Chapter 16

CHAPTER SIXTEEN

Ellie

The ER doctor pushes the curtain surrounding my mom's bed to the side before announcing, "The CT scan came back inconclusive. As such, I'd like to keep her overnight to rule out the possibility of stroke." I immediately start to panic. I never considered she might have had a stroke.

Lying on her makeshift bed, my mom tells me, "Go home. I'll be fine."

"I don't want to go home."

"Don't you have lessons today?" she asks.

Shaking my head, I tell her, "The rink is closed today and tomorrow to get ready for the press conference tomorrow."

My mom shifts her attention to the doctor. "You'll call my daughter if you have any concerns, won't you?"

"Of course," she says. "We're keeping you out of an abundance of precaution. We can also help you get around easier here." She smiles at me. "I promise your mom is in great hands and we'll alert you if anything suspicious comes up."

I'm about to tell them that I'm going to stay and nothing they can say will change my mind, when Zach nudges me. He whispers, "We can use the time to get things ready for when your mom comes home."

That's all the encouragement I need. "Fine, Mom, but only if you promise not to be a hero and will call me for any reason. Even if you just want me to make you a sandwich."

Her eyes droop. "I promise. Now, get going."

As Zach and I walk out of the room, I tell him, "I don't like this. I should stay."

"Let's see what changes we can make to your house that will help your mom."

"I already have a bar on her bed. She has a walker and a lift chair. What more can I do?"

"Is there a shower handle?" he asks.

"Yes."

"Is there a toilet seat lift?"

"I didn't even know those were a thing." I briefly wonder if Mom's fall might have been avoided had she not had as far to sit down.

"Let's go to the medical supply store," Zach says. "I'm sure they have a lot of things neither of us know about."

Even though I know that's not his intention, I tell him, "You're making it sound like I've been a bad caretaker."

Leading the way through the automatic doors to the parking lot, Zach says, "Not at all, Ellie. Most people don't know what's out there until they need it. Needs must, you know?" He opens the passenger side door for me. "Where's the store?"

"I don't know." I take my phone out of my purse before asking for the nearest place. I'm not surprised to hear it's thirty minutes away. Maple Falls isn't exactly a big place. "It's a few towns over," I tell Zach. "I can go by myself."

"No way. I'm going with you," he says after getting into the driver's side.

"Why? "

"Why not?"

"Don't you have work to do?" I ask.

"No."

"I find that hard to believe." Although, I am truly grateful for the company, so I don't give him any more trouble.

I turn the radio on to my favorite station and sing along quietly most of the way there. When we pull into the medical supply parking lot, Zach says, "I'll pay for everything today and deduct it from the money I wire to you. Does that work?"

"It does, thank you." I still can't believe he's going to give me such a huge sum to help him. I'll probably give most of it back to him, but first I need to see the kind of damage today's shopping spree is going to cost me.

Walking into the warehouse fills me with excitement. The thought of being able to help my mom without worrying about the cost is a novel experience. The first things I see are hospital beds. I tell Zach, "I've never thought about getting her one of those."

He walks over to the first bed and starts pushing buttons. Not only does the top of the bed lift, but so does the bottom. My favorite part is that the whole mattress raises so Mom can simply lean against it before getting in. Zach signals an employee. "What are we looking at for something like this?"

Tom, according to his name tag, answers, "We rent hospital beds by the month. How long do you anticipate needing one?"

"Forever," I tell him before explaining, "My mom is only in her fifties, but she has crippling arthritis."

He nods his graying head. "In that case, you could probably get insurance to cover it, but these mattresses aren't very comfortable for the long haul. Hang on, I have a catalog you can look at if you want to buy something better."

When he walks away, I tell Zach, "Those beds probably cost a fortune to buy."

"I bet they don't," he guesses .

It turns out Zach is right. I can get a brand-new hospital bed with all the bells and whistles for under two thousand dollars. While that would have been a daunting amount yesterday, I don't blink today.

Zach and I sit down at a nearby table and flip through the catalog. The motorized wheelchairs carry a little more of a sticker shock, but Tom suggests we rent those first so Mom can try out different ones and see which one best suits her needs.

