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Laughing, he wraps his arm around me again and pulls me closer, adding a gentle squeeze before he says,“This is not my secret to tell. Just wait and see.”
If his aim is to arouse my curiosity, he’s succeeding. I look up at him through narrowed eyes, trying to read the expression on his face, but he’s giving me nothing. He’s not even looking at me, but keeps his gaze fixed on Gabe all the way across the hall. I follow his eyes and wonder what Gabe might be up to—before an idea dawnsonme.
“Oh, is he going to—”
My question gets drowned in a round of applause that erupts when Ella walks onto the stage, a microphone in hand and a nervous smileon her face. I turn around and join the commotion, while a sigh leaves my lips.
I guess I really will have to wait and see.
Epilog 2
Logan
~ Three months later ~
“Nervous, sir?” Christopher asks as he holds the door open for me.
I just throw him a short look, neither nodding nor shaking my head, before I climb into the car. He knows very well that I am a little tense today—to say the least—and the grin on his face is evidence enough.
He closes the door and walks around the car with swift steps to take his seat behind the wheel. I take a deep inhale when he starts the engine and we start rolling toward the hospital, where Kat and Mrs. Warden are waiting for me.
I still hate that Kat was so reluctant to tell me about Mrs. Warden’s health concerns at first. I had to worm it out of her because she felt uncomfortable about asking for help. She still acts as if money is an issue for her, even though it hasn’t been in months. Yes, her bookstore is just starting to turn a profit and when it comes to helping Mrs. Warden she’s been relying on my help for the most part, but it’s not like I mind. On the contrary. I was annoyed at the fact that she spent all of the down payment to help her old teacher before telling me about any of it.
I hate that it was still so hard for her to trust me—but I can’t really blame her, I guess. We didn’t start off on the right foot, and as much as I wish things had been different, I can’t change the past. I can’t change where I come from, I can’t change my family, and I can’t change the fact that there’s blood on my hands, same as my brothers.
But I can do better in the future, and I intend to—with Kat at my side.
She should have openedupto me about her old teacher’s burdens much sooner, but I see why that was hard for her. However, now that I know about it, there was no way I could have looked away, not with someone who is this important to Kat. And Mrs. Warden is a treasure for sure. Her view of me is not tainted by my background simply because she doesn’t know about it—and that’s refreshing, to say the least. She welcomed me with open arms when Kat introduced the two of us for the first time, but it took a while to convince her that she was worth saving. That woman has a heart of gold when it comes to others, but refused to believe that she may deserve our help. Sometimes, it’s hard to believe that people like her still exist in the world. Kat wouldn’t be where she is now without Mrs. Warden—that alone is enough for me to do everything I can to save that woman’s life. It’s quite unlikely that she will ever go into full remission, but the least we can do is try everything that money can buy.
Her therapy has been going well, until recently, when her health declined dramatically and they saw it best to admit her to the hospital to do some extra tests andkeepan eye on her. It’s hard to tell what the future holds for her, which may be the reason why she has been so adamant for me to go ahead with... this. This huge fucking step I am about to take.
As Christopher steers the car into the parking lot of the hospital, I can’t help but wonder whether this really is the best day to do it. Mrs. Warden was so excited when I talkedto her about it. Seeing that she is the closest to a parental figure that Kat ever had, I only deemed it appropriate to talk to her before taking any further steps.
And now, I’m about to turn this plan into a reality. It will be a surprise for Kat, that’s for sure. She thinks I’m only here to pick her up and say helloto Mrs. Warden real quick.
But that’s not what’s going to happen in that hospital room.
“Good luck, sir,” Christopher says as he opens the door for me, adding a cheeky wink.
“You’re really enjoying this, aren’t you?” I ask him, and he slaps me on the back.
“Who wouldn’t,” he responds. “It’s a joyous occasion, isn’t it?”
“Well, if all goes well...”
“It will, sir, I am sure,” he says, adding a final tap on my shoulder before he sends me off. “I will be waiting here.”
“Thank you, Christopher.”
My pulse is racing as I head through the hospital corridors, with my fingers clenched around the small bouquet of flowers in my hands. They are for Mrs. Warden, but now I’m beginning to think I should have brought some for Kat, too. Will she be disappointed? I hope not, since I have something much more valuable for her…
Jesus, I need to calm the fuck down.I hardly recognize myself right now.
I take one last deep breath, before I open the door to her room. It’s a very nice private room at one of the best hospitals in the area, so I know we’llbealone, and I don’t have to worry about any other patients disturbing us.
“Ah, there he is!” Mrs. Warden beams when she sees me walking through the door.
She’s looking good today. Her skin is not quite as pale and her cheeks not as sunken in as last time when I saw her. It looks like she dolled herself up a bit, actually. Her cheeks are blush with color, her lashes have been dipped in black, and she’s wearing lipstick.
