Something Unexpected by Vi Keeland
CHAPTER 34
Beck
“I ALSO DON’T like California. It’s too sunny. It’s like a person who smiles all the time. You can’t trust someone like that.”
Two days later, I’d decided to change my approach. Nora still hadn’t woken up. They’d taken the breathing tube out and cut all the sedatives, but she just continued to lie lifeless. It was three in the morning, and I’d climbed into bed beside her and started to tell her all the ways I disagreed with her. Telling her how much I loved her didn’t work. Begging didn’t work. So I’d resorted to trying to wake her by pissing her off.
“And seventy-eight-year-old women shouldn’t be wingsuit diving.” I looked over at the monitor, hoping for I don’t know what—a blip, a stutter…something. But nothing changed. “And the Yankees are the best team in baseball. Forty pennants and counting. The only thing your Dodgers are good for is that sexy little T-shirt you wear to bed.”
I went on for at least an hour, listing things I knew would infuriate her. No change. So when I yawned, I let my eyes take a break.
I had no idea how long I’d been conked out when I woke to someone whispering.
“Candy fax,” the voice said.
My eyes opened and nearly bulged from my head to find Nora looking at me.
“Holy shit. You’re awake.”
“Candy fax,” she again whispered. “Do sider.” She swallowed and touched her throat. “Dry.”
“Of course. You’ve had a tube down your throat for almost a week. Holy shit. Am I dreaming right now, or are you really awake?”
The hand at her throat crooked a finger, so I leaned closer.
“Sandy,” she whispered in my ear.
I pulled back to look at her. “Oh sandy, not candy. Do you mean your throat feels sandy?”
She shook her head and again crooked that finger. So I leaned again.
“Koufax.”
My forehead wrinkled. “Sandy Koufax? The old Dodgers player?”
She nodded and whispered again. “Jackie Robinson. Duke Snider.”
My jaw hung open. She was listing the greatest players from the LA Dodgers to counter my comments about the Yankees being the best team in history. She’d heard me.
She crooked her finger and whispered in my ear again.
“Wingsuit diving is safer than walking down the street in Manhattan at night.”
I started to cry like a baby. “You’re awake. You’re really awake.”
She smiled. “I’m not a coward.”
“No, sweetheart. You are definitely not. You’re the bravest woman in the world. But how do you feel? Are you in pain?”
“Like an elephant sat on my chest.”
“I think that’s probably normal, but let me get the doctor.” I turned to roll off the bed, but Nora grabbed my shirt.
“Five minutes.”
“You want me to wait five minutes to get the doctor?”
She nodded.
I rolled to my side, facing her, eyes wide. “I can’t believe you’re awake. You made it through a freaking heart transplant.”
Nora frowned. “A lot can go wrong.”
“A lot can go wrong any day of the week. That’s life. It’s filled with chances and ups and downs.”
“Even if I get through the rest of this, I’m going to die young, Beck.”
I cupped her cheeks. “I’ll take every day we can get. We’ll make each one about quality, not quantity. I’d rather be happy for a little while with you than miserable for a lifetime without.”
Tears streamed down her face. “That’s what my dad said about my mother. I love you, Beck. I’m sorry I never said it back, but I’ve loved you since almost the beginning.”
“I knew even without you saying it, sweetheart.” I smiled. “But hearing it is pretty damn nice.” I cupped my ear and leaned close. “Maybe you should say it again.”
“I love you, Beck. I love you, I love you, I love you.”
“It’s definitely better hearing it.”
“I’m sorry I hurt you. I really am.”
“I don’t care about that. But I wish you would’ve told me about your decision to go on the list and have the surgery. I would’ve been here the entire time.”
“I know you would’ve. That’s why I didn’t tell you. I didn’t want to get your hopes up and hurt you all over again if I didn’t make it through.”
“We’re going to talk about this when you get better. If you expect me to accept your decisions, you need to accept my decision to be with you through thick and thin.”
She smiled sadly. “My dad said that, too.”
“William is a smart man.”
She glanced around the room. “Is he here?”
“He left about midnight to sleep a little. He’ll probably be back soon. We started taking shifts. But I should call him. He’d want me to wake him up so he can get back here.”
“Okay.”
“I should probably get the nurse now, too,” I said. “One more thing though, what made you change your mind? To go on the transplant list?”
“Louise.”
“Something she said?”
Nora shook her head. “Something she did. About ten minutes after Jake called to tell me Louise had passed, a doctor called from UNOS. Louise tried to leave me her heart.”
My brows drew together. “What do you mean?”
“Apparently she went to a cardiologist to discuss the possibility of a directed donation of her heart. She had cancer, so it’s not the ideal organ for a transplant, but she registered with UNOS as a donor, just in case we might be a match.”
“Were you?”
Nora shook her head. “No. But the fact that Louise wanted to give me her heart really hit me. After I got back from New York, a letter came, too. She must’ve known the end was near, because she wrote it a few days before she died and had one of her friends mail it to me after she passed. Your grandmother literally and figuratively gave me her heart. That day, I called my doctor and went on the list.”
“Holy shit.”
Nora nodded. “I know. It’s a lot to absorb.”
“No, it’s not that. I meant the candy striper.”
“What candy striper?”
I sat up and reached for the portable food tray, which had become our makeshift nightstand. I picked up the little cherub pin the woman had left a few days ago. The tiny angel held a heart out in front of her. “A volunteer came by. I was really nervous that morning because it was the first time I was going to leave the hospital since I’d gotten here. But I knew if I didn’t take a turn to rest, neither would your dad, and he needed some sleep. The volunteer left this pin for you and said we could never have too many angels watching over us. On the back is the prayer of Saint Louise. I had no idea Saint Louise was the patron saint of sick people. It gave me the comfort I needed to leave for a few hours. But this little angel is literally holding her heart out to you.”
