Friends & Fortune Cookies: A Sudden Falls Romance by Elizabeth Bemis

tried, unsuccessfully, not to think of the current occupant of my guest room.
    With It’s Just Coffee, I had to be honest with my name and occupation. However, for once in my life, I hoped I didn’t encounter anyone who had actually read my articles.
    I sat down to work on my book outline and was pretty immediately confronted with the age-old problem of a blank page. Interesting because I didn’t normally have that problem with an article. But, somehow it was different when I had a whole book to fill instead of a seven-hundred-and-fifty-word blog post or newspaper article.
    I tried breaking the information up into small chunks, and suddenly I hit my groove... right as I heard a thump from the guest room, followed by a muffled “ Dammit!”
    Shoving the computer aside, I launched myself down the hall.
    I found Joe leaning against the wall next to the door. He turned toward me when I spoke. “Everything okay in here?”
    “God, this is humiliating.”
    “What’s the matter?”
    “I have to pee.”
    “Oh.” I shrugged. “Well, I can help you down the hall.” Just like before, I supported his weight with my arm around his waist as he hobbled beside me. Together, we got him into the bathroom.
    “You’re on your own at this point.” I backed out and pulled the door shut after me. Getting him into his clothes earlier was one thing. This was entirely different.
    “You’re pretty squeamish for a nurse,” he said from behind the closed door.
    “That’s because I’m not a nurse. I’m a writer.”
    It seemed wildly intimate to be standing outside the door while he answered nature’s call. The toilet flushed. The faucet came on and then off again. Moments later, the door reopened, and Joe hobbled out, looking more exhausted and pained than when he went in.
    “Come on, big guy. Let’s get you back into bed.”
    “Is that an invitation?”
    “Do you ever quit?” And did I want him to? Between his pass the other night and this newfound flirting, I entertained ideas I had no business entertaining.
    I finally got him back in bed and under the covers.
    He reached out and grabbed my hand before I could step away from the bed. “Thanks for taking care of me, Gracie. It means a lot.”
    I squeezed his fingers. I almost said, “You’d do the same for me.” But would he? I’m not sure. He hadn’t been there last year when I was trying to pick up the pieces of my life. But, of course, he didn’t know that my life had fallen apart. If I’d called him instead of simply holding on to my mad, would he have been there for me?
    What about if I’d been the one to fall off a roof? Not that I spent much time on roofs. The truth of the matter is that if I’d needed help, my first call would be to Katie or my mom. But Joe didn’t have anyone else to call, except maybe Alex. I’d never really let him be there for me, so I couldn’t dismiss his not being there for me as one of his shortcomings.
    That caused an uncomfortable twinge in my brain. I didn’t like the idea that any of our separation had been even partly my fault. Easier to be mad at him for all of it.
    “I have a work thing this morning.” It wasn’t a lie, but I’m not certain why I didn’t want to tell him about It’s Just Coffee appointment. “Will you be okay for a couple of hours until I get back?” I tried to let go of his hand, but he held on tighter.
    He was more on the ball than a guy with a head injury doped up on narcotics should be. “By ‘work thing’ do you mean a date ?”
    I rolled my eyes. “No. Not a date.” I murmured the truth.
    “It’s an interview at mumble mumble coffee ?”
    “ It’s Just Coffee , okay?” I tugged my hand away, knowing I sounded way more defensive than I needed to be at that moment. “It’s a matchmaking service.”
    “Oh.”
    “Do you want me to cancel?” I’d kind of planned my next article around this interview and whatever dates I might get out of it, so I didn’t really want to. Plus this