She laughed dryly. “Of course. Uh… yeah. This is your grandma’s medication.” She went in front of the elderly woman and brought the spoon to her lips.
His grandmother opened up, then smiled. She craned her neck to Goldie. “Are you going to eat any? You and Chad used to love it when I made it. Homemade. None of that pre-made stuff.” She smacked her lips as she took a few more spoonfuls.
Goldie laughed. “You made the best applesauce in town. Hell, you were the best cook in town. Remember how many blue ribbons you won in all those cook-offs?”
She nodded, smiling, and then the smile faded and the dementia pushed the slice of lucidity away. She stopped opening her mouth, and her gaze returned to the pictures on the screen.
“You just got to take them when they come,” Shelly said softly as she ran her fingers through his grandmother’s white hair.
“I do,” he said in a low voice.
“I’ll call in the aides to put Helen on her bed. She’s been sitting too long.” Shelly walked toward the door, then looked over her shoulder. “If you ever want to go out and get a cup of coffee, I’m available. I know how hard this is, and I understand what you’re going through. Just reaching out to you.”
“Thanks. I’ll keep that in mind.” Goldie turned back to his grandmother and wrapped his arm around her thin shoulders, resting his cheek against her head.
Two muscled men came in a few minutes later. One of the CNAs, Hendricks, told Goldie all about the Harley he’d just bought. Goldie welcomed the distraction, and he was always game for motorcycle talk. Kingsley, the other one, told Goldie he was thinking about buying a Honda bike, and Goldie decided it was his duty to talk him out of it.
A couple hours later, his phone pinged and he opened Chains’s text.
Chains: 5605 Linda Vista Rd
Fuck yeah. He tipped his head back as a jolt of adrenaline coursed through him, and then he tightened up. What the fuck’s the matter with me? I’m acting like an ass, and for what? A chick? But he knew it wasn’t just for a chick. It was for Hailey, and he had to stop that shit pronto. I haven’t seen or thought about her in years. This is fuckin’ lame.
Well, that wasn’t exactly true. He had thought about her, wondering how she was doing and how she looked. Ryan rarely talked about her, and if he did it was just in passing. Whenever Goldie would ask how she was doing, Ryan would just say she was fine and change the subject.
Glancing at his grandmother, he saw she was sleeping; she looked so peaceful. Leaning over, he stroked her cheek, then kissed it. “I’ll see you soon,” he whispered. He took out a CD from her drawer and placed it into the small player on the nightstand. “Moon River” was one of his grandma’s favorite songs, so he hit the Play button and the piano and harp strains floated in the air. With one last look at her, he walked out the door.
Goldie jumped on his bike and glanced at the time. He had to be at Get Inked soon. He left the parking lot and headed in the direction of Hailey’s address. As he waited for the light to change, a car with a couple of women pulled alongside him.
“I love your Harley,” the passenger said as she stared at him.
He gave her a chin lift.
“Do you want to come to a party?” She ran her fingers right about her ample cleavage.
He shook his head.
“That’s too bad, because me and my friend can be a lot of fun.”
Normally, Goldie would take the busty redhead up on her offer, but he wasn’t interested. He wanted something different from the same old thing.
He wanted Hailey, but he knew that was fucked.
When the light changed, he swung a U-turn.
Fuck it. I’m done with this.
He headed to the tattoo shop.
Chapter Four
“Brent is so excited about going out tonight. He really is a nice guy,” Rory said as she nestled further into the massage chair at the nail salon.
“Don’t make this into something big. We’re just going out for dinner. And don’t be pushy tonight.” Hailey stared at her toes as the nail tech painted them. “I’m not so sure about this color. The blue seems too dark.”
“I love the color. Do you like mine?”
Hailey looked at her friend’s cotton candy pink color. “I do. It’s perfect for the warm weather we’ve been having. This summer we’ve got to do a barbecue together. Wouldn’t that be fun to have one around the pool?”
“You’re so lucky that your aunt has a pool. It gets so hot here in the summer. I hate it.” Rory picked up her bottled water.
“You’re welcome to come over and hang by the pool anytime. I told Claudia the same thing.” She studied the nail color again. “I really wanted a blue that looked like denim.”