Nora held her hand over her mouth. “Louise gave me her heart when we met, and in the end, she tried to leave it behind for me. That’s her. That’s our Louise.”
“Wow.” I raked a hand through my hair. “If that’s not a message from beyond, I don’t know what is.”
***
Seven weeks later, Nora and I were headed to the doctor for another checkup. This was the big one—the resume all regular activities appointment. And there was definitely one activity I was looking forward to more than others.
Over the last couple of months, I’d spent three days one week and four days the next out in California, going home only on the days I had Maddie. Nora’s doctor wanted her to stay close until she got the all clear, and the big day might be today. I walked Nora to the passenger side of the car and opened the door for her, then jogged around to the driver’s side. As soon as I climbed in, I pushed the button to put the top down. A few days after Nora was released, I’d traded in my shitty rental for a convertible. She needed to rest a lot, but we both went stir crazy cooped up in the house, so we’d started to take long drives, and keeping the top down made us feel alive and free.
I slipped my sunglasses on, and Nora elbowed me.
“Someone is getting used to the sunshine every day,” she chided.
“It’s not as bad as I thought out here, but I like my city a little less cheery, more cynical.”
“Like your personality.” Nora chuckled.
Her doctor’s office was at Cedars-Sinai, so I dropped Nora at the main entrance and went to park the car. The lot was packed, and it took a while. By the time I got upstairs, she was already walking toward the door that led to the exam rooms. I jogged to catch up.
“There you are,” she said. “Thought maybe you ditched me.”
“Nah. I don’t miss these. My favorite part of the appointments is watching you change into the gown.”
She smiled. “Perv.”
I leaned close. “You have no damn idea. You should be a little scared if the doctor clears you for sex today. I have a lot of pent-up perverted things I can’t wait to do to you.”
A nurse walked by, so Nora shushed me. “Keep it down.”
“That’s what you’ll be saying later, too. Because it isn’t going down for a long time once I get you underneath me.” I smirked.
In the examination room, a nurse hooked Nora up to a bunch of leads and did a quick EKG. Then her surgeon, Dr. Meachum, came in and did a sonogram of her heart, followed by a short exam. He spent longer than usual with his stethoscope on her chest, which had me feeling a little panicky. When he was done, he wrapped it around his neck.
“Everything sounds perfect. EKG is clean, sonogram shows no swelling or post-op abnormalities.”
I let out an audible breath, and they both looked over to me.
“Sorry.” I held up my hand. “I guess I was a little anxious.”
He smiled and returned his attention to Nora, picking up her chart. “So, what are we, at seven weeks now?”
“Since release,” I corrected. “Eight-and-a-half post-op.”
Dr. Meachum smiled again. “Right. Okay, well, I looked at the reading from the heart monitor you wore last week. You did some walking and light exercise during that time, correct?”
Nora nodded. “I did.”
“Great. Everything looked perfect there, too.”
Nora liked to pretend I was the only one nervous at these visits, but I saw her shoulders relax. “So back to all normal activity?” she asked.
Dr. Meachum nodded. “I don’t see why not.”
They talked for a few more minutes, and then he asked if she had any questions. Nora shook her head no, but I raised my hand.
“Could I ask a few?”
“Of course.” Dr. Meachum closed his file and set it aside.
“So, normal activity, that includes sex, right?”
He smiled. “It does.”
“I don’t mean to be graphic or anything, but I want to make sure Nora is safe.”
“Oh Jesus,” Nora said.
“There’s no inappropriate question when it comes to a patient’s safety. What’s on your mind?”
“I was wondering if sex should be limited to the missionary position—you know, with Nora on the bottom and not exerting too much energy?”
“Nope. We’ve already tested out light activity, so it’s safe to do whatever you might fancy. A little workout during sex is absolutely fine.”
“What about boobs? Should I keep away from the chest area?”
Dr. Meachum smiled. “As long as Nora’s not feeling any discomfort on her ribs or from her scar, you can visit whatever areas you like.”
I smiled. “I really like them all.”
“Beck!”
The doctor laughed. “It’s fine. It’s been a long eight weeks. I get it.”
“Eight and a half,” I noted.
“You two enjoy yourselves. A heart transplant is a second chance at living. Take advantage of every moment.”
After the doctor walked out, I turned the lock on the door behind him. Nora looked up when she heard the clank.
“Oh no…” She held her hand out. “Don’t even think about it, Cross. We are not doing it here.”
I wrapped my hand around the back of her neck. “I just wanted a kiss, to celebrate the good news. But I like the way you’re thinking, dirty girl.” I crushed my lips to hers, forgetting where we were for a minute. It wasn’t easy to control myself. But I pulled away before she did. I wiped Nora’s bottom lip with my thumb and nodded toward the door. “Let’s get out of here, so I can kiss you other places.”
Nora’s eyes grew hooded. She bit her bottom lip. “Would it be weird to get a hotel room half an hour from my house? My dad will be home soon.”
I reached into my pocket for my cell and scanned through emails until I found what I was searching for. I handed my phone to Nora.
Her forehead creased, then smoothed when she read the message. “You already made a reservation?”
“Yep. A little place on the beach about a half hour from here. I figured we could have an argument on the way over as foreplay.” I winked.
