Page 13 of Home Changes
“Ken and I have caught up since I’ve been home.”
“Wow. Okay, well … I’m surprised you even remembered me. You were the football star. I was the dorky redhead with freckles. I was just a freshman. You were every girl’s dream.”
A slow smile crept across Seth’s face. “Even yours?”
She lifted a brow, trying to play it cool. “Wouldn’t you like to know?”
“I would,” he said, voice quiet and sincere. “Always thought you were the cutest thing in Hollister.”
Her mouth parted slightly. Words failed her. Had she heard that right? She pointed to herself. “Me?”
Seth looked around the nearly empty hospital entryway. “I don’t see anyone else standing here. Of course, you.”
Allison shrugged, a touch of color rising in her cheeks. “Uh … thanks for the compliment?”
Just then, Seth’s phone vibrated. He pulled it from his pocket, glanced at the screen, and then tucked it away again with a sigh.
“The nurse says Dad’s doctor is ready to talk to us. He’s inside watching the news. I had to get out for a minute. Hospitals kinda make me go stir-crazy.”
“What’s he here for?” Allison asked, and before he could answer, she added, “You do know we have adoctor in Hollister now, right? Zeke Johnson? I told you that. We even have a psychiatrist, Dr. Wheeler.”
Seth nodded. “Yeah. A friend suggested a full physical wouldn’t be a bad idea. I’m swimming upstream with him most days, so I figured I’d get him assessed while I still could. His insurance and Medicare cover it, so why not? Plus, this doctor specializes in dementia and Alzheimer’s cases. I figured we should get ahead of it if we can.”
“Oh, that’s a good idea,” she said, softening at the mention of that terrible disease. There was an awkward pause before she slid a step toward her truck. “Well … I’ll let you get back inside, Seth. You should stop by sometime. The bakery’s open until two, Monday through Saturday. Unless I’m in Belle Fourche for an appointment.”
“I’ll make it a point to stop by … with my partner.” He winked at her. She blinked and blinked again. A smile spread across his face. “See you, Allison.”
She smiled and waved … like a dork. “See you later, Seth.”
Turning, Allison made her way back to her truck, her thoughts tangled with the last few minutes.
One of the cutest girls in Hollister. I’ll make it a point to stop by. Why? What?Had he really said that?
She couldn’t remember his exact words anymore, and maybe she’d imagined it. Or misheard him.
But no …
No, he had said it.
She bit her lip and glanced back toward the hospital doors he’d just walked through. Did she really need this kind of confusion in her life right now? She let out a low laugh, shaking her head. Of course not. Nothing would come of this. Things like this never happened in her life. Still … She took a deep breath, smiled to herself, and accepted the compliment for what it was. It wasnice. And maybe … just maybe, it meant a little more than nothing. She would wait and see.
CHAPTER 5
Seth sat stiffly in the corner of the exam room, arms crossed, his spine ramrod straight. His gut was clenched tight.
The last time he and his father had been in a hospital room together, Seth had been the one in the bed. Sixteen years old, stitched up and bruised, nursing injuries that came from trouble he had no business being in. Chester hadn’t said much back then. He’d stood in the doorway, jaw tight, arms crossed. He knew his father was pissed. His dad was always pissed at him for one thing or another. Seth had never won his dad’s praise. Never measured up. The silent condemnation was a constant for as long as Seth could remember. Yeah, no words were necessary in their relationship.
This time, he’d royally messed up, though. It wasn’tchores that weren’t done to Chester’s standards or grades that weren’t perfect, and it wasn’t that he didn’t move fast enough when his mom asked him to help out. No, this time, he’d outright disobeyed his dad. He’d fixed up the old truck Chester had given him. Worked damn hard to get it running, and against his dad’s wishes, he’d taken it to the homecoming party at the lake. The parking brake failed, and he’d tried his hardest to keep it from rolling into the water. The damn thing gained momentum, and he’d lost his footing, slipped under the front wheel, and was run over. It was funny to all the kids around him until it wasn’t. Because alcohol was involved, people scattered. Gregg Koehler went to the nearest ranch and called for help. He came back and stayed with Seth until the sheriff and Chester arrived. Seth begged Gregg to leave, but he wouldn’t, even though they both knew Gregg’s dad would beat the tar out of him for being at the party.
Chester didn’t say a word. That look and the silence did more than words or, in Gregg’s case, fists, could do. Seth hated that Gregg had to pay for his mess up. When his friend showed up at the hospital three days later, the bruises and split lip told him just how much his friendship had cost Gregg. Chester stood up, walked over to Gregg, tilted his chin up, and narrowed his eyes. “Your pap do this?” he asked.
Gregg nodded.
“For helping Seth when he screwed up?”
Gregg nodded again. Chester turned and stared at Seth, lifting his finger and pointing at Gregg. No words. Seth knew exactly what Chester meant. If he’d listened, he wouldn’t be in the hospital, and Gregg’s dad wouldn’t have laid a hand on his friend. That single movement crushed him in a way nothing else could. His father dropped his arm, shook his head, and left the room. Seth knew at that moment he’d never be enough for his dad.
Chester’s disappointment was a constant in his life. It was almost as if he expected Seth to mess up. Which he did … sometimes. But mostly that disappointment put Seth on the road out of Hollister. He knew he was meant for more, and he knew the constant disappointment he lived under wasn’t who he was. That was why he’d joined the Air Force and probably why he’d excelled. The determination to prove he was better than his old man thought he was.
