Page 34 of To Belong Together
“Meaning what?”
“Get his business back. I don’t care what it takes.”
12
John’s palms sweated, and his heart rapped shallow and fast against his ribs. He hadn’t expected his first car ride to work him up this way. Maybe he could blame the anxiety on the crazy couple of days and the heated pain in his head and arm.
In a few minutes, he’d be home. Once Gannon left, he’d take the next dose of pain meds. Then, he’d crawl into bed and sleep for as long as possible.
“I don’t feel right about this.” If Gannon drove any slower, either John’s heart or his head would explode before they reached the end of Fox Light Lane. Maybe both. One from anxiety, the other from pain.
John pried his teeth apart. “Clean bill of health.”
“You’re a mess. Them sending you home is a far cry from calling you healthy.”
He didn’t reply. The longer this conversation stretched, the more doggedly Gannon would insist John not go home, where he’d be alone. But alone was exactly what he wanted—needed—after two days in the hospital. He refused to be doted on a moment longer than necessary. If only everything weren’t so loud and bright.
“The girls caught up.”
John opened his eyes. His driveway snaked to the right. Tara’s sedan hovered in the side mirror. Addie must’ve enlisted her help in bringing the dogs home. “A snail would’ve caught up.”
“If I’d taken those potholes any faster, you would’ve begged me to take you back to the hospital.” Gannon navigated the turn with all the efficiency of a cruise ship. “Are you sure you’re up to handling the dogs?”
“Yes.” They’d need food and trips outside a couple of times a day, but he could make it to the door.
“Interesting.” Gannon’s line of sight seemed focused on the rearview mirror.
John checked his side mirror again. Another car trailed behind Tara’s as they turned onto the driveway. A beater about to disintegrate into a cloud of rust.
Erin’s car.
John worked his fingers into the small paper bag that contained his medicine. He took a half-empty bottle of soda from the center console and downed the pills.
Gannon took his eyes off the drive to study him. “That’s been there a while.”
As if the flat, syrupy liquid hadn’t told him that, but it was too late now. John dropped the bottle back into the cupholder. He’d been in a major accident less than a mile from here, and Gannon thought this was a good place for eye contact? “Just drive.”
With a frown, his friend obeyed.
When they parked, John wasn’t sure his legs were trustworthy, but if he hesitated, Gannon would smell weakness and be too happy to play mother hen. John unbuckled his seatbelt and opened his door. He reached to the center console for the bag from the pharmacy only to find Gannon had already taken it.
Tara’s car parked next to them. A door opened, and the dogs raced his way.
“Hey, boys.” He ran the fingers of his good hand over their heads but didn’t get on their level for their normal hellos. They’d knock him right over.
They ran off, jumping on and tumbling over each other. Camo let out a quick, sharp bark at Trigger. The play was getting rough.
John inhaled to tell them to knock it off, but Addie’s voice rose first. “Hey. Be nice!”
Trigger took the hint and trotted away from Camo.
“How are you feeling?” Addie’s gaze roved to the splint on his right arm and back to his face. The swelling was down, but the bruises remained dark, and the stitches along his eyebrow would be in until the day before Kate’s wedding.
He fought a flinch at the noise of all the car doors slamming. “About as good as I look.”
Only Erin remained in her vehicle. The parking area stretched in a fat L-shape from the garage, where Gannon and Tara had parked, to the pole shed. Erin had pulled over closer to the latter, a good thirty yards from the rest of them.
Addie touched his good arm. “I’m here, whatever you need. Okay?”
