She couldn’t read what he was thinking. All that wonderful closeness they had shared was gone; now in its place were her brother and a ton of guilt.
“Thanks.”
He left, leaving the door open, and moments later she heard him talking to someone but she wasn’t sure who.
The flight didn’t go smoothly. Cooper woke often with nausea and the shakes. His body was aching, and his eyes were running and in seconds he was drenched in sweat. She did what she could, and Ethan came back and sat with her when things got bad, but it was a relief when they finally touched down in Brook.
Once again, Ethan carried Cooper, but this time they didn’t get into a car; instead, his helicopter was waiting.
“I’ve called ahead and told Jake we’re coming with Cooper. He and his mother will be waiting with what he needs,” Ethan said as he put Cooper in the back of the chopper.
Why hadn’t she thought about doing that? Why had she left it to him again? What would the McBrides think of her now? She’d kept Cooper’s addiction to herself, but now it was out, and Jake would want to know why she’d kept it from him. Jake and Branna would be pissed with her, she knew that, as would Buster and Newman, and they probably had a right to be.
“They’ll understand why you didn’t tell them, Annabelle. They love you.”
“How did you know what I was thinking?” It wasn’t the first time Ethan had done that, guessed her thoughts.
“It was pretty obvious that you’d feel guilty about not telling Jake or Branna about Cooper. You’re all close and you know their secrets, so it’s logical to think that they should know yours,” he said.
She couldn’t find any words to answer him, so instead she nodded, and followed him into the helicopter. She climbed into the back and held her brother as Ethan flew them back to Howling.
Memories of their last trip in the helicopter seemed so long ago. A lifetime, Annabelle thought, looking down at Cooper.
“G-God, Belle, I ache all over.”
“I know, Coop.” She brushed his hair away from his forehead as he started sweating again. “Hold on to me, as hard as you need.”
And he did. Sometimes his grip was punishing, but the trip was short and soon they were descending again, down to the landing spot at Branna and Jake’s home. Annabelle looked down to see the people who had come to help her and Cooper, the friends who would always be here for her, and she started to cry.
She’d left excited and ready for Ethan’s sister’s wedding just a few short days ago, and now she was returning with her broken brother and a man she owed more than she could ever repay, the man who now very likely held her heart.
Ethan knew she was crying. He could hear the soft little sniffles she was fighting, and failing, to hold inside.
“It’s okay, baby. We’re home now, and they’re waiting for us. All those people you love are here and they’re going to help us get through this,” he said.
“I-I don’t want to s-say thank you again.”
He smiled. It was such an Annabelle thing to say, and he understood where it had come from too, which told him just how much he’d come to know the woman who now held his heart.
“I did what I did for you because I care about you. Do you understand what I’m saying to you?”
“I-I can’t think about that now, not with Cooper and what we f-face together ahead of me,” she said.
“I know that, and you’re exhausted too, but I’m not going anywhere. I need you to know that.”
She didn’t speak as he began to bring his bird down, but she’d heard what he had to say. It would be in her head now, which was all he’d wanted.
Jake ran under the rotor blades and opened the door. “What’s he using?” were the first words out of his mouth, followed by, “You should have told us this was going on, Annabelle.”
“I know. I’m sorry,” she said, and then she climbed out behind Jake, who now had Cooper in his arms.
Following, Ethan saw that Branna was hugging Annabelle, while Jake had disappeared into the house.
“You must be exhausted,” Branna said, looking over Annabelle’s shoulder at him.
“Coffee would be good, and maybe something you baked?” Ethan enjoyed the arm she wrapped around his neck as he drew closer, and the kiss on the cheek.
“Come on, let’s get you both inside. Buster’s there, and Jake’s parents and Dad.”
