Page 56 of Kiss Me Forever

"It doesn’t matter what I do. They're going to get rid of me anyway. They're having a baby. I heard them talking the other day. They're finally going to get their own kid. You know what that means."

"Not necessarily," Alex said slowly. "You need to talk to them, and so do I. They're probably worried sick about you."

As Alex shifted, trying to reach his phone, Andrea saw the pain in his eyes. "Alex, you can wait to call them until you get to the hospital. Try to keep your hand elevated."

"All right, but I am going to call them." He gave Tyler a hard look. "And you are done running, all right? Don't make me chase after you."

"I won't," Tyler promised. "Maybe you could let me live at your house."

"We'll talk options later," Alex said. "The Monroes are a good family."

"Yeah, but I'm not in their family. I'm not their blood, not like this new kid is going to be."

Tyler fell silent as they pulled into the hospital parking lot. Andrea stopped the car at the door. "You can get out here. I'll park, and then Tyler and I will come in."

Alex didn't look like he cared for that scenario, but she knew he didn't have much choice. He couldn't leave Tyler alone, and right now she was the only one available to look out for the kid.

"Thanks, sorry about this."

"It's not a problem."

As Alex entered the hospital, she drove into the lot and parked the car. "I'm Andrea by the way," she said as she and Tyler got out of the car.

By the time they arrived at the lobby, Alex was already in an examination room, leaving Andrea and Tyler in the waiting room. It was the perfect time for her to pump the kid for information. He knew Alex better than she did. But Tyler was obviously worried about Alex, and she couldn't bring herself to take advantage of his vulnerability. It sounded like he had a lot of his own problems to deal with.

"How about something to drink?" she asked him. "Maybe a snack? I think Alex will be awhile."

"I am kind of hungry," Tyler muttered.

"Then let's go down to the cafeteria."

"Are you Alex's girlfriend?"

"No. I'm just a friend." As she said the words, she realized she didn't want to be Alex's friend or the reporter writing a story about him. But she didn't know how to be anything else, and more importantly, she didn't know if Alex wanted her to be anything else.

Even if he did, how could she contemplate getting involved with someone who had lied to her and to everyone else? She couldn't end up with another Doug. She had to be smart.

But she also wanted to give Alex a chance to explain. Before they were done with each other, she was going to know every last one of his secrets.

* * *

Andrea was probably grilling Tyler for information, Alex thought as the nurse stuck a needle deep into his arm, blending an immediate shaft of pain with numbing relief. He tried to remember just what Tyler knew about his past, but his brain was spinning from the adrenaline rush, the pain, and now the drugs, and he couldn't think straight. Nor could he do anything about the situation. He was stuck here until his broken hand was put in a cast, which was going to take some time.

In between visits from the doctor and the nurse, he managed to call Tyler's foster parents and explain the situation. Joan Monroe, Tyler's foster mother, wasn't angry, just very worried. When Alex told her that Tyler was concerned about his place in the family with a new baby possibly on the way, Joan started to cry, saying she loved Tyler. She didn't want to lose him. She wanted to adopt him whether or not a baby came along as well.

Alex was very happy to hear her honest and emotional words. The Monroes would do right by Tyler. Tyler just had to give them a chance.

He told Joan that he'd keep Tyler at his house for the night just to give them all a little breathing room. Then he'd take him to school in the morning, and tomorrow afternoon they could all sit down together.

After ending that call, he settled back on the exam table and stared at the ceiling, his body still tense with all the emotions that had run through him the past hour. When he'd seen that man grab Andrea, he'd been filled with anger and also terrified that he wouldn't be able to protect her. But she'd defended herself. She was a smart, gutsy woman, who didn't back down from a fight. She'd jumped out of the car to warn him, no thought to her own safety.

She was one hell of a woman.

The kind of woman he could respect.

The kind of woman he could love.

He tensed at that thought.

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