Chapter 20
CHAPTER 20
C helsea spent most of the night thinking about her situation. When she finally tried to sleep, she would toss and turn and couldn’t get comfortable no matter how hard she tried.
Somewhere in the middle of the night, she got tired of thinking about Steven, and looked at flights headed to various locations in the coming days. She didn’t have a place in mind, so anything was a potential destination.
At four o’clock in the morning, she pulled a suitcase out from her closet and started to pack. The suitcase was almost full when she picked several swimsuits and beach coverups and threw them on the top. A beach bag, suntan lotion, her hat, sandals and a few books were thrown into a tote.
When she was done, Chelsea carried her bags to the front door. It was still dark outside, but even without coffee, she couldn’t believe how much energy she had. It was the kind of energy that made her anxious to accomplish something…anything to move the ball forward.
But, she didn’t feel like she was making progress. If anything, she believed she wasn’t moving toward anything, but rather, away…and from what?
How can I go forward when I’m retreating?
She pulled her sweater close and walked out to the lanai. Even though the sun hadn’t risen, the air was warm. A gentle breeze caressed her face, and a voice, as clear as ever, called to her.
Don’t throw it all away. Don’t run.
It was Carl. She was certain the voice was his.
Tears welled in her eyes, and she looked up to the sky.
What am I doing? Why am I running?
Chelsea knew exactly what she was doing. She was letting old behaviors take over. She wasn’t a child anymore. She was a grown woman who’d traveled a lifetime to get where she was. She’d always faced difficulties head-on, and although she feared rejection, she was confident in who she was. Loving Steven could never change that.
Opening her heart to him was significant. It was the first time since her husband died, where she wasn’t afraid to give her heart to someone.
Don’t throw it all away.
The voice was stronger now.
Don’t run.
She leaned against the railing and breathed in the salt air. It was clear to her that running wouldn’t solve anything. No matter where she went, she’d always wonder what she’d left behind.
She walked back into the house and made a pot of coffee. Looking at the clock, she willed the hours to pass. Chelsea knew as soon as the sun was up, she’d be on the road to Steven’s house and would close the door on running away from anything ever again.
Chelsea sat in her car near Steven’s driveway and waited. As much as she wanted to talk to him, she couldn’t show up on his doorstep at such an unreasonably early hour. Sipping her coffee, she was grateful his house was on a dead end street with no other houses in sight. The last thing she needed was a nosy neighbor calling the police.
By seven o’clock, she got out of her car, took a deep breath, and walked to his front door. She didn’t see any lights on and hated that she might wake him, but she pushed that worry from her mind.
She rang the doorbell and waited.
When Steven opened the door, he looked surprised.
“Chelsea! Is everything all right? Come in.”
He took her hand and pulled her inside.
“I was worried about you last night when you said something had come up. Now that you’re here so early, I’m even more bewildered. What is it?”
“I am sorry for the early visit, it’s just that I couldn’t wait to talk to you,” she said.
He nodded. “That’s fine. The coffee pot is on a timer, so it must be ready now. Would you like a cup?”
She shook her head. “No, thank you. I’ve had several already. Do you mind if we sit somewhere?”
“Of course. Let’s go into my study.”
Chelsea followed him down a long hall and into a room that looked like a library. Shelves of books and artifacts surrounded the room. He motioned for her to sit, but as she scanned the walls, something caught her eye.
She moved closer to the painting on the wall and recognized it immediately.
“This isn’t the painting you bought the other day.”
He smiled and looked down at the floor.
“No. I bought that a couple of years ago.”
Confused, Chelsea tried to make sense of his words. Thinking back to when she sold the painting, she remembered it was one of the paintings she sold the night of her showing at the gallery in Sanibel. Sebastian bought a painting that night, and it was the beginning of their relationship.
“I remember now. Sebastian bought one of my paintings back then. He told me he had a friend who admired one of my paintings and bought it. I actually thought he was lying at the time…you know, trying to flatter me and get me to go out with him. It was you?”
He nodded. “I attended the art exhibition that night and bought this one.”
“I don’t understand, Steven. The other day you made it seem like you’d never seen my work before. Why so secretive?”
He moved closer to her. “It wasn’t a secret. If you had been here last night for dinner, I would have brought you in here and explained.”
He took both of her hands in his and shrugged.
“I don’t know how to do this, Chelsea. I didn’t want to rush you or make you feel that I’d been stalking you somehow. The truth is this…Sebastian beat me to asking you out back then. He’s a good friend, and so I backed off when the two of you began dating. I don’t mind telling you that I was jealous when he told me you were going to marry, but I was happy for him and for you.”
“I wish I’d known you then,” Chelsea said.
