AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“For you.”
“What do you mean? Who brought them?”
Dino pushed the bouquet into my arms. There must have been at least twenty-one fancy expensive roses in the box.
“A courier came and asked for nurse Yana Lane. As far as I know, there is no other Yana Lane in the hospital.” He handed me a card. “And this.”
A package that smelled so good it reminded me how hungry I was and made my stomach growl.
“KFC?”
“Yes. It looks as if your secret admirer knows you well.” He smiled.
I occasionally ordered KFC when I could afford it. There was something about the spicy wings that tickled my fancy. But my budget was tight because Nick made sure I got away empty-handed from our marriage. That was not fair. I helped him build his business.
“I… I have no idea.”
“If you don’t want it, I’ll take it. It’s lunchtime.”
“Thank you, Dino. I’ll take it.”
“Enjoy, sweetie.”
Dino left, and I returned to the nurses’ station with the huge box of roses and a package from KFC. The card was simple and elegant, and the handwriting was damn fancy. I have only seen such elegant handwriting in my grandma’s journal.
Thank you for saving me. Enjoy your lunch.
Soren
It was from him.
The chicken made my mouth water. I took a bite. It was perfect. Crispy and juicy. It had it all. After my long, horrible night, every morsel was delicious and went down like butter. I mean, maybe I did save him. The bullet wounds looked bad, and he seemed incapable of taking care of them himself. I’m not the kind of girl who would refuse free chicken and fries.
Staring at the roses, I remembered last night. He was not a ghost. He sent me KFC and roses.
6
YANA
I spent the day with Soren on my mind, twitching each time the elevator door opened, or my phone vibrated, hoping he would show up. What would I tell him?
At the end of my shift, I left with the roses in my arms, going through the parking spot and finding my truck. Each shadow, each movement, everything gave me hope that I was about to see Soren waiting for me. Snap out of it, girl.
When I arrived home, I placed the bouquet on the table in front of the couch. The roses looked so beautiful, and so wrong, inside my house.
Granny only had a small pension. When I started working, I tried sending her money, but she would refuse my help, so I ended up paying for her heating oil and giving her a bunch of gift cards. She accepted that, but she would not take direct financial help from me.
“Spike, are you around?” I called out into the silent living room.
Something was wrong. Something smelled funny inside the house, but I couldn’t explain what. It was not unpleasant, only strange.
I took a book that stood on the coffee table and walked towards the kitchen, ready to pounce on anything or anyone there. As I flicked on the light switch, my mouth dropped.
“Spike?” I called to my stray, who was rubbing between my legs. “Did you do that?”
My old kitchen was gone. Instead, the floor was polished and shiny, and the old cabinets and appliances had been exchanged for brand-new ones.
“Where’s my linoleum?”
