Total pages in book: 93
Estimated words: 90503 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 453(@200wpm)___ 362(@250wpm)___ 302(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 90503 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 453(@200wpm)___ 362(@250wpm)___ 302(@300wpm)
“Hello?” she said sleepily.
“Hey, it’s me. Listen. I’m not coming home today. I’m going to Boston.”
“You are?” Suddenly she was wide awake.
“Yes. I read Dallas’s messages.”
She squealed. “You did?”
“Yes.” My stomach was jumping around like mad. “And at first I wasn’t sure what to believe, but now I think you were right and he is being sincere. At least, my gut is telling me that.”
“Oh God, Maren. I’m going to feel really bad if I’m wrong.”
“You won’t have to.” I shut my suitcase and zipped it up. “This is my choice. I know it’s a risk, but I’m willing to take it. I can’t be afraid of love, Emme. Madam Psuka was right. Even if it means getting hurt again, choosing love is always the right thing to do.”
Emme sniffed. “I’m going to cry.”
“Don’t cry. I need you.”
“Anything. What can I do?”
“Can you book me a hotel room in Boston? I don’t even know what hospital he’s in, and I won’t until I get hold of Finn, but any place will do.” I glanced around the room one last time.
“Consider it done. How are you getting to Boston?”
“I don’t know that either.”
She laughed. “This is crazy, Maren. But I kind of love it.”
“Wish me luck.”
“I don’t think you’re going to need it, but good luck.”
We hung up, and I rushed out of the room, dragging my suitcase behind me.
It turned out the easiest way for me to get to Boston was by bus. I caught a taxi into Bangor in time to get on the nine a.m. coach, and sank into my seat with relief. I felt like I’d hardly stopped moving since I’d woken up this morning. Once I was on my way, I used my phone to send an email to Finn.
Hey Finn, it’s Maren Devine. Dallas reached out to me, and I’m on my way to Boston. Can you please let me know which hospital he’s in? Thank you!
I gave him my phone number in case he wanted to text back, then sat back and exhaled. My emotions were all over the place—anxiety about the operation, relief about Dallas’s email, excitement about seeing him, uncertainty about the future. There were a lot of questions to be answered, but I told myself they could all wait. Right now, the most important thing was getting to his side. I felt terrible that he’d gone into surgery thinking I didn’t want him back. Hopefully, I’d be there when he woke up.
Hurry, I willed the bus driver. Hurry.
It was after noon, and I still had about an hour to go before reaching Boston when I got a text from Finn.
Maren, great to hear from you. Dallas is out of surgery, and the doctor said it went well. He was able to get it all.
I paused, dropping the phone to my lap, and tears welled in my eyes. I closed them in a silent prayer of thanks, and wiped beneath them when I couldn’t stop the tears from spilling over.
“Would you like a tissue?” asked the woman next to me, pulling a travel pack of Kleenex from her purse. She reminded me of one of the little old ladies in my Yoga for Seniors class.
I smiled at her and took one. “Thanks. It’s good news. I’m just a little emotional.”
“I understand.” She smiled back.
I dabbed at my eyes and went back to the text.
We are at Mass General. He’s in ICU right now, but all vitals are good. Text me when you arrive and I will come get you.
I replied, saying I would, and thanking him profusely. I wondered if he knew anything about the email Dallas had sent and what he thought about my coming to Boston. If he didn’t know, he probably thought I was nuts. Then again, he’d told me not to give up.
I texted Emme and Stella and brought them both up to speed, then I fidgeted and sighed and shifted around in my seat, impatient with the last portion of the ride. I needed to be there already!
Emme replied that she’d booked me a room at a hotel called The Liberty, and the reservation was under her name and credit card. I could switch it when I checked in. Stella replied that she was happy to hear the surgery went well and wished me luck.
When the bus stopped, I practically mowed people down to get off it and plowed through the station to get to the taxi line. On the way to Mass General, I fidgeted some more, and my stomach growled like crazy because I hadn’t ever stopped to eat anything.
At the hospital, I got out of the cab and rushed inside, where I texted Finn. He replied in seconds that he was on his way to get me. That was when I first stopped and thought about what I looked like. I hadn’t even showered, I was wearing gray yoga pants, a backless, loose-fitting, mint green top with an orange sports bra underneath, I hadn’t combed my hair before hastily whipping it into a braid, and a quick look at my feet revealed I’d worn two different shoes. I’d bought the same pair of mesh slip-ons in navy and brown because they were so comfortable, and I’d accidentally put on one of each this morning without knowing it.