Page 31 of Take Me Home

“Well, as you know, I was interested in medicine, but not the hours of paperwork. I wanted to figure out a way to help lots of people at once, rather than just one by one. Robotics was a good fit for all of that.”

“Very noble,” she said, clapping her hands for quiet applause. “Or you could make a fruit-picking robot.”

“Even in that case, if that robot is accepted, Uncle Bill’s not the only peach farmer out there. I could help a lot of farmers. Okay, you’ve put it off long enough,” I said, shoving her lightly and standing to hold out my hand. “Can I help you to the bathroom? Then I promise I’ll let you nap and go help Caleb.”

Darcy groaned in protest but took my hand. Fortunately, our mission was successful. I’ve never been so relieved as to hear her pee hit the toilet bowl. I clapped for her outside the bathroom door. No ER trip on the horizon. I got her back to bed.

“Need me to climb in with you again?” I asked, praying the answer was yes. I wanted, nay, needed, more Darcy snuggles.

She smiled, but shook her head. “I’m less scared than I was earlier. Thank you, though. I’m sure Caleb’s waiting on you.”

I worked with Caleb for the rest of the afternoon, picking as many peaches as made sense per the instructions we were given. I asked him if he wanted to join us for dinner, since I planned to cook for Darcy.

“No way am I interrupting the romance you’ve got going there. This is your day, buddy. I’m not about to mess it up,” he said.

“There’s no romance,” I assured him.

“Sure. There’s no romance, but you snuggled her to sleep earlier,” he scoffed.

“It’s not like that,” I said, not really believing my own words.

“I’ll make my own dinner. You just get your girl better,” Caleb said. “And freaking ask her out already. We’re all dying watching this play out.”

I cooked a very un-fancy pasta dinner and went to wake Darcy up.

“You gotta quit waking up when I take your pulse,” I scolded her, my fingers feeling that lifeblood inside her wrist. “Always makes it go up.”

Her sweet, sleepy smile at that moment is something I’ll remember forever. I got her downstairs for dinner, walking in front of her with her hands on my shoulders to make sure she didn’t fall down the steps.

“I owe you big time,” she said, squeezing my arm when she saw her plate piled high with pasta and red sauce. “You probably saved me $3,000 in medical bills today and ran the farm. I feel awful that I couldn’t help more.”

“No big deal,” I said, swallowing yet another ‘babe.’ “Just part of the job. Your job is to get better.”

“Oh, God, please don’t think taking care of me is part of your job. I shouldn’t have gotten so carried away that I forgot to take care of myself,” she said, disgruntled.

“Relax. I was kidding. I meant like part of my EMT job. Saving lives and all,” I said, flashing her a wide grin. “Seriously. I’m happy to help. But I am going to make you drink water all the time now.”

She took a bite of the pasta. “You really outdid yourself, Jake.”

“Chef’s finest: boxed pasta and canned sauce. Maybe I’ll make you a real meal sometime.” Darcy stopped chewing as I said that. Fuck. I went too far.She’s not ready to date you, Jake.I changed the subject. “How’s your head?”

“Getting better. My stomach, too. The fruit helped I think.”

I’d flipped on the record player, that same Chris Stapleton record she’d had on the last time I came over. I was starting to think of it as our soundtrack. If there was an us.

“So what’s your sick comfort show?” I asked. Her expression brightened.

“We’ve all got one, don’t we? If it’s around Christmas, it’s sappy Christmas movies all the way. Any other time of year, The Office is my great comfort.”

Good choice, babe.

“What’s yours?”

“You’re going to laugh,” I started. It was my turn to reveal things about myself.

“Well, that means you have to tell me. Can’t hold it in now.”

“Any baseball movie. Field of Dreams. The Rookie. Angels in the Outfield. The Sandlot. Even Bull Durham,” I said.

---