Curtis (33 page)

chapter FIFTY-FOUR

Two days later

“Come on, Pop,” Ethan stated firmly. “Let’s go down to the cafeteria and grab a bite to eat. Kaleb and Zoey are gonna hang with Mom for a bit.”

Curtis looked over at Lorrie, seeing that she was still asleep. She’d been asleep for almost two days straight. According to the doctor, her body was working overtime to fight off the infection. The bad news was that her white blood count wasn’t improving; if anything, it was getting worse. They couldn’t pinpoint the infection, so they couldn’t treat it directly, which worried him. It also worried him that the admitting doctor had called in another doctor to confer with. She seemed just as baffled.

“It’s not a request,” Ethan said softly.

Curtis smiled. Leave it to Ethan to be the hard-ass.

“Where’s Beau?” he asked, getting to his feet.

“He’s at the shop. We’ve got a full garage at the moment. He’ll be by in a bit.”

Before leaving, Curtis pressed a kiss to Lorrie’s forehead and whispered that he’d be back shortly. On his way out, he greeted Kaleb and Zoey, who had been practically holding vigil in the waiting room for the past two days. The family had already rallied together. Jared was keeping an eye on Mason, while Kylie and Jessie were helping with Kellan. And they were all visiting at all times of the day, even when visiting hours were closed. Luckily it was a large waiting area, because the last time he’d checked, there’d been full grown men sprawled out everywhere, all waiting for news.

There was no doubt in his mind that he had the greatest family a man could ever hope for.

“Things goin’ well between you two?” Curtis asked Ethan as they headed down the hall toward the cafeteria.

“Better than I ever expected. He’s a good man,” Ethan replied.

Curtis grinned. “Takes one to love one.”

The two of them made it through the line, and though Curtis attempted to pay for their meals, Ethan wouldn’t let him. Again, the notion made him grin.

They were sitting at the table, sharing small talk, when Zoey approached.

His heart lodged in his throat as she neared, fear stealing his breath.

“She’s fine,” Zoey assured him quickly. “Still sleeping. Nothing’s changed.”

Curtis released the breath he was holding.

“Want somethin’ to eat?” Ethan offered.

“No, I’m good. I just stepped out because Zane showed up. Wanted to give him some time with her.” Zoey’s attention turned to Curtis. “How’re you holdin’ up?”

No longer hungry, Curtis pushed his tray away and leaned back. “Good as can be expected, I guess.”

“She’s gonna pull through this,” Ethan said firmly, finishing off his food and then stacking his tray on top of Curtis’s.

“I’m gonna stop by your house on my way home,” Zoey explained. “Clean up a little bit, though the place is already spotless.” She smiled sweetly. “Is there anything I can bring you? I’ll get you more clothes, but is there anything else?”

Leaning forward, he rested his forearms on the table. “Lorrie keeps a box of diaries in the closet. Each one is labeled with a year. If you don’t mind, could you get the one from 1962 and bring it up here?”

“Mom keeps diaries?” Ethan asked, looking shocked.

“Ever since the day I met her,” he told his son. He still remembered the first time she’d told him about the diaries. It had been years after she’d first started writing. From time to time, she would let him read through them, no longer embarrassed by what they said.

“And you read them?” This time Ethan looked appalled.

Curtis chuckled. “Your momma is proud of those diaries, boy. She’s written in them every single day since the first day she came to my house.”

“That’s very cool,” Zoey said. “And yes, I’ll get the one from 1962.”

“Thanks, honey,” Curtis said with a smile. He hadn’t read any of Lorrie’s diaries in a long time, and when he had, it had only been with her permission. For some reason, he felt the need to read them. It always made him feel close to her.

“What all does she write in them?” Ethan asked, leaning back and putting his arm over the back of Zoey’s chair.

“About her day, her thoughts, that sorta thing.”

Ethan outwardly cringed, smirking as he did. “I’m not sure I’d wanna know what she’s thinkin’ about when it comes to you.”

“I heard Beau keeps a diary,” Zoey said, deadpan.

Ethan’s eyebrows shot into his hairline. “What the hell?”

Zoey started giggling, which made Curtis laugh.

“Kidding,” she said. “You’d think it was a crazy idea.”