He smiled. “Life has a funny way of moving us around like chess pieces. You can imagine how I felt when I heard the two of you had split. I told him he was an idiot and was crazy to lose you. I didn’t understand about his connection to Isabelle. My immediate reaction was to find you and ask you out, but my instincts told me to leave you alone for a while. Even if you and Sebastian ended amicably, it would have been too soon. I respected your need for some time alone.”
“Steven, Sebastian and I split a long time ago. He’s married for heaven’s sake. Why not approach me sooner?”
Smiling, he nodded. “I would have, but…I had a heart attack last year. I wasn’t well for a while. I had to take it easy, change my lifestyle. I told you before that I was a workaholic…that it cost me my marriage? It also took a toll on my health.”
“Oh Steven, I’m so sorry.”
He shook his head. “Don’t be. I’m healthier than I’ve ever been. My cholesterol is down, my blood pressure is back to normal, and my tennis game has never been better.”
She laughed at that last statement.
He moved even closer and brought her hand to his chest.
“Can we please talk about my heart?”
“I thought we were,” she said.
“Chelsea, I’m not sure why you canceled our dinner last night, but something tells me it wasn’t because something came up.”
She was embarrassed to admit to him he was right.
“I’ll only say one thing more. Please know that I feel like the luckiest man in the world to finally be with you. I will go at whatever pace you want. Promise me if you ever feel uncertain of my commitment to you…to us, that you’ll come to me. There’s no need to run. I’m not in a hurry.”
Her heart raced with excitement. She didn’t know how to tell him that she was falling in love. All she could do was fall into his arms and say, “I am.”
Beth didn’t know what to expect when she entered Emily’s hospital room. Her mother, a petite woman with blonde hair, sat in a chair next to the bed.
The woman looked up when Beth entered the room. Emily was sleeping.
“Hello, I’m Beth Walker…Maggie’s daughter,” she whispered.
Eve smiled and stood to welcome her. “I’m Emily’s mother, Eve. I spoke with your mother on the phone yesterday. She told me that you’d be in.”
Beth took her jacket off and put it on the back of a chair. “My brothers Michael and Christopher and their wives will be here soon. My husband, Gabriel, is in the lobby waiting for them.”
She looked back at Emily, “She looks so peaceful. I remember talking with her on the phone. She had so much energy. It’s hard to imagine this illness draining her of that.”
Eve stood at the foot of her daughter’s bed. “What’s been most shocking to me is the speed at which the illness took over her life. When they said it was aggressive, they weren’t kidding.”
“Hopefully one of us is a match. We need to keep thinking about getting her back to her old self.”
Although Beth had never met the woman before, she could tell that Eve looked tired and drawn, as if her energy left when Emily’s did.
Eve nodded. “I pray for that.” She then looked at Beth. “I can’t thank you and your siblings for what you’re doing. It’s not an easy thing to offer such a gift.”
Beth shrugged. “I was already on board with organ donation when I die, I never thought about being a living donor. I’m just glad that Emily has extra family to help her. I realize there are no guarantees, but I think we must have better odds being related.”
“Hey, Beth,” Emily said. “When did you get here?”
Beth smiled and sat next to the bed. “Just now. Your mother and I were getting better acquainted. I’m not the only one here though.”
“Really? Who else is here?”
“Let’s see…Gabriel, Christopher, Becca, for now. They’re getting tested…we all are. We’re lucky that Becca has the connections she does. The hospital is moving things along quickly for you.”
Emily shrugged. “That’s because I’m an urgent case. Isn’t that true?”
Beth looked at Eve and then back at Emily. “I think it’s because you have so many people lining up to give you their kidney. You’re one popular young lady.”
Beth knew it was impossible to fool Emily about the seriousness of her condition. All she cared about is saving her sister’s life.
“Everyone will come up to see you as soon as they get here. You might as well enjoy the attention. After the transplant, your immune system will be compromised. They’ll want to keep you protected from germs.”
Eve nodded. “That’s right. No visitors for you when we get to that point. I’ll leave the two of you to visit. I’m going to make a few phone calls. I’ll be back in a bit.”
Eve kissed her daughter on the forehead. “Text me if you need anything.”
Emily nodded. “I will.”
Eve left and seconds later Gabriel and the others entered the room.
“Hey, you guys. I can’t believe you’re here,” Emily said.
“Where else would we be? When one Wheeler is down, the others come running,” Christopher teased. “Didn’t you read the Wheeler family manual of behavior?”
Emily laughed and shook her head. “I guess I missed that one.”
“Well you better get up to speed on it because we’re counting on you to help us out when we need you,” Beth added.
Emily’s face fell, her eyes clouding over with a sudden sadness. “That’s if I’m even here.”
“Hey!” Michael yelled. “No talking like that. I’m living proof that Wheelers wobble but they don’t fall down.”
Everyone laughed at Michael’s analogy.
“I guess I’m pretty wobbly,” Emily said.
Beth reached for Emily’s hand. “We’re going to do everything we can to change that.”