by Dorie Graham
“I don’t know, Chase. I’ll have to check with my father to see if I can get away.” She sighed. “But go ahead and send me the information and I’ll see what I can do.”
CHAPTER TEN
“THANKS FOR COMING to get me,” Kara said, her smile wide. “I can’t believe this is happening. I finally get to come live with you.”
Chase shook his head as he merged onto I-85. Now that Kara had been placed with him, he was plagued with uncertainty. What if he wasn’t cut out for this? He’d wanted to make his house more of a home, but was that really the best solution for his sister?
“I’m a little surprised myself,” he said. “Even though it isn’t official until the hearing, I didn’t think it would happen so fast. And the home assessment had me worried. I didn’t think that guy liked me at all. He had me freaked out with his clipboard and all his notes.”
“What could they find to complain about with you? You’re such a rule follower. Have you ever gotten so much as a speeding ticket? I’m glad Pansy turned out to be a drug dealer. I knew there was something wrong with her and Carl.”
Chase silently shook his head. Thank God Kara didn’t know about the indiscretions from his younger days. He couldn’t let Kara turn out that way. At least, not any more so than she had already.
“We’re going to have to set some ground rules,” he said.
“Sure. I’ll help out around the house. I’ll cook and clean. You won’t be sorry, Chase. I promise.”
“Bring up your grades, so you can qualify for the Hope scholarship, and we’ll call it even.”
She blew out a breath. “I’ll try, but trig is still not going well. I’m pretty sure I bombed that quiz. Why do I have to have all this math to graduate? When was the last time you used trig out in the real world?”
“I’m sorry we didn’t get you in early to see your teacher. Do you want me to call her? Maybe you can retake it. It’s not your fault this week was crazy. These were extenuating circumstances. Surely, they’ll take that into consideration. Besides, I’ll drop you early tomorrow.”
“If I failed, which I’m pretty sure I did, and I’m still flunking that class, we can request recovery and they’ll let me retake it.”
“Great, we’ll do that, then. I’ll call your teacher first thing tomorrow. Oh, and I found you a tutor. Do you remember Alex Peterson? You were pretty young.”
Kara rolled her eyes. “I remember you talking about her a million years ago.”
He shrugged. “Maybe. But she’s great and she’s a math wiz and she’s agreed to tutor you.”
“Cool. But you should still contact my teacher. I think it’s better to email her. I have a copy of the syllabus you can have. All her contact information is on it.” She straightened in her seat. “I’m going to do better. I know this is a good thing, my coming to stay with you. I’m not going to blow it.”
“I’ll do everything I can to make it work, Kara.” He exited the interstate and headed home.
* * *
ALEX GLANCED AT THE CHART on the refrigerator as she checked off the pills she’d placed in the medicine cup. It was a colorful assortment if nothing else: the anti pills, as she thought of them—an antibiotic, antifungal and antiviral. With Robert’s weakened immune system his doctor wasn’t taking any chances. Add to that his blood thinner doled out in fractions of a pill, depending on his lab work, and this was just the nightly dose. His morning medicine included these plus an assortment of supplements and vitamins, as well as a few others he still took to counter the lingering effects of the chemo.
He’d started on the blood thinner, she’d been told, when he’d suffered clotting from the original port they’d surgically implanted in his arm, because evidently chemo was too destructive on mere veins and needed to be administered via the device’s artificial catheter. Prior to the first stem cell transplant he’d had a new port, a central line, inserted in his chest. To Robert’s aggravation, her father had instructed Alex on how to care for the central line, how to check the cap and clamp on the tube exiting his chest, how to flush it if need be, but mostly how to check for infection around the site.
A tap at the back door sounded. Her pulse quickened. Chase was here already? She checked the clock over the stove. How had it gotten so late? She’d had trouble sleeping last night, wondering why she was even considering a date with him, even if it wasn’t a date date.
