I was sick, unhealthy, broken, damaged.
My happily ever after was just an end without flowers and fairy tales and kids laughing and life bursting through.
A strong hand, one I’d memorized and obsessed over, squeezed mine. I felt the callouses, the strength of it. How it swallowed my hand and how it held on as if it wasn’t letting go.
I turned toward that hand and cracked my eyes open just a bit.
“Hi,” I mouthed to him.
Jett Stonewood sat there with a white hospital room as his backdrop. It faded away when I focused on him though.
The thumping of my heart came back loud, louder than the beeping in my mind.
He was here.
Maybe as just my boss, maybe as a concerned citizen. Maybe more, maybe less. It didn’t matter.
I needed his unshakeable matter-of-fact attitude in that moment.
His other hand smoothed the skin of my forearm and he mouthed back, “Hi.” His blue, blue eyes gazed at me with something new in them.
“Oh my God,” my mother gasped from the other side of the bed. She turned to my father as she laid a hand on my arm. “Get a doctor! She’s awake! Oh, honey, we’re here. We’re going to figure this out.”
She leaned over, and her head fell on my shoulder. She squeezed my arm, and I hit her with the same comment I made to her all the time. “I’m fine, Mom. It’s all going to be fine.”
The canned response barely registered. She nodded her head vigorously and waved Harvey over. “Harvey, she’s okay. God, she’s going to be okay. You look like your color’s returning, honey. The doctors said your blood levels are all great. You’re just fine. This car accident was a blessing in disguise … We’ll just change up your heart meds, okay?”
Her voice shook, and tears shimmered in her eyes. She looked like a mother about to lose her child. Desperate, fearful, clinging to a thread of hope and staking everything on it.
I’d caused that pain. My sickness took the badass businesswoman and diluted her down to this. She used to walk into a room and heads would turn, people would whisper in awe, and I would smile with pride. She’d been stripped of all that to take care of me.
The promises I made weren’t good enough, but I tried my best. “We’ll do what we need to, Mom. It’ll all be okay.”
She clung to my every word, like a starved being snatching up any scrap she could. “Harvey has ideas too. He thinks there might be other medications that could—”
“Stop.” Jett’s voice shot through the room like an arrow released from a powerful crossbow. Fast, succinct, almost deadly.
My mother and Harvey jumped.
Jax and Brey had waited at the foot of my bed but Jax strode to his brother’s side. “Bro, it’s her family.”
“I don’t give a fuck.” Jett cut him off. He glared at my mother and Harvey. Then he glowered at Jax. “I’m her family now. I’m the one. Her man. Her everything. What I say goes. Everyone stops. Now.”
My mother’s eyes widened along with Harvey’s.
Jett stood and my hand slipped from his as he leaned over me and put his hands on the opposite side of the bed. He caged me in and looked like an animal protecting his territory. “Get out.” The sound was low and vicious.
My mother straightened, and I saw the woman in her who I’d admired before all my ailments took their toll. She wore a black Armani blazer with satin peak lapels that were held together with one button. The white blouse beneath matched her fitted pants. I got my style from her and splashed color in. She didn’t need the color. Her presence was enough. “I’m not going anywhere. You pushed us out of the room yesterday, and I shouldn’t have gone then. I’m definitely not going now. She needs me. She practically had a heart attack. We need to figure out why and how to avoid that in the future.”
“Great. Have a field day with the doctors outside her room. She needs a minute.”
“A minute? From what?” My mom looked affronted.
“From you. From all of you.” He motioned at the whole room. “She’s trying to make everyone in this goddamn room feel better. You’re not giving her a second to even digest what’s happened. So. Get. Out.”
My mom stared at him. Drilled holes in his eyes, dug away at the man he was. I saw the fight in both of them and was surprised to find I wasn’t sure who would come out on top.
I said the words I knew she needed to hear. “Mom,” I sighed. “I’m a Blakely. I got this.”