He jumps off the couch and I take hold of his hand. Leo isn’t around as we step outside and I walk over to where Mom and Dad are stood with Cas and Alannah.
“Harper…”
Mom cuts in and tells me, “Hasn’t taken her medication because she reckons she’s pregnant. We’ve done our best but under the circumstances, we haven’t done a good enough job.”
Pregnant? That’s not possible. I got a vasectomy two months after Gunner was born. We both decided one kid was enough for us and I made sure a mistake wouldn’t happen.
“She’s still here and still alive, that’s good enough. I’m home now, I’ll take over.”
“How are you doing, son?” she asks.
“I’m good, Mom.” I smile. “I was hoping you could take Gunner tonight. I need to deal with Harper and I don’t want him around if she gets worse.”
“Sure. I’ll keep him as long as you need. Just let me know.”
I kneel down and tell my kid, “Be good for your grandma, yeah?”
He nods and takes her hand when she holds hers out for him. I go to walk off when Cas calls my name. I stop and he catches me up.
This shit has aged him ten years. The lines around his eyes are deeper and I swear he has more grey.
“I wanna say that I shouldn’t have stepped on your toes. The brothers were right, you wear the VP patch, I should have trusted you’d make the right calls, especially when it came to Leo.”
“Turned out, neither of us made the right call.” I snort. “I get it though, it would have been hard to let go when you were president for years and it was your son who was taken.”
“Some shit is engrained in you, but it won’t happen again.”
“It’s fine, Cas. Look, I’ve gotta get back to Harper. She shouldn’t be left alone for long.”
He nods. “Let us know if you need help.”
Once back at the house, I lock the door and take the key out, pocketing it so she can’t slip out without me knowing.
The water is still running upstairs and I kick my boots off and slip out of my cut, careful of my shoulder. I hang it up on the banister and head up the stairs. I dig the antibiotics out of my pocket and pop one into my mouth.
The bathroom is full of steam and I undress, slipping into the shower.
“I’m back, babe.”
She turns and smiles up at me. “You can’t ever die.”
“I’m not going anywhere. I’m here.”
“No, I mean, when our time comes, I need to die first. I can’t live without you.”
I’ve always been selfish when it comes to her, and I’m selfish to know that I’m the one who couldn’t live without her. I keep it to myself and nod, giving her what she needs to remain calm.
“Babe, are we pregnant again?”
She frowns and then remembers something. “No, I told Alannah that so she’d get off my back. She’s getting worse with the nagging, I swear. Why? Do you want another baby?”
“No, we decided, didn’t we?”
“Yeah.” She sighs with relief. “We did.”
I run the backs of my fingers across her cheek and slide my hand around the back of her head. I pull her against me and hold her close. “Everyone is home. It’s over. We can go back to living our lives together. We’re gonna shower, then we’re gonna eat. You’re going to take your meds and we’re gonna get back on track. I’m gonna love you every day, take care of you, make you happy, make you laugh. I’ll wipe your tears when you cry, thenkill whoever made you cry. There’s nothing you have to worry about anymore.”
She presses her lips agains my chest and winds her arms around my back.
