Chapter 30
Two dozen rounds of different tests, all with the same conclusion—there was nothing wrong with Savannah’s eyes. She begged to differ considering she saw the same thing with her eyes open as when they were shut… Nothing.
Despite her protestations, Doc Hardy had demanded Savannah be taken back to the hospital. After two days and no answers, she couldn’t withstand any more torture. “Jasper, I will fumble and stumble the entire way if I have to, but I am not staying here one more minute!”
The stench from whatever passed for hospital food had her biting her lips to stop from vomiting even though she hadn’t tasted a bite. Jasper and Cody tried to keep her well fed by bringing meals from a local mom-and-pop deli, but the lingering aroma through the halls from cafeteria trays, sanitizing alcohol, and used linens had kept her stomach roiling.
“But they haven’t found out what’s wrong with you, sweetheart,” Cody entreated for the sixth or seventh time that afternoon. “Please be patient.”
Savannah answered by ripping out the IV plugged into her arm, then the heart monitor cuff on her other arm. “They are not going to find a damn thing! If they were going to, the doctors would’ve already diagnosed me instead of leaving me to linger in this torturous state.” Her arms flew out, knocking over the continuous beeping machine by the bed. “I will not stay here one more minute. Now you either get my clothes for me or I will strut down the halls and out the front door with my ass peeking out of this stupid gown!”
A chuckle so low it came out more like a growl grabbed her attention. “Savi, I’m sure we’d all love to witness that… Cody included. But, sweetheart, I have to agree with him. We should stay at least until the optical nerve specialist from Cheyenne gets here tomorrow.”
Snarling her displeasure—she hated it when Jasper had a good point, especially when it disagreed with her wants—Savannah flung off the covers and threw her legs over the side of the impossibly narrow bed. The floor was ice-cold on her bare feet. For a moment, she wished for that ultra-plush rug that had warmed her feet during her stint in Hell. Now that floor could’ve been an actual iceberg. “Hand me my clothes or get out of my way, both of you!”
“She’s not the easiest patient, is she?”
“Cody Henry Williamson, since when have you ever known me to be patient?” Savannah glared in what she hoped was the right direction.
“Well, you’ve always been so with the animals. But”—he guffawed—“never with people.”
“Why doesn’t that surprise me?” She could hear the smile crawling up Jasper’s face at her own expense. For such a macho guy, he’d turned into a hovering nursemaid, and she didn’t appreciate it at all. A large, warm hand wrapped around her forearm. “Sit down. I’ll get your clothes before you moon poor Cody.”
“Actually…” the cowboy started to object but stopped short. Jasper would most likely throw him a death glare if he finished that sentence.
Her butt hit the side of the bed and she held her hand out, snapping her fingers. “Hurry up!”
“First things first. Cody, I believe we don’t need you to help dress Savannah so if you don’t mind…”
“All right, I’m outta here! I will not be complicit in this lunacy. She needs to stay put and let the doctors figure things out.” The door softly clicked behind him.
“You want me to dress you? Could be kinda kinky.” Jasper meant to come across teasing and jovial, but Savannah heard the hesitation in his tone. He hadn’t touched her intimately since she’d been in the hospital—not like they could do anything in the hospital room with nurses and doctors waltzing in at all hours to check her blood pressure or see if she needed assistance going to the damn bathroom. But not so much as a kiss on the lips. What did he think—she was contagious or something?
Her stubbornness demanded she dress herself, but that longing for his touch won out. “Yes, please.”
Warm hands pulled her to a standing position, slowly turning her around as he undid the tight knot that had barely kept the hospital gown from falling off her shoulders. She’d been working at that damn knot for two days, even broke a nail trying. Finally, the offensive garment slid down to pool at her feet.
“Now, that’s much better.” Jasper’s quick intake of breath brought a smile to Savannah’s face, which quickly turned to a frown.
Had that been an oh-my-god-I’m-turned-on inhale or an oh-my-god-she’s-disgusting one? Considering her protruding belly, painfully swollen breasts, and greasy hair she’d guess the latter.
