Page 71 of The Way Home

He frowned. “But the NHS covers them, right?”

She looked down at the chart in her hands, then back up. “Just the first three sessions, I believe.”

“The firstthree?”

“It’s okay. The additional sessions and additional time are covered through April.” She tilted her head. “You did not know this?”

He rubbed the back of his neck. “Uh, no. So my… partner. He’s been paying for the extra time?”

“He arranged it with the hospital back in January.” Her expression shifted. “I am sorry. I assumed that you knew this.”

His heart dropped. Caleb had lied straight to his face.

“Okay.” Jamie turned to leave. “Thank you, Angelina.”

On the train ride home, Jamie did some digging into all of his other therapy appointments, researching what was covered by NHS and what Caleb was paying for himself. If his calculations were correct, Caleb was paying alotout of his own pocket for Jamie’s medical expenses.

So, then, why had he lied? If Caleb knew him at all, he would know that Jamie would not feel comfortable with this arrangement.

He opened up his phone to see the recent message from Caleb.

Caleb

Can’t wait :)

Jamie frowned at it, a pit forming in his stomach where his excitement had just been.

Chapter 18

When Caleb walkedinto the apartment, he could sense something was off. He couldn’t quite put his finger on it, but the energy in the place was… tense.

“Jamie, I’m home. I just have to change, and then I’ll be ready to go.” Caleb threw his raincoat in the closet and looked around. “Jamie?”

No response. Odd since Jamie seemed so excited to go out to dinner. And Caleb was thrilled—this entire evening was Jamie’s idea. They hadn’t been on a date since Valentine’s Day—which hadn’t gone very well—and it felt like a step forward for them.

He heard some drawers closing in the bedroom, and he quickly took his shoes off. “Jamie, you okay?”

When he approached the bedroom, the door was cracked. Pushing it open, he peered into the room to see Jamie sitting on the edge of the bed, head in his hands. Hearing Caleb approach, he looked up.

“Jamie? Have you been crying—?”

“Sorry,” he said quickly, turning away. “I, erm, I think we should reschedule dinner. I don’t feel much like going right now.”

“What happened? Are you hurt?”

Jamie slowly shook his head, tucking a curl behind his ear. He took his glasses off and wiped his eyes.

“Did something happen at the doctor?” Caleb quickly crossedthe room and placed a hand on Jamie’s leg, but he pulled away. Caleb’s heart sank. Something was very wrong.

“Jamie, sweetheart…”

“You lied,” he whispered, still looking away. “About my insurance covering all the appointments. You’ve been paying.”

Fuck.

“Listen, Jamie…”

“I asked you if my therapy was covered by the NHS, and you said yes.”