“It
is
a crazy idea,” Ethan said defensively. “There’s no way I want that man documenting the shit we do.”

Well, that … that Curtis understood. And still he laughed.

“You almost finished in here?” Kaleb asked Zoey when he found her in his parents’ room. She was fluffing the pillows although the bed was made and looked just fine to him.

“Yep. Just need to grab your mom’s diary.”

“You sneaky girl.” He smirked at his wife. “I knew you couldn’t resist reading it.”

Zoey shook her head. “It’s not for me. Your dad asked if I’d bring it to him.”

“My dad reads her diaries?”

“Sounds like it.” Zoey moved to the dresser, opened the top drawer, and grabbed a couple of his father’s T-shirts. “I think it’s sweet.”

“Sweet? You know he’s readin’ it so he can see what she says about him, right?”

“Of course he is,” she replied. “It’s a reflection of their life together.”

Kaleb hated to admit it, but he wanted to know what the diary said. Then again, if there was even the remote mention of sex, he wanted nothing to do with it.

Zoey disappeared into the bathroom, then came back out with a small blue book in her hand.

“Is that it?” His curiosity got the best of him and he reached for the diary.

Zoey quickly yanked it out of his reach.

“Oh, come on,” he said, stalking her. When he backed her up against the dresser, he caged her between his arms. “I just wanna see what it says.”

“Then ask your dad.” She was staring up at him, the book hidden behind her back.

“I might just do that.”

“Good.”

God, she was feisty. He loved that she was protecting his parents’ privacy. Even from him.

“Have I mentioned how hot you look?”

Zoey rolled her eyes. “I’ve got my hair piled on top of my head, not a lick of makeup on, and I’m wearing yoga pants.”

“Is that what those’re called?” He glanced down at her pants. “Then why haven’t you done yoga in them?”

She smacked his chest. “That’s just what they’re called. It’d sound silly if I called ’em my wine-drinking pants.”

“But that’d make more sense.”

“Only to you.”

The frustration in her tone made him laugh. “And you’re still hot. Pants or no pants.”

“I’m not gonna let you read it,” she told him firmly.

“At the moment, reading is the last thing on my mind.”

Kaleb leaned in and pressed his lips to hers. He loved the way her arms instantly went around him, her body moving closer to his as his tongue slid into her mouth. It didn’t matter that they were married or that they had two munchkins already, Kaleb still couldn’t get enough of this woman. He wondered if he ever would.

He pulled back, then stared down at her. “Have you heard the story about how they met?”

Zoey nodded. “I love that story.” Her smile widened before she slipped around him, shoving the diary into the overnight bag she’d been packing. “Now, let’s get this stuff back to the hospital. Then, if you’re nice, maybe I’ll let you finish what you started when we get home.”

Didn’t have to tell him twice.

chapter FIFTY-FIVE

Curtis reclined in the chair in Lorrie’s room, the television on above him, but he wasn’t paying any attention to what was on. The night nurse had come in to check Lorrie’s vitals, chatting with him for a few minutes before leaving them alone. He could see the woman standing outside the window at the station by the door, doing something on the computer. Since they were in the ICU, there was a nurse assigned to Lorrie all day and night, which made him feel a little better.

The only thing that would make him feel a
lot
better was if she would get well. He wasn’t sure he’d ever been this scared in his entire life, and things between them hadn’t always been easy. Until now, until this very instance, Curtis didn’t think he’d ever been so afraid. Considering the doctors still didn’t know what was causing the problem and Lorrie didn’t seem to be getting any better, the only thing they could do was sit and wait. And pray.

He reached for Lorrie’s diary that was sitting on the window ledge beside him. Just seeing the book made him smile. He remembered when she’d first told him how she had kept a diary since that first day they’d met. It had affected him profoundly to know that she’d somehow known that them meeting would be life changing for both of them.

And boy, had it been.

Opening the book, he scanned the first couple of entries, and he found himself reading her entry from his seventeenth birthday.

Sunday, October 21, 1962

Curtis Walker is the best kisser in the world. Not that I have much to compare it to since he’s the only boy I have ever kissed. He’s also the only boy I ever want to kiss.

