Dedicated to the One I Love, page 19
But just a few moments later, Joe shifted in the bed. Frowned. Opened his eyes and focused on her. “Hey … you’re here.”
“Of course. I told you that I’d be here when surgery was over. How are you feeling?”
“A little groggy. Can’t feel my leg at all.”
“That’s probably a good thing.”
“Yeah.” He moved his hands over the top of the hospital blanket and rubbed the IV site.
“Hey now. Don’t mess with that.” Kylie rested her hand on his.
“It hurts.”
“I’m sorry. You’re not a fan of needles, I know. The nurse mentioned something about IV antibiotics.”
He closed his eyes for a moment and then a half smile appeared on his face. “We’re holding hands again.”
“Wh-what?”
He turned his hand over so that their hands met, palm to palm. “Holding hands. Again.”
“We’re not holding hands … ” She tried to pull her hand away.
“—like it. I like holding your hand, Kylie.”
She stilled. “We don’t hold hands, Joe.”
“ … held my hand earlier. S’nice.” His gaze was unfocused. “You like holding … my hand?”
What was she supposed to say? “Sure. Yeah.”
“I liked … kissing you even more … ”
Joe rubbed his thumb back and forth across her skin, causing those all-too-familiar tingles to course through her arm. The nurse needed to come back and tell her it was time to leave before Joe said anything more. Before he asked her if she liked kissing him. Of course, he wouldn’t remember any of this conversation in the morning.
And Abbie wanted a photo of Joe to send to their parents. How was she supposed to do that, while she was holding Joe’s hand?
Sybil appeared again. If she noticed Kylie holding Joe’s hand, she didn’t comment. “Joe? How about we raise this bed so you can sit up?”
“Let me move out of the way.” Kylie tried to ease to the end of the bed.
“You … leaving, Kylie?” Joe refused to release her hand.
“I’m still here.” She gave his hand a gentle squeeze and then stepped back. “The nurse wants you to sit up.”
“I brought you some apple juice and crackers. You said that sounded good.”
“No Pepsi?”
“Not yet. Let’s get this apple juice down, shall we?”
“Doubt you’ll be drinking any … ”
Kylie laughed. “He’s going to be fine.”
“Be better without this blood pressure thing.”
“That’s not going to happen.” The nurse pulled the blanket back, revealing Joe’s feet. “Can you try moving your toes for me?”
“ … feel nothing below my hip. Do I still have toes?”
“Dr. Petroni didn’t touch your toes.”
“Kylie, can you confirm that?”
“You can trust the nurse, but yes, I can confirm you have all ten of your toes.”
“When do I get outta here?”
“We can’t take you to your room until you’re able to move your toes.” The nurse stepped midway up the side of the bed. “Let me check your bandage and then I’ll go get you some more juice. Oh, do you have someone to stay with you tonight?”
“His sister is here. She’s planning on staying—”
“Abbie’s here?”
“Yes, I called her. She’s been keeping in touch with your parents. That reminds me.” Kylie held up her phone.
“Stop.” Joe turned his face away.
“Smile.”
“Smile?”
“Abbie wants me to text her a photo to send your parents. I’ll do that and then I’m going to let her come back.”
“You’re leaving?”
“Your sister should have some time with you.”
“Wait. If I smile you can send a photo. Then you can hang out while I drink another juice … maybe see me wiggle my toes … ”
“Wouldn’t want to miss that.”
It had been a long day. She needed to get home, but if Joe wanted her to stay, she’d stay, at least a little while longer. He’d had surgery, not her. She’d ignore the dull ache in her lower back and cheer him on while he tried to wiggle his toes.
A couple hours later, Kylie walked through her front door. Seven forty-five. Kicked off her shoes. Dropped her purse on the chair by the kitchen counter, taking her phone with her as she wandered to her bedroom. Sure enough, Remington was curled up on her pillows. She collapsed next to him to text Dylan, Leah, and Zoe, who were probably wondering what was going on since her single Joe has to have surgery to remove another wood sliver from his leg text earlier that day.
I’m home. Joe is in the hospital on IV antibiotics for a few days. His sister is with him. I’m exhausted. Talk to you tomorrow.
Her friends would take the hint and not text or call her.
She needed to get up. Rinse away the stress of the day with a long, hot shower. Brush her teeth. Crawl into a pair of cotton pajamas and go to sleep. Instead, she stared at the ceiling, rubbing Remington’s soft fur until he purred in her ear.
“Holding hands. Again.” Joe’s words whispered through her head. “ … held my hand earlier. S’nice.”
Holding hands with Joe Edwards was nice. Very nice.
“I liked … kissing you even more … ”
And that was a dangerous thought.
Wait a minute.
Kylie sat up. She could work with this!
She’d missed this feeling. The unexpected ping of creativity when an idea surprised her. Kylie gave her cat a quick pat. “Sorry, Rem. I have some writing to do.”
She grabbed one of Joe’s Pepsis from the fridge, taking a bag of popcorn with her to her desk. Opened a blank document and went to work. Faster than she expected, the scene tumbled out onto her Word document. The scene was rough, but she liked it.
Kylie scanned the first few paragraphs again.
