Chapter 41
forty-one
on the highway?
Liam
“What do you mean you’re supposed to be taking care of her?” Frowning, I watched Maya pace. “Nana’s a grown woman. She’s been taking care of herself most of her life.”
Maya should have been relieved when I brought Nana home, yet instead she became more agitated as the minutes ticked by.
She muttered to herself, paced the tiny living room, and pulled away when I tried to touch her.
I wanted to talk her down from whatever ledge she had herself on, but without knowing what got her up there to begin with, it was impossible.
Why would she think she’s responsible for Nana? She helped out, sure, but I’d assumed she was being neighbourly. To Maya, though, it was more than that.
“You’re staying the night, right?” she asked abruptly, stopping mid-pace to fix me with a desperate stare. “Here, on the couch? To make sure she’s okay?”
Her request didn’t make sense; Nana wasn’t an escape artist. But if it made Maya feel better, I’d sleep on the couch.
“Maya. Slow down.” I stepped forward, reaching for her again, but she spun out of my grasp. “Tell me what’s really bothering you. I can’t stand seeing you hurting like this.”
“What’s bothering me?” she repeated, her voice edging into a higher register. She squeezed her eyes shut and whispered, “I messed up.” Her voice broke. “I messed up, and because of it, Nana could have died.”
“It wasn’t your fault, Maya.” I tried again, more softly this time. “She’s perfectly fine. She wasn’t anywhere near death.”
She threw her hands up. “But she could have been. And it would’ve been my fault.”
I shook my head, trying to drag her into my arms again, hoping to calm her, to reassure her, but instead of accepting my comfort, she pushed me away.
Her eyes flashed as she glared up at me. “What are you doing here? Your message said you left.”
“My phone died this morning after I messaged you,” I said carefully, only now realizing that with all the excitement I had yet to tell her my news.
“I forgot my charging cord at the B it is a good thing there’s only one road into Carlisle Creek.” I dropped a kiss on the top of her head. “She was walking on the side of the road outside of town. I picked her up and took her straight to Dr. Madison.”
She froze, and her face drained of colour. She brought her arms up between us and pushed me away. “She was on the highway?” Her voice quavered. “Where? Which way was she going?”
Shit. I should’ve kept my mouth shut.
“How far, Liam?” Her fingers dug into my chest as she shoved me back further. “Tell me where she was.”
If Maya hated the idea of Nana being outside at night, she was really going to hate hearing how far Nana had walked.
“She was a couple of kilometres from town.” It dawned on me a second too late that I should have lied. Made something up until she’d calmed down enough to hear the truth. Because this news did not sit well with Maya. She’d already been pale with worry, but now? Now she was practically translucent.
“Oh my god.” She sobbed, her shoulders shaking with each gasp. “How could I let this happen?”
I reached out to wrap her in my arms again, but she twisted out of my embrace.
She buried her face in her hands, her breath coming in rasping gulps. “Damn you, Alan Rickman. You and your angelic voice.”
I blinked. “What the hell does Alan Rickman have to do with any of this?”
She dragged in another ragged breath before blowing it out gradually. “I’m going to lie down,” she murmured. “Promise you’ll stay here? On the couch. Keep Nana safe. Stay on the couch.”
She didn’t wait for an answer before fleeing the apartment, but I’d stay regardless. I headed to the hall closet to find a pillow and a blanket. If it made her feel better, I’d sleep on Nana’s couch every night.
Then again, Nana was a grown woman. She wasn’t a prisoner. Tonight had been a fluke. She went for a walk. She forgot her coat. It started snowing. The end. Why had Maya been so upset?
I was still trying to wrap my head around Maya’s reaction when my phone buzzed with an incoming message.
Greg
Call me
Damn it. I’d forgotten to let him know I was back.
I hit dial as I lifted the phone to my ear.
“Where the hell are you?” He didn’t bother with pleasantries.
“At Nana’s. She’s home. She’s in bed.”
There was a beat of silence before his muffled voice came through the line. “She’s home! Start calling everyone.”
What? How organized had this search been?
“What happened?” Greg demanded. “Tell me everything.”
“I found her walking down the highway. I should have called you sooner.”
“Jesus.” His relief was palpable through the phone. “And she’s okay?”
“Yes, she’s good. Doctor Madison checked her out. She’ll be fine after some rest.”
Greg exhaled. “And Maya?”
I hesitated. “She’s freaking out. She thinks this is all her fault.”
Greg made a low noise in his throat. “Andie was telling me Maya feels responsible for Nana. As in, she thinks she has to take care of her. To repay her.”
“Repay her?” I frowned. “For what?”
“For everything Nana’s done for her.” Greg sighed. “For some reason, Maya feels she should be Nana’s caretaker.”
That made no sense. Or did it?
Nana’s memory issues. The doctor’s concerns. Maya’s panic tonight. I had assumed Maya had been helping Nana. That she was a concerned friend. But now I see she’d taken on the role of granddaughter because Nana’s actual grandson had his head up his ass.
Crap! I was such a moron.
“I need to go. We’ll talk more tomorrow.”
“Sounds good. I’m relieved Nana’s okay. Andie and I will make sure the search gets called off.”
“We appreciate it.”
I ended the call and navigated to the message thread with Maya.
Liam
Hey. I have to go back to Westborough. Talk soon.
No wonder she thought I wasn’t coming back. I really needed to work on my communication skills.
Maya
Well, I hope you’re happy. You almost convinced me that you’re not a completely self-absorbed, ignorant, overgrown man-baby, but guess what? I was right all along.
Ouch! Ignorant, overgrown man-baby? That hurt.
I always knew you would leave, but I thought you’d at least say goodbye first.
I should have known I couldn’t count on you.
Don’t worry. I’ll take care of Nana.
Shit.
It was worse than I had originally thought. She assumed I had left town for good without saying goodbye. And after that happened, Nana disappeared. No wonder she’d been freaking out when I brought Nana home. I needed to fix this.
I launched myself off the couch and ran to Maya’s door. As I raised my hand to knock, a man’s voice drifted through the door. An easy, masculine drawl murmured low enough that I couldn’t make out the words.
I froze.
…She had a guy in there?
What. The. Hell?