Chapter 24
Gen closed her eyes, smiling as she drifted into her second nap of the day.
Was it crazy for her to be loving it here?
Mom thought so, even though she had deigned to visit a couple of times in the past seven days, even staying overnight on one occasion.
Mom hadn’t stopped exclaiming about the place, with its timber accents and large windows opening up to the beach, the living room with a feature stone fireplace taking up an entire wall.
Gen hadn’t stopped enjoying the sense of ease and calm and quiet the manicured gardens provided, gardens that included a hot tub she’d checked out nearly every day.
Or loving her king-size bed in one of the many oversized rooms decorated in Scandi vibes that made her feel relaxed in the first time in forever.
Because this, staying here at Kyle’s vacation home, felt like a dream. Like maybe she was Cinderella, here with the handsome prince. Even if the handsome prince still made no moves to prove he wanted to kiss her. Not like he had before.
Still, she sensed his interest, and could see the way he showed his care and concern, checking constantly that she had enough to eat, was getting enough sleep, was finally relaxing.
And she was. These long days of nothing to do seemed to be recalibrating her soul into an ease that she had never really known.
Maybe that’s what an excess of sleep did.
But unlike the slug sleep of before, when she’d cocooned herself from the world in bed, trying to ignore all the demands of life, she now felt more assured.
Kyle paying some of her bills had definitely helped.
But more than that, it felt like in him she had a partner with whom to face the world.
Not that they were partners in any romantic sense, but still.
Knowing he stood beside her, especially when it came to matters with Bella, really made a difference.
And the fact he was willing to support her in going against what Gen’s own mom might say was freeing too.
He was even willing to take the heat for her, for suggestions that Gen herself had made, such as agreeing that maybe one day they could look at having a dog.
“But who would care for it?” Mom had demanded.
“I would,” Bella had said. “Don’t you think it would make me more responsible?”
Gen smiled again. Her daughter seemed to possess a manipulative streak as strong as Gen’s mom. Well, she supposed it was to be expected, having been exposed to it all her life.
But even with that Kyle was good. Perhaps because he, too, had been exposed to a woman who had her own calculating ways, so he had learned how to work around other people’s schemes.
He was like his dad in that regard, relaxed and willing to go with the flow, except when he wasn’t.
She’d seen it when his parents had stayed one night—not the same night as Minnie, thank goodness—and Philippa had gotten on her high horse about something and David Tinker had quelled her with one look.
Philippa had calmed down, in the same way that Gen’s mom did when Kyle stood up to her, refusing to back down from what he deemed was in Gen and Bella’s best interests.
Like with Gen’s new car, that she’d pick up in a week or two.
Like with this vacation, a chance to escape the insanity of work and just be.
Kyle was a good man. So kind. So generous.
So patient. And while he might not have used the word yet with her she sensed his love for them.
Sensed his deep care and affection for Bella.
Sensed he possessed the same for her. And judging from the way he was acting more comfortable around her mother, perhaps one day, he might even care and have affection for her, too.
The fact that these pieces of her life seemed to be somehow settling into place helped give her courage to face the other things that still had questions hanging over them.
Like her career. Between them, Dr. Singh and Dr. Rialto had managed to implement a board internal review which had seen her suspension commuted to leave for mental health reasons, thus doing their best to ensure that her residency wouldn’t need to be extended.
This meant that when she returned to work on probation she would likely miss out on the senior resident role, which stung.
But if missing two weeks meant she’d have to work harder to catch up when she returned so she wouldn’t be extended, then that was okay.
Regardless, their last discussion suggested there was a chance things wouldn’t be as bad as what had previously been mentioned.
Jerrold Graham, the lawyer Kyle had engaged on her behalf, had appealed using the Health Care Quality Improvement Act peer review protections, claiming the hospital had failed to provide fair procedures or substantiate a peer-review decision.
He’d assured her that these matters always moved slowly, and hinted that the accusations had been made by someone who’d taken to heart a comment about “not needing to try hard to make someone look bad” which made it obvious who had complained.
Yet there was enough smoke to suggest that her accuser was not without blame himself, amid questions over his appointment given his connection to a board member.
