Before they were even inside the empty hospital room and Jamie turned around, Krista was already smiling in anticipation of hearing the words “I’m pregnant!” come out of Jamie’s mouth.
“Why didn’t you tell me?!” Jamie whisper-yelled, her eyes so big they looked like they were going to pop out of her head.
So…not pregnant.
“Tell you what?” Krista whispered back.
Jamie’s hands flew up in exasperation. “You and Chase Malone.”
“Oh.” Of course. Chase. Krista should have known. All roads led to Chase. Krista and Jamie had gotten close over the past year since they both worked at the hospital, and Krista totally understood why she would feel left in the dark. She answered honestly, “I didn’t even think about it. I guess I just assumed you already knew.”
Jamie shook her head. “Alex mentioned something about Chase growing up here once. He said that they were friends, but I found out from Vickey that you two used to be a couple. When I asked Alex about it, he said that you guys were together for years.”
“Off and on. We broke up a lot.”
“Are you okay? With him being here?” Jamie asked, concern filled her eyes.
Krista nodded. “I’m the one who called him.”
Jamie’s brow furrowed in confusion. “Oh, so you guys keep in touch?”
“Not really. But I knew someone needed to tell him about Abby. He doesn’t have any other family,” Krista explained.
Jamie shook her head in disbelief. “This is so weird. Sorry if I’m freaking out about this. I never get star-struck but I mean, it’s just… I mean it’s…Chase Malone.”
“I know. Believe me. I know.”
“You sure you’re okay? You look—”
“I know,” Krista interrupted. “Tired. I look tired. Everyone keeps saying that.”
“I was going to say sad,” Jamie spoke softly.
“Oh.” Krista hadn’t meant to snap at her friend. But the truth was that she was tired and she was sick of people pointing it out. It was as irritating as people pointing out the fact that she ate a lot. “I’m not sad, just…not exactly happy. It’s been harder than I thought it would be, seeing him again.”
“I’m sorry,” Jamie said sincerely. Then, in a generous show of solidarity, she said, “If you want, I will delete all of his songs off my iPod.”
Krista smiled. “Thanks for the offer. That’s sweet. But it would be silly for you to do that, considering the fact that I have all of his songs on mine. Besides, he’s not a bad guy.”
“Oh. When you said you broke up a lot, I just thought…”
“I broke up with him a lot,” Krista clarified. “I always thought he was cheating on me.”
“Was he?” Jamie asked.
“No,” Krista sighed. She hated being wrong. And in this case, she’d been wrong. “I used to hear a lot of rumors, and girls went to great lengths to make me think he was so we would break up, but he wasn’t. I didn’t know it then and it used to drive me crazy. But as an adult, a few of the girls have admitted going as far as planting panties in his truck to make me think he was fooling around.”
Krista remembered when she’d found those panties. It was the night Chase had gotten into the horrible fight with his dad. It was also the night Chase had left Harper’s Crossing.
“Girls can be so mean. I’m so glad I have a boy,” Jamie said just as her pager beeped. She pulled it from her waistband as they both started heading out of the room.
“I actually thought you were calling me in here to tell me you were pregnant.” Krista admitted.
Jamie let out a forced laugh. “No. One is enough. For now.” Jamie reached out and gave her a quick hug. “Let me know if you need anything. I’m always here to talk.”
“Thanks.”
As Krista watched Jamie hustle down the hall, she felt a small twinge of envy in her chest. Not that she wasn’t happy that Alex and Jamie had each other and their son Joey—she was. It was just that Krista was realizing that she wanted that too. Husband, kids, family. The only problem was the only person she could ever imagine that path with was a certain rock star who wasn’t really the white-picket-fence type.
* * *
“We’re here,” Chip announced from the front of the rented SUV.
Chase lifted his heavy eyelids and looked out of the tinted glass. They were surrounded by ambulances. Before he opened the door, he pulled his hat lower on his head. He didn’t see anyone around, but it was habit.
“Are you sure you don’t want me to come in with you?” Tully asked from the seat beside him.
