Forever This Time by McGinnis Maggie

Author:McGinnis, Maggie [McGinnis, Maggie]
Language: eng
Format: mobi, epub
ISBN: 9781466877870
Publisher: St. Martin's Press
Published: 0101-01-01T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter 23

“You need a grape Popsicle?” Ben’s quiet voice broke into Josie’s thoughts as he settled beside her in the pine needles next to the river that same morning. She’d been sitting there for an hour waiting for the magic of the burbling water to take over and calm her jumbled brain. Between kissing Ethan last night and her dad’s state this morning, though, it wasn’t working.

“I think I need a whole box of ’em, Ben.”

“How’s your dad?”

“He’s doing okay. Mom and I met with his physical therapist this morning. Looks like they might move him to rehab in the next couple of days.”

“Well, that’s good news.”

Josie shrugged. “I guess. It’s hard to tell. It’s not like he’s made much progress besides waking up. Not that that isn’t huge, I mean. But wow, Ben. Wow. She spent a lot of time talking about how involved the family should be in his care, and how we’re looking at months and months of rehab just to get him to a functional state. And the whole time, I just sat there feeling guilty that I need to get back to Boston in a couple of weeks.”

“Maybe you will, maybe you won’t.” He sighed. “I went to visit him last night.”

“You did? Did he recognize you?”

“No.” Ben shook his head sadly. “I don’t think so, anyway. Hard to tell yet.” He tossed a twig into the water and watched it drift downstream.

“I don’t know, Ben. My whole life is in Boston … and I like it that way.” Don’t I? “I took two weeks off, but I can’t saddle my partner with a whole clinic for any longer than that.”

She threw a twig in to chase his. “I’m worried about Mom. It sounds weird to say after … everything. But I am.”

“Of course you are.”

“This would be tough for someone who hadn’t had her history.”

“Yup.”

“So what’s she going to do when things get too hard to handle? That’s what gives me nightmares. All the progress she’s made could go up in one little slug of one little bottle.”

“All true.”

Josie looked up from the water. “You’re not especially helping here.”

“Just listening.”

“I know. I appreciate it.” She flung another twig, more angrily than she meant to. “Oh Ben. What am I going to do?”

He paused, studying her. “I get the feeling your dad’s not the only thing on your mind.”

“Ha.” You don’t know the half of it, buddy.

“Not so easy popping back into town, eh?”

She sighed. “I feel like I’ve been gone way longer than ten years.”

“Lot of changes.” He picked up a batch of pine needles and rolled them between his hands. “It’s not the same place you left.”

“I know. I can see that. But a lot hasn’t changed. I think that’s the hard part.”

“Yup. S’true.”

Josie watched a leaf spin in the lazy water as it headed over the shallow pebbles. “I was so sure I was so right about everything when I left.”

“Part of being young, honey. We always know everything when we’re eighteen.”

“I just don’t know what to think about anything anymore.

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