After checking her reflection in the toaster she opened the door, smiling at Chase and suddenly feeling nostalgic. “It’s a little like old times, you coming to the back door, but I don’t remember you ever knocking.”
He glanced past her. “Technically, it’s a side door, and I’ve never been banned from coming by here before. Under the circumstances I thought knocking was a good compromise.”
“Robert is upstairs. He spends a lot of time in his room these days. Come in.” She stepped back and gestured him in.
A petite blonde followed him inside. “Hey.”
“And look at you, Kara, the last time I saw you, you were this tiny thing,” Alex said. “You probably don’t remember me, do you?”
“Not really, but I remember Chase talking about you. You were the one that got away.”
Heat filled Alex’s cheeks.
Chase shifted beside her. “Ran away. She was the one who ran away.”
Kara shrugged. “Same difference.”
“Not...really,” Chase said.
“Dad is still at the hardware store, but I have food ready, if either of you is hungry.” She lifted her cup of pills. “I need to take Robert his medicine. I’ll take him something to eat, but I don’t think he’ll want to come down. He hasn’t been feeling up to much today.”
“Why don’t you let me take that up to him and you and Kara can get started on her homework?” Chase held out his hands for the pills and bowl of food.
“I’ll let him know you’re here, Chase, but let me take these. He’s so touchy about these things and he’s already said he doesn’t want you helping him. We need to respect that. He’s really not up to company. He’s in a really bad mood.”
“I’m not company.” Chase spread his hands wide. “But I get it, and, of course, I want to respect his wishes.”
She gestured to the wok on the stove. “I stir-fried a bunch of veggies and there’s brown rice. I’m sorry, we don’t have any meat, but you’re welcome to help yourselves. I’ll be right back.”
“You up for stir-fry, Kara?” Chase asked.
“Sure.”
When Alex moved toward the cabinet for dishes, Chase stopped her. “I remember my way around here. Go see your brother and please ask him if he’s up to me saying hi.”
Her heart sped at his close proximity and she quickly stepped away. With a nod, she headed for the stairs. Robert was sitting at his desk, his head propped up with his left hand, while he typed with his right hand. He didn’t look up when she moved into the room. She set the pills and bowl on the desk beside him, and then refilled his water glass from the pitcher she’d left on his dresser earlier.
He continued to type, hunting and pecking at a slow, methodical pace, working on what appeared to be a blog of some sort. She hesitated for a moment, not sure if she should interrupt. His color wasn’t good and he hadn’t eaten much. He hadn’t said anything, but he seemed to be having trouble keeping food down today. She’d called her dad and he wasn’t sure what to make of that, since this hadn’t been a side effect of the radiation. He had called Robert’s oncology nurse and the woman had said to keep an eye on him.
Deciding to leave him to his task, Alex turned for the door.
“Who’s here?” Robert asked, still without looking up. “Dad said he’d be at the hardware store late tonight. I heard voices.”
“It’s Chase and his sister, Kara. Do you remember her? She was maybe three or four the last time I saw her. She’s all grown up, or close to it.”
“Why are they here?”
“Kara isn’t doing well in math. Chase brou
ght her by for me to tutor her.”
He made no comment, only continued his steady typing.
“Chase wants to respect your wishes,” she said, “but he’d like to come say hello if you’re up to it.”
Sighing heavily, Robert at last stopped, cradling his head in both hands. “Tell him I appreciate his offer, but I feel like shit and I’d rather not be bothered right now.”
“Maybe you should chill out for a while. You’ve been pushing yourself pretty hard. What are you working on?”
He glared at her, but answered, “It’s just a thing.”
“A blog?” she asked.
“Something like that. I have an online support group. We have a website.”
“Oh,” she said. “That’s nice.” She gestured toward the pills. “You should probably try to eat something before your nightly dosing. It’s just stir-fry vegetables and rice. I’m sorry, I wasn’t sure what else to fix. Tomorrow I’ll look up some more of those recipes like the ones Dad downloaded.”
