Promises (TP 6)

87 - Friends

Tessa didn't want to think about what she would have done without Patrick and Gabby. She could have asked Kelsey to come until her parents returned, but she had a job. As the realization of how alone she had been hit her, she tried not to get too comfortable in his house.

The girls loved it once they realized their mother would be okay. Megan stepped up and took them to the beach. Gabby arranged her shifts to only work when Patrick wasn't. Gabby was wonderful, and even Kevin helped.

Hannah was a different story. She was passive aggressive, but only with Tessa and usually when no one else could hear. Thankfully, she tolerated the girls.

Patrick had canceled his last appointments on Friday afternoon to bring her for her cast.

The night of her fall, when Patrick carried her up to bed, she whispered, "If we both go down, we're doomed." He laughed and held her tighter.

After her cast appointment, she sat in the kitchen watching Patrick cook. "Where are the girls?"

"Upstairs. Talking to Hannah."

"Hannah!"

He nodded. "Don't get upset."

A knot in her belly tightened. "Why?"

"I heard her asking about their father. I think it's a good sign she's curious."

"My girls don't know. They're too little."

"Do they know it was a car accident?"

She shook her head. "I didn't want to scare them. I didn't want them to be afraid to go in a car."

"They're smart enough to understand accidents happen. You won't break your ankle every time you run in the yard or fall."

He was kind and patient. He had helped her wash her hair and her body. He had held her each night. As if he read her mind, he walked over to her and kissed her.

"I hope the cast doesn't get in the way of my plans for later."

She felt her body respond. She needed him too. The thumping of feet on the stairs moved him back to the stove.

Hannah walked into the kitchen and looked around. "Pasta, again? It's Friday. We get takeout."

"I came home early and it's easy. What's your plans?"

Tessa tried to be invisible while she spoke to her father.

"I don't know. Nothing. Are you buying ice cream?"

Before their extended stay when the kids were away, dinner together often included ice cream. They had broken that habit with her girls.

"Only Saturday night or it won't be special."

Hannah shrugged, and Tessa felt warmth as Patrick supported her decision. It was as if they were parenting her girls together. He had tucked them in each night since they came home from the emergency room. Gabby helped, but he took over bedtime like it was his job. Her heart was going to combust.

Patrick and Hannah were oblivious to her heart nearly exploding as Patrick asked about Ryder. Tessa had only seen him once since she had been laid up.

"He's working."

"That's good. The boy needs to support himself."

Hannah didn't look as happy as Patrick. Tessa sat at the table to eat instead of the recliner where she had been stuck all week. Seven at the table felt more comfortable than it had in May. Even Hannah wasn't scowling. Maybe they had a chance.

Patrick cleaned the kitchen, while Hannah watched TV. The others were out with friends, and her girls went to play in the yard. Patrick promised to go outside when he finished.