Total pages in book: 82
Estimated words: 79433 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 397(@200wpm)___ 318(@250wpm)___ 265(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 79433 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 397(@200wpm)___ 318(@250wpm)___ 265(@300wpm)
“Kind of lucky my girlfriend is a nurse.”
She rolled her eyes, but I could see the small smile playing at the corners of her mouth. “Are you thirsty?”
“Now that you mention it, yes.”
Adelaide reached for a pitcher and poured me a glass of water. I took a few small sips and handed it back to her. “Thanks.”
“What about some food? Do you think you can eat something?”
“I think I could try as long as it’s nothing too heavy and not hospital food.”
She gave a soft laugh and pulled out her cell phone. “I’ll see if my mom can make you some soup and maybe a salad.”
“Is the restaurant open?” I asked.
“Not yet. Hopefully the power will be back on later today. They have the north side of Seaside up and running, but not the south yet.”
“How will she cook then?”
Adelaide stopped typing and looked at me. “It’s a gas stove, and it’s my mom. If she had to build a fire in the backyard, she would.”
I laughed and then immediately stopped as the pain reminded me why I was here.
“You should be due for some pain meds,” Addie said. “You have stitches in your forehead from the cut.”
Reaching up, I winced as I touched the area on my forehead that was dully throbbing. “Ouch, that hurts.”
She chuckled. “I imagine it does.”
I dropped one hand and looked down at my other, seeing I was attached to an IV. “Is this necessary?”
“It was, but now that you’re awake, they’ll most likely take it out. You shouldn’t have to stay in here much longer. They’ll want to keep an eye on you now that you’re awake. Do a few tests, I would imagine, and then you can probably go home.”
“Will you be there?”
She frowned. “Be where?”
“With me at my house when I break out of jail.”
A smile spread across her face, as warm as melted butter on toast. “Of course, I will.”
“Good. Even though you recently moved in with Palmer, I think you should move in with me.”
She let a small chuckle slip free. “I think we’re moving at warp speed, Mr. Wilson.”
“I don’t. I know I love you, and I want to spend the rest of my life with you, Addie. Are you having doubts?”
“About us?” she asked. “Never. I just think we should slow it down a bit. You had a pretty traumatic event happen today, so I can see why you’d ask me to move in.”
“And you don’t think we should after all that?”
Adelaide took my hand in hers and gently gave it a squeeze. “Truth be told, my first instinct is to run to the courthouse and get married. I thought I’d lost you, and that scared the living crap out of me. And I want to marry you more than anything, Gannon. But I also realize we haven’t been around one another for very long—at least not in a long time.”
“We’ve spent almost the entire last month together.”
She smiled again. “And it’s been incredible. I wouldn’t change a second of it. Well, except the part where you fell into the ocean during a tropical storm.”
I let out a soft chuckle. “I’d like to change that part as well.”
“Let’s focus on getting you out of here and then take things one day at a time.”
Glancing out the window, I could see the clear blue sky. It was hard to believe that not that long ago, the wind was raging and the rain was coming down ruthlessly. “It’s crazy that it was just storming and you couldn’t even see the sky, but now it’s beautiful out.”
Adelaide followed my gaze out the window. “Yeah, it is.”
“Okay,” I said on a sigh. “We won’t go running to the courthouse to get married. Will you at least think about moving in with me? I want to wake up with you in my arms every morning.”
“How about if I bring some stuff over to keep at your place? To start, at least.”
“I think that’s a great place to start.” I looked out the window again and then back to her. “So yesterday didn’t change anything between us, right? You’re not too freaked out about my job?”
Tilting her head to the side, she drew in a breath and then slowly let it out. “I won’t lie and tell you I wasn’t scared to death. But I also know you love your job. We separated once before so that we could each pursue our dreams, and the last thing I would ever do is tell you that you can’t keep living your dream. Do I hate that you have a dangerous job? Yes. But I’ll stand by your side no matter what. That’s a promise I know I can make and keep.”
Relief coursed through my entire body at her words. A couple women I’d dated in the past had hated my job, and one even told me if I wanted to be with her I needed to quit. I wasn’t in love with her, so it was an easy decision to break things off. But having Adelaide back in my life now was different; I was positive that if she told me to stop, I would. I’d hate it…but I’d still do it.