The Spark by Vi Keeland
CHAPTER 19
Autumn
“It’s mud. There’s a twenty-four-hour bodega across the street that makes the best dulce de leche coffee in the state.”
“Jesus.” My hand covered my heart as I turned around. Donovan leaned casually against the visiting room doorway. “You scared the crap out of me. I didn’t hear you come in.”
He flashed that sexy grin of his. “It’s almost eleven thirty. Why are you still here?”
I sighed. “Honestly, I lost track of time until I just came out here to grab a cup of coffee. Bud is so entertaining. He really knows how to tell a story.”
Donovan shook his head. “I’m guessing some of those stories made me out to be a little shit.”
I smiled. “Did you really get arrested for having sex in a police car?”
Donovan dropped his head. “I wasn’t having sex. We were thirteen and making out. That’s what we did back in the day for privacy. We’d find a car left open and fool around in the backseat for a little while. It was sort of harmless, usually. In my defense, the cop car was unmarked and parked in an empty parking lot. And the cop who caught us turned out to be the uncle of the boy the girl I was making out with was going out with.” He held up his hands. “I also didn’t know she had a boyfriend.”
I laughed. “The story was much more animated when Bud told it.”
“I’m sure it was.”
“They just took Bud for a scan. He had a little blood in his urine tonight. The nurse said that happens after a trauma, but they want to make sure there isn’t a tear they missed the first time.”
“Yeah. I checked in with the nurses’ station a few minutes ago. They said it will be an hour or so before he’s back in his room. I’m going to stick around. You want me to walk you to your car?”
“If you don’t mind, I’d like to wait and make sure everything with his scan turns out okay.”
Donovan smiled and tilted his head toward the hallway. “You want to go grab a real cup of coffee, then?”
“Sure. But I’ll be the judge of whether it’s the best coffee in the state or not. I’m a coffee snob, even though I really can’t afford to be.”
We walked across the street to a small store that I probably would have passed right by on the way to a Starbucks and not given it a second thought. But Donovan was right; the coffee was incredible.
“I can’t believe this big cup was only a dollar fifty. This would be six bucks at Starbucks and not half as delicious.”
Donovan sipped his own cup. “Told you it was good. It’s a different world here than in Manhattan. Most people in Soho or Chelsea wouldn’t step one foot into that place to give a mom-and-pop shop a shot because they don’t have fancy signage and leather couches.”
I bit my bottom lip. “I know, because I am one of those people. Or at least I was. This stuff might’ve changed my mind though.”
“Good. You miss out on a lot in life if you only judge a book by its cover.”
My eyes caught with Donovan’s as he opened the front door of the hospital for me. “That’s a good reminder.”
Inside the elevator, I pressed number seven to go back up to Bud’s floor.
“He’s going to be a little while still. It’s nice out. You up for getting some fresh air?”
“Yeah, sure.”
Donovan lifted his chin to the elevator panel. “Hit ten, then.”
My forehead wrinkled. “Ten for fresh air?”
He winked. “It’s my secret spot.”
On the tenth floor, I followed Donovan down a bunch of mostly empty corridors until we came to a set of double doors with a red sign that read Employees Only.
Donovan looked around before he pushed them open. “After you.”
“Umm…are we going to get in trouble for going in here?”
He smirked. “Not if we don’t get caught.”
I shook my head. “Is that what you said to the girl who climbed into the back of the unmarked cop car?”
Donovan grinned. “Come on, live a little. I promise you free legal counsel if you get arrested.”
“Uhhh… Can you do that from the cell next to me?”
We laughed, but I walked through the door. After another series of turns, we came to a steel door that led to a set of concrete steps. At the top, Donovan opened yet another door. Turned out that led to the roof.
“How the heck do you know about this?”
Donovan walked over to a bench and dusted it off for us before I sat. “I can pretty much tell you the layout to every hospital in the five boroughs.”
“Why?”
He sipped his coffee as he sat down next to me. “My mom spent a lot of time in them when I was a kid. Sometimes a John would rough her up instead of paying; other times she’d overdose. I didn’t like to leave her alone, but they don’t let an unattended kid stay, so I’d find a place to hang out in the building overnight. Often it was the roof.”
“And no one ever noticed you?”
