Twenty
Tuck’s hospital room’s door opened, and in strolled a good-looking Black woman with shoulder-length braids. He tried to adjust the bed so he could sit up, but doing so with his left hand proved to be a little awkward.
“You don’t have to move.” The woman’s face curved upward in a way that somewhat resembled a smile but didn’t actually look like one. “I’m Dr. Erykah Kennedy. I’ll be your surgeon today.”
The stethoscope and scrubs were a dead giveaway. “Nice to meet you, Doc.”
“Dr. Kennedy is just fine.” She gave that awkward-looking smile again.
Okay, Tuck was going to call it a grimace. He just had to, because it looked like she was forcing her face to move in a way that pained her.
“How long will the surgery take?” he asked.
“Based on the X-rays and amount of damage you did to your arm, I suspect three hours.” She looked up from the iPad the hospital used to store patient charts. “Do you have any questions?”
Lots.But before he could ask them, a quick knock sounded, then Piper walked in.
Tuck smiled at her. She was a beautiful sight for so early in the morning. “You made it.”
“Yeah. Sorry I was late. They directed us to the waiting area, then I had to convince them I was listed to be here for this conversation.”
Dr. Kennedy turned, and her eyes widened as she took in Piper. Tuck didn’t know if she was simply shocked he was dating a Black woman or if she disapproved. Either way, he didn’t care as long as the doc maintained respect.
“Hi, I’m Piper. Nice to meet you.” She held out her hand to the surgeon.
“Hello. I’m Dr. Erykah Kennedy. You’re the girlfriend?”
Piper nodded. “Am I too late? Did you already tell him everything?”
“Just how long the procedure is. Mr. Hale was about to ask questions.” Dr. Kennedy turned back toward him, an expectant expression on her face.
Tuck searched his mind, and Piper came to stand by him, sliding her hand into his.
“How long is recovery?” he finally asked.
“You’ll be in a lot of pain for the first couple of weeks. But I’ll administer a nerve block, so you’ll have at least the first twenty-four to forty-eight hours pain free. Once the nerve block wears off, though, I recommend using the pain medication I’ll prescribe. If you don’t start taking it before the block wears off, you may be in more pain than you anticipate or can handle.”
Great.Tuck hated pain. He sighed. “When can I get back to work?”
“What do you do, Mr. Hale?”
“I’m a racehorse trainer.”
Her eyes narrowed. “Do you plan to get on the back of a horse? Because if so, I highly advise against it.”
“No, I don’t need to ride. I have a couple of exercise riders who can do that. But I do need to be on the track giving instructions.” Surely that wouldn’t be too bad.
“Then when you feel the pain isn’t debilitating, you can return to work.” She crossed her arms.
Well, wasn’t she a bundle of joy?
“How long will his physical therapy be?” Piper asked.
Dr. Kennedy turned her gaze to his girlfriend. He smiled. Just thinking of Piper as his girlfriend cheered him up and kept the dark thoughts about surgery and recovery at bay.
“Therapy can be anywhere between three and six months.”
Tuck groaned. That did not sound good.
“Will he need any follow-up appointments after surgery? Maybe to remove stitches or...”
“He will. We’ll want to check on the healing, and that appointment is typically six weeks later. I won’t be doing follow-up care, but I’ll leave you with the name of a doctor who can take over after surgery.”
“I’m sorry if this question is intrusive, but why can’t you do it?” Tuck asked.
“I’m actually in Kentucky on vacation visiting my sister.” She gave that grimace-smile once more. “I leave for home in a few days.”
“Oh. You’re licensed here, though?”
“Yes.” She nodded. “And a few other states. The ER doctor knew I was in town and called me to perform the surgery. I’m one of the best in the field.”
“One of or the best?” Piper asked with a grin.
For the first time since she walked into the room, Dr. Erykah Kennedy softened and looked almost joyful. “The best.”
Piper let out a breath. “Fantastic. And the doctor you’ll recommend will be able to do Tuck’s follow-up care adequately?”
“Yes. I wouldn’t recommend someone I didn’t trust.”
Good enough for Tuck. “Thanks, Dr. Kennedy.”
“Sure thing. You’ll meet with the anesthesiology team next, then I’ll see you in the OR.”
Tuck gave her a salute, and she smirked, shaking her head. But he thought he saw a genuine smile on her face as she walked out of the room.
“Good morning,” Piper whispered before placing a kiss on his forehead.
“Morning.” Tuck reached out with his good arm and attempted a half hug. “How’s everything? Reporters still at the gates?”
Piper scrunched her nose. “Unfortunately. A few articles speculating about the incident yesterday have appeared. They suspect you or someone else who works for Maisha Farms to be hospitalized. I wouldn’t be surprised if someone tried to sneak into the hospital to gain information.”