He faced her, his eyebrows furrowed and eyes narrowed. “Quit coddling me. I don’t need your help. I can pour my own water. I’m fine. I’ll try to eat a little. I know better than to take those on an empty stomach.”
Her throat tightened, but she straightened, swallowing back her hurt. He’d made it clear before that he didn’t want her help and Becky had cautioned her not to do things for him. “Okay. I’m sorry. I will try not to coddle you.”
He turned again to his monitor and made no further reply.
She hesitated another moment, hating to ask, but her father had mentioned they should monitor for fever. “Should we take your temperature? Do you feel like you have a fever?”
“No, I don’t have a fever.” Tension radiated in his tone. Scowling, he lifted the fork and peered into the bowl of stir-fry.
Listen to him. Just be there. Let him vent.
Shifting her weight, she said, “I’m sorry this all sucks for you.”
“Yep, that it does.”
She stood there a little longer, but he didn’t elaborate. Either he didn’t have anything to vent or he just didn’t want to vent to her.
“If you’re okay, then I’ll head back down,” she said. “You’ll text me if you need anything, right?”
He nodded as he took a tentative bite.
* * *
THE XX PLAYED softly on Kara’s phone as she bent her head over her math homework. Chase put the last dinner plate into the cabinet as Alex peered over Kara’s work. He paused, letting his gaze rest on Alex while she was preoccupied.
The curve of her cheek still held him fascinated. How many times had he stroked his finger along that soft line? They’d had a good thing once, but then she’d been so unforgiving, cutting off her father and anyone who stood by him.
And when Chase had refused to take that hard stance with her, she’d left him, as well.
Chase had never supported her father’s infidelity, but he hadn’t been able to accept how easily Alex eliminated the man from her life. Yet, she was here now. Did that mean she was becoming more accepting in her thinking?
Alex leaned toward Kara. “Remember sine is odd and cosine is even.”
Nodding, Kara rubbed her eraser across the page. Alex glanced at Chase. “She’s getting it.”
Kara smiled. “Only because you’re sitting here with me while I do it and correcting me when I get it wrong.”
“But you’re still doing it. And you’ll remember where you went wrong, right?”
Kara’s shoulders shifted in a slight shrug. “I guess, but I’ll probably be lost again tomorrow in class.”
“Here,” Alex said as she picked up Kara’s phone. “Do you want me to put my number in here? Then if you have any questions you can call and I’ll walk you through it.”
“Sure,” Kara said. “That would be cool.”
“I can bring her by any evening, so you can work together.” Chase settled into the seat across from Alex, enjoying the way the overhead light illuminated her cheekbones.
“That would be great,” Kara said. “I’ll make dinner for everyone the next time. That is, if you take me grocery shopping, Chase. Or I can make a list, if that’s easier, and you can go without me.”
“So, you’re not driving yet, Kara?” Alex asked.
Kara shook her head. “What’s the point when I don’t have anything to drive?”
“It’s good to learn,” Alex said. “I’ll bet Chase would let you drive his car.”
Chase motioned toward Kara’s paper. “That’s a discussion for another day. Why don’t we wrap this up? It’s getting late and we both have an early start tomorrow.”
Kara busied herself again over the page, scouring her eraser once more over her last entry. The muffled rumble of the garage door opening sounded from beyond the door leading to the garage.
“That would be my father,” Alex said.
“How’s everything going with you two?” Chase asked.
“We’re okay.”
Moments later, the door leading to the garage opened and Jacob entered. Chase rose to greet him, extending his hand. “Hello, Jacob.”
“Chase,” Jacob said as he shook Chase’s hand. “I didn’t think I’d see you back here.”
“I brought my sister, Kara, by to work with Alex on her trig homework. Do you remember Kara?”
Jacob smiled. “I remember a little angel, but this is a lovely young woman. Look how grown up you are.”
