Where the Dogwoods Bloom by Myra Johnson

Author:Myra Johnson
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Barbour Publishing, Inc.
Published: 2013-08-29T00:00:00+00:00

Eleven

At least with the walker, Jilly didn’t have the problem of sore ribs from the crutches, but even though she’d tried to keep up a modified workout routine, bearing weight with her arms grew tiring after a while. As she contemplated another trek from her room to the front desk, the wheelchair looked mighty tempting.

Nope, not ready to settle for invalid status. She gritted her teeth and reached for the walker.

Harvey met her in the hallway. He’d taken to sleeping in his own bed the past couple of nights, now that Alice had been moved to the rehab hospital. “’Mornin’, sleepyhead. On your way to breakfast?”

“Already ate. Just came back to brush my teeth.” Jilly inched the walker forward and slid-hopped her right foot along behind it. She stopped long enough to press one finger under her nose before a sneeze erupted, then dug a tissue from the pocket of her shorts.

“You taking anything for those allergies?”

“My prescription meds usually help a lot, but I got distracted when I ordered my refill and forgot to give this address. I’m trying to stretch out my doses until my landlady forwards the package.” She continued down the hall, and Harvey edged around her to open the door into the lobby.

“I’m heading into town to sit with Alice awhile,” he said. “Want to come along?”

Jilly eyed the overflowing in-box on the front counter. “I’d love to, but it’s Wednesday already. I should catch up on more paperwork before things get busy with Cam’s next retreat.”

“Aw, this looks like mostly junk mail.” Harvey riffled through the stack and tossed several items into the recycle bin beneath the counter. “Besides, you’ve been working way too hard for somebody who’s just had surgery.”

“I’d rather work than sit around twiddling my thumbs.” Jilly eased onto the barstool behind the counter and set her cast on the footrest. She didn’t add that keeping busy kept her mind off other things. Like the end of her career. Like losing ten years with the two people who loved her most. Like falling for a guy who probably still thought of her as a selfish, spoiled kid.

After all, Cam hadn’t so much as called since he left the inn Monday afternoon.

She sneezed and grabbed a tissue from the box next to the phone. “You go on, Harvey. Give Alice a big hug for me. I promise I’ll visit her in a few days.”

“All right, have it your way. But don’t feel like you have to do it all. I’ll be back this afternoon, and I’ll be in and out all weekend, too.”

When the back door closed behind Harvey, Jilly let the breath whoosh from her lungs. She’d tried, really tried to stay upbeat for his sake. He carried too much blame already for the lost years, and now for her fall and new injuries. She couldn’t let him see the panic lurking just beneath the surface, the stark dread of an empty, meaningless future.

She knotted a fist and hammered the countertop. There must be some way to get back to tennis.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.