Page 111 of Fierce-Ivan

“Years ago, sure. I buy that. But it seems to me your mother is doing her best to take that weight back. Maybe you should listen to her. She’s a pretty smart woman.”

He didn’t want to fight with her, but his heart was hurting by what she was thinking.

There was only so much he could do or say to get through to her and he had to let it go.

He walked her to her car, kissed her and told her to call or text him later. She said she’d try to, but it might be late.

He nodded his head and drove home.

When ten rolled around and he hadn’t heard a word, he decided to let it go. She could be talking to her mother and he didn’t want to bother her. She’d reach out when she was ready. He hoped.

34

Cool Down

The next morning, Kendra went to work early.

She’d checked in with her mother to make sure she was fine, but left shortly after.

She wasn’t in the mood for another lecture, having gotten two last night.

First from Ivan and then her mother.

It seemed like nothing she did was good enough.

She was going to try to get some work done while she waited for the call from her father on when he was being discharged. There was no reason to sit around the hospital when she had work to do.

That call came late morning, so she finished up and told Cade she had to leave again for that day. She knew she had to explain it to him and told him briefly what was going on but she’d be in tomorrow.

She’d seen Cade was going to ask if there was anything they could do, but she left his office before that.

This wasn’t like it was her mother and she didn’t want to hear it.

She didn’t want kindness or sympathy from others when she wanted her life to go back to the way it was.

She didn’t like taking the time off of work for the man that left her, but it was the right thing to do.

Her mother raised her to be that way and she knew, in the end, she could put her head on the pillow at night and go to sleep.

Maybe not to sleep as easily as before knowing that Ivan was hurt and upset.

She hadn’t even texted or called him last night, but she didn’t go to bed until eleven and was exhausted. She did text him this morning and said she’d be in contact. She actually promised so he wouldn’t be worried.

She got to the hospital and made her way to her father’s room. He was wearing different clothing than she’d seen in the bag by his bed yesterday.

“How did you get clothes?”

“Clinton brought them over for me this morning,” her father said.

It was on the tip of her tongue to say if his neighbor could bring him clothing then why couldn’t he bring him home, but she didn’t ask that. Maybe Clinton had something to do today and he did it early. At this point it didn’t matter; she was here.

“Are you ready?”

“The nurse will be in in a few minutes with my discharge papers.”

She sighed and sat down. So much for rushing in, getting him in the car and dropping him back off home.

“Did they say how long they’d be?”