Faithfully (22 page)

“I’m only a
n hour away. Is everything okay?” Her voice had me slightly alarmed.

“Your dad is fine, but the doctors think he had a mil
d heart attack.” I was doing my best to remain calm, but it was hard hearing this come out of her mouth. “The ambulance is transporting him to Memorial Glenn, and Bruce and I are heading there now. You should meet us there.” My mind was thinking so many different things, and I hadn’t responded to her request. “Abby, he will be fine. Your dad is a strong man. Now, are you going to meet us?”

“Yes, of course. I’m finding a place to turn around now.” My mom and I
gave a quick good-bye and we were off the phone.

I got off at the next exit and changed directions to where I needed to go. I was only a few minutes away, but my head was spinning. It wasn’t until I pulled into a parking spot at the hospital that I felt the tears. My mind was going back to memories and then to the past few months. The guilt I felt,
because I had brought on so much added stress the last year, and specially the last few months. I placed my head in my hands and sobbed. I needed him to be okay.

I went to the emergency room desk and the lady told me the ambulance was still a few minutes out. I needed to take a seat and wait. There was no way I could sit, so I paced back in forth in the lobby. When I saw the ambulance pull
in, I went to the sliding doors. The EMTs were unloading him while a few nurses went out to meet him. I tried getting close to him as they wheeled him in, but one of the nurses pulled me back, asking me to give everyone room. It took my mom another ten minutes to show up. I wrapped my arms around her and tried not to cry. I knew this was just as hard on her as it was on me. Bruce had tried to get information, but nobody would talk to him since he wasn’t immediate family. My mom went to the counter, and that’s when I saw Alex. He was standing back, but now coming towards me. I broke down in his arms when I saw him. Alex held me tightly and told me everything would be fine.

The doctor fina
lly came out and told us that he needed to go in and open a few blocked arteries. The doctor explained that the surgery would take a few hours, but there were minor risks involved, and he felt that there wouldn’t be any complications.

I told Alex to go back to the studio
, because everyone had already arrived, but he wouldn’t. He told me they could use the rest and they would start the next day. I sat in the waiting room, holding my mother’s hand. I knew the doctor said my dad would be fine, but until I saw him I couldn’t help thinking the worst. I knew my dad had to sell the pub. I loved the pub, but having my dad around was more important than some bar.

The nurses came out and allowed us one at a time to go see my dad in recovery. My mom went first. My knees were bouncing like crazy. I couldn’t wait for my turn. When my mom came
out, she had a smile on her face and I knew my dad was doing well. I quickly got up and followed the nurse back. When I saw my dad I walked over, grabbed his hand, leaned in, and gave him a kiss.

“
Hey, daddy,” my voice was soft as I spoke to him.

“Bri, you didn’t need to be here.” I let out a small laugh.

“Well, it was either this or hang out at home in my pajamas. I thought this would be more fun.” My dad went to laugh, but grabbed his chest. He was still sore. “Listen, I’ve been thinking, and I agree that you need to sell the pub. As much as I love that place, I’ve decided I love you more.”

“I’m glad you love me more than a building.” He winked at me.

“The doctor said you can’t do anything for four to six weeks. No lifting, nothing.” I was giving him the eye. “I’ll take care of the closing and getting it listed. I’ll call Charlie tomorrow and tell him I’ll need a few weeks off to sort things out and help out there.” I knew my dad was going to oppose, but getting the pub ready to sell was kind of my closure, and I needed it. “Listen, get some rest and I’ll be back tomorrow to see you.” I kissed his forehead and left the room. I felt better when I left than when I got there. I knew my dad would be okay.

~18~

Alex drove us home. I was pretty quiet the whole way, trying to map out the next few weeks in my head. In a way I was thankful that the girls were in Pittsburgh. My mom needed to take care of my dad, and Alex had his own obligations and work to do. I knew my hands were going to be full the next few weeks with trying to close the pub.

I don’t really remember the night once we got back. I was just going through the motions and I don’t remember even crawling into bed. Alex didn’t bother me, but remained by my side in case I needed him.
He did have coffee ready for me that morning when I woke up.

“Hey, I have to head over and get started, but if you need
me, give me a call. I know you have a lot going on today.” He leaned in and kissed me. “Do you want me to stay and help?” His voice almost sounded worried, like I was going to take him up on the offer.

“No, I need to make some phone calls.” I sat up against the pillows and picked up my phone. I called my mother first to see how she was doing. She was getting ready so she could spend the day at the hospital with my dad. I told her I was contacting a real estate agent to get
things moving on the pub. She seemed happy about that.

My
next call was to Charlie. I explained what happened with my dad, but he had already heard. I shouldn’t be surprised since we lived in the small town. He was fine with me taking the next few weeks off and was very understanding. He had lost his dad a few years prior and was always a family man.

