Page 57 of With You Forever

Seth’s chest tightens. His band. His brothers. He could never fucking ever do this without them.

Footsteps in the hall.

Seth whips around.

Heads snap up. Sal, her face pale, leans into Luke, who wraps an arm around her shoulders to brace her.

Dr. Mayr approaches, a smile on his face. “How are we doing, folks?” he asks.

Just fuckin’ tell me, Seth almost shouts at the doctor. That is, he would if his throat could get the words out. But it’s stuck. Everything’s stuck, like a record and a busted needle, the only thing rattling around in his brain is Lacey.

Lacey.

Lacey.

His heartbeat.

His hurricane.

His everything.

The only thing keeping him steady right now.

“How is she?” he finally manages to get out. “How’s my wife?”

“Everything went beautifully.”

Seth closes his eyes. Thank God.Thank God.

The entire waiting room unclenches. Sal laughs and Luke wraps her up in a big hug. Emmy Lou bursts into tears, her belly bobbing with her sobs, Jace dipping his head to talk to her in a reassuring voice. Griff and Alabama’s wild whoops fill the air.

Pulling Seth aside, Mayr speaks to him privately. “We were able to remove the tissue and preserve as much of the natural breast as possible. We’ll send the tissue to pathology to determine the final size of the tumor and whether or not there are clear margins, but I’m anticipating good news.”

Seth nods, an unexpected lightness filling his chest as he takes in the doctor’s words.

Mayr continues. “Your wife’s been moved to the recovery room. We’ll monitor her vitals for a few hours and then she can recover at home.” He smiles. “When she’s awake, we’ll discuss next steps, but right now, you can see her.”

Seth shakes the guy’s hand. His heart feels like it wants to punch a hole in his chest. “Thank you. Thank you so damn much.”

It’s the chirp of monitors that wakes her first.

And then the death grip on her right hand.

Slowly, Lacey blinks herself awake. Back to the present. Back to her husband’s handsome face staring down at her.

Seth, sitting on the edge of her bed, lets out a ragged, relieved breath. “Hey, princess.” Gently, her hand’s brought to his lips as he sweeps a kiss across her knuckles. His intent gaze searches her face. “How you feelin’?”

“Mmm.” Lacey’s lips lift in a half-smile. “Stoned.”

She lies still, taking in her body. She feels dreamy, but her body aches. There’s a tightness in her chest, a strange numbness in her left arm near the armpit.

Lacey’s curious eyes take in the room. Already, gorgeous bouquets of flowers fill the room. Cheery Get Well Soon cards line the windowsill.

Then, she looks at Seth. Takes in the worry dancing in his ocean-blue eyes. “How are you?” she whispers.

“Better now that you’re awake.” He squeezes her hand. “I was shakin’ in my boots out there, Lace. Everyone was.”

“Everyone?”

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