Page 24 of House of Clouds


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She felt Ethan’s hand on her back, a repeated small gesture of reassurance, she knew, but her body tried to argue differently. It was all nerves, she reminded herself. She was all over the place, and this was a reminder. She entered the room, taking in the empty bed next to her father, now vacated of its surly occupant who’d been there the day before. Not someone she would wish on anyone, let alone her father in such a state of ill health. Today, though, her father was sitting out in a chair, the monitors gone, the drip removed, and color returned to his cheeks. His dark brown eyes were bright enough, though she suspected he was taking something to keep the pain from clouding them. And his once big frame that would ordinarily fill the room somehow seemed less, shrunken to a size that didn’t seem like the dad she knew. He looked up from the newspaper he was reading and smiled.

“Katydid,” he said, his voice full and warm. “Come give me a hug. I didn’t get to welcome you properly yesterday.”

He opened his arms and took her in when she reached him and leaned down. His embrace felt good, real and comforting with its strength.

She pulled back and took a seat on the bed beside him. “I’m so glad to see you looking better, Dad.”

“I’m fine now. Just a little blip.”

“Well, not quite a blip,” she said. She opened her mouth to continue, but her father spoke first.

“Ethan, hello. Thanks for coming. And bringing my special girl.”

Ethan grinned at him and grabbed a chair from the wall, pulling it closer to the two of them. “Of course. I knew you’d need to see your special girl. How are you feeling? You look better than you did.”

“I’m good. Feeling much better. I’ll probably go home today. Don’t want to overstay my welcome.”

“The doctor said you could go home today?” asked Kate.

Her father shrugged. “I’m sure he will. There’s nothing to keep me here.”

“How about the fact that you have cancer and need monitoring? That collapse didn’t happen for nothing.”

“The collapse was because I over did it. I know better now.”

There was a stubborn tone to his voice. A tone that she knew meant he would not be budged. She sighed. He would do what he wanted, she knew that.

“Well, let’s wait and hear what the doctor says before you go making plans,” she said.

Tom entered at that moment, his face filled with concern. “What plans are you making?” he asked his father. Tom nodded to Ethan and walked to his father’s side. “You’re not thinking of going home today, are you? Because you can think again. You’re not ready yet.”

“So you’re the doctor now, are you?” her father said, humor in his voice.

“No, but given everything, there’s no way the doctor will let you go home today.”

“Again I say, you’re the doctor now, are you?”

Tom folded his arms. “Dad.” His tone was firm, no nonsense. Stubborn meeting stubborn.

“Look, son,” said her father. “It’s not up to you to decide. I was talking with the nurses, and they thought it might be possible.”

“Possible,” said Tom. “But not guaranteed. Besides, we haven’t gotten everything in place yet.”

Her father narrowed his eyes. “What do you mean everything in place?”

Tom looked at him. “You can’t expect to come home and have everything the way it was before. Things have changed. And we’re dealing with it.”

“Tom,” her father’s voice was sharp, firm. “I am not invalid. I am fully functioning mentally. I am going home and living my life the best that I can.”

Tom nodded. “Of course. But we’ve got things in place to help you. We’re putting a bed downstairs in the dining room. That way you don’t have to worry about the stairs.”

Her father’s eyes narrowed. “You did this without talking to me?”

“Dad, look. We had to make decisions. And so we did.”

“It’s only for when or if you’ll need it,” said Kate, cutting in before it got worse. Tom was never diplomatic. “In the meantime I’m here, in case you need help.”

Her father looked at her, his eyes alight with hope. “You mean you’re staying?”

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