As if hearing her negative thoughts, Jasper pulled her to his chest. His heart hammered an upbeat melody against her ear. “You are gorgeous. If I didn’t believe Cody or another nurse would bust in here, this could be so much more fun.” He inhaled sharply. “Guess we better get you home, the sooner the better.”
Not completely convinced of his sincerity, Savannah pushed away from him. “Then get me dressed and get me outta here!”
“I don’t know.”
She growled at him; her hand reached out to snag the clothes away from him. She’d dress herself, dammit!
“I’m more accustomed to removing your clothes, not putting them on you.” He laughed. “But we can remedy that situation when we’re home.”
Home. She’d found it startling the first time he’d used the word. Home. Guardian angels didn’t have homes. Being in a traveling rodeo, home was a foreign concept, too. But after years on the road, she guessed that ramshackle tin can had become her home. The fact that he may consider it his home as well lit her heart with radiating gladness.
“Well,”—she bit her bottom lip—“best throw a potato sack over my head. Let’s go before I freeze to death standing here. There could be an entire gallery of spectators to my nakedness, and I wouldn’t know.”
“Voyeurism, hmm? Didn’t think you had it in you, but we could certainly try someday.”
Savannah’s fist punched out to connect with something rock-hard. Hard to tell what part of him she’d hit since his body was chiseled to perfection and more solid than iron.
“Oof! That hurt, my love.”
“No, it didn’t, liar!” she retorted.
He made some aggravated noises, then threw something light across the room. “Forget the bra. There’s no way I can come that close to your breasts and not do something naughty. Besides, those things are impossible with all those tiny hooks.”
Laughter gurgled past her lips. “You don’t seem to have difficulty undoing all those tiny hooks to get the bra off,” she accused.
“That’s different.”
“Sure,” she muttered. “That’s fine. I despise the things anyway. And… it probably won’t fit anymore. If you haven’t noticed, these things…” she gestured to her chest, “have grown just a bit.”
Jasper murmured his approval with a wickedly suggestive growl. “Yes, I have most definitely noticed.”
After several awkward attempts to button her flannel shirt over her new boobs, she threw that across the room to join the bra on the floor. “Now what? I don’t even want to think about trying to shimmy into my old jeans.” Savannah stood naked; her arms crossed over her chest with tears streaming down her face.
“No worries, my love.” A warm hand cupped her chin, his thumb wiping away the tears. “I’ll be right back. Don’t move.”
“Exactly where would I go?” she sniveled.
His full lips pressed against her own. “I have an idea.”
“If it means strutting down the hall, down the elevator, and through the lobby like Lady Godiva… well, if it means getting outta here, I’m fine with it!”
“As delightful a picture that would make, I may have an alternative.”
The door clicked open. “Cody!” Jasper hollered down the corridor, his voice echoing back in the vast halls. Some mumbled words were exchanged then the door closed. “This will have to do.” Soft material went over Savannah’s head, then he helped her arms find their respective holes. The garment fell over her ass to hit just above her knees.
“What is this?” She didn’t care if it was a circus tent if it allowed her to walk out of the hospital.
“Just Cody’s T-shirt.”
“Then what is Cody wearing?”
Jasper snickered like a schoolboy. “The hospital gown. Your shirt wouldn’t fit him either.”
For the first time all week, Savannah laughed, truly laughed even while tears she’d been trying so hard to hold in slid down her cheeks. “I hope you took a picture with your phone.”
“Well, of course, I did! One swipe and everyone in the rodeo will get to see, too.”
Savannah doubled over laughing this time.
***
Try as he might, Jasper knew he’d failed to keep the worry out of his tone. She’d picked up on it and it had annoyed her the entire time she’d been in the hospital. He had never been the lovey-dovey, hand-holding type either, so he’d shied away when he should’ve been comforting her with even the simplest of touches.
Truth was… he was scared. For her. For the baby. For them.
Something else gnawed at his gut.
He had a surprise for her that he feared she’d reject on principle. They wouldn’t be going back to Savannah’s trailer. How was he supposed to take care of her in that cramped tin can? Besides, the rodeo was already five days late to leave for Wyoming. They needed lodging that didn’t have wheels.
