Page 5 of The Amazing Date

The nurse lifts Gabby up from the chair. I grab her by her other elbow and guide her to the bed. “Put it on speaker. I need to talk to her.”

The nurse adjusts Gabby’s leg into the sling hanging from the hospital bar that frames the bed. That’s when I notice the soft ankle cast. “I know you must be in pain if you let them give you a pink cast,” I whisper to her, and she smiles through a grimace.

She ignores my playful tone. “Speaker. Now.”

I tap the phone. “You’re on speaker, Rylee. There are nurses and others nearby, so please behave.”

“I always do except for you,” she shoots back. So much truth and history is layered in her outburst. “Oh my god, Gabby, please tell me you’re okay? Roberto told me about the fall.”

Gabby’s hands land on her knee, and she adjusts her ankle in the sling. “It’s not so bad. The doctors here are being extra cautious. The race doesn’t start until the day after tomorrow. I’ll be ready.”

I begin to speak, but the nurse beats me to it. “Unless that’s a race to see who can sit on a couch the longest, you won’t be doing anything for the next few days. Doctor wants you off your feet for a week.”

“A week?” Rylee’s voice leaps across the line, her statement causing Gabby’s face to fill with guilt. It’s nothing compared to the guilt I feel for pressing her to run the challenging course, one I’ve run dozens of times and had wiped out myself a few times on my initial runs.

“Rylee, we can chat later when there aren’t so many prying ears. We’ll make it work. You can’t stop Super Woman.”

I shake my head at her stubbornness. “Why don’t you gals take advantage of this and have a proper vacation. I’ll even chauffeur you around. You can sit on the beach, picnic at the Hollywood Bowl, go for a sunset drive. Something low-key and restful.”

Tears rise in Gabby’s eyes; this isn’t what she planned. I’ve ruined everything. I have to do something to fix this.

“Ry?” I hear the strain in my voice, hoping even with the distance and time between us, Rylee can see what is needed. Gabby needs her best friend.

“Gabs, you can’t race,” she admits.

I exhale a deep sigh, thankful Rylee can set aside our messy history for a moment.

My hand rests on Gabrielle’s shoulder as the nurse excuses herself and pulls the curtain closed. “That was all my savings from the last two years. It’s nonrefundable, Rylee. I know how much this means to you. All the sacrifices. I’m sorry.”

I stare at the silent phone, wishing I had FaceTimed her so I can give her clues as to how to respond. I bite my lower lip and hope for the best.

“You have nothing to be sorry for. It’s your damn brother who’s ruined this.”

“I’m standing right here,” I joke, hoping to lighten the mood.

“I. Don’t. Care.” Her words bite through the speaker. “Unless you have ten thousand dollars lying around, this is all on you. I can’t believe…”

I stroke my sister’s upper back and ignore the slights from her best friend. She lifts her head. Her eyes carry a redness from crying, yet they sparkle with a glimmer that wasn’t there a moment ago. “She’s right, Roy.” Her soft voice and use of my childhood name catch me by surprise. A nickname only used by the women in my family, usually when trying to convince me to do something I know I shouldn’t.

“And I said I’ll make it up to you. I’ll drive you around all week. I’ll even say nice things to Rylee, maybe.”

“It’s going to take more than that,” she whispers.

“Hold the phone closer—I can barely hear you two. It almost sounded like you agreed with me that this is all his fault, and he owes us ten grand.”

Gabby’s laughter is the first sign since we’ve arrived at the hospital that tells me everything is going to be okay. “This is going to cost him much more than ten grand,” she says, lifting the phone closer to her chest.

“I like the sound of this. You guys have that tar pit out there in La Brea. I’ll bring the feathers.”

“Not necessary. Just bring everything like we planned, Rylee. I may not be able to compete, but I know someone who can take my place last minute and owes us a huge favor.”

Rylee and I are rarely on the same page, but both of us understand immediately what Gabby is suggesting. We don’t see the world the same way—we don’t see eye to eye on anything—but on this we both agree, and we chime in perfect two-part harmony.

“Oh, hell no.”

Chapter 5

Rylee

---