Page 72 of Still The One

‘Don’t forget the likely bruised Adam’s apple.’ He smiles, chuckling with me. ‘You’re one hell of a nurse, but I think if you ever needed a change, boxing might be your thing.’

‘How flattering.’

Our laughter dies down and he sighs audibly. ‘Can I ask you a serious question?’ His arm is propped on top of the bench and he’s still wearing the cowboy hat with stitching on the rim ’cause it’s all I could find.

‘Why not? You’ve already seen the worst of me.’

‘First of all, he’s at the top of my shit list for making you feel that way at all. Not a second of that was the worst of you. It was the best. You stood up for yourself, fearlessly. I’ve never been prouder of you than I am right this second.’

A small smile tugs at my lips. It’s nice to have someone looking out for me.

‘Not that I could hurt him now,’ Foster continues, ‘but I volunteer if it needs to happen in the future. Is that clear?’

His protectiveness and loyalty toward me are heart-warming. I remember how safe I always felt in his presence. Even now, I’m not triple-checking that I locked my doors.

‘That’s sweet, but not necessary,’ I assure him with a small smile.

‘Onto my question,’ Foster says, his tone shifting from protective to nervous. ‘Now that you’ve faced us both – post-break-up – is there one of us who hurt you more than the other?’

How do I even begin to answer that when the answer is so obviouslyhim? I hurtforFoster in the trauma room that day – to the point of nursing him back to health willingly. Tonight, I chose violence with Cayden and hit him because I hate him. Truly.

‘Are you sure you want to know the honest answer?’

He forces a smile and tilts his head, looking anything but sure. ‘Yeah,’ he says. ‘Lay it on me, Jellybean.’

Five Years Ago

‘Congratulations!’ my aunt Diana exclaims as she hugs me warmly. ‘What does he do?’ she asks.

‘He’s an FMX rider.’

She stares at me blankly.

‘What’s that?’ she asks after a beat of uncomfortable silence.

‘He rides motorcycles, professionally. He’s won best in his sport at multiple X Games, and Red Bull is one of his sponsors.’

‘A real Evel Knievel, huh?’

I cock my head. ‘Eh – if you overlook Evel’s alcoholism and wife-beating, I guess sort of.’

‘Does he make money doing that?’

‘More than I’ll make as a nurse.’ He risks his life, and I save them, yet he’ll make more in a year.

‘Is that so? Interesting. So, if I wanted to google the FMX, do I type it in just like that?’

I laugh under my breath. ‘Just don’t add on too many Xs and you should be fine.’

She nods, visibly making a mental note by tapping her temple.

‘When do you two plan on having babies? Do you want to start immediately, or are you considering enjoying a few years of honeymoon bliss first?’

I raise a quizzical eyebrow. Why is this question so commonly asked? Life isn’t a predetermined path that everyone must adhere to. We are not all the same. Sure, my family has preached (and followed) the ‘graduate high school, then college, find an impressive well-to-do spouse, and knock out some kids’ lifestyle, but we don’t all want the white picket fence in the ’burbs while we stay home as a submissive housewife cleaning, cooking, and popping kids out like a Pez dispenser. I haven’t even started my dream job yet.

‘We just got married last week. Any baby decisions are long down the road.Long. Maybe we’ll choose to have none at all.’

‘No children?’ she exclaims in surprise. ‘What do you plan to do with your life then? Who will be there to look after you as you grow older?’

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