Page 158 of Off Season

I smile. I think it’s my first smile since this nightmare started. Nodding, I say, “Okay. She should be out and awake before mydad gets here but wake me if he arrives first.” Dad and his boyfriend are flying in tonight.

“You got it.”

We go back into Bailey’s room, and I must fall asleep in less than five seconds because I barely remember sitting down.

CHAPTER THIRTY-THREE

CHEETAH

She’s been fast asleep on my chest for hours. I’ve dozed a few times, but I haven’t allowed myself to get into a deep sleep.

Bailey is out of surgery. They think it went well. She’s asleep in the room while we sit on the chairs by her bed. The two of them actually look more alike when they’re sleeping. I guess that’s because their eyes and smiles are so different to me, but neither are visible now.

Bailey isn’t as outwardly battered as I would have thought. For some reason, I assumed her face would be bruised and swollen, but it isn’t. I guess her back and stomach sustained the brunt of the trauma.

It’s going to be a long few months, and it won’t be easy on anyone. I’m glad it’s my off-season so I’ll be around to help out. This off-season is going to be unlike any other I’ve ever experienced.

A few hours later,things are already in motion. Bailey woke up and absorbed everything that has happened to her. Kam got it together for her sister, cracking jokes and making Bailey laugh despite the horrific circumstances. Tanner even agreed to give Kam one of his guest rooms so she could be there for every minute of Bailey’s recovery. I know I need to shelve any thoughts of us moving in together. She’ll never consider it until Bailey is back to normal, though I’m happy Kam was receptive to it before all hell broke loose. I keep replaying that moment over and over in my head, wondering if she thought I was asking something else.

Their father arrived with his boyfriend, Ray. Chris broke into tears when he saw Bailey, but Kam pulled him out of the room and told him to get his shit together for Bailey’s sake.

I think the sleep did her good. She’s rejuvenated and taking charge like the badass boss she is.

She’s created a big group chat with all our extended friends letting them know in no uncertain terms that she wants things light and normal around Bailey. She also suggested a schedule for keeping Bailey company so she’s never alone. I wonder if she realizes that she’s a caregiver by nature.

With Bailey settled and Chris in tow, I get Kam to agree to let me take her home to shower and change clothes. Once there, she pulls me into the shower with her. It’s like she needs me touching every inch of her and can’t get enough. I’m happy to give it to her.

Once out, we sit on her bed. I swore I’d never go near this damn bed again, but I tentatively sit. She notices and cracks a smile. “Don’t worry. It won’t break.”

I lift an eyebrow. “I know for a fact it can.”

She lets out a laugh. “God, I love that story.”Her face turns serious. “It’s going to be a hard few months. If you want to bail, I understand.”

I shake my head. “For better or worse, right?”

“We’re not married. You can jet due to the worse whenever you want. That’s the benefit of not being married.”

It occurs to me that I haven’t proposed today. With my towel wrapped around my waist, I quickly drop to one knee. “Louise would never leave Thelma in her time of need. In fact, that was literally the whole plotline of the movie. For better or worse, will you marry me?”

She usually sighs or rolls her eyes when I do my daily proposals, but this time her eyes fill with tears. “Not like this, but thanks for asking.”

THREE WEEKS LATER

KAMRYN

I shove his arm. “Get out, Tanner. She doesn’t want your help, you fucking hairy gorilla.”

He elbows me out of the way. “I’m stronger than you. She needs to be carried in and out of the shower. It should beme.”

I’m at the end of my rope with this man. I grit out, “I will take care of my own sister. Sans the nine minutes she existed in this world without me, I’ve been doing it her whole life.Idon’t need you.Shedoesn’t need you.Wedon’t need you. Get. The. Fuck. Out.”

After two long weeks at the hospital, with me sleeping on the most uncomfortable chair in existence, we’re at Tanner’s house.We’ve only been here for a week, and it’s already feeling claustrophobic…and this place is about ten thousand square feet.

In fairness to Tanner, his gym has been totally transformed into a rehab facility that likely rivals the top ones in the world. I’ll never admit this to him, but I’m grateful for what he’s doing for her. She’d be miserable at a hospital. Being surrounded by loved ones in a home is much better for her mental well-being as she faces this unimaginable uphill battle.

At first, I thought he did this out of guilt for the accident, but I’ve been watching him with my sister. He’s in love with her. I have no idea what that means with him not wanting to get married again and having had a vasectomy, but he loves her. That much is clear to me.

She loves him too but has been keeping him at arm’s length, which is driving him nuts. I’m enjoying watching him squirm like a teenage boy around her though. My new favorite hobby is making him feel insecure.

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