Page 81 of Fight For Her
Coby:My mama took a fall at assisted living. Have to go out to Salt Lake City. Will update you when I get a chance. Love you.
I sat upright, twisting at a strand of hair.
Me:I’m so sorry! Do you know anything yet? What can I do to help?
My stomach churned knowing what he’d just gone through with his father passing and how he was already worried about his mom. I had to be there for him.
Without thinking about any repercussions, I pulled up the airline app on my phone and booked the next flight into Salt Lake City as I said a silent prayer for Coby’s mom to pull through this.
Ten hours, two coffees, and a lot of phone calls later I rushed through the hospital doors and followed signs on the second floor toward Mrs. Barnes’s room. I had no idea what I’d be walking in to. I knocked lightly with trembling hands and bleary eyes before cracking the door and peeking inside.
Mrs. Barnes lay in the bed, her eyes closed and bony arms at her side. Various tubes and wires connected her to IVs and monitoring machines. The hospital bed swallowed her frail frame. Coby sat on a chair in the back of the room with his head against the wall and his eyes scrunched closed. His chest rose and fell in soft waves and I took him in. Tears welled in my eyes. God, I missed him.I closed the door behind me and the small click caused Coby’s eyes to jerk open. My heart cracked at seeing them red rimmed and lined with shadows.
“Baby, you came.”
“Of course I did.”
I wiped my eyes and buried myself in his chest. He rested his head against my hair and wrapped his arms around me. We stayed quietly soaking up the comfort from each other.
“Let’s go out in the hall,” he said against my ear.
After checking that his mom was still sleeping soundly, we slipped into the brightly lit hallway. He reached out to cup my chin and our eyes met. I saw how exhausted he looked. I brushed my lips over his and rubbed my cheek against the soft stubble of his beard.
“You don’t know how much I’ve missed these lips,” he said.
“I think I do,” I said, leaning my face against his. “How is she?”
He stroked his beard. “It’s still iffy. She hit her head pretty bad when she fell, so they’re worried about a brain bleed. No breaks or fractures thankfully. She seems pretty out of it, doesn’t remember slipping.”
“Shit. I’m sorry. So what’s the plan?” I swallowed down the lump in my throat, taking in his pained expression.
“They did most of the tests last night and started her on some meds. The hope is that she’ll be able to avoid surgery.” He let loose a long sigh. “I’m hoping for an update from the doctors after lunch.”
I wrapped my arms around him. “It’ll be okay. You’re taking care of her.”
“She has to be okay. After everything she went through with him,” he hesitated, swallowing hard. “She’s only just begun to live again.”
“She’s a fighter, I can tell.” Rubbing circles over his back, I got on my tiptoes and kissed his chin. “Just like you.”
He took my face in his hands again and planted a gentle kiss on my lips. Breathing deeply, he pulled back to study my features. “Babe, your job? How are you here?”
I leaned against the wall and stared at the scuffed white floor. Anything to keep him from seeing the hurt in my eyes. He didn’t need to hear about my issues with work, not while his mother was lying in a hospital bed.
“It’s fine. Victor approved me taking off.” As the lie left my lips, my stomach twisted. Slowly, I lifted my eyes to meet his and willed myself to keep my emotions in check.
Do not cry.
It was no use. He didn’t have to say a word, his face did the talking for him. His brows lifted and his eyes blazed as he stared right through me. A tear rolled down my cheek, then another, and before I knew it, a heaving sob expelled from deep inside me.
“Come here,” he pulled me into his chest and held me until the sobs subsided. “Let’s go find a place to talk.”
We found a small seating area where he made me a cup of coffee from the Keurig in the corner before he sat next to me, close enough that we touched. I needed that contact more than he knew.
“I knew something was wrong. You’ve been distant since the other day. You know you can tell me anything, right?” The little space between his brows creased, and I hated that I was adding more stress to his already full plate. But he was right, I couldn’t keep this from him. Especially when I was pretty sure I was unemployed now.
“I know. I should have told you right away. I needed time to process, time to figure out what I wanted. And you’ve been busy looking into moving, I didn’t want to bother you.” I swallowed a sip of coffee and winced.
“Sorry. There was only that powdered creamer.” A genuine smile lifted his lips, the first one I’d seen all day.
