“Then get me out of here and let’s do it.”
I couldn’t help but laugh at her enthusiasm.
“Not yet. I’m still a doctor, and that means you need to stay here overnight so the fine staff of my hospital can monitor you. Your head’s going to be fine, but let’s be on the safe side. Not to mention the screams of two babies are the last thing you need.”
“I already miss those screams. God, it hurts to be apart from them.”
“You won’t be for long. All goes well, you’ll be out at noon tomorrow. I’ll handle the girls until then, OK?”
“Yeah. I know they’re in good hands.” She smiled softly.
“And so are you. Tomorrow the NYPD detective on the case wants to speak with us. He’s flying in tonight. I told him that the condo would be better, that you likely weren’t going to be up for a noisy police station after what happened.”
“Good call, thank you. I’m looking forward to it. It’s one more step to putting this all behind us.”
I glanced aside. “And there’s something else I wanted to tell you. Something important.”
“Yeah? What’s that?”
I leaned in, kissing her softly on the lips.
“S’ agapo.”
Her eyes lit up.
“S’ agapo. I love you, too.”
“Good, rest well, my love.”
One more kiss, and then it was time for me to leave.
Michelle and Jerry went in after me. We talked first, the two of them agreeing to hold down the fort while I headed home to relieve Haley. As much as I wanted to stay with Georgia, the girls needed a parent home with them.
I went back to the condo, thanking the management staff for fixing the door so quickly, and for firing the front desk guard that had let Johnny in. I thanked Haley and let her take the spare bedroom for the night. I spent the evening with the girls, feeding them and changing them and holding them close, thanking God or whoever it was out there for making me a father.
These girls were mine to protect, and I’d die before I let any harm come to them.
* * *
The girls were kind enough to give me a quiet night’s sleep. Haley headed out that morning to visit with Georgia before going back to Denver to teach the second half of her day.
Noon couldn’t come soon enough. When it arrived, I was there waiting to take Georgia home. Jerry and Michelle had rented a hotel in town so they could be within minutes if we needed anything.
We received a text on the way home from the NYPD detective I’d spoken with back in New York. Another text followed from Sara McDonald, my lawyer who was also flying in from New York.
“You alright?” Georgia asked, the girls sleeping in the other room as we sipped coffee and waited for the pair to show up.
“Yeah. Kind of. Listen, I don’t know how this is all going to shake out. If Johnny’s talking, he might try to put me on the hook.”
She seemed confused. “But you weren’t a criminal, right? It was Nico who did everything.”
“That’s right. All the same, I don’t know much about the legal implications of any of that. I’ve treated patients who were not in a hospital, and I wasn’t reporting gunshot or stab wounds.”
She took my hand. “Whatever happens, I’m here. That’s all you need to know.”
Her words meant a hell of a lot. I realized then and there just how much I was used to living alone, relying on no one but myself. Having the love of someone like Georgia felt like a damn superpower.
Hell, maybe IwasAchilles with her at my side.