Page 45 of The Pursuit of Her Happiness

“Is there anything you can do today? Or do I need to wait for the medication to start working?” There’s a note of hysteria in my voice that I can’t hide.

“Yup.” She opens the door, and I hear her murmur to some voices down the hall. When the door closes again, I think she sits back on her stool and wheels closer to me. “This is the part where I scare you.” That doesn’t sound ominous at all. “A steroid injection will help immediately to reduce the optic nerve swelling, and any other irritated tissue.”

“I’ve had steroids shots before, that’s not scary. My butt just hurts for a day or so.” I laugh, wondering how many people freak out about needles.

“Good. These don’t go in your butt, they go in your eyes.”

“The fuck you just say to me?” I blurt out, slapping a hand over my mouth. I normally don’t care much about what I say, but I do try to be respectful.

“Not the first time I’ve heard that. They are quick, and I’m sure your man here will be happy to hold your hand.”

“Of course.” Polk’s voice is breathy, and it calms me down for some reason. He’s a veterinarian, and performs surgery, but a needle in my eye freaks him out.

“Give me a few minutes, and my staff will escort you down the hall to our procedure room and I’ll meet you there. Quinn, in addition to the therapy and support group…from one mom to another, lean on those in your life, trust them to help you, give them some of this mental baggage for them to carry. Like this guy here. He seems sturdy enough to carry the weight.”

“I’m working on it.”

“Great. Sit tight.” The door closes and Polk and I sit in silence for a few moments.

“That’s fucked up,” he mutters. A snort escapes me, then another and soon I’m practically falling out of the chair and gasping for breath as I laugh my ass off. “In the eyes? Jesus. How are you not flipping out?”

I shrug. “Because you seem to be doing that just fine.”

“IN YOUR EYEBALL!” I’m still laughing at him when the tech comes in. I won’t lie and say I’m not nervous, a needle is about to be inserted into each of my eyeballs. Compared to birthing a 10 pound baby, this is nothing.

Polk sticks to my side the entire time, holding my hand, whispering words of encouragement in my ear and reminding me how much he loves me. It doesn’t hurt, it’s just weird.Honestly, it’s not something I want to go through again, but I’ve had worse.

By the time we make it back to my house, my vision is incredibly blurry but not pitch black like it was. I’m overwhelmed with relief and some tears escape.

“Hey, now, none of that.” Polk draws me into his arms, holding me as gratitude leaks down my face. Pulling back enough that I can look up at him, I cup his cheeks and bring his lips to mine. I missed him. You can be in the same room as someone else and still feel miles apart. I put that distance between us, and I didn’t even think about what it would do to him.

And my boys. I owe it to them to do better. I know I scared them and that is unacceptable. Tonight, we’ll go to the arcade and out to eat and we’ll have a good time as a family. I’ll show them that their mom is a fighter.

But first…

“Bent? Will you take me upstairs and make love to me?” A gush of breath escapes him as his body sags, completely encompassing me. A second later, I’m airborne as he carries me up the steps and into my bedroom. Kicking the door shut behind us, he sets me down on the floor. He strips me slowly, reverently, worshipping every inch of skin he uncovers. On his knees, he lifts my left leg over his shoulder and licks up my center. Bowing over his head, I run my nails down his bare back. When did he remove his shirt?

Bently positions me in the center of the bed, nestles between my spread thighs, and devours my mouth, his hands exploring my body. He pinches my nipples, teases my clit and opening, he even runs his slick fingers over my asshole. Feeling him again is a gift I don’t want to take for granted ever again. He enters me smoothly, bottoming out inside me with a sinful groan. We movetogether, for a while neither of us in a hurry, just enjoying being joined once again. His movements speed up and he lifts my legs up and places my feet on his chest.

“Play with your tits, baby. Pinch your nipples hard. Good girl.” He takes my right hand, wrapping my fingers around his cock as he shuttles in and out. “Feel how wet you are? That’s for me. That’s because of me. You fit me perfectly.” My orgasm threatens to break me with every word out of his mouth. “Don’t deny us this connection again. I don’t have to be inside you, but God how I want to be every fucking minute, but you can’t withdraw, you can’t disappear. I could reach out and touch you, but you weren’t here. You left me and I can’t do that again.” His movements grow aggressive, he’s deeper, thrusting faster. I moan as the pleasure starts at the end of his glorious cock and spreads throughout my body.

“I won’t. I’m sorry,” I wail, my legs trembling, my breathing labored. He frantically shifts my hand up to my clit.

“Rub it, pinch it, you gotta cum, baby.” It’s only a few circles over the swollen flesh before my head digs into the pillow, my eyes roll back, and my climax rushes over me. “Fuck yeah! Fuck!” My pussy flutters then constricts around his girth, pulling his own release up his shaft. A comforting warmth settles into my bones, and I close my eyes as he gently lowers my legs and lays flush against me, careful not to crush me. He licks up my jawline to my ear, “Love you.”

“Mmhmm. Love you too.” I slur, and his laughter is the last thing I hear before I fall asleep.”

Polk 24.

It’s astounding the difference a week makes. Quinn isn’t back to normal, but she’s doing a little better every day. The mandatory meditation that Audrey has forced her to do certainly helps. And Quinn loves it, even if she bitches ad nauseum about how evil her bestie is. The boys are ecstatic to have their mom back. They’ve adjusted to her limitations well, making sure the house is tidy so she doesn’t trip (only took once and a lot of screaming for the boys to ensure they’ve picked up after themselves), Marco has taken to helping with dinner, and Sal helps with laundry. Audrey, Lincoln, or I usually take the boys to school, Joe picks them up, and some combination sit for dinner every evening. We went to the clubhouse twice and I think that alone was immensely helpful for Quinn. She’s become as attached to the Congressionals MC as I am. My parents joined us for a pre-wedding cookout last Sunday and Quinn soaked up their attention.

She’s been slowly starving emotionally for decades, surviving on bits and pieces, and the love of her children. But it isn’t enough, she needs mom hugs and dad jokes from a real dad and nagging about taking her meds and exercising and eating right. Quinn practically tackled my mom with a bear hug at the cookout when mom inquired about her bowel movements and if she should get Quinn some fiber gummies to keep her regular.

I’ve never seen anyone so touched by someone’s curiosity regarding their bodily waste. I held Quinn for a half hour when we got back to her house while she cried big tears, she assured me were happy. Apparently, my mom is “the shit”, which I found endlessly entertaining and have since ordered a shirt for her for Mother’s Day.

After her ocular injections, which were gross by the way, the darkness lightened and by the time we went to bed after a lively dinner out with the boys and Joe, Quinn could make out shadows and shapes. Just about every day Quinn has noticed improvement and today she is determined to walk down the aisle by herself as Tilly’s bridesmaid. I haven’t seen her yet, since she was getting ready with the girls.

I’m sitting next to my parents waiting impatiently for the wedding to begin. I want eyes on Quinn. Our President Madison stands proudly at the end of the aisle at the makeshift altar. Pierce and Lincoln take turns forcing Wilson to stay put. He growled a little bit ago about wanting to find his woman, but Linc put an end to that quickly, whispering something in Wilson’s ear that had the color draining from his face and staring at his best man and best friend as if he’d seen a ghost. Since then, he’s been pacing but keeping to the altar.

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