Chapter 73 #2
Remy sat upright, the world tilting for a heartbeat as a flash of white pain cut through his abdomen. “Fuck! Too high,” he hissed. “Lower the bed.” Elliott lowered the bed to a reclining position and helped Remy slip the T-shirt over his head.
“Now I know why Skye asked me to stay,” Elliott said.
Remy squinted. “Why?”
“She didn’t want to hear yer profanity.”
Remy smirked. “I promised her I’d work on that.”
Elliott mirrored his smirk. “I don’t see it happening. But if ye drop that word from yer vocabulary, ye’ll also please Charlotte.”
Remy carefully and slowly rolled his legs over the side of the bed while holding his breath. “I’ll try! But, fuck, this hurts.”
“Ye’re going to be sore for a few days.” Elliott half-laughed.
“What’s so funny?”
“It reminds me of what Kevin would say after my leg surgeries. That statement—it will be sore—is the most unhelpful piece of advice anyone can give. I’m sorry, I just gave it to ye.”
“Sore my ass. This is fucking pain.”
Elliott chuckled. “We’ll get ye some ice cream on the way out. That’ll make ye feel better.”
Remy managed a laugh that turned into a gasp. “You think I’m five?”
“Six on a good day.”
As Elliott bent to tie his shoes, sweat beaded at Remy’s temples. “What kind of ice cream?” he asked between breaths.
“Any kind ye want.” Elliott’s phone buzzed. He checked it. “Meredith says the car’s waiting.”
“Tell her I’m dressed and waiting for the wheelchair,” Remy said, closing his eyes.
“Done.” Elliott put his phone away, pulled the curtain aside, and then closed it.
“Don’t see a wheelchair. If I did, I’d take ye myself.
” He stood behind Remy and massaged his shoulders just as Remy had done for Elliott, never asking, just knowing it needed to be done to release tension.
“Are ye going to stay here for a couple of days?”
“It depends on how I feel.” Remy rolled his neck. “Keep that up, and it’ll be sooner rather than later.”
“It could be several days before Dr. Kawaja gets the path report. Do ye want to stay here that long?”
“Not really. If I need chemo, I can get it anywhere, right?”
“Ye can have it administered at a local hospital, or even Charlotte can do it. But let’s hold off on that worry until we know if it’s necessary.”
Remy swallowed hard, choking back tears. “Why’d I have to get cancer just when I met my soulmate?”
Elliott dug his fingers deeper into Remy’s tight neck and shoulder muscles. “Meredith is the one ye should ask. She found a lump in her breast a couple of days before we met. It was challenging, but we got through it. So will ye and Skye.”
“Do you think she’d mind if I asked her for advice?” Remy felt like a teenager needing his parents at a miserable time in his life. This qualified as one of those moments, and he was comfortable asking Elliott and Meredith to play that parental role.
“Meredith loves ye, Remy. She’ll do whatever she can to make this easier for ye and Skye. Ask her anything. We’re here for ye.”
A thirty-ish female patient transporter pushed a wheelchair into the cubicle and secured its brakes. Her face flushed slightly when she saw Remy. “Your Uber’s here.”
Remy noticed her reaction and gave her a killer grin because, well, because that’s what he did. “Right on time. I hope it’s a smooth ride.”
She matched Remy’s grin. “I’ll go around the speed bumps. The hospital doesn’t like it when I do that, but sometimes you just don’t want to jostle a patient. And you know”—she shrugged—“it’s all about the tips.”
“Yeah, I know.”
Elliott stood out of the way so she could get Remy out of bed and into the wheelchair, and he only hollered fuck twice.
She was all kindness and calm, and she seemed to enjoy her job and interacting with patients. Since it was against hospital policy to tip employees, Remy wouldn’t tip her, but he wanted to.
As they approached the limo, Remy said to Elliott, “I’m ready to go home. We’ve been here long enough, and I’m sure Charlotte will be glad to get back to her family.”
“Charlotte goes with the flow. If her patient were in Alaska, that’s where she’d be.”
Liam stood by the open car door. “How are you feeling, sir?”
Remy blew out his cheeks and tried to relax as he thought about bending and twisting to get into the limo. “I’m doing okay. How about yourself?”
“I’m doing okay, too.”
Skye scooted over on the rear bench seat, and Remy eased into the car, hissing, and sat next to her.
Elliott sat on the perimeter seating across from the built-in bar with Charlotte, Meredith, Kenzie, Marcelle, and Alistair.
As Liam pulled the car into traffic, Remy asked, “Does anyone mind if we fly home tonight?”
“I don’t mind at all,” Skye said. “We should be where you’ll be the most comfortable.”
“I’d rather take care of Remy in my surgery than in a hotel room,” Charlotte said.
“Darn it,” Kenzie said. “I was hoping for a couple of vacation days, but if everybody wants to go home, who am I to be the sole holdout?”
“I’ll stay with you,” Skye offered. “You’ve been so sweet to come here for us. I don’t want to ruin your vacation.”
