Chapter Twenty-Five
Steven opened his eyes the next morning, hoping it had all been a dream, but the incessant beeping of the heart monitor betrayed the truth. Not only was he back in the hospital, but he was also single. The ring he had searched for over several months, determined to find the perfect one, mocked him from his bedside table.
If he were honest, he could admit he should have seen that coming. And as if losing Rose wasn’t bad enough, his stupidity might have cost him his firm as well.
“Ah, good, you’re awake.” Dr. Myers popped his head into the room.
I wish I wasn’t. The thought came out of nowhere and caught him off guard. Thank goodness he had a filter. Otherwise, he would likely be put on some seventy-two-hour hold. And that was quite literally the last thing he needed.
“I wanted to talk to you about discharge.”
That got his attention. “Already? Aren’t you keeping me here for observation?”
“Oh, we are,” Dr. Myers said. “But I also told you I would discharge you home.”
“And you’re not planning on doing that anymore?” Steven read between the lines of what the doctor wasn’t saying.
Dr. Myers sighed. “If you really want to go home, we can certainly make that happen, assuming everything looks good.” For a moment, the good doctor appeared at war with himself, which only amped up Steven’s irritation.
“Just spit it out, Doc.”
“You won’t want to hear this, but you were making significant progress in the inpatient rehab facility.” His eyes narrowed as he leveled a stern gaze at Steven. “You should consider going back.”
The no was on the tip of Steven’s tongue when Rose’s face flashed before his eyes. A weight as heavy as an elephant settled on his chest. He would do anything to see her again, anything to convince her to give him another chance.
“You have a better chance of healing and getting back to your life if you spend a few more weeks working through an intensive therapy program,” Dr. Myers continued when Steven didn’t respond. “I’ve spoken with the medical team there, and—”
“Okay,” Steven whispered as he squeezed his eyes shut.
“They said they can get you Wi-Fi—Wait, did you say yes?”
Opening his eyes, Steven nodded. “I’ll do it.”
“Well… great!” Dr. Myers’s face broke into a broad smile. “That went better than I’d expected.” He turned as if to go then glanced over his shoulder. “And just so you know, the facility is making special accommodations to allow you to work from there. You’ll still need to focus most of your energy on getting better, but I don’t want you to stress about your business. Just… try to find a balance, all right?”
“I will,” Steven promised, and the conviction in his words took him by surprise.
True to his word, Dr. Myers kept Steven for observation for a few more days, and they were the most boring days of Steven’s life. Only his father and a few friends came to visit. He hadn’t expected Rose, though he couldn’t quite quash the small piece of hope in his heart. After all, she worked at the hospital, so it wouldn’t have been difficult for her to swing by.
But the visitor he missed even worse than Rose was Lanie. It wasn’t like his sister to avoid him, especially since she’d arrived right after he’d collapsed. He’d thought she would come by every day, but he hadn’t seen her since the breakup. To say he was hurt was an understatement. Doesn’t she understand that blood is thicker than water? Sure, she and Rose were friends, but he was in the hospital. Shouldn’t my needs take precedence?
Deep down, he could admit, at least to himself, that he understood why she hadn’t come. She must have been so angry with him for screwing up the best relationship he could have ever hoped to have. Maybe she was helping Rose cancel the wedding. His throat burned, but he swallowed the pain. Perhaps Lanie believed he deserved it.
“Are you ready to bust out of this place?” His dad entered the room with an uncharacteristic smile on his normally grumpy face.
“More than ready,” Steven said. The nurses had allowed him to briefly wander the grounds, but it had been a while since his last outdoor adventure.
“The doc says they’ll spring you in an hour or so.”
He’d been throwing himself a pity party for long enough. The transition to the rehab facility sounded like just the distraction he needed.
“Have you heard from Lanie?” Steven asked, trying to sound casual.
His father gave him a strange look. “I mean, we keep different hours, but she does still live with me.”
So much for trying to sound nonchalant.“I, uh, figured she spent most of her time at Nate’s.”
“She’s been spending several hours at your law firm this week.” His father raised an eyebrow. “Hasn’t she checked in with you?”
Steven shook his head. Sandra had called and texted a few times, which he appreciated. It helped break the monotony of the hospital stay. But his messages to Lanie had gone unanswered.
“Well, she’s meeting us at the rehab center this afternoon, so you’ll see her then.”
The fact that his father sounded unbothered by Lanie’s absence alleviated some of Steven’s concern, but the churning in his stomach wasn’t likely to subside until he saw his sister.
“I saw Rose yesterday,” Dad continued, and there was an edge to his voice.
“Oh?” Steven took deep breaths to calm his racing heart.
“Ran into her on my way here. Seems she’s keeping busy with extra shifts at the hospital.”
