Chapter 25
CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE
ERIN
“ I ’m fine ,” I insist for the sixtieth time. “I’m not dizzy. I just have a hell of a headache.”
“Hmm.” The doctor, a pretty woman named Emily Peabody, doesn’t say much as she shines a light in my eyes. “Follow my finger.”
I do, and she says, “Hmm,” again, and makes notes on her computer.
“Dr. Peabody,” I repeat. “I’m fine. I just need to go home and lie low for a day or two.”
“I agree,” she finally says, and I glance at Remington triumphantly.
“Told you.”
“The X-rays don’t show any fracture where you were punched. You’re going to have one hell of a black eye for a while, but that’ll heal. I suspect the psychological trauma will take longer, though.” She turns to me with kind eyes. “I can recommend a good therapist if you’d like.”
“Yeah.” I swallow hard and grip Remington’s hand. “Yeah, I think I would.”
She nods and stands. “I’ll write it on your discharge papers. Take ibuprofen for the pain, and get some rest.”
“Thank you,” Rem and I say in unison as she leaves the room.
“Scared the shit out of me,” Rem says as he leans in to kiss my cheek. “My God, when I saw you there, unconscious, I…it was a bad moment.”
“I thought for sure he’d kill me,” I admit softly and brush my fingers through Rem’s hair. “His eyes, they were crazy. He’s not mentally right.”
“He’s going back to jail,” he says with certainty. “Chase will have some questions for you.”
“I’ll talk to him now. Where is he?”
“I told him to wait until you’re feeling better.”
“Remington.” I roll my eyes and then flinch at the pain. “I have to talk to him right away. I’ll go over to his office when we leave here.”
“No driving,” Dr. Peabody announces as she walks back into the room. “Not for today, anyway. Let your handsome fella here chauffer you around. Take it easy.”
“Thanks.” I stand, and Rem slides his arm around my waist to keep me steady.
Which, right now, I need.
“Let’s go,” I murmur. “I hate hospitals. Did anyone call my parents?”
“Chase did,” Rem replies. “He texted me. They’re on their way.”
“What?” I frown up at him as relief floods through me. I really want my mama. “They don’t need to come out here. I’m fine. ”
“Maybe if you keep saying that, you’ll talk yourself into it.” He spares me a mild glance. “They’re worried about you and want to see you. And I can see by the look on your face that you’re relieved. You don’t always have to be the badass, you know. Also, Chase will meet us at the house. You’re not going to his office.”
“Did he say that?”
“No, I said that. I’m taking you home, Doc. No arguments.”
I don’t feel up to arguing. “Oh, shit! The kids! Where are the kids?”
“Millie took them home,” he says.
“Okay, good.”
He leads me to the Suburban, buckles me in, and then circles around to the driver’s side. My head is spinning a little, so I close my eyes and lean on the cool glass of the window.
“I know you want me to tell you everything. But it’s just easier if I say it once, when Chase is with us. I don’t have the energy to go through it several times.”
“That’s fine,” he replies and reaches for my hand. Since I woke up in Roger’s living room, Rem has had his hand on mine in some way. He’s been close to hold me and reassure me, and I’m so grateful. “I know the most important piece, and that is that you’re safe.”
“You get swoony in an emergency.” God, every piece of my body is so sore.
He chuckles. “Most people call it pushy.”
“I like that you’re protective and that you take control in a crisis. It’s hot. Pull over so we can have some car sex.” I can’t keep my eyes open.
“As tempting as that is, I’m going to pass for the time being. I’ll take a rain check, though. Baby, you’re so tired.” He kisses the back of my hand.
“You never call me baby.” I open one eye and peer over at him. “Like, never. But I think I kind of like it.”
“I’m feeling particularly tender toward you right now,” he admits. “Are you sure you shouldn’t be monitored in the hospital overnight?”
“Don’t tell me you’ve never taken a punch to the face.”
“I’ve had my share.”
“And did you spend the night in the hospital?”
He doesn’t say anything, and I close my eye again.
“See? I just need a nap and some ibuprofen. Part of me thinks I should call my parents and tell them to stay home, but the other part kind of wants my mommy, so I won’t.”
He pulls off the freeway and through the gate, and when he stops in front of the house, I frown.
“Your entire family is here.”
“Looks like it.”
“Why?”
He turns and stares at me like I’m suddenly stupid. “Because that’s what family does, Doc. They’re worried about you.”
“That’s really sweet.”
Before I can walk up the stairs, Rem picks me up and carries me up to the door, which is opened by Millie.
Her eyes are red and puffy from crying, and both Johnny and Holly flank her sides, their faces covered in worry.
