Total pages in book: 70
Estimated words: 67095 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 335(@200wpm)___ 268(@250wpm)___ 224(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 67095 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 335(@200wpm)___ 268(@250wpm)___ 224(@300wpm)
I feel my face get soft. “You’re probably right.”
“I’m always right.”
“Whatever.” I shake my head.
She gets up and walks across the empty waiting room to the vending machine. She puts in a dollar, then presses the buttons for a soda.
“All I’m saying is that you should talk to him. Tell him the truth about what happened. Tell him that you were worried that he wouldn’t want you, and scared that you would end up hurt.”
“That’s what Miss Ina said.” I sigh, running my fingers through my hair.
“I still can’t believe that you stayed the night with her—and that she didn’t suffocate you in your sleep.”
“She’s actually really nice,” I admit. Libby’s eyes go wide, making me smile. “I think I actually might like her.” I laugh and she snorts, which makes me laugh harder.
“What are you two laughing about?”
Hearing my dad’s voice, I jump out of my chair and rush across the room into his arms. They wrap around me tightly. I close my eyes, soaking in the feeling for a moment. Even though it’s only been a few days since I saw him, I’ve missed my dad and his ability to make everything better.
“Hey, kid.” His arms tighten when mine do, and I feel his lips on the top of my head.
“Hey, Dad.” I tip my head back and smile up at him.
“You okay?” His thumb touches the skin under my eye, and I know he can see the dark circles there, brought on by crying most of the night and waking up way too early this morning.
“I’m okay. Better now that I know Levi will be okay,” I say.
His eyes close briefly. As a cop himself, our dad expressed his concerns when Fawn and Levi first started dating. He reminded not only Fawn but also all of us that being the spouse of a police officer is not an easy job. There’s a risk anytime an officer puts on the badge and leaves the house. But we all told him that there’s a risk anytime anyone leaves the house—especially nowadays. The world is a scary place.
“Where’s Mom?” Libby asks, shoving me out of the way like she’s been doing since the day she was born. She hugs Dad.
“Hey, sweetheart,” he laughs while kissing the top of her head. “Your mom’s with Levi’s mom. They just left to run over to Fawn’s place and get her some clothes. Your sister’s refused to leave Levi’s side.”
“Libby and I could have gone to get her some stuff,” I say.
He smiles at me, reaching out to touch my cheek.
“It’s good they went. They needed to feel like they were doing something useful. Besides, they’ve been driving Levi and Fawn crazy with their puttering around, trying to fluff his pillows and bickering with the nurses about giving him more pain meds when he’s told them he doesn’t need them.”
I laugh. My mom would do that. She doesn’t understand the meaning of boundaries. Levi’s mom seems to be cut from the same cloth.
“Are you and Mom going to stay in the city?” Libby asks before shoving a handful of M&M’s into her mouth.
“We’re staying at Fawn’s place. Levi’s parents are going to stay at his place.” He looks between the two of us, and his face softens. “You girls should head home. They’ll be kicking everyone out before long, anyway. You two can come back in the morning.”
“We’ll just say bye to Fawn and Levi first,” Libby says.
I grab my purse and follow her and my dad down the hall. As soon as we enter Levi’s room, I smile at him.
He presses a finger to his lips, gesturing for us to be quiet since Fawn is asleep on the bed, tucked into his side.
“We just wanted to say we’re heading out. Tell Fawn to call us in the morning.”
I lean down and kiss his cheek, but he grabs my hand before I can lean back.
“Please go check on Wesley,” he says.
I pull back to look at him and swallow when I see the worry in his eyes.
“I will,” I agree.
He lets me go. I watch Libby give him a hug, and then I walk over to my dad and wrap my arms around his waist. I rest my head on his shoulder.
“You okay, kid?”
“Yeah,” I lie, giving him a squeeze before letting him go so he can hug Libby. “We’ll see you tomorrow.”
“See you tomorrow.” He kisses Libby’s forehead and opens the door for us.
Once we’re in the hall, I pull out my cell phone and try to call Wesley. He doesn’t answer. Swallowing over the realization that I may have completely ruined things between us, I pull in a breath and look at Libby.
“I’m going to stop by Wesley’s. Will you be okay getting a cab on your own?”
“Of course.” She reaches over to take my hand, then softens her voice. “Things will be okay.”