Daddy was tired. Daddy was very tired. And he hurt, and he hated the fact that his mother was having to take time out of her life to come help and that he was being a burden on his wife who already dealt with so much.
The next morning, Alex's mother showed up as did Del, his insurance agent, to help him fill out the short-term disability claim for his business. He prayed this didn't cause his premiums to go up - that was the last thing they needed.
Then there was also the fact that stuff still needed to get done for the business. Kyle was trying, but there was too much for him to handle, so they arranged for a student from the local college to come in and help part-time so they could get at least some of the smaller jobs done. Ellie at least kept Kyle from completely getting behind while Alex was laid up.
What really drove him nuts, though, was that he couldn't hold his daughter or wife. He felt so bad every time Peyton reached out to him, and he couldn't reach back to take her in his arms.
He couldn't stay in bed all the time, so while he stayed in the downstairs bedroom overnight, he slowly moved around during the days even though he couldn't really do much. One day, he fell asleep, only to wake to find his legs had become the track for the cars Peyton had taken from daycare.
"I always thought I'd be behind the wheel, not under them," he told his mother with a laugh, ignoring the pain in his chest as he tried to sit up.