“Your car? Is it bad? They said I crashed into a tree. It must be bad.”
“Doesn’t matter. It’s only a car, and that can be replaced. You can’t.” He gently kissed the tip of her nose. Fortunately, that wasn’t where it hurt.
“I’ll buy you a new one. I promise. A nicer one.”
Theo’s chuckle warmed her inside. “If it’ll get you to relax, I’ll let you buy me anything you want.”
There were lots of things she’d love to buy him. They were married. She could do it, right? Married? Wait, Dina. Dina had been over this morning. Had she been talking about divorce papers? Did Theo want a divorce? It certainly didn’t seem that way with how he was acting toward her. He hadn’t even freaked out when she’d blurted out her history of having had a nervous breakdown.
No, the papers were for custody of Jordan if anything happened to Theo. That much she remembered.
“Why would you draw up documents to give me custody of Jordan if something happened to you?”
Theo’s gaze flitted away, then back to her. “The tree thing got me thinking that I needed something in writing to make sure she’d be with you.”
His expression said more was involved, but she didn’t push. “I don’t understand. I’m her mother. Why wouldn’t I get custody of her?”
Theo’s mouth tightened. “Your father sent papers to me a few months after I got Jordan. They said you gave up all legal rights to our daughter and that I had full custody.”
“What? I never signed anything like that. How could I when I thought my child was dead?”
Theo shrugged. “It looked like your writing. I didn’t question it, since it lined up with everything else I’d been told. I’m sorry, pixie. One more thing I should have questioned.” His expression showed self-disgust.
“I probably did sign it,” she mumbled, knowing what a mess she’d been at that time. “He could have had me sign my life away during those months, and I wouldn’t have cared. It wasn’t a good time for me.”
Theo hugged her, pressing his lips to her hair. She lifted her one free hand and wrapped it around his neck, needing his warmth and strength.
“We’ll get it all fixed once you get out of here. Jordan needs both her parents.”
Would Theo still think that way once he knew the extent of her mental illness?
Theo scanned the words on his cell’s screen, stood up and stretched. Chelsea was asleep finally. The nursing staff had checked on her all night long, which made for sporadic slumber. For both her and him. The chair he was in didn’t help.
Creeping toward the door so he didn’t chance disturbing his wife, he eased it open and moved into the hallway. Angie stood near the elevator, Jordan holding tight to her hand.
As he drifted closer, Jordan tugged, ran, and jumped into his arms. Her sad face clawed at his heart.
“Daddy.”
“Shh, peanut. Lots of people are sick here, and we need to be quiet, so we don’t disturb them.”
“Is Mama sick again?” she whispered. “I don’t want her to go away like before.”
“She’s not going anywhere, sweetie. I promise.” Now, he needed to make sure that never happened. They both needed Chelsea in their lives.
“Sorry,” Angie murmured, rubbing Jordan’s back. “She was distraught, thinking her mom would disappear.” Holding up a bag, she added, “I brought something for Chelsea to wear home if she’s ready.”
“Thanks, Ange. Appreciate it.” He looked at Jordan. “I’ll take you in to see your mother for only a few moments, but you need to promise to be extremely quiet and don’t wake her. She has a boo boo on her head, and it hurts.”
“But she’s coming home?” Her anxious face mirrored what his must have been like since he’d heard about the accident.
“The doctor said if she was better this morning, I could bring her home. We’ll have to be careful because she still doesn’t feel well, and too much noise could hurt her head.”
Jordan glanced around the hallway. “Are we bringing her to our house?”
“Yes. She’ll need someone to take care of her for a little while until she’s all better. Can you help me do that?”
Her little head bobbed up and down, her brown hair swinging from side to side. “And then, maybe she can stay with us? Forever?”
