Page 39 of My Forever Soldier

“Let me go! I need to be with him.”

His hold tightened. “Let them do their job. He’s going to be okay, Ollie. You need to trust me.”

She wanted to believe him, but Charlie looked so lifeless, so fragile. His little body still heaved with every breath, as if he was still fighting to stay alive, only now he wore an oxygen mask.

“We need to get him to the hospital now, so they can administer a steroid shot. You can both ride in the van with us.”

Olivia nodded. Luke let her go, but held her hand firmly with his.

“Come on,” he instructed.

She leaned into him, letting him take her weight as they walked. It was like a dream, totally unreal. She’d been doing okay, thought she had the situation under control, but Luke, well, he’d been the hero.

He pulled her up into the ambulance and sat her down next to Charlie’s head. Olivia placed her palm on her son’s tiny arm, her other hand still gripping Luke’s.

“It’s going to be okay. We’re over the worst of it,” he told her.

His words comforted her, but her heart was beating a bit too fast. Her bones felt as if they’d turned to liquid and her head was pounding.

“You’re the boy’s father?”

Olivia looked up as the paramedic riding in the back with them spoke.

“Yes.” Luke responded, his eyes never leaving Charlie’s face.

“You did good back there. Where did you learn to deal with an asthma attack like that?”

Olivia watched Luke, but his face gave nothing away. She’d guessed his training made him good in crisis situations, but hehadbeen pretty clued in about what Charlie was going through.

Luke glanced up for a beat and smiled at the paramedic. “Good army training, that’s all.”

Olivia looked from Charlie to Luke, trying hard not to cry. It was so much to deal with, so much to cope with in a day. But there was one thing she couldn’t stop thinking about, one thing she couldn’t push away.

She still loved Luke.

And it wasn’t just because their son could have died if Luke hadn’t come home when he did. It was because she’d missed him like crazy while he was gone, regretted every argument, every angry word they’d said to one another. And now she was ready to actually think about that second chance he’d been so desperate for. The one she’d said she’d consider, but deep down hadn’t really opened up to.

Well, now she was ready. She didn’t care about his burst of jealousy earlier, she just cared abouthim.

“Ollie, he’s going to be fine. You know that, right?”

Luke slung his arm around her shoulder, squeezing her close. She pushed in tighter to him, wishing he’d leave his weight there forever. Because Luke made her feel safe. He always had.

She smiled up at him, let her head fall into the crook of his arm. “I know.”

When he dropped a kiss to her forehead she didn’t pull away. Olivia snuggled in closer, eyes on her son as they bumped down the road.

I love you, Luke. The words sailed through her mind and tore through her heart.I love you so much. Please don’t ever leave me again.

The ambulance slowedand Olivia planted her feet on the floor to steady herself. Charlie had started to heave again, and she just wanted to get him inside and checked over properly.

“You ready?” Luke asked.

He gave her a tight smile and held her hand, pulling her to her feet so they could jump out as the doors opened.

They moved fast so Charlie could be slipped out and whisked straight into the hospital. She had that feeling of complete helplessness again, as if no matter what she did it wouldn’t make a difference.

Olivia followed the paramedics with Luke by her side, but she never took her eyes from her son. Until Luke tugged her hand and she realized they were in front of the reception desk, with Charlie being rolled past and away from her.

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