Page 29 of Love on the Brain
Ryan replaced the lid on the bottle of medication and set it in the drawer. “You’re a rock star,” he said, still awed by her performance under stress.
“I’m a nurse.”
“Yeah.” He sank into the armchair in the corner of the room. “You’re amazing.”
She shrugged. “So what now? I’m not taking him on a plane if this isn’t a one-time thing.”
“Let him rest, keep him hooked up. I’ll stay here and observe.”
“I’m not leaving him.” Jane twisted around. “You can stay, but I’m not leaving him.”
He didn’t expect she would. “If it happens again, we need to get him to the hospital.”
She nodded. “Good thing it’s close.”
Ryan didn’t want to mention that the storm had picked up and the roads were sheets of ice. They’d have a hard time getting there if they had to go anytime soon.
CHAPTER8
Jane insisted Noah stay in bed the next day to monitor him and encourage him to rest. He woke up at his normal time and seemed generally unaffected by the seizure. Jane stood at the window of his room, watching the heavy ice strain the branches of the tree limbs in Ryan’s front yard. Each time the wind blew, she was sure one or more of the branches would snap, but so far so good. The driveway, the yard, and his car were coated with a thick sheet of ice. If they had to leave, they’d need to find a way to deice the car and the pavement under the tires.
With its close proximity to the children’s hospital, his neighborhood had underground power lines, so they didn’t have to worry too much about losing electricity as long as the power company decided to keep it on. Ryan also had a backup generator that he’d purchased for the home he’d lived in with Sunny in the rural outskirts by her father’s megachurch.
“Somebody order chocolate chip waffles?” Ryan filled the doorway, holding a tray with three small plates, each stacked high with four quarter-wedges cut from a full-size waffle, napkins, and three ramekins of syrup for dipping.
“Me!” Noah scooted back into his pillows. Ryan set the tray over his legs, the feet of it coming to rest on either side of him.
“And me,” Ryan said. “That leaves one more plate.” He sat on the bed and leaned in close, stage-whispering, “Does your mom like waffles?” knowing full well Jane had eaten a chocolate chip waffle for breakfast, in this exact way, every single day in college.
“Yeah.” Noah matched Ryan’s loud whisper. “She likes to dip them, too. Like me.”
Jane shook her head and smiled as they conspired to entice her to sit and eat with them. Ryan had also conspired with her father and sister for a grocery list of all her and Noah’s favorite things. His pantry and fridge were stocked. Just like back when her mother died, he’d taken care of everything, even ensuring the availability of her go-to comfort foods.
“Well, it’s a good thing the chef made three sets then, huh?” Ryan lifted a wedge from the plate nearest him. “Ready to taste-test?”
Noah lifted a wedge from the center plate. “Ready! One, two, dip!”
In unison, they dipped their waffle wedges into the ramekins and bit into them.
“Mmmm,” Ryan said. “Perfect.”
Noah finished chewing. “So good. Mommy! Come have some wallfulls!”
Jane didn’t feel the least bit hungry, and she wasn’t sure the lump in her throat would allow her to swallow. Still, she should try to eat. Ryan had made the effort to make her favorite breakfast.
She eased herself onto the bed at Noah’s feet, careful not to disturb his or the tray’s positioning.
“Ready, Mommy?” She picked up a waffle. “One, two, dip!”
As she bit into the waffle, the familiar taste of the syrup caught her by surprise. Blueberry, and if this wasn’t Tonya Sadler’s recipe, she’d wonder if she was coming down with a cold. Only the owner of Seaside Stories could find a way to enhance nature’s perfect sweetener. Ryan had teased her the first time she’d pulled out her own bottle of syrup for the dorm’s cafeteria waffles, especially after she confessed it was blueberry syrup. No Vermont maple for her. She’d let him try it and was validated when he’d agreed the blueberry chocolate chip combo wasn’t bad.
“Perfect,” Jane said, not waiting for the others to re-dip. She closed her eyes and savored each bite until the first wedge was consumed. She might have even groaned.
When she opened them, Ryan was staring at her. Her cheeks burned under the heat and intensity of his gaze. What was it about him that attracted her to him all of a sudden? Years ago, her silly crush had turned into a beautiful friendship, and that had been enough.
So what was happening? Was it the stress of Noah’s illness? The fact that neither of them were in a committed relationship and there wasn’t anyone else that even remotely interested them? Forced proximity doing its magic like one of their favorite cheesy chick flicks?
Stress and availability. That had to be it.
