I breathe out a sigh of relief. “Yeah, okay.” In all honesty, I’m here every few days, so I could probably find her on my own, but for the sake of propriety, I’ll go along with her protocol. Behind me, the main doors swish open again, and Skylar comes flying through them.
She crashes into me with a fierce hug. “Is she already back there?”
“Yeah. Just waiting for them to take me to see her.”
“Wow, okay.” She looks up at me, her eyes full of concern.
Just then, a nurse pushes through the door, spots me, and beckons for me to follow her.
“I’ll wait here for you.”
I give Skylar a look that saysAre you crazy?and shake my head. “No. I’m sure Sailor will want to see you.” I take her hand in mine, squeezing it gently. There are so many things I want to say to her, but it isn’t the time.God, Sky, I’m so fucking sorry.
The smiling, cool-headed nurse, who I’m positive I’ve seen around before, leads the way and points to a curtained-off area at the far side of the ER. “She’s just back here. Sweet thing.”
I press my lips together, smiling as best I can. My voice rough, I say, “Yeah. Yeah, she is.”
She pulls back the curtain, and keeps talking, but all I can do is stare at my child in the bed that looks deceptively large. The nurse with her glances up, but then goes right back to focusing on Sailor as she takes her vitals. Quietly, she whispers, “Hey look, sweetie. It’s Mommy and Daddy.”
Skylar’s face blushes a deep pink. “Oh, I-I’m not.” She hesitates, and I see the conflict in her eyes over how she should answer. “I’m a family friend.”
At Skylar’s voice, Sailor brightens. “Skywar an’ Daddy.”
The nurse smiles, completely oblivious to the fact that she’s poked at a sore spot. “No worries, she’s allowed two people back here with her.” She finishes up what she’s doing, then stands, her gaze connecting with mine. “They’re probably going to need some X-rays of her arm. The doctor should be over to check things out and tell you for sure in a few minutes. You can go ahead and have a seat.” All business, she pats me on the arm before taking off to visit her next patient.
I swallow hard, pulling up one of the two chairs as close to the side of the bed as I can, and sit down. I smooth a careful hand over Sailor’s forehead. “Baby, what were you doing on the stairs?”
“Up.” She shoots Skylar a toothy grin and aims the pointer finger of her uninjured arm to the ceiling.
“Aw, you were going upstairs? Maybe next time we should wait for Daddy.”
Sailor gives a tiny shrug, and I rub my hand over my face. “Baby, you’re going to give me gray hair before I’m forty.”
“Gway?” Sailor frowns, wrinkling her nose, then laughs like what I’ve said is the funniest fucking thing she’s ever heard.
My gaze slides to Skylar just as she bites her lip, trying not to laugh. My chest constricts.These two, I swear.I don’t know what I’m going to do with them. But I sure as hell don’t want to be without them. And watching them together like this… I have some decisions to make.
The doctor comes back a few minutes later, interrupting my deep thoughts, and from there, it’s a whirlwind of doctors and nurses and X-rays. Lots of insurance forms, a visit from an orthopedic doctor, and one tiny pink cast later, and we’re on our way home.