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I chuckled softly. “Well, that’s good. Hopefully, it will continue to heal quickly.”
“How was your day?”
“Busy, but good.” I took a few minutes to share with her one of my funnier calls from the day, and she giggled on the other end of the line. Once I was done entertaining her with my adventures in roadside medicine, we grew quiet. It wasn’t an uncomfortable silence, just a comfortable pause. It might have been a good place to let her go, but I didn’t want to get off the phone yet.
“Did you manage to get a shower?”
“I did,” she said happily. “The plastic wrap worked great. I’m amazed how much better I felt after taking one, although I was worn out and then slept for over two hours.”
“You’re still dealing with the effects of the anesthesia. It can take a couple days to wear off.”
“Yes, they warned me of that. I have to thank you again for leaving me meals. It’s been so nice popping something into the microwave that actually tastes like food and not cardboard.”
I grinned. “I’m glad. I know it’s nice to have comfort food when you aren’t feeling well.”
“Exactly!” she replied, and I heard her yawn.
“Well, I guess I should let you go. You’re still interested in coming with me this weekend, right?”
“I am if you’re okay with taking a battered woman with you.” She chuckled. “My face looks horrible.”
“The bruises will start to fade soon, Roxy.”
“I know, but I hate that I’m going to meet potential clients while I look so bad.”
“My brother is an emergency room doctor, and his fiancée works in the hospital, too, so they are used to seeing people at their worst.”
“Well, that’s good.” She paused. “Lee, I really do appreciate you introducing them to me.”
“My pleasure. I hope it works out for you and them.”
“I do too.” She yawned again.
“Get some rest. I’ll reach out tomorrow.”
“I’m glad you called, Lee. Thanks again for everything.”
“You’re welcome, Roxy.” As she said goodbye, I felt the strings of my heart pull taut. There was something about this woman that I really liked, and I sure hoped that things worked out for us.
* * *
It was Saturday morning,and I was on my way to collect Roxy. Work had been busy the last couple of days, and I hadn’t gotten a chance to talk to her Thursday night, but we had spoken for a while last night. I loved that our conversations were light and comfortable. Since she was home recovering, she didn’t have much to say, although she did tell me about several of the movies that she’d watched. The fact that they weren’t all romances intrigued me. It was nice to know she liked to watch dramas and action movies, too.
As I climbed her steps early on Saturday morning, I was excited to see her again. I hoped that she was feeling the same. I knocked and then tried the doorknob. It was unlocked, and I put my head in and called for her.
“I’m upstairs!” she yelled, and I stepped inside and closed the door. “Hey, can you come up here?” she called down.
I unlaced my hiking boots and toed them off by the door. “Yep, on my way.”
As I got to the top, I glanced around and found one door off to the left and a couple off to the right. The walls along the staircase and hallway were all bare. It was so different than my house. Like my parents’ place, I had family pictures scattered everywhere there was room for them. I thought back for a moment, trying to remember if I had seen any pictures downstairs but couldn’t recall any.
“Where are you?” I called from the landing, and her voice came from the door to the left. I peered inside, and she was sitting on the edge of her bed. “You okay?”
“Um, yeah, but I have a weird request.” She winced as she spoke. I noticed that she had a smaller amount of tape over the bridge of her nose and that her bruises looked slightly muted. Had she put makeup on to cover them?
“What request do you have?” As soon as I asked, I noted her socks and shoes beside her.
“Would you mind putting my socks and shoes on? Bending over to touch my feet stretches the stitches on my thigh.”
