Henry (The Beck Brothers) Read Online Free PDF Page A

Henry,
sorry, I had to go out in the hall, ” Claire said, her voice sounding weary.
     
    "How's Ethan? ” Henry asked, raking a hand
through his hair, as he had been doing all night.  
     
    "He's okay. They
did emergency surgery to take his appendix out. It hadn't ruptured yet, so that
was a relief. ”   Claire sighed.
     
    Henry closed his eyes
as his own relief washed over him. "That's great."
     
    "I'm sorry I
didn't call, ” Claire said
softly.
     
    "Claire, come on,
you're mind is only thinking of your son right now. I understand, ” Henry said gently.
     
    "Thank you Henry.
You've been really great about this, ” Claire said.
     
    Henry wished he could
see her face to know what she was thinking. She had gotten better about
concealing her emotions, but he could still read her with ease. "I'm not
completely heartless, ” Henry rasped, knowing that she most likely expected him to be an asshole about
the whole thing earlier today.
     
    "I never thought
you were Henry, ” Claire
whispered.
     
    Henry let that sink in
for a moment. So Claire didn't think he was a heartless asshole. Well that was
good. He was afraid he had been too hard on her. She had hugged him earlier,
even if she was scared shitless afterward. She obviously hadn't known how he
would take it. If Henry was going to be honest with himself, he enjoyed it
immensely.
     
    "How much time
off do you need? ” Henry
asked into the silence on the other side.
     
    "Oh, um, if you
need me in tomorrow, my father can watch... ” Claire started but Henry cut her off.
     
    "Shit Claire, you
do think I'm heartless! ” Henry snapped.
     
    "No, I
don't..."
     
    "Dammit! Just
tell me how long you need off for. ” Henry ground out. He was angry. Angry at himself for making Claire think that
she had to be at work while her son was in the hospital.
     
    If she were anyone
else, he'd be insisting that she come to work tomorrow. But he couldn't do that
to her. He didn't know why. Claire was special, and he wanted her to trust him.
He wanted her to know that she was valued, that she could take care of her son
and not worry about her job security.
     
    "They said Ethan
will be able to go home tomorrow and should be back on his feet by the weekend, ” Claire whispered.
     
    "Alright, take
the rest of the week off then, with pay of course, ” Henry said, trying to keep his cool.
     
    Claire gasped on the
other end, making Henry's heart clench painfully. What an ass he'd been.
"Henry, are you sure? It's only Monday, I could definitely be in on
Wednesday..."
     
    "No Claire, take
care of your son, I'll give you a call in a couple of days, ” Henry said then hung up before
she could answer.
     
    Henry clenched his
phone, resisting the urge to smash it against the wall. Claire was sweet and
kind and caring. She deserved to be with her son while he was recovering from
surgery. She deserved to be treated better by him. She was great at her job,
great at being a mother - from what he'd gathered so far - and she deserved to
be treated better.
     
     
                                                      ~~~~~
     
     
    Thursday rolled around
and Ethan was doing really well. He took his medicine without complaint. He was
even playing around a little bit with his toys. For the most part though, he
was sitting on the couch watching Yo Gabba Gabba with his PopPop. Claire's father hadn't left since Ethan came home
from the hospital. He spent the past couple nights on the couch. Claire was
grateful for the company.
     
    It was around 5:30 pm,
when there was a knock her on apartment door. Her dad looked at her, his
eyebrows raised in question. Claire shrugged, got up from the couch, and went
to the door. She looked out the peephole and got the shock of her life. Never
in a million years had she expected this person to be at her door. She yanked
it open.
     
    "Henry? What are
you doing here? ” Claire
asked in confusion.
     
    Henry