Page 65 of Finding Home with You

“Just a second, sir,” the nurse says, giving me a smile. “I’ll get Dr. Reid first, so he can fill you in on what’s happened.”

She walks off before I can explain that I’ve spoken to Dr. Reid and I already know what’s happened. Pushing back from the desk, I turn and pace the corridor for what feels like an eternity. It’s frustrating as fuck being this close, but unable to get to her. Just as I’m contemplating pulling out my badge again and hurrying things along, I hear a voice directed at me.

“Mr. Summers?” a man, probably in his late forties, asks me.

“Detective actually,” I say, turning to face him. “But Ryan is fine.”

The doctor smiles at me and somehow, it manages to calm me a little. “Your wife was very lucky,” he says. “Her car was hit twice, once from behind and then head-on, before it slid down a ditch. The air bag deployed, which is what saved her life. But she does have a broken wrist, a mild concussion and some cuts and bruises, as I said on the phone. Because of the baby, we want to keep her in overnight, just for observation,” he says. “But so far, everything looks good.”

Suddenly, everything around me seems to disappear, falling away beneath me as though I’ve stumbled into some sort of abyss. The shock of what he’s just said, the description of what happened to Erin, hits me like a hard punch to the gut. I collapse into a chair by the desk, my head in my hands as I try to make sense of everything that’s happened today. How the hell did Erin get in a car accident? Did Anthony do this to her? How did she get away from him? And pregnant? She’s really pregnant?

“Are you okay?” he asks, placing a hand on my shoulder.

I look up, shake my head at him because I’m really not sure if I am, let alone how to answer his question.

“Would you like to see her?” he asks, reminding me of why I raced up here in the first place.

“Yes, absolutely,” I nod and the doctor gestures for me to follow him to a room down the hall.

When I walk in, Erin is the only occupant. She’s asleep, curled up in a ball, her arms wrapped around her stomach as though she’s trying to protect herself. She’s got cuts and bruises on her face and arms, and her left arm is in a cast to her elbow. My heart breaks at the sight of her. She looks so tiny and fragile, and all I want to do is pull her into my arms and hold her forever.

I step closer to the bed, quietly pulling a chair closer so I can sit beside her. Reaching for her, I slide my fingers into hers, lifting her hand to my lips and pressing a soft kiss to it. Erin stirs a little and I lean in and press a soft kiss to her forehead now. I hear her mumble my name as her fingers tighten in mine.

“Hey, baby,” I whisper, desperately wanting to speak to her, just to know that she’s okay and knows I’m here.

Erin’s eyes flick open and lock onto mine. “Oh my god, Ryan,” she suddenly says, pushing up to hug me.

“Hey, hey, take it easy,” I say, pulling her into my arms. “I’m here, I’ve got you.”

Erin buries her face in my neck and I can feel her body shake as she starts to cry silent sobs against me.

“It’s okay, baby, it’s okay,” I whisper, smoothing my hand up and down her back.

“I was so scared,” she says, her words a stutter as she forces them out.

My eyes close, not wanting to admit to her how fucking terrified I was when I saw that video. “I know, but you’re safe now, I promise.”

Erin’s grip around me tightens as she takes a deep, shaky breath as if to fortify herself before pulling back a little. “Anthony,” is all she says.

I nod, my fingers brushing the tears from her cheeks. “I know,” I whisper. “I saw him.”

“How?” she asks, confused.

“Your security camera,” I say, brushing back her hair. “How did you get away from him?”

Erin opens her mouth, a hard look flashing across her face as though she wants to ask me about the camera footage and I why I have access to it. It disappears quickly though, replaced by fear as the reality of what happened sinks in again.

“I don’t know,” she says, sniffing. “He came, he threatened me, threatened you,” she adds, staring into my eyes. “Then he passed on a warning and left. Just got in a car and drove away. Oh Ryan, I thought I was safe, but he knew where I was all along. I’m so stupid to think…”

I let out a deep breath, the relief coursing through me at the sudden realization that Anthony wasn’t the one who hurt her. “Shhh, baby, you’re safe now. He’s not going to hurt you again.”

“You don’t know that,” she cries. “And what about you, what if he comes after you?”

I shake my head. “Don’t worry about me, baby,” I tell her. “Tell me what happened next?” I ask, leaning in to press a quick kiss to her lips. “You had an accident in the snow?”

I know how much Erin hates driving in the snow and even though it would have been my SUV she was in, her relative inexperience at driving on icy freeways, combined with the shock of seeing her ex after so long, was a disaster waiting to happen.

“I was coming to Boston,” she says, swallowing a small sob. “I wanted to come and see you, tell you what had happened.” I nod, glad that was the first thing she thought to do. “But then it happened,” she continues. “I tried to brake and nothing.”

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