I struggled to sit up as lo and behold, Jude approached with Tilly. “I thought I'd come and fetch you myself today. We're going swimming." he said, rubbing his hands together enthusiastically. "Nurse Tilly here will help you get ready, and then we can be on our way." he grinned at the older woman who flushed. Women are so predictable, even the ones who should have the sense not to be.
When Martha May catcalled I realized there was no hope.
When Tilly was done getting me into a full bathing suit, thankfully, she opened the curtains. He smirked down at me and immediately reached out to assist me. "Now, here is a sight I am familiar with." I flinched when his hands made contact with my body. “I’m your therapist, Tara, you’re going to have to trust me.”
I gavein and let him pick me up as if I weighed nothing. The nurses, on the other hand, Tilly included, made me feel like I weighed a ton.
He placed me in the chair and covered me with a large towel. Tilly grabbed a long t-shirt for me, as we headed out.
Tessa whistled as he wheeled me out. "Looking smoking, girl," she hollered. I could not help but flush and pulled the towel up to my chin.
I'd been to the pool before for therapy, but I'd never felt so self-conscious about it. It was not like Jude hadn’t seen me in a bathing suit. We grew up together. But he was the first man to see me in a bathing suit since - I tried not to think about that.
He reached behind to pull off his t-shirt, and I'd be lying if I said that the guy wasn't distracting. I mean, he was good looking, there was no doubt about it, with pretty green eyes and tousled hair, five o'clock stubble, and deep dimples. But did he have to look like that shirtless too? I reminded myself that he was a Physical Therapist and likely spent most of his free time in a gym.
He was thankfully wearing board shorts as opposed to swimming shorts.
I disliked men for my own reasons, but I was certainly not a prude. I cleared my throat.
I’d always preferred aquatic therapy to traditional physiotherapy because I always seemed to make more progress. Besides that, there was the control it gave me. It was like I was actually in charge of my own movements again, with minimum help.
Jude placed me onto what they called a transfer, which assisted in lowering me into the pool. He strapped floatation wraps onto my waist and legs to keep the bottom half of my body afloat. I'd done all of this before, and being in a pool made me feel more like myself than I had during the last two months. It was strange, the fact that I'd been in hospital as long as I had. but it was thankfully coming to an end in two weeks if all went well with my therapy. He climbed into the pool and proceeded to adjust the transfer toward him. I was lowered into the lukewarm water, which I admit felt amazing. He smirked. "Not so bad, huh?"
It wasn’t, so I offered a terse nod back at him. It was all I would allow myself to give.
He took me through several water-based movements for the next hour, and by the end of it, I was spent but feeling more positive than I had in a while. I wouldn't say that out loud, though. Admitting that I felt better would jinx it.
Jude was attentive, patient, and he didn't get frustrated with me if I didn't get a movement right the first time. He did get annoyed with me for my brashness and lack of communication, both of which he said were vital. I didn't let that get to me though, he'd have to live with the fact that I was not a talker. Still, for the first time in a long time, I actually felt like there was light at the end of the tunnel.
Chapter 7
Tara
Fifteen-years-old
I'd learned to stay out of the way when I was home from Boarding School. I sat with the family for meals but got lost the rest of the time. I lay on my bed with the door shut, and I could hear my half-sisters, Alicia and Annie, giggling outside. They're gorgeous four-year-old twins, who unlike me, are my mother's pride and joy. I pushed off my bed, turned the volume up on my cd player, and opened the door suddenly, giving them both a fright.
"Play with us, Tara," Annie sulked as I leaned down and ruffled her hair. I'd like nothing more than to entertain my siblings, but Marcus felt I was a bad influence on them, so I kept my distance. Devlin was my only ally in this house, and he was away at camp instead of home this break. These two beauties were the only ones that managed to make me smile. I didn't want to say no to them, but I couldn't risk getting in trouble again.
“I tell you what,” I whispered. “If mama says it’s okay, I will.”
“Yay,” they bounded down the stairs.
"Three, two, one..." I counted until the disappointed howling began. I stepped back into my room, closed my door, and opened my window. I climbed out of it and up to my rooftop haven which was secluded by the branches of a large oak tree. That was the best thing about this room.
I leaned against the wall and closed my eyes. "Just three more years," I reminded myself, and then I'll be free, maybe off to the city. I'd work my ass off and hopefully get a scholarship to study literature and playwriting. I heard the ladder before I saw him, and when his dark hair and hazel eyes peeked at me, I grinned.
“Are you spying on me?” I whispered. He climbed up and sat next to me in his spot.
"Just observing." I knew that was a lie. Jude was always watching, especially when I was home. He had a nook just like mine, and when we were younger, we would use flashlights to communicate with each other. Jude was grown up now. He was no longer the young boy that wiped away my tears at the dock.
Oh no, he was all man now, and he'd soon be off to England. His father got an offer he could not refuse in London, and they were relocating. Leaving New Orleans wasn't in his plan, but when his parents made the call for him, he had no choice. Jude seemed to change every year I came home. He got sexier, more rugged. More difficult to resist.
He was popular, of that I was sure. Devlin told me he was popular with the girls, and it made my stomach turn because one thing that hadn't changed, was the way I felt about him. My heart still beat a thousand miles a minute and the butterflies continued to invade my insides whenever he was near.
He lit up a cigarette and leaned back, his shoulders touching mine. I swallowed hard.
"So why are you out here?" he asked, not looking at me.
