Dr. Newberry looks confused, but Cosmos remains calm and collected. “The patient likes romance novels,” he says to Dr. Newberry in explanation. Then, he gives Aunt Joan that irresistible dimpled smile. “Are you the one providing the goods?”
I can’t believe Mom talked to Aunt Joan about Cosmos. The two of them playing matchmaker has never led to anything good. I need to put a stop to it before she gets the wrong idea and makes a mess of my love life the same way she made a mess of this waiting room.
“I got the goods.” Joan reaches into her bag. “You want one?”
He chuckles softly. Despite where we are and who we’re with, my skin tingles. It’s the most seductive sound I’ve ever heard, rumbling through me like a massage on aching muscles.
“I’m good. Thank you, though,” Cosmos says.
Dr. Newberry frowns. “Any other questions for us?”
“Yeah,” Aunt Joan says. “If I wanted to ask out… say, a doctor, here… how long would I have to wait?”
Dr. Newberrt blushes bright red and looks down at his hands. It’s clear he thinks she’s talking about him. “No set timeline,” he answers slowly, deliberately. “As long as the patient has been released from care, there are no ethical concerns.”
I almost laugh at how uncomfortable he is, but then Aunt Joan elbows me in the side. “Hear that?”
I want to sink into the floor. No, into the center of the earth. I want to get so far away that no one in this room will ever find me again. I really hope Cosmos doesn’t think I set Aunt Joan up to ask that.
“If that’s all…” Dr. Newberry stands.
“Yep, I’m good.” Aunt Joan jumps to her feet and extends her hand. “Thank you for saving her. I—”Her voice cracks. She clears her throat. “We’re really grateful.”
Not long after Dr. Newberry leaves, Kiara bursts through the door with a giant balloon and a bouquet of sunflowers. “There you are! You know how many surgical waiting rooms they have in this place?”
I’m so shocked to see her I can’t seem to form words. When I saw her at our workshop last week, she pushed me for information on my mom until I admitted surgery was today, but I never expected her to show up.
Kiara takes no notice of my speechlessness, just throws her arms around me in a hug, introduces herself to Aunt Joan, and then plops down in the seat across the aisle from us. “I would have been here sooner ifsomeonehad told me what waiting room you were in.”
“Did she tell you not to come too?” Aunt Joan asks.
“Yeah, what’s with that?” Kiara leans forward with her elbows on her knees. “Who wants to be alone in a hospital waiting room?”
“It’s not that I want to be alone,” I say, attempting to defend myself. They both give me their own version of a silent,‘Well then, why didn’t you want us here?’
I avert my eyes and pick at a loose thread on my sweater. “I just didn’t want everyone turning their lives upside down for me.”
There’s a beat of silence before Kiara places her hand on my knee. “You’re worth turning our lives upside down for, Hazel. I want to be here.”
It’s hard for me to believe her. I’ve never been the girl people pursue. Mom is. She has that magical sort of sparkle about her. At least normally. She’s emotional and wears her heart on her sleeve, like Aunt Joan, but everyone finds it endearing because of that special something about her you can’t quite put your finger on. That it factor. It’s what made her a talented actress when she was younger.
I don’t have that. I’m just awkward and quiet. Until I explode with more emotion than most people can handle.
The thread I’ve been twisting around my fingers breaks with a snap.
“Well, like it or not, you’re stuck with me, kiddo.” Aunt Joan nudges my shoulder. “Better get used to it.”
Kiara pats my knee one more time before picking up the book on my lap. “I love this one. Have you readDragon King of New York?That’s my favorite of hers.”
That sets Aunt Joan off, and soon the two of them are talking about romance novels and sharing Aunt Joan’s bag of chips. Every few minutes they throw a question my way, trying to draw me into the conversation, but I’m too exhausted to engage, and there’s something kind of nice about not needing to. For once, I don’t feel like I have to worry about what to say. I can just be.
Warm gratitude spreads through me thinking about their easy acceptance and how they showed up for me today. Maybe it really will all be okay.
Chapter Twenty-One
When the doctor finally clears us to leave a few days after surgery, Mom’s like a little kid on her birthday, so excited to go home she can’t sit still. The second Dr. Kim leaves after telling us Mom will be released this afternoon, Mom’s out of bed, searching for clothes in the bag I brought.
“Lay down,” I reprimand. “He said it would be a bit before he got all the paperwork in, and you should rest.”
