Just Her Luck (63 page)

“Oh, don’t you go gettin’ all bossy on me, missy! I can just call someone else if you’re …”

“NO! I’m coming!” I cut her off, “Don’t you dare, you grumpy old battle ax! I can’t berate you the whole way if I don’t go!”

She cackled, letting out a loud snort from her end of the line.

“I’d just like to see you try!” she challenged.

I failed to see the humor in all of this.

“Be there in a jiff!” I said hurriedly.

We hung up and I ran out the front door.

It took me a few before I realized I still had the phone to my ear and no purse or keys.

Running back in, Reeve handed me my purse and took the phone from my hands, ushering me with a warm hand to my lower back out the door.

“What are you…” I spluttered, following him docilely.

“Taking you and Ruthie to the hospital,” he stated.

“But I…”

“Are in no condition to be driving,” he said curtly, opening his passenger side door for me.

Pursed lips, hands on hips, I scoffed at him.

“I can drive! Where do you get off…” I ranted.

He moved fast, gripping my hand in his, the action pulling me flush against him, my stupid body igniting at the contact.

God, I hate him!

Curse you, stupid body! And curse you too, you grumpy, smiling bastard... with your stupid, yummy body!

Wait! Yummy?

I clenched my teeth, trying to pull my wrist out of his grip.

It was like warm steel banded around my tingling flesh, stealing a bit of my breath, making me all molten and gooey, inside and out.

He lifted my hand up a little higher and raised a brow at the trembling appendage, watching me shake, his thumb running along the pounding vein in my wrist before he let it go.

“See? You’re in no condition to be driving, prison bait, so get in.”

“No,” I snapped.

“Yes.”

He snatched my purse from me and tossed it in, gesturing for me to follow.

I crossed my arms over my chest and stared him down.

Not so amusing to him anymore, his lips tightened.

“Get in.” his voice was getting deeper, grittier.

“No.”

“Genevieve,” he warned, eyes narrowed to little slits.

If I was anyone else, I’d probably be ready to piss myself at the look on his face, but I aint no scared little puddy tat.

I glared back.

“Reeve,” I countered.

He muttered something unflattering under his breath, running his hand through his hair angrily.

I smirked a little at that, carefully blanking my expression when I thought he was going to look over.

He took a few deep breaths and let go of his death grip on his hair.

I’m surprised he’s not bald by now the way he tugs on it.

He looked back up, face steely with renewed determination.

“Just get in the fuckin’ truck, Genevieve.”

“I don’t take orders from anybody,
Reeve
.”

“Woman, if you don’t get your ass in that truck,” he pointed inside the cab, “I’m going to…”

“You’re going to what? Hit me? Kick me? Cuss me out? What, Reeve?” I poked him in the chest, advancing on him. “What is big,
old
, bad Reeve going to do about it, huh?”

He gripped my shoulders and brought us nose to nose, his breath whispering across my face, a hint of mint and coffee.

“You keep pushin’ me, hell cat… I won’t be responsible for what happens, understand?”

“Perfectly!” I hissed.

He grunted when I stomped on his foot and elbowed him in the solar plexus, stunning him long enough to jump in the truck and snag my purse.

I jumped out the driver’s side and rushed to my car, opening the door to jump in.

I started the engine up and would have taken off if Reeve wasn’t standing right behind me.

He pointed at me warningly and marched over to the passenger side door, jumping in and slamming the door shut too hard.

“Be careful! You’ll hurt my baby!” I yelled.

“Just drive,” he growled, rolling down the window.

I win!
I thought gleefully.

“And you can get that stupid smile off of your face, prison bait, I’ll deal with you
later
. We need to get to Ruthie and I don’t have time for your shit right now.”

I huffed and drove off, ignoring him as I turned my radio up, full blast.

He turned it down and popped the knob off, stuffing it into his jeans pocket.

“Hey! What the hell?!”

“Hurry up. You’ve wasted enough time being a stubborn pain in my ass as it is, I won’t be forced to swallow that shit you call music.” He glowered out the windshield after that.

“I hate you,” I muttered under my breath, stepping on the gas.

“Yep,” he said nonchalantly, staring out the window. “Tell me somethin’ I don’t know.”

I pulled out my phone and quickly put it on as loud as it could go, playing the most obnoxious song I could think of.

My grin was pure evil when he jumped, startled by the blast.

“Whoopsie!” My phone fell into the side between my leg and the door.

“I know something you don’t know, Reeve,” I said oh so sweetly, “You can fuck with me, but you’ll never
win
.”

I sang along, belting it out badly, distracting myself about Ruthie by torturing him.

Mwahahha!

Take that, old man!

It was only fun until Reeve started laughing at me, a huge grin spreading across his face.

How insulting!

Even if his smile
is
somethin’ to look at.

Stupid… smiling… Oh, what am I saying? I give up!!
I mentally threw my hands up and gave the bell a ding.
I’m done! Fuck it!

Sulking, I turned off the music and settled for quiet the rest of the way.

****

I don’t know how long we were at the hospital for, when they came into Ruthie’s room and gave her the news.

It wasn’t what I wanted to hear.

“On her spine?” I paled and sat down hard in my seat.

Ruthie patted my hand.

Patted
my
hand.

