Page 67 of Playing With Fire
“Seems kind of pointless to chase a dream without the dream caster,” I reply sadly.
“Perhaps that makes the dream even more worthy of chasing,”she points out. When I stay quiet, she switches gears as Serafina’s eyes grow heavy in my arms. “You said we needed to talk. That there were things we needed to discuss…” she trails off.
Although I’m deciding to hold the card about Jason close to my chest, there are others I need to show. “I recently found out Gregor is representing the father of one of my best friends. His dad deserves to rot in jail for a long time, and the fact that your husband represents him not only makes this thing between you and I more complicated, it makes me worried for your safety.”
“Noted,” she says slowly, her brows pinching like she wants to ask who it is, but refrains. “More complicated as in you don’t want to do this anymore?” Her voice waivers.
“What?No.I just meant we need to be extra careful until you’re officially separated,” I explain. “Is he ever violent?”
“No. He gets loud sometimes, but I really don’t think Gregor would physically hurt me.” Almost as an afterthought, she adds, “That would leave evidence behind.”
Fighting the urge to vomit over the thought of him laying a single finger on her, I press forward. “Would he have you followed? Monitor your phone?”
She sits back in her chair, giving it some serious thought.
“Yeah, maybe,” she finally decides.
“Then we’re probably going to have to limit our interactions.”
She sighs. “I can’t stomach that thought, Hudson.”
“Me either, but we can’t underestimate him, Shan. Gregor already doesn’t like that you’re thinking for yourself. He’ll like it a lot less when you tell him you’re leaving.” My eyes move from Shannon to the kids still playing. “Speaking of, do you have a timeframe for that?”
She shocks me when she sits up a little straighter and says, “Actually, I do. Gregor’s law firm is hosting a getawayin the Outer Banks next Wednesday through Sunday. I’ll have to work fast, but I have a couple of appointments to see apartments. I know the trip is going to be miserable, and I plan to tell him once we get back home and I have a place to go.”
A place of her own? A real separation? I could stand up on this table and do the jig.
“Shan, I don’t want to add any pressure. You’re doing incredible things and I don’t want you to feel rushed, but I do need to know your thoughts on this…onus, I mean. The farther we travel down this road, the more attached I become.”
My biggest fear is that she’s going to get her freedom and independence, and decide she doesn’t want this relationship tying her down anymore. She’d be well within her right to do that obviously, and hell, most people would probablysuggestit, but selfishly, I don’t want to lose her so soon.
She reaches across the table and grabs my hand right as Ally walks a crying Camden over to our table. Quickly pulling back, Shannon gives a smile to the kids.
“Cam, what’s wrong?” I ask my nephew.
“I w-went d-down the s-swide and it pitched my f-finger,” he says through sniffles.
I can already see that although his finger isn’t bleeding, he does have a blood blister forming under the skin. “Well, you’re in luck, buddy. This is my friend Shannon, and she happens to be a doctor. Can you show her your finger?”
As Cam walks over to Shannon, Ally eyes the baby on my chest.
“Is that your baby?” she asks Shannon in a loud voice.
“It sure is. That’s my daughter, Serafina,” Shannon answers while pulling Cam onto her lap and giving his finger a thorough look.
“Can I hold her?” Ally asks. Like I said, already obsessed with babies.
Shannon looks up at me and I subtly shake my head no. There’s no couch for her to sit on to support the both of them, and as big as her personality is, Ally isn’t much bigger than the infant I’m holding.
“I’ll tell you what,” Shannon starts. “This is what we call a chocolate blister because only hot chocolate makes the pain go away. Why don’t we grab hot chocolate and you can push Serafina in the stroller and we’ll go see the fish?”
“YEAH!” Cam and Ally yell at once, racing to the counter.
I smile over at Shannon as I rise and tuck Serafina into her stroller. “You’ve come a long way from that exhausted woman I met back in August.”
She gives me a heart-stopping grin in response. “I think it’s safe to say you helped me find my way.”
I pull her to me by the waist and kiss the side of her head even though I want to do so much more. “No, baby, you did it all on your own.”