“No. I’ll be fine.”
Dr. Corbin had called Chase this morning and told him that his mom was awake and someone had told her that Chase was in town and she was now anxious to see him.
Chase wasn’t sure how he felt about that. His relationship with his mom was complicated. He loved his mom. He really did. He just didn’t understand why she’d made some of the choices she had. Mainly, staying with the monster that had been his father.
The last time he’d seen his mom, she’d been covered in his dad’s blood as she held his unconscious body. Chase had been covered in blood as well, but out of the two of them, Chase was the one left standing after he’d finally had enough and stood up to his dad, and had fought back. His mother had kneeled beside his dad, cradling his head in her arms crying, begging Chase to leave before his dad came to.
Chase had grabbed what he could throw in his backpack and told her to come with him. Pleaded for her to leave with him. She’d shaken her head and told him that she couldn’t leave. She couldn’t leave her husband. He’d tried to pick her up, to make her come with him, and she’d screamed at him to go. Get out. He could still see the panic in her eyes, afraid that his dad would wake up while Chase was still there.
All these years later, that night was still burned into his memory.
Tully spoke as Chase stepped out of the truck. “The administration assures me that they have measures in place to assure not only your privacy but your mother’s as well. We’ll be here if you need anything.”
“You guys can take off. Go get something to eat or check out downtown. I’ll text you when I’m ready to go.” The last thing Chase wanted was people waiting on him. He wasn’t sure how long he was going to be. It could be an hour or several. He actually had no idea what to expect.
“We’re fine to wait,” Tully tried to insist.
Chase shook his head. “No, really. It’s a small town. It doesn’t matter where you go. You’ll only be ten minutes away.” Chase raised his hand, gesturing goodbye to both Chip and Tully, and shut the door.
With his head down, his hat pulled low, he made the short walk up the wheelchair ramp to the back entrance of the hospital. Just as he reached for the door, it opened. Looking up, he was expecting to see someone from hospital administration or even one of the security guards they had insisted on providing to escort him around the premises. Instead, he saw a familiar face coming out of the door wearing navy-blue pants and a button-up shirt with a flame patch on the sleeve. His face broke out in a wide smile.
“Alex Sloan. Damn, man. It’s been a long time.”
“Yeah it has.” Alex reached out, shaking his hand and throwing one arm around his back, patting it twice in the classic man-hug. Stepping back, his friend said, “I heard you were in town. Sorry to hear about your mom. Jamie couldn’t believe it when she walked in and saw you yesterday.”
“Thanks.” Chase appreciated his friend’s concern. “So you’re a married man, huh? I never thought I’d see the day. Did hell freeze over or something?” Chase was giving his friend a hard time, but he truly was surprised that Alex had tied the knot. Alex hadn’t just played the field. He’d owned it.
“It’s something, all right. I’m a lucky man.” Alex looked happier than Chase had ever seen a man look.
“Congratulations! Marriage looks good on you, and Jamie seems like a great girl,” Chase said sincerely.
“Thanks, man. What about you? You seriously hit the big time. I can’t go a day without seeing your ugly mug on TV or magazines. It’s crazy.”
“It is crazy,” Chase wholeheartedly agreed.
“I mean, I knew that you had chops, but man, you blew up.” Alex’s eyes were wide as he shook his head.
Chase knew exactly what Alex was saying. His rise to fame was hard even for him to process and he’d been the one on the journey.
“I still can’t believe it sometimes,” Chase admitted.
Alex was still shaking his head as his pager beeped. “Shit. I gotta get going. I’m on duty, but how long are you in town?”
“Not sure. Depends on my how my mom is doing.”
“Right.” Alex nodded in understanding. “Hey, have you gotten a chance to see any of the old crew since you’ve been back?”
“I saw Krista.” Chase wasn’t sure how Alex would feel about that. He’d always been supportive of Chase dating his cousin, but that was before Chase had left. He had no idea how Alex would feel about things now.
“Are things cool between you two?” Alex asked with a serious expression on his face.
