Page 14 of See My Words

Scott closed his eyes and settled back in his seat, and after a quick stop at the pharmacy for Scott’s meds and some cans of Ensure, they finally arrived back at the condo. Scott immediately disappeared into the shower, and Rylan put everything away in the kitchen, puttering around until Scott came back in wearing a pair of cotton sleep pants and a T-shirt.

His skin was damp and his hair looked shiny and clean, although it was lopsided where one side had been shaved for the stitches.

“You hungry?” Rylan asked, and Scott shook his head.

“Jus’ wan’ seep.”

It took Rylan a second, but he got it. “You want some pain meds before you sleep?”

The head shake was emphatic. “No. No meds.”

“Okay.” He expected Scott to head for his bedroom and was surprised when he held his hand out to him. Rylan took it, letting Scott lead him into the living room and the big leather couch there. Rylan sank down to sit on one end, and Scott stretched out lengthwise on it, putting his head in Rylan’s lap and closing his eyes.

Rylan stroked his hair with one hand, rubbing his thumb in soothing circles over Scott’s forehead and temples until he drifted to sleep.

Chapter Three

“HERE’S SOME CARROT GINGER PUREE and a peach and honey milkshake.” Elizabeth handed Scott two plastic pitchers full of liquid. “They’re at room temperature if you wanted to drink them now, or you can stick them in the fridge, and they’ll keep until tomorrow.” She blushed furiously when Scott set the pitchers down on his kitchen counter and caught her hand, lifting it to his lips.

“You’re way too good to me, Liz. Thank you.”

She smiled at him. “I like having a young man to take care of again. I miss my son.”

“Well, he’s lucky to have you as a mom. Without you, I’d be living on that horrible, chalky Ensure stuff.”

Elizabeth shuddered along with him. “Oh, that stuff is awful.” She looked him over with a critical eye. “It’s been almost three weeks. Looks like you’ve lost about ten pounds so far?”

Scott grimaced. “I’ve been avoiding the scale because I don’t want to know, but it feels like at least that.” He plucked at the waistband of his cutoff sweatpants to indicate how loose they were. “My ribs are showing and everything.”

She gave him a sympathetic smile and patted his arm. “Hang in there, honey.”

Scott walked her to the door before heading back to the kitchen to pour himself a glass of carrot puree. He wandered into the living room with it and sank down onto the couch not far from where Rylan was sprawled out with his laptop.

“Hey. Have a good walk on the treadmill?”

Scott put his straw in his mouth and slurped in some puree, pulling the liquid in between his tightly wired teeth and letting it trickle into his throat. He swallowed it before saying, “Yeah. Actually ran a little, too.”

“You do okay with that?” Rylan’s voice held a note of concern, and Scott shrugged.

“Couldn’t do it for long because of the restricted breathing, but it felt good to try.”

“As long as you’re careful.” Rylan watched as Scott took another sip of his drink. “How’s that stuff taste?”

“It’s not bad, actually. Everything Elizabeth makes has been pretty tasty.” Scott set down his glass and slumped back against the couch cushions. “The problem is there’s just no way to ever feel full on a liquid diet, and I’m so fucking hungry all the time.”

A rueful expression flitted over Rylan’s face. “You don’t know how guilty I feel whenever I eat something in front of you.” He set his laptop aside and picked up Scott’s glass, taking a cautious sip, and Scott was amused when his eyes widened. “That’s really good!”

“I’d rather have the biscuits and gravy Elizabeth made you yesterday, but yeah, it could be worse. Without her, I’d have lost a helluva lot more weight than I already have.”

Rylan turned to face him, drawing up one knee so it just grazed Scott’s thigh. “You know who she reminds me of? Donna, that lady in Pace who ran the bar. The way she used to look out for you, just like Elizabeth does now. Surrogate moms.”

“I know, right? Two different women in two different states, totally unrelated to me, who’ve been better moms to me than my own mom ever was.” Scott could hear the bitterness in his voice, but at the moment he was just too hungry, too fucking tired, to give a shit.

Rylan pursed his lips and cocked his head, silent for a moment as if debating with himself. “Donna took in your brothers, you know,” he said at last. “They’ve been living with her for over four years now.”

Scott sat bolt upright. “What? Are you serious?”

Rylan smiled. “Yeah. Wanna see?” He didn’t wait for an answer, just pulled his laptop to him and clicked a few times before turning it around to show Scott. “You probably don’t even recognize the boys.”