“No,” I said. “Thank you, but no. I can do this.”
Niki nodded and said goodbye.
***
“I’m looking for Ray Yates,” I said when I walked up to the nurse’s counter.
“And you are?” the nurse asked with narrowed eyes.
“I…” I began before realizing I didn’t know what to say. “We work together.”
“Okay,” she said. “Visiting hours end in twenty minutes, so you don’t have long.”
“That’s fine,” I said.
The nurse stood up and led me down a hallway. We were almost to the end when she pointed to a room on the left.
“He’s in there,” she said. She smiled and walked back to the nurse’s station.
I stepped inside the room and looked around. It was a typical hospital room with generic curtains and an antiseptic smell. I instantly felt dizzy, but I forced myself to walk further inside. When I did, I saw Ray lying on a bed in the center of the room. His eyes were closed, and he looked older than ever.
“Ray,” I said softly. I walked up to the bed and gently touched his arm. “Ray, are you awake? It’s me, Tara.”
Ray’s eyes flickered open and fell on my face. I felt nervous, but I forced myself to smile kindly.
“Hi,” I said. “How are you feeling?”
Ray smiled. “Tara, I’m glad you’re here.”
“I wasn’t sure you’d be happy to see me,” I admitted. I pulled up a chair and sat down beside him.
“Why not?” Ray asked. His voice was weak, but he seemed alert.
“Since Zach fired me, I just thought…” I trailed off awkwardly, not sure of how to finish my thought.
“Oh.” Ray chuckled. “That.”
“Yeah,” I said. I didn’t know why he found my dismissal humorous, but my stomach burned at his laughter.
“You aren’t fired, Tara,” Ray said simply. “Zach is.”
“What?” I leaned forward. I felt sure that I’d misheard him.
“I fired Zach yesterday,” Ray said. “As soon as I woke up here, I told him he was done. He’s been poisonous to the company for far too long. I kept him on all this time in hopes that he would figure himself out and grow up, but that hasn’t happened. After yesterday… enough was enough. He’s done.”
“Wow,” I said. I blinked and tried to work through my shock. After an entire day of adjusting to the fact that I longer had a job, I found I did. Zach was fired. He was done. And me? I was still employed.
“So,” Ray said. “That means there’s something important for us to discuss.”
“What’s that?” I asked.
“Your promotion,” Ray said simply.
“Promotion?”
“Yes,” Ray said. “I want you to take over Zach’s position. We both know you’ve been doing his job for years anyway. Now it’s time to make it official.”
“I…” I sputtered. “I don’t know what to say, Ray. Thank you. Thank you so much.”
“You’ve earned it,” Ray said with a smile.
“What do you need?” I said, leaning forward to hold his hand. “Work isn’t important right now. Why are you here? What happened? Was it a heart attack?”
“No.” Ray shook his head. “It wasn’t a heart attack.”
“Then what happened?” I asked. I didn’t want to pry, but I needed to know.
“I’ve been sick for a while,” Ray explained. “I have an inoperable brain tumor. I didn’t want to tell anyone because I’m not one for sympathy. You know that.”
“Oh my god,” I said. “Ray, I’m so sorry.”
“No,” he said, shaking his head. “Don’t feel sorry for me. That’s not what I want.”
“Is there anything I can do for you?” I asked.
“Just do your job like you always have,” Ray said kindly. “And take care of Sean. I can’t tell you how happy I am that you brought him on. Getting to see him again before I… before this tumor gets the better of me… It’s the best gift I could have asked for.”
“That wasn’t just me,” I said. “You were the one who convinced him to do it.”
“But it was your idea,” Ray reminded me. “You are the reason I’ve been able to see my son again. Truthfully, I never thought I would. After everything that happened between him and Zach, I thought that was it for our family. When Sean came to work at the company, I hoped it would be a second chance for us all. I see now that I was mistaken. Zach… Well, he isn’t the type to change.”
“No,” I agreed. “He’s not.”
“I tried,” Ray said earnestly. “I tried for years to talk sense into him, but it never worked. I just wish I’d spent half as much time trying to fix things with Sean. If I’d been a better father to him… If I’d tried more, done more… Maybe we would have had more time together.”
Ray’s breathing was becoming heavy, and his eyelids began to droop. I knew visiting hours were ending, and I didn’t want to exhaust him. I squeezed his hand gently and smiled at him.
“You did what you could,” I said. “You tried. That’s what matters.”
“I wish that were true,” Ray said sleepily.
“It is,” I assured him. I could tell he was about to fall asleep, and I wanted to make him feel better before he did. He’d been through so much in the last few days, he didn’t deserve all the guilt he was putting on himself.
“Take care of him,” Ray said, suddenly alert. “Promise me you will. Take care of Sean. He needs someone like you to be there for him.”
I opened my mouth to speak, but my throat felt tight. Ray’s words meant more to me than he would ever know. He didn’t know about my relationship with Sean, but there was something in his eyes that told me he suspected it. More than that, he was happy about the idea. He wanted me to be there for Sean. He couldn’t know how much I wanted that, too.
My eyes filled with tears and I still couldn’t speak, so I simply nodded. I nodded my silent promise and watched as he finally fell asleep.
CHAPTER THIRTY-THREE
Sean
Another day passed without much incident. I thought about Paisley and how to help her. Tara crossed my mind every few minutes and, much to my surprise, I wondered about the company. Would they still expect me to complete my contract? Or did my fight with Zach effectively end the deal altogether?
I wasn’t sure which option I hoped for more. On the one hand, I never truly wanted to work at Yates’ Motorcycles anyway. It wasn’t my first choice. Or my second or third. Still, it was amazing money that I couldn’t pass up. It meant a whole new life for me and Paisley. And it also meant I got to see Tara.
We hadn’t spoken since that day. I left the office with only Paisley in mind. It didn’t even occur to me to stop and talk to Tara on the way out. When she called, I didn’t know what to say. I thought about picking up. I wanted to, but I couldn’t. After what I did and what she heard, I didn’t know what to expect from her.