Total pages in book: 68
Estimated words: 67490 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 337(@200wpm)___ 270(@250wpm)___ 225(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 67490 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 337(@200wpm)___ 270(@250wpm)___ 225(@300wpm)
Whatever it was held her in an almost thrall, making her appear way too scared.
Something had to have happened.
To the whole family.
Was that why Garnett didn’t want to go get her knee surgery done, too?
Not one of them had objected, saying they would be going to the hospital, too.
Not one of them.
I just knew that there was nothing on this Earth that would keep me from being with Ande if it were her in Garnett’s place.
“You’ll have to drive Mom’s car,” Ande said stiffly as we pulled up to the front of the house.
All the lights were on, and nearly every one of the brothers’ cars were here, too. Letting me know they weren’t at work.
It just added to my theory that something wasn’t right.
“She can’t get in here,” I said, realizing I was silly for thinking the poor woman could.
When Ande said she was in pain, she wasn’t kidding.
I watched her hobble around the kitchen yesterday, making everyone lunch, and it was painful to see. I’d gotten up to help her, and I could tell the family was waiting for an explosion from the mom—apparently this was a common thing, her thinking she could do something when she couldn’t—but there’d been no explosion. Just a happy smile, even if it didn’t reach her eyes.
“No, she can’t,” she said. “Just park here. I’ll leave Dad the keys so he can move it when everyone leaves.”
So, we parked almost at the neighbor’s place, then made our way inside to a house that smelled like cinnamon rolls.
“You better have saved us some of those!” Ande marched into the kitchen.
“Fuckin’ finally,” Quincy said as he stood up and reached for a plate. “Mom made us wait for you.”
“I got here at the time I said I would.” Ande pushed him out of the way and got two plates of her own, piling one so high with cinnamon rolls that I was hoping it wasn’t for me.
“Hey!” Quincy snapped, trying to push her out of the way.
But it was obvious this was something they’d done before, because Quincy didn’t push that hard, and Ande didn’t budge.
She walked over to me, one plate loaded with five cinnamon rolls, and one loaded with three.
She handed me the one with three and said, “There’s milk in the fridge.”
I liked that she knew me so well.
“I’ll get it.” Garnett limped there.
I was in front of the fridge and bringing the milk to where she was pulling down glasses in a matter of moments.
“I’ll pour,” I ordered.
Garnett rolled her eyes but allowed me to pour.
I also brought all the glasses to the large bar that ran the length of their kitchen, dropping them off and coming back for my cinnamon rolls.
“Have a seat,” I ordered her.
She rolled her eyes. “You’re just as bad as the rest of them.”
“But you actually sit when he asks you to, instead of arguing,” Garrett grumbled.
Garnett scoffed. “I do not!”
And that was how the rest of the morning went.
The Carter family argued.
I listened and smiled.
But there was a pall, as if everyone was aware that one of their own was now missing.
An hour later, we were in the pre-op area of the same hospital that my sister worked in.
“I’m just gonna…”
Before anyone could say a word, Ande was darting away.
“Tell me what’s going on,” I said as Ande all but ran out of the room.
The nurse putting in the IV line finished up quickly, hooked Garnett up to the IV fluids, and left without a word.
Meanwhile, I could see Ande hovering in the corner of the large open room, cordoned off by blue curtains, waiting for the bathroom.
“Well, this is an ongoing problem with her.” Garnett sighed. “She hates hospitals. Has since a young age. She and her sister were in the car with me when I was in an accident. We were all transported to the hospital, though Ande was the only one who wasn’t hurt.” She smiled sadly. “Addie and I both had broken arms, some scratches and cuts, because the car that hit me hit on our side.” She shook her head. “So, she had to watch them work on us, while scared and terrified.”
“What else?” I asked.
“The rest has to do with when Garrett got hurt,” she continued. “I think everyone, once we heard the story of how the ER staff were not willing to help our son… we just kind of lost faith in the hospital system after that. Honestly, I don’t even think I’d be here right now, at this particular hospital, if it hadn’t been for my doctor only performing surgeries here.”
I didn’t blame them.
“Your sister is my hero,” Garnett said. “I already loved your family for what Val did for my baby. But now, I have a feeling, she’s about to be replaced by you.”
I flashed her a grin. “I am so very loveable.”