More (22 page)

“You think? You’re not sure?”

“You’re a complex woman, you know that? I don’t want you to blow this out of proportion or worry. There’s nothing to worry about. I mean what I say. I’m trying to get to know you the best that I can. But I keep calling, don’t I? Don’t you think that means that I’m still interested?”

“Just not interested enough to be in love with me?”

“My goodness you sure know how to give a guy a hard time! Just give me a little bit more time. There’s no reason to rush into anything.”

Kate sighed. “Why do I feel like I’m being let down easy?”

“NO! Do not think that. Let me make myself perfectly clear. I have feelings for you. I have really enjoyed getting to know you the past few weeks. The highlight of every day for me is getting to talk to you. But believe it or not, you’re not the only one who needs to protect their heart. I’m getting there, Kate. Can you hang in there with me while I figure things out?”

“I don’t have any other option. I’m in. I’m sold. Sure, I’m still scared, but I’m willing to give it a try. Look, I’m honestly not asking you to make some big commitment that you’re not ready for. I just feel…so vulnerable.”

“I think I just need to see you again. I’m coming to visit soon, remember? Can I just have until then to think about things? I want to be madly in love with you. I do. The last thing I want to do is to make you worry, but I also refuse to be anything but honest with you. I need to be absolutely positive that I’m ready before I jump in with both feet.”

“Well then, that’s all I can ask. For you to be honest with me. And I appreciate that. Probably more than you know.”

“I miss you. I can’t wait to see you.”

“I miss you too, Ben.”

“Sleep well, beautiful.”

Kate hung up the phone and couldn’t stop thinking about when Ben had said. She curled up in her warm bed and refused to let herself worry.
Everything will be fine by next weekend. We just need to see each other again.

It was almost eleven at night when Kate’s phone buzzed. She was reading in bed and she leaned over the grab her phone, sure it would be Ben calling back to tell her he missed her one more time. But to her surprise, she didn’t see a goofy picture of Ben displayed on the screen of her phone – it was a number she didn’t recognize. Who could be calling this late?

“Hello?” she said.

“Hello, is this Kate?” said the voice on the phone.

“Yes, this is Kate…who is this?”

“This is Jacob. Jacob Patterson. We met at your mother’s house this Christmas. I’m not sure if you remember me.”

Kate was stunned. “Oh…yes. Jacob. Yes, I remember you.”

“I’m so sorry to disturb you so late, Kate, but it’s your mother.”

Kate felt her heart sink all the way down to her toes. “My mother? What happened? Is she okay?”

“She’s in the hospital. The doctors think she had a stroke.”

Jacob’s words hit her with the force of a ton of bricks. “I…is she…” she stammered.

“She’s been with doctors this whole time and they haven’t given me too much information. They took her in for a CAT scan a few minutes ago. The nurse told me that someone would come and talk to me as soon as they know anything.”

“I’m coming to California,” she said, her mind made up. To her, there was no other decision. “Right now. Will you stay with her until I get there?”

“Of course I will,” said Jacob.

Kate ran around her bedroom, throwing clothes in a suitcase as fast as she could. Within five minutes she was out the door and headed to the airport. She tried to call Ben, but he didn’t answer his phone. She hung up without leaving a message and kept driving. Her thoughts were racing as she drove. How could this have happened? Was her mother going to be okay? As she pulled into the parking lot at the airport she broke down and began to cry. Sobs shook her body as she sat in her car, still gripping the steering wheel.

