AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Her eyes go wide.Does she remember me, or was she out of it?I wish I could’ve helped her that day. Her haunting face still pops into my head occasionally, and now here she is, though her hair isn’t matted and messy. It’s smooth and up in a ponytail. She looks so much better. The pale face I remember now has a pinkish tinge to her cheeks. “Do you remember me?”
Her face turns a brighter shade of pink. “Iknowwho you are, but I’m not sure we’ve met. Surely, I’d remember meeting you,” she says, and the people who came rushing to her stand back and watch the exchange.
“I helped you at the hospital about a year ago now. You wanted to get to your baby.” I hear a sharp intake of breath from those around her. Sheer panic emanates from her wide stare.
“You were in the hospital?” A dark-haired woman whirls on her, and it’s clear I’ve said something I shouldn’t have.
She opens her mouth to say something when a crying baby draws everyone’s attention. I glance down at Ruby, who’s settled on my hip. It’s not her. I turn to find another woman holding a baby with blonde hair and the same blue eyes as the mystery woman. The injured, unidentified blonde stands.What was her name?That horrid day rolls through my head again, and then it comes to me, Delilah.
A small, broken smile forms on her face. She winces as she puts weight on her sore leg and hobbles a few steps closer to me and then past me, taking the crying baby who settles instantly in her arms as she brushes her lips on the girl’s head. Could this be the baby that she referred to in the hospital?
Delilah glances up at the group surrounding her all with wide eyes. “Yes, I was in the hospital. Yes, I had a baby. Family, meet Olive… my daughter.”
There’s a collective gasp.
Wow, okay. This feels extremely personal, and I need to leave.
I turn to walk away when Rylee puts on the brakes. “Daddy, can I say hello to the baby?” she says.
All focus is on us, then I catch Delilah’s eyes, she nods and manages to lower herself down to a crouch so Rylee can meet her child.
Rylee, in her bright pink dress, hair in pigtails, wanders over with such confidence and is unaware of the tension rolling around within that circle. “Hey, baby,” she coos. She’s always been good with Ruby, helping to settle her. It’s her caring nature. I’m sure that when they’re older, there will be plenty of fights.
“What’s your name?” Rylee asks Delilah.
She smiles at her with such vibrance I almost miss the glistening tears in her eyes. “My name is Delilah, but you can call me Dee, and this is Olive.”
Rylee gently rubs her hand over Olive’s head. Olive smiles and smacks at her. Rylee giggles. I take in those around me. They all have grins on their faces and tears in their eyes. There’s a story here that I’ve walked into the middle of. I hope I haven’t put my foot in it when I didn’t mean to.
“Daddy, she’s as big as Ruby. They can be friends,” Rylee yells gleefully and races over, taking my hand and dragging me closer to Delilah. This is the first time in a long time I’ve actually taken notice of another woman since Anna-Beth.
Delilah appears to try to get up. I extend my hand. She stares at it a moment and then takes it as I assist her to stand. “This isn’t exactly how we greet people here,” she jokes, and I’m mesmerized by her beauty and strength. She’s come so far from when I last saw her.
“That’s okay. It seems I may have said something I shouldn’t have,” I whisper under my breath, hoping the people around us don’t hear. It’s then I realize we haven’t let go of each other’s hands. Her skin is smooth. I glance down and notice some scars on the top of her hand. She gently removes it from mine and grips Olive tighter.
Delilah waves dismissively. “Don’t worry about it. It was about to come out anyway.”
“Excuse me, Mr. King?” one of the guys addresses me. I turn toward him. “Hey, I’m Harley. Welcome. If you’ll come with me, we can get you and your family settled.”
“Okay, sounds good. It was lovely to meet you, Delilah. I hope to see you around.”
“I’ll be here.” She almost seems stunned.
“That sounds good.”
“Daddy, can I play with Olive again?” Rylee asks, tugging on my free hand.
I take in her happy face. “I think Olive needs to get settled first, and then maybe we can catch up.” My eye catches Delilah’s and asks a silent question. She nods.
“I think Olive would love some friends to play with,” Delilah says.
“Yay,” Rylee cheers, clapping her hands.
“Come on, Rylee. We need to go find out where we’re staying and let Ruby have a nap.”
“Okay, Daddy.” She wanders toward the door where Harley waits. With one last glance at Delilah, I smile and follow Rylee.
This woman.There’s something about her that draws me to her. I don’t know what it is. She’s beautiful, that’s for sure, but I don’t feel any of the usual sexual impulses that pull a man toward a woman. It’s something deeper, like the roots of an old tree dug into the earth. This woman, Delilah, has caught my attention and wrapped those roots around my heart, and I need to get to know her. Iwantto know more.
