“It is,” I say. “Is everything all right?”
“Yes, it’s fine. I’m Marissa, and I’m Juliet’s nurse today. I just wanted to call and see if you were anywhere nearby.” She pauses. “She is very lucid today, and while I have only worked here for a few weeks, it’s my understanding that it’s been a while since she’s been this way. I figured that if you were close by, you may want to come see her.”
Now, I really feel Isla’s eyes on me, and I sort of wish I had pulled over and answered the phone instead of letting it play. But fuck it. I guess since we’re going to be together someday soon, she might as well find out about all the sad, shitty things in my life.
Like about the woman who isn’t even my family but might as well be, who lives in a nursing home and rarely even knows who I am.
“I’m about an hour and a half away,” I tell her, gripping the wheel tighter and turning down toward both my and Isla’s houses. “I’ll head there now.”
“Okay, great. I do want to warn you that these lucid times are usually short-lived. She may even be back to not remembering things by the time you get here. But she’s been asking for you for the past hour. So … I think it’s worth a shot.”
“I’ll be there as soon as I can,” I say quickly before ending the call.
I don’t look at Isla, but instead straight ahead. “I’ll drop you off at your house. Sorry, I wanted to take you to breakfast or do something nice to cheer you up.”
“Cheer me up?” she asks softly. “Why do I need cheering up?”
Now, I look at her just as I pull up against the curb in front of The Nest. “Babe, you were walking after an ass-crack-of-dawn practice. Your dad is mad at you. I know you need cheering up.” I rest my head against the headrest. “I’ll make it up to you, I swear.”
She’s silent, shifting around slightly. “Or … I could ride with you? I don’t have to go into the nursing home or wherever your grandmother is. But … I could at least keep you company on the ride there.”
My eyes fly to hers, and I frown because I don’t really know what else to do. My entire life, other than Juliet—and Lilly, before she was taken—no one has ever gone out of their way to be there for me when I needed someone. I’ve been alone for a good part of my life, and I guess I assumed it would stay that way because who the fuck would want to hold my hand during a hard time? I’m an asshole with anger issues and a debatable attitude.
“Really?” The word leaves my mouth in a dull whisper. “You’d do that?”
Smiling sweetly, she nods and reaches over to touch my arm. “Absolutely.” She nods toward the road. “But let’s go. You heard the nurse; she may not have long. So, hurry it on up, Hunt.”
It takes me a minute to actually pay attention to the road and pull away from the damn curb. But when I do, I can’t stop glancing over at the woman beside me.
How the hell is she still here?
I shift nervously behind the wheel, clearing my throat. “Just for the record, she’s actually not my grandmother. She was my neighbor when I was growing up and really the only person my sister, Lilly, and I could count on.” I exhale shallowly. “She doesn’t have anyone else besides me. So, I’m the person they call with news.”
I’m met with silence, but when I glance over, she’s staring at me with an unfamiliar expression on her face.
“That’s really nice of you to step in like that for her,” she whispers.
“Nah, it’s really nothing.” I shrug it off like it’s no big deal. “Besides, she did the same for me.”
She doesn’t say anything, and I don’t dive any further into the truth with her either. That, if it wasn’t for the woman we’re about to go see, my sister and I probably would have died of starvation. We certainly would have never had any gifts to open on our birthdays or Christmas. Hell, she even made us homemade Halloween costumes and took us trick-or-treating.
I often wonder if my own mother would have done those things had she not died when we were little. But somehow, I know we were more fortunate to have Juliet than my mother. I think that she would have been just like my father. Too into dealing and doing drugs to actually be a parent.
Instead of chatting about all the sad shit in the world, the whole rest of the way, we just talk. Sort of like we’re old friends or something. And I’ll admit that I wish I could always have her in the passenger seat of my truck. Having her close makes everything better.
I never want this girl to leave.
SIXTEEN
ISLA
Everything I thoughtI knew about Hendrix is being clouded as I watch him talk to Juliet. A woman who, I learned on the drive here, has Alzheimer’s and is practically the only family Hendrix and his sister have.
It makes me wonder if his sister ever comes to see her. Or maybe she doesn’t know she’s even sick.
Juliet seems to be losing touch with things little by little, but when we first got here, I wouldn’t have even guessed that she had Alzheimer’s. But as the minutes turn to over an hour, she slips into a confused state of mind. It’s sad to watch because it’s more than obvious that this woman means everything to Hendrix.
Add in another side to Hendrix that I’ve seen—loving.
