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“All in a day’s work. I’m off to read.” He turned with a nod.
“Hey, what book are you reading?” I asked Gunner before he walked away.
“Along came a spider.” He stopped long enough to answer. “Enjoy your movie and get some rest.”
“Hey Bond?” I called to his retreating back, then waited for him to turn. “Thanks again for saving me.”
“Every day of the week, young lady, every single day.” With a wink he walked off.
I watched him walk down the hall whistling. When the taste of liquid salt hit my split lip, I swiped at the tears still running from my eyes.
Enough with the crying already!
Two hours later the movie I had been watching came to an end. I stretched, then looked across the plane to find my fiancé still bent over blueprints. I pulled the blanket off, folded it, and walked over to see if I could assist.
“I always wanted to do something like this. Did you?” I asked softly in case he was in deep thought.
“Yes, I always wanted to do this. I watched my uncle design the most amazing buildings and I would beg him to let me go with him to see them completed.” He pushed his chair back and rubbed the back of his neck. “Do you draw?”
I watched him slowly stretch each part of his body but continually go back to the neck.
“I can draw- not draw like the Mona Lisa draw- but better than a stick man,” I answered, distracted by his neck rubbing. “Can I help you with that?”
“With my drawings?” he asked in surprise. “I welcome any help. I wish my brother would do his part more often too.”
“No, not the drawing part- well yes, any day I would love to help- but I meant can I help with your neck stiffness?” I walked behind him rubbing my hands to warm them up.
“Sure. You’re not going to crack my neck. Are you? I haven’t done anything bad enough to warrant that yet.” He chuckled at his own joke.
It was weird to be touching him this closely, but if we were going to look like we are in love in public, we needed to touch each other before that.
You do massages on strangers all the time at the senior home. No big deal.
“I help out at a few senior living facilities a few times a week. My grandpa was a D.O. doctor and massage was a big part of what he did to help patients. He would teach me how to do it,” I answered, gently putting my hands on his neck. I hadn’t expected the hair tingling feeling when I touched him. My hands snapped back on their own.
“Everything okay?” He asked
“I thought my hands might have been too cold still.” I placed my hands back on his neck. “Anyway, when my grandpa became ill and had to be moved to a facility, I would visit him every day and massage his legs and back, like he had taught me to.”
“Payback is always nice to be able to do,” he said, moving his neck side to side. “I’ll bet he loves it.”
“He did love it. The nurses would call me every morning to tell me he was asking for me. Then they started asking me if I could help other patients. My grandpa would wave me off him and order me to help the others too.”
“Sounds like a great man. I believe you said ‘did’?” His shoulders began to relax.
“Yes, he passed away in October. The last thing he said to me was to make sure I continued to help the others, especially the ones who had no family.” I massaged down his arms and back to his shoulders. “I kept my promise to him and went there every morning. Brice didn’t like me going there. He would accuse me of liking the doctor there. So stupid.”
He spun in his chair to face me. “I’m sorry you had to deal with such a monster when you seem very caring. Have you thought about who will help out those people now?”
“I’ve thought about them every day. I’ve wanted to check on them, but I haven’t even spoken with my parents for fear Brice would do something.”
“How about I have a massage team go into the facility every day for every patient? Would that help relieve some stress from you?” He stood looking me straight in the eyes.
He was such a dill the other night and now he was a caring and kind person. I threw my arms around his neck without thinking it through and kissed him on the cheek. He clearly was caught off guard and we fell backwards. He wasn’t able to catch his balance until the desk caught it for him. To my complete horror, it ended with me laying on top of him.
“Bloody he…,” I clamped my hand to my mouth to stop the curse bubbling out. “I’m so, so sorry. I shouldn’t have done that.”
He let out a full belly laugh that shook both of us like a 3 on the Richter Scale of earthquakes. I didn’t make it better in wiggling to get off of him. Instead of it being awkward, he continued to laugh, then stood us both up. He still had his hands at my waist when we heard a low cough behind us. I took a slight step back and pulled on my shirt to straighten myself out.
