“Only if you’ve got time,” he said, looking back at him.
“I’ll make time,” he said. “It’s coffee after all, and we all need it in the morning.”
Lance smiled and said, “Well, I sure do. I’m definitely a coffee drinker,” he said.
And he slowly pushed his wheelchair outside in the sun. If nothing else he needed the sunshine and some vitamin D. Jessica was right about that. In the morning he wouldn’t burn. He knew it would still take a few days for the antibiotics to kick in fully, but he had to admit to feeling a little bit better. When Dennis arrived with a cup of coffee and a glass of juice, Lance smiled and thanked him.
But Dennis just laughed. “Be prepared for company,” he said, as he turned to leave, seeing Jessica coming with her own plate of food.
“One of the benefits of living and working here,” Lance said, motioning at the food, “is that you get to have the same food that we do.”
“And that’s a huge benefit,” she said. “This is actually fresh orange juice,” she said, picking it up and taking a sip. She studied Lance over the rim of the glass, and he smiled back at her.
“Yes, I feel much better,” he said. “I think I just overdid it yesterday.”
Her gaze still watchful, she nodded. “And who knows if that iron is starting to kick in or not.”
“I doubt if it’s that fast,” he said, “but I did make sure I had lots of dark greens and beef for dinner last night.”
“Good,” she said. “We’ll get you there eventually.”
“I just hadn’t really expected the eventually to start off so dismally,” he said.
“Everybody is different,” she said. “Everybody has to heal on their own.”
“I know,” he said with a smile. “I’m just so grateful everybody came in and out last night, keeping me awake,” he said, rolling his eyes. “But you guys were checking up on me, so I can’t really complain. Speaking of which,” he said, lifting his fork and pointing it at her, “I presume it’s you I have to thank for the guitar.”
Her face beamed into a beautiful smile.
He stared at her, fascinated, because she was one of those people who showed every expression on her face. Whereas he didn’t seem to show any, she was like this open book.
“Yes, indeed,” she said. “I remembered what you said, and I was at a secondhand store, so it didn’t cost very much,” she said. “Honestly, getting it tuned cost more than buying the guitar itself.”
“Well, I did run my fingers across the strings,” he confessed. “And it was nice to hear that it was tuned and in good order.”
“Good,” she said. “I never really know if people are doing what they said they’ll do,” she said. “And it’s certainly not my field.”
“Not a problem,” he said, chuckling. “When I go back after breakfast, maybe I’ll try it out.” He flexed his fingers. “I’m not sure I’ll be able to play.”
“It’s worth a try. Do you have sessions today?”
“No, not for a couple days,” he said. “Shane has put me on minor stuff, no heavy-duty workouts until I’m back on my feet again.”
“That’s probably best,” she said. “Much better to take it slow and steady instead of going too far, too fast, only to end up going backward.”
“Exactly,” he said. Just then somebody called her, so she excused herself, and he could see that she would not likely be back.
So, finishing his coffee, he rolled his way back over and filled it up again, tucked it into a little cupholder on the wheelchair, which he thought was one of the best little add-ons to a wheelchair that he’d seen. He slowly made his way back to his room. Once there, he put the coffee cup down, so it was out of the way, then picked up the guitar, trying to adjust his position. He shifted awkwardly up onto the bed, then shifted again so the bed was in a better sitting position, where he could sit with his legs stretched out.
Gently at first, he strummed the guitar. Soon soft gentle musical notes filled the room. He leaned back, closing his eyes, and let the pleasure of hearing the music float through him again, soaking it into his bones. It was such a healing sound for him, and he wondered why he’d never thought to have some musical instrument with him. Mostly because music had been out of the realm of possibility, so he’d just stopped letting it be part of his world. He gently let his fingers play, going from a love song to a country song and back to a ballad. By the time he opened his eyes, several people were in the doorway. He looked at them in surprise, his fingers coming down over the strings to silence them.
“I’m sorry,” he said. “I never gave it a thought, but I shouldn’t be playing inside, should I?”
Dani stepped through the crowd to say, “Maybe not at certain times,” she said, “but, during the day like this, something like that is absolutely beautiful,” she said. “You are very talented.”
He smiled at her. “Thank you,” he said. “And I promise I’ll try not to fill the halls with music all day long.”
“You’re definitely welcome to play inside during the day,” she said. “But, when you want to take it outside, just let us know,” she said. “I’m sure you’ll have quite an audience who will enjoy the music with you.”
He loved that. He loved the freedom to be a part of this. And he really loved the acceptance from those around him.
Chapter 8
Jessica hoped Lance didn’t see her in the back of the crowd, but she’d been leaning against the wall in the hallway with her eyes closed, just enjoying the music. When the crowd had swelled to the point that Dani was forced to step in, Jessica had felt a little guilty
