She cocks her head, eyeing me suspiciously. ‘Come on, Izzy. Give an old, crippled lady something.’
‘So you want to be crippled now, huh?’
‘Tell me.’ She pats the mattress.
‘I don’t really know him,’ I say, ignoring her offer to take a seat on her bed and opting for the chair instead. Besides, it’s against the rules to sit on a patient’s bed.
‘You wanna change that?’
‘I’m not sure.’ Just as I answer, Susan rounds the corner, though I can’t see her face or body, only her curvy legs. Because nearly her entire form is hidden behind a huge bouquet of flowers.
Her head pokes out from the side. ‘These were left for you at the desk,’ she says, thrusting them at me.
I have to sit back in the chair to fit them on my lap, the aroma of bright red roses filling my nose. ‘For me?’
‘Yes,’ she confirms, reaching for the antibacterial spray and squirting some in her palms. ‘No flowers on the ward.’
‘I’m sorry, I wasn’t expecting any.’ I pull the card free, shuffling the roses to the side to read it:
See you at seven.
I swallow. Hard. I can’t decide whether I’m flattered or annoyed by his gesture. I remember his ticking jaw as he told me to get out of his car. He was desperate to get rid of me then. What’s changed? Once again, Theo Kane is throwing mixed signals. And that soon has me concluding that I’m annoyed. How does he expect me to react to this huge, beautiful spray of flowers? Call him and gush down the line? Swoon? I don’t know where I stand with him, and having worked my arse off to stabilize myself in recent years, to find my feet and get on with my life, I don’t need a man messing with that.
‘I’ll get these out of here,’ I say to Susan, who’s standing over me, arms crossed over her ample chest.
‘Well?’ She nods at the card as I get up.
‘Yes, well?’ Mable backs her up eagerly. ‘Are they from the hunk?’
‘Yes, they’re from the hunk,’ I confirm, passing the two women. ‘See you in a week.’
‘Don’t have too much fun,’ Susan calls after me.
‘What?’ Mable asks, disgusted. ‘Don’t listen to her, Izzy. Be bad but careful!’
I laugh as I head out of the ward, revelling in the knowledge that I won’t be back for a whole week. I retrieve my phone from my bag and pull up Theo’s message, tapping in a reply and quickly sending it.
I was gracious.
I just didn’t accept.
*
My to-do list is growing by the minute, things coming to me as I search for my passport and case. ‘Sun cream,’ I blurt to the drawer that I’m currently rummaging through, looking for the document I need to get me out of London and into Vegas. ‘Got ya.’ I grab my passport and throw it on my bed before rushing to the kitchen and adding sun cream to my long list. ‘Swimsuit,’ I shout.
‘You don’t have any?’ Jess asks, relaxing at the table with a glass of wine, fully packed and organized.
‘I haven’t been on holiday for over ten years.’
‘I have loads of bikinis. Feel free to borrow.’
I give her a look that Jess reads well, guilt swooping in and invading her pretty face. ‘Don’t look at me like that,’ I warn, and she forces her face into a smile. ‘It’s cool.’
‘I think you should wear a bikini and own it,’ Jess says, pushing my wine across the table.
‘I’ll be stared at for all the wrong reasons.’ Taking a sip of my wine, I find my hand on my midriff, circling the spot where the only physical reminder of him remains. I shudder, and Jess doesn’t miss it.
‘I might buy a new swimsuit myself.’ She stands and comes to me, kissing my forehead while I smile. ‘There’s some amazing designs this season.’
Her gesture is sweet but not necessary. ‘Shut up,’ I say, gently pushing her away.
She goes with ease, skipping out of the kitchen, leaving me thinking about what else needs to be added to my list in an attempt at diverting my mind from more unpleasant thoughts.
‘Izzy,’ I hear her call, and I drag myself up, heading for her room. But I don’t make it there, stalling in the hallway when I see her standing at the door. ‘It’s for you,’ she says, biting her bottom lip and pulling it open to its widest, revealing a man standing