Total pages in book: 107
Estimated words: 100873 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 504(@200wpm)___ 403(@250wpm)___ 336(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 100873 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 504(@200wpm)___ 403(@250wpm)___ 336(@300wpm)
She murmured something along those lines to him when the medical staff cleared the room and Gloria excused herself to go to the bathroom. “Gloria’s my favorite of all your girlfriends,” she said. “Try not to get dumped, Dad.” Clive was usually the leaver in a relationship, but she didn’t think it would play out that way this time.
A shaky chuckle. “She’d kick my ass if I stepped out of line, wouldn’t she?”
Catie laughed. “Yeah, I’d be careful there.”
“I will, sugar girl.” A patented Clive smile. “Your old man still has it, you know.”
Happy and sad at the same time, she said, “I know.”
Gloria bustled in right then. “Oh, look at you. So beautiful together. That same gorgeous smile.” Taking out her phone, she snapped a pic. “I’ll send it to you,” she said to Catie.
“Thanks.” Catie rose to her feet. “I’m going to give you two some time alone and go scout out coffee and snacks for me and Gloria.”
“What about your old dad?” Clive grumbled.
“Sorry, Dad. You’re on the hospital diet for now.” As for any future prescribed diet, she’d leave that for Gloria to wrangle.
Catie had long ago given up the job of looking after Clive, but Gloria seemed to be okay with it. Each to their own, she supposed, and exited the room. She walked around a bit, found the cafeteria, grabbed the hot drinks as well as food for Gloria, then headed back up.
Clive and Gloria were making goo-goo eyes at each other and whispering sweet nothings when she entered. They sprang guiltily apart, Gloria’s cheeks a charming red.
Laughing, she left the food and waved off their offers for her to stay.
“But Gloria, you need more sleep,” she pointed out. “How about you hang out with Dad for a bit more, then I’ll keep him company while you go get that rest?”
Heavy-eyed, Gloria nodded. “Okay, yes, you’re right. Now that I know my sweet man is okay, I’ll be able to sleep.”
Leaving the two for now, Catie took her own coffee out into the hallway and took a seat on one of the hard plastic chairs that seemed to come standard issue at hospitals. And when she looked up and saw a familiar man walking down the hall, a duffel bag in hand, she wasn’t surprised in the least.
Abandoning her coffee on another chair, she got up and moved to him as fast as her regular prosthetic legs would allow.
Danny wrapped her up in his arms and lifted her off the ground… as she finally gave in to the fear-tears that had been trapped inside her since the moment she’d received the call. He just held her tight, kissing her hair and cheek and stroking her back until she could breathe again.
“He’s all right,” she managed to get out past the last of her sniffles. “I just—”
* * *
“Hey.” He wiped away a tear. “I know you, remember? No explanations necessary.”
Reaching up, she kissed him—then mock punched him in the chest. “Why didn’t you message me that you were coming?”
He winced, rubbed his chest. “I didn’t know if I’d get a flight—just turned up at the airport and hoped. Ran onto a plane right as they were literally shutting the boarding gate; then the flight attendant hurried me into a seat. By the time I got the seat belt fastened, she was back to tell me to turn off my phone.”
Danny had thought about disobeying because he knew how much contact meant to Catie. But he hadn’t wanted to risk being kicked off the flight. “I figured I’d message you using the onboard wi-fi, but turned out it was glitchy. I just couldn’t connect. Sorry, princess. I know you must’ve worried.”
“I thought something happened to you,” she said with a scowl. But then her face softened, sunrise after a storm. “At least until I figured out you must be on your way to me.”
Even as his heart cracked wide open, she pressed her hand to the side of his face. “If there’s one thing I know, hotshot, it’s that you’ll always be there for me.” No hesitation, no holding back. “I can trust you and I do. With all of me.”
He staggered inwardly and, unable to speak, just held her until he could breathe again.
Afterward, she pressed a kiss to his jaw before pulling back. “Let me go wash my face; then we’ll go see Clive.”
He used those moments alone to get a handle on himself—except he couldn’t. Catie hadn’t been shocked or startled to see him. She’d known. Even though he hadn’t been able to message her.
She’d known she mattered enough to him that he’d haul ass to be by her side. It wrecked him. That was as close to a declaration of love as he might ever get from her. Was he okay with that?