Page 118 of Misery and Ecstasy

“I will never give up on you.”

“...it’s easier bearing your soul to someone you’re in love with.”

“How could you think for one second I wouldn’t be here?”

“We need to throw everything we can at this. It’s our best shot.”

On a constant loop, the most impactful words ever spoken to me play like a broken record.

At the end of which the last interaction I had with Draven is whispered in my head before it starts over again.

“I love you, Kins. Forever.”

“Forever.”

Forever.

These words are what I cling to.

My motivation. My life. My everything.

They are what bring me back from the edge.

CHAPTER FORTY

MCKINSEY

It’s been two weeks since fully emerging from my coma.

After I woke up, only to fall back under again, Dr. Faust immediately sent me for another MRI. The scan noted an increase in my brain activity. It was slight compared to those that were performed while I was still out, but it was enough to renew the hope and drive in the team of doctors assigned to my care.

Of which there are plenty.

I’ve had more therapy in the month I’ve been at this hospital than most people have in their entire lives.

Occupational, speech, physical, cognitive…

I’ve been slowly regaining my ability to move and communicate. I still have a lot of work to do, but Dr. Faust is extremely happy with my progress and believes the worst is behind me.

I thought Draven was going to kiss him when he surprised us with my discharge papers earlier this morning.

Fuck. Ialmost wanted to kiss him.

Unfortunately, getting cleared to go home doesn’t mean the fight is over. This was just the first victory in a long battle ahead of us. In addition to continuing my various therapies, I also need to resume chemo and radiation.

But that’s one of tomorrow’s objectives.

The only thing on my to-do list today is to enjoy the ride home in a sexy car with my even sexier man at the wheel.

Glancing at Draven—taking in his gorgeous profile with the Gettysburg backdrop I fell in love with long ago flying past his window—my lips instantly lift, and all thoughts of the long road ahead of us melt away.

Turning his head, his eyes catch mine. Winking, he squeezes my hand, which hasn’t left his since the moment we got in the car.

I feel giddy for the first time in a long time. I take in each tree, building, person, and everything in between as we pass by. Even the sight of the gravel road that leads to the clubhouse fills me with joy when Draven turns down it.

He only had one question for me when we left the city.

“Which house are we going to?”

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