Page 87 of Protected By the Billionaire Ex-SEAL

Her eyes widen in shock. So do mine. Her head whips back to stare at Eric.

“For real?”

“Yes.” Amusement lines his features as he hands her the test results. “The blood tests say so, including the fact that you’re cleared in other aspects.”

I slowly back away when he discusses more, relieved that it’s nothing negative and wanting to give her some space to absorb the news. Hell, Aaron should be the one here, not me. But I don’t wait in the lobby for long as the two come out of the room shortly, with Eric patting Honey Lee’s shoulder.

“We can set up the next appointment in a few weeks. For now, take it easy and take your vitamins.” He nods at me. “Good call to bring her here, Christian.”

“Of course.”

“Glad to see you’re not grumpy today.”

I raise a brow, then remember that Eric was one of the few who witnessed that grumpy side of me in the supermarket last week. “Yeah. Bad week.”

“Nothing a beer or two can’t fix. Let’s grab a few sometime.”

I grin. “Sure. After I return from Nashville.”

We chat a bit before I head back to my Jeep with Honey Lee. But I don’t drive yet when I observe her face, which seems to still be absorbing the news. When she doesn’t say anything for a long time, I clear my throat.

“Congratulations, Honey Lee. I’m happy for you.”

Honey Lee blinks as if she just remembered she’s not alone. But my words don’t bring a smile to her face.

“Thank you. I’m happy for me, too, but…oh, God.”

I’m alarmed when she hyperventilates. My hand immediately goes to her back, soothing her while I instruct her to breathe in and out more slowly. To my relief, she listens to my words and attempts to control her breathing.

“There, now. Whatever it is, it’s going to be okay…”

She opens her mouth, then closes it. She takes a deeper breath, then nods.

“Yeah. Of course.”

When I’m assured that she’s not going to hyperventilate again, I finally turn on the ignition and drive away from the clinic.

“Do you want anything to eat before I drive you home?”

“No.”

“How about those vitamins? Should we buy them now?”

“No.”

Grasping at straws, I try again. “Ice cream? Cake?”

She perks up. But it doesn’t last long as tears prick her eyes, and soon she’s bawling her eyes out in my passenger seat.

Taken aback and feeling just a bit out of my depth, I stop the Jeep again in a quiet area and hand her some tissues. Then I just sit there quietly, giving her time to process her emotions and whatever she’s going through. Again, Honey stays quiet for the longest time, her bawling turning to little sniffs in the long run.

“Did you and Aaron have a fight or something?”

“Or something.”

“What?”

She sighs. “Sorry, I meant we didn’t fight. Or we’re not fighting. We’re okay. More than okay, actually.”

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