When he didn"t say anything, I lifted my head to look at him. He leaned back into the chair with his arms crossed over his chest. "No problem."
Averting my eyes, I played with Chance"s little fingers as he slept. If Caleb didn"t want to converse, I was fine with that. When my dad returned, I"d duck out to see my mom.
"Is that all you have to say to me?" Caleb snapped, taking me by surprise.
"Shh! You"re going to wake Chance."
Caleb chuckled. "That kid isn"t waking up until tomorrow morning." He shifted to lean forward and I was suddenly grateful for the barrier of the bed between us. "You didn"t answer."
"What do you want me to say?" I asked, annoyance building.
"How about sorry for f.u.c.king another dude behind my back?"
"It"s not like you haven"t already had s.e.x with someone else, probably several someone elses, knowing you." I replied angrily.
"An entire cheerleading squad," he drawled.
"I"m not talking about this in front of Chance, even if he is asleep."
"Let"s take this outside then," he suggested, already standing up and circling the bed. He came to a stop next to my chair.
I stubbornly remained seated. "Go home, Caleb."
A hand under my arm yanked me up. "We"re doing this now and afterward I hope to never see your deceitful face again."
That hurt, and so did his unforgiving grip. I jerked my arm away, heading for the door to get it over with, dismissing the pain in my heart and the hurt in his eyes.
Searching the hallway, I only saw a nurse walking in the opposite direction. Spinning around, I was unprepared for the confrontation but starting to brace myself in case it was bad.
Caleb stood with his feet apart, his arms crossed again. "Did you ever love me?"
I looked at the floor in contemplation. My head screamed at me to lie, but I"d already betrayed my heart so many times. "What does it matter now?"
"It matters to me a h.e.l.l of a lot," he said.
I looked at the wall to the right of him. "I cared about you."
He let out a scoffing sound. "So you lied about loving me? Big f.u.c.king surprise. Like mother, like daughter."
"What is that supposed to mean?" I asked, meeting his scornful gaze.
His cruel smirk cut through me. "She claimed to love my dad, too, but sc.r.a.ped him off when things got hard." He took a step forward to get in my s.p.a.ce. "Both of you are heartless."
Nope, my heart was there, beating but bleeding. His insult hit right in its center.
"Faithless," Caleb added, stepping back and suddenly appearing bored. "I"m done with this. I"ll stay until your dad gets back then I"m out of here." He went back inside Chance"s room, leaving me in the hallway.
I didn"t want the guy I loved to think I was a cheat and a lying b.i.t.c.h, but how else was I to keep him at a distance? He was Caleb. He"d pushed his way into my life once before, forcing me to open my mind and heart. I was afraid of him attempting the same thing again. Even if he"d never left my heart, the dark parts of my mind couldn"t accept him.
It was agony to picture him with another girl, but I couldn"t give him what he needed. I walked slowly into the room, where Caleb stared down at his phone.
Sitting down, taking a deep breath, I came to a decision. I couldn"t be with Caleb, I"d make that clear, but it hurt too much for him to think badly of me.
"I lied."
His eyes casually rolled up to mine. "No s.h.i.t."
"About Gage."
That had him snapping to attention, the phone in his hand forgotten.
"About having s.e.x with him."
"What?" Hazel eyes darkened with turbulent feeling.
"About loving him."
"You don"t?" His previously indolent frame now thrummed with energy.
"About not loving you." My voice trembled and I gripped the arms of my chair for support.
"Then why are you with him?" he asked.
"I"m not," I finished.
"I don"t understand," he said, standing but not moving to me.
Good, he needed to stay away.
"Why then?" he asked.
"Because I don"t want to be with you anymore."
"Don"t want to be with me?" he asked, his face changing into something I couldn"t decipher.
"Can"t," I amended, getting ready to dodge him if he reached for me.
"You love me?" he asked. I should have known he"d zero in on that.
"Won"t be with you," I emphasized, ignoring his question. Thankfully, my dad returned, halting the conversation I considered over.
CHAPTER FOURTEEN.
"The heart is forever inexperienced."
-Henry David Th.o.r.eau GIANNA.
"You"re mom is going to be fine," my dad said as he entered the room. Seeing Caleb standing over where I sat, he stopped. "Everything all right?"
Caleb returned to his seat by the window. "All good."
Not until I added, "Fine," did my dad approach where Chance slept, placing a hand on his little chest.
"I"m going to spend the night with him. Why don"t you go down to see your mom and head on home, Gianna?"
"I can stay the night in mom"s room," I told him, wanting to be near my family.
"No, Scott is staying overnight with her. I"d feel better if you went home, or better yet, slept over at Cece"s house."
"I"ll call her. Can I take your car?" I asked, figuring it was that or I"d have to call Cece to pick me up at the hospital.
