“I do feel better, I’m so, so relieved he’s home and he’s safe.”
“Then why are you crying?”
“It’s all catching up to me, I suppose. What happened, what could’ve happened, what happened to Luna… All of it.”
“Where’s Daddy?”
“He’s… He went out for a while.”
“Why?”
“We needed a little time to ourselves.”
“Will he come back tomorrow?”
“I don’t know yet. Sometimes mommies and daddies need a little break from each other. It’s nothing to worry about.”
“I am worried. You’ve never needed a break from each other before.”
“I don’t want you to be upset. We both love you very much, and we always will. If it’s okay with you, maybe we could just snuggle and talk more in the morning. Tomorrow will be another day, and we can talk about anything on your mind then. Okay?”
Abby nodded and burrowed deeper into Tracy’s embrace.
“I’m glad you’re here with me. You’re still the best snuggle bug ever.”
“Better than Brooke and Ethan?”
“Better than anyone, but let’s make that our little secret.”
Her soft giggle was just what Tracy needed as she closed her eyes, took a deep breath and tried to sleep.
Chapter Thirty-Two
Jesse hadn’t expected to spend the night and had awakened with the most unholy crick in his neck from sleeping in the chair next to Memphis’s bed. When he tried to move his head, a sharp pain stabbed his upper back.
His gasp woke her and had her turning toward him to see what was up.
“Slept wrong,” he said as he rubbed at the ache in his neck.
“I told you to go home.”
“You’re not the boss of me.”
“Maybe I should be. If you’d listened to me, you wouldn’t have a crick in your neck.”
He scowled at her as he tried to stretch the kinks out and succeeded only in making it worse. “Son of a bitch.”
“You’re getting too old to spend the night in a crappy hospital recliner.”
“Who are you calling old?” At thirty-seven, he’d never felt older than he had lately, but he was allowed to think that of himself. She didn’t get to say it.
“Which one of us is moaning and groaning because he can’t move his own head?”
A snappy comeback died on his lips as another sharp pain required his full attention. Cripes, he’d be walking crooked for a week at this rate.
“Hey, Jesse?”
The soft, uncertain-sounding question put him immediately on alert. His Memphis didn’t ever sound vulnerable, so what was up with that? “Yeah?”
