The Ending I Want

“Call Paul.”

“Okay.” I lead her back over to the sofa.

She sits down. I get my phone out of my pocket and take the seat beside her.

“I can’t believe your car got clamped.” Apparently, she’s still on that.

I guess it is better than talking about where we’re about to go and how difficult these next few days…weeks are going to be.

“Well, I did leave it in a no-parking zone.” I shrug. “They probably did me a favor by clamping it. It would probably have gotten stolen, if not.”

“I can’t believe how blasé you’re being about it.”

“It’s only a car.”

“An expensive car.”

“And you’re worth more.”

Her eyes soften on me, and she leans in close, kissing me with a featherlight brush over my lips. “I love you,” she says the words like she needs to keep saying them to make it real.

And I’m far from complaining.

For that time, thinking Taylor didn’t feel the same as I did about her…it was fucking torture.

To know she loves me…is the best feeling in the world.

“I love you, too, Boston. Now, stop trying to distract me with your hot mouth, and let me call Paul.”

“I wasn’t trying to distract you.”

I lift a brow, and she laughs.

“Okay, maybe I was trying to distract you a little bit.” Grinning, she shows an inch with her thumb and forefinger.

Shaking my head, I laugh.

Fuck, it feels good to laugh.

I put my arm around her shoulder, pulling her to me. She lays her head on my shoulder.

I call Paul, and he answers on the first ring. I tell him to come and pick us up from my apartment.

“Paul will be here in fifteen minutes,” I tell Taylor as I hang up the phone. I slide it back into my pocket.

She doesn’t say anything. And I notice how tense her body is with her fingers curled up in her lap.

“Hey.” I lift the shoulder her head is on, gently nudging her.

She slowly lifts her head and looks at me. Her eyes are shimmering with tears.

“Babe?”

She shuts her eyes and lets out a ragged breath. “I’m afraid, Hunter.”

A vise clamps itself around my chest and squeezes hard.

Turning to her, I take her face in my hands. “Don’t be. There’s nothing to be afraid of. I’m here. And I’ll be here with you the whole time. I’ll keep you safe. I will always keep you safe.”

But that’s a lie.

Not that I won’t keep her safe because I will. I’ll always do everything in my power to keep Taylor safe.

But this…this is out of my hands, and that scares me.

No, fuck scared. It terrifies me.

Part of me is afraid that the surgery won’t work. That, after all of this, I will end up losing her anyway.

But I don’t vocalize it. I hide it.

And, when she opens her eyes and gives me a weak smile, I return that smile, forcing mine to be stronger. All the while, I conceal my fears as I lean close and kiss her forehead one last time.

The room is dark, except for the soft glow coming from the television across the room.

We’re back to where we were last night—Taylor in a hospital bed and me by her side. But I’m sitting this time, not pacing around the room, pleading with her to live.

The same, but everything has changed.

I’ve arranged for her to have the best brain surgeon in England to come to do her surgery, and it’s scheduled for first thing in the morning.

Also, we’re in a different hospital room than the one Taylor was in last night. I want her to be comfortable. So, I had them put her in a private room, the best they have.

Donations to the hospital go a long way in getting what you want.

Money brings power, and I have a lot of both, so I will use all of it, if necessary, to ensure Taylor gets better.

Something else that’s different now…I know she loves me.

She loves me, and we’re together.

And we’ll be starting our life together as soon as she’s better.

She is going to get better.

I glance back at her face. Her eyes are closed.

I pick up the remote control from the bed and turn off the television. The moon is full and bright, giving some light to the room.

I stare out the window, up at the moon and the stars glittering around it.

I’m not a religious man. I’ve never been the kind of man who prays, but right now, I’m praying.

Don’t take her. Please.

Turning my chair to face Taylor’s bed, I lean over, resting my arms on the bed, and I gently press my face into her stomach.

I inhale her scent. She smells of everything I want.

Her. I just want her.

Fingers touch my head, slightly startling me.

“I thought you were sleeping,” I say against her stomach.

“Just resting a moment. Talk to me, Hunter.” Her voice is a soft whisper.

I turn my head, resting my cheek against her stomach, so I can look at her face. Even in the muted darkness, I can see how beautiful she is. I will never tire of looking at her.

“What do you want me to talk about?”

“Anything…but not about what’s going to happen tomorrow. Don’t talk about that.”

The surgery.

My mind goes blank as I try to think of something to say. Because the surgery is all I can think of.

“Nothing to say?” Her lips lift into a smile. “Not like you, Hunter.”

“Your beauty has stolen all my words.”

“Did you steal that line from a book?”

“Probably.” I grin.