get out of your way in a moment. Your new nurse’s name is Sloane Maxwell.”
“Couldn’t fucking care less.”
“She’s been hired as a live-in caretaker. She’ll be sleeping in the room next to yours.”
“Whatever,” Chase said absently, wondering how writers came up with this shit.
Melissa mumbled something under her breath. “Try to be nice to her. She actually comes highly recommended.
“I’m sure we’ll be the bestest of friends,” Chase said mockingly.
She rubbed her temples with her fingertips. “Look, I know this isn’t the ideal situation. I’m sorry that I’ve had to resort to doing this, but you need help. You used to be one of the greatest guys I know, but now...” She shook her head sadly. “Now you’re angry all the time.”
He snorted.
Melissa dropped her hands away with a sigh. “You’re alive, Chase. Isn’t that enough?”
“Yeah, it’s just fucking awesome being stuck in a wheelchair for the rest of my life. Really makes me appreciate all the little things and all that shit more,” he said dryly.
“Chase”
“Don’t.”
“I’m sorry about Amy. I know that it hurt finding out that she left you like that, but you can’t let that bring you down. You need to move on and live your life, Chase.”
He barely held back his anger. “I’m over that bitch.” And he was. It didn’t hurt that she’d gone and married his best friend and went on the honeymoon they’d planned two weeks after the doctor gave him the news that a wheelchair was going to be his new best friend for the rest of his life. Yeah, he was just fucking peachy about that.
Melissa looked down at her watch. “Look, Michael’s going to be home soon and I need to pick the kids up from school.”
“Good. Don’t come back.”
“Chase” she said on a tired sigh.
“Go.”
“Fine, but be nice to Sloane. Don’t cause any problems or you’re going to Pine Oaks,” she threatened coolly.
“Fucking bitch,” he grumbled.
Melissa looked like she was about to argue but didn’t. Well, she was smarter than he thought. Chase heard the front door close and sighed. It was time for more important things, like his soaps.
Chapter 2
“Thank freaking god,” Sloane mumbled to herself as she looked over the selection of cleaning supplies stacked on the shelf above the washing machine.
She’d been half afraid that she wouldn’t find anything, but thankfully, that wasn’t the case. Her newest patient had everything from Comet to air freshener and all of it was brand new. No doubt his sister had something to do with that.
Deciding that the best place to start was the laundry, Sloane picked up a large empty plastic laundry basket and headed to Chase’s room. She didn’t bother knocking since she already knew that he was glued to the television in the living room. If she had to guess, and there was no doubt in her mind that she was right, she’d guess that’s all he ever did.
That would be changing very soon.
Sloane cringed as she walked into his room. The sheets on his bed were well-worn, dirty, and in a tangled mess. Dirty clothes, trash, and garbage covered the rest of his room, and it smelled like…well, there really weren’t any words to describe the odors in this room.
With a resigned sigh, Sloane opened the windows to let some fresh air in the room with the hopes that the small action would make breathing possible once again. Then she stripped the bed and threw the sheets into a pile on the floor for the trash. The blankets were salvageable. They just needed to be washed. She picked up the rest of his dirty clothes and headed into the bathroom they shared and immediately wished that she hadn’t.
The walk-in shower stall looked like it hadn’t been used in months. He probably hadn’t used it since the last time help had been forced on him. From what she’d heard and saw, her new patient had given up on life. He wasn’t taking care of himself and he had a bad attitude that was guaranteed to make his life miserable.
In other words, he was definitely going to be a challenge.
Sloane finished picking up the dirty clothes in his room, the bathroom, in the main hallway, and even in the kitchen before starting a load in the washer. Then she went around the house picking up trash. When she walked into the living room, Chase pointedly ignored her, which was fine with her. She’d rather get the house straightened out before focusing on him. When she turned her attention