I sucked in a sudden breath and put on my best game face, slipping my hand over hers.

“What happens now?” I asked the doctor.

“There’s nothing they can do, dear heart. It’s just the cancer taking its course, love. These things happen.” Ruthie gave me a comforting smile.

I couldn’t handle it.

I wanted to burst, scream, shout.

No, they don’t! They don’t just happen! No! Not to Ruthie! They can’t!

Don’t they understand?

I wanted to grab that doctor by his lapels and shake some sense into him, make him see.

Doesn’t he get it?
I
need
her!

The doctor glanced over at me.

“We’re going to admit your aunt. I’d like to run more tests. She’s in good hands, ma’am. We’ll make sure she’s comfortable. I need to make sure the tumor isn’t pressing on or damaging anything else.”

Tumor… pressing… damaging anything else…

“Oh…” I mumbled, not ready for words yet.

Reeve put his hand on my shoulder, offering me comfort.

I shrugged it off, scooting forward a little bit.

My actions didn’t go unnoticed, and this was only one of many times today I’d shucked him off.

“Why don’t you two…” Ruthie started to say.

“Ruthie!!” Barry came barging into the room, a tall, bookish, rubenesque looking woman trailing after.

She nudged her glasses up her upturned little nose and gave the room a good once over, eyes roving over us quickly before they went to Ruthie.

She smiled tentatively, shyly, at my aunt.

The woman was wearing a pastel shirt under a black sweater, a tan, knee length skirt gracing her hips.

Her short, light brown hair was pulled back into a bun at the nape of her neck and her shoes were the little black ballet flat types.

There was something about the woman that, despite her soft appearance and initial shyness, made me think there was a layer of steel behind that sweet maidenly façade,
real strength.

Despite my initial first impression, I think she’s more standoffish than anything.

She kind of has an aura about her, like she oozes some type of innate inner strength or built in authority.

Gotta respect that in a gal.

She glanced over at me again, and I smiled back.

With a quick nod and smile, she relaxed visibly, then all of her attention focused back on Ruthie.

“Hello, Miss Ferguson. We came as soon as we heard. Are you alright?” she asked worriedly, her voice soft and low.

“Marney.” Ruthie grinned and held her hand out to the plain Jane, librarian looking woman.

Marney hurried over and took it.

Is this…? Hmmm…

Could it be?

Well, it has to be. Who the hell else would it be?

Barry came over, and I stood up, hugging him back when he hugged me tight.

“Thanks for taking care of the old gal for me, cous’. I’m sorry I wasn’t here sooner.”

“It’s okay, Bare, don’t be stupid, nobody could have guessed.”

I looked away quickly, embarrassed when my voice, though quiet and at first controlled, suddenly cracked.

Reeve gripped my shoulders from behind, pinching them a little when I would have shrugged them off again, releasing one long enough to thrust it out in front of me, handing me a tissue.

I took it grudgingly and wiped my eyes.

He didn’t release my shoulders, his thumbs stroking my collar bones.

Despite my overall surliness and agitation, worry the foremost, I secretly warmed at the gesture, irritated that I did so.

Barry, oblivious to the exchange, started over to Ruthie’s bedside.

He whispered something to her and gave her a big hug, pulling back to put his arm around Marney’s shoulders, squeezing them comfortingly.

He gave her a quick kiss on the temple, talking quietly with Ruthie.

I gawked for a bit and finally caught myself, glancing away.

Well, that answers that question.

Hmmm.

Never would have pictured him with someone with so few holes in them.

And even stranger because he usually goes for the trampy types.

You know, the hussies of the tattooed and pierced world that’ll spread their legs for just about anyone, wear barely anything, think their all that and a bag of chips.

Blech.

The one’s that give all the rest of us a bad name.

Yep, them.

The way Barry keeps looking over at Marney with calf eyes, though, I knew he was head over heels for her.

Thank god for that too.

She seems so sweet and nice, and cousin or not, if he’d fucked up with a nice girl, a real lady, I’d have to beat his scrawny ass on principal alone.

It made me smile a little at the thought, happy for him. The thought of him finding his ‘one’, that is,
not beating his ass.

I smirked at myself a tiny bit.

The way Ruthie was grinning at them both like she’d won first prize at the fair, I had to wonder if she’d had more of a hand in there meeting and subsequent union than she let on.

Reeve’s hold finally loosened, and I pulled away, scrubbing at my face before I glanced at the clock.

Good grief, we’ve been here all day!

I’m feeling drained, emotionally and physically.

It was getting late, and I rubbed at my eyes tiredly, holding back a yawn with shear stubbornness alone.

“Dear heart?”

My head popped up.

“You and Reeve go on home. You’ve been here for far too long. Get some rest. I’ll call you in the morning, alright?”

“But…” I was about to throw a hissy, an embarrassingly sad one.

“We will, Ruthie,” Reeve promised and bulldozed me out of the room before I could really say anything, giving Ruthie a one armed hug, including me in the squeeze. “You get some rest, Ruthie, and call us if you need anything.”

She smiled at Reeve knowingly, patting his hand.

“Of course I will, honey. You two go on and git now.”

She shooed us out of the room, motioning us away with her hands, waving us away like a bad odor.

I waited until we exited the elevator, heading towards the parking lot, before I spoke.