In Your Embrace (16 page)

“I have my moments.”
 He squats before her and waits for her to wrap her arms around him, giving him access to be able to sweep his arms in around behind her and lift her from her chair.  She feels light in his arms, like a fragile doll that he worries might break if she falls.

She’s already broken
, he reminds himself as he gently sets her down in her favorite place, where the sunlight touches her toes.

He steps back and releases a shaky breath.
 Hannah laughs.  “You’re getting better at this.  That first time I was sure we were both going to end up on the floor.”

Draven remembers all too well what it felt like to lift her into his arms for the very first time.
 The nearness of her wasn’t what unsettled him.  It was her open trust that he would keep her safe.  In the past, the only girls he has ever carried were either too drunk to walk on their own or were about to spend a bit of time in his bed.  Hannah is neither of those, and yet holding her feels far more intimate.

“I told you I’m getting the hang of this.”

“That you are,” Hannah heartily agrees.  “Who knows…maybe someday you might take Art’s job.”

“I heard that,” the older man mutters as he enters the room.
 The wheels on Betty’s chairs squeak with each revolution.  Draven smothers his disgust.  He could never do Art’s job.  Not in a million years or for any amount of money would he be willing to wipe some old lady’s backside.

“You were meant to hear it,” Hannah calls back with a wide grin on her face.

Draven returns her smile as he grabs a set of light kettle bells and hands them to her, careful to make sure she is ready to take on their weight.  “Let’s start with your upper arms, shall we?”

SIXTEEN

Season of Thanks

Holidays have always been special to Hannah.
 She can still remember being a child and fully immersing herself in the holiday spirit.  It didn’t really matter what the holiday was, just so long as it involved giving of herself.

For Easter, she would spend hours coloring dozens and dozens of eggs to put out for the kids in her neighborhood, just to see the smiles on their faces when they awoke.
 For Memorial Day, the fourth of July, or Labor Day, she would help make plates of burgers, slaw, and chips at the local park to give to the homeless.  For Thanksgiving, she would spend her morning helping to take hot meals to shut-ins.  At Christmas time, she would drip beautiful tinsel off barren trees in nursing homes and eagerly join in singing carols with the residents.

They were always a special time for her.
 A time of giving and celebrating.  Her parents didn’t always understand her enthusiasm.  In truth, they tried to curb it as much as possible when she was younger, but Hannah always looked forward to the next holiday.

Of all the holidays she looks forward to, Thanksgiving has always been her favorite.
 A time for the whole family to gather around and for one day play nice.  Or at least try to.

This year Hannah won’t be seeing her parents.
 Her mother phoned earlier in the week to let her know that her father had a very important business deal that he had to attend to.  What that really means is that they are changing tactics.  Hard love.  Guilt.  Whatever it takes to get her to agree to come home. But Hannah isn’t falling for it, no matter how the thought of spending Thanksgiving alone might make her feel.

Staring out of her window, Hannah can’t help but feel alone in the world.
 Her decision to insist that Claire remain at home with Andrew was the right one. She knows that he isn’t up for leaving the house just yet, but it doesn’t make it any easier.

The nurses have popped in from time to time, each one with an exaggerated bit of cheer to share, but each one leaves a bit downtrodden.
 It’s not like Hannah to be blue, but today she can’t see any way around it.

“Knock, knock.”

She turns to find Timothy standing in her doorway.  Her breath catches at the sight of him.  “Wow,” she whispers as she turns her wheelchair around to face him.  “I…I think I’m speechless.”

Timothy’s smile comes easily as he turns in a slow circle so that she can take him in.
 “Like what you see?”

Hannah’s gaze falls over his button-up white shirt, his dark trousers and the first shoes she’s ever seen him wear that don’t have
boot
in the name.  “You clean up really nice.”

“I do try.”
 He holds up a finger and disappears for a second.  When he reappears in the doorway, Hannah is confused to see him holding a beautiful gown aloft.  It looks as delicate as a newly opened rose, mirroring the same rich color.  It falls in waves of sheer material.  The neckline dips low but maintains its modesty, just as she prefers.

“It’s gorgeous.”
 She wheels herself forward, trails her fingers over the silky material, and then frowns.  “Are you going somewhere?”

