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“Collapse.” I gulped. “Were other people there?”
“No, it was just me. I was, uh…” He coughed while sheepishly touching the back of his neck. He hissed. “Fuck, that’s the worst.”
I stood up. “I’m getting Etta, and you can’t tell meno.”
His whole face lit up. “Yes, ma’am.”
A few minutes later, Etta returned to the room as baffled as me about Andres being in such great condition for having a steel beam landing on the back of his neck. She kept checking his vitals, comparing them to her keyboard, and consulting her phone.
Eventually, her puzzled expression transformed into one of relief. “I see what happened now.”
I perched on the edge of the bed, fascinated by what was happening—and hoping it wasn’t some terribly hopeful dream. “What? Did you find something?”
She held up her phone. “I texted Izdor, and he said passed some healing magic along whenever he carried Andres here.”
I flopped to my side. “So, my fiancéisn’tgoing to die a horrible death suddenly in his sleep?”
“Nope,” Etta replied with a grin. “He said what happened was the magic was so strong it induced a coma—and then the magic overpowered the system so I couldn’t tell whether Andres was healing or not. But he was. The whole time.”
Relief flooded the room. I felt everybody relax, and then we all seemed to grow exhausted at the same time.
Etta collected her clipboard and went to the door. “I’ll dim the lights so you two can get some sleep.”
“You’re not discharging him yet?”
“One night of observation is standard after an injury like that. And I want to talk to Izdor more about Elderling healing powers. If you want to leave, you can.” Her grin widened. “But you’re welcome to stay here.”
As promised, she dimmed the lights. She shut the door as well, her shoes squeaking along the tile and diminishing as she got farther away.
I turned to Andres with a smile brighter than the sun. “I’m so glad you’re okay.”
“Me too. That means you can make good on your promise.”
My smile drooped slightly. “What?”
“You said if I woke up,” he whispered while stroking my cheek, “that you’ll actually marry me.”
Excitement swirled with fear in my gut. “Do you mean that?”
“I think the question is for you to answer.”
I really didn’t want to cry again, but I couldn’t seem to stop the tide of feelings crashing through my brain fog. I threw my arms around Andres and wept, confirming through blubbering affirmations that I desperately wanted to be his wife. He held me and let me cry, waiting patiently until my sobs had subsided to take my chin.
And then he whispered, “Good. Because I’m never letting you go…”
Chapter 23 - Andres
The night was long with Sadie in my arms. Such trembling touches erupted every so often, gasping breaths leading to frantic searches for me. She shivered violently at one point, inspiring me to hug her firmly enough to stop her breathing. But she never complained about the pressure, and her heart kicked up a beat as I soothed her with kisses.
She loved me. She said so herself. She had been hiding it the whole time while I was trying to figure out how to keep her. How silly I felt to know that admitting my feelings would have been the very thing that kept her around. Now that it was out in the open, I didn’t want to worry about her absence.
I just wanted to focus on her presence.
After our night ended, I woke with the distinct feeling that I had been given a second chance by an angel. Mixed feelings swirled through my brain, but they quickly settled when I felt my bride stir in my arms. I studied her delicate features, noticing the way her hair clung to her sweaty cheek.
This was how I wanted her—vulnerable and unashamed. Mornings were our most intimate moments, exposing the uncontrollable ways we slept. Even worse was how we looked when we woke from such natural states. Though her hair was messy, and her cheek was red where she had been resting it on my shoulder, she looked beautiful to me.
That was all that mattered.