“Eva … I gotta tell you something.” Remington’s bandage-wrapped hand caught hers, forcing her to stop from walking away.
“What?”
“I liked kissing you earlier today.”
Evangeline refused to react to his unexpected words—at least that he could see. There was no stopping the warmth that washed over her at the memory of the kiss they’d shared. The man had crashed a motorcycle and tumbled over a cliff several hundred feet. Had a head wound. He didn’t know what he was saying. “That kiss was a camouflage kiss—”
“That was a good kiss.” He gave her a lopsided smile.
“That kiss kept us from being spotted by the local police informant.”
“Doesn’t mean it wasn’t a good kiss.” Exhaustion graveled his voice.
She couldn’t reason with a man with a concussion. “Remington, you need to get some sleep. We’ll talk in the morning.”
He gripped her hand tighter. “Where are you going?”
“Don’t worry about me. I’m not the one who fell off a cliff.”
She could only hope Joe would like the scene when he read it. Unless he remembered their conversation in the recovery room, he wouldn’t know what sparked her creativity. That was fine. She’d let it sit overnight and then take her laptop with her to the hospital tomorrow and work on it again.
As she exited her office, a text came from Abbie.
All is good here. Joe wants me to tell you he can wiggle his toes and can also feel his leg again. They’re staying on top of his pain meds. He insists we keep the TV on ESPN. I’m about to curl up in the recliner and try to get some sleep. You’ll be back tomorrow, yes?
Yes, I’ll get there by ten o’clock if that works for you. Let me know if you want me to bring anything.
Joe says to bring any leftovers you have in your fridge.
Tell Joe I’ll see what I can do about that.
CHAPTER 18
What was that noise?
Kylie rolled over, shoved the pillow off her face. Her bedroom was still dark.
Phone. Her phone was buzzing. There. On the bedside table. Who was calling her at five o’clock in the morning? Kylie pushed herself to a sitting position. “Hello?”
“Rise and shine.” Shannon was much too happy.
“Why are you calling me?”
“You’re going on The Morning Connect in an hour. You need to get ready—”
“I-I’m what?”
“Chelsea Price is doing a quick two-minute Zoom interview with you, where you will tell her yes, you and Tate Merrick are writing a book together.”
Kylie stumbled out of the bed and onto her feet. “Shannon, this is either a horrible dream or some kind of terrible joke … ”
“I’d love for both of us to still be sound asleep and dreaming. But a photo of you and Joe ended up on Instagram again yesterday and created a fast burn on social media.”
“What? How?” Kylie pulled a strand of hair that had stuck near her mouth away from her face.
Ugh, drool.
“Some photo of you two walking together. Joe was on crutches. We can figure out what and how later. Based on the comments, everyone’s speculating you’re either writing together or dating. Or both.”
“We’re not dating.”
“I know that. You and Joe know that. But both your fan bases love speculating about what is going on. Liza and I had a late night powwow and decided it was time to come clean about you two working on Lethal Strike. Then I remembered your promise to Chelsea. I’ve been talking to The Morning Connect since oh-dark-thirty, and we’re going with the story today.”
This conversation was some crazy plot twist to the morning. Kylie shoved her snarled hair out of her face. How was she supposed to be ready to go on live TV in an hour? No. In less than an hour.
“You couldn’t have called me last night?”
“Kylie, I need you to wake up. This all went down just a couple of hours ago.” Shannon spoke in the calm tones of a mother soothing her child. “I knew you were at the hospital with Joe last night, which is why I didn’t call you. But this morning—now—we have to deal with this.”
“I’m sorry … I’m not upset with you.” Kylie leaned against the doorjamb leading into her bathroom. “I got home and then stayed up writing … It was so late when I went to bed, I’m not even sure I brushed my teeth. This was the last thing I expected to deal with this morning.”
“I need you to get ready for this interview. Remember to smile—but brush your teeth first. Keep your answers short. Talk about your book with Tate Merrick. Let viewers know you’re working on your novel too.”
“Thanks.”
“You can do this, Kylie.”
“With an adequate amount of concealer and caffeine.” Kylie took a few steps toward the shower.
“Pull your hair up in a classic ponytail. No fuss. Wear purple or royal blue.”
“Thanks for the tips.”
“I’ll be watching.”
And with that, Shannon hung up.
Kylie had forty-five minutes to become award-winning, bestselling author Veronica Hollins. Someone she hadn’t been in years. And she had to do it all by herself. No Andrew to cheer her on while he made her a cup of coffee. Set up her ring light while she put on her makeup. Give her a hug, while promising he wouldn’t kiss her and mess up her lip gloss. Offer her a smile as he shut her office door, ensuring Remington wouldn’t intrude.
The hot spray of the shower was as effective as a jolt of caffeine, but she only allowed herself three brief minutes to savor the warmth. She needed to focus. She was doing this interview for the team. For Veronica Hollins and Tate Merrick. For her and Joe. She’d survive two minutes, with the right amount of makeup, the right outfit, and a quick text to Dylan, Leah, and Zoe asking them to pray.
