Reflecting On Wishes (The Wishes Series) (11 page)

“All done
, darlin’?”

Angel nodded her head and started unbuttoning her blouse, thankful that
Ms. Lola held up a towel in front of her and tucked it around her as soon as she was done undressing. “Are you sure you can lift me Ms. Lola?”

“Oh please, I lift sacks of flour that are heavier than you. I bet you barely weigh in at a hundred pounds soakin’ wet right now.” She proved it when she scooped her hand beneath her knees and one around her back lifting her and setting her into the warm bubble bath with ease.

“There now, let’s wring that towel out that’s around you,” Lola took it from Angel’s hands and wrung it out before setting it in the sink. “You just relax and enjoy your bath sweet darlin. I’ll come back and check on you in a few minutes okay?”

Angel reached out and clasped her damp hand in
Ms. Lola’s, “Thank you Ms. Lola. Not everyone understands when I get frustrated over feeling like I have no dignity anymore.”

She held Angel’s hand in both of hers
. “It’s my pleasure, honey child. Don’t you worry bout a thing. I got you.”

Chapter 8

Dakota

Dakota was beyond frustrated when Angel called for her dad to take her to her room to avoid talking to him. Didn’t she realize he only wanted to help her? To have the chance to love her and take care of her? He stood on her dad’s back porch, tense, fighting the burn of tears that were on the verge of spilling down his cheeks. That woman didn’t even realize how she turned him inside out. He jammed his hands into his pockets and paced back and forth. He wanted to go to her and kiss her until she forgot for just a few moments that she was injured and remember the heat and passion between them. He needed to simply hold her and run his fingers through her hair. All he wanted was for her to need him as much as he needed her.

The patio door slid open and a rush of cool air came out with Rage.

“You doin’ alright, man?” Rage clapped him on the back and squeezed his shoulder.

“I’m at a loss
, Rage. I have no clue how to handle what’s going on between your sister and me. We started something so good, so damn special, and now she looks at me as if I’m the plague and she can’t get away from me fast enough. I don’t get it. It’s tearing me up inside.” He shook his head, looking down at the ground.

“Give her some time,” Rage replied, stretching his arms up above his head and groaning. “
Papá and I are gonna widen the door frames to her room and bathroom this weekend. Maybe you should bring your tool belt and lend a hand like you did with the ramp and the front door. If she doesn’t want to talk to you, go about your business and don’t try to force it. Just let her see you aren’t going anywhere.”

“I’m glad to help. Is that what you think it is? I’m pushing it too fast?” Dakota leaned back against the railing and crossed his arms over his chest.

“She’s always been independent. Losing that, even if it’s only for a while, is really hard on her. She feels like a burden to everyone. I talked to Sally, the counselor at the hospital, and she said Angel applied for handicap housing in Savannah. I haven’t told the family yet and she doesn’t know I know. We all gotta ban together and figure out how to make her feel more independent and less of a burden. I don’t want her to up and go somewhere hours away and be alone.” Rage sat down in the porch swing and sighed, leaning his head back as he rocked.

“That’s it
, bruh. That’s what I can help with. Damn, why didn’t I think of that already?” Dakota had a smile on his face now as he sat in the rocking chair across from his friend.

“We have an open room at
Reconstructing Warriors
. It would be perfect for Angel. She would be right there at the rehab clinic with all the resources she would need to do her physical therapy, including me. She would have her own room that’s handicap assessable including a lift to get in and out of the bathtub or shower. She’d have access to the therapy pool and sauna, plus she would have other people around her that are going through physical difficulties similar to hers. We have counseling there three times a week and activities too.” The more he explained to Rage, the more excited he got.

“The trick is going to be getting her there Dakota. She has this whole vibe about not wanting to be a charity case. How do you propose we overcome that?” Rage stopped swinging when his wife
, Nahni, came outside to join them and sat down next to him, resting her head on his shoulder.

“Propose what? What are you two scheming over?” Nahni smiled when Rage placed his hand on her belly, rubbing it as he started swinging again.

“We’re discussing how to get Angel to come live at the
Reconstructing Warriors Rehab Center,
instead of taking off to Savannah to live in a handicap housing.” Rage kissed the top of her head and cradled her against him.

“Wait, what?
She wants to move away from us? Rage we can’t let her do that.” Nahni’s eyes welled up with tears. Angel wasn’t just her best friend; she was the sister she had always wanted.

“I know
, baby. Like Dakota was just saying, he works at the best place for Angel to do her therapy. We just need to figure out how to get her to go.” Rage draped his arm across her shoulders and tucked her head under his chin as she rested her head against his chest.

Dakota watched the comforting embrace between Rage and Nahni, wishing he had that bond with Angel. If only she would let her guard down and allow him to be there for her. It was the kind of relationship his adoptive parents had, just like his birth parents
also had, before they passed away. It was ingrained in him to desire a loving wife and to make a life-long bond with her. His adoptive mom, Mikayla, had been there for Noah when he returned home from Afghanistan and helped him heal from losing his leg from the knee down when his vehicle was hit with an IED, killing two of his soldiers and injuring another.

The journey they had together
was how the idea bloomed for them to open
Reconstructing Warriors
, a rehab center for wounded vets that had some kind of injury from combat. In the last year, they had started taking in clients that had severe injuries from firemen to law enforcement, giving them a place to recover and rebuild their lives. The services
Reconstructing Warriors
provided were limitless. Counseling, prosthetics, physical therapy, and training classes to teach them to either adapt to their limitations or overcome them were just some of the things available to them. There were also living quarters for some of the more severe cases. They offered a grant program through the local community college to assist in retraining individuals that needed to find a new career. These services were given free of charge through the non-profit charity his mom and baby sister, Delilah, had started not long after being placed in their care as a foster family.
A Million Wishes
had granted wishes both large and small in its six years of being an active charity.