Chase wished he knew. “I think so. She’s the one who called and told me about my mom.”
A small look of relief flashed on Alex’s face. “Cool. Well then why don’t you come by The Grill tomorrow night? Eddie and Haley are having their engagement party.”
“Eddie Thomas?” Chase asked. That was the only Eddie he knew, but there was no way he could be who Alex was talking about.
“Yep. He and Haley just got engaged,” Alex confirmed.
“Holy shit. What happened with him and Lacey? Don’t they have a kid?”
“Yeah, but Lacey’s out of the picture. She left when Emily was a newborn and didn’t come back ‘til a few months ago. She tried to stir up trouble but bounced when things got sticky.”
“Wow. That’s crazy.” Of course Chase knew logically that everyone’s lives had continued once he’d left Harper’s Crossing. But it was strange hearing about it.
“Everyone’s gonna be there. My brothers, their wives—”
“Your brothers are all home?”
“Yeah, and they’re all married, too. Riley married Chelle—”
“Rachelle Thomas, Eddie’s little sister?” Chase interrupted.
“Yep. And Bobby married Sophie and Jason married Katie.”
“Katie Lawson? Nick’s girlfriend?” Chase felt like his jaw was going to fall to the ground.
Nick and Katie had been like the golden couple of Harper’s Crossing when Chase was growing up. Jason had been Nick’s best friend. The three of them had been like The Three Musketeers. Nick died tragically in a car accident when Chase was a freshman in high school, and right after that, Katie left town.
“Yeah. Katie came home to be in Sophie and Bobby’s wedding. Jason confessed that he’d been in love with her since kindergarten and the rest is history.”
“What about Seth?” Chase felt like he was in high school, catching up on all the soap opera events of everyone’s lives.
“Seth married Amber. I don’t think you know her. She moved here after you left. She’s a cool chick. She owns her own clothing store and co-owns Haley’s lingerie store.”
“Haley has a lingerie store?” Chase felt like a parrot. He didn’t mean to keep repeating the things Alex was telling him. It was just that he needed confirmation that he was actually hearing him right.
Alex nodded. “She designs her own lines.” Alex shook his head, brow furrowed. “Yeah, I try not to think about it, especially when Jamie’s wearing one of them.”
Chase laughed. It felt so good to have a normal conversation with someone who knew him. Someone he’d been close to before all the fame and money. It felt freeing.
Another beep came from Alex’s pager. His friend slapped him on the shoulder as he walked past him on the ramp. “Try to stop by tomorrow night. I know everyone would love to see you.”
“I will.”
Chase had no idea how Krista would feel about his crashing her sister’s engagement party. He could ask her, but that would leave it wide open for her to shut the idea down. Why risk it? He’d go and deal with the fallout later. At the very least it meant that he would get to spend more time with her. That was good enough for now.
Chapter Eight
Krista walked into the hospital room and blinked twice. She couldn’t believe what she saw in front of her. The curtains were pulled back. Abby was sitting up in her bed. A pink flush of color was in her cheeks. She looked more alive, more vibrant than Krista had seen her look…ever.
Never before had Krista seen a stroke have that effect on someone. Krista had expected to walk into a darkened room and see a frail Abby lying in the center of the hospital bed. She didn’t know what medication they had Chase’s mom on, but whatever it was, it was working.
“Is it true?” Abby asked, excitement dancing in her dark eyes. “Is he really here?”
Ahh. So this miraculous recovery had nothing to do with doctors or medication. Krista should have known that the only person who could make Abby spring to life was her estranged son. It made total sense.
“He was here yesterday,” Krista said. She was fairly certain that he was still in town. At least he was as of one o’clock this morning, but she didn’t want to get Abby’s hopes up if he’d already left for some reason. Not that she really believed he’d split without saying goodbye to her. She knew better. Chase would never do that.
“Did you talk to him? How does he seem? Does he look good?” Abby asked, firing each question in rapid succession.