Two hours later, still wearing the plum-colored dress with three-quarter sleeves she’d pulled from her closet, her hair still up in a high ponytail, Kylie carried two paper bags—one containing an assortment of doughnuts, the other containing two cans of Pepsi—into the hospital. With a brief smile, she made her way past the nurses’ station to Joe’s room. She’d texted Abbie to let her know she was on her way but hadn’t received a reply. She could only hope Joe had slept well last night.
As she knocked and pushed open the door, Kylie caught the last few words of Abbie’s conversation with her brother. “ … give her a chance to explain.”
“There’s no good explanation for what she did, Abbie.”
Huh. Joe wasn’t in a good mood this morning.
“Good morning.” Kylie stepped into the room and held up the two bags. “I brought doughnuts and Pepsi.”
“Hey, Kylie.” Abbie’s smile was strained. “Doughnuts sound great, especially if you’ve got one with sprinkles.”
Joe remained silent.
She’d try again. “How are you feeling, Joe?”
“Me? Oh, I’m fine. Of course, I’m not the one who went on TV this morning and talked about Veronica Hollins and Tate Merrick writing a book together.”
Kylie paused at the foot of his bed. “You saw the interview?”
“How could I miss it? My nurse came running in and switched the TV channel, announcing you were on The Morning Connect.”
“Liza didn’t call and talk to you about what happened?”
“Does it sound like she did?” Joe tugged at his blankets. “The first thing I heard was your little virtual tête-à-tête with Chelsea. How long have you been planning this?”
“Planning? Joe, I found out about this interview at five o’clock this morning!”
Abbie bounced on her heels, her messy bun a testament to a restless night. “There! I told you that she had a good explanation, Joe.”
“I should have been informed about it.”
Kylie fisted her hands on her hips. “I was supposed to call you at five o’clock this morning while I’m trying to get ready for a short notice interview and you’re recovering from surgery?”
“Yes.”
“Do you hear yourself? I went on the show for us … ”
Joe’s stony gaze never wavered. “You used a lot of that interview to talk about your novel—”
“Were you using a stopwatch?” Kylie wanted to stomp her high heel against the floor. “I answered Chelsea’s questions about us writing together and then yes, I told her I was working on the last book in my series. It’s called publicity.”
“You made sure you used that interview to your advantage and talked about romance.”
Why couldn’t Joe see she’d done this to help them? Why wasn’t he thanking her for doing an interview after spending all day yesterday with him?
“That’s because I’m a romance novelist. And because I’m adding romance to your book.” She dropped the paper bags on the portable table beside Joe’s hospital bed, fighting the threat of tears. “I didn’t expect you to thank me … well, maybe I did. I thought you’d understand … never mind. Enjoy the doughnuts and Pepsi—not that I expect you to thank me for them either.”
“Kylie, don’t listen to him—”
Kylie ignored Abbie, pulled open the door, and fast-walked down the hallway. This wasn’t Joe’s sister’s fight. But Abbie caught up with her before she was halfway down the hallway.
“Kylie! Wait a minute.”
Despite the urge to keep walking, Kylie stopped. Turned to face Abbie. They were friends and she wouldn’t ignore her because of Joe’s stupidity.
“I’m so sorry for Joe’s attitude. He was upset about the interview … well, I guess that’s stating the obvious.”
“I thought Liza would talk with him about what’s going on.”
“She just called, so they’re talking now. That’s why I’m here. Well, one of the reasons. You want to tell me what happened?”
Kylie produced her phone and pulled up Instagram. “This.”
“That’s you and Joe … ”
“Walking out of the surgeon’s office yesterday on the way for Joe to get an MRI. My agent Shannon said this photo created a fast burn … ”
“I can see that from all the comments.”
“Our agents decided it was time to announce Joe and I are writing together. Back when the whole book signing debacle happened, I’d promised Chelsea that I’d talk to her first if—when—there was something to talk about. Shannon woke me this morning saying I had an hour to get ready for a virtual interview on The Morning Connect.”
“You’re kidding me.” Abbie handed her phone back.
“It’s been quite the morning.”
“I must say, I love the Veronica Hollins look.”
Kylie shook her head. “It’s amazing what panic and caffeine can produce.”
“Give Joe time to cool down, okay? It’s the day after surgery, and it doesn’t help that our parents called last night to say they’re flying up today. Mom wants to see Joe since he’s had two surgeries.”
“Sure. We still have a book to write together.” She hugged Abbie. “Get on back there before he tries to get out of bed by himself.”
A few moments later, Kylie sat in her car, staring at the front of the hospital. She had the entire day ahead of her. No sitting in Joe’s room making sure he was feeling okay. Writing the ongoing adventures of Remington and Evangeline. Sharing the scene she wrote last night. Watching him sleep.
Enough.
She’d stopped treating the project like a job. Let it become personal. Gotten too close to Joe. Yes, she’d done what Liza and Shannon wanted, but she’d forgotten he was first and foremost Tate Merrick, her business partner.
There would always be a tug of war between their personal and professional lives. And for Joe, the professional would always win. All his talk about liking to hold her hand? Too much pain medication.
…
“Can I have a doughnut?” Joe repositioned the pillow behind his head as Abbie returned to his room.
