Page 85 of Trick
“God, I needed that,” I said once I’d gotten myself under control. I wiped my eyes and looked up to find Jase eyeing me warily.
“Are you sure you’re all right?”
I nodded, and a chuckle escaped me again as I had a thought. “Uncle Bill’s going to be pissed that he didn’t get to see that. My mom gets on his last nerve.”
“I can’t imagine why,” he said dryly, and that set off my laughter again.
I was still chuckling when the nurse gave a quick knock then opened the door.
“You sound like you’re having a good time in here. I just need to check your vitals, and then the doctor will be doing rounds shortly. I believe she’s still planning to discharge you this afternoon,” he informed me.
King popped in a few minutes later to tell us he was picking Tony up. “He’s going to stay at our place for a day or two. Ella’s worried about him staying at the clubhouse and wants to keep an eye on him.”
Jase joked about King needing to buy a bigger house if she kept collecting strays.
“Don’t give her any fuckin’ ideas,” he grumbled as he walked out.
By the time the doctor came in an hour later, I was more than ready to leave. Lunch had been delivered, and the lukewarm chicken noodle soup left a lot to be desired. The orange Jello wasn’t much better.
I was hungry, sore, and tired, and I wanted nothing more than to curl up in Jase’s arms and forget about everything.
“Rest and take your meds as needed. Ice chips and cold drinks may help soothe your throat, nothing alcoholic or carbonated, though. If the swelling gets worse or you have difficulty breathing or swallowing, come back immediately,” the doctor cautioned before instructing the nurse to remove my IV and get my discharge papers ready. “Given the nature of your work, I would highly recommend that you take at least two weeks off to give the damaged tissue time to fully heal,” she added.
On the way back to the clubhouse to get my things, I admitted to Jase that I didn’t want to record audiobooks anymore, at least not in the romance genre.
“That’s what set him off, Jase. He heard my last audiobook, and he thought I was talking directly to him because of the male lead’s name. I’ll have to finish the last bit up on my current project because of my contract, but after that, I’ll stick to other voice work.”
He reached across the center console and took my hand. “You don’t have to make a decision right now, but I’ll support your work either way.”
We were both beyond exhausted by the time we made it back to the duplex. Jase carried everything in and unpacked it while I took a hot shower, anxious to get rid of any trace of JD’s touch. I was too tired to worry about eating by that point and crawled into bed instead. Trick joined me just as I was dozing off. His skin was warm and smelled of his body wash.
He pulled me into his arms and held me close as we both took a much needed rest.
Ella, Molly and Abby stopped by around five-thirty to drop off soups, stews, and pasta dishes, all soft enough for me to eat without difficulty. They also brought a variety of ice creamflavors, for which I was eternally grateful. They only stayed for a moment after reassuring themselves that I was OK.
“Please tell Uncle Bill that I’ll be by to visit him tomorrow.”
“I will,” Ella said, then told me to let them know if we needed anything in the meantime.
I gave Abby an extra-long hug as they were leaving and told her nice her dad had been. “I hope he was able to go home and get some sleep. He looked even more tired than I was.”
“He called me when he was on his way home. He’s planning to sleep for a few hours at least before he goes back to the station.”
We were snuggled up on the couch when my phone rang, yet again. My heart sank as I saw Calliope St. John’s name on the screen.
“It’s the author I’ve been recording for,” I muttered to Jase before I answered her call.
“Oh, my God, Lauren, I just saw the news. Are you all right?”
I was touched by her concern, and assured her that I would be fine, then explained about the doctor’s restriction.
“Please don’t worry about that. I can tell by your voice that you shouldn’t even be talking right now, let alone spending hours recording my book. I’ll let everyone know that we’ll need to push the release date back a bit. I’ll wait to formally announce a new date until you’re ready to get back into the studio.”
After we hung up, I cried again, this time because a woman I’d only spoken with a half-dozen times had shown more care and compassion than my own mother had.
Jase insisted that I eat something and warmed up some of the beef stew the ladies had dropped off. It was delicious, and best of all, I was able to swallow it without too much discomfort.
Elvis, who seemed to sense that I was injured, was more affectionate than usual, leaving my side only when Jase filled his food and water bowls.