Krista moved across the room, her rubber-soled shoes squeaking on the freshly mopped linoleum. “Yeah I talked to him. He seems…” Krista paused, not knowing how to continue. Finally she went with, “Good. And yes, he looks good. Really good.” She knew she hadn’t needed to add the ‘really,’ but come on. Not only was he beyond gorgeous, he was walking, talking sex-on-a-stick. Not that she would say that to his mother.
“They moved me into this room for privacy, in case Chase visits.” Excitement bubbled out of Abby’s voice as she spoke.
Krista couldn’t get over how incredible Abby seemed to be doing. She did not look like a woman who had just suffered a stroke. The only sign that she had was some weakness in her facial muscles on the left side of her face, which meant that the stroke had affected the right side of her brain. The mild paralysis was only noticeable when Abby smiled. Luckily her speech seemed fine. She was speaking clearly and not slurring her words. Those were very good signs.
Sitting up even higher in her bed, Abby reached up and smoothed her hair down, asking nervously, “How do I look?”
“Great!” Krista answered both enthusiastically and honestly. She pulled a handheld mirror out of the drawer in the overbed table. Lifting it up, she turned it so that Abby could see her reflection.
Abby’s eyes widened at what she saw staring back at her. “Oh no. Do you have a brush?”
“I think I can scrounge one up.” Krista moved across the room and pulled open several drawers. The hospital kept disposable brushes that had been donated to them in some of the patients’ rooms.
Jackpot.
Grabbing the last blue brush in the drawer, Krista removed the cellophane wrapper and stepped back to the bed, handing it to Abby.
As she reached out to take it, Krista noticed that her hand was shaking.
“Did you want me to brush it for you?” Krista offered, not knowing if the shaking was occurring due to nervous energy about the possibility of seeing her son or the stroke. Abby’s spirits were high, which was amazing, but she knew that Chase’s mom had to be exhausted. She didn’t want her to exert all of her energy doing something that Krista could easily do for her.
Abby nodded furiously. “Do you mind?”
Krista shook her head. “Not at all.”
Moving closer, Krista supported Abby as she leaned forward. The mattress dipped as
Krista sat down beside her and began running the brush through Abby’s hair. Memories came flooding back to Krista of when her mom used to brush her and her sisters’ hair every night after their baths. Jessie and Becca, who were the youngest, hadn’t liked it and would sit still only long enough for their mom to get the knots out. Krista, on the other hand, had loved it. She would always ask to go last. Then she and her mom would talk about their days. Sometimes she would even read a story out loud, sitting on the floor in front of her mom while she took her time separating then brushing out Krista’s long red hair.
With four girls in the house, all born within a five-year span, one-on-one time with their mom had been hard to come by. The situation was made even harder due to the fact that their mom Sandy helped raise Krista’s cousins Seth, Riley, Jason, Alex, and Bobby after their own mother had left them when they were young and then passed away when they were in their early adolescence. Krista didn’t remember a lot about her Aunt Cheryl. Only that she had been beautiful and that when she was fun she was really fun and when she was sad she was really sad. When Krista was a child, her mom had explained her aunt’s behavior by telling the girls that she was sick. As an adult, Krista now knew that Aunt Cheryl had suffered from bipolar disorder. Nowadays, a lot more is known about the disease, but twenty years ago, that was not the case.
“Do you mind putting it in a braid?” Abby’s voice was riddled with nerves.
“Sure. No problem. By the way, I brought Bear to my house. I can keep him until you are back on your feet.” Krista threaded Abby’s dark hair through her fingers, separating it into three parts and began weaving them in an interlocking braid.
“Thank you so much.” Abby’s voice crackled with emotion. “How is he?”
“He’s good and loving all the attention he’s getting from my sisters. He’s eating it up.”
“So did you guys get a chance to catch up?” Abby asked excitedly.
Krista wasn’t sure how you caught up with a dog, but maybe Abby was confused due to damage caused by the stroke. Not wanting to alarm her, she did her best to answer.
Crazy Love - Krista & Chase Page 8
