Page 19 of Zane

“We just don’t think she’s the best woman for you,” his mom said.

“Not that we know her all that well,” Wilder added.

“We know she isn’t a Christian,” his dad said. “And you know that we wanted a Christian spouse for each of you kids.”

“And yet the way she’s been treated is probably not exactly endearing her to Christians,” Wilder said with a tilt of his head.

“Wilder!”

“It’s true, Mom. We haven’t been nearly as welcoming to her as we should have been.”

What on earth had gone on in his life that he’d decided to marry someone who didn’t share his faith? With every hour that passed, the number of questions he had about what had transpired over the past four years seemed to grow.

When Gareth returned, he actually had Kelsey with him. “I found her in the waiting room.”

“I didn’t have anywhere else to be,” Kelsey said with a shrug as she stopped just inside the door, her arms crossed. She glanced at Zane, but then looked away.

Zane took a moment to observe her. She had medium length blonde hair with a sweep of bangs. She was on the curvier side and looked to be four or so inches shorter than him, given where she came up to on Gareth. From the day he woke up, Zane recalled that her eyes had been a light blue-green shade.

“We’re discussing where Zane should go when he gets out of the hospital,” his dad said. “And we’d like your input.”

Kelsey’s brows rose, like she didn’t quite believe him.

“Would you be willing to come to Serenity?” his mom said. “Or would you prefer to stay here while he comes home with us to recover?”

Kelsey frowned. “I would prefer to be where Zane is.”

“Of course,” Gareth said. “And that’s completely understandable.”

“We’ll have to let our apartment here go.”

“Do you think that will be a problem?” his dad asked.

“I don’t know. All I can do is speak to the landlord and explain the situation.”

“Maybe we should ask Lee to come back to help Kelsey pack up,” Wilder suggested. “And then he and I can drive a moving truck back to Serenity.”

Zane was listening to the discussion, but his attention was still on Kelsey. He noticed that she avoided looking at him, and he wondered why.

It took less time than it should have to sort everything out, and all of it decided with no input at all from him and little from Kelsey. Once he’d agreed to return to Serenity, they hadn’t asked his opinion about anything else.

The final plan was that they’d get Lee to come back to Tampa, and they’d pack up the apartment. While Zane, Kelsey, and his folks flew back on Remington’s plane, Wilder and Lee would drive the moving van across the country from Tampa to Serenity.

Zane appreciated all the efforts on his behalf, though he really wished none of it was necessary.

“Now that that’s all settled,” Gareth said. “How about we give Zane and Kelsey a few minutes together?”

The look Kelsey gave Gareth could only be described as panicked, and it kind of matched what Zane was feeling.

“We’ll go grab some coffee, then we’ll be back,” Wilder said, letting them know without saying it that they wouldn’t be left alone indefinitely.

Though his parents didn’t look thrilled at being essentially forced out of the room, they followed without protest.

When it was just the two of them, Kelsey finally looked at him, but her gaze was wary. “How has your pain been?”

“It’s better, I guess,” Zane said. “Though I’m sure that’s because of the drugs they’re giving me.”

“No doubt.”

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