16. Lydia

16

LYDIA

I felt like I'd been run over by a truck and then dragged down the tracks by a train. My muscles were sore from shivering, and I went from sweaty to cold every few minutes. The flu was the devil.

It was Monday morning, and I knew there was no way I could go to work. Groaning, I reached for my phone on the nightstand and my fingers brushed against my magical mistletoe.

"At least I know wearing you doesn't make me immune to sickness," I grumbled.

I grabbed my phone and hit Violet's number.

"Good morning," she answered.

"No, not good morning." My voice was raspy and dry; it didn't even sound like me.

"Girl, you sound like a demon. What's wrong with you?"

"Well," I stated, ignoring the demon comment. I was too tired to think of a comeback. " You got me sick. Thanks for that."

"You could've gotten it from anyone, Lydia. It's going around like crazy."

Which was true.

"Still," I added. "It's more fun to blame it on you."

Violet sighed. "I'm sorry, sis. You stay home and rest and I'll handle everything at the gallery. Ben's stopping by so I can always get him to help if needed."

I tried to swallow but my mouth was so dry my lips stuck together. I needed water desperately.

"Thanks, Vi."

"No problem. I'll check on you later, okay? I might even make you some brownies and leave them on your front porch."

It hurt to even smile.

"That would be awesome. You're the best."

She giggled. "Yes, I am. Talk to you later."

We hung up and I laid my head back on the pillow for only a few minutes before my phone vibrated in my hand. It was my mother.

"Hey," I answered.

"Oh honey, you sound horrible. Violet just called me and told me you were sick. I'm going to make you some soup and drop it off in a couple of hours."

"I should get sick more often," I teased.

My mom laughed. "Drink plenty of fluids and get some rest, sweetheart. I'll make you enough soup to last the week. And if you need groceries, I'll get them for you."

"Thanks, Mom."

We said our goodbyes and I closed my eyes for one more minute before rolling out of bed. I grabbed my snowflake blanket and draped it over my shoulders. It took all my energy to slip on my fuzzy pink bedroom slippers and walk to the bedroom door.

With my phone in hand, I trudged down the hallway and into the kitchen. I fetched a bottle of water from the refrigerator and opened the cabinet that had all the various types of medications a person could need. I found a bottle of cherry-flavored cold-and-flu medicine and took a dose. Knowing I probably wasn't going to get off the couch anytime soon once I sat down, I carried the medicine bottle over and set it on the end table with my bottle of water.

The second I flopped down on the velvety cushions, I heard footsteps on the floor above me. Through my sickened daze, I didn't even think about Jake being in the house. I blamed it on the intermittent high fevers messing with my mind.

Jake came downstairs and I was too tired to even glance back at him.

"Hey," he said, his voice sounding unsure. The last time we spoke was right before he left the retirement home. So many things were left unsaid.

I tried to clear my throat and ended up sounding like a bullfrog.

"Hey."

His footsteps pounded on the floor as he approached me; he had always been a heavy stepper. Hailey and I used to tell him there was no way he could ever sneak up on someone.

When he turned the corner of the couch and saw me, his face fell. He had on green-and-black plaid pajama pants and a white T-shirt, and his hair was a mess on top of his head. That longing I'd felt in my gut yesterday came back with a vengeance.

He hurried over to me and touched my forehead before I could protest.

"What the hell, Lydia. You're burning up."

I held the blanket tighter around my shoulders. "Actually, I'm freezing. I think Violet gave me her flu. You need to get away from me."

Jake shook his head. "I'm already exposed. Looks like you're stuck with me." He grabbed one of my other Christmas blankets out of the basket across the room and draped it over me. "I see you took cold meds already," he said, nodding at the bottle filled with red liquid beside me.

My teeth chattered as I tried to speak. "Mom's bringing over some soup and Violet's going to make brownies."

Jake sat down beside me. "That's nice of them, but you know I can take care of you. I know how to make soup."

His words made me smile but it only complicated things more. "You're going to get sick," I grumbled. "Please don't get too close."