“Oh, Erin,” Millie says with a sniffle. “Are you really okay?”
“I’m fine.” I feel like it’s the eightieth time I’ve said it. “Really, I am. I just have a cool shiner. I’m not sure why I’m being carried.”
“Because it makes me feel better,” Remington replies and sets me down on the couch. There are questions and worried faces, and finally, I hold my hand up and everyone stops talking.
“And because you have an owie,” Holly informs me and sits up on the couch next to me. “Daddy always carries me when I have an owie.”
“That’s very nice of him.” I kiss her brow and smile at Johnny as he watches me with concern furrowing his brow. “Everything’s okay, buddy. I look a lot worse than I feel. Honest.”
“You have a bad black eye,” he says as he steps closer, standing right in front of me. “Does it hurt?”
“A little.” I swallow hard, really wanting my own mother right now. I reach out for Johnny’s hand, wanting to comfort him. “I know you’re worried, but I’m going to be just fine.”
Johnny steps into my arms and hugs me tight. “I love you.”
“Aw, sweet boy, I love you, too.” I kiss his head and then his cheek. I glance up at Remington. “Does anyone know how far out my parents are?”
“They’re in the rental car, on the way here,” Chase replies.
“You’re kidding. That was fast. ” I accept a glass of water from Joy and take a drink as Johnny sits on the other side of me. “I’ll tell you everything when they get here so I don’t have to repeat it.”
“That’s fair,” Chase says, his face grim. “I will tell you now that he’s going back to prison on the original charges, but now we’ve added kidnapping, trespassing, assault on an officer, and a whole host of other things. He’s going away for a very long time.”
“Good. That’s good.”
“There was a bad guy?” Holly asks with a tremble in her little voice, and I close my eyes. I wish with everything in me that these two babies wouldn’t have to see me like this or hear this story. I love them both so much.
“There was a bad guy, but your uncle Chase got him, and he can’t hurt me or anyone else ever again. Isn’t that awesome?”
She frowns and crawls up in my lap, snuggling against me. “I’m sorry.”
“Me too, baby.” I kiss her brow and cuddle her and then smile when Johnny takes my free hand in his. These two little loves mean the world to me.
John and Brady are pacing the room, and Joy sits across from me, her face lined in worry as she watches me with the kids.
Finally, I hear a car pull up outside, and Remington walks over to open the door.
“Where is she?” Mom demands. “Erin?”
“Everyone’s in the living room,” I hear Remington reply.
“Oh, my baby,” Mom says and breaks into a fresh bout of tears. “My girl.”
“Mama.” She folds me and Holly both into her arms, and I break down into tears again. All the fear and emotions from the past several hours just bubble up and out, and I can’t control it.
When the tears finally slow down, I glance around and find everyone watching me, including both Holly and Johnny.
“Sorry.” I wipe at the tears, sucking in a breath when I rub my hurt eye too hard. “Ouch. Okay, Chase, get your recorder ready because I’m about to spill my guts. Wait, should the kids be here for this?”
“Hey, you two, let’s go out to the barn and see if we can talk Lucky into taking us all for a ride on the horses,” Millie says.
“I want to stay,” Johnny says, shaking his head and crossing his arms over his chest.
“I’ll talk to you and Holly later, and tell you the story,” I promise, running my hand over his hair. “I promise, I will. But for now, I have to tell the adults, and I think it’s best if you and Holly go have fun, okay? I love you, buddy. It’s going to be okay.”
Johnny firms his lower lip and looks like he’s going to be stubborn, but he glances over at his little sister and reluctantly nods.
“Okay. Come on, Holly.”
Holly hugs me tight, kisses my cheek, and then joins her brother and Millie.
When I hear the front door close, I take a deep breath and let it out slowly, take another sip of water, and then nod. “Okay, so I was working with Millie…”
“It’s my birthday party day!” Holly announces as she runs into my bedroom and bounces on my bed, still in her Cinderella jammies. “My friends are coming, and we’re going to have a real castle!”
“Yes, I’m aware,” I reply with a laugh as she wraps her little arms around my neck and hugs me close, snuggled down in my bed. Over the past two weeks since the incident, as I’ve now come to think of it, the kids have become more and more comfortable coming to hang out with me in my room, especially in the morning. “I’m the one who ordered the castle.”
“When do your parents get here?” she asks.
“In a couple of hours.” Even though they were just here two weeks ago, they made it clear that they wouldn’t miss out on Holly’s party. “They’ll be here before the party starts.”
“Good.” She reaches up and pats my cheek. “Erin?”
“Yes, love.”
“When do you think it would be okay if I called you Mommy?”