For his birthday, he said the only thing he wanted was to kiss me. I was hesitant at first, but then I let him. And as soon as he did, I didn’t want him to stop. I can still feel how smooth his lips were against mine. I can still hear the rumble of his chest as he kissed me. That soft growling sound was so sexy. It was like I’ve seen in movies, only better. A lot better.

Oh, I almost forgot! After he kissed me, the best thing happened. Curtis asked me to go steady!! I still can’t believe it, but I’m Curtis’s girlfriend now. My tummy feels all fluttery just thinking about it. I don’t know if I should tell anyone, though. I’m not sure what Momma and Daddy will say. I don’t want them to tell me I can’t see him, so for now, I think I’ll keep the news to myself.

I can’t wait to see him tomorrow.

That day would forever be imprinted on his brain. He skimmed a few more pages, then his eyes caught on the first sentence of the entry from Sunday, October 28, 1962. That would’ve been a week later.

Have I mentioned how great a kisser Curtis is? He’s amazing. I never thought I’d ever say that about a boy, and certainly not him. While I’m sitting here in my bedroom, the only thing I can think about is him. I wish he would come over to see me. I’d even be willing to sneak out the window just to spend some time with him. When I think about lying with him in the grass, kissing him for hours, I hate that I’m not with him. The way he makes me feel is so incredible. Have I mentioned I love him?

When he stopped reading, he realized he was smiling. Closing his eyes, he thought back to that day, but he didn’t get far into the memory before he heard Lorrie’s voice.

“What’re you thinking about over there?”

He looked over to find her peering back at him, her head turned, a small smile on her face. She was still pale, with dark circles beneath her eyes, but even then, she was the most beautiful woman in the world. The mother of his children. The woman who had tolerated him all these years, forgiven him even when he wasn’t sure he deserved it.

Rather than get up, he simply watched her. “All those days I spent kissin’ you for hours and hours,” he told her. “That’s what I’m thinkin’ about.”

Her smile widened, and as with every smile she offered him, he fell in love a little more.

Lorrie watched her husband as she had for the past few minutes. When she’d first opened her eyes, she had sought him out. It was a natural instinct after having been together for so long. She knew without a doubt that Curtis would be by her side during the times when she needed him most, and now was one of those times.

At first, when she’d seen him with his eyes closed, she’d thought he was asleep in the recliner. He’d looked so peaceful. Then she’d noticed he was holding her diary in his hand, and she’d known he was probably reliving one of their days together.

It didn’t surprise her that he was thinking of their first kiss. She thought about that day often. It felt like so long ago, but at the same time, it was like it was yesterday.

“I remember that day,” she said quietly, allowing the memories to come back. “I was so nervous.”

“Sexy nervous,” he noted.

“Yeah, I’m pretty sure there wasn’t anything sexy about me back then.”

“On the contrary.” His grin was slow and warm. “Every single thing about you was sexy. Still is.”

The man always knew the right things to say.

Lorrie peered over at the window to the hall, noticing the nurse was standing there. The same sweet girl who’d been with her at night since they’d moved her to ICU. She turned her attention back to Curtis.

“Did they say anything more?”

Curtis shook his head, then put the recliner stool down and got to his feet. He came to stand beside the bed, placing his big, warm hand on top of hers.

“Not yet. They’re doing more blood tests. They’ll be by to draw more blood in a few hours, like usual.”

Lorrie sighed. “I just want to feel better.”

“I know, darlin’. We all want that.”

“Are the boys still camped out in the waiting room?” Although she spent most of her time in a medicated fog, she recalled the voices of her boys as they would come to visit throughout the day. Since they couldn’t seem to pinpoint what was wrong with her and she was still battling the vomiting more often than not, the doctor had mentioned the possibility of a viral infection. The last thing Lorrie wanted was for one of them to get it, so they were keeping their distance but apparently not leaving the hospital.

“They are.”

“Did you spend any time with them today?”

Curtis smiled. “A little. Kaleb brought Mason by since he was going crazy wanting to see his Meemaw. He had to settle for seein’ me.”

Lorrie chuckled lightly. She seriously doubted that was a disappointment. Mason loved his Pawpaw.

As her eyes grew heavy again, she held on to Curtis’s hand, watching him as she once again drifted off, escaping the pain for a little while longer.