Finding Sadie (Los Rancheros #0.5) by Brandace Morrow Read Free Book Online

is enough to make me want to walk into the ocean.  The waves aren’t even soothing to me anymore.
    The thought of more stress, more drama in my life, has me waiting until it’s almost too late to get to the hospital.  Going without eye makeup makes me feel just as naked as last weekend, but the mask helps immensely.
    As I walk out of the elevator and run my hand over my ponytail, I hear the sharp snap of my heels echoing in the halls.  I needed to feel a little more badass given the possibility of seeing Batty again.
    Alyse watches me walk down the hall, her eyes show a knowing look, but I have no idea what she thinks she knows.  I hold out my ID between two fingers, ready to go this time.
    As I sign in on the volunteer’s sign-in sheet, I see a scribble on the line above, and the time written down.  Glancing up at the clock I see whoever it was came in almost an hour ago.  Giving up on trying to decipher the scrawl, I grab the hospital badge and clip it to the end of my shirt and stuff my driver’s license in the black hole that is my purse, knowing already that I’ll regret it later.
    As the double doors slide open, I walk purposefully past the Christmas lights held up with blue tape toward the crowd in the common room.  Parents, nurses, and little patients are all around several Christmas trees that are getting decorated simultaneously.
    Batty is busy lifting a little boy to place the star at the top of a tree, his biceps bulging in his black shirt with yellow logo. My stomach clenches as I have a flashback of him pinning me down, powering into me. He sets the boy down with a little grin, immediately bringing his eyes to mine.
    “Robin.  I wasn’t sure you could make it.”  Fuck.  That voice.  I could probably come right here if he said a bad word in that rumble.  I shift from one heel to the other and lick my lips.
    “Had to take care of a problem.  What are we doing here?”  I walk around to watch kids cutting out snowflakes from folded paper, the smaller ones gluing little strips of paper together in a chain.
    “We’re making it pretty for Christmas,” comes a little voice.  My eyes track it to a little scarf covered head and big tired eyes.  The man beside her looks almost as exhausted as what I assume is his daughter.  He can barely keep his eyes open and has deep bags under his eyes.
    “You’re making it beautiful.  What can I do to help?”  As I’m sitting down, I catch Batty’s eyes tracking my movement.  I tilt my head subtly to the dad and focus on the little girl.  “What’s your name?”
    “Dana,” she says with a shy smile.  I look around the other kids at the miniature table and get their names to make sure I don’t leave anyone out.  I see Batty from the corner of my eye talking quietly with the dad for a few minutes.  Finally they stand up.
    “Hey sweetie, I’m gonna take a little nap in your room okay?” he says, leaning over his daughter.  She just nods happily, not even looking up from her glue and paper.  I smile at the guy over his daughter’s head, knowing that I look like a decent human being for a change.  He nods before walking off, looking back several times as he leaves the room.
     
     
    Three hours later, I’m the one exhausted.  We’ve hung lights, paper chains, snowflakes, ornaments, and picture things that go on the windows.  I’ve talked with all of the kids, most of the parents, but stayed close to Dana.  Rachel from last week is nowhere I can see, which I take as a good thing.  Jayden isn’t here either.  I don’t think about that.
    Now I’m painting the fourth pair of little nails in a row.  Something this easy sure does bring huge smiles.  The Grinch is playing—a little early in my opinion— but the kids are absorbed and mostly quiet.  A nurse goes around asking the girls if they want to get their nails done while Batty spends time with the little guys.
    “Rachel would love this,” the little one breathes in