My heart catches, and my throat wants to close up. Jesus, I want that more than I thought I ever would. I smile at her and brush her pretty hair off her cheek.
“Oh, sweet girl. You’re so precious to me. You know that, right?”
“Uh-huh.”
“Maybe we just need a little more time.”
“Where are you guys?” Johnny pokes his head in and grins, then runs over and jumps on the bed. “What are you talking about?”
“I want to call her Mommy, but she said no.”
Johnny frowns over at me, and I shake my head.
“I didn’t say no. I said we need more time.”
“Why?” Johnny wants to know. “We love you, and you love us, so what’s the problem?”
“Because it’s not just up to me,” I reply and tap him on the nose. “But I love you both, too. We’ll talk about this later, okay? We have a lot to do today.”
“My party ,” Holly agrees and smiles at her brother. “Are you excited?”
“Not really,” he says with a shrug, but I see the excitement in his eyes. Why do older siblings always have to give their younger siblings a hard time?
“Erin, will you make the pretty fishtail braids in my hair?” Holly asks.
“You bet.”
“You kicked ass with this party,” Millie says as she joins me at the cake and ice cream table. “The kids are having a blast. Even the adults are. That cake was delicious.”
“I must admit, this was my first time throwing a kid’s party, and I didn’t do half-bad.” I glance over and frown when I spot Remington walking with my dad. “What are those two talking about?”
“I wouldn’t know,” Millie says.
“That means you do know.”
She laughs and shakes her head as Rem breaks away from my dad and heads our way. “No, it doesn’t.”
“You’re amazing,” Remington says as he walks up and wraps his arms around my middle. “I don’t recall ever seeing Holly smile as big as she did when she saw that we bought her her very own horse for her birthday.”
“To be fair,” I reply, “I didn’t have anything to do with the horse. But something tells me they’re going to be good friends.”
“While the kids play,” Rem says, “I was wondering if you’d come have a chat with my family?”
Millie grins and nods.
“Am I in trouble again ?”
“No.” Rem laughs and kisses my cheek. “Come on, you’ll see.”
He takes my hand, and Millie joins us, walking over to where Rem’s parents and brothers are gathered together. I notice there are two empty chairs where my parents were sitting.
“Where did Mom and Dad go?”
“They’re playing with the kids,” Joy says with an inviting grin. “Remington was telling us about your idea regarding that old barn out in the pasture. He mentioned it a few weeks ago, actually, but we were just having a conversation about it.”
“Oh, okay. I wasn’t trying to overstep,” I say as I sit in one of the empty chairs. “The idea just came to me when Remington and I were out there, and I ran with the idea.”
“We kind of love it,” Millie says. “It’s a great idea.”
“Really?” Surprised, I raise my eyebrows and look at each member of the family. “You like it?”
“It’s genius,” Ryan confirms. “It will be profitable, while maintaining some history of the property. We just have one stipulation.”
“What’s that?”
“That you’re in charge of overseeing the project.” Remington takes my hand. “It’s your vision. Of course, we’re all here to help, but we want this to be your project. And once it’s built and underway, you’ll be the CEO of that business.”
Stunned, my mouth opens and closes, but no sound comes out because I’m not sure what in the hell to say to that.
“Again, we can help,” Millie adds. “And you’ll hire staff.”
“But my whole job here is to take care of the kids.” I frown over at Remington. “They’re a full-time job.”
“It’s going to take a while for the construction of it—the landscaping, hardscaping, everything. Likely at least a year, maybe more. The kids are in school most of the year, remember?” He smiles over at me. “You won’t be bored, that’s for sure.”
“Think about it,” John says kindly. “You don’t have to jump in right this minute. Give it some thought.”
“You’ll have a whole family here to help you,” Joy reminds me with a wink.
“Wow.” I take a deep breath and let it out slowly. “I’ll admit, it sounds like such a fun project. I’d love to do it, but I have no experience in anything like this. I have lots of family who do, and I know I could consult with them, but this is way out of my comfort zone.”
“Comfort zones are lame,” Brady says with a grin. “I figure, to get experience, you have to jump in and figure it out.”
“Like I said,” John adds, “give it some thought. Now, I’d like to go check out that new horse.”
They all get up and go off to play with the kids or check out the horse, and I’m left alone with Remington.
“I don’t know if I’m really the person you’d want for that big of a project.”
He calmly reaches over to tuck my hair behind my ear. “I think that you need to start giving yourself more credit. But if you don’t want to do it, no harm, no foul.”
“Who am I kidding? I want to do it.”
He grins over at me. “I figured you might.”