I got showered, dressed
, and headed out the door. My first stop was the pub. When I went in, I walked around, looking at the pictures on the wall. My dad had filled the place with pictures of family and friends, and at times, everyone blended together because of the close relationships. I had a lot of great memories here, but knew the time it took to run it was time I couldn’t afford to give with the girls.

I ended up in the office at
first. I started to go through the books and paperwork on the desk. The last few months my dad had lost almost all organizational skills. Some of the dates showed it was around the time I stopped working. I knew he was getting overwhelmed, but I didn’t realize it was to this point.

I looked up when I heard the office door open. Johnny came in and sat in the chair next to the desk. “Hey, how are you holding up?”

“Good, my dad is doing well, and I was able to get a few weeks off from school.” I leaned back in the chair.

“With everything, Alex said you were selling the pub.” Johnny looked concerned.

“Honestly, it sucks. I love this place, but I need my dad around, too. I’d rather see this place go.” I looked up at the clock and noticed the time. “Shit, I have to meet with the realtor at his office.” I stood up.

“Can I take you to lunch after?” Johnny stood with me.

“I’d love that. I’ll send you a text when I’m done.” He walked out with me as I locked up. “You didn’t want to help at the studio today?”

“
Nope, it’s the creating stage. It’s not the drinking, I can handle watching them drink. It’s the stupid shit they do and say that is irritating.” I wondered if Alex was one of them, but what he did at his job was not my business, even though the thought of it was slightly irritating. “Text me!” Johnny shouted over his shoulder as he climbed into my old car.

The meeting was very surreal.
My dad had the bar completely paid off so everything was going to be pure profit, and with an attached liquor license, my parents would do very well for themselves once they sold. I didn’t realize how much an established liquor license was worth. I sent Johnny a text and then called my mother to fill her in on the meeting. She seemed very pleased and told me she would relay all the information to my dad once he was up from his nap.

             
Lunch was nice. I didn’t do a lot of talking, but Johnny filled me in on Christmas Eve with Sam after I left. It sounded like they did a lot of talking, and after she ended things with Brian she was going to give him a final chance. I was happy for them both, but hoping that neither of them screwed things up.

             
Alex called and texted a few times to check in with me, but he seemed busy on his end. Johnny came back to the pub with me to help. I put him to work with me sorting papers and getting the books squared away. If a buyer wanted to look at the books, there was no way I could show them receipts and check stubs.

             
I talked to Daryl and the girls about my dad and the fact we were selling. I told them that I would talk to any new buyers and put in excellent words of recommendation. They were heartbroken when I told them the doors would be closed for good in two weeks.

             
Johnny stayed until we closed. I was surprised Alex wasn’t there yet. I sent him a message before I got in the shower. There was no response when I got out. I crawled into bed and fell asleep, but was woken up by Alex stumbling in the bedroom. He plopped down on the bed and wrapped his arms around me. He stunk of booze and even pot. I pushed him off me. I was so pissed. I wished he had just stayed at his own house. It wasn’t until he tried to kiss me that I blew up.

             
“What the fuck are you doing?” I reached over and turned the lamp on. Alex looked slightly surprised, thought it was hard to tell with his eyes so slanted. “Did you drive over here?”

             
“Eric dropped me off.” He tilted his head. “What’s the problem?”

             
“The problem is you are drunk and stoned and came in here and woke me up from my sleep.” I stood up and grabbed my pillow. “I had a long day and just want to sleep.”

             
“I had a tough day too. We are making some great shit.” He reached over to grab my wrist, but I pulled it away. “The sounds we put out tonight are nothing like I’ve heard before.” I wanted to scream that I didn’t care, and the fact he was referring to himself and Paige as we had me pissed. He and I were a
we
, not Alex and Paige.

I slammed
the door behind me as I walked into Lily’s room to sleep. I was so mad I couldn’t fall back asleep. I finally went downstairs, watched TV, and fell asleep on the couch.

             
I woke up early. I had so much on my mind that I walked quietly into my room and put on my running clothes. I hated morning runs, but I couldn’t sit still any longer. It was cold out. It helped me wake up. My mind was racing, but I couldn’t shut it off. I was so mad at Alex over last night. I wasn’t sure if it was the coming in trashed and high or the
we
statements he kept making.

             
When I rounded the corner to go back to the house, I was dreading walking in. I had zero energy to deal with Alex, but knew it was inevitable. When I walked in the house he was still quiet. I made a pot of coffee and waited for it to brew. I had a cup before I tackled the stairs. I didn’t even walk into the bedroom, but made a beeline to the bathroom. After my shower I dried my hair, put on my makeup, and wrapped my robe around myself. When I entered the room, Alex was still asleep on the bed. I wanted to throw something at him and wake his ass up, but I also didn’t want to deal with him. Instead I quietly got dressed and headed out for the day.