“You
r sister approached Angel last fall about coming and visiting some of the soldiers that were big fans of hers last year. Maybe she would be able to influence Angel enough to give it a try?” Nahni looked hopeful but still had the shine of unshed tears in her eyes.

“Oh, that’s right
, Nahni. I had forgotten about that. Angel brought them tickets to come see her race and her and Vito brought her bike up for the guys to check out. Man did she ever light up the faces of those men.” Dakota laughed, shaking his head side to side. “Myself included!”

“Damn
, bruh, you got it so bad for my sister,” Rage shook his head and laughed.

“I’m not ashamed to admit it. She’s a catch for sure. I guess I’m going to head on over to my parents since Angel isn’t okay with seeing me today. I’ll see what I can set up and see if Lilah will come over and try to encourage Angel to give the rehab center a try.” He stood up and shook hands with Rage and gave Nahni a gentle hug.

“We appreciate what you’re trying to do to help Angel. She’ll come around. She’s a level headed girl most of the time.”

***

When Dakota left, he headed over to his parents’ house. If anyone could gently sway Angel into moving into the rehab center, it was Delilah. She may be young in years at only twenty-one, but she had a mature sense about her like she had an older soul. Lilah had blossomed under the care of their adoptive parents. In the last few years she had really come into her own. Not only did she go to school full-time, but she was also on the Board of Directors for
A Million Wishes
. With only one more year of college to go, Lilah still lived at home with their parents. As he entered the house, the scent of his mom’s lasagna set his stomach to rumbling. It appeared he was just in time for dinner. Music was playing, early eighties rock and roll which was her favorite. He couldn’t help but grin when he rounded the corner to the kitchen to find her singing along with the music.

“Hey
, Momma,” Dakota greeted her with a big bear hug, lifting her off her feet.

“Hi
, darlin’! I didn’t even hear you come in. How are you doing?” Miki gave him a squeeze, turned to pick up her potholders and opened the oven door to pull out a pan of lasagna with cheese toasted to perfection on top. The sides were bubbling, letting loose the fragrant aroma of Italian spices, tomatoes and sausage. As she walked towards the dining table she nodded her head, “Grab those potholders and take the garlic bread out for me would you, hon? Your dad should be here anytime.”

“I’m okay
, Mom.” He grabbed the potholders and pulled out the fragrant loaf of bread, shutting the oven before following her to the dining table.

“Just okay? What’s wrong
, sugar? Did you get to see Angel?” She went to the refrigerator and pulled out the salad and dressing, along with a pitcher of sweet tea.

He didn’t answer immediately. Instead, he got a glass from the cabinet and poured a glass of tea, taking a long drink. He leaned against the counter while she puttered
around the kitchen. “I saw her, only for a few minutes before she practically begged her dad to take her to her room to get away from me.”

“Oh
, honey.” Miki stopped what she was doing and walked over to him to press her hands against his cheeks. “I’m so sorry. I know this is hard for you, but try to remember she’s feeling like her life was just ripped out from under her. Give her some time.”

Dakota turned his head away when he felt the familiar burn of tears threatening to fall. “I want to help her, to take care of her, Mom
, but she won’t even take a phone call from me or be in the same room with me. I don’t get it. Before her wreck we were getting so close, you know?”

Miki wrapped her arms aro
und his waist and hugged him close. “I know—you fell for her. I can see the love in your eyes every time you speak her name. I can’t explain what’s going through her mind or why she feels like she needs to push you away right now, but I can say if you believe she is the one for you, Dakota, you have to fight for her. She’s worth it right?”

“She’s worth it. I love her. That’s why I feel so torn up inside. When she had her accident and we didn’t know if she would even make it, I felt a part of me dying. I can’t imagine my life without her in it.”

“Then don’t let her push you away. Make a nuisance of yourself like your father did with me when I tried to push him away and go through life alone. I swear that man drove me nuts, but I love him like crazy for not letting me go. At the time I was so afraid to depend on someone after all I had been through. But when he came back from war injured and I really realized I could have lost him…well, I’m just thankful for second chances.”

“Are you guys having a love fest without me?” Lilah walked in wearing a flowing, orange strapless dress that brushed the tops of her bare feet. Her
long, curly, dark brown hair was wrapped in a matching scarf that had pink and purple flowers embroidered on it just as the bodice of her dress did. She looked like a stunning African goddess. With a bright smile on her face, she opened her arms wide and wrapped them around her mom and brother.

“Just the girl I needed to see
,” Dakota kissed her forehead.

“Whatcha need, D?” Lilah moved to grab the tea pitcher, filling the remaining glasses on the table and setting another place for Dakota to eat with them.

“Looks like family night! Is Dom going to be home for dinner too?” Noah greeted them as he walked into the kitchen and scooped up his wife, giving her a kiss.

“No, Daddy. H
e has classes tonight.” Lilah squeaked out a laugh when her dad picked her up in a hug and twirled her around.

“Too bad
, he’s going to miss out on lasagna night. How’s everyone doing?” Noah hugged his son before going to the sink and washing his hands, wiping them dry on the dishtowel that was sitting on the counter. He sat at the head of the table, smiling at his family.

“I needed to talk to everyone about something, that’s why I stopped by.” Dakota held his plate out to his mom for a slice of gooey lasagna, filling his plate with a helping of salad and a thick slice of buttery garlic bread. Now that he was here, he was glad he hadn’t bothered to eat at Vito’s house. This was one of his favorite meals that his mom made from scratch.