I nodded gratefully. “Can we go?” I asked hopefully. I longed for home, and realized that it was Travis’s place that came to mind.
“I’ve got your discharge papers here.” He handed them over to Travis. “I’m glad you’re all right. Give us a call if your symptoms don’t dissipate or if you experience anything new.”
“We will. Thank you, doctor,” Travis replied, rising to shake the man’s hand.
I stood up the moment he shut the door, intent on getting changed.
“Let me help you,” Travis complained, grasping my arm gently as he handed me my clothes.
“Trav, I’m not dying. I need some sleep and some food,” I noted, my mouth watering at the very thought. I hadn’t eaten since lunch the previous day. “I’m okay,” I reiterated.
His jaw ticked, and he looked like he wanted to argue, but simply nodded. “What do you want to eat?” he asked as he helped me slide my tattered jeans up my legs.
“A strawberry milkshake sounds so good.” I sighed blissfully. “And a cheeseburger, but I guess it’s early.”
“We can find you something,” he assured me as I slid my shirt over my head. “Will you let me take you to the Jeep in a wheelchair?” he asked hopefully.
I looked at him dubiously.
“I didn’t think so,” he grumbled, wrapping an arm around my shoulders and pulling me close to his side. “I’ll settle for this then,” he murmured in my ear, giving me a squeeze.
His reassuring strength bolstered my spirits as we made our way out into the warm glow of dawn.
It had been a terrifying experience, but I’d survived. Hell, I’d proven a lot to myself, and that counted. And now, now I had that chance at forever, the one I’d dreamed of before I even knew Travis McAllister existed.
****
I couldn’t sleep.
After I’d devoured a cheeseburger and a milkshake that tasted like heaven in a cup, Travis had driven us home. I’d taken a long hot shower with Travis—he’d been unwilling to leave me, and I hadn’t wanted him to. He’d helped me put on one of his T-shirts and promptly put me to bed.
He’d held me in his arms after we’d crawled into bed. Now, hours later, I was still staring up at the ceiling.
I looked over at Travis, sleeping peacefully beside me. His arm was wrapped around my waist, holding me close, as he had from the moment he’d found me. Really, from the moment we’d met, when I thought about it.
I looked down at Buster, who was watching me intently from the foot of the bed while Able snored away on his dog bed in the corner.
I pulled the covers back as quietly as I could, trying not to wake Travis as I slipped out of bed.
For the first time, I felt truly comfortable in Travis’s home. Being brought back here, knowing it was one of the safest places I could be, calmed some of my ravaged nerves. I made my way downstairs, my bare feet silent on the staircase. I didn’t know where I was headed until I arrived at the doorway of his command center.
There was something about the security cameras, about being able to see for myself there was no imminent danger, that gave me a small sense of control.
I pulled his massive desk chair in front of the monitors and curled up, my eyes intent on the screens. It was almost hypnotic watching the black-and-white screens displaying various parts of the exterior of the house.
“What are you doing?” Travis’s voice was a soft murmur, but it still sent my heart catapulting out of my chest.
“You scared me,” I gasped, holding a hand over my chest.
“Sorry, I thought you heard me.” He moved to stand beside me, dropping a hand to my head. “What are you doing?” he asked again, his eyes darting from me to the security screens.
I shrugged, feeling mildly embarrassed. It must have seemed so bizarre. “I couldn’t sleep, and my feet just sort of brought me in here. I think— It’s just sort of reassuring to see there’s no one out there,” I admitted.
He dropped to a crouch beside me, his gaze soft and concerned. “Oh, babe.” He sighed. “No one’s getting in here—whether you watch the screens or not. You know that, right?”
I bit my lip nodding.
“But I get it,” he continued gently. “You don’t have to be rational. You don’t have be logical. Just tell me what you need to feel safe, and we’ll make it happen.”
