She shakes her head and smiles. “No, it’s fine. I’m fine. Thank you for your help today, Patton. I’ll see you tomorrow.”
She gets in, and I don’t even try to stop her. I stand and watch as she drives off. Only when I can no longer see the lights of her car does my mind start to work in overtime. Of everything I’ve gone through, losing Jason was the hardest. I’ve never been a drinker, but tonight I need a drink. I spot the neon bar sign down the street, so I hit the lock button on my car and walk into town.
7
Cora
I’m just getting out of the shower when my phone rings later that night. As soon as I see Ashley’s name on the caller ID, I know there’s something wrong. “Hello,” I say, already looking for my keys then remembering I’m naked except for a towel. I walk into my bedroom and open my closet to search for clothes. I’m hardly ever called in the evening, but there have been instances where I had to help with emergency situations or something. There’s a lot of background noise. “Ashley, what’s wrong?”
“Chill, everything’s okay.”
I take a deep breath and sit down on the bed. “Okay, what’s going on?”
She lowers her voice. “Well, remember Dr. Hottie?”
I roll my eyes. That name is horrible. “Yes, I know Dr. Patton. What about him?”
“Well, I’m not one to gossip,” she lies. She’s totally one to gossip, but I keep listening anyway. “But Dr. Hottie is here at Blaine’s Bar, and I’m pretty sure he’s on a bender.”
I do jump up at that, and I’m already pulling clothes on. “What do you mean a bender?” I don’t recall Patton ever drinking. I actually remember Jason telling me that he could be a party pooper sometimes because he didn’t drink. “Is he okay?”
“Yeah, I mean, he’s not doing anything stupid or anything, but he definitely seems to have a tear in his beer, if you know what I mean. Dr. Hottie looks sad.”
I clutch the phone even tighter. “I’m on my way.”
I hang up the phone and pull on my jeans and an old T-shirt that I sometimes sleep in. I hate to even think about my still wet hair and makeup-free face since I just got out of the shower, but nothing matters now except getting to Patton.
I drive back toward the hospital and luckily find a parking spot right in front of Blaine’s. Even from here, I can see that Patton’s car is still where I left him in the hospital parking lot. I push my hair off my face and walk into the bar. There’s quite a few people I recognize from the hospital, and I walk by, giving them a nod, not wanting to take the time to stop and talk to anyone. Ashley is waving at me, and she points across the bar. I finally spot Patton in the corner, and there’s a woman sitting right beside him. She’s leaning toward him, smiling, and from here it’s like she’s pushing her cleavage in his face.
Just make sure he’s okay. That’s all you have to do, Cora. You don’t have a say in who he’s here with, just make sure he’s okay and you can go home and deal with your broken heart there.
I give myself the pep talk all the way across the room until I’m standing next to Patton. I put my hand on his forearm that is holding what looks like a shot of whiskey. “Hey, Patton.”
He raises his face and stares up at me. His eyes are bloodshot, and he blinks up at me as if he can’t believe I’m standing here. I squeeze his arm. “You doing okay?”
He looks at the other woman, and a knot fists in my stomach. He’s going to blow me off and act like he doesn’t even know me.
His voice is husky as he talks to the other woman. “This is her. This is Cora, the woman I was talking to you about.”
I gasp in surprise. He was talking about me?
The woman smiles up at me. “Lucky lady.” She nods and then grabs her purse and gets up from her seat. I watch her walk away, but Patton doesn’t. He’s turned so that he’s staring up to me. I take a seat in the stool next to him, not sure what to say.
“You’re so fuckin’ beautiful, Cora.”
My face heats, and normally I’d look away, but the way Patton’s staring into my eyes, there’s no way I can turn from him.
“Patton,” I start, but he shakes his head emphatically and then stops suddenly, grabbing on to the edge of the bar. He’s definitely not a drinker. “Can I take you home?”
He nods and stumbles to his feet. I start to walk, but he grabs my hand, and I stay close to him as we walk toward the exit. I can feel all eyes on us, and I’m sure we’re going to be the talk of the hospital and the therapy center, but I can’t seem to care. As soon as we’re outside, I pull him to my car and open the passenger door for him. “C’mon, I’ll drive you home. I can take you into the hospital tomorrow.”