Free These Three Words by Holly Jacobs

easily?
    If I should have waited a little longer?

Chapter Five
    I sat with James for another half hour until the nurse came and got him. “Mr. Patterson, your wife is awake and asking for you.”
    I squeezed his hand before he got up. “Good luck. I hope that Anne’s recovery is quick.”
    “Me, too,” he said. “Good luck to your husband. I hope you don’t have to wait much longer.”
    I watched as he walked out of the room next to the nurse. There was more of a lift in his shoulders, as if he was lighter now that the weight of his waiting had ended.
    I missed him when he left.
    It was odd to feel a connection to someone you’d just met—someone you knew so very little about.
    I knew his name was James with an S and he was married to Anne with an E. And I knew that he loved her.
    Maybe all the rest didn’t mean so much after all. Maybe what mattered was a man named James loved a woman named Anne and planned to wait as long as it took to have more time with her.
    I’d always thought my love for Gray was limitless, but looking back, it couldn’t have been. I placed a limit on it. The evidence of that was in my hand.
    I’d proven that I wasn’t willing to wait any longer.
    And I wondered if that was because of Gray . . . or because of some inherent flaw in me.
    No one sat in James’ seat. And I was left alone with only the hum of the televisions and bits of conversations as my companions.
    Images from old television shows collided with my fears for Gray. People calling codes. Crash carts. Doctors in scrubs throwing bloody pads on the floor.
    I desperately wished James or Maude would come back and distract me from my imagination.
    And as if on cue, JoAnn appeared and sat in James’ vacant seat, just as I’d assured him she would.
    “I brought you granola and a charger,” she said by way of a greeting and handed me a baggie filled with dried fruit and nuts and a charger. “And coffee. And this . . .”
    She leaned over and hugged me. “Harmon said he’ll check in with you, and Wills said to be sure I told you he peed in the potty. If you want to be accurate, he peed pretty much everywhere but the potty, but it was the attempt that mattered. You know what they say about being perfect in the attempt. Don’t tell him, but I’ll be even happier when he’s perfect with his aim, too. And before you ask, I’ll assure you that yes, I potty danced for the victory.”
    As she said the words, she did a little wiggle in her chair. A ghost of a potty dance. Despite the heaviness of waiting, I couldn’t help but laugh.
    I knew that had been JoAnn’s intent.
    “Whoever knew that one day my children’s bathroom antics would be such a frequent topic of my conversations?” she asked.
    I smiled. “You love every minute of it.”
    “Wrong. I don’t enjoy cleaning up after Wills attempts peeing standing up. But otherwise, yes.” She patted my hand. “Bathroom exploits aside, I called Tom into work. I don’t want you to worry about a thing. I’ve got everything managed. Everyone at the store is pitching in, and they all send their love. I’ve got to get back soon.”
    “Oh, Jo, I’m sorry. What about the kids?” She didn’t leave them more than for an hour or so with her neighbor. She still worked part-time, but only during hours when Harmon would be home with the kids. She often said she couldn’t wait until they were both safely tucked up in school so she could return to work full time, but I think we both knew that when that day came, she’d be heartbroken.
    “Listen, the kids are fine without me for a few days. To be honest, they’re probably sick of me and welcome the change of venue.” She laughed as if it were a joke. I knew she wanted me to laugh as well. She was trying to lighten my mood, if only for a moment. But I couldn’t manage it.
    She nodded as if she understood. “Joey’s taking a nap. Leslie’s going to drop him off with me at the store when he wakes up, but she’ll keep