             
I drove to the hospital to see my dad. I couldn’t make it yesterday because I was too busy, but made time today to see him. When I walked in he already looked better. There was color back on his face and he was sitting up, eating a very bland looking breakfast. The nurse was checking his vitals and changing out his IV bag.

             
“You look better already,” I said when I walked into the room.

             
“Bri, they are trying to kill me. Look, look at this garbage they are trying to feed me.” He put his fork down. “How about a real breakfast of bacon, eggs, and sausage?” The nurse cut him off, reminding him that was the reason his arteries were clogged and how he ended up in here in the first place.  

             
I laughed, because he was definitely feeling better. As soon as I sat down, he wanted to know about the meeting the day before with the real estate agent. He seemed happy with the figures I was given, and I told him the realtor thought it would sell quickly because of the established clientele and reputation. I stayed a few hours until my mom got there. I gave them both a kiss and headed out to the pub. It was a good hour drive back to town, so I called the girls, talked to David’s parents, and told them what had happened.

             
My next call was Derek. He told me he would drive the girls all the way up and stay a few days. I thanked him, because I could have figured out a way to meet him. I no longer had to worry about the girls getting home, which eliminated a little bit of the stress.

             
When I got to the pub Daryl was there, but Emily had called in and told Daryl she took a different job and needed to start right away. We were going to be short-staffed tonight. The only good thing was that, between Christmas and New Year’s, business was slow, and the two of us should be able to handle it.

             
I went into the office to change and saw my phone. Alex had left me a lot of messages and texts, but I didn’t take the time to listen or read them. I just needed time to cool off.

             
The pub was busy and, at times, overwhelming. When Johnny came in, I wanted to kiss him. He helped bus tables, set tables, grab beer from the cooler, basically anything we needed. Around eleven it finally slowed down, and we were able to catch our breath.

             
“Wow, this little place is a goldmine.” Johnny plopped down on a barstool. I stood at the end of the bar next to him. I didn’t respond, but Daryl was telling Johnny what a great business it was and how good the tips were.

             
A young guy sat a few stools down from Johnny. He was in his mid to late thirties, had sandy blond hair, and even under his business shirt you could make out the muscles. Daryl walked over to offer him a drink.

             
“I’m not here to drink. I’m looking for an Abrianna Porter,” the guy said. I looked over, wondering who he was, because nobody called me Abrianna. Well, my parents did when I was in trouble.

             
“Can I help you?” I walked behind the bar and stood in front of the man.

             
“I wish you could, but I’m looking for—” I cut him off.

             
“Abrianna Sullivan O’Hare Porter?” The man gave me a puzzled look.

             
“That’s me. What can I help you with?”

             
“Well, it’s my lucky night.” He leaned on his elbows and leaned in a bit to shout over the noise. “I’m Michael White, the literary agent who has been calling you for days.” I had been getting calls from an unknown number. I never answered those and he didn’t leave a voicemail, so I figured it was a telemarketer. “Can we sit some place and talk?”

             
I looked over at Johnny and asked if he could help Daryl for a little bit longer. I walked over to a table with Michael and sat down. “I’m not sure about all this. I have a lot going on and I had no idea Alex was even sending you the first part of the book.” I didn’t want this guy wasting his time.

             
“Normally I don’t chase people down, but I see money signs when I read your first few chapters.” I’m sure he saw money signs when he saw it was from Alex.

             
“I haven’t had the time to write recently and I don’t think I have time even to finish it anytime soon.” I was being honest. My time right now was pretty tight.

             
“I have great relationships with publishers, and this novel you are writing will get us into a bidding war. I only have the first ten chapters, but it is really good.” He was staring at me pretty intensely. “I am on my own personal time here, so you think I would have come trying to pitch to you if I didn’t think it was any good?” There was a small pause. “If someone doesn’t answer or return my first few calls I usually move on. Authors are a dime a dozen.” He waved Daryl over. “I guess I’ll take a Guinness. I have a feeling this is going to take a bit.”

             
I sat there and talked to him until it was time to clean up. In the beginning I was very reluctant to push forward with this book. I agreed to give him a chapter every week to two weeks if he would allow me to publish under a pen name. There were other negotiations like flying to New York to meet with his editor at his office and cleaning up a few things. When Michael left, I jumped up and hugged Daryl and Johnny. Alex walked in as I was hugging Johnny. His eyes were burning through both of us. I asked Daryl if he could manage the cleanup and I would come in early tomorrow to stock and finish. Johnny left and I had Alex follow me to the office.

             
“Looks like I missed something.” Alex sat in the seat next to the desk and crossed his legs.

             
“You are an asshole,” I blurted out. Alex’s eyes widened like he was surprised. “You wake me up in the middle of the night drunk and stoned, and then you think you are going to walk in here, see something innocent, and make me feel bad.” I was pissed.