Total pages in book: 71
Estimated words: 69919 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 350(@200wpm)___ 280(@250wpm)___ 233(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 69919 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 350(@200wpm)___ 280(@250wpm)___ 233(@300wpm)
“Hey,” she said. “How are you?”
“I’m good. How are you guys?”
“We—hang on, I’m putting stuff on the conveyor belt at the grocery store…okay, we’re okay. You know, some days are better than others, but overall, we’re okay.”
“Do you need to call me back?”
“No, I just have a handful of things. I can talk to you while I check out.”
“Is Andy still getting sick from the chemo?”
“Reliably. It weakens him a lot and he feels bad about spending so much time in bed, even though I keep telling him that he needs to rest.”
I closed my eyes, the image of my strong brother brought to his knees turning my stomach.
“Do the doctors have any idea if the treatment is working?” I asked.
“Not yet. He’ll get scans after this round of treatment.” Her voice got faint as she covered the phone. “Thanks so much. Have a good night.”
“Is the wait hard as hell for you?” I asked her.
“It’s really hard, yeah. But I go to counseling every week, and my counselor tells me to take it one day at a time. That’s all I can do. So I try to keep busy. You can’t lie awake worrying when you fall asleep the moment your head hits the pillow.”
I sat down on a wood bench. “I’m doing what I can to get there. And I’d really appreciate it if you’d let me send you some money.”
“Let’s not go there. I promised Andy I wouldn’t do anything behind his back, and I keep my word to my husband.”
I moved the phone away from my mouth so I could breathe out my frustration.
“We’re okay, Michael.”
Only my family called me that, and it hit me right in the chest.
“Promise me you’ll let me know if anything changes or you get the results of the scans,” I said.
“I promise. I’m taking good care of him.”
“I know you are, Carrie. I’m…” I cleared the emotion from my throat. “I’m proud of you. And I love you guys.”
“Love you, too. Win that next game for us, okay?”
I smiled. My brother and I had grown up playing hockey together, and he was my biggest supporter.
“I will,” I said.
CHAPTER EIGHT
Jolie
I poured my third cup of coffee of the morning, hoping it would help me wake up a little. I’d been working long hours at the lab, I was at the rink almost every night trying to get back in my father’s good graces, and sometimes I came back to the lab after I left there. I’d been burning the candle at both ends the last couple of weeks and it was catching up to me.
On top of how busy I was, sleep seemed to be elusive lately too.
I’d get into bed, my eyes would get heavy, and then I simply couldn’t fall asleep. I’d toss and turn before eventually getting up and reading for a while. By the time I fell asleep, it was usually three or four in the morning, and I was always up by seven.
Tonight I was going to go to the rink for a couple of hours, make sure I was out of there by eight, and head home. I’d run a hot bath, pour a glass of wine, and read a few chapters of the book that had been sitting untouched on my nightstand for months. Hopefully, I’d be asleep by ten.
“You going to the hockey camp again tonight?” Corrine asked me as I started gathering my things at five thirty.
“Yeah, it’s been good to get some exercise.”
“I need to make time for exercise.”
I heard a snort coming from Ellen’s direction, but I didn’t have time to get into it with her today.
Instead, I smiled at Corrine. “See you tomorrow. And don’t forget we’re going to lunch for Dr. M’s birthday.”
“See you then.”
I took the stairs down to the exit and walked out to the parking lot. I’d already changed into sweats, a long-sleeved turtleneck, and a well-worn Mavericks hoodie, so I was warm even though it was cold out. The heat in the Jeep had been wonky lately and my gut told me I’d need a new car sooner rather than later. I’d been doing everything I could to avoid that since I didn’t want to have to ask my parents for money, but I didn’t know how I’d swing it otherwise.
Luckily, the heat came on after a couple of minutes and I turned up the radio, singing along to Taylor Swift.
I was almost to the rink when a weird yellow light flashed on the dashboard.
Fuck.
What the hell was that?
I knew it wasn’t the check engine light, but I didn’t pay all that much attention. If something was wrong, I’d ask my dad or take it to the mechanic he used. Dad tended to tinker with the Jeep in the off-season, making sure my tires didn’t need replacing and that I’d kept up with oil changes. It was stuff I probably should have been doing myself, but I’d always been focused on school and Dad either did it or paid someone else to take care of it. I’d assumed Jarvis would take over car maintenance once we were married, and part of me was embarrassed to admit I’d been okay with letting a man handle anything to do with the vehicle I drove.