Page 18 of Always Mine

Chapter Five

Anthony was back atthe hospital, and once again there was no change in his woman.Daisy lay on the bed, lifeless, the machines beeping, driving him crazy with the sound.Anthony got to his feet and started to pace the room.It wasn’t a large room, but nicely sized, and there were no neighbors.Daisy was alone.

He stopped at the foot of the bed, reached out, and gripped the top.

“I fucked up, Daisy.There’s nothing else to say about it.You told me something seemed off.”Anthony sighed.“You always did.I just thought you were defending the club, but you weren’t, were you?You knew.”He gritted his teeth.“And I didn’t listen.”

For answers, the machine beeped.That was all.

“I miss you so damn much.I can’t stop seeing the knife, and Daniella.I thought she was long gone.I don’t know.It went wrong.”He shook his head.“But I can’t seem to figure out where I miscalculated.”

He moved from the foot of the bed, up toward her.Anthony wanted to touch her, pull her into his arms, kiss her.He didn’t want to hurt her.

He instead reached out and stroked some of her hair back, not that it was in the way.“You’ve got to wake up, baby,” he said.“You know, to keep me on the straight and narrow, and keep me company.You know how lonely I get.”He laughed.“Do you remember our first date?”He smiled.“Yeah, you would remember our first official date.The one where you finally decided to reveal to Tabitha that we might start dating.We’d been dating a lot longer than that.”

He moved the chair closer to her bed and looked at her.Sliding his under hers, he held onto her hand.

“I’m going to be here for you.I’m not leaving.Not now, not ever.So, you might as well stop trying to get away from me, baby, it’s just you and me, and I’m going to tell you a little story while you’re sleeping.Hopefully, what they say is true and this will make you fall in love with me all over again.”

He cleared his throat.

“I feel like I should begin like all fairy tales, but you know, I don’t like to be predictable, so I’m just going to say when two kids were young and in nursery, something happened.”

Even as he told the story, he could still see her.Soiled clothes, tears, stains, her hair not quite so neat, as if it had been pulled into a ponytail without being brushed.

“I knew I was different before I met you.I could talk, but I never wanted to.Miles and Tabitha were always different.So were Rachel and Markus.Every kid, the Skulls and civilian, were normal, all needing to make friends and be with each other.I didn’t need any of that.I didn’t want any of it.”He stroked his thumb across her palm.“And then, I looked across the classroom and saw you.To me, you were perfect.You looked so nervous, and you shook just a little.You didn’t want to be there, and I didn’t want to be there.I wanted to go to you, but I couldn’t stop staring at you.I didn’t want to.”

He stopped.

“And then Tabitha went to you, and you and she were hugging and you were best friends.I wanted that.I wanted you to be my friend.One of the days, you had a book on your lap and were running your finger across the words, reading.I came and sat with you.Do you remember that?I asked you to read to me.I could already read, but I wanted you to.You read it to me, and your voice was so soothing, so calm, and you had the sweetest reading voice.”He felt tears spring to his eyes.

“For a long time, I would be close to you.If I heard any of the other kids trying to bully you, I’d take care of it.It was why you were left alone, Daisy.I was never going to allow anyone to hurt you, not ever.”

He licked his lips.

“Spending time with you was all I ever wanted.You once asked me if I was in love with Tabitha and I laughed at you.I don’t love Tabitha.She’s a friend, one of us, but she is not you.No, I was never in love with her, I was ...jealous of her.I see that now.She got to be with you when I could not.She got to stay over and be there when you needed her, and I wasn’t there.I hated that.I wanted to be the one you needed all the time.”

He didn’t let go of her hand.Instead, he reached out and pressed a kiss to her knuckles.“I don’t like this.”He took a deep breath.“I never considered you being taken from me.You can’t go.”

He looked toward her, hoping he could convince her to wake up and get the hell out of this coma.

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