A million questions bubbled on his lips, but he didn’t know how to ask them without sounding as desperate as he was. Instead, he nodded and stared straight ahead, trying to look like he didn’t care.
Dad ran a hand through his salt-and-pepper hair. “She looked good.”
Steven opened his mouth, but nothing came out. What was he supposed to say? That he was happy she was doing well while he wasted away in a hospital bed? That he wished she’d come see him?
“Anyway…” His father shifted his weight to his other foot and dropped his gaze.
Steven took some comfort in the knowledge that their conversation was as awkward for his dad as it was for him.
“Just thought you’d want to know.”
“Why?” Steven blurted out without thinking, and he immediately regretted it.
“Look, things aren’t good between you two, but I think it’s temporary—”
The thin hold he had on his emotions broke. “Temporary? Oh, okay. So she just temporarily broke my heart. That makes everything better. Thanks, Dad.”
“Don’t be like that.”
“Like what?” And all the pain he had pent up inside since Rose left him erupted like a raging river breaching a dam. “What good does it do me to hear Rose is moving on? That she’s doing great while I’m lying here, day after day, with little to distract me.”
“You’re about to be discharged,” Dad protested, though the fact that he wouldn’t meet Steven’s gaze betrayed how weak those words sounded.
“To an inpatient rehab for who knows how long.” When Dad opened his mouth again, Steven held up a hand. “And before you tell me it’s good for me, I know. I get that it’s what I need, but it doesn’t mean I’m happy about it.” He stared at his hands, clenching them into fists as he fought to push his anger and pain back down his gut, where it belonged. “I was this close to having everything I ever wanted, and now I may lose it all. So forgive me if I’m having some trouble processing it.”
Before Dad could respond, a familiar blond head appeared around the doorframe. “Everything okay in here?”
The joy Steven felt at seeing his sister was tempered by the memory that she hadn’t been by sooner. He forced a smile, determined not to let her know how much her absence had hurt. The last thing he needed to do was alienate his entire family in one day.
“Lanie!” Dad said with faux excitement. Steven suspected his father was more grateful for the interruption than he was happy that Lanie had arrived. “I didn’t expect to see you here.”
“I finished helping Sandra with a major project at the law office. I was able to slip away earlier than expected.” She slipped past Dad and wrapped an arm around Steven. “How’re you holding up?”
Spiteful words sprang to mind, but he held his tongue. It began to ache with the effort. “Looking forward to getting out of here.”
“I’ll bet.” Her arm tightened around him, and she lowered her voice. “Listen, I’m sorry for not stopping by sooner, but I needed to take care of a few things.”
Why is she whispering?“Yeah, Dad said you were working at the firm. I appreciate it.”
“Well, yes, I’ve been at the firm.” She glanced at Dad, but he had wandered over to the window and was staring pointedly out at the parking lot. “But I’ve also been with Rose.”
A flash of hot rage shot down his spine as he pulled away. “Seriously? You’ve been comforting her? Need I remind you she broke up with me?”
To his surprise, his sister rolled her eyes. “Oh, get over yourself. Don’t act like you had no part in her decision. Besides, you should thank me. I was doing damage control.”
“What is that supposed to mean?”
“I convinced her not to cancel the wedding.”
You did what?
Even Dad spun away from the window, betraying the fact that he’d been listening to their every word. Steven gritted his teeth as he tried to process what she’d said.
“Why would you do that?” he demanded. “She might still be able to get some of the money back if she cancels now.”
Lanie stared at him as if he was the one being obtuse. “As long as there’s a wedding, you won’t lose any money.”
Maybe Lanie had lost her mind. “Um, how is there going to be a wedding when Rose broke up with me?”
She lifted her eyes to the ceiling. “Do I have to spell everything out for you?” Shaking her head, she sat on the bed and took his hand. “Rose didn’t want to break up with you. She still loves you, but she doesn’t trust you to actually follow through on your promises, and she’s scared she’s going to lose you soon after the wedding.”
Pulling his hand back, he scowled at her, but she ignored him.
“Correct me if I’m wrong, but this latest health episode seems to have been the wake-up call you needed.”
Steven nodded, not quite sure where she was going.
“Better late than never,” she said under her breath.
“Can we cut the shaming and get to the point?”
“If you can prove you’re taking things seriously this time and that you’re doing it for yourself, for your health…” She took a deep breath. “I have reason to believe Rose will give you a second chance and the wedding can move forward as planned.”
“But it’s barely a month away at this point,” their father piped up. “And we don’t know how long Steven will be in rehab.”
“The doctor said if I follow the advice of my therapists, I could be out in a couple of weeks.”
“Perfect.” Lanie searched his face. “I assume you’d still like to be able to walk at the wedding as well?” At his nod, she smiled. “Great. And what about the first dance?”