“Yeah. Yeah. I’ve got to play catch up. How you get out and put one on the scoreboard before me?”
“You slipping. You’ve had an eight-year lead.”
“Yeah, man. I’m in here thinking about that shit now. But, aight. I’ll see you in a minute.”
“Aight.”
I walkedinto Ever’s room and found her sitting up. For the last two days, she’d been in too much pain to move much at all. Going to the bathroom was so painful that she’d been given a catheter but even that was gone. Doctors also wanted to monitor her urine to make sure that there wasn’t any internal bleeding. So, with that being gone, I knew it was a good sign.
“Hey,” she greeted me as I rounded the corner.
The smile on her face looked so familiar, even bruised and battered. It felt like forever since I’d seen it.
“You’re up.” I handed Ken his food and continued into the room until I was at Ever’s side. Our food was separated in two bags that I set on the small table in front of her.
“I’m up.”
She stretched her arms and invited me in for a hug. I gladly accepted the invitation. It felt so good seeing her using her strength again. I restrained myself, remembering not to squeeze too tight and allowing her to lead while I followed. Easing her into any movement was the best idea for everyone. There would possibly be a new ache or new bruise discovered each day for the next few days.
When she finally let me go, I gently kissed her lips. The swelling had gone down tremendously. She was looking a little more like herself now. I moved further down until I was near her flat stomach. It didn’t matter if my baby wasn’t visible yet. He was there and we all knew it. I made two full circles with my hands before kissing the cloth of her gown.
“Where’s my food?”
“Damn, it’s like that?”
“I love you, babe, I really do, but they have been trying to feed me nursing home food, and I’m not in a nursing home.”
“I see,” I told her as I took a look at the contents of the plate that she had left sitting on the table.
“I got you a few things, not sure of what you wanted.”
“Just feed me. I don’t care what it is.”
With a hiked brow, I smiled. “You sure?”
“Luca, get your mind out of the gutter.”
“Just saying.” I shrugged.
Ever chose the cheese eggs and sausage patties cut into small pieces. They were the easiest to chew and get into her system without burning her lips or hurting her jaws. Together, we shared the meal with random commentary from Ken. I appreciated him more than he could imagine.
Once Laike gave me the green light on the Scar situation, he could go home and get some good rest. He’d left his own operation to look over my woman and unborn child. There wasn’t anyone else in the world I trusted with the task other than him or Laike. I knew that they’d save them before they saved themselves and that was the only amount of loyalty I’d accept in their presence.
TWENTY-TWO
“I got it,”I told Luca.
“You sure?”
“Yes,” I confirmed as I gently climbed into his bed.
It felt so much better than the one I’d been sleeping in for the last few days. After a week, I was finally released and sent home to be with my family. Doctors wanted to keep a close eye on any possibility of internal bleeding or any immediate threat to my baby’s life. My lungs were showing low oxygen levels after the first two days, which required round-the-clock assistance from the oxygen machine. But after the fifth day, everything was normal again and my vitals were spectacular.
“When are the girls coming?”
“You sure you got it?”
“Would you like to lay me down yourself?”
