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“I’m happy to see you, too,” I reply with a smile. “When can we spring you out of here?”
“Soon, I hope,” he says and sighs.
“Dad, you had a stroke,” Lexi reminds him.
“Tell me everything,” I say. “Lexi didn’t tell me much last night.”
“We were having dinner,” Dad begins, frowning. “I was at Lexi’s place, and she made us spaghetti.”
“Yum,” I say with a smile, but Lexi just rolls her eyes.
“Suddenly, I was having trouble chewing and talking, and then my face started to feel funny. Thankfully, Jason was there, and he called an ambulance right away.”
Lexi’s husband, Jason, is a family doctor in New Hope.
“Thank goodness,” I agree and smile as I brush my fingers through my dad’s salt and pepper strands. He’s sixty, but he still has a full head of hair.
“He had a hemorrhagic stroke,” Lexi explains. “They caught it early enough and were able to administer medicine to keep it from getting worse. He’s had scans and bloodwork and, thankfully, everything seems to be stable right now.”
“Do they know what caused it?”
“High blood pressure,” she says, giving Daddy a pointed look.
“I didn’t know you had high blood pressure.”
He shrugs as though it isn’t a big deal. “The doctor may have mentioned it a time or two.”
“And you didn’t think you should do something about it?”
Dad stares at me and then looks at Alexis for help. When he realizes that she’s not going to take his side, he sighs. “I know, okay? I know. I shouldn’t have ignored it.”
Lexi clears her throat and takes a step forward. “They started him on blood pressure medicine, but the damage has already been done. He has right-sided weakness and will require occupational, speech, and physical therapy.”
“You have some work to do,” I say to him and kiss his forehead. “But if anyone can do it, it’s you, Daddy.”
“I’ll be fine,” he says again.
“I’m staying with you,” I say, surprising us all. Now that I’m here, and I see Dad like this, there’s no way I can entertain leaving anytime soon. I need to be here for him, to make sure he’s okay. And not because Lexi threw one of her fits.
Because I love him, and I want to be here with him through this.
“You don’t have to do that,” Dad says, but I’m already shaking my head.
“Yes, I do. Dad, you need someone to take you to and from therapy and to help you out at home. I know Lexi’s awesome, but she has kids and her own household to run.”
“I’ll be fine by myself,” he says, but he doesn’t sound so sure.
“It’s already been decided,” I reply, standing to put my hands on my hips. “I’m here indefinitely. We get to be roomies again.”
“Well, this is a treat,” he says with a laugh.
“I don’t know how to cook very well,” I warn him with a smile. “But I’m sure Lexi can give me pointers.”
“Sure, she will,” Dad says, and we both look over at Lexi, who looks like she’s about to explode into a trillion pieces. “Lexi?”
“Sure,” she says with a huff. “Scarlett just waltzes in here and saves the day, but I’m still the one who gets to do everything.”
“You know what?” I reply, not letting my smile slip even though she’s hurting my feelings. She always does. I should be used to it by now. “Don’t worry about it. I’ll grab some recipes from the internet. Dad and I won’t starve.”
She sighs, looking a little guilty, but she won’t look me in the eyes, and I know damn well that I’ll never get an apology from her.
“I’ll bring over some things you can freeze and just warm up,” she says to Dad. “It’ll be okay.”
“Thank you,” Dad replies. “Now, where is that doctor? I’m ready to go home. The Bachelor is on tonight.”
Daddy wasn’t lying. He totally watches The Bachelor. And, it seems every other reality TV show there is because he told me his whole TV schedule on our drive home from the hospital.
“How’s it going?” Sue asks in my ear.
“Not as bad as I thought,” I reply, sitting on the full-sized bed in my old bedroom. “Dad’s downstairs watching TV. I have all of his medicines, and a schedule of therapies to take him to. He can walk, but he’s shaky, so he needs a walker to start off with, and my dad is as stubborn as they come, so he’s not happy about it.”
“But he’s going to be okay?”
“Yes,” I reply confidently. “He’s going to recover. It’s just going to take a little time.”
“I’m glad you’re there, Scar.”
“Honestly, I am, too. Lexi’s fit to be tied, and Tucker’s not happy to see me, but Dad is, and I’m here for him.”
“Who’s Tucker?”
The best friend I ever had who now doesn’t even want to look at me.
