Page 30 of Worth the Fight

And his hair. It’s the length I have always loved. The ends are wavy, a little creased, as if he wore his ball cap all day but took it off before coming inside as a sign of respect. My fingers are itching to reach out, to wrap one sandy brown lock around my skin and see if that same full-body calm takes over.

“Lukas, I…” I stare over at him, then turn back to Nana, and suddenly, the last twenty-four hours now make sense.

I had flown to Copper Ridge on a red-eye flight last night, desperate to lay my own eyes on Nana.

The call from my dad nearly broke me, and even though he said she was out of surgery and doing fine, I didn’t believe it. Some part of me needed to see for myself. I needed to talk to her in person. To see her move her arms and legs and make sure her sassy attitude hadn’t changed a bit.

I arrived yesterday morning and immediately drove to the rehab center. We spent the day together. I had lunch at the facility and watched her work through physical therapy then forced her to play bingo later in the afternoon.

We said our tearful goodbye yesterday, knowing that I’m flying back to Paris this afternoon. Yet after I left, Nana called and asked that I stop in to see her one last time before I left for the city.

And now that Lukas has walked into the room, I can say with one hundred percent confidence that she is back to her old ways.

“Well, you two. I’d love for all of us to go sit in the sunroom and chat, but I forgot that I have physical therapy this afternoon.” Like clockwork, there’s a knock on the door, and a man in scrubs enters. He’s a little older than Lukas and me but still young, and he smiles at Nana.

“I see you have company.”

“Oh, they were just leaving.”

My head whips back toward Nana. “Are you sure? Mom was going to run some errands then pick me up in about a half hour. Maybe I’ll go to physical therapy with you.”

“Bobby,” she says, addressing the therapist. “Could you give me a few minutes with the kids?”

He nods at that, smiling at us both before excusing himself.

Nana turns her attention to me. “Sweetheart, how about you have Lukas drive you to the airport?”

I can see Lukas stiffen out of my peripheral.

“Oh, no…” I fumble over my words. “No, that’s okay. Mom is picking me up.”

Nana reaches for the phone on her side table, bringing it over to rest next to her on the bed. “How about you let me take care of your mom? You have your bag, yes?”

She looks down at the small duffel I carried in with me. “Yeah, bu⁠—”

“Perfect,” she interrupts. “Lukas, you can drive Magnolia to the city, can’t you? You didn’t have any plans this afternoon, right?”

He freezes for a minute before looking over at me. I don’t know what I want his reaction to be. Do I want him to backpedal, to say that it’s too soon, too awkward, to make up something about needing to get back to the farm?

But then I turn to him, and when I look at him, his gaze is solely on me. Something passes between us, a question, a silent conversation much like the ones we used to have when we were kids, and it comforts me. The adrenaline that had been racing through my chest dissipates a little at his comforting gaze.

“I’d love to drive her, if that’s what she wants.”

I turn to Nana, and she’s grinning like the Cheshire cat. Turning back toward Lukas, I offer up the best smile I can muster right now. “Can you give Nana and me a minute?”

He nods, his hands finally pulling from his jacket pockets. “Absolutely.” He crosses to the bed, leaning over to kiss Nana on the head, and dammit, it kills me to see him love her so much. “Call me if you need anything. Otherwise, I’ll stop by in a few days. My parents will be in tomorrow to visit.”

Her bony hand reaches out to squeeze his forearm, smiling up at him.

He brushes past me, his lavender and amber scent following behind him. I could smell him the second I walked into the room today. I thought maybe it was one of the staff members wearing the same cologne. I thought maybe someone had a bouquet of fresh lavender. But it was mixed with something else, something so obviously Lukas, that the moment I walked in, I could barely breathe, knowing that he had likely been here or was here somewhere in the building.

“Come here, sweetie.” Nana pats the side of the bed next to her, and a sudden shiver racks through me, even though the room is humid and my thick sweater has kept me warm all day.

Leaving my duffel bag on the floor, I take a few slow, stubborn steps toward her, sitting down on the side of the bed with my arms still crossed over my stomach.

Nana reaches her hand out, curling her thin fingers around my forearm and tugging until it falls to the side of the bed. She reaches for my hand, wrapping my palm between both of hers, squeezing gently.

“It was so good to see you, sweetheart.” My eyes immediately well with tears, which has basically been my daily reaction ever since my dad called to say they cancelled their trip and were headed back to Copper Ridge because Nana was in the hospital. He held his breath, letting it push out slowly before telling me that they never would have known about it, and she might have never been found, if Lukas hadn’t decided to stop over to see her.