Page 69 of That First Flight

“Nice to meet you.”

“After looking at her assessment and lab work, I want to send her down for a CT scan on her abdomen to rule out a ruptured appendix. I’m going to have them come shortly to get it done so we can confirm and go from there with treatment.”

“Oh my god.” I cover my eyes in disbelief. My first thought when he says that is surgery. There is no way in hell I’ll be able to afford the bill when that comes in. But I can’t think about that right now because the first priority above everything else is making sure Mackenzie is okay.

I’ll work for the rest of my life to pay this off if I have to.

I learned quickly how much I hate emergency rooms.

All I want to do is go home with my baby girl and shower. It doesn’t help that my face feels puffy and swollen from crying so much.

They gave her some more medication to keep her comfortable while we wait for the results. They got her back surprisingly quick despite how busy the Emergency Room is tonight and they told us it would be about twenty minutes or so before we got the results back.

I’ve never been so thankful that Emiline was on shift tonight because I’ve never felt more alone than I do here waiting.

I hold Mackenzie’s hand as I sit next to her bed, refusing to let it go even for a second. I finally allow myself a moment to breathe and lay my forehead down on the bed beside her. I wish I could take even just a small nap, but I also don’t want to go to sleep in case she needs something.

Just as I close my eyes, strong hands grip my shoulders.

I startle, almost leaping out of my seat as I look up to see wondering who’s here. I’m in complete shock when standing next to me is the man who’s supposed to be on a plane right this minute.

“What are you doing here?” I ask, bewildered.

“Em called me,” Oliver says nonchalantly as if it’s nothing.

“She did? But. You. Here,” I ramble on, trying to find the words. “You have a plane to catch. You have to do your presentation.”

“I do.” He takes a small step, closing the distance between us. “But Mackenzie is sick so I can’t leave.”

Oliver’s admission just flipped my world upside down.

He stayed.

He didn’t get on the plane.

For Mackenzie.

“You’re going to skip your conference? You’re going to skip the opportunity of a lifetime for her? You can’t—”

Oliver cuts me off when he presses his pointer finger to my lips, before he crouches down next to my chair. Delicately, he uses the same finger to brush the hair away from my face, sending goosebumps across my skin.

I still can’t believe he’s here.

In front of me.

“I’d skip every opportunity ever given to me for my girl, Macey Evans.”

The past two weeks have gone down as the scariest time of my life.

Mackenzie ended up needing emergency surgery for a ruptured appendix. I paced the hallways of the hospital for hours waiting for her to come out. Anxious as hell wondering what would happen and praying she would be okay.

The only relief I felt was seeing the girls show up for Macey. Peyton, Avery, and Kali have become such good friends to her and warmth spread through my chest seeing her become part of our group.

They all came to the hospital to sit with her and brought her an iced coffee and one of their books for her to read to help pass the time. Not that she was in any frame of mind to read a book, but I caught glimpses of her here and there with it opened in her lap.

I, for one, couldn’t sit still if I tried.

In the end, everything turned out perfectly fine. Mackenzie only had to stay in the hospital for one extra night as a precaution. By the time she was discharged, she was so excited to get back home to her own bed.

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