My eyes widen. “Someone threw a bedpan at you?”
Wayne lets out a breathy, humorless chuckle. “You don’t even want to know. Ready?”
Deep breaths. In. Out. I can do this. “Yeah.”
And just as Luke said, I fight through the pain. I take one step, then another.
“Is this normal?” I ask Wayne after he helps me lie back in bed. “I feel like I failed or something.”
He flashes me a reassuring smile. “Believe me, you did great. Some people don’t even make it three steps on their first day using crutches.”
“You’re not saying that to make me feel better about myself, are you?”
He laughs and shakes his head. “Nah. If you continue to have the same progress, you’ll be up and walking around in no time.” He scribbles something in my chart, then lifts his head to look at me. “I’ll see you tomorrow. Need me to ask the nurse to give you something for the pain?”
“Yes, please.”
After he leaves, the nurse walks in and administers the dose of morphine, then heads out.
I must have fallen asleep because the next minute, a knock on the door jolts me awake.
The last person I expect to see in the world pokes his head in. “Oh, hey.” He hesitates, before asking, “Um . . . you busy?”
I blink twice, then snap out of my shock when the door opens wider to reveal a woman with similar features as Levi pushing his wheelchair. His right leg is in a cast that reaches just below the knee, elevated by a leg rest. “Yeah, kind of,” I reply to his question. “I’m about to head out for a run.”
His shoulders seem to relax, and he chuckles abruptly. “That’s a good one.”
I try to stifle a yawn, still tired from my session. Levi shoots me a curious look. “Sorry. I just had my first PT session.”
“Yeah? How’d it go?”
“Brutal.”
He nods. “Yeah. That shit is no joke. I almost wept during my first session.”
“You almost wept? Dude, I literally cried.”
He laughs. The woman wheels him to a stop next to the bed as Levi says, “This is my mom. Mom, this is Sol.” I expect his tone to be resentful and his features angry. Instead, he sits with his hands loosely fisted on his lap, body relaxed.
His mom rounds the wheelchair, hand extended. “It’s so great to meet you, Sol. I’m Sara Keenan.” She’s smiling big as she takes my hand in greeting. My gaze darts to Levi, wondering what the heck he said to her. Does she know I’m the asshole who kissed her son’s girlfriend?
Levi’s mouth tightens as if he can read my mind, then stares down at his lap, his fingers clenching tight.
“It’s, um, nice to meet you too, Mrs. Keenan.”
She lets go of my hand and clasps hers together. “How are you feeling?” Her gaze darts to my right leg, then back up at me.
“Good.” I cough and amend, “I’m getting there.”
“Oh, thank you, Lord,” she exclaims, genuine relief filling her face. “My son told me what happened.” She pauses, cutting a look from Levi to me, and I have a feeling she knows exactly what happened. “I didn’t come here to reprimand you, if that’s what you’re thinking. I came here to thank you for saving my son.” Her voice breaks on the last three words, and her eyes fill with tears. “What you did was not only brave but selfless as well.”
Brave and selfless are not what I feel as I watch Levi fidget in his wheelchair. More like a selfish jerk. I hate that everyone’s making a big deal out of it.
“It was nothing,” I rush to say.
Mrs. Keenan reaches for my good shoulder and gives it a soft squeeze. “It was everything.” Lifting her hand to wipe her wet cheeks, she mutters with an embarrassed laugh. “Okay. I’m going to leave you two to talk.”
“Thank you for, um, stopping by.” I shift on the bed awkwardly. Shit. I’m not ready for a face-to-face talk with Levi. And from the way he keeps side-eyeing me, I doubt he’s ready either, but somehow, he’s here. In my room.
After his mother leaves, Levi clears his throat. “Sorry for barging in on you like that. I’ve been cleared by the doctor to travel, so we’re driving home, and I didn’t want to leave without talking to you.”
“It’s fine. When are you leaving?”
“This afternoon.”
“That’s awesome.” And I mean it. At least one of us is leaving this place.
He nods distractedly as he puts his hands on the wheels and rolls closer. “So why did you do it?”
His question catches me off guard. “Do what?”
He sighs, his shoulders slumping down. “You’re going to make me say it?”
I finally get what he’s asking and shake my head. “We don’t need to do this, man.”
“We do. I do. You saved my life. And I need to know. We’re not friends, obviously, which makes me curious. I mean, you could have just let that truck run me down.”
I pinch the nape of my neck to loosen the muscles there. “Come on, man. Let’s not so—”
“Jesus Christ. Just shut up and listen to what I have to say,” he says in frustration. I groan inwardly, and he must see the horrified look on my face because his mouth pulls into a smirk. “Well, I would if it wasn’t for this damn cast. Not even joking—”
“It would have destroyed her,” I blurt out. I take a deep breath to calm my racing pulse. “Grace . . . If something had happened to you, it would have destroyed her.”
Levi chuckles darkly and looks away. “Of course.”
I frown. “What does that mean?”
He side-eyes me. “You’d risk your life for her?”
I shrug. “Wouldn’t you do the same? If this person is your world, your everything, wouldn’t you risk your life for them?”
He huffs, tossing me a glare. After several seconds, he seems to relent. “I guess.” He lets out an audible breath. “I just came here to thank you for saving my life. I should have been more careful. So, thank you.”
What am I supposed to say? It’s a pleasure? I’ve never saved anyone’s life before. Besides, I did it for selfish reasons.
I swallow hard. “You would have done the same, I think.”
He scratches the back of his head. “Probably, I guess.”
I see the uncertainty in his eyes. “Seriously, you’d let me get run over by the truck?”
“I don’t know, okay? That’s an in-the-moment kind of decision.”
I sigh. I know he’s right, but it stings, nevertheless. “What Grace and I did was wrong. It wasn’t fair to you. I’m so sorry.”
Yes, Grace was mine even before she met him. But one thing is clear—I shouldn’t have kissed her.
His eyes flash with sudden anger. I can tell he wants to say something, but instead of speaking, he shakes his head and looks away.
I know that look. And I know what caused it, but from the way he’s acting, I know he won’t say it. He thinks he owes me his life, but I want him to lash out and not hold back.
“You wouldn’t have been on the street in the first place if it wasn’t for . . . ” I trail off. His features tighten when he catches my drift. “I shouldn’t have kissed Grace.”