“You’re awfully quiet. What are you up to?” She’d asked twice already.
“A little surprise is all.” His fingers tapped the steering wheel furiously.
“Don’t you think we’ve had enough little surprises?” Savannah’s hands rested on her belly. “And…” her voice cracked, “we should probably discuss…”
A bump in the road he hadn’t noticed jolted the truck, causing them both to bounce on the bench seat.
“I haven’t been avoiding that conversation, just feel we should take care of you first.” He cringed at the crack in his voice.
“Well, you don’t have to stick around just because I’m pregnant. I would never…”
“I know, Savi. I know. But I’m not going anywhere. Baby or no baby, you are stuck with me.” He reached across and grabbed her hand, giving it a reassuring squeeze.
The heavy, relieved sigh she uttered nearly broke his heart. Had she really suspected he’d turn and run away from his responsibilities… from his child… from her?
The remainder of the ride was quiet.
When the tires stopped in front of the quaint log cabin, Jasper looked across to Savannah. Oh, how he wished she could see the home he’d rented for them. It was newly built but held the rustic cabin aura complete with a green tin roof and lacy curtains in the windows. The porch wrapped around with wooden rocking chairs spaced at even intervals, including the entire back porch lined with chairs so everyone could enjoy the scenic mountain view. There was an option to buy at the end of the lease and he was highly considering it—if she liked the place. He had no intention of her ever going back to that teensy-weensy trailer. In fact, he’d gladly burn the thing over a campfire. He’d moved her stuff into the cabin but had enough bumps and bruises from trying to maneuver in her cramped RV that he had zero desire to ever squeeze into it again.
He jumped out, running over to open Savannah’s door. “Here, let me help you.” His hands wrapped around her hips to gently guide her feet to the ground.
“Where are we? This isn’t my trailer.” Her words were clipped.
She was either nervous about a new place or about to cut his dick off for making life-altering decisions for her.
“Well, I didn’t think the trailer was a safe environment considering…”
“Considering my condition!” she snarled.
Yep, this wasn’t going the way he’d like.
“Considering lots of things, Savannah. We can’t raise a child in that cramped trailer you’ve called home all these years. And, yes, without your eyesight I thought it’d be easier for both of us to have a little more room. And…just in case…” He didn’t get to finish his sentence.
“But it’s my home, Jasper! I would be safer there since I know it like the back of my hand. I don’t need my eyes to know where the bathroom or kitchen are there.” Her tone had taken on a whine that he’d never heard from her, not even when she’d been the skinned-kneed kid he’d saved all those years ago.
It broke his heart. He had taken her away from the only home she’d known. Why hadn’t he considered that?
“Let’s just try it out for the night. If you don’t like the place, I promise we will squeeze right back into your RV first thing tomorrow.” Even he heard the disappointment in his voice, and it made him queasy. He’d fallen in love with the place on sight. The crisp fresh air carrying the scent of pine, the scenic view of evergreens for as far as the eye could see, and the eagle’s nest perched a couple hundred yards away. He’d envisioned coffee and breakfast on the porch watching the eagle soar and listening for the whoo hoo of the owls in the evening. But she couldn’t see its beauty. None of his grand plans were working out well.
“All right,” she muttered. Savannah took his hand. “Show me what you got, cowboy.”
He led her up the staircase to the porch, then fumbled in his jeans’ pocket for the key. When the door creaked open, Jasper cast his gaze to her face. “Would it be too presumptuous of me to carry you over the threshold?”
With cold hardness etched into her beautiful face, she turned eyes of fury on him. Even if she couldn’t see, her eyes radiated her emotions loud and clear. “Let’s get this straight, bud! We are not married. I am not a cripple. And I can walk over the damn threshold by myself, thank-you-very-much!”
Oh yeah! She still had that stubborn independent, I’m-not-a-fucking-damsel-in-distress streak. He should’ve remembered that earlier. Her blindness hadn’t made it less so. It had amplified it to supersonic levels.
He’d majorly fucked up.