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“Mom? What are you doing here?” My mother is standing in front of me, holding a holder with three coffees in one hand and a pink duffel bag in the other.
“What do you mean? Kate’s been hurt. It’s what family does.” She says it like I’m an idiot for asking. She quirks her eyebrows and sits down in the chair next to me. “Tell me what’s going on. How’s Kate? How are you?”
“Kate’s good. She’s in with Grace and Kane right now.”
“And you?”
I just look at her and then look away, afraid she’ll see my emotions that I can’t seem to get under control. “I don’t know. I’m just so emotional right now and I don’t understand what’s wrong with me.” My hands go back to pushing in my eyelids.
She puts her comforting hand on my shoulder, “Hudson. It’s okay. The last twenty-four hours have been a roller coaster for you and I’m sure you’ve had little to no sleep. Am I right?”
I nod.
“You love her.”
I nod again. “More than I ever thought possible. When I got that call for a structure fire and I heard her address… I couldn’t move, think, or function. It was like I was in another world. We couldn’t get there fast enough and at the same time, I was terrified of what I would see. I just prayed that she was okay.”
Mom pulls out one coffee from the holder and hands it to me. “Tell me what happened once you realized she wasn’t home during the fire.”
“I kept trying to call and text her, but she wouldn’t answer her damn phone. I started panicking after about an hour of trying to get a hold of her and Grace. Neither one would answer. Just as we were about to leave the ER, Declan came in and told me she was being brought in right behind him. And then, there she was. On the gurney rolling by me.”
“What did you think when you saw her?”
Without even hesitating, “Please god, take me if you have to take someone.”
Mom nods her head. “That’s the love your father and I had. It’s once in a lifetime and you need to grab onto it before it’s gone.”
“If she’ll have me, I’ll never let her go, Mom. I swear it. I’ll spend my life showing her how much I love her.”
Mom smiles, “I so wish your father could have seen the man you’ve become. I couldn’t be prouder of you, Hudson.”
“Thanks Mom.”
“Now, show me where she is because I need to see her myself.”
I stand and take her pink bag and coffees. “Right this way.”
CHAPTER 35
KATE
Grace, Kane, and I have been watching House Hunters ever since Hudson left. I hope he’s okay. Maybe he went to talk to Reid.
I like the banter that Grace and Kane have been having. I think I see a bit of a spark in his eyes, but Grace hasn’t spoken a word about him since that night of drinking at Hooplas. That’s not like her, and I make a mental note of asking her about it the next time we’re alone.
“Knock, knock. Can we come in?” Lori, Hudson’s mom, asks from the door.
I sit up a bit in bed. “Please.” I smile when I see Hudson walk in behind her. I missed him, and the ultimate calmness that comes over me when I see him doesn’t go unnoticed.
“I brought you some clothes that I picked up on my way over here.” She holds up a pink duffle bag. “And I brought coffee, which is okay for everyone but the patient to have.” Lori gives me a sad face. “Sorry. Doctor’s orders. I asked before I brought them.”
“It’s fine. Thank you for the clothes.” I hadn’t even thought about the logistics of losing everything in a fire. Last time, Grandma took care of everything for me. I was eight. Now though… the thought is overwhelming, and I have to let it go for now. My head is really getting fuzzy.
Lori walks over to me and leans in to talk to me as the others fight over the coffees she brought. “How are you doing, kiddo? You okay? You scared us.”
I smile, “I’m okay. Tired.”
She smooths my hair from my face and then kisses me on the forehead like my grandma used to do and it makes me tear up. She smiles at me and then turns to the room. “Okay, everybody out. Kate’s tired and needs her rest.” Lori turns the television off to Kane’s protests.
