fever-free for 24 hours now, but he was still lounging on the love seat, watching some awful children’s cartoon. Honestly, the singing characters just made her head hurt more. She wanted to crawl into her bed and sleep until her fever broke, but Zac would have free rein, and that could not happen. Her sister and Drew were dealing with the same thing. They were all sharing the lovely virus, but at least they could tag team with each other and care for Jem. She couldn’t take up her mom’s offer to come over; she just didn’t want to put her parents’ health at risk.
“Truck,” Zac said around his little thumb.
“Yeah, baby-truck.” Jenna half-heartedly repeated. She wondered what show he was watching now, probably one with trucks or trains. Did her doorbell just ring? Or maybe that wason his show, too. She was so out of it, she was probably hearing stuff now.
“Door, Mama.” Zac got down from the sofa and started for the door. Jenna couldn’t understand why her son was insisting that someone was at her door.
“It’s just on TV, Zac. Come back over here and sit down,” Jenna pleaded weakly.
She heard a pounding at her door and held her head, moaning. “Okay, I hear it.” She slowly got up and made her way over to where a very anxious Zac was hopping around, waiting for her to open the door.
“Ryan,” she winced in pain at her voice. She sounded too loud.
“Honey, you okay?” Ryan started to open the door and picked up Zac, who was holding his arms out for him. “What’s wrong, baby? You look awful.”
“Mama sick,” Zac had taken his thumb out of his mouth long enough to tell Ryan the news, and then stuffed it back in.
“I see that, buddy.” Ryan shut Jenna’s front door and sat Zac on the sofa to watch cartoons. “How about you hang out here, bud, while I put your mama to bed. Then, we can play trains.”
Zac nodded his little head and returned his attention to the TV show. Jenna was holding up the wall by her front door, unable to move. Ryan looked her up and down, shaking his head as if in disbelief.
“Honey, why didn’t you call me? I could have helped with Zac and taken care of you.” Ryan picked her up, cradling her to his chest. She couldn’t even pretend to protest; she felt so weak, she knew that she would never make it to her bed on her own. Thestairs would have done her in.
“We broke up,” she whispered to Ryan as he carried her up the stairs with ease.
Ryan chuckled, “Honey, we did not break up. I already explained this to you. I’m in love with you—you’re mine. I gave you the time you asked for, but I’m done waiting. I know that you love me, Jenna, you just need time to come to terms with your feelings. But I’m not gonna stay away from you and Zac anymore, baby. I just about lost my mind, and I only lasted a day.”
Jenna smiled up at him, at least she thought she had. Ryan just laughed at her poor attempt. “You need to get into this bed and stay there until your fever breaks, honey. I’ll take care of Zac and you.”
Jenna sat up in bed as he put some extra pillows under her head to prop her up. “Ryan, you can’t,” she whispered, “you’ll get sick too.” Ryan pushed her hair from her face, trying to assess her temperature with his hand on her forehead. “It’s over 101,” she grimaced. Ryan swore.
“Okay, honey. Let me get Zac settled, and then I’ll bring you up some ice water to drink and a cool compress. We need to get this fever down. When was the last time you had pain medication?”
“This morning,” she closed her eyes, lying back in her bed. It felt so good, she couldn’t help her moan.
“Honey, you need more, you’re really hot.” He pulled her blankets up over her, and she realized she was shivering. God, she felt as if she was freezing.
“Thank you, Ryan.”
“For what, honey?”
“For calling me hot,” she replied hoarsely. She could hear Ryan’s laughter as he headed back to Zac, and she allowed herself to drift off into the feverish world that surrounded her.
∞
Ryan couldn’t believe that Jenna hadn’t called him. She and Zac needed him, but she was as stubborn as a mule. She’d rather kill herself, being sick and taking care of Zac, than call him for help. Ryan called his mom to let her know that he’d be staying at Jenna’s for a while. He could tell that she wanted to ask about Jenna and his relationship, but she just gave a polite, “Okay, honey,” and let him go. He knew that he’d pay for that later. When his mother got him alone in a room, she’d interrogate him like a prisoner of war. He played with Zac for a bit. Of course, the little guy wanted to play trains, talk about trains, and make train noises. He couldn’t get enough of the kid; he was totally in love with Jenna and her son. Zac seemed to like Ryan too, but didn’t most two-year-old boys like anyone who’d play trains with them? And well, how Jenna felt about him was another story. He hoped to show up at her home and demand some answers. Instead, he found the woman that he loved, sick as a dog, and burning up with fever.
Zac nodded off early, probably still feeling the effects of being sick the past few days. Ryan picked Zac up from the sofa and carried him to his room. It felt so normal, taking care of Jenna’s son. He could see himself fitting into their lives. He just worried that Jenna couldn’t see the same picture. He tucked Zac into his crib and kissed his little forehead. He seemed to be over his fever. Leaving Zac’s door open so he could hear him if he neededhim, he went across the hall to Jenna’s room. The Tylenol that he gave her earlier seemed to help with her pain. He felt her forehead, and she stirred and moaned.
