say goodbye to Jamison. He didn’t want to think of a world where his friend wasn’t there to talk to and to laugh with, but he’d go and, as Eden said, let the man know what his friendship had meant.
The man lying in the hospital bed wasn’t the man he remembered. Skin and bone, bald, and no eyebrows or eyelashes, he was pale against the white sheets. Jeremiah steeled himself and went into the room. He sat down beside the head of the bed on a small stool and put his hand over Jamison’s. He could tell Jamison’s wife spent a lot of time here. There were books, magazines, and needlepoint scattered around the comfortable chair beside his bed.
Memories of the time he’d spent with Jamison rolled through his mind. The indelible impact the man had made on his life was so much greater than the memories could represent.
Jamison jerked and opened his eyes, immediately looking to the chair where Marge usually sat.
Jeremiah applied light pressure to his hand. “It’s all right. I’m here.”
Jamison turned his head only the smallest degree as if the movement was too much. Jeremiah leaned in so Jamison could see him. “Not supposed to tell you.”
Jeremiah nodded. “I’m glad she did. You don’t get to cheat me out of saying goodbye, you old pain in my ass.”
The man chuckled softly. “That’s you.”
“Maybe. I wish you would have told me. I could have been here for you.”
With effort, Jamison moved his head back and forth, once. “No. Dying is a solitary event.”
“The people who love you will beg to differ.” He held Jamison’s cold, bone-thin hand in his. “You’ve meant the world to me. From the first day we met we gelled. I have a father I love, but I picked you to help me grow, and in that process, I was honored to acknowledge that I had two fathers. I’m going to be straight with you. I love you and I don’t want to say goodbye to you, I don’t want you to leave.” Jeremiah let a tear run down his cheek. Fuck it, his emotions were valid, and Jamison was a second father to him.
The frail body on the bed closed his eyes and then reopened them. “You are my son.” His skeletal hand skimmed his body and landed on his chest. “Here. Be happy. Be good to yourself.”
Jeremiah nodded. “I am happy.”
Jamison took a shaky breath. “Talk to my boss. Promise me.”
“Sure. Anything. I promise.”
Jamison gave a ghost of a smile and closed his eyes. “Good. So tired.”
“I know. Rest now. I’ll come back later.” He stared at the face of his mentor, friend, and yes, second father. The stress of talking dissolved as Jamison’s body rested. He stood up and leaned forward, kissing the skeletal forehead. “Sleep in peace, my friend. You’re loved.”
He stepped outside the room and nearly walked into a man. “Sorry.”
“Not a problem. Is he sleeping?”
Jeremiah looked at the man. He recognized the expensive cut of his suit and the hand-tailoring. The man was three inches taller than he was, which made him six feet five or six inches tall. “Yeah. I think our visit wore him out.”
“The toll of talking is getting harder for him to recover from. I’m Gabriel, his boss.”
Jeremiah shook the hand that was extended. “Jeremiah Wheeler.”
“Jeremiah, thank you so much for sitting with him for a while. I needed a quick break.” Jamison’s wife, Marge, hustled back down the hallway. “He’s sleeping?”
He nodded as Gabriel gave Marge a quick hug and then held her away as he spoke, “I told you you don’t have to do this by yourself.”
“Oh, the night nurses you provided are wonderful, but I can take care of him during the day. He put me through nursing school all those years ago, it is only right I take care of him now.” She misted up as she spoke and shook her head. “I don’t have many moments left with him and I’m going to be here for the ones we have. Now if you’ll excuse me, I’ll go check on him. He’s due his pain meds soon.” Marge slipped into the room.
Gabriel cocked his head in Jeremiah’s direction. “You’re the one that helped Victoria.”
Jeremiah’s eyebrows jumped. “How do you know Ms. Marshall?”
“It’s a long story. You’re located in Hollister now, right?”
Jeremiah nodded. “How do you know that?”
“Ah, Jamison is very proud of you.” Gabriel motioned toward a set of chairs in the small sitting area outside the bedroom where the