It was good to leave that with someone else who also seemed supportive, even if she knew she’d have to face more questions when she returned to the mainland.
Still, knowing the hospital drama was in safe hands left room for other things.
Like wondering about Kyle’s insistence on mentioning God at every opportunity, even praying for meals.
She wasn’t sure how she felt about Bella asking questions about God, but didn’t want to stop her if faith gave her comfort. And sometimes, like now, in this place between wake and sleep, she wondered if God cared enough to give Gen comfort too.
“Have a good nap?” Kyle asked when she finally ventured outside.
She swallowed. Why the man insisted on not wearing a shirt she didn’t know.
Well, it made sense if he and Bella had been swimming, as seemed to be the case, but it wasn’t exactly helpful to a woman’s peace of mind.
The man might not be attracted to her but she couldn’t help noticing how much more filled out and tanned and muscled he was than the last time she’d seen him shirtless. That time in hospital didn’t count.
“Gen?” he asked, at the same time Bella said, “Mom, why are you looking at Dad like that?”
Kyle smirked, like she knew he would, and she had to hide heated cheeks behind a faked yawn. “Yeah, my nap was nice.” She turned to face the other view, where the sun was streaking pink across the water. “Wow, I wasn’t expecting it to be so long that the sun would be setting.”
“You must’ve needed it.”
“Still?” She shook her head.
“Hey, it takes time to recover when one has been overworked and stressed for years.”
She nodded, snatched a pretzel from the bowl next to where Kyle and Bella had been playing Scrabble on the outside lounge. Nearby the firepit was already alight, and a few mosquito-repellent lamps were lit. “I didn’t think I was this stressed.”
“You were pressured when I knew you before, Gen, so we’re talking probably at least twelve years of catching up.”
She slipped onto the couch opposite. He was right.
She’d always felt the burden to perform.
How else was she going to get into medical school unless she got perfect grades?
Then there had been all the pressure of Kyle leaving, then her pregnancy and hiding her appearance to not get kicked out of school, then the exams and constant knowledge that she couldn’t disappoint her mother again.
So yeah, it made sense that she had never really learned the art of relaxation.
She peeked across, as he tugged on a shirt, like he’d recognized the night was cooling. “I hope you’re happy.”
“Happy?” He arched a brow.
“About forcing me to relax.”
“I’m happier,” he admitted. “Will be even happier once the review is sorted out.”
Her spirits fell. “Yeah, me too.” Jerrold was supposed to be an excellent lawyer who had dealt with these kinds of things before. But would he really be able to help her win against the hospital board?
“Hey, it’ll work out. You can trust God. He loves you, Gen.”
She swallowed at the intensity of his gaze. He really seemed to believe it.
“Does God love me too?” Bella asked.
“Sure does, sweet pea.” Kyle ruffled her hair, to which she protested, but the delight in her face said she loved it.
“How do you know?”
“Because the Bible says so. God loved the world so much that He gave His only son that whoever believes in Him should not perish, but can have eternal life.” He shifted to look at Bella more squarely.
“Jesus Christ lived two thousand years ago. There’s plenty of evidence to prove it.
He claimed to be God’s son. Then He died on a cross, an innocent man, but He did so to take the punishment for all of our sins. ”
“You mean all the bad things I’ve done?” Bella asked.
“All the bad things you’ve done, all the bad things I’ve done, all the bad things even your mom has done.”
“Mommy doesn’t do bad things.”
That was sweet, but “We all have, honey.”
“Even Grandma?”
“Yep.”
“Wow.”
Yep. She was glad that Bella couldn’t see it, but it was like having a rest had given her enough perspective to see that her mom, for all the good things she’d done, hadn’t always helped Gen.
By insisting on hard work at the expense of friends, by insisting on not telling Kyle about his child, by repeating a constant mantra of independence, Gen had learned some bad habits over the years.
And yes, it wasn’t all her mom’s fault—Gen wasn’t a victim and could recognize she’d had a sizable part to play in these faults too—but there were habits and attitudes that had proved hard to break.
And had proved unhealthy and unsustainable, until Kyle had stepped in and showed a different way.