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He let out a bark of laughter that surprised me. It was deep and rich, and so masculine I felt a tingle start in my core. Drew reached for my hands and held them between his, quietly. He just sat beside me, offering soothing touches that I had to admit, helped me calm down. “Ah, Zola.”
“It’s all right. I’m all right.”
“Of course you are.” He pulled me into his arms and dropped a kiss on my forehead that sent a spear of heat through my body. “You’re too strong to be anything but all right.”
I didn’t believe that, but the way he said it, as if it was a fact, made me wish I was more like the woman he thought I was right now. Instead, I was just me, Zola Ross, devastated over the loss of another patient.
“I’m not strong, but I will be all right.” Wiping tears from my eyes and cheeks, sat a little taller.
“I know. Let me help.” He took my hand gently and guided me upstairs to his bedroom where he laid me out, stripped me down and gave me an orgasm before I fell into a deep, dreamless sleep that made the world go away for a few hours.
Drew
“How is new motherhood treating you, Suzie?” I sat on the sofa inside Gavin’s mansion with Berna in my arms. Her big green eyes looked up at me, so curious yet so full of trust. A deep sense of love wove its way through my body and curled into knots at my core, at the thought of anything happening to Berna or Gigi. They were so tiny and so trusting, it was hard to push that feeling aside.
Suzie laughed. “It’s exhausting and amazing. The love I have for these two girls it’s astonishing.”
“Oh good, it’s not just me.” My shoulders relaxed at my sister’s reassurance. “How are you going to deal with this feeling for the rest of your life?” It didn’t seem possible, to love someone you just met so much and with my whole heart.
She shrugged off my concern. “It’s always been there. When you were a baby and just came home from the hospital, I was so scared that something would happen to you. That you might fall and bump your head or fall asleep in the bathtub. For a while, Mom called the school nurse to let me know that you were fine and ate your breakfast and smiled when you pooped.” Her smile was so genuine, so embarrassed I couldn’t help but laugh. “I’m ridiculous, I know.”
“I had no idea.” I knew Suzie treated me like her own child, there were hundreds of photos of Suzie brushing my hair, bathing me, dressing me, all the things a mom did her for her baby.
“I loved you beyond all reason, Drew. You were my baby brother, and I just let Mom deal with you sometimes.” Suzie shook her head, affection written all over her face. “So you see, I’ve been dealing with this love, this all-consuming love for a very long time. The only real difference is that now I know exactly what to be afraid of for my kids.”
“You gave me a good amount of freedom, even if you did a terrible job of following me.”
“You knew?”
“You were terrible at it, Suzie, of course I knew.”
“Well,” she sniffed and lifted her chin a little higher in the air. “I’m determined to give them freedom while also letting them out of my sight.”
“You tried that and you weren’t good at it.”
“Maybe I’ve gotten better,” she insisted with an insulted grunt.
“Maybe to outwit me, but a set of twins who can read each other’s minds? Doubtful.” I shook my head and laughed, just thinking about how much looking after Gigi and Berna would require. “The good news is that between you, me, Gavin, and the entire town of Jackson’s Ridge, these poor girls won’t have a moment of peace.”
“Exactly,” she laughed and pointed a chipped nail at me. “So, how are things with you and Zola?”
“What have you heard?” I was immediately defensive, regretting too late that I didn’t go with my first instinct to pick a fight with her at JRMC just to keep the gossips guessing.
“Nothing. I haven’t heard a damn thing, Drew, and that worries me.”
“We had a bumpy start, Suze, that’s all it was. We’re coexisting now, just about getting along.” I kept my posture still, my stare blank, because Suzie would figure out the truth if I gave her even one thread of evidence to go on. She was like a bloodhound if she thought she was on the scent.
My sister had a knack for knowing people, and she stared at me for so long I just knew she’d figured it out. She couldn’t of course, because there was nothing to figure out, and even if there was, there was no way in hell she had. “If you say so, Drew.”
