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“Oh, babe, you should have said.” I put my phone on his table. “Use mine, download any books you want.”
“I can’t take your phone.”
“I’ll survive. Just until I get you another one.”
“Do you even know where my phone is? You said it got fried, right?”
I nodded. “Yeah. It’s dead. It didn’t like fifty-thousand volts, apparently. We can check the sim card though.”
“Same as my watch.”
“I’ll get you a new one of them too. And a new chest strap. Though it won’t be for scientific purposes now. It’ll be medical, so I make sure we don’t overdo it. I fully expect gold stars though. There’s a lot to be said about taking it slow.”
He didn’t sigh, he didn’t argue, he didn’t get mad. He just watched me with soft eyes and a warm smile. “I love you,” he murmured. “I don’t know what I’d do without you.”
Just then, the familiar rattle and smell of the lunch trolley came into the ward. “I’m going to feed you some lunch first. And then when they make me leave, what you can do without me is get some sleep. I’ll be back after three,” I said. “With your dad.”
His eyes widened, then he deflated a little. “I forgot.”
Standing up, I kissed the side of his head. “Babe, it’ll be fine. And you should consider yourself lucky that you’re in here, because my parents insisted that he meet my entire family for dinner. At our place. Including Ellis.”
“Oh dear.”
I nodded. “Exactly.”
* * *
I waited at the airport,like I had many times before. Not so long ago waiting for Jeremiah. Now waiting for his father.
I was ignoring the nerves, pretending it wasn’t making me feel sick. But I was thinking maybe eating lunch had been a bad idea.
Calm down, Tully. It’ll be fine. Everything’s gonna be fine.
I’d only ever seen one photo of the man before, but I didn’t need it. There was only one man who came through the Arrivals door that could be Jeremiah’s dad. No mistaking it.
He was tall and thin, wearing trousers and a white button-down shirt. He had dark grey hair and striking blue eyes.
Not as blue as Jeremiah’s, but still...
He was simply an older version of Jeremiah himself.
He was scannin’ the crowd, nervous and out of place.
“Mr Overton?” I said with a smile. I offered him my hand. “Tully Larson. We spoke on the phone.”
He shook my hand. “Oh yes, yes, of course. Uh, thank you for coming to pick me up, and for the ticket, of course.”
Seeing that he was as nervous as me made me feel a little better.
“You’re more than welcome.” I looked at his carry-on bag. “Are we waiting for any more luggage?”
“No, no. Just this.”
“Perfect. Then we should get going. Jeremiah’s excited to see you.” I gestured to the exit.
He gave a nod and we walked out. “Is he... is he any better?”
“Much better than he was,” I said. “But he’s still... well, he’s still laid up.” I got to my car and pressed the button for the boot to open.