He reached for the TV remote on the coffee table and turned it on. "Like I said, you're stuck with me. What do you want to watch?"

I waited for him to look at me and I grinned. "Sappy, girly, Christmas chick flicks."

Jake smirked and turned back to the TV. "Coming right up. If you think that's going to get rid of me, you're wrong."

My phone beeped with a text and I saw it was from Max. I could see Jake out of the corner of my eye glance over and then look away.

Max: Good morning. Just checking on you. Are you feeling okay?

Me: Good morning to you too. And no, I feel horrible. I'm going to stay home from work.

Instead of texting back, he called.

"Hey," I answered.

"Hey. Do you need me to bring you anything? I can stop by there before I go to class."

"That's really sweet of you, but no. I don't want you getting sick."

"Okay. But if you need me, please call. I'm only fifteen minutes away."

I knew Jake could hear Max and I could sense the tension radiating from him.

"Thanks, Max. Have a good day at school and try not to flunk any of your students."

He laughed. "I'll try not to. Most of them are pretty serious about school. But I'll check on you later. I need you to get better. We have our dates this week and the Mistletoe Mania Festival on Saturday."

"Oh, I know. I'll get better, I promise."

When we hung up, the room fell silent. Jake had heard every word Max said. I didn't know how to address the elephant in the room. Luckily, I didn't have to because Jake spoke first.

"I take it things are going well with you and Max?"

"I think so," I replied. "It's all new."

I looked over at him but he kept his attention on the TV. "He's taking you to Mistletoe Mania this Saturday?"

A part of me wished it was Jake taking me, but I couldn't allow myself to think that way.

"Yes," I said. "We were supposed to go snowboarding and to Thistle Meadow this week, but it doesn't look like that's going to happen."

His jaw clenched briefly but then he cleared his throat. "I'm sure you'll do all of that stuff when you get better."

When I didn't respond, I waited for him to turn to me. It took him a few seconds, but then he sighed and met my eyes. So many emotions swirled within his emerald gaze that I wished I could decipher what they all meant.

I leaned my head against the couch. "Why didn't you ever tell me you visited my grandmother numerous times over the years?"

He averted his gaze to the floor. "Because talking about it made me remember too much, Lydia. And during the holidays, the last thing people want is to feel sad." He met my eyes again. "Your grandmother has hundreds of stories about your grandfather, and I needed to hear them. He was a huge part of my success . . ." His eyes started to tear. "And he's not here for me to share it with him."

It took all I had not to burst out in tears. I wanted to hug him, but instead I placed a hand on his arm, not wanting to spread any more of my germs than I had to. "He's always with you, Jake. Every tournament you've won, he's been there."

"You think so?"

I nodded. "I know so. He loved you."

Jake turned his face away. "I loved him, too. I'm sorry I never told you about visiting your nana."

"It's okay," I murmured.

I stared at him; I could tell a million things were running through his mind. I wanted to ask him what he meant yesterday when he said I wasn't ready to hear what he had to say, but my nerves got the best of me. Maybe I wasn't ready? But maybe I needed to be.

Instead of gathering the courage, I focused on the TV and snuggled further into my blanket.

"You know what we could watch?" I said, hoping to lighten the mood. My teeth started to chatter again from the chills.

Jake chuckled, went to the TV stand, and opened the drawer to my DVD collection. "Yes, I do," he replied happily. "No other Christmas movie compares to National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation ."

"You know me so well."

He popped in the DVD, and my favorite movie appeared on the screen. When he sat back down, he moved closer to me, and I could feel his warmth.

"Yes, I do," he whispered, barely audible for me to hear. I had a feeling he didn't think I'd heard him.

"Jake," I pleaded. "I don't want to get you sick."

He moved closer and draped his arm over my shoulder. "You have two blankets on and you're shivering, Lydia. If I get sick, I get sick. We can struggle through it together."

I wanted to resist, but I couldn't. I leaned into him and rested my head on his shoulder. How could something be wrong when it felt so amazingly right?