Chapter 22 #2
“I have nothing to hide, Reid.” She continued to hold the phone out to him. “Go ahead and look. I didn’t respond to him last
night, and he didn’t text me now. It was Kam just checking in.” She paused, but he didn’t move. “Reid, you can read it. I
trust you.”
He hesitated and then took her phone, glanced at the screen, and handed it back. Shame flickered over his face. “I’m sorry.” He raked his hand through his short hair. “I shouldn’t have done that. I guess I’m just a little jealous.”
“Listen, it’s over between us. I mean it.” She set the phone on the table and reached for him, and he clasped her hands in
his. “He’s part of my past, and that’s where he’ll stay.”
Reid’s posture relaxed—slightly.
The curtain opened again, and a nurse appeared.
“Ms. Ross, Rebecca Griffin and Sue Turner are here to see you,” the nurse said.
“Would you please send them in?” Kaiah asked.
“I will,” the nurse said before leaving.
Reid pulled his phone from his pocket. “I should get back to work since they’re here,” he said. “I’ll text Cash.” He typed
on his phone, and then his gaze met hers. “I wish I could stay.”
His words warmed her from the inside out. “I’ll be fine,” she said.
He leaned down, and when his lips brushed hers, his kiss was slow and gentle. “I’m so glad you’re okay,” he whispered while
his fingertip traced her cheek and her jaw. “Don’t scare me like that again, okay?”
“I’ll try not to. I promise.”
He touched her shoulder. “I’ll call you later to check on you.” His phone chimed, and he looked down at it. “Cash is on his
way to pick me up. Promise me you’ll take it easy.”
“I will, Lieutenant.”
The curtain opened again, and Becca and Sue scurried in as Reid stepped aside.
“We’ve been so worried,” Becca said as she bent to hug Kaiah.
Sue touched her hand. “You gave us quite the scare, sweetheart. I’m so glad you’re okay. Piper and Astrid are worried sick. Blake is too.”
“I’m sorry for worrying you guys. How was the rest of the garden tour?” Kaiah asked.
Becca jammed her thumb toward her mom. “My mom won the trophy for the best garden. I told you her roses were the cream of the crop.” She pulled her phone out and flashed a photo of Sue holding a huge trophy, with
Piper and Astrid grinning on either side of her.
“I’m not surprised.” Reid leaned over to see the photo. “Good job, Mom.”
Becca’s expression became serious. “I’m so glad you were on duty today.”
“Me too.” He rubbed Kaiah’s arm. “I hate to leave, but I have to get back to work.”
“Don’t worry about it. Thanks for coming with me. I’ll see you tomorrow,” Kaiah said.
He pulled her in for a hug, and she held on to him while inhaling his comforting scent. “Take good care of yourself, Ky,”
he whispered in her ear, and his deep, smooth voice sent a delicious chill shimmying down her spine.
“I will,” she promised. She wanted to hold on to him forever.
Reid stood and divided a look between Becca and Sue. “Watch out for her tonight, and get her back to the hospital if she needs
to be seen again.”
“We will,” Becca said. “I’ll stay at your house and make sure she’s okay.”
Reid nodded. “Thanks. Give my love to Piper.” He sauntered out of the examination room.
A knowing look passed between Becca and her mother as Reid disappeared through the curtain.
“Thank you for taking such good care of me,” Kaiah told Becca later that evening as she relaxed on her boyfriend’s sofa. Sue
and Becca had taken her back to Reid’s house, where Blake and the girls had brought takeout from a nearby sandwich shop. Sitting
with these kind people at the kitchen table, cutting up and swapping stories, Kaiah was overwhelmed by how much she enjoyed
being with Reid’s family. They were the kind of family she’d always wished for but never had: close enough to mess with each
other, kind and considerate even in their differences. She was grateful they’d allowed her to be part of their little unit.
Kaiah covered her mouth to shield a yawn. “Sorry, guys. I think all of the excitement from today is taking a toll on me.”
She stood and gathered up their empty plates.
“Oh no you don’t.” Becca jumped up and swatted her hands. “You get ready for bed. I’ll take care of the kitchen.”
Sue stood up. “Let me and your dad clean up the kitchen.” She eyed Kaiah. “You get ready for bed.” Then she focused on her
daughter again. “And you take care of the girls.”
“I want Miss Kaiah to tuck me and Astrid into bed.” Piper pulled on Kaiah’s arm.
Kaiah faced Becca. “Is that all right? I think I can handle sitting during bathtime and reading a couple of bedtime stories.”
“Pleeeease, Auntie?” Piper begged. “Me and Astrid will be really good. Right, Astrid?”
“Uh-huh!” Astrid insisted.
Becca’s expression warmed. “Fine, fine. But you be gentle with Miss Kaiah. She’s had a long day.”
Blake set up a cot in Piper’s room for Astrid, and Kaiah sat with the girls while they took their bath. After they were dressed
in their pajamas, the girls climbed into their beds. Ariel took her usual spot at Piper’s feet. After Sue and Blake kissed
the girls and told them goodbye, Kaiah read them The Littlest Mermaid.
“Now it’s time to go to sleep,” Kaiah said after finishing the story and tucking them in. “You have sweet dreams.” She kissed
each of them on the head. “I’ll see you guys in the morning.”
