“You mean there’s something else?”
“You didn’t hear?” Her grandmother could barely contain herself.
Apparently not. “No. What’s happened?”
Grams threw out her arms with sheer joy. “My hospital bill was paid by an anonymous donor.”
Maisy had assumed Medicare had taken care of the bills associated with her grandmother’s stay. “I didn’t know there were any large payments owed to the hospital.”
“It came as a shock, let me tell you. I didn’t mention it to your mother because she already had enough on her mind. It weighedon me, though. My secondary insurance paid a small portion of it. The balance was enough to send me reeling, but as of this morning, I’m debt-free.”
Chase again.
He knew her grandmother had been hospitalized. It would be a small thing for him to pay it off.
Small to him. Huge to her.
Maisy did her best to sound pleased. They hugged again, and Maisy left for work.
The rest of the day Maisy was lost in a fog. Chase had no idea what he’d done, nor did he seem to understand the consequences of his actions.
She felt numb.
Sad.
Betrayed.
Matters came to a head when she arrived home and found a letter from the administrator of the nursing program. Mrs. Greer had been her administrative counselor and had helped Maisy choose the classes that would best fulfill the requirements needed for the nursing program. She wrote to say how pleased she was to offer her a scholarship—a large donation had been made in her name. Mrs. Greer was thrilled to inform Maisy she would be able to complete the program debt-free.
Chase again.
When he called that evening, she hesitated before answering. Her heart felt like it was weighed down with lead. She almost let the call go to voicemail. She wasn’t sure she was ready to confront him. It might have been better to wait, but she couldn’t.
“You had to do it, didn’t you?” she said, not offering him even the shortest of greetings.
“Maisy?”
“You’re the one who made the offer for the store, Chase. Don’t bother to deny it.”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” he flared.
“Please don’t lie. First it was Sean’s truck—I have no idea how you managed that. Then the sale of the store and paying off my grandmother’s hospital bill. Oh, and let’s not forget the so-called scholarship to the nursing program.”
“Maisy, stop. I didn’t do any of that.”
That he would vehemently deny it was even worse. She didn’t want to believe he was involved. It was only fair to give him the benefit of the doubt, but research had shown her otherwise. Just as she’d suspected, the conglomerate that had put in the offer for the store was located in Chicago, with links to Furst Bank. As much as she wanted to believe Chase wasn’t involved, she had all the proof she needed.
“This changes everything,” she said, unwilling to listen further to his denial.
“What do you mean?”
“It means I…It means it would be best if we were no longer…that we no longer see or talk to each other.”
“What?” he exploded. “If this is a joke, then it’s a terrible one.”
“This is no joke. You promised me, Chase. You gave me your word you wouldn’t meddle in my family’s affairs. You couldn’t stand by and do nothing, even knowing what it would do to our relationship.”
“Maisy, I’m telling you, I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