Forty minutes later we leave with a portable wheelchair, toilet lift and guardrails, and shower accessories. For a small extra charge, the bed will be delivered tomorrow.

Once we're back in Zach's car, I tell him, "I couldn't have done this without you. Thank you." Even though my gratitude is real, I still hate feeling like I'm in his debt.

"You're welcome. Now, let's go get lunch."

"You don't need to buy me lunch again."

He smiles before saying, "Then you pay. Where should we go?"

I direct him to a fish house up the road where my parents and I used to go for birthdays. I haven't been in years, so I don't know if it's still good, but I'm looking forward to revisiting some fond memories.

Once we're seated across from each other in a familiar red vinyl booth, I tell Zach, "Their shrimp cocktail is excellent."

"Is that what you always get?"

"I don't come here anymore, but this was my family's special occasion restaurant when I was growing up. That's what I ordered then."

When the waitress comes, Zach and I both order the shrimp cocktail. He adds a Caesar salad for us to split and a basket of garlic bread.

After she leaves, he says, "I don't want you to do anything with Yolanda that makes you uncomfortable. I just want to know what she's plotting."

Nodding my head, I tell him, "That won't be a problem, so long as she tells me. So far, all I know is that she wants me to keep an eye on you and let her know what you're doing."

"Tell her anything and everything. I have no secrets."

"Zach," I start to say before thinking better of it.

"What?"

"Why don't you just hear her out? Then maybe this whole thing would go away."

He takes a sip of water before answering, "I'm not going to give in to her." At my confused expression, he adds, "Once you let someone take advantage of you, they'll just keep doing it. The only way to come out of this intact is to continue to maintain my innocence and not engage with her. People will eventually find someone else to talk about."

"I'd hate to be in your position."

"It's not always easy," he says. "But there's a price to pay for success and this is one of the things I have to deal with."

"What other things do you have to put up with?"

A mischievous smile crosses his face. "Some people think I'm spoiled and entitled, and don't know how to do basic things like clean windows …"

"I'm sorry about that," I tell him sincerely. "I'm just not used to being around people like you."

Zach shakes his head. "I'm not a trust fund baby, Ellie. I already told you that I grew up with nothing. I know what it's like to struggle."

"I know that now," I tell him. "And I'm sorry I ever thought otherwise."

"Good. Because if we're going to be friends, you have to be able to trust me."

Tipping my head to the side, I ask, "Is that what we're going to be—friends?"

"I'd like that."

"I would, too." Although there's a part of me that would like something more. I wonder what kind of women Zach dates. I'm guessing they're more like Yolanda than me. She's the kind of person that probably spends three hundred dollars on moisturizer and a cool grand on a pair of heels. I wouldn't do that even if I had all the money in the world. At least not if there were people who needed help.

Once our meal is served, Zach says, "Your mom says you're single. Tell me about that."

I nearly choke on a shrimp. "What's to tell?"

He looks at me with laser-like intensity. "Why aren't you dating anyone?"

"Geez, Zach, I don't know. It might have something to do with the fact that I live in a town with very few single men."

"What about the apps? I'm sure there are single guys in nearby areas."

"I'm not a swiper," I tell him prudishly. "Most of those men are just looking for hookups and that's not my thing."

"Good for you," he says. "It's not mine either."

Remembering what Yolanda told me, I say, "You just let your PR people pimp for you, huh?"

He looks surprised. "Excuse me?"

"Yolanda said that people in your position use PR people like dating apps. She said all you have to do is tell them what you want, and they'll set it up."

"That might be what she does," he says. "The only reason I contacted my press agent about Yolanda was to get her to do an interview with me."

"And she wanted more?"

"Apparently," he drawls.

"I'm going to come right out and ask her what she wants from you," I tell him. "I mean, why beat around the bush?"

"We don't want her to suspect you're also working for me," he warns.

"Don't worry, Zach. I'll make sure she knows that I don't like you."

His eyes pop open like he's just had a shock. "But you'd be lying, right? I mean you do like me. "

I offer a small grin before saying, "I like you just fine." Even while the words are coming out of my mouth, I know they're a lie. The truth is that I like Zach a lot. I'm just hesitant to give into those feelings because I don't want him to break my heart in six weeks when he leaves Maple Falls for good.