“Sometimes a doctor or nurse would say something if they found me up here alone. But they come up here to hide and smoke cigarettes. So if they said anything, I’d ask them if their chief and patients knew they smoked. That usually made them leave me alone. A few times they called security and had them chase me out.”
I laughed. “Oh my God. That’s insane.”
Donovan shrugged. “That’s life.”
“Believe it or not, I actually got escorted out of a hospital once.”
He raised one brow. “This I gotta hear.”
I felt sort of proud of my badassery. “Well, I guess I was about sixteen at the time. I lost my mom at twelve to cancer, and I’d grown close to my dad. One night I was staying over at my friend’s house when I got a call that my dad had had a heart attack. I went to the hospital and asked in the emergency room where I could find him. They said they were still working on him, but to have a seat and they’d let me know when I could see him. A woman in the waiting room named Candy walked over and introduced herself as my dad’s fiancée. My dad had just gotten divorced a few months earlier, and I’d had no idea he was even dating anyone. So I was confused. But honestly, my father lost his mind after my mom died, so I didn’t put it past him to get engaged again. A little while later, the doctor came out and spoke to us. He said my dad was stable but needed some surgery and asked if he’d been exerting himself when he started to get chest pain. Candy then proceeded to describe, in detail, how my father was a bad boy and had just finished doing fifty pushups after being denied orgasm during sex as part of his punishment.”
“Shit.” Donovan chuckled. “Did you smack her or something?”
“No. I was kind of shell shocked after hearing that. I smacked her after the doctor walked away because she said she didn’t like her engagement ring—it was too small. I looked down and saw she had my grandmother’s ring on her finger. She acted like I’d stabbed her, making this dramatic scene, so security escorted me out.”
“I didn’t think you had it in you, Red.” He smiled. “There’s a badass hiding in there after all.”
I bumped my shoulder to his. “Well, I am up here illegally on a roof, you know.”
“That’s true.”
A little breeze blew, and Donovan stood to take off his suit jacket. He offered to wrap it around my shoulders.
“No, that’s okay. I’m fine.”
“I’m warm. Plus, if you don’t take it, I’m going to make us go inside, and I like it out here with you.”
Our eyes met. I really liked it out here with him, too. Even though we were outside in the middle of Brooklyn, it felt like our own secret place. So I accepted the jacket. “Thank you.”
He sat back down. “So is that why you and your dad don’t get along that well? You don’t like your stepmother?”
“Oh, Candy isn’t my stepmother anymore. She was three or four wives ago. I’ve honestly lost track.”
“Three or four wives ago? Plus he was married to your mom, and you said he had just gotten divorced before he got together with Candy the dom. So that’s, what, six or seven marriages?”
“Yep. I actually think it’s seven, but he’s getting married again in a few weeks, so that would make eight.”
“Why does he keep doing it?”
I shook my head. “I don’t know. We don’t talk much anymore.”
“Because of the string of Candys he married?”
“No. There was a time in my life that I really needed him to be there for me, and he wasn’t.”
Donovan looked into my eyes. “I’m sorry.”
“Thanks. I have mixed feelings about distancing myself from him. I know from the little bit I just told you it probably doesn’t sound that way, but there was a time he was a great dad and husband. He and my mother were high school sweethearts and really loved each other. When she got sick, it broke both their spirits. I remember in my mom’s last days, she was more worried about how my dad would carry on after she was gone than how I would. She made me promise I’d always watch over him for her. So part of me feels guilty that I don’t anymore.”
“I’m sure you have your reasons.” He paused and made sure I was looking at him again. “And I can sit here all night if you want to talk about them.”
That made my heart squeeze, yet I wasn’t ready to go there. “Thanks. But we should probably go see if Bud’s back.”
Donovan nodded, a bit of disappointment lurking behind his eyes. “Sure. Let’s do that.”
Bud was just being wheeled back into his room when Donovan and I returned. He looked between us and frowned. “Am I dying and no one’s telling me?”
Donovan shoved his hand into his pockets. “You’re too stubborn to kick the bucket, old man.”
“Damn straight.” Bud adjusted his covers. “How was service tonight? Did everyone get fed who needed to get fed?”
“They did. Dario and Ray helped me, so it was more like dinner and a comedy show, but no one is hungry right now.”
Bud nodded. “Good. Thank you.”
“Not a problem.”
Bud looked at me. “And you should be home sleeping, little lady.”
