Page 30 of Unraveled

Russ was the first to come around the curtain. His hands were tucked in his pockets, and he had a sheepish expression on his face. Strange. But I didn’t have time to think about it as my mother was literally on me.

I winced when she took hold of my arm with the IV in it. “Mom, other side. Please.”

“Oh, yes. Sorry. But I couldn’t believe you wouldn’t let us drive you. I’ve been fretting all morning and couldn’t sleep all night. It’s been awful.”

She smoothed down her perfectly straightened hair, looking as if she’d just left a salon instead of having gotten up early to drive down here from Bellingham. That was the thing about my mother. Never a hair out of place, lipstick on her teeth, or a worry she didn’t try to pageant-smile her way through. In her mind, she’d always be Miss Washington.

My gaze hit my brother’s. His sigh was an indication he’d already heard all about her sleepless night out in the waiting room. At least he’d been smart enough to drive separately for fear of hearing all about it the entire drive.

Long ago, I’d accepted that it wasn’t my mother’s intention to make it all about her, and yet she did. Every. Single. Time.

But I’d gotten to a point I no longer let her guilt me into things. Living twelve hundred miles away had helped with that endeavor. “Imagine being the one about to have surgery.” Although if I’d lost sleep, it hadn’t been due to nerves but to a wonderful night in Kellan’s bed.

“I was telling Marjorie Jenkins all about it.”

I had no clue who Marjorie Jenkins was, but I was certain I was about to find out. My mom never met a stranger, that was for sure. It was both an impressive and annoying trait.

“She does my hair, and if you’d let me make you an appointment, she could’ve done yours before your surgery—”

Right. Because highlighting my hair would make me feel better about the probability of losing it once chemo started.

“Anyhow, she has a fantastic plastic surgeon who did her breasts. Of course, she didn’t have breast cancer; she simply needed a little extra up top, but I have his name for you.”

Although I wasn’t due to go to the operating room for another thirty minutes, I wished the doctor would come get me now to save me from this conversation. “I consulted with a plastic surgeon already, but thanks.”

“Okay. But hopefully you don’t end up like Dorothy Saul who had the botched boob job and had to have them redone. You need to find someone who does good work.”

As much as I hoped the same, I had bigger problems, such as killing the cancer currently growing inside of me. “Yes. That would be a tragedy.”

Luckily my dad, who either didn’t mind my mother’s narcissistic tendencies or simply had learned to tune her out, changed the subject. “How are you feeling, honey? You get some rest last night?” Whereas my mom was always dressed to impress, my father looked as though he’d rolled out of bed and didn’t give a crap that he was wearing rumpled jeans and a T-shirt. I loved him that much more for his carefree attitude, especially today.

Nope, I hadn’t gotten enough rest. The why of it made me think of Kellan. His face this morning when I’d left had looked devastated. It was crazy to think I could be falling for him after less than a week together. How was that even possible? Maybe it was my emotions running high that had amplified things between us.

“I’m okay. Thanks, Dad.”

My mom prattled on about another couple of things before my brother surprised me by cutting her off. “Um, Mom, Dad. I need a few minutes alone with Layla.”

“For what?” My mom was forever nosey, especially when it came to her children. Not that I was one to talk. I was perpetually asking the same types of questions.

“For him to speak to his sister,” my father answered. “Come on, Marie, let’s give them a moment.”

“But I want to talk to the surgeon when he comes in.”

“We have a while. Let’s go.”

I tried not to laugh at the sight of my father practically pulling my mom out of the curtained-off room.

“I owe you big-time, Russell,” I whispered. Though I appreciated how much she loved me, I’d needed a break.

He sighed. “Let’s hope you still feel that way in a few minutes. I have a question for you.”

“Sure. What is it?”

He appeared nervous. “Did you spend the week with Kellan?”

Ah. I was right about him being uncomfortable with the thought of me being with his best friend. “Yes. Sorry if it makes things weird, but it was the best week of my life.”

“That’s what he said, too.”