“We.”
 He smiles.  “We are going somewhere.”

Her eyebrows hike in surprise.
 She glances out into the hall and notices Wendy, the twenty-something red head whose smile could power a light bulb quickly pushing back from the counter she had been leaning over to listen.  “What’s going on?” she asks.

Timothy drapes the gown over her lap and adds a pair of dainty white sandals on top.
 “Just get dressed.”

Hannah’s cheeks flush bright red as she looks away.
 She starts to tell him that she can’t manage it on her own but Timothy beats her to it.  “Mary and Sue Ellen are going to give you the royal treatment.  I’ll be waiting down the hall.  Take your time.”

She feels a bit out of breath as he turns and walks away.
 
Doesn’t he have family to spend the day with?  A mother and father who will miss seeing him?  What about siblings?  I’ve never even heard if he has any.

Hannah barely has a second to admire the view of Timothy from the back before the two nurses rush inside and whisk her away to the bathroom.
 Twenty minutes later, Hannah sits once more in her seat, but this time feels different.

Gone are her old sweats and the tank top that probably should have been thrown out ages ago but she just can’t let go.
 It’s too comfy and right now, comfy is all she’s got.  Her hair has been unbraided, allowed to flow freely over her shoulders.  She hasn’t worn it down for quite some time, but she secretly wonders if this was a special request from Timothy due to Mary’s insistence that she looks beautiful with her curls spread across her shoulders.

She feels beautiful.
 Not in the sense of fleshly beautiful but from deep within.  This dress, these shoes, this day…it all feels so wonderfully perfect.

Placing her hands over her lap, Hannah smiles.
 
You’re a lucky girl to have a friend like Timothy.  Not many men would go to this much trouble…especially for someone as broken as me
, she is tempted to add to the end of that thought but stuffs those feelings away.

“You look stunning,” a voice calls from just out in the hall.

She wheels past Mary in the doorway to find Draven leaning against the wall.  “You’re here too?”

There is a slight tightening in his gaze but it eases before she can really tell if she imagined it or not.
 “I wanted to drop by and wish you a happy Thanksgiving, but it would appear that you are already well on the way to having a nice day.”

“Yes,” a voice calls from over his shoulder and they both turn to see Timothy approaching, “she is.”

“Draven, you remember my friend, Timothy, don’t you?”

The two men nod at each other
, but she can’t help notice the tension between them.  “Of course.” Draven smiles.  “It’s nice to see that you’re visiting Hannah.”

“Is it?”

Hannah glances back and forth between the two men.  
Am I missing something or do they both seem unnaturally stiff?

“Well,” Draven smiles, ignoring Timothy’s challenge, “I’d best be heading out.
 My mom and Kevin are planning some big party, and I’m expected to be there.”

“Which means you won’t be.” Hannah smiles.
 The past few weeks working side by side with Draven has taught her one very important thing about him: he doesn’t like to feel pressured into anything.  She actually admires his unwillingness to conform.  A part of her wishes that she could be more like him in that aspect, and yet she wonders about the darkness in him that peeks out from time to time.

It is nothing major, nothing alarming; it does give her reason to worry
, though.  Sometimes it is just this far off look that pulls him away from her, or a brief moment when something she says makes his expression pinch as if he felt actual pain from her words.  Whatever it is that Draven is running from will eventually catch up to him, but it’s not her place to mention that to him.

She likes Draven, enjoys his company.
 She’s seen the way he looks at her when he doesn’t think she’s looking.  He watches her intently, as if trying to solve some great mystery.  He has this cute way of pursing his lips when he thinks.  She tries not to let him know that she’s aware of his looks, but sometimes it’s hard.

“Of course I’m not going.” He grins, resting his hand on her shoulder.
 “I’ve got better things to do with my time than to hang out with a bunch of stuffy old people.”

“Yes, it must be awful to spend time with your family on Thanksgiving,” Timothy mutters under his breath, but Draven shows no hint of having heard him.

“You really do look beautiful.” He dips low and draws Hannah’s hand up to his lips.  “I’ll see you Monday?”

“So long?”
 She can hear the wistful tone in her voice, and notices Timothy’s frown at her words but the thought of being alone all weekend makes the thrill of Timothy’s surprise diminish.