Tuck wouldn’t be surprised either. That had happened to Nevaeh when she was in a car accident last year. Then again, this wasn’t Hollywood.
“Don’t worry about it,” he said, urging her not to. “As long as we maintain our no-comment stance, they’ll eventually get fed up and leave us alone.”
“I hope you’re right. I don’t know how Lamont and Nevaeh handle the scrutiny. I want to hide from the articles, but I also have this compulsive desire to click on every notification with the McKinney name in it.”
“Don’t do that.” He frowned. “Erase those alerts.”
“I didn’t set them up. I think it’s just the algorithm—or maybe our phones listening to our conversations,” she quipped.
“Then be strong and don’t click.”
Piper laughed. “Easier said than done.”
A knock sounded, and a doctor and nurse walked in. They introduced themselves as the anesthesiology team who’d be overseeing his beauty sleep. After that, the scrub tech came in to wheel him away.
“I’ll see you when you wake up,” Piper said.
“Don’t fall in love with the other guy while I’m sleeping.”
She laughed. “Aren’t you glad you don’t have a brother?”
“Very.” He loved how she’d got his reference to While You Were Sleeping. He’d maintain his belief that Sandra Bullock made for a better rom-com actress than Julia Roberts. Her movies had been more enjoyable for him to watch when Piper forced him to view an endless number of chick flicks.
“I’ll be waiting,” she murmured.
Tuck closed his eyes to avoid seeing the ceiling tiles pass in his field of vision. This was the first time he’d be under the knife, and the thought had kept him awake most of the night. It didn’t help that the hospital also made him sign paperwork saying he could die due to complications. He’d wanted to ask Dr. Kennedy to further explain what the risks were, but then again, he hadn’t. No need to up his unease. Instead, he practiced drawing in deep breaths and exhaling slowly as he prayed.
Lord God, please fill me with Your peace. Please be the hands of the surgeon. May there be no complications, and may I wake up on the road to recovery. He swallowed, searching his brain for other things to pray for. Oh yes. Please bring peace to Piper and my folks. I’m sure they’re all nervous too.
When his parents visited yesterday, Tuck had been in and out of consciousness. When awake, it was to see tears in his mom’s eyes and a furrowed brow on his dad’s face. He so badly wanted to ask his mom to leave so he could talk to his dad about the RMTC, but getting answers would have to wait. He didn’t want to bring more worries than a broken shoulder had already caused.
Still, with all the possible scenarios his mind had gone through, his gut felt like a bone being gnawed by a dog. How could his dad possibly know what was going on at Bolt Brook? Had he doped the horses before he retired? Or maybe Aaron Wellington was just trying to drum up more drama.
None of the scenarios had a very uplifting outcome, so Tuck forced himself to meditate on something good—aka Piper. From the moment he’d wakened in the ER, Piper had been a rock. She offered countless hugs and even comforted his folks. He already knew she was awesome. It was the reason they’d been friends for so long. But seeing her in a nurturing capacity after an injury had Tuck thinking of the next step.
He loved Piper McKinney with every breath in his body. Maybe when he woke up, he’d take the risk and let her know exactly how he felt. No hesitation, just the simple use of three words.
The hospital staff pushed the button to open the OR room doors.
“Welcome to the OR, Mr. Hale,” one of them said. “We’re gonna need to move you on over to the operating table.”
He nodded and followed their instructions. They had him spread his left arm out on a cross pad, and as they strapped it to the cushion, he thought about how Jesus must have felt. Guess he should be thankful his other arm wouldn’t be stretched out and strapped down as well.
“Relax,” the anesthesiologist said. “You’ll be asleep in no time.”
“You’re gonna wake me back up, right?” Tuck cracked.
“In a blink of an eye. It’ll be the best sleep you’ve ever had.”
“If it’s not, do I get a refund?”
The doctor laughed. “Sorry. My services are nonrefundable.”
“Good thing I just earned some horse race purse money. Who knew I’d be spending it on a hospital bill.”
“God’s timing is often mysterious.”
Tuck breathed out. “You’re a Christian?”
The doc nodded.
“Then I think I’ll rest well.”
“Told you I’d take care of you.” The anesthesiologist held up an oxygen mask. “Take a few whiffs of this and you won’t even have to count backward before you start feeling the effects. ’Kay?”
Tuck nodded as the doctor placed the mask over his nose. The air smelled a little weird and made his nose want to twitch, but he followed instructions and inhaled deeply. A drowsy sensation came over him, and then his eyes fluttered as he thought of Piper and her comment about his not having a brother.
All he knew was this better not be...