Remy put his arm around Skye’s shoulders. “She’s kidding. Kenz doesn’t like to be away from David and her kids. She’s ready to go home.”
“Oh,” Skye said, covering her mouth. “I didn’t know.”
Kenzie reached over and patted Skye’s knee.
“Don’t worry about it. It’ll take a while to learn all our peccadilloes.
” Kenzie poured drinks for everyone except Remy.
He got a bottle of water. “Drink up and listen to my plan. When we get to the hotel, Elliott and Meredith should stay in the limo with Remy. Marcelle and I will help Skye pack and check out of her room, while Alistair and Charlotte check out of theirs. How’s that sound? ”
“I’m paying for everything, Kenz,” Remy said. “Tell the clerk to charge all expenses to my card. Skye’s got my Amex. And…”—he paused to catch his breath—“bring me an ice-cream cone. Elliott forgot.”
“Sorry,” Elliott said. “I got distracted.” He pulled out his phone. “I’ll let the pilot know our plans.”
As he texted, Meredith popped the lid off a can of nuts, took a few, and passed the can along, the soft rattle of shells breaking the quiet. “They won’t be happy,” she said with a wry smile. “They thought they’d have the night off.”
Elliott’s phone pinged almost instantly. “Nah,” he said, the faint curve of a smile forming on his face. “They’d just as soon fly home. And, according to this message, they can be ready to leave in an hour.”
When they reached the hotel, the car eased to a quiet stop under the porte-cochère. Liam was quickly at the door, moving with his usual efficiency. He pulled it open, and everyone climbed from the limo, except Remy, Elliott, and Meredith.
“We’ve had a change of plans, Liam,” Remy said, voice tired but composed. “Once they bring the luggage, we’re heading straight to the airport.”
The driver gave a short nod and an approving grin. “Understood, sir. It’s been a pleasure driving you.”
Remy squeezed his right fist with his left hand, and the knuckles cracked, which was better than breaking them. “Meredith, will you have coffee with me in a day or two?”
“Sure.” Meredith put her phone down. “What’s on your agenda?”
He shrugged. “Nothing important. Just cancer.”
She gave him a slow smile. “I know a lot about that, Remy, and will be happy to share my story.” She turned toward Elliott. “Our story.”
Elliott clasped hands with her and kissed her cheek.
“And about falling in love, too,” Remy said.
“Your situation is a lot like mine. It was hard, especially since Elliott was an absolute ass, but it worked out. I’d love to talk to you. Maybe I can help you navigate your way through a difficult time.”
A flood of relief calmed Remy’s nerves. “Maybe you can talk to Skye, too.”
“I will, but how about we talk first? It will help me if I know the scary parts you’re dealing with before I talk to her.”
He nodded, having the strangest feeling that she’d just offered him a glass of milk and warm chocolate chip cookies. He’d been around Meredith for several years on an almost daily basis, but for the first time, he could honestly say that he loved her as he’d loved his mère.
“Remy, it’s going to be okay,” Meredith offered. “Skye understands what you’re going through, and she’ll be very supportive. You don’t have to worry about her.”
“I know. It’s just—”
“What? Too good to be true?” she asked.
He crossed his arms in front of his chest. “Maybe.”
“You deserve this, Remy. You’ve waited a long time for your forever girl. She’s here, and she’s madly in love.” Meredith sipped her drink and sighed contentedly. Then she looked at Elliott. “You haven’t touched your drink. Are you okay?”
Uncertainty suddenly lodged in Remy’s throat as he wondered if Elliott would tell Meredith what was going on with him, and if so, what would she say?
He took a long drink. “I’m good.”
Meredith’s gaze flickered between Remy and Elliott. Remy tried to look nonchalant, but he doubted he’d pulled it off.
“What’s going on with you two?”
“Nothing except worrying over Remy,” Elliott said.
“Don’t buy it. Remy knows something I don’t. Now what could that be?” She tapped her fingers against her jaw. “Hmmm. Do you want to tell me, or do I have to guess?”
“There’s nothing to tell,” Elliott said.
“Did you tell Remy about going to the cave yesterday?” She waved away the question. “Of course you did. But why would you bother him right now with news of our trip to the castle when nothing happened?”
Remy was keeping his mouth shut and wasn’t even going to look at Elliott. He closed his eyes and leaned his head against the headrest.
“I told him we went, and that nothing happened”—Elliott wiggled his fingers—“in the magical thirty seconds.”
She cut him off with a flick of her hand. “It was thirty seconds for us, but not for you.”
“What makes ye think that?”
“I saw your face before and after. Whatever happened affected you. I didn’t ask about it because I sensed you didn’t fully understand it yet.”
“And I still don’t,” he said with resignation. “We’ll have a family meeting later for everybody eighteen and older. For those at the plantation, we’ll meet in the conference room in the resource center. For everyone else, I’ll send out an invitation to a Zoom call.”
“I’ll hold you to it,” she said.
“So will I,” Remy added.