“Yeah, baby?”
“Please don’t leave me.”
I squeezed her tighter. “There’s not a chance that will ever happen again.”
EPILOGUE
Jada
We were pulling out of the hospital when I glanced at Cane. He was in total control—sunglasses over his eyes, one arm resting on top of the steering wheel. It was the most relaxed I had seen him in the past three days. He had never left my hospital bed. Kari had brought him clothes, and he had showered in my room. He slept in a chair next to my bed every night.
The hospital kept me for tests and observation, but luckily, no permanent damage was done. It was going to take some time for me to heal completely, but at least it would happen. My eyes were black and my face was swollen, but the ringing in my ears had started to wane.
A counselor had come to see me in the hospital and explained that I may feel some sort of post-traumatic stress. He encouraged me to make an appointment with someone to discuss my feelings if I became overly anxious or scared.
The thought of going back into Cane’s house terrified me, and I didn’t think I would ever be able to go there again. But otherwise, I wanted to try to live my life without looking over my shoulder. If at allpossible, I didn’t want to become a victim. I made a couple of appointments with a therapist at Cane’s urging, just in case … and because he wasn’t to be argued with.
Cane grabbed my hand and sat it on his thigh, covering my hand with his. He chewed on his bottom lip as we made our way across the Valley toward Kari’s.
“How are you feeling?” he asked, looking at me out of the corner of his eye.
I shrugged, wincing a little. “Okay. My head hurts, but I think it may hurt for a while.”
“Yeah.” He furrowed his brow. “Can I show you one thing before we go to your sister’s? If you don’t feel like it, baby, just say so.”
“I’d like to see whatever you have to show me.” I smiled widely as I tried to readjust my sunglasses on my swollen face.
Cane turned on the radio, and John Legend came on. “Hear this?” he asked, turning it up. “This is me to you.” He grinned shyly, making my heart burst. “I love you.”
“I loved you first,” I whispered.
His eyes found mine, and I could see the wheels turning.
“What’s the matter?”
He shook his head. “Nothing,” he said as we passed the exit to Kari’s.
“Where are we going?”
“Patience is a virtue.”
“Funny, I’ve heard that before.” I laughed. I relaxed back into the soft leather and felt some of the tension float away. Maybe things were getting back to some sort of normal.
He took his sunglasses off and chewed on the end. “I think I’ve said that to you before,” he said thoughtfully. “And I think it was the last time we came out here.”
“Are we going to your mountain?” I asked him, wondering what the city looked like from there with the sun still up.
He grinned.
“So that is where we are going,” I exclaimed, and he shook hishead at me. “I really love it out there, you know. I’m excited to see it in the daytime.”
“I hope you are.”
I watched the scenery float by, everything so colorful. After what had happened, every color, every flower, every single thing looked more beautiful, tasted better, smelled better.
I’m alive. Cane’s alive. We’re going to be okay.
“So what do we do now?” I asked.
