Page 24 of Return to Us
Great.
“Hey,” I say, throat dry and hoarse.
He sits up. “Jess, hey, are you all right?”
The raging storm is now calm, just a few remnants, but nothing I can’t handle. I nod, swallowing as I try to sit up. “I’m better. I . . . I don’t remember the car or getting to the house.”
“We got here and about two hours ago, I carried you in, and you’ve been sleeping since.”
“You’ve been here for two hours?”
This is even worse than I thought.
He gets up and walks to my bed and sits at the edge. “I’ve never seen anything like that. You were in agony, Jess, and I couldn’t leave you.”
“It happens sometimes. It used to be daily, but it’s not anymore.”
“From the plane crash?”
I nod. “It’s part of the concussion injury.”
He releases a heavy sigh. “Daily?”
Those first few weeks were absolute hell. I couldn’t move without pain so intense it would drop me to the floor. “The doctors say they’ll become less frequent as I heal, but the brain works on its own time, and I can’t do anything to move the process along. S-some days—” I stutter and then catch myself. “Some days were so bad I didn’t get out of bed at all.”
“Does your family know?”
“Of course,” I say tentatively.
“Winnie must’ve told Stella, but . . .”
“But?”
He chuckles quietly. “I have a rule about not discussing women I love who left me.”
“Ah, well, I guess both our sisters can keep their traps shut occasionally. I have the same rule about this town and people I loved.”
“So, you didn’t want to know about me?”
I shake my head softly. “It was . . . I couldn’t . . .” I had to pretend.
Pretend I didn’t love you.
Pretend I didn’t regret leaving and think of you.
Pretend that I didn’t make a huge mistake.
He looks down at his hands. “I’m glad we were at the store today.”
A niggling memory starts to surface. “You were with your daughter?”
Grayson smiles. “Yeah, that was her.”
“I didn’t get to see her.”
“No,” a soft chuckle escapes. “I guess you didn’t.”
“Where is she?”
