I’m startled awake by the sound of sirens blaring. Aiden stirs beside me but doesn’t wake up. We turned to each other several times throughout the night. He made love to me more times than I can count. My muscles ache, and I know he must be exhausted because I’m spent. I curl up to his side and close my eyes, only to be woken up a few seconds later by a loud bang.
Bang. Bang. Bang.
Rubbing my eyes, I sit up and shake Aiden. “Aiden, something’s going on.”
“Huh?” It takes him a few seconds to come to, but when we hear another bang followed by a crash, he jolts out of bed.
My phone is lying on the nightstand, and I grab it. It’s 5:30 in the morning. Who in their right mind would be making this much noise at this time?
“Stay here.”
I wrap the sheet around my naked body, swing my legs over the edge of the bed, and watch Aiden yank on a pair of jeans. Next thing I know, he’s rushing back into the room, yelling my name.
“Get dressed. It’s Edna,” he says, pulling a shirt over his head. “There’s an ambulance here and paramedics. Hurry.”
Shit. I don’t have any clothes here, so I grab a t-shirt and a pair of sweatpants from Aiden’s drawer and follow him out of the apartment.
Edna’s apartment door is wide open, and we rush to it, only to be shoved back. “Sir, I’m going to need you to step back so they can work on her.”
“Work on her?” I ask, straining my neck to look past the guy. “What do you mean, work on her?”
“Are you family?” the man asks.
“No. She doesn’t have any family. We’re her neighbors,” Aiden says.
“And I’m her emergency contact. My name is Lizzie. Can you please tell us what’s going on?”
The man doesn’t have time to answer because a stretcher carrying Edna barrels out of the apartment. The paramedics shout orders to each other as they whizz by, only slowing long enough for one of them to yell out, “We’re taking her to Bourbon Regional.”
Aiden grabs my hand. “Let’s go.”
I look at my phone for the hundredth time. “Why hasn’t anyone come to talk to us yet?”
Aiden doesn’t answer the question I’ve asked over a dozen times. Instead, he snags my hand and pulls me onto his lap. “I’m sure they’ll come talk to us as soon as they have information.”
Sagging against him, I cry. Everything hurts. My body from these damn chairs, or maybe from making love to Aiden all night, and my heart. My heart really hurts. I put a fist over the offending organ to try and lessen the ache. It doesn’t help.
“I hate that she’s alone.”
Aiden’s arms tighten around me. “She’s not. She has us.”
“But we’re all she has, Aiden. There’s no one. Not a sibling or a kid. What happens if we ever decide to move?”
“We’ll worry about that when the time comes.”
“She has to be okay.”
“She’s too stubborn to be anything but.”
I laugh and kiss Aiden’s neck.
The minutes drag into an hour. I stand to stretch my legs, and Aiden does the same. We pace across the tiny space, and finally, a doctor in light blue scrubs walks into the room.
“Are you the family of Edna McCarthy?”
Aiden and I dart across the room. “We’re her neighbors. My name is Lizzie, I’m her emergency contact. She doesn’t have any family.”
The doctor nods and shakes both of our hands. “I’m Dr. Flannagan.”
“How is she, Doctor?” Aiden asks.
“Edna had a myocardial infarction.”
“A what?”
“Sorry.” Dr. Flannagan smiles softly. “Myocardial infarction is the fancy term for heart attack.”
“Is she going to be okay?” I ask.
He nods. “She’s resting now. We’re going to move her to the third floor and watch her for a couple of days. We want to run some more tests and get a cardiologist in here to evaluate her further.”
I sag against Aiden. “Can we see her?”
“Yes, but she probably won’t be awake for a while. We’ve given her some medicine to help her rest.”
“We understand,” Aiden says, taking my hand in his. “But we’d still like to sit with her if that’s okay. We want her to know she’s not alone.”
“Follow me.” Dr. Flannagan leads us down the sterile hall and stops outside of a wooden door. “She’s a strong woman. Let me know if you need anything.”
“Thank you, Doctor.”
“You’re welcome.” With a final nod of his head, Dr. Flannagan leaves.
“You ready?”
My heart beats so hard that I’m afraid it’s going to jump out of my chest. I hate hospitals. I hate the smell, the look, the cold colors. I hate it all. “Yes.”
Aiden pushes open the door, and there’s Edna, pale against the stark white sheets. Oxygen tubing is in her nose, and an IV in her hand is hooked up to some sort of drip. A monitor on the wall emits a low, steady beep as I walk forward and take Edna’s cold hand.
