Page 60 of Reaching Hearts
Chapter Thirty-Four
Annie
His Mom’s Timing: shit.
“Oh you've gotta be kidding me.” I slide off him and jump down, unhindered by IV cords this time, but still having a ridiculously hard time of it. I pull on my pants, run for my bra and pull my blouse over my head while still snapping my bra and sticking my feet in my shoes. Brendan, very amused, points to my panties. I run over and, not having time to make it to my purse, throw them at him. He quickly shoves them under his blanket as the chair gets pushed in by nurse Josephine Miller, carrying a fresh bag of saline and followed by Brendan’s mother – a very pretty older woman with Ralph Lauren style and bobbed, streaked white, dark-brown hair.
“He was just praying, Mrs. Clark,” Josephine says, walking over to Brendan’s IV.
“Praying?” she asks, confused, looking at me. Her brain puts two and two together instantly. “You must think I’m an idiot. Or you are.”
I step forward, holding my hand out sheepishly. “I’m Annie. I’m a friend of Brendan’s.”
Mrs. Clark peers at me and Josephine, now privy to the true manner of my privacy request, throws a furtive glance our way out of inescapable curiosity. Suddenly I remember that I told them I'm his sister, and now what must they be thinking?
Brendan speaks up to let her know I'm not some cooz. “Mom, Annie’s more than a friend - she’s the owner of the bar where we were held up.”
Mrs. Clark’s demeanor instantly changes from suspicious judgment to concerned compassion. “Oh! Oh, you must have been so scared! How are you?"
“I’m fine. I didn’t get hurt.”
“She’s okay, Mom. She didn’t get hurt.”
We glance at each other.
“Well, that’s good news.” Mrs. Clark releases my hands and walks to her son just as Josephine goes to leave. “Thank you, nurse.” To Brendan, she says, “Why didn’t you call me? Why did I have to hear this from Mark?”
I stand awkwardly wondering what to do with myself. Reading my thoughts, or my body language, he motions to the chair and I pull it over for her.
"No, I meant for you," he says.
She’s only interested in hearing about what happened and being close to him, so she sits sidesaddle on the end of his bed. “Did they catch the robber?”
“No. Chances are pretty slim, Mom.”
Mrs. Clark nods. “It’s a shame with all the technology today. We should have chips in us, then you’d know where everybody was.” She looks over to me for agreement.
“That’s a good idea,” I cross my legs to get comfortable in this strange chair and situation. Does she live in the city? How did she get her so fast?
Brendan argues, “People would find a way to remove them, cut them out. Evil people are just evil people, no matter what you do.”
Mrs. Clark frowns and fiddles with her ring. “Well, now you sound like your father.”
“Where is Mr. Clark?” Instantly, I see the answer in their faces, and regret having asked.
Mrs. Clark looks down for a moment. “He passed away last year. A heart attack in his sleep.”
“Oh. I’m sorry.” My chest hurts at the look on her face. “You loved him very much.”
She nods, absently turning her ring around over and over. “He was the love of my life. A truly good man.” Brendan reaches out and touches her arm, and she clasps his for a quick second before they both let go. “Annie, you own a bar?”
Brendan interjects, “It’s a nice place, Mom. Around the corner from my house. I’m going to help her make it a huge success as soon as the window gets repaired.”
“What happened to the window?”
I wave my hand. “You don’t want to hear all the details.” Brighter, to change the subject, I say on a smile, “I’m thinking of putting in a patio. What do you think about that?”
Brendan pictures it, mulling it around. “That’s a great idea. It’d be a huge draw. Make it covered, or with a retractable awning for weather.”