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“It don’t matter. Yes, she’s gone. Have you been fake sleepin’ in here?”
Ayelish shrugged and instantly regretted it, given the wince of pain that followed. “Yes. She was driving me nuts. A total mother hen. Oh, and by the way… refer to our baby as a bun in the oven, and I’ll break your kneecaps too.”
“Noted. Y’all are violent,” he teased. “I think you’re feelin’ better. You’ve got your feisty back.”
“Yes and no. Plenty to be distracted by, and they gave me some stuff in my IV that’s safe for the baby and took the edge off the pain.”
“Good. That’s…” His eyes began to well with emotion. “Good. Baby still…?”
“Baby’s good.” She smiled.
Wit kissed her hand and dropped his head again, finally letting the emotions he’d been fighting free. “Darlin’, you had me so worried. I didn’t know what I was gonna do. Seein’ you like that, on the side of the road, the car you were in. It’s like my worst nightmare come to life. I don’t ever want to live somethin’ like that again. You hear me? Don’t almost die on me ever again.”
“Um, okay?” She chuckled. “I promise to do my best. Hey, look at me.”
He looked up.
“I’m fine. Really. So is the baby. It looks so much worse than it is. Sort of. It hurts like hell, but you know what I mean.” Her lip quivered. “I-I wasn’t scared. Not really. I knew you were coming for us, and you would save us, and you did.”
“But I didn’t. Whoever put a bullet in Langley’s head did.”
“But you found me, Wit. That’s the point. That man was an angel. I’m telling you. There was something so… familiar and comforting about him, and I say that even though I barely remember what happened. It’s all a blur and flashes of memory, but I remember that feeling. I remember thinking he was helping you until you could get there. Is that weird?”
“I don’t know, Aye. There wasn’t a man when any of us got there. Maybe it’s how your mind helped you through the traumatic events that had just happened.”
“Wit, who bandaged me up? And Rainy too.”
“A crowd was forming. It could have been anyone,” he said. “Whoever they were, I owe them everything. Every-fucking-thing. They saved my whole world by putting Langley down like that and getting you out of that car.”
“I wish I could remember,” she whispered while staring off.
“I know, darlin’, I know. Maybe you will someday.” He looked at her with concern. “You okay?”
She nodded and forced a smile when it was clear she really wanted to cry.
“I love you, Ayelish. So much it hurts. I’ve loved you for so long, but today is the first day we get to love hard and without worry. We’re free, darlin’. Our next chapter begins right now.”
“I love that. Our next chapter.” Her smile was genuine this time. “I can’t wait to do life with you, Witman Chester Roosevelt Meyer-O’Reilly.”
“Oh, so a little brush with death and suddenly I get to be an O’Reilly now?” he teased.
“You get to be whatever you want, baby. You better figure it out soon, though. We’ve got a wedding in a few days.”
“You still wanna marry me? After everything?”
“Even more than before,” she said, smacking her lips together. “But first, as my almost husband, I need a favor. These meds are making my mouth feel dry. Would you mind refilling my ice water? I think they’re really kicking in because my mouth feels full of cotton, and I’m suddenly very sleepy.”
“That fake nap didn’t help, huh?” he teased, grabbing her large water jug. “Lucky for you, the ice thing is right around the corner. Be right back.”
He opened the door, and before he left her, he turned. “Don’t you go anywhere.”
“Wit.” She laughed. “I’ll try.”
He wandered down the hall and around the corner, finding the station for refills empty, which made him happy. Leaving her unprotected made him uncomfortable and probably would for some time. They’d been through hell, and he wasn’t about to let his guard down even a little bit. He popped off the lid of Aye’s container and filled it with crushed ice, then waited for the water to fill it, growing increasingly impatient.
“How big is this damn thing?” he asked himself as he watched it fill. “Golly, this thing is huge. Hurry up already.”
When it was close enough to the top, he called it, slapped the lid on, and made his way back down the hall to Ayelish’s room. When he rounded the corner to her hall, he saw a man in all dark clothing and a baseball cap pulled low leaving Rainy’s room.