“Hey,” I whisper, dropping to a chair beside her bed.
Edna blinks up at me with sleepy eyes. “Hi,” she manages to say. Her voice is raspy and low. She squeezes my hand as though she needs my touch as much as I need hers.
“You gave us a scare,” I say, my voice breaking.
“Stop that. No crying.” Edna’s eyes drift shut, and when she opens them again, she looks at Aiden and holds out her hand. He walks across the room and sits beside her, his big, warm hand enveloping hers. “Are you officially out of the Friend Zone?”
Aiden and I look at each other and laugh. “Yes,” he says. “Thanks to you.”
“Pfft. I had nothing to do with it.” She cuts a frail hand through the air as her words morph into a cough. “My throat is dry.”
Aiden grabs the pink pitcher of water on her bedside table and pours her a small glass. Bringing it to Edna’s lips, he helps her take a sip.
“Not too much,” I warn.
She relaxes against her pillows when she’s done and sighs. “You look tired.”
“It’s your fault.” I laugh and brush another tear from my face. “How do you feel?”
“Like I had a heart attack.”
“Edna.”
“Too soon?” She laughs and blinks slowly.
“If you’re tired, sleep. Aiden and I will be here when you wake up.”
Edna considers that for a second and then shakes her head. “I can sleep when I’m dead. I’d rather talk to you. When does the next trivia game at the Senior Center start?”
“You just had a heart attack, you shouldn’t be worrying about a trivia game.”
“I’m thinking that since you two are a couple now, Aiden will have to join the women’s team.”
“No way.” Aiden laughs and shakes his head. “I can’t leave my brothers hanging.”
Edna laughs, and I stand up. “Can we please talk about something other than a stupid trivia game?”
“Like what, dear?”
“Like the fact that you just had a heart attack. Do you understand how serious that is? You could’ve died, Edna. Maybe we should be talking about what we’re going to do when you get out of here. You’ll need to change your diet to something more heart-healthy. No more salt or—”
“Lizzie.” Edna frowns. “I’m okay.”
“But you could’ve died,” I sob. Aiden releases Edna’s hand and walks around the bed to hug me.
“But I didn’t. I didn’t die, and no way in hell am I giving up salt. I love salt.”
Is she crazy? “You have to do something.”
“I am,” she says. I sniff and turn in Aiden’s arms to look at her. “I’m going to live the rest of my life the way I want to live it. I’m going to eat salt and chocolate and probably French fries because you know how much I love them, and I’m going to be as active as God will allow me to be, and you’re going to accept it.”
“Edna—”
“I love you, Lizzie. And I love Aiden. If I could’ve had a son, daughter, or grandchildren, I’d hope that they would be just like the two of you. I’m grateful that I’ve had you two to help take care of me the past couple of years. But let’s face it, I’m no spring chicken, and I’m going to die. Everyone does.”
“I know that. But I’m not ready for you to kick the bucket.”
Edna laughs. “There’s my girl. How about you sit back down here and tell me about how Aiden swept you off your feet.”
“It’s an epic love story that I’m sure you’re going to enjoy,” Aiden says, kissing Edna on the head. “And while Lizzie tells you about it, I’m going to call my parents and reschedule our dinner plans.”
“Don’t do that because of me,” Edna insists.
“It’s done. We’re not leaving you.”
“Ever,” I reiterate.
Aiden
“Sweetheart, why don’t we go home? You can get cleaned up, we can grab a bite to eat, and then you can come back up here,” I whisper so that I don’t wake Edna. It’s four o’clock in the afternoon. We’ve been here all day, and we’re both exhausted.
“I’m not leaving, Aiden.”
My cell rings for the hundredth time in my pocket.
Lizzie kisses my cheek. “Answer it.”
“Are you sure?”
“Positive. Go. And bring me back a Diet Coke.”
I pull my phone from my pocket and slip out the door. “Hello?”
“Aiden, it’s Ryan. I have some great news.”
“Now really isn’t a good time,” I say, dragging my hand through my hair.
“Is everything okay?”
“I’m at the hospital with my neighbor. She had a heart attack and—”
“I’ll be quick,” he says. “We want you to relocate.”
“Excuse me?”
“Don’t say no just yet. I know it’s a big step, but it’s something we’ve talked about before.”
“Years ago, when I first started designing for you.”
