Chapter 10 #5
The doorbell rings just as Lee pushes me toward the bedroom.
I hurry through grabbing clean sweatpants and a Clay Farms T-shirt and run a brush through my hair.
Just as I’m brushing my teeth, Lee wanders into the bedroom to grab socks and shoes.
I watch in the mirror as he sits on the edge of the bed, tugging on his socks, then pulling on his boots that have seen better days, but he’ll wear them until they fall apart.
Will the sight of him always make me feel like I’ve seen the face of God? I hope so.
Lee stands when I return to the bedroom.
He pushes me down onto the bed, pulls a pair of socks onto my feet, then slips on my trusted checkered Vans.
My heart defies gravity in my chest when Lee presses a soft kiss to my knee, like he’s done it a million times, like the action alone isn’t reorienting my reality until I make the entire world ours, and ours alone.
“Let’s go get our girl,” Lee says as he stands, hand held out for me to take.
We hold hands all the way to the car, the entire car ride, during the pharmacy stop, and all the way to Savannah’s room on the tenth floor of the children’s hospital.
Lee had to stop and grab Savannah a balloon at the gift shop.
That’s the sort of father he is. And who am I kidding.
He’s been a father to her since the day I brought her home, I was just too stupid to realize it.
Savannah looks much better today. Her curls are still messy but no longer sweaty, and her cheeks are much less rosy. Her smile is ecstatic when she spots Lee but grows even wider at the sight of the light blue balloon filled with green confetti.
“Balloon!” Savannah screams, then promptly coughs.
Lee tuts and crosses the room to tie the ballon loosely around her wrist. “No yelling, angel.”
“I got excited.”
“I know.” Lee swoops down to kiss her forehead. He stands quickly and smiles tightly over at Danica. “Hello.”
“Hello, Lee.” Danica sips the coffee in her tight grip, her eyes calculating. “She’s doing much better today.”
“She’ll be even better once we get her home. Maybe Buster can even sleep with you,” I say with a wink and smile. “Sound good?”
Savannah’s smile is ecstatic. “Buster! But also, I want Unc-Lee’s grilled cheese, not Dad’s. And I want purple popsicles only.”
“Unc-Lee bought two boxes of popsicles for you.” I brush her hair away from her forehead, feeling way more emotional than I’ve ever felt. “We’ll be staying at the farm for a while.”
“I love the farm,” Savannah says with all the succinctness a child can muster. “I wish we lived there all the time.”
I shoot Lee a look, but he just smiles and shrugs like the lovestruck dope he’s always been.
The nurse brings in the discharge papers while Danica gets Savannah dressed in the clothes we brought with us.
When discharge arrives, Savannah happily sits in the wheelchair while Lee holds her hand the entire way to the front entrance.
Thankfully the car is waiting in the valet lane in front of the exit.
Danica gives Savannah a kiss when we exit the hospital, and I shake Dominic’s hand.
It’s the most amicable parting we’ve had in years.
Lee picks Savannah up and places her against his side, holding her close.
“It’s a full moon tonight,” Savannah says against Lee’s shoulder, her face buried in his neck as we approach the car. “I’m glad we’re with you so you’ll be safe.”
“Maybe I’m ready to become a werewolf like you and Daddy.”
“Really?” Savannah asks in awe, little hand grabbing Lee’s bicep tightly. “Please, oh please, I want you to be one of us.”
“We can talk about it with your daddy tonight. If you can stay up long enough to see the full moon and if you take your medicine like a champ. Can you do that?”
“Yes!”
I have to bite back the grin that threatens to break loose.
Lee buckles Savannah into her booster seat in the back while I climb into the passenger seat.
I watch with a tenderness that threatens to undo me, as Lee procures Wolfy who was somehow left in the car this entire time.
Savannah hugs Wolfy tight to her chest while we pull away from the hospital.
Out of habit, even after only a few weeks, I tangle my fingers with Lee’s as he drives us home.
The farm has never looked as beautiful as it does today.
Sunshine covers the entire house and land like a daisy-yellow blanket.
Birds chirp like they’re welcoming us home.
I don’t think we’ll ever go back to my little cottage downtown.
I’ll end my lease and move to the farm as soon as I can.
It’s closer to work anyway, not that it matters really.
What matters most is that we’re closer to Lee because we’re a family, and we belong together now.
“What do you want for lunch, angel? I got all your favorites.”
“Tomato soup with grilled cheese.”
Lee shoots me a look over his shoulder as we push into the cool house. “You want Daddy to make it?”
“No, I want you to make it, Unc-Lee. With the crispy edges. It’s better than Daddy’s.”
Well, that’s the first time I’ve heard that admission.
Lee looks sheepish and avoids my gaze as he putters around in the kitchen making her request. It’s just canned tomato soup and Wonder bread with thick slices of cheddar cheese.
But some of the cheese oozes over the edges, cooking on the pan, making a crispy, crunchy sort of grilled cheese.
I pour Savannah a lemon-and-lime soda while Lee finishes up the soup and grilled cheese.
“Let’s tell her now. I don’t want to keep putting it off.”
“All right,” Lee agrees with a little hesitance.