The Strange Healing (6 page)

Sara started to say something, but the waiter chose that moment to bring their food.  Heath was disappointed, knowing the moment had been broken.

They enjoyed their meal, and the easy conversation.  When they finished, Heath asked, “Ready for some dessert?”

“Oh, my goodness, no,” Sara insisted.  “I'm not even sure I can get up and walk out yet, I'm so full.  That was delicious.”

Chuckling, Heath said, “I'm glad you liked it.  I'm not ready for the evening to end yet, so how about if we have some coffee and let our dinners digest?”

“That sounds wonderful.”

Heath motioned a waiter over to order their coffee, then said, “Sara, there is something I'd like to talk to you about.”

“You sound serious, Heath.  What is it?”

“
It is serious.”  Reaching out, he took one of her hands in his and gently rubbed his thumb over the back of it as he contemplated how he wanted to approach his concern.  He cautiously started, “I know we haven't known each other long, but I guess I'm a lot like my sister.  I feel like we have.  And I care about you.”  He took a breath, trying to draw strength.  “I care enough about you that you deserve the absolute truth about how I feel.  I care a great deal for you, and when I care for someone I tend to be very protective of them.”

She looked up into his eyes and said, “Heather told me that today.”

“She did?”

“
Yes.  Well, sort of.  She said you're very protective of the people that are important to you.  I told her those people were lucky, and she laughed.  She said she agreed, but that you were way too overprotective with her.”

Now Heath laughed as he said, “That sounds like my sister, but I don't think it's possible to be too overprotective with that little brat.”

“You really love her, don't you?”

“
Yes, I do.  And I will admit I am very protective of her, especially since our parents died.  Now that she's married, though, Phil's taken over the full-time job of watching out for her.  She accuses us of double teaming her, and I guess she's actually right, because we both love her and watch out for her.”

“
That doesn't sound all that bad.”

Phil had to smile at that comment.  “I'm glad to hear you say that.”  When she cocked her head a little and looked at him, he explained, “Like I said, I care a great deal about you already.  That means I'm going to be just as protective of you as I am her.”

Heath could tell she was wondering what exactly that would be like, as she said, “Okay.”

“
Sara, I just want to warn you.  I will do everything I can to make sure you're safe, healthy, and happy.”

“
Why do you say that as a warning?  That sounds like a dream come true, having someone trying their best to keep you happy.”

Smiling, he explained, “I hope you always feel that way.”  After taking a sip of his coffee, he went on, “I am concerned about one thing already, though.”

“What's that?”

Rubbing her hand with his thumb again, he explained, “I have a feeling something's bothering you that you haven't told me about.  Something to do with those men that approached you yesterday.”  When she dropped her eyes to the table and tried to pull her hand away, he held on a little tighter.  “Sweetheart, I'm not going to push you to talk about it until you're ready to, but please remember that I'm a good listener.  I think you'll feel a lot better if you talk about it.”

Sara was quiet, still looking down at the table.  Heath forged ahead, stating, “In the meantime, until you're ready to talk about it, I don't like the idea of you staying alone in your motel.”

Her voice wavered a little as she said, “I'll be fine.”

He quickly assured her, “I think physically you'll be fine, but I worry about you getting a good night's sleep.”  She did look up at him, and he could tell she was concerned about the same thing.  “Phil and Heather would welcome you to stay as their guest for a few more nights, I'm sure, Sara.  As a matter of fact, Heather would be ecstatic.”

Sara shook her head as she said, “I know they told me I would be welcome anytime, but they've already done so much for me, I couldn't impose on them any more.  I'll be fine in my motel room.  It seems like a safe place to stay.”

“I'm not so worried about how safe your motel is.  I'm just not sure you should be alone this soon after that happened.  Will you please at least consider staying with them, at least for another day or two?”

“
I'm sorry, Heath, but I just can't take advantage of them like that.  Besides, I'll have to stay alone sometime, so why put it off?”  Seeing the worry on his face, she tried to assure him.  “I'll be fine, really.  You don't need to worry so much about me.”

He encased her hand again and caught her eyes as he said, “Yes, I do, Sara.  That's what I was just telling you.  I care about you and I'll try to protect you.”  He watched as understanding came over her face.  “I told you I won't push you on this and I won't, but I will ask you to do two things for me.”

“What's that?”

“
I want you to tell me you'll think about what I've said.  I think if you'll trust me enough to talk to me you'll feel a lot better.  Hopefully we can talk it out, but I think you'll feel better even just sharing your concern with someone.”

She considered his words carefully before nodding her head.  “Okay, I promise I'll think about it.  But that's all I can promise right now.  What's the other thing?”

“If I take you to your motel room tonight and you're restless and can't sleep, I want you to call me.”

“
Heath, thank you for your concern, but I'm not going to call you in the middle of the night.”

He sighed, but asked, “Will you please at least call me if you have a nightmare?”

“Again, I appreciate your concern, but if I call you in the middle of the night, how are you going to be able to work tomorrow?”

“
Sweetheart, I told you earlier that I won't say something if I don't mean it.  Let me worry about my work tomorrow.  I don't have any early meetings, so that's not a concern to me.  What is a concern is if you have a nightmare and are alone.  So I'll ask again, will you please call me if you have any problems like that?”

Sara took a long time answering, and Heath could tell she was giving it a lot of thought, which he was glad to see.  Finally, though, she said, “Heath, I hear what you're saying, I really do.  I can give you my word that if I do have a nightmare so strong it shakes my very core, I will call you, and I want to thank you right now for offering that.  I feel a lot better knowing that offer is out there.”  She paused, sighed, and added, “But if I just have a restless night, or maybe even a bad dream that just wakes you up with a start and then you can shake it off, I feel I need to deal with that myself.  I can't always call you in the middle of the night if I have a bad dream or think I hear some kind of noise.”

