His head falls back to rest on the couch, tear-lined eyes staring at the ceiling. “I didn’t even make it one day. That first day when you basically told me to shove it, I think I fell for you then.”
That day in the elevator feels like it was forever ago. I remember facing off with Colt, wondering why he was being so hard on me, and I get it now.
“And the shitty schedule?”
His gaze still won’t meet mine, but he nods. The questions that have plagued me since my first day at Grace General finally become clear. It was all my dad’s doing, my dad’s plan to cripple me, simply because of the evil that lives inside of him.
“I’m sorry,” he whispers. “I’m a weak man. I wanted to do whatever Richard asked of me because I wanted to please him. I hope you believe me when I say I will forever hate myself for what I’ve done to you.”
My chest aches for Colt. For the years he spent worshiping my dad, answering his every beck and call under the guise that he finally had the father figure he wished for as a kid. Only for my dad to toss him away like he does everyone else. I bring my hands to his cheeks, gently tilting his head up to meet my gaze. “He’s manipulative, but he’s so good at letting people believe otherwise. I’ve seen it so many times and I continue to fall for it. It doesn’t mean anything bad about you that you built him up to be something he wasn’t.” In a way, I hurt more for Colt than I do for myself. There was a tiny voice inside me that continually whispered, cautioning me to watch out for dad. Even though I wanted to believe he’d change and that he’d hold up his end of the bargain, I can’t say I am completely surprised that he let me down.
But I am surprised at how he’s used Colt. My dad even let me believe that he cared about him, that he trusted him as a friend and colleague. And maybe he really had. But some people are just so dark, so toxic inside, that they have no problem turning on those they love the most if it means getting what they want.
“I’m going to miss you, baby,” he whispers against the shell of my ear. “It’s going to physically gut me to see you move halfway across the world, but at the same time, it’s going to heal me to know that you are where you’re meant to be. You have a dream that’s so beautiful, so honest, and I can’t wait to see you live it. So go, please. Let me make this right. Go live your dream and help those people. Just know that when you’re ready to come back to the city, I’ll be here waiting for you.”
I crash my lips to his, tasting the salty mix of our tears as my hands move to rake my fingers through his hair. He groans into my mouth as his hands slide from my back down to my ass, pushing me into him.
“I love you,” he whispers, and my chest seizes at his confession. “I almost told you that I loved you right before we walked into your dad’s office, but it didn’t feel right. But I can’t let you go without telling you that I am madly in love with you. You are the best thing to ever happen to me in my forty-some years on this earth.”
My eyes begin to water, and I inhale sharply through my nose to prevent the tears from falling. “I love you, Colter,” I croak out. I open my mouth to say more, but the words are lodged in my throat, held back by my emotions.
But Colt doesn’t mind. Hearing the words repeated back to him must be enough, because he smiles that broad, hearty smile that I’ve come to learn is only for me, and he leans in to kiss me. “Good.” His hands move behind me to find my zipper, pulling my cold, wet dress off my shoulders. Gathering it all in my hands, I whip it up and over my head, letting it fall to the floor behind me with a wet thud. I reach behind me to unclasp my bra, letting it drop somewhere in between us. My nipples pebble, skin covered in goosebumps as his hands massage my aching breasts. His mouth finds my neck; he kisses down my throat and to my chest as his broad palm comes out to smack my ass. I squeal with delight, my body ablaze with the newfound adrenaline.
“Now fuck me like you love me.”
Epilogue - Three Months Later
Annaliese
Iturntofacethebeads of water, hoping the cabin’s pressure can hold out for another few minutes while I wash the conditioner from my hair. I need to savor these quiet moments in the shower after days like today.
The heat was nearly unbearable, and an influx of mosquitoes swarmed us the entire day as we worked the triage tents. My neck is raw, red, and rashy from my mosquito net rubbing against it all day. There were more tears than expected, both from workers and the families begging us for their help. We’ve been docked at this port for three days, and it seems like the influx of those needing help hasn’t slowed.
I’m sunburnt, starving, dehydrated and in need of twenty hours of sleep, but food and rest likely won’t happen soon.
If my internal clock is correct, I have about ten minutes before Colt’s jeep should arrive at the port. He’s been traveling for the last twenty-five hours, and should have landed at the Kismayo International Airport roughly thirty minutes ago.
I can imagine how twisted his brows will be as he takes the bumpy, dusty drive down the single lane roads that weave through the wilderness. He’ll question if he’s even in the right vehicle, with the right person, headed somewhere toward me or possibly being led deep into the jungle. I know he’s wondering what the hell I’ve convinced him to do, and I smile at the thought of him whining about the lack of luxury amenities waiting for him on the ship.
Wait until he sees that we’re sharing a nearly twin size bed for the next three weeks.
Three whole weeks with my man.
After the night I left my dad with his jaw hanging open at the restaurant, I also decided to end my residency at Grace General. With Colt’s help, I left on good terms, and was able to spend two weeks packing up my apartment, planning my move, and relaxing at his house waiting for him to come home to me at the end of every day.
We didn’t get our trip to Aruba, but we were able to explore the city we both grew up in with a new perspective. And we could do it together.
We strolled downtown, hand in hand, and it didn’t matter who we saw. Sometimes we’d just spend the day on the streets, wandering until we found something that sparked our interest. We found a guy selling tamales on a street corner from a cooler. They looked and smelled delicious but Colt was too sketched out to eat one, so we settled for tacos at Big Star.
We found our slow, acoustic setting at The Hideout, sitting in a corner booth sipping a beer while we lost ourselves for hours at a time.
We danced in front of strangers simply because we didn’t have to hide, and the last few weeks in the city with him were some of the best days of my life.
My dad, on the other hand, is living through some of his worst.
His years of inappropriate sexual advances and sexism finally caught up with him. In the weeks following that fateful dinner, several surgical staff came forward to file a sexual harassment suit against him. That, coupled with some new information regarding gender discrimination, forced him into an early retirement, denying him the glory of naming the next Chief of Surgery. His precious ego and reputation are officially tarnished and he has no one else to blame but himself.
My dad hasn’t tried to reach out to either myself or Colt. And right now, we both don’t care. It’s been a healing journey for each of us, and it’s likely a journey that will take some time. My dad deserves to know what it’s like to lose something that meant so much to him–whether that’s his relationships or his career, I’ll never know.
