Page 102 of Wrecked for Love
“I never thought I’d say this, but damn, I missed you!” I hugged her back just as tightly.
She sobbed against my shoulder. “I thought…I thought you were…oh, Claire! Are you okay?”
“I’m fine, Annette. Really.”
Her tearful eyes widened as she pulled back slightly. “And Elia?”
“He’s on the mend,” I assured her. “Sleeping right now.”
Out of the corner of my eye, I noticed a small figure slowly stepping out from behind a pillar. A boy, wide-eyed and cautious.
Annette followed my gaze. “Way back, when you asked me about that boy on the bike…did you mean him?” She gestured for the boy to come closer.
I smiled softly, the memory surfacing. “You’re Daniel, right?” I greeted as he approached.
As always, he stayed silent, offering his quiet presence as acknowledgment.
Annette turned to me, her tone more serious now. “We’ve just come from the sheriff’s office. Daniel…well, he told them everything.”
My heart skipped. “What do you mean?”
“He saw everything, Claire,” Annette said. “Daniel witnessed Armand attacking you at The Willow that afternoon.”
My legs grew weak, but I didn’t falter. I wished the innocent boy hadn’t witnessed it. I could only hope he had observed from a distance and hadn’t seen the full extent of what happened. Grateful beyond words, I embraced him tightly. So, this meant I no longer had to fear going to jail. As Logan had mentioned earlier, “It’s all handled.”
“Are you all right, Miss Claire?” Daniel asked shyly, seemingly unsure if my hug was too much.
“Yeah, I’m fine,” I said. “Thank you for what you did. You’re so brave.”
Daniel tried to hide the pride flickering across his face, but he couldn’t help it. “Oh, and by the way, Mom said I can bring Oscar home as long as I promise to take care of him.”
“That’s amazing! See, you’re not just brave. You’re responsible too,” I said, giving his shoulder a gentle pat.
Behind the door, I heard Elia stirring.
“I’ve got to go,” I told Annette and Daniel. “Head home, okay? And thank your dad for me.”
Annette hugged me once more before stepping back. “Say hi to Elia for us.”
I nodded, watching as they left together before slipping back into the room.
“Everything okay?” Elia’s voice was soft but steady. He looked more awake than I expected, considering he’d only had a few minutes of rest.
“Yeah,” I whispered. “What are you doing awake?”
“I feel better…but I missed you.”
Looking at his bruised face, the emotions I’d been holding back finally caught up to me. Before I knew it, a tear slipped down my cheek.
“Hey, Chili…we’re gonna be all right.” He attempted to lift his hand to comfort me, but I caught it softly and pressed it back to his side on the bed.
Life had a strange way of throwing people together, and with Elia, I wouldn’t change a thing. Maybe I’d erase the brutal fight, but even that was proof of his strength—his heart.
“Yeah, we are.” I quickly wiped away the tear. “We’ve got a witness who saw Armand Voss break into The Willow and attack me, and he had told the sheriff everything.”
A grin spread across his face, but he didn’t say a word. Slowly, he moved his bandaged hand toward his face, pointing tohis lips. And in an instant, I closed the gap and granted him the kiss.
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