He prayed his mom would give him a different answer than Eden had.
"I don't know. She might have to stay in Spokane for a while to keep an eye on her father's business."
Will she be able to walk away from that again?
What if she decides she doesn't want to this time?
"Dinner will be ready in about thirty minutes. Why don't you go watch TV with your dad for a bit?"
Watch TV? The woman I love just walked out of my life, and you want me to watch golf like my world hasn't just fallen apart?
Okay, he was being dramatic, he knew that. But he couldn't seem to get his head and heart to accept that there was a happy ending for him and Eden with this new twist.
"I'm not hungry." He turned toward the hall. "I'm going for a run."
Rudy's racing thoughts kept pace with his feet as he ran mile after mile down dusty country roads. After his talk with Scott on Saturday, he'd been determined to find a way to make things work between him and Eden. That's why he'd looked for jobs in Spokane today. He had two in mind that he considered applying for; one in law enforcement and the other in computers.
About the time he hit five miles, he decided if Eden wanted to stay in Spokane, he would follow her.
* * *
Eden broughther car to a stop in the hospital parking lot and looked up at the building where she said her final goodbyes to her mother before they unplugged the machines that kept her alive. And now her dad was here, facing his own mortality.
That's not totally true. He'd had a good scare, but Helen had assured Eden he would be okay.
She picked up her phone and noted the missed calls and texts from Rudy.
She'd been talking to Helen when he called the first time, so she ignored his call. And even though her car alerted her when he texted, she chose not to listen to them. Then when he called a few minutes ago, she couldn't bring herself to talk to him.
She read his first text:I hope everything is okay with your father. Let me know if there is anything I can do.
Then the next one read:Please call me and let me know how your dad is doing. I want to be there for you.
She listened to the voicemail he left. "I'm sorry, I'm too impatient to wait for you to call. I really hope your dad is okay. I'm praying for him. And I'm praying for you... For us. I know we've been a little distant lately, but... I want to fix that, Eden. Please call me as soon as you can."
Tears pricked her eyes at the sound of his voice. All day yesterday, she'd made it a point to avoid him, even to the extent of claiming to have a headache and going to her room at seven o'clock. He'd looked disappointed, but he hadn't pressed to spend time with her, which only discouraged her even more. And then this morning, she’d waited until she was sure he’d left for work before she came out of her room.
Does he mean it? Does he really want to fix things between us?
Does he have any idea what it would take to do that? Or does he just want to make sure she came back, so he’d continue to have afuncompanion to do things with?
Opening her door, she decided the answers to her questions could wait. She needed to see how her dad was doing.
Helen called her half an hour ago and told her that her dad's surgery went well. He was now in the ICU where they would monitor him overnight. The doctor had said that he should make a full recovery, but that didn't keep Eden's hands from trembling as she pushed the button on the elevator. The same one she rode down with her father sixteen years ago, leaving her mother behind. She wrapped her arms around herself as the elevator doors closed, praying her father would indeed be okay.
She found the room number Helen had given her and paused outside the open door. Her father, clad in a blue hospital gown with a multitude of cords coming out of the top, lay flat on the bed, looking unusually pale, but otherwise fine.
Thank goodness!
Realizing Helen wasn't just standing close by, but rather, sitting on the edge of the bed, holding her dad's hand, Eden lingered in the doorway, giving herself a minute to get used to the idea of her dad dating his housekeeper and her former nanny.
A smile pushed up the corners of her lips. If anyone could keep her dad in his place, Helen could.
She stepped into the room. "You didn't have to go to such drastic lengths to get me to come visit you, Dad."
Helen sprang to her feet as though she'd been burned and stepped away from the bed.
Eden went to her dad's side and bent down to give him a hug.
