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“Why?”
“Because, Zac, you should be furious with me.”
“Again, why?”
She flared her eyes like I was crazy. “Because I nearly killed your son.”
“No, you saved my son’s life.”
“AfterI nearly killed him,” she insisted.
I reached for her, but she backed away. I looked over my shoulder, not wanting to make a scene, but fearing I might need to if she didn’t catch on soon. “Like I said on the phone, I’m not mad at you, and I’m definitely not furious.”
“I’m furious with myself. You should be, too. You trusted me with your son and look what happened.”
“And I’ll do it again tomorrow. And the next day, too.”
Her jaw dropped open. “You can’t be serious.”
“I am serious. Layla, look, you made an honest mistake. I wouldn’t have known about lupin, either.”
“Would you have been smart enough to look it up before you gave it to him?”
She had me there. When I’d first gotten Grayson, I looked everything up, sometimes not stopping there. I’d call the company if I didn’t get a satisfying answer online, and she knew it, too. Now, it was simply a habit.
Hanging my head, I shrugged. “Yeah, I would have. Or, I would have found him something else to eat that I knew was safe until I had time to make sure the cake was.”
“Exactly.” She lifted her hands like that proved her point, then let them fall. “I’m so sorry, Zac.”
I reached for her again, then held up a finger when her eyes told me she was about to retreat. “Stop. Don’t pull away.”
She bit her lip, and I took it as an agreement.
I grasped her hand, holding it between us as I drew her close and held her gaze. “Having a kid with an allergy is complicated, and it involves a lot of trial and error. Next time, I’m sure you’ll look up any weird ingredients or choose something else.” Her nostrils flared like she wanted to say there wouldn’t be a next time, but I squeezed her hand to stop her. “Either way, accidents happen, and you proved that you could be calm in an emergency and get him the help he needed. That’s the most important part.”
A long sigh fell from her quaking lips, and she nodded. “Okay.”
“I trusted you with Grayson, and you did great. None of this makes me want to push you away, Layla, so don’t do it to me.”
She didn’t reply, just stood up on her toes and pressed her lips to mine before tucking her head under my chin and hugging me tightly. “Okay. I’m sorry.”
“Stop apologizing.”
“Never,” she said into my chest, squeezing me tighter.
“Dad, I presume,” a voice said from behind me, causing Layla and I to separate. But I didn’t let her get far.
I looped my arm around her waist, securing her to my side as we faced a hulking man in dark-blue scrubs. Layla would never know the depth of my gratitude for her quick thinking under pressure. I’d seen plenty of MPs freeze up, succumbing to fear. But shehadn’t. Anyone could have made the same mistake she’d made, and maybe they wouldn’t have acted quickly enough to save his life. But shehad.
When I nodded at the doc, he held out a hand. “I’m Dr. Morgan. I’ve been taking care of Grayson this evening.”
“Thank you,” I said, shaking his hand.
Beside me, Layla wiped tears from under her eyes. Dr. Morgan reached out and patted her arm. “You did great, Mom. Don’t worry. Your son’s going to be fine.”
My chest swelled when she didn’t correct him, simply giving him a small smile, instead. “Thanks. I’m going to go sit with Gray.”
“Okay.” I kissed the side of her head and watched her go, then turned back to the doctor. “So, how long does he need to stay in the hospital?”