"I can drop her off," Caleb offered casually. My eyes shot to him where he seemed unaffected by our earlier discussion. Not that I was fooled. His body thrummed with barely leashed energy.
"That sounds good," my dad said, sounding distracted by what he was reading. He"d pulled Chance"s chart and I figured, being a doctor, it was habit.
I wasn"t about to start an argument with Caleb in front of my dad. After I checked on my mom I"d call Cece to come get me. I stood, giving my dad a hug goodbye. We"d had a scare, but were lucky not to lose either my mom or Chance in the crash.
"Have you heard anything about the other people involved in the accident?" I asked, the images of other mothers and children popping into my head.
My dad kissed my forehead. "One person is in critical condition, but they think he"ll make it. Everyone else will be fine."
"Good," I told him, glancing at where Caleb waited in the doorway.
"I"ll be back tomorrow morning." They"d definitely discharge Chance sometime in the morning and possibly my mom. I"d be sure to get here early enough to help out.
"Okay, sweetie," my dad said as his phone rang.
I left as he answered it, pretending not to see Caleb"s outstretched hand when we were in the hallway. "Cece or Jared can pick me up," I told Caleb as we made our way past the nurse"s triage. "Thank you," I told the nurse still sitting there.
"You"re welcome. Have a good night!" she chirped. The lady down in ER hadn"t been friendly, but this cheery nurse was perfect for the children"s ward. The kids probably loved her.
Caleb reached the elevator first, pushing the down b.u.t.ton and turning to face me. He looked hot, of course, he always did. Even his youth corrections issued clothing hadn"t detracted from his flaming hotness. Although I was afraid of touching, there was no helping my looking.
His silence disturbed me. The doors slid open and we stepped inside, with me deliberately hugging the wall opposite him. Inside the elevator, he murmured, "This reminds me of my favorite elevator ride."
Well, now it reminded me also of a hot guy saying filthy words and no objection from me at the time. "You don"t have to go with me to see my mom. I"m sure you have somewhere to be."
"I need to talk to my dad anyway."
I stared down at my flip flops, thinking of Caleb"s clothing. He wasn"t really a flip flops kind of guy. Even in June he wore jeans and boots with his t-shirt, a thick leather watch on one wrist. I"d noticed him checking out my legs, uncovered by the shorts I wore. It made me feel hunted.
With a ding, the doors opened and I rushed out. It was then I realized I didn"t know her a.s.signed room number.
"214," he said in my ear. "My dad texted it to me earlier." He grabbed my hand, guiding me in the right direction.
The door stood open to 214 and Scott could be seen inside. "Hey," I said to get his attention. I wasn"t sure what was going on with my mom and Scott. There were still feelings there, but they"d hurt each other. I winced inwardly at the comparison of Caleb and myself.
"Gianna," Scott whispered, coming closer. "She"s asleep."
I wanted to talk with her, let her know I was here. "Did they drug her?" My mom"s still form, a blanket pulled up to her waist and machines monitoring her, made me want to cry.
"No," he said. "A nurse is waking her every so often because of her concussion."
"When is the next time?" I asked, deciding I could wait for it.
Scott looked at his phone for the time. "Forty-seven minutes."
"I"ll wait," I told him, determined to speak with her.
"Did you eat?" Caleb asked at my back.
Scott perked up. "Could you two could run and get something?"
My dinner was interrupted and now that everything had settled down, I felt hungry again. And it would kill time until my mom woke. "What do you want?" I asked Scott.
He shrugged broad shoulders. "Hamburger, burrito, whatever is easiest."
"There are a couple fast food places in the shopping center across from the hospital," Caleb said.
Scott looked at his phone again before telling me, "Forty-six minutes."
I pulled my own cell out, setting a timer. "We"ll be back before then."
"Let"s go," Caleb urged, stealing my hand in his again.
I yanked it away as soon as we were out of sight. "Quit doing that."
His expression said I was the one with the problem. "Just offering comfort in your time of need."
"What ever happened to you not wanting to see my deceitful face again?" I reminded him.
He laughed, his mood better than the last time we"d been alone. "You are a liar, gotta admit that much."
"Where are you parked?" I asked once we were on the first floor.
"In the lot closest to the ER," he said, walking ahead of me out the automatic sliding doors.
I trailed behind him, noticing his back looked incredibly muscular in the thin white t-shirt he wore. I wasn"t sure if I imagined it, but it looked like he was either wearing another shirt underneath or he"d gotten a new tattoo on his back. A very large one.
His walk was confident as usual, the blue jeans hugging his perfect behind, perversely irritating me. Must be nice to feel so sure of who you were and unafraid of where you were going in life. Even in juvie he hadn"t lost his swagger.