anymore. Now he had to deal with this, even if it knocked his pride down lower than an ant’s knees. “Crap,” he said, trying to keep it light. “Tell Johnny I need a ride to the urgent care.”
“I’ll go with you.”
“No.” He shook his head. “I need you to run the store. I’ll have Johnny give Amanda a shout and ask if she can come back you up. Hey.” He touched her tense face. “I just need to have it cleaned and looked at. It’s okay. I’m okay.” Though he was betting he was going to need a couple stitches, since the blood was still seeping, despite him putting pressure on it from his seated position.
“Okay,” she said, but he could tell it didn’t make her happy.
“It’s all good,” he told her. “Promise.”
After Rory and Johnny left, taking Rory’s van, Daralyn couldn’t stop thinking about him, worrying.
He’d been upset when he thought they’d called Elaine. She understood Rory didn’t want to be treated like a child, but knowing her presence contributed to that embarrassment, that her opinion of him mattered, was something she found stunning.
Witnessing anyone demonstrating care and love, whether it was between mother and son, friends, siblings, husbands and wives… Even after five years away from the way her life had been, she still found it a special miracle that people not only cared about one another, but would offer it so openly.
She kept glancing at her phone, though he’d barely had time to get to the urgent care, let alone check in and be seen. Since his jeans had been stained but he’d been sitting in a smear of blood, not a puddle, maybe it was in a spot that just kept breaking open if he shifted. She’d noticed he did that frequently during the day, something he told her helped prevent pressure sores.
Johnny texted Daralyn that Amanda was on her way and, sure enough, she arrived in a few minutes. Amanda also worked at the drugstore in town, which was why she was studying to be a pharmacy tech, to earn more money and take on greater responsibilities.
Rory had teased her about Amanda, and Daralyn guessed she did have mixed feelings about the girl. Amanda had been a cheerleader. She was still pretty, always put together, her hair and makeup perfect. She possessed a curvy body that made every man, young or old, take a look.
All that was fine, but it wasn’t why she bugged Daralyn. Rory had dated Amanda in high school. He’d liked her, been attracted her, but what he had with her now was different. Deeper. Amanda had gone out with Rory after his accident.
Even though they weren’t dating now, and Amanda had no obvious designs on Rory, being around the girl made Daralyn feel small and uncertain, unexpectedly resentful at times. Since Daralyn picked up a lot of town gossip from the comings and goings of customers, she knew Amanda had been dating Marty French for some time now. He ran the town jewelry store, and everyone said it was getting serious between them.
Knowing Amanda was with someone helped Daralyn deal with her confusing mix of feelings toward the girl. Plus, Amanda was nothing but nice toward her, even if there was a stiff formality to it, as if they both seemed unable to figure out what to say to one another.
It also wasn’t the first time she’d worked with Amanda in the store, though usually Rory, Elaine or Johnny were here as a buffer. Thankfully, Amanda didn’t ask her to talk much. They handled the flow of customers, and in between those moments, Amanda pitched in without complaint to help Daralyn price a new shipment of tools.
When her phone beeped, Amanda pulled it out of the back pocket of her snug jeans and glanced at it. “Hey, Johnny said he’s headed to Rory’s to drop him off. He had to have three stitches, but he’s all good.”
Three stitches. Daralyn’s hands shook and she put down the drill bits she’d been measuring. But it was okay. He was okay. She really wished she’d gone with him. But she managed to say the proper thing in an even enough tone.
“Oh. That’s good, then.” Her phone had remained dark. That made sense. Rory was the patient and he likely hadn’t had a chance to text, and Johnny knew Amanda was here. It still made Daralyn feel left out.
“Hey, how about when Johnny gets here, you head on over to check on him? The two