“And now the time for that conversation has come. We want you here permanently as head of the gaming division. It comes with a fat raise, a corner office, and we’ll pay for all of your moving expenses. Aiden, this is the chance of a lifetime.”
Holy shit. This is my dream. This is what I’ve always wanted. And it couldn’t have come at a worse time.
“Ryan, I—”
“Don’t say no. Finish up whatever you’re taking care of, then call me. In the meantime, I’ll pull together some final numbers. Tell me you’ll think about it.”
“I’ll think about it.”
There’s a pause, and then Ryan says, “This is a once in a lifetime chance, Aiden. Young men all over the world would kill for this opportunity.”
“I know.”
“Livewire is one of the top gaming companies in the world, and within the next few years, we’ll be seated at number one. We want you on our team when we get there.”
“Get me the numbers, and I’ll think about it.”
“Attaboy. We’ll talk soon.”
I end the call, shove my phone into my pocket, and laugh. I can’t believe this is happening. A top spot at Livewire and not just as a designer, but head of the gaming division. This is huge. Huger than huge. This is lifechanging.
“Hello, sweetheart.”
I spin around to find Mom and Dad walking down the hallway. “What are you guys doing here?”
“When you called to cancel and told us about your neighbor, we were worried. We wanted to check on you and see how things were going,” Mom says, stopping in front of me. “I also brought you and Lizzie food. I figured you probably haven’t eaten all day.”
“We haven’t.” I stare at my mom in awe. Is this what I’ve been missing out on all these years? “Thank you.”
She shrugs like it’s not a big deal, and squeaks when I wrap her in a giant hug.
“How’s your neighbor?” Dad asks. “You said her name is Edna?”
“She’s good. They’re running some more tests. Hopefully, she’ll be out of here soon.”
“And then what?” Mom asks.
“I don’t know. She doesn’t have family. She only has Lizzie and me.”
Mom squeezes my hand. “She’s lucky to have both of you.”
“Will you guys stay for a little while?” I ask, not ready for them to leave. Dad was right, I’ve never really needed my parents—at least that’s what I used to tell myself. I know now how untrue that was. I need them, and having them here feels right.
“Absolutely.”
I hear the soft click of a door and turn around to see Lizzie come out of Edna’s room.
“Mr. and Mrs. Wallace, what are you guys doing here?” She hugs my mom and then my dad before returning to my side.
Mom’s eyes bounce between us before settling on Lizzie. “We wanted to be here for Aiden. And for you. We brought you food,” she says, nodding to the bag of sandwiches in my hand. “It’s not much, but it should hold you over for a while, and it’s got to be better than the food here.”
“Thank you so much. I’m starving.” Lizzie takes the bag and motions for us to follow her into the waiting room. “Edna’s out like a light, so this is perfect timing. I’m sorry we had to cancel our dinner plans tonight.”
“Don’t even think twice about it,” Mom says, sitting beside Lizzie on the small plastic couch. “This is where you need to be.”
Lizzie and mom duck their heads, talking about who knows what, and Dad stands next to me. “You okay?”
“Yeah. Yes, I’m great. Better now that we know Edna is going to be okay. And things with Lizzie, they’re good.”
“And work?”
I sigh and nod for Dad to follow me out of the room. “They offered me a promotion.”
“To what?”
“Head of the gaming division. It comes with a fancy office and an even fancier salary.”
“Aiden.” Dad’s face lights up as he yanks me into his arms. “That’s wonderful, son. Congratulations.”
“It isn’t wonderful.”
Dad frowns. “What do you mean? Why not?”
“This is awful timing, Dad. They want me to relocate.”
“To California?”
I nod. “I just got Lizzie, and now I’m supposed to…what? Just pack up and leave? I can’t.”
“Take her with you.”
Take her with you.
Is it really that simple?
Would she consider moving across the country so I could chase my dream?
“I don’t think it’s that easy.”
“Son.” Dad rests his hand on my shoulder. “Life is as easy or as hard as you make it. But you only get one life.”
“What about Edna? We can’t leave her. Not now, at least.”
“Your mother and I will help however we can. But, Aiden, you can’t let an opportunity like this pass you by without at least considering it.”
“And what about Mom and me? We’re—"
“Going to be fine,” he finishes for me. “You and your mom still have issues to work through, but you’re going to be fine. She loves and supports you as much as I do.”
For the first time since hanging up with Ryan, I allow myself to feel the slightest bit of excitement. Maybe, just maybe, I can chase my dream and keep the girl.