“Why not?”

She looked at him as if he were crazy.  “What do you mean why not?  Because you have your own life, too, like going to work.  You can't always come running to me anytime I have a problem.”

“Why not?”  He gave her time to see that he was serious, then explained, “Did I not just explain to you that I fully intend to protect you?  That means I want to be there when you need me.  I want to protect you from anything that threatens your safety or well being or happiness.  The thought of you alone in a motel room at night, trembling from some kind of nightmarish experience is not acceptable at all to me.”  He lifted one of her hands and placed a gentle kiss on it before holding it in his own.

She watched his face as he talked, and Heath knew she saw his determination.  He conceded a bit as he said, “I'm not going to ask you to promise me you'll call if that happens, but I do want to know if you understand what I just said?”

She reluctantly nodded and quietly said, “Yes, I think I do.”

“
Then all I'm asking is if you do have any problems tonight, please remember what I said, how important it is to me to be there, to be able to protect you and hold you in that kind of situation.”

He sipped some coffee, watching her digest this.  Deciding it was time for a subject change, he asked, “How's your coffee?  They have their own blend, and I really like it.”

Sara smiled, and Heath was sure it was in response to the change of subject.  “Seriously, this is the best coffee I've ever had.  Do they sell their blend so you can make it at home?”

“
Unfortunately, no.  I think it's their way of making sure you'll come back again.  It is really good, though, isn't it?”

She agreed, and Heath was able to slide them gently into easier, more casual conversation.  They once again found themselves enjoying easy conversation. 

Eventually, Heath confessed, “As much as I'd like this evening to go on indefinitely, I suppose I should be getting you home.”

“
If we must,” she reluctantly agreed.  He paid the bill and kept his hand gently in the small of her back as he guided her to his car.  After opening her door and seeing to her comfort, he drove them to the motel where she was staying.

He turned the key off and placed his hand on her arm, keeping her in the car.  “Sweetheart, thank you for tonight.  I've been looking forward to it all day, and it seems I enjoyed it even more than I anticipated.”

He adored the blush on her face as she said, “Thank you, Heath.  I really had a good time tonight, too.”

He took one of her hands in his and said, “I just want to remind you what I said earlier.  I hope you sleep well tonight, but if you have any problems, I really do want you to call me.  Can I program my number into your phone so I know you have it?”  When she looked surprised, he reminded her, “I plan on protecting you, remember?  That includes making sure you have my number and can call me quickly and easily if you want to, for any reason.”  Before she could object, he said, “I'm not saying any more about it now, other than to remind you to please feel free to call me anytime for any reason at all, okay?”

Heath saw unshed tears in her eyes as she whispered, “Thank you.  I don't really deserve anyone doing stuff like this for me, but I want you to know how much I appreciate it.  Not only you, but everything Heather and Phil have done for me, as well.”

He kept his voice gentle as he said, “You do deserve it, and I don't like hearing you say things like that, but we'll talk about that another time.  I need to ask you one more time, are you sure you want to stay here, and not with Phil and Heather?”

“I'm sorry, Heath, but yes, I'm sure.  I'm afraid the longer I put it off the harder it's going to be.”

Smiling, hoping to encourage her, he said, “Okay, then let's get you safely inside your room.”  Once she opened the door to her room, he went inside, wanting to check for himself that everything seemed safe.  Once he was assured, he pulled her into his arms and met her eyes with his.  He slowly bent down to gently touch his lips with hers.  She closed her eyes and leaned into him, as he deepened the kiss.  He was thrilled to feel her arms tentatively wrap around him.

After a more passionate kiss than he had intended, he reluctantly pulled himself away.  “Keep your phone by your bed and feel free to call if you need me, Sweetheart.  I'll call you tomorrow morning.  Now, lock the door when I leave, and sleep well, Honey.”

“
Thank you.  Good night, Heath.” 

He leaned in for one more quick kiss, then left.  He waited in the hall until he heard her lock the door, then went back home, hoping she was all right tonight.

“
I'll be fine, I'll be fine, I'll be fine.”  Sara frowned, as her mantra wasn't calming her nerves as she'd hoped.  Being alone in her motel room, she was unable to hide from the terrible memories that kept haunting her.  Maybe Heath was right, and she should talk to him.  There was no doubt in her mind that he would be a good listener, and she might feel a lot better if she did talk to him.  But she really liked Heath, and what if after hearing what an awful person she was he avoided her?  She didn't know what to do. 

Maybe she should just move again, and not get too close to anyone.  That would probably be safer, but she hadn't had a close friend in a long time, and she just wasn't sure she could give up that chance.  She knew if she and Heather spent much time together they'd have that closeness
that was so hard to find.  That would be wonderful. 

And then there was Heath.  When she was talking to Heather this morning she realized just how much she'd come to care for him.  She'd never been able to trust anyone enough to actually care about them deeply this quickly, until now.  Now she felt like she and Heather had been good friends for years, and she felt somehow drawn to Heath.  She had feelings for him she'd never had for a man before.  And she liked those feelings and wanted to explore them further.  She'd gotten tears in her eyes this evening when he told her he cared for her and planned to be protective.  How could she possibly walk out on something that sounded so nice? 

She decided to take a hot shower and go to bed.  Hopefully she'd be able to get some sleep and could think about it all tomorrow.  She'd just take the day to think it all through and make some kind of decision.