I smiled. “I just wanted to make sure everything came out okay with your scan.”
As if on cue, a doctor walked in. “Mr. Yankowski?”
“Name’s Bud. Frances Yankowski is only what my mother put down on the birth certificate to ensure I’d learn how to handle myself in the schoolyard.”
The doctor smiled. “Alright, Bud it is. I just took a look at your scan. Perhaps your company can wait outside while we talk about the results?”
Bud waved at me. “It’s fine. They’re family.”
The doctor explained that while the kidney seemed to be just bruised, the blood in Bud’s urine could be a sign of damage, and they needed to continue to monitor his urine and repeat the scan in twenty-four hours.
Bud shook his head. “I feel fine. I’m going home tomorrow morning. I’ll come back if it gets worse.”
“I’d prefer if you would give us two nights.”
“And I’d prefer to look like him.” He pointed at Donovan. “Yet I got stuck with this mug.”
Donovan spoke to the doctor. “You have any rules against patients being tied to the bed?”
The doctor smiled. “I’m afraid we do, son.”
Donovan raked a hand through his hair. “I’ll cover dinner again tomorrow. Dario will take care of your route during the day. We already discussed it.”
Bud folded his arms across his chest. “No fast-food crap. These people need a balanced meal.”
“I have to be in court all day tomorrow. Will hamburgers and hot dogs do? I can pick up a grill on my way over after work.”
“With what side dish?”
Donovan folded his arms across his chest, mimicking Bud’s usual stance. “Ketchup. It was once a tomato.”
It looked like a standoff was about to ensue, so I interjected. “I make a delicious broccoli salad. It goes great with burgers.”
Bud’s face softened. “Thank you, sweetheart.”
“So we have a deal?” Donovan asked.
“Fine,” Bud grumbled. “But get whole wheat buns. All that processed flour isn’t healthy.”
Donovan mumbled under his breath. “Neither is fighting off carjackers.”
The doctor had been watching the negotiation like a tennis match. His brows rose. “So we have a deal, then? Mr. Yankow—I mean, Bud—is staying for at least another night or two?”
Bud held up a finger. “Not at least another night. One more night. Two, max.”
The doctor smiled. “I’ll take it. Let’s start there.”
After the doctor left, Donovan and I stayed a few more minutes before leaving Bud to get some rest. Donovan said he’d be back to check in on him before court, and I left Bud my phone number just in case he needed anything during the day tomorrow. After, Donovan walked me to my car.
He looked up at the streetlight I’d parked under. “Very good.”
“Why, thank you.”
“You don’t really have to make broccoli salad. I can pick up some store-bought sides when I grab the burgers.”
“Don’t be silly. I told Bud I’d do it, and I want to.”
Donovan smiled and nodded. “Okay, then. I can pick the salad up from you after I hit the supermarket to get the burgers after court.”
My brows furrowed. “What time do you get out of court?”
“Four thirty, unless we go late.”
“Why don’t I pick up the burgers when I get the stuff for the broccoli salad? I’m going to be at the store anyway.”
“You sure you don’t mind? That would actually be helpful because I also need to go pick up a grill to cook on since they stole all of his equipment.”
“Of course not. I’m happy to help.”
“Alright, then. Thanks.”
“I’d like to help serve dinner, too.”
“You sure?”
“Positive.”
“Okay, then, I’ll pick you up after I pick up the grill and other stuff I need, and we can ride over to serve dinner together. You’re going to have a lot of stuff to carry to and from the car.”
“That sounds like a plan.”
“Oh, I almost forgot.” Donovan dug into the inside pocket of his suit jacket and pulled out his wallet. “Take this credit card to pay for everything.”
I waved him off. “No need. I got it.”
“You’re not paying for all that food, Autumn.”
“You’re right. I’m not. I have a black card of my father’s that sits in my wallet collecting dust. He always tells me to use it for anything important to me, and this is.” I smiled. “I think I’ll buy top-of-the-line stuff—maybe Kobe beef burgers.”
Donovan laughed as I opened my car door. He held onto the top as I climbed inside.
“Goodnight, Donovan.” I smiled.
“Goodnight, Red. Thanks for everything.” He paused a moment. “We work well together, don’t we?”
I smiled. “We do.”
He winked. “Be careful driving home.”
