Page 67 of Somebody to Save
“Hi, you must be Addison,” she said brightly.
“Umm…yes, I am. Unfortunately, I don’t know your name.”
She paced toward me with her hand outstretched. “Yes, I’m sorry. I’m Mary, the new nurse.”
I shook her hand and knew my confusion was written all over my face. “Who—how—I’m sorry, I’m not sure how else to phrase this, but what do you mean? What are you doing here?”
She laughed and dropped my hand. “No worries. Beckett Crawford and Cindy Johnson sent me. I’m here to replace your usual nurse for Ms. Helen.”
The pieces began to fit together, and my concern ebbed. Beckett hadn’t mentioned helping with the nurse since Caroline and Natalie caught us together a few weeks ago, but I should have known he wouldn’t have forgotten. That he would find a solution.
A solution that I was eternally thankful for because I had run out of options. The only options I had left were selling pictures of my feet or other more explicit videos. I heard both were lucrative, and I really admired people who had the confidence to do so. I, however, didn’t really know if I was one of them.
“Okay, gotcha,” I said with a sigh. “Well, let’s go in. I’d love to get to know you better.”
“Yes, I would love that, too.”
We walked down the hallway and into the living room. I saw Grams first, walking into the room from the kitchen on the left and wiping her hands on a towel draped over her shoulder.
“Hi, Addie Wren. How are you, honey?”
“Good, how are you?”
She glanced over my shoulder at Mary and then at Nana, who had an uncharacteristically wide smile across her face.
“We’re good. Very good, actually.” She patted my shoulders, and I turned to Nana. She was leaning back in her chair, speaking quietly to Mary.
Nana noticed me and waved me over. Dropping my bag by the couch and shrugging off my coat, I crossed to her.
“Sit, sit,” she instructed me. “Get to know our new nurse, Mary.”
Doing as she asked, I sat in the chair next to hers. Mary perched in Nana’s walker, she crossed her legs and folded her hands politely in her lap.
Apparently, I was very late to the party because Nana alreadyknew almost everything about Mary. She recited her entire personal and professional history.
She’d been a nurse for thirteen years, working mostly with people Nana’s age and with similar conditions. She was married but didn’t have any children. She was an amateur photographer, and honestly, she seemed genuine and kind.
Even if I’d had a say, she was exactly who I would have picked to take care of my grandmothers.
“I can’t believe the insurance company hasn’t reached out to me yet,” I muttered. “I expected them to call after?—”
“Oh, no,” Mary interjected with a wave of her hand. “When Cindy’s involved, she makes stuff happen. Everything will likely go through her now. I’ll give her your contact information, or you can also get it from Beckett if you’d prefer.”
“Yeah, I’ll get it from Beckett,” I said, standing from my chair and retrieving my phone from my back pocket. “I’m actually going to call him real quick. Thank him for figuring it all out.”
Nana smiled up at me. “Yes, do that, Addie Wren. And tell him we say ‘hi’ and wish him a Merry Christmas.”
Running my tongue over my teeth to suppress my laughter, I nodded. Beckett wouldn’t have issues with Nana anymore. One nurse later, and he’d absolutely won her over.
“I’ll be right back, then I’ll come help,” I mentioned to Grams as I passed the kitchen and slipped my coat back on.
“Of course, honey,” she said, rubbing a delicious compound butter over the turkey. She didn’t even look up. “Take your time.”
I strode down the hallway and stepped out onto the little porch and into the chilly afternoon. Taking a seat on the weathered wood bench, I tapped Beckett’s name and put the phone to my ear. He answered only a few rings later.
“Hey, baby girl.” His low voice murmured through the phone, and my heart lifted as I smiled.
“You’ve been keeping secrets.”