“Hi,” Kara said as she glanced up from her homework. “Thanks for letting me come by. Alex has really been a big help. She explains it so I actually understand.”
“She’s always loved working with numbers,” Jacob said. “She was balancing the store’s checking account when she was ten, I think.”
“How’s your brother?” Jacob asked Alex.
She shook her head. “He’s fatigued. I don’t think he’s been sleeping much. He’s working on his computer, but he just looks wiped out. I tried to talk him into taking it easy, but he didn’t seem much interested in that. He looked flushed and I wanted to take his temperature, but he insisted he was okay. He’s not eating much.”
“That’s about normal, though his looking flushed has me a little concerned. I’ll go check on him.” Jacob nodded to Chase. “I’m glad you didn’t let him scare you off. You and Kara are welcome here anytime.”
“Thanks,” Chase said. “I appreciate that.”
After he left, Chase turned to Alex. For a brief moment her gaze met his and that old connection hummed between them. It was all he could do not to reach for her. “Thanks for helping Kara. And don’t think I’ve forgotten my part of our deal.”
Her eyebrows arched in question. “Have you found your aunt?”
“Sort of.”
“You found a phone number?”
“Close,” he said.
“An email address?”
He shook his head.
“Social media connection?”
“An address.”
She cocked her head. “A street address?”
“That’s right. Do you think you can get away this weekend?”
“This weekend? For how long? What about Kara?”
Kara waved her hand. “Go. I’m a big girl. I won’t do anything crazy while he’s gone.”
Chase spread his arms. “Or she can come with us. What have you got to lose?”
“Where do we need to go? Can we do it in a day?”
“It’s in northern Indiana. There isn’t an easy way to get there. If we drive it’s a day and a half each way. We’d probably want to plan to take the entire weekend.”
“And all you have is an address? Can’t we do a reverse lookup to get the number?”
“I tried that. Nothing. She must not have a landline,” Chase said. “You can always write her a letter.”
“That will take too long. What about flying?”
“I thought it made more sense to drive since we can be more flexible with our schedule then. Sh
e might not be home. We might need to hang out and wait.”
“Or leave her a note and ask her to call.”
“Okay,” he said. “That’ll work. We’ll fly, though she’s hours from an airport out in the middle of nowhere.”
“So we’ll rent a car when we get there.”
Kara shook her head, but continued working without comment. Chase shrugged. “Whatever you want.”
“I want just a day trip. It’ll be hard enough for me to get away for that long,” Alex said.
“So, it’ll just be a day trip, then.” Disappointment filled him. He’d hoped to have a little more time with her, even if they were only going together to find his aunt.
“Good.” She nodded. “Let me check with my dad to see if he can spare me. I’ll have to figure out what to tell him and Robert.” Her gaze swung to Kara.
“She knows about our deal,” Chase said. “I hope that’s okay.”
“I guess. I just don’t think they’ll approve. Robert will think I’m looking for his father for his sake. He’ll give me hell. I’ll have to try to convince him otherwise.”
“You think about it and let me know.” Chase touched her arm. “We don’t have to go if you’re not comfortable with it.”
“No, I want to go. Let me figure it out. I’ll have an answer for you tomorrow after I talk to my father and make sure it works with his schedule.”
“Cool,” Chase said. “Did you ask him about the other, the night of the gala?”
Pink bloomed in Alex’s cheeks. She nodded. “He said he’d make it work.”
Chase smiled. If her reaction were any indication, she, too, felt the continued attraction between them.
“I’m done.” Kara stood and shoved her notebook and textbook into her book bag. “Thanks again, Alex. I really couldn’t have done it without you.”
“No problem, Kara, I’m happy to help.”
“I know how you can explain your going away for the trip,” Kara said.
“How?” Chase and Alex asked in unison.
“Tell them the obvious. Tell them that you two are hooking up again.”
CHAPTER ELEVEN