“Lord,” she whispered, “please don’t let her die. She
can’t
die.”

~~~~~

Kate ran into the hospital, exhausted and running on pure adrenaline. After a quick visit to the nurses’ station she found her way to her mom’s room in the recovery wing. She saw Jacob, the man she had briefly met on her last visit to California months ago, pacing in the hallway.

“Jacob!” she said. “How is my mom?”

“She’s doing okay. She’s been sleeping for awhile. There have been doctors and nurses checking on her – I told them that her daughter was on their way. Let me see if I can find one of them to come and talk to you.”

“Thank you, Jacob,” said Kate. “Thank you so much for being here. I can’t tell you how much it means to me that she didn’t have to be alone.”

“I’m sure she’ll be so glad that you’re here now,” he replied, walking off to find a doctor.

Kate opened the door and entered her mother’s room. It was a shock to see her normally vibrant mother lying in a hospital bed hooked up to all sorts of machines. She approached Olivia’s bed slowly and whispered, “Mom?”

Olivia’s eyes slowly opened and she focused on her daughter. Kate could see a faint smile come over her mother’s face.

“My baby,” she said weakly. “You’re here.”

She pulled up a chair and sat down beside her mother’s bed. “How are you feeling?”

“Like I got hit by a truck.” She offered Kate a feeble smile. “The doctors said I’m going to be okay. I’m a tough woman. I’m not going to let a little stroke stop me.”

“Good to see the stroke didn’t change your personality, Mom.”

A short man with gray hair and a white coat walked into the room. He stuck out his hand to Kate. “Hello, I’m Dr. Tobias.”

She shook the doctor’s hand. “I’m Kate Henry, Olivia’s daughter.”

“Kate, let me explain a little bit to you about your mother’s condition. She’s had what we call an ischemic stroke caused by a blocked blood vessel in her brain. She was very fortunate to get to the hospital quickly after the stroke occurred so that we could start treatment right away. We were able to do a CAT scan and start her on medication to break up the clot before there was any real damage caused to her brain. Luckily the stroke was mild, and she’s been stabilized. We’re going to keep her for a couple of days for observation and start her on a treatment of anticoagulants to help prevent this from happening again in the future.”

Kate nodded her head slowly, trying to take it all in.

“I know it’s a lot of information to give you all at once,” said Dr. Tobias. “The bottom line is that your mother is going to be fine. She’s going to need to take it easy for several weeks, and she’ll need to come back for another CAT scan to make sure the medications are.”

“So…she’s going to be okay?”

“Yes, she is. She’s going to be okay.”

“Thank you, Doctor. I can’t tell you how much I appreciate everything you’ve done for my mom. Thank you for taking care of her.”

“You’re very welcome, my dear. Just make sure she continues to get lots of rest so that she can fully recuperate.” With that, Dr. Tobias left the room.

“Kate sweetheart, go back to the house. I’m fine here. You traveled all night – you’ve got to be exhausted. Go get some sleep, take a shower, and have something to eat. I’ll just be sleeping the whole time.”

“No Mom, I don’t want to leave,” replied Kate stubbornly.

“Baby. I insist. Please.”

“But Mom…”

“No buts. Do this for me, Katie-Bug,” said Olivia.

Kate hesitated and then nodded. “I’ll be back in a few hours, Mom. Please, please call me if you need anything.”

Jacob was waiting outside the door of the hospital room.

“I’m headed home for a few hours, Jacob,” said Kate.

“That’s a good idea. I’m sure you’re exhausted. Can I give you a ride to your mom’s house?”

“No, it’s okay. I took a cab from the airport. I’ll just grab a cab home.”

“Don’t be ridiculous. My truck is right outside. Let me drive you home.”

Too tired to argue, she nodded and let Jacob lead the way out to the parking lot. They rode in silence back to the house. When Jacob had parked in the driveway he turned to Kate and said, “Are you going to be okay?”

She glanced up at the empty house. She had texted Ben earlier but hadn’t heard back from him, and with her mom in the hospital she was feeling very alone. “I know this might seem a little strange, but would you mind staying? I…I just don’t think I want to be alone right now. I know I barely know you, but…”

Jacob cut her off. “Kate. Of
course
I’ll stay. Why don’t you go inside and get some sleep, and I’ll be out here in the garden. I was in the middle of some work anyway.”

Kate nodded and headed towards the house while Jacob headed towards the garden. “Wait a minute… when were you in the middle of some work?”

Jacob shuffled his feet uncomfortably. “Yesterday,” he said. “Right…right before I found your mom.”

“What do you mean? You found my mom?”

“I was working out in the garden yesterday. I’ve been working on getting some beds built for the vegetable garden. I knew that Mrs. Henry was home because I could hear music playing in the house. She always invites me in for coffee, but she never came outside to invite me in. I walked up to the house and looked in through the kitchen window, and, well, I saw Mrs. Henry lying there on the floor.”

Kate stood there in shock. The doctor had said that it was lucky that her mom had gotten to the hospital so quickly to get treatment. She had never stopped to think about how it was that her mother had gotten to the hospital so quickly in the first place. “I don’t know what to say, Jacob. Thank you. Thank you so much. If you hadn’t been here…if you hadn’t found her…I…”

“Don’t think of it. I was here. I did find her. And she’s going to be okay. Now go inside and get some sleep.”

Kate headed inside, overwhelmed by the events of the day. She made her way to her childhood bedroom and plopped down onto the hard bed. Pulling out her phone, she tried calling Ben. She hadn’t been able to reach him to tell him what was going on.

“Voicemail again. Pick up your phone!”

Exhausted in every possible way, she laid her head down on her pillow and was asleep within seconds.

~~~~~

When Kate awoke she could hear someone in the kitchen and could smell the aroma of freshly brewed coffee. She rolled out of bed, wondering how long she had been asleep, and wandered down to the kitchen.

“Did you sleep well?” asked Jacob.

“Yes, I think I must have been really exhausted,” she said, rubbing her eyes.

“I’m sure you’re also starving,” he said. “I made some sandwiches – I know it’s nothing special, but I’m afraid I’m not much of a cook.”

“A sandwich sounds perfect.”

Jacob brought two plates to the table and made a second trip with two cups of coffee.

Kate took a bite of her sandwich. It was very plain, but she was so hungry that she didn’t care. After chewing several bites, she said, “So Jacob, tell me a little bit about you. I feel like last time I was here I didn’t get to know you at all. I did all the talking.”