Page 86 of Doctor Neighbor

I tidy up, tossing stray toys into the basket by the couch, and put our bags in my room.

My hands shake a little, and I laugh at myself. Why am I nervous? It's just Buster. He’s seen my place way messier, and I wasn’t dealing with a sick kid in the hospital.

But it's not “just” Buster anymore, is it? He's potentially Maddie's father, her lifesaver, and... something more to me. Something I'm not quite ready to define.

A soft knock at the door startles me out of my thoughts. I smooth my hair and take a deep breath before opening it.

Buster stands there, looking a bit rumpled but handsome as ever, in a simple t-shirt and jeans. His eyes search mine, concern evident. "Hey, you sure you’re okay?"

I nod, stepping back to let him in. "Yeah, everything's fine—Maddie's asleep. I just... I guess I didn't want to be alone. I was missing you."

He steps inside, his presence immediately filling the room. "I get it. It's been a crazy few weeks."

We stand there for a moment, the air thick with unspoken words. I gesture to the couch. "Want to sit? Maybe talk?"

Buster nods, following me to the living room. We settle on opposite ends of the couch, facing each other. The silence stretches between us, comfortable yet charged with possibility.

I take a deep breath, steeling myself for the conversation we've been avoiding. Buster's warm presence beside me is comforting, and I fight the urge to curl against him and forget everything else.

"Buster," I start, my voice barely above a whisper. "I think we need to talk about Maddie."

He turns to face me, his expression open and attentive. "Yeah, I think you're right."

I fidget with the hem of my shirt, struggling to find the right words. "I'm sorry I dropped that bomb on you about my suspicions when everything was so chaotic. It wasn't fair to you."

Buster shakes his head. "Cole, you don't need to apologize. We were in crisis mode. You did what you had to do."

"Still," I persist, "I feel like I owe you an explanation. And I think we need to discuss what this means for us, for Maddie."

He nods slowly, his eyes never leaving mine. "I'm listening."

I take another deep breath. "When I saw you at the theme park, it was like something clicked. I can't explain it, but looking into your eyes, I just knew. And then, spending time with you, seeing you interact with Maddie... it became impossible to ignore."

Buster reaches out, taking my hand in his. The simple gesture gives me strength to continue.

"I was scared," I admit. "Scared of what it might mean, scared of disrupting Maddie's life, scared of... of letting you in again."

His thumb traces soothing circles on the back of my hand. "I understand, Cole. I'm not angry with you for how you reacted. You didn't know before that, so there is nothing you could have done differently."

I nod, feeling tears prick at the corners of my eyes. "And now, after everything that's happened, after you've literally saved her life... I don't know where we go from here."

I look into Buster's eyes, feeling relief and apprehension. His question hangs in the air between us.

"I... I'm not sure," I admit, my voice barely above a whisper. "What do you want, Buster?"

He takes a deep breath, his hand still holding mine. "Cole, I think we need to take this one step at a time. First, I want you to know that I intend to take a paternity test."

My heart skips a beat. "You do?"

He nods, his expression serious but gentle. "I do. I wanted to wait until we got through everything with treatment for Maddie. But now that she's home and doing better, I think it's time. I think it will be appropriate for all of us to know definitively."

I swallow hard, nodding in agreement. "That makes sense."

Buster continues, his voice is soft but steady. "I have to be honest with you, Cole. The fact that I was a match for the stem cell transplant... well, it's pretty rare, even among direct family members. I feel fairly confident I know what the results will be."

His words reach inside me and grab my heart, squeezing it with an intensity that takes my breath away. I feel a whirlwind of emotions wash over me—relief that we might finally have answers, excitement at the possibility of confirming what we've both suspected and a touch of fear about what this could mean for our future.

My hands tremble slightly as I clasp them together, trying to steady myself. The weight of the moment settles on my shoulders, and I find myself both eager and hesitant to hear what comes next.

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