Jake hadn’t thought of his pain since she accosted him in his bedroom. “I’m all right,” he responded.
“Sit down and let me massage your arm before we leave.”
“I thought you weren’t here as a therapist.”
“I’m not.” She smiled. “But if you’re in pain, you can let me help or you can suffer in silence.”
He gave her a long look, but eventually sat down. She began to knead his arm, beginning at his shoulder. Jake allowed her touch to see if she could perform the same magic as the previous time. It was working. He could feel the warmth of her fingers.
“Are you sure you’re not trained in this?”
“I’m self-trained,” she told him.
“Self-trained? What does that mean?”
She waited a long moment. He felt her hesitate, then slightly ease the pressure of her hands. When she spoke, her voice was laced with suppressed emotion. “My mother suffered from severe migraine headaches and arthritis pain. I used to give her a massage every day.”
“Every day?”
“It helped her.”
She moved from his shoulder farther down his arm. Jake wore a short-sleeved shirt and her bare hands were on his bare arm. Heat penetrated his skin, seeping deep into his muscles and relaxing the tension. He wondered what she thought of his immobile limb. Had Cal told her anything about his medical history? What he’d been through? Would she understand?
“How does that feel?” she asked when she’d finished and stood back.
“Fine,” he said. Jake held back how good it felt. He refused to let her know that he wanted her to massage his arm any time he was in pain. He hated being dependent on people. He’d agreed to allow her to be his companion while Cal was away, just to get Cal off his back, but now he thought she could do more.
As long as she didn’t interrupt his life. He’d have to have her agree to a few boundaries, if he could get a word in.
“Did the doctors find a treatment for her pain?” he asked.
“She died five years ago.”
He turned to look at her. He could see why Cal had chosen her as his companion. She’d obviously gained good experience caring for her mother. Jake wanted to say something to ease her pain, but knew there was nothing that was appropriate or even wanted. All the platitudes that people came up with only made the person feel worse.
“I miss her. We had a wonderful relationship and I never minded giving her massages. It gave us time to talk and tell stories. I was her companion and caretaker.”
Jake envied her the obvious love she had for her mother. He understood that love. His mother was the reason he’d gone into medicine. He’d followed in her footsteps and they were big shoes to fill.
“What does your mother do?” she asked.
“She worked as a nurse for years and now runs a nursing program at a university in Pennsylvania. My father teaches math at the same school.”
“Do you see them often?”
“Not as often as they would like. Cal goes to see them more than I do.”
“Why is that? You can’t say it’s your arm, since you can still walk and talk and I’m sure you can drive, even if you don’t want to.”
“Even before my arm, I traveled a lot or was seldom available except for holidays that might also be interrupted on a moment’s notice.”
“And now? It doesn’t take both hands to pick up a phone.”
“I call occasionally.”
Jake was getting tired of her constantly mentioning his arm. He was so used to people doing their best to avoid the issue.
“Why don’t we go for that walk you mentioned?” Maybe walking would give her something else to focus on.
And him too, because those auburn highlights kept sending his mind back to the days before the accident when he had his whole life before him. Now look at him. He glanced at his right arm. He used to go into operating rooms and save lives.
That was before he became useless.
THEY LEFT THE building through the arched doorway of the majestic Dakota apartment building on Central Park West. Jake wore a sling supporting his right arm. It was a short walk across the street to the park’s entrance. Like most New Yorkers, Lauren crossed the street when there was a break in traffic, ignoring signal lights and taking her life into her own hands. Lauren stepped off the curb only to be pulled back by Jake.
A car rounded the corner and would have hit her.
“You’re supposed to be my caretaker,” he said. “Not the other way around.”
“Companion. I am not a caretaker. That’s a job I did not sign up for.”
They crossed when the light turned green and entered the park. The temperature was warm, yet pleasant, and for a while they walked without talking. Lauren was comfortable with the silence. The park was full of people. Children were playing on the vast lawn. There were tables where people sat playing board games and other places where a long curved bench ran the length of a fence. People sat there reading books or using their personal phones.
Lauren smiled as she and Jake passed by.
“It’s been a long time since I walked in the park,” she said.
Jake made a hmm noise that indicated he concurred. She wondered if he was warming up to her. The tension from the apartment seemed to have been left behind.
“Do you like parks?” she asked.
“Twenty questions again?”
“Just making conversation.” She wanted to know more about him. “I take it you’re a stick-to-the-subject type of guy.” She huffed and used her arms to take a macho stance.
He laughed.
“That’s the first time you’ve laughed since I met you.”
He immediately dropped his head and his expression reverted to a stoic mask.
She couldn’t resist. “Once it’s broken, let the pieces fall away,” she said.
“What?”
“You’ve smiled. The pieces that were holding your face in a scowl are gone.” She imitated the cross way he looked. “You’re much handsomer when you smile.”
He stopped walking and stared at her. “Don’t flirt with me.”
“Flirt?” she said, honestly surprised. “I’m not flirting with you. If I were, I’d know it and so would you.”
Tension returned between them.
After a few minutes walking in silence, Lauren slipped her arm through Jake’s left one. He jerked at first. She knew he wasn’t used to being touched. He probably thought people didn’t want to touch him. She didn’t let go, and pulled him along when he tried to stop.
“Not flirting,” she said. When he didn’t pull free of her, she decided to take another plunge. “Tell me about the accident.”
“What?”
“Too soon?” she asked.
“Are you just nosy?”
She shook her head. “I think of it as getting to know you, knowing what happened and not having any subjects that are off-limits.”
“Most