Page 120 of I Got You

I turn in my seat, watching her nod and listen intently.

“Ok,” she finally says. “What now?” She listens again, and I need to know what he’s saying. “Ok. Thank you.”

Then she hangs up, staring at the phone in her hand.

“What did he say?” My chest pulls tight and gets tighter by the second. I crack a window needing some air.

Tears settle in her eyes. “They tried to call our bluff, but Ben had someone start digging around a little. They talked to Jared and threatened him, and he cooperated. I guess that night…he…he tried to come back to see me, and he knew they locked me in my room.”

She pauses, looking back at her phone in her lap. “Then Ben spoke with the doctor who said I should have received medical care much sooner, and he agreed to testify to my condition when my dad brought me in.”

A tear trails down her cheek, and she flicks it away before turning to look at me again. “It…it was enough. They dropped it.”

“What?” I ask, wanting to make sure I understand.

She smiles as another tear falls. “They’re dropping the suit. Liv…she’s staying with us.”

I reach across my truck, grab Maggie, and pull her across the console. The strap around my chest bursts free as my heart pounds in relief. I had no idea the weight of it all until it’s just been lifted. That sweet, innocent little girl is staying exactly where she belongs. With us. Me and Maggie. The thought has my own eyes glossing over.

I hug Maggie so tight. “I’m so proud of you. You did this.”

I can feel her shaking her head against me. “No, we did this. Thank you. Shane, thank you for helping me.”

I pull back, holding her face in my hands. “I’d do it a thousand times over.”

“I can’t believe it.” She closes her eyes as another tear squeezes out. “It’s over.”

I bring my forehead to hers. I don’t want to think about what comes next. All I want to do is be with Maggie and then go home. To the kids. To the life that I’ve grown into and become a part of. I can't bear the thought of that changing.

Maggie tips her chin upward, pressing her lips to mine. Softy, sweetly. I kiss her back, wanting to hold on to this, to her. She pulls away but still holds me close. “You’re making it really hard for me to want to go in there.”

“Let’s don’t.” I kiss the corner of her mouth, hoping I might be able to convince her.

She smiles, tipping her head back as I kiss down her neck.

“Grizz, we have to go in there. It’s important.”

“So is this.”

She laughs and pushes me away. “Come on. Let’s go so we can leave early and pick up where we’re leaving off.”

I groan, trying to regain some sort of coherency so that I can make it through this thing and then take my wife home.

∞∞∞

We step inside the university ballroom, cameras flash, and Maggie leads us through the maze of people who’ve stopped to be photographed. We’re about to cross through to the large event room when we get caught.

“Mr. and Mrs. Carter.” A photographer from a news outlet steps in front of us. “Can we get a photo?”

Maggie looks up at me and then back at the photographer. “Sure.”

She slides one arm behind me and rests the other on my chest while I crowd her, sliding my hand around her waist and pulling her extra close. She smiles up at me, and maybe this isn’t so bad with her by my side.

The ballroom is a sea of white linen tables, people with drinks in hand, and lots of chatter. We wind our way through, saying hi to people we know as we breeze past. Maggie points to Cole, who’s standing with Nick and some of the team and their dates. She leads me in that direction, which happens to be across the dance floor.

She glances at me over her shoulder. “Don’t even think about trying to renege on your promise.”

“One,” I groan. Although seeing all these people, I might be okay hanging out on the dance floor with her nice and close and everyone else far away.

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