Page 134 of Colliding with Ten

Laughter and tears came at the same time, which was humiliating. I wiped my face with the back of my hand, then gave up because there was no dignified way to handle this. My nose ran, and tears streamed down my face. I was relieved, happy, sad, and everything in between. I couldn’t sort which feeling was winning because they were all true at once.

The nurse finished her checks, noted it in her chart, and told him she’d be back in two hours. On her way out, she handed me a box of tissues.

Lennox’s eyes were glassy from fatigue, but they were focused on me.

I gave a tentative smile. “Hi.”

“Hi.” His voice was rough. He tried to push himself up against the pillows and winced. “Am I dreaming?”

“No. I drove to Buffalo.”

“It’s the middle of the night. How fast were you going?”

“You don’t want to know.”

The corner of his mouth pulled up, but the movement made him wince again, and his hand drifted to his temple.

I reached and touched his chest. “Don’t smile. It’s hurting you.”

“You’re here. It’s going to be hard not to.”

My eyes stung. I pressed my lips together and swallowed hard. How could I have left this man? “How are you feeling?”

“Much better now. You must be tired.”

I chuckled. “Still better than you.”

“I was unconscious on national television. What’s your excuse?”

I laughed. “I’ve been driving since nine o’clock and stressing the entire way.”

I moved the chair closer. His eyes followed me as his face cycled through hurt, disappointment, anger, and happiness, all rolling together. He didn’t have the energy to hide it.

“I missed you,” he said.

There was a lot to talk about, but not tonight. I took his hand. His fingers closed around mine. “I’m sorry,” I said.

He looked at me, and whatever he’d been feeling before, he let go.

32

THE LONG-TERM EXTENSION

LENNOX

Ayla was still here when the nurse woke me for checks at five, and again at seven, when Jace arrived, showered, and brought two coffees. Jace had taken Ayla to his hotel room to nap and clean up. Since waking up, I’d tried to decide what to say to her, but still hadn’t figured it out.

The discharge paperwork took forever because the neurologist needed to sign three forms that existed in a dimension where time apparently didn’t move. Mateo handled it with more patience than I had. I finally got discharged in the early afternoon with a list of instructions repeated for the last twelve hours. I hated hospitals.

We drove ten minutes to the hotel. Jace had booked three rooms for us the night before. I showered carefully, because the hot water made the headache flare if I moved too fast. Afterward, I sat on the bed and looked at my phone.

Ayla

I’m downstairs whenever you’re ready.

Lennox

Give me ten minutes.