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“You on your way to the airport?” I asked as she joined me.
“No,” she shook her head, “I’m gonna finish what I started. Hopefully, the third time will be the charm, and we’ll get to where we need to be.”
“You’re sure about that?”
“Yeah, I am. Are you on your way home?”
“I am. I have a cheerleading competition to attend.”
She laughed and then threw her arms around me. “Take care of yourself, Alex. Go find Lexi and don’t let her go. I can never thank you enough for all you did.”
“You’re welcome, Angela. Be careful out there.”
“I will.” She kissed my cheek, and then she was gone, and I slipped into the taxi and was on my way.
My body ached, and I was fighting one hell of an infection in my leg, but I was going to live. The doctors had wanted me to stay another day in the hospital, but I’d promised two ladies that I would be back by Valentine’s Day. One of those ladies might not care, but I knew the other would.
At the airport, I called Jake and talked to him briefly. He’d passed the information on to Annie and told her I’d asked her to keep it on the down-low so I could surprise Nica.
On the plane ride home, I took the necklace out of my pocket and stared at the charm. I was determined to get Lexi back, and I’d already decided that our future was more important than any job could be.
I laid my head back against the seat and promptly fell asleep.
I slept almost the entire trip back to New York and had to change planes. By the time I got to my home airport, my leg was throbbing, and all I wanted to do was crawl in bed with a bottle of whiskey, but I had other things to do now.
I arrived at the sports complex to find young people everywhere in bright-colored uniforms. Big bows in their hair, sparkles everywhere, and overdone makeup. Holy cow!
I paid for my ticket and then slipped into the main arena, wincing at the loud music and strobing lights near the stage. I let my eyes adjust to the darker audience lighting and searched the place for Annie or my daughter. Something caught my attention, and I looked harder as I realized it was my daughter in a group of girls heading toward the stage.
I wanted to run to her, pull her into my arms, and hold her, but she was rushing toward another part of the auditorium. I felt a hand on my arm and turned.
“Alex.” Patrick smiled wide. “It’s good to see you back.”
We shook hands. “It’s good to be back.”
“Nica is about to go on stage; you made it just in time. Come on, I’ll bring you up front to where we can see it better.”
I followed him, scanning the group of people. Most times, I was nervous about being in large groups, but this group emanated excitement and fun, helping me to relax a little bit.
Patrick and I made it to a roped-off area just as her group was called out on stage. My gaze was trained on her from the moment she came out from behind the curtain until she was done and disappeared again. I didn’t realize it until I felt a hand on my cheek that I had been crying.
I turned to Annie. “You’re home.”
“I’m home.”
“She’s going to be so excited to see you. Come on, they will come out on the other side.” She took my arm, and that’s when I finally glanced around. My eyes landed on Lexi, and everything else around me disappeared. She smiled softly at me, nodded, and then turned and went into the crowd.
That was it? That was all I would get from her? I don’t think so.
“Dad!” I heard Nica’s voice squeal, and I turned just in time to catch her in my arms. Thoughts of Lexi were put on the back burner as I held my daughter to me and fought not to break down in tears again as she cried against my chest.
I was home, right where I needed to be, and by damn, I was going to stay here.
