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She sighed heavily, her fingers playing with mine. The male flight attendant appeared from the front of the plane, a cup of strong, extra sweet coffee in hand. He gave me a grim smile as he handed the mug over and returned to his place with the pilot.
Stroking her hair with one hand, I helped her drink the coffee with the other. When it was half empty, she pushed my hand away. “No more. I don’t want it.”
“Emmie said it would help with the shock,” I told her.
“Emmie…” She broke off with a sad laugh, shaking her head. “This day just keeps getting weirder and weirder.”
“I’m sorry, baby.”
“Did you know she was going to offer me a job?” she asked, looking up at me with swollen, red-rimmed fawn eyes.
Her question surprised the hell out of me. “No. I had no idea. What kind of job?”
“It was a really bizarre meeting. She told me about her past, and then said she liked me. That she considered me family now. Then she said we could help each other. She had three openings that needed filling and said I could have whichever job I wanted.” She pressed her face into my neck, hiding her eyes from me. “I hope her kids know how lucky they are to have a mom like her.”
I could feel just how close she was to breaking down again, so I remained quiet. Letting her digest what was on her mind, or cry if that was what she needed to do. I rubbed my hands up and down her back, just thankful that I was able to be here with her. That I was the one she had called first after getting such devastating news.
In the weeks I’d known this girl, she had become everything to me. I could feel her pain as if it were an entity living in my chest. I wanted to make this all better for her, but I knew losing her dad wasn’t something I could fix. It was a helpless kind of feeling, not being able to take away her pain.
I held her for the entire flight, wiping away her tears when they fell, pushing my strength into her when I knew she needed it the most. At one point, she fell asleep in my arms, and I took the chance to see if any of the news channels were covering the explosion. Two of the national news networks had it running on the bottom
of their broadcast. Six men were dead following an explosion. Rescue crews couldn’t find their bodies, but it was determined they couldn’t possibly have survived the intensity of the blast and fire.
Fuck. I was hoping it was all just a mistake. That by the time we got to her dad’s house, he would be in the hospital with maybe a broken leg and some burns, but alive. Then they started talking about the story, showing aerial footage of the explosion site, and I knew in my gut there was no chance her father could have survived that. No one could have.
She stirred in my arms, whimpering in her sleep, and I tossed my phone aside. Kissing her temple, I whispered in her ear that she was okay. I had her and wasn’t going to let anything hurt her. Ever.
When the plane landed, she stumbled to her feet, but I lifted her into my arms. She was like a weak kitten as I carried her off the plane. There was a car already waiting on the tarmac beside the plane. The driver opened the back door for us, and I sat Amara inside before joining her.
“She okay?” the short, stout, fiftyish man asked as he looked at Amara in the review mirror.
“Not today,” I told him honestly. “But she will be.” I’d make sure of it.
I had no idea where we were going, but Emmie must have already told the driver the address. An hour later, just as the sun was starting to fade in the distance, we were pulling into the driveway of a single-story brick house with a well-maintained lawn and a minivan parked outside. As soon as the car was turned off, the front door opened, and a plump woman with short, curly dark hair ran out to meet us.
“Amara?” she asked in a voice hoarse from crying. She sniffled and wiped at her damp eyes. “Honey, thank goodness you’re here.”
“Jane,” Amara murmured, hugging the woman. “How are Josh and Brian?”
“The boys fell asleep about an hour ago. It’s been a really long day.” Jane’s gaze landed on me in the rapidly fading light. “Oh. Hello.”
Amara reached for my hand, clinging to it as she introduced me to her stepmother. “Jane, this is my boyfriend, Cash.”
Something softened in her eyes, and she hugged me next. “Thank you for being here for our girl,” she whispered at my ear in a voice that cracked with emotion.
I didn’t know what to say to that. There was no need to thank me because there was no other place I wanted to be than right there with Amara. The woman I loved just lost her father. I wasn’t going to let her go through this alone.
Chapter 11
Amara
The feel of the bed shifting had my eyes snapping open. It took a few seconds for my brain to catch up with what I was seeing. The streetlamp outside lit the room dimly enough that I could make out where I was—not home, but in my room at my dad’s house. I could feel Cash’s steady breathing on the back of my neck, his arms wrapped tightly around my waist. My back was molded against his front, and we could have been mistaken for one person.
In front of me, Riley adjusted the extra pillow and pressed a kiss to my cheek. “How are you?” she whispered.
“Numb,” I told her honestly. “When did you get here?”
“Not long ago. Jane let me in. She made up the couch for me, but I couldn’t sleep knowing you were hurting.” She stroked her fingers over my brow. “I’m so, so sorry, Mar.”
