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Chapter 6
Charlie mended fast and soon he was ready to return to work. Lila had mixed feelings about it; on one hand, she would enjoy having some space back. Being with any man twenty-four seven was challenging. After that first night they decided sleeping in the same bed might not be the best thing for them because of the danger of her accidentally bumping his burns. In spite of his protests, the next day she ordered a hospital bed from a home health company and set it up in the spare bedroom for him, which he begrudgingly moved to.
They hadn’t had sex yet, either. They’d gotten close, but he was still recovering, and she was having trouble getting beyond that. One night while in bed kissing, she forgot and caressed the back of his neck, the only place that had required a skin graft. She touched the gauze-covered still-healing wound; he yelped. That did it for her. And intercourse might not have been possible anyway. Because in addition to the pain from the burns, one of the drugs he took had the potential to interfere with his ability to get an erection.
“Lying in bed together, cuddling like this, and the tenderness of knowing you love me, taking baby steps toward intimacy is enough for now,” she’d said.
“Well, it’s not enough for me. I’m ready, and if my body won’t cooperate, I’ll get the little blue pill. I can’t believe I even have to have this conversation.”
“Honey, it’s fine,” she said, but she knew he was getting frustrated. “Talk to your doctor.”
“Trust me, I plan on it.”
The secondary focus was on getting him back to work. She was afraid that she’d get bored when he was at work all day, and going to Barnacle Ben’s wasn’t the keenest thing to do for a woman in love.
“What am I going to do if you’re not here bothering me around the clock?”
“Can you get an extra day or two at the Safari Park?”
“That’s an idea.”
She’d make the call as soon as the office opened up at ten. After Charlie left for his first day back to work, she cleaned her badly neglected house and then leashed up the dogs for a walk around the property. They were still standing in the yard when she heard the sound of an engine laboring to get up the hill.
“I bet it’s Devon,” she said out loud.
But when the unfamiliar car came into view, Lila realized it was her father. Shocked, she stood with her mouth open. “You got a new car.”
“We’ve had this for two years,” he said, climbing out.
“When’s the last time you were up here?”
“A long time ago. It looks nice. You’ve taken good care of the place, Lila. I like that,” he said, pointing to the firepit and terrace, something that she’d had put in.
“What do you want, Dad?”
“It’s time you and I had a talk. Can you invite me inside?”
“If you must. Why didn’t Mom come?”
“You’ll understand later. She knows I’m here and why. Once everything is out in the open, you’ll be free to talk to her about it.”
“This is weird,” Lila said, not wanting to invite him inside. The notion that something between them wasn’t right had grown, even though she had no proof or no memory of anything.
“I’m sorry. It is weird, but you’ll just have to trust me.”
“Dad, I don’t know if I can trust you.”
“Can we just get inside? I have something to say to you. It would be better said inside, at the table, over coffee. You’ll have questions, and I want to be able to concentrate on what I’m saying.”
“Come in, then,” she said begrudgingly.
She was too embarrassed to suggest he might be there to physically harm her, but she stayed alert, offering him a chair right away. At least if he was seated, she could turn her back to unleash the dogs.
“I just made coffee,” she said.
“Perfect. You know I love coffee, and you always made the best cup.”
She watched him unbutton his coat and place it neatly over the back of the chair before he sat down. Pouring him coffee, Lila had a wave of fear, which swept over her, nausea hitting her like a fist.