“Wake up, Doc.” Remington’s voice is smooth and sexy in my ear, lifting me out of the hardest, most delicious sleep ever. “I have to show you something.”
“Time is it?”
“It’s early, but I need to show you something. Come on.”
Yesterday was exhausting. Who knew that a kid’s party could take it completely out of you? I feel like I could sleep for a week.
“Do I have time to pee and brush my teeth?” I ask as I push my hair off of my face.
“Absolutely,” he says and steps away from my bed. “I’ll meet you in the kitchen.”
“Oh, one more thing.” I grab his shirt before he can pull out of arm’s reach. “I love you.”
His lips curve in that staggering smile. “Back at you, Doc. Come on. Let’s go. You won’t want to miss this.”
I stretch and then pad into the bathroom to take care of business. Once I’m dressed, I find Remington in the kitchen.
He passes me a to-go tumbler of coffee.
“Are we going somewhere?”
“I can’t get anything past you,” he says with a wink and takes my hand. “Come on. I’m not telling you where we’re going. It’s a surprise.”
He doesn’t have to tell me. We’re going to the special spot with the view of the mountains. I don’t know how I know it. I just do.
And I’m not wrong.
He pulls the Jeep to a stop and climbs out, then hurries around to open my door for me, and with our coffees in hand, he leads me to a little spot that already has a blanket spread out on the grass.
“When did you put this here?”
“About an hour ago,” he replies with a satisfied smile before taking a sip of his coffee. “I couldn’t sleep last night, so I came out to set up something nice for you.”
“Why couldn’t you sleep? What’s wrong? After that wild party yesterday, I slept like the dead.”
“Nothing’s wrong.” He kisses my fingers, and then we sit on the blanket, snuggled up together. My coffee is delicious, and the sky is starting to turn pink as the sun climbs up behind the mountains. “I wanted some alone time with you in a special place before the sun comes up.”
“I’m glad your parents came for Holly’s party,” he says and sips his coffee. “It’s convenient that we’re only an hour’s flight away from Seattle. When I spoke to your dad yesterday, he said he’d never miss his granddaughter’s birthday party.”
The words start to sink in, and I turn my gaze up to his. “I know I haven’t had much coffee yet, but?—”
“I love you,” he says, his voice perfectly calm. His amazing eyes are full of happiness and hope as he stares down at me. “I never believed in love at first sight, but I took one look at you at that coffee shop, and I knew I was a goner. Why do you think I went in every single day? I can get plain black coffee at home.”
I press my lips together, determined to soak in every word of this and not ruin it with questions.
“I’ve done the marriage thing before, Erin.” He sighs and brushes my hair back behind my ear. “I’m not sure that I was any good at it. I made a lot of mistakes, and I can be a bear to live with sometimes. Just ask my kids.”
“You’re not selling this very well.”
He taps the tip of my nose with his finger and grins. “I know that I’m a lot to take on. I have two children and a ranch that demands a lot of my time. But I want to make a life with you here. I want to marry you, share my home and my kids with you.”
He pulls a ring out of his pocket and offers it to me. It’s a simple solitaire diamond, but it has to be at least three karats.
“Whoa.” My heart leaps into my throat, and I’m swamped with emotion.
“Will you marry me, Erin Montgomery?”
I search his face and eyes, and I can see the love there, radiating back at me. And I know, without a shadow of a doubt, that I want to marry this man, and be the mother to his gorgeous kids. I want this life with him.
“Without hesitation.” He slides the ring onto my finger and then kisses it. “I love you and the kids and this place more than anything. When I came to Montana, I was so lost. I didn’t know for sure what I wanted or even who I was. But I found it with you, and with Holly and Johnny. This is absolutely where I’m supposed to be. And the kids are champing at the bit to call me Mom, which just melts my heart every time they ask. They’re the sweetest, and I love them with my whole heart. Not just because they’re a packaged deal with you, but because of who they are as people. I hope their mom would approve of me stepping in on her behalf.”
Remington swallows hard and nods. “She’d like you, Doc. And I know my kids are crazy about you because they’ve also been hounding me to ask you to marry us so you can finally be their mom.”
“So, you gave in to peer pressure?” I giggle and then moan as he kisses me, soft and slow.
When we finally come up for air, he whispers, “Look at the mountains.”
I turn my head and gasp. The sky is on fire, in red and orange, as the sun is just starting to come up behind the peaks.
“It’s the most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen.”
“Heart stopping,” he agrees, and I glance to him and find him looking at me.
“There’s that swoon again.”
“This is only the beginning, Doc.” He kisses my nose and pulls me closer to him, and I know that this is just the beginning of an incredible life here in the wilds of Montana.