“Oh, you didn’t have to do that,” Nana says.
He sets the roses down on the table by the bed and leans in to give Nana a hug, which she gladly accepts. In fact, I don’t think she’ll ever let go of him. He tries to stand up a few times, but she’s holding on for dear life.
“It’s not every day I get a hug from a good-looking man,” she says. “Humor me.”
He laughs. “Yes ma’am.”
She finally lets go. She asks about the work at the hotel, his family, and the upcoming jobs he has. He tells her they finalized plans for the Florablanca Inn, tells her about his son, and a few of the projects he’s submitting bids on.
The latter makes me feel like crap. I’ve been so self-involved lately I haven’t even asked him about his life. This is the first I’ve heard about any of these other buildings.
“I’m going to Memphis in a few days to look at a site,” he tells her. “It’s not as big of a project as the hotel here, but it is an old home that’s being converted to a restaurant, so it should be fun. I’ll know in a few weeks if I get the job.”
“Oh, that sounds nice,” says Nana. “You’ll have to take Micah up there to see it.” She winks at me and I smile, though I know I won’t be going anywhere far away, since it would mean leaving her alone.
The nurse comes in to check on Nana and give her a bath, so Rhodes and I walk into the hall to give them privacy. Since it’s lunchtime, he offers to take me to get something to eat, but I don’t want to be away from Nana. He leaves instead to get me a sandwich at Bread Crumbs and brings it back, which only takes a few minutes.
He returns and we’re eating in the lobby when Kendall, Patsy, and Sistine walk in. Even though it’s late September, it’s still warm enough for short sleeves, so Kendall is dressed in a flowy tank top, Patsy is wearing a 1950s housewife dress with lemons all over it, and Sistine is in her typical jeans, Converse, and vintage band t-shirt, today’s choice being Pearl Jam.
I wave to them from my seat to get their attention, my mouth full of fried green tomato BLT. Rhodes stands when they walk over and gives them all hugs. They grin at me with the most excited looks on their faces.
“So things went well last night?” Patsy asks, clearly forgetting her filter.
“Yes, we hung out,” I say, making a face for her to stop talking. She giggles.
“How’s Nana?” asks Sistine.
“She’s doing a lot better. They’re giving her a bath.”
We chitchat about some gossip Patsy heard at church that morning until the nurse comes out and tells us she’s done. I shove the rest of my sandwich in my mouth and stand up. Rhodes takes my wrappers and throws them away.
“I need to get on the road,” he says. “It was good to see you ladies again.”
“You too,” they all say, then give me grinning looks.
“We’ll go ahead and go back,” says Patsy, leading the other two down the hall to give us privacy.
“When are you coming back to Magnolia Row?” I ask.
“I don’t know yet,” he says. “As soon as I can. Hopefully, we will get all the permits and everything approved so we can get started soon. In the meantime, I’ll probably be on the road a lot.”
I look at him, disheartened. I don’t want him to leave, but I know his life isn’t here.
“I’d ask you to come see me,” he says, “but I know with your nana?—”
I shake my head. “I can’t leave her,” I say, “and she doesn’t do well on long car rides, so I can’t really bring her with me, either.”
“I know,” he says. “But I’ll get back down here as soon as I can. Even if I have a few free days to spare, I’d rather be here with you than in my loft alone.”
I hug him, and we kiss. His arms squeeze tight around my shoulders, and I ask him to text me when he gets home. He promises he will, then walks into the harsh mid-day light of the September sun.
* * *
Ileave the store closed Monday through Wednesday. Nana gets onto me for this, but it’s simply too much to juggle. Besides, I’d rather be in the hospital with her during visiting hours. I miss Rhodes, but he texts throughout each day and calls every night before he goes to bed. He’s quickly becoming my rock, and while it’s scary to grow this attached to someone so quickly, I think I really need it right now. I can’t imagine going through this alone. Each night, when I return home to the empty house, I want to cry. I don’t even turn on the television. I just sit in the silence.
Nana is released on Wednesday, so I pick her up in my little blue hatchback. When the nurse wheels her out into the bright morning, she’s holding the flowers from Rhodes in her lap.
“Who sent you roses?” the nurse asks, taking them from her and handing them to me so I can put them in the car. I buckle them into the backseat.
