“I would have if he had called!”
“Seriously,” I croaked out. “Don’t worry about me. It’s just a headache and severe lung inflammation. I’ll be better in no time.”
“I always knew my big brother would have to save the world someday,” Lizzy grinned, tucking herself into my brother’s side.
“Oh, please,” Jeff scoffed. “I could save the world and you wouldn’t give two shits about it.”
“You can’t save the world by flirting with all the girls in town,” Lizzy retorted.
“No, but I would save them from heartbreak. What’s wrong with that?”
“Look, I came home to tell you good news,” Michael snapped.
“Oh, so you’ll come home for good news, and then I suppose you’ll leave us once again.”
“Pop, talk to her.”
Dad lounged back in his chair, his cowboy hat tugged down over his eyes. “Like I have any say in what she does.”
“You know I would have been home?—”
“No, that’s the problem, Michael. We didn’t know you would be home. Ever since that nasty business with the military?—”
“My dishonorable discharge,” he corrected.
“None of us believed a word of it, but you just couldn’t be here with us. Why is that?”
“Because you all were trying so damn hard to make it all better when it couldn’t be!” Michael shouted.
Tugging the oxygen mask back over my face, I realized there wasno point in arguing with any of them. Rest needed or not, they would continue to argue as if I weren’t here, just as they had for days now. At least before I was sedated.
“You walked out on us, Michael. Your own family. All we wanted was to be here for you, and you left.”
In tears, Ma raced out of the room, followed quickly by Lizzy. Pop sighed heavily and got to his feet, jerking his thumb in her direction.
“Guess that means I have to follow. Otherwise, I’m gonna be sleeping on the couch tonight.”
That left just Michael, Jeff, and the woman I still hadn’t been introduced to. Not that anyone seemed to care at all that I was lying in this bed. And I really didn’t want them here anyway. I was getting no sleep with all of them arguing at the drop of a hat.
“She’ll come around,” the woman said, rubbing my brother’s shoulders. “She just needs time.”
“Actually, she’ll hold this against you for the next ten years. Then, after you’ve given her grandkids, she’ll think about forgiving you,” Jeff grinned. “Maybe come back after that task has been accomplished.”
“She’s not too far off,” Michael grumbled.
Surprised, I tugged the oxygen mask from my face. “Is she pregnant?” I whispered.
“Not yet,” Michael grinned, “but I plan to knock her up as soon as possible.”
He tugged the woman into his lap, brushing the hair off her face. The way he was looking at her…
Fuck, that’s just how I looked at Bailey. Except, she was gone, and there wasn’t a damn thing I could do about it.
“Do I get to actually meet this woman?” I asked.
A coughing fit overtook me, and Jeff brought over a cup of water, thankfully, helping me sit upright to drink it. The cool water soothed the sandpaper feeling in my throat, but not much. From what the doctor said, it would take at least another few days.
When I was finally done, I laid back, closing my eyes as I replaced the oxygen mask. Fuck, I just wanted to get out of here and away from all the people surrounding me.
