She nods. “I said some unkind things to him. I insinuated he didn’t need to know because I figured he would be getting bored and would leave you in the dust right about now. I think I hurt his feelings.”

I can feel Sutton’s guilt and I end up taking it on as my own. In hindsight, I probably should have told him. It would have been easier because he could have made an early exit and never felt any further obligation to me. I should have told him before we had sex, because that’s such an intimate act…never mind that we both went into it with the idea of it being only a one-night stand.

“Hey,” I say, getting her attention. Her eyes raise up and I give her a confident smile. “We both owe him an apology for keeping him in the dark.”

“Think he’ll accept it?” she asks dubiously. “He was really angry.”

I shrug. “That’s up to him. All we can do is offer it. Besides…I’m pretty sure that now that he knows, his interest in me isn’t going to be so keen. I mean…who wants to be with someone with cancer?”

Sutton leans forward in the chair that sits opposite from me. “I don’t know, Olivia. He brought you soup.”

“When he thought I had the flu,” I point out.

“He stayed there and took care of you. Held your head while you vomited,” she says.

Yes, he had. He wiped my face with a cloth, held my hair back, gently helped me take my medication, and tucked me in to bed. But that doesn’t mean anything. Garrett’s a nice guy. He’d do that for anyone.

I think it’s more telling that the note he left said he’d talk to me later, yet I haven’t heard a word from him since then. I think it’s probably safe to say that I’ve scared Garrett off for good.

—
Amazingly…I don’t feel too bad. Sutton isn’t taking any chances, though, wrapping her arm around my waist as we walk up the flight of stairs to my apartment.

“Think you can handle something to eat?” she says.

A slow roll of my stomach tells me that’s not a great idea. “I don’t feel as bad as I did yesterday, and I’m guessing the extra antinausea meds are helping, but I don’t think I can handle anything just yet. Besides…I didn’t get really sick until a few hours after my treatment yesterday.”

“Well, Dr. Yoffman said you can take an oral dose of the Zofran as soon as you get home. He said that will help to stay ahead of it.”

“Sounds good,” I say, practically out of breath by the time we reach the second-floor landing. I reach down into my purse to grab my key, when I feel Sutton stiffen up beside me. Raising my head, I see Garrett sitting on the concrete landing, his back leaning against my door.

“Hey,” I say, momentarily baffled by his presence.

Garrett cuts a hard glance at Sutton, then looks back to me. “How did your treatment go?”

“Good,” I say with a smile as I watch him push up from the ground, wiping his butt with his hands. “Faster than yesterday’s, but I only got one drug today compared to the two I got yesterday.”

“Bendamustine?” he asks, and my jaw drops open. He reaches out and takes the key out of my hand. “I did a little research.”

Garrett turns his back on me to unlock my door and I shoot Sutton a glance. She nibbles on her lip in worry, and I can see she’s dying to make peace with Garrett.

He pushes my door open and steps back to let me pass. I walk in with Sutton following right behind me. Fatigue is hitting me hard, so I immediately go over to my couch and plop down on it.

There’s an awkward silence as Sutton watches Garrett and Garrett watches me. I close my eyes and lean my head back on the couch. I don’t have the strength to help them with their issues. They’re going to have to figure it out on their own.

“So…what can I do for you, Olivia?” Sutton says as she walks into the living room. “Want to watch a movie or something?”

I give her a slight smile but shake my head. “I don’t need anything. I’m going to take the meds and probably go lie in bed to rest. Hope I don’t get sick later.”

Garrett immediately walks back to my room, and within a few seconds he’s back with my bottle of Zofran in one hand and a partial bottle of Gatorade in the other. Sutton and I just watch in silence as he shakes out the pills and hands them to me.

“Thanks,” I murmur, and swallow them down with a sip of the Gatorade.

Garrett’s eyes pin me…filled with confusion and worry. He doesn’t even look at Sutton, but he addresses her when he says, “I’m going to stay with Olivia for a while so we can talk.”

His message is clear. Please leave.

“Garrett,” Sutton says, her voice practically pleading. “I’m really sorry about—”

“Just don’t,” he says as his head slowly swivels in her direction. His jaw is locked hard and his eyes are cold. “I don’t want to get into it with you right now.”

Sutton frowns over his rejection and she opens her mouth to argue, but I decide to butt in. I do need to talk to Garrett and he clearly doesn’t want to hear Sutton’s apology right now. “Sutton…I’m fine. Why don’t you go ahead and go. I’ll call you later.”

Her gaze flicks back and forth between me and Garrett, but he doesn’t notice because he merely turns away and walks back into my bedroom.

Sutton spins on me. “Are you sure you want me to leave?” she whispers.