After Sean adds his ornament, right next to my gingerbread man, I pull out my phone to take a picture. I want to remember this tree. This night. I’m taking the second photo when Sean jumps in front of the tree. Now I have a picture of a handsome man on my phone.What ever will I do?
“Sean…” I laugh.
“Oh, you wanted to be in it, too?” He grabs my phone and flips the camera then pulls me in under his arm. “Say cheese.”
I barely have the energy to pull a smile onto my face with his arm wrapped around my body, making me dizzy and breathless. He clicks the camera button no less than twenty times before sending himself a dozen pictures.
I rescue my phone from him with plans to thoroughly inspect each and every single picture later tonight.
“Are you ready for dinner?” Sean asks.
I’m starving. “Ye—”
My phone rings. My stomach sinks. Dad.
“You should answer that,” Sean nods to my phone before leaving my side to gather up his tools.
I really don’t want to. But my dad will just call again. Then possibly alert the police if I don’t answer. I take a deep breath and swipe the screen. “Hello?”
“Grandma fell down and broke her hip,” Dad says in response.
My heart leaps frantically around my chest. “What? Is she at the hospital? Is she okay?”
Sean glances up at me, worry tugging his brows together.
“Yeah, they gave her some medicine. We’re at the hospital downtown.”
“Okay. I’m coming.” I hang up, and Sean is at my side.
“What’s wrong?”
“My grandma broke her hip.”
Sean nods only once. “I’ll take you.” He loads his arms full of tools and matches my rapid pace to the truck.
“Is she okay?” he asks, once I’ve told him where to go.
“Yeah.” I rub my arm. “My dad didn’t give me much info. But hopefully, they are helping her.”
“I’m sure they are,” he comforts me. A couple of times while he drives, I see his hand twitch, like he wants to hold mine. But he never makes the leap across the console. Is he afraid of my arm?
“Do you want me to come in with you?” Sean asks as we approach the parking lot.
I’m not sure what I want. In my shop, I wanted to kiss him. Now I want to run away and I’m not sure why. I’m still pulling away, putting up new walls between us in place of the ones he breaks down. “No, it’s fine. My dad’s there. He can take me home. Plus, it’s late, and they probably won’t let you in.”
He nods and gets in the drop-off line. “Everything will be okay.”
I swallow the lump in my throat. I hope so.
The car in front of us pulls away, and Sean moves into the drop-off zone. I never thought this was where the end of the date would take us and I don’t know what to say. I reach for the door handle.
“Hey, thanks for the tree.”Thanks for the tree?That’s the best I’ve got?
He nods. “Of course. Let me know how your grandma is.”
“I will.“ I hop out of the truck and rush into the hospital. It doesn't take long to find my grandma’s room. I run inside, tears stinging my eyes when I see her engulfed in the starchy white sheets. Her tiny frame is smaller than ever in the unwelcoming hospital bed.
“Grandma.” I gently take one of her hands.