“Miss Kaiah,” Piper called when Kaiah had reached the door. “Are you okay now?”
She smiled at the girl. “I feel much better.”
Piper’s big brown eyes brimmed with tears. “I was so scared,” she said as she started to sob.
“Hey, sweetie.” Kaiah rushed over to Piper’s bed. Her heart pinched as she rubbed Piper’s cheek. “I promise I’m okay.” She
ripped a few tissues from a nearby box and wiped up the six-year-old’s tears. “You don’t have to cry, Piper. I’m all better.”
“It was so scary,” Astrid said, her voice shaking. “Your eyes were closed.”
“Yeah,” Piper agreed with a sniff.
“I’m so sorry for scaring you.” Kaiah worked to keep her voice even despite the guilt rushing through her. “I’m going to carry
medicine with me so that if I ever get stung again, I can take care of myself. I’ll do my best never to scare you like that
again.”
Piper held her arms out, and Kaiah pulled her in for a hug. “I love you, Miss Kaiah.”
Kaiah swallowed her own sob, and she sniffed. “I love you too, Piper.” Then she touched Astrid’s arm. “I love you too, Astrid.” She dropped the tissues into a nearby trash can. “Now we all need some sleep. We’ve had a very busy day.”
She slipped out into the hallway, leaving Piper’s door cracked for the cat to escape if she needed. Then she found Becca in
the den.
Becca had changed into gray yoga pants and a red tank top, and she was eating a bowl of ice cream and watching Runaway Bride.
A woman after my own heart, Kaiah thought.
“Hey, where are your parents?” she asked Becca.
“They headed home. How were the girls?”
She handed Kaiah a bowl of ice cream and a spoon, and Kaiah ate a spoonful.
“A little teary.” Kaiah summarized their conversation before she’d left them. “I had a hard time not crying along with them.”
An unreadable expression rippled over Becca’s features as she spooned more ice cream into her mouth.
Kaiah waited for her to speak, but when she remained silent, Kaiah set her bowl and spoon on the coffee table. “Just say it.”
“What?” Becca gave her feigned confusion.
“Whatever you’re thinking. I can tell you’re holding something back.”
Becca also set her bowl and spoon down. “I’m not surprised about Piper.”
“What do you mean?”
“Think about it, Ky. Her mom didn’t come home one day.” Becca smoothed her hands over her yoga pants. “Yes, she was only two,
but she still feels that loss.” She hesitated. “And you’ve become really important to her . . . and to my brother.”
Kaiah’s nose began to prickle as her eyes welled up with tears. Why was she emotional today? Maybe it was the EpiPen. Yup, that was it. She was having another reaction, but this time it was to the medications.
Kaiah collapsed against the back of the sofa. If she were being honest, she knew the medicine wasn’t the culprit for her tears.
The problem was that her feelings were mutual. Both Reid and Piper had become important to her too. She would have to leave
them behind in a few days. That idea was starting to get a little more real. She and Reid could call each other “boyfriend”
and “girlfriend” all they wanted, but the fact was that her life was in New York. Theirs was in Coral Cove, hundreds of miles
away. She didn’t know how she was going to get along without seeing them every day, let alone if her relationship with Reid
would survive at such a long distance.
Picking up her bowl, Kaiah began to eat her ice cream while the ridiculously attractive Richard Gere and Julia Roberts shared
a passionate kiss on-screen. All of her own passionate kisses with Reid filled her mind, sending flutters through her chest.
He was her boyfriend. This strong, kind man, seemingly filled with integrity, had committed himself to her. She wanted to
see where a relationship with him might lead. But was she ready to give up her dreams of traveling the world and writing meaningful
stories to settle down in a small town? And was she ready to be somebody’s mother?
Oh my goodness. I would be a mother. I don’t know how to be a mother.
Kaiah’s heart began to beat wildly. She could only manage tiny gulps of air as her vision blurred and her ears began to pound.
Stop torturing yourself, Ky!
“Hey, you okay?” Becca’s face was etched with concern, and she began to rub Kaiah’s back. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to overwhelm
you. I think I overstepped.”
“It’s okay,” Kaiah said. “They’re important to me too. You all are.” Her eyes stung, and she wiped them again. “I think I’m just tired.” She took another bite of ice cream and then stood. “I’m going to go to bed.”
“All right. Call me if you feel like you’re having a relapse, okay? I’ll be right next door in Reid’s room.”
“I promise I will.”
“You’d better. Reid will have my head if I don’t take care of you.”
Kaiah laughed. “Thank you, Becca. Good night.” She washed her bowl and headed back to the guest room, changing into her pajamas
and climbing into bed.
The day’s events scrolled through her mind as she stared at the ceiling. Hugging her arms to her middle, she rolled to her
side. She suddenly remembered that Kam had texted her but she hadn’t responded. Kaiah considered calling her, but she was
just so tired.
Closing her eyes, she tried to stop the thoughts swirling through her mind. But she kept replaying Reid’s warm presence in
the hospital, his arms wrapped around her before he left, and Piper’s tears in her bedroom.
They were both so important to her. And now she didn’t know how she was ever going to leave them.