Page 78 of Coming Home to Maverick

He grinned. At least his mouth worked. Then he moaned. Why couldn’t he speak? He cleared his throat and tried to form words.

“Ah, we aren’t really sure about your lack of speech. We are hopeful it isn’t a stroke or a sign of brain damage.”

The seriousness of that possibility descended on him like a bale of hay.

The doctor came in just then, followed by the voices of the twins, and the small, happy voice of Gracie Faith.

He smiled again. “Hello.”

“Hey! He spoke!” Gracie jumped up on the bed and peered down into his face as if she’d done it a hundred times. “And his eyes are open!” She studied him. “Hi, Maverick.”

“Hi, angel girl.” His words sounded muffled, but at least they made sense.

“Did you hear you won?”

“I did.”

“Just like me. We can show everyone our ribbons together.”

Something about that made him happier than a pig in mud. And he wished he could say so, but his throat was so dry, his tongue so thick, and his words garbled enough that he didn’t dare attempt anything more than simple phrases.

The doctor’s gentle hands started detaching the neck brace and the wires holding up his arms. “I want you to be very careful and follow my instructions to the letter.”

“Okay.” Maverick tried to stem the fear that surfaced every few breaths. He focused on the people in the room. Bailey and Gracie acted like they belonged. No one was talking about her running off to do tours. She’d come to see him.

The doctor gently lowered his head back down on the pillow. “Now I want you to try and turn your head. Once to the right.”

Maverick successfully passed all the tests the doctor put him through and at last was sitting up in bed.

Bailey smiled, but he could see the worry lines, the stress she’d been feeling. He reached for her hand.

Gracie sat up against his side, making herself comfortable around the IV tubes without a care in the world.

Nash, Decker, and Dylan stood at the end of the bed.

“How long have I been out?”

They all looked at Bailey. “Just a few days.”

“How many is a few?”

“Your speech is working better.”

He waited.

“Okay, fine. You were out five days. They weren’t sure if they could revive you, and because you weren’t responsive, no one knew if you’d be paralyzed or not.” Tears filled her eyes. “It’s been rough, but we are so glad you’re back.”

“I’m sorry.” Without permission, his own tears fell. Embarrassed, he tried to wipe them away.

Nash shook his head. “Don’t worry about it. The doc said you’d be weepy for no reason.”

Maverick chuckled. “Where’s Mama?”

“She’s resting. She wouldn’t leave your side until we told her Bailey had you taken care of.”

“Yeah, my mama wouldn’t leave either.” Gracie’s eyes were large and serious. Maverick knew there was more going on with her statement.

“And was that hard for you?”

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