Awakened in August (Spring River Valley Book 8) by Clarice Wynter Page A

sake but for his own.
     
    * * * *
     
    Lydia stopped in front of the door to room 1217 and let the bustle of the busy hospital corridor flow around her for a moment. Lily hadn’t been able to tell her much about Riley’s condition, only that he would recover. Even that scant information technically broke the rules, but Lydia would never tell. She would also never admit how much she’d struggled with the decision to come and visit him. He’d left her, and as much as it hurt to see him go, she respected the fact that he’d chosen not to play games with her affections. He knew as well as she did that he’d never be able to break free of his corporate chains, and maybe that was ultimately for the best.
    She’d convinced herself she wasn’t here to torture herself or him, only to make sure he was all right and see if there was anything she could do to help. Nevertheless, there was a small part of her brain that told her perhaps the most helpful thing she could do was turn around and walk away.
    The door to the semi-private room was open, but a curtain surrounded each bed. Before Lydia could muster the courage to take one more step in any direction, the bright-colored fabric hiding the farther bed from view swung aside. An older man stepped from the alcove near the room’s expansive window and headed for the door. Lydia stared. She was looking at Riley in thirty years’ time.
    His eyes were a paler shade of denim blue and his golden hair had silvered at the temples. Wrinkles at the corners of his eyes could have been from worry, but the light in his eyes and the half smile on his face spoke of a certain level of contentment. His grin widened when he saw her , and he held out his hand.
    “You must be Lydia.”
    “I…um…yes. And you must be Mr. Thayer.”
    “I am.” His handshake was warm and firm. “I’m so glad to finally meet you.”
    Finally? Had Riley actually spoken about her to his parents? “Same here,” she responded automatically and stepped back to allow him out of the room and into the corridor. “How is he?”
    “Restless. They’re not going to be able to keep him in that bed for any length of time. I told him I’m going to buy him a cane now because there’s no way he’s going to stay still long enough for his knee to heal properly.”
    “His knee?” Lily hadn’t been able to give Lydia any details about Riley’s admission. She’d said only that he’d been brought in early Sunday morning. Lydia had been terrified his stress levels had skyrocketed due to the problems going on at his office.
    “Didn’t he tell you?” Mr. Thayer asked.
    “No…I haven’t actually talked to him.”
    The older man seemed to digest that information. “He’ll be fine, don’t you worry. If he doesn’t go out of his mind from boredom in the mean time. Why don’t you go and see him? He needs the distraction. I’m off to look for that cane.”
    “Uh…sure. It was nice to meet you.”
    Riley’s father favored her with a kind smile. “You too. I hope we get to see more of you.”
    At a loss for words, Lydia only nodded. Mr. Thayer walked away, and she was left at square one. If Riley had wanted to see her, why hadn’t he called? Especially if his ailment involved his knee and not his heart?
    Regardless, she had to see him, just to reassure herself and maybe to find out why he’d have told his family about her if he had no intention of pursuing their relationship. On a deep breath, she barreled into the room, sweeping past the first curtained alcove. “Knock, knock,” she said, stopping just short of the curtain that had fallen back into place around Riley’s bed after his father’s departure.
    “It’s open.” The flippant response made her smile. She parted the curtain and took in the sight of him stretched on the bed. He wore a NY Giants T-shirt and a pair of sweat pants, the right leg of which had been sawed off mid-thigh to accommodate an enormous plastic and Velcro contraption that looked