“Rules are rules.
 Everyone needs a break now and again.”

“Of course,” Hannah lowers her gaze, feeling her ears begin to warm with embarrassment.
 “I didn’t mean to—“

Draven places a finger over her lips and her eyes widen in surprise.
 He has never touched her like that before.  “If you’d like for me to come visit you I will.”

Hannah risks a glance at Timothy and finds him staring intently at the floor tiles.
 An odd tightening in her stomach makes her shake her head.  “No.  It’s alright.  I’ll look forward to seeing you Monday.”

He hesitates for a moment, appearing to wait for a moment longer in case she changes her mind but finally he shrugs and heads toward the elevator.

“I wish he’d offer to come visit
me
this weekend.”

Hannah glances over her shoulder to see Mary leaning out of the doorway to her room.
 “Who?  Draven?”

“Duh,” she laughs and pushes past Hannah’s wheelchair.
 “Who else would I be talking about?”

She walks past Timothy and heads toward her station.
 Sue Ellen follows after, both glancing toward the elevator where Draven was only a moment ago.  Hannah frowns but senses Timothy’s nearness.  She looks up to find him standing beside her, his hands shoved deep into his pockets.  He looks uncomfortable.

“Are you alright?”

“Sure.  Why wouldn’t I be?”

Hannah considers his question.
 Although they have never really spoken about her friendship with Draven, she has noticed Timothy’s smooth ability to focus on heard the details of her therapy and not the one assisting her with it.  “You don’t like Draven very much, do you?”

Timothy opens his mouth to speak and then closes it again.
 He shakes his head.  “I’ve known guys like him in the past.  They’re bad news.”

Hannah scoffs.
 “There is nothing wrong with him.”

“That’s what he wants you to think.
 Trust me…I know his type.  He’s not volunteering at this hospital for the food, I can tell you that.”

Her eyes widen in surprise.
 “You’re jealous!”

“What?”
 He shifts his weight away from her.  “Jealous?  Of Draven Young?  What’s there to be jealous of beyond his playboy charm, flashy bank account, and sports car?  Nah.  That’s not my style.”

Hannah isn’t fooled.
 He can play it off as no big deal but she knows better.  The fact that he is jealous makes her feel confused, exhilarated, and then right back to confused again.  
Does Timothy care about me?  Of course he does.  He feels responsible for me, for my accident, but could there possibly be more between us?  Do I want there to be?

Reaching out her hand, she clasps his arm and waits for him to meet her gaze.
 She tries to soften her words as best she can but knows that she has to be honest with him.  “I like Draven.  He’s been very kind to me these past few weeks.  I can’t stop speaking to him just because you have a feeling that he has an ulterior motive, which I whole heartedly disagree with, by the way.”

“That’s because you don’t know how amazing you are,” he mutters, so low she’s not sure if she heard him correctly.
 When he speaks again it’s loud enough to easily hear each word.  “Just be careful around him, ok?”

“Cross my heart.”
 She mimics the childish symbol of a promise, and that brings a small smile back to Timothy’s face.  “So…about this surprise.”

The tension in his shoulders fades away and his easy going smile returns.
 “I’d almost forgotten.”

He walks around behind her and takes control of her wheel chair.
 “Not another rooftop picnic, is it?”

“I’m afraid it’s a bit too blustery for that.
 I had to improvise this time.”

Hannah glances in each of the rooms as she passes, realizing how selfish she has been.
 Many of these patients won’t be with their families today either.  A special meal has been prepared by the hospital chefs in celebration of this holiday and will be served soon, but it hardly makes up for the fact that some of their families will not come.

This thought makes her sad as Timothy wheels her toward the elevator.
 They wait in silence for the door to ding and then wait for it to open.  She catches the floor Timothy selects from the corner of her eye and begins systematically sorting through the rooms that she knows are housed on the lower floor.

A gift shop.
 A floral shop for those people who failed to remember to bring flowers of their own.  A small chapel.  The cafeteria.  The registration desk with a kiosk for locating patients during off hours.  Several waiting rooms for those receiving outpatient services.  A pharmacy.  The ER located in the rear of the building and the main break room for the nursing staff.