Page 125 of Leave a Mark
“I love you,”he mouthed, unable to keep the words to himself any longer. She blushed and fought a smile, and it was all he needed. The fact that she had come here with him, held his hand, and wanted him by her side meant everything.
Evelyn sat across from them and settled her hands in her lap, facing Wren. “Wren, I’m sure that Lee told you we’ve spoken already.”
“Yes.” Wren nodded. “He has.”
“Good. I don’t want there to be any mystery or misunderstanding about that, so in a few minutes, we’ll go over everything we discussed. All right?" Her words were direct, but her voice was soft.
“Okay.” Wren’s eyes moved between Evelyn and Lee, and Lee nodded, glad that the therapist was beginning with a clean slate.
“Good. Now, I understand that the two of you are at the beginning of a relationship, and it seems as though it’s a very important relationship to Lee.” Evelyn’s eyes glanced at him. “And I—”
“It’s important to both of us,” Wren said, squeezing his hand.
Grinning like an idiot, Lee squeezed back. With her words and her touch, hope opened up his future.
Evelyn smiled, too. “Yes, I can see that’s true. Wonderful. I should be clear about something,” she began. “Lee offered to cover the cost of your treatment, but I believe that you should not feel that your recovery is tethered to your new relationship, so I am going to offer my services pro bono for the first six—”
“I can pay for it myself,” Wren said. She looked back at Lee, conviction in her eyes. “I want to.”
Again, Evelyn smiled. “Excellent. Then let’s talk a little bit about what I know of your history and how compassion therapy could help you.”
The hour-long session seemed to pass in seconds, and before Lee knew it, Wren was scheduling a second appointment in a few days’ time. The session had gone well. Nothing miraculous had occurred, and no great discoveries had been made. In fact, other than Evelyn’s brief recounting of what Lee had told her of Wren’s childhood, the therapist spent most of the hour talking about her technique, going over a few exercises she wanted Wren to practice, and simply getting to know her patient.
There were no amazing breakthroughs, but Lee could see that Wren could let go with Evelyn. Her posture, the muscles in her face, the softness around her eyes all said Wren liked her, that her guard had come down, and she’d continue with the therapy. That was really all he could hope for at the moment.
Hoping and waiting. That’s what he’d do for as long as it took.
They rode down on the elevator in silence from Evelyn’s third-floor office. Lee tested the waters and let his knuckles brush against the back of Wren’s hand. After the day she’d had, she might need space, and he’d readily give it.
She didn’t respond. They stepped out onto the ground floor, and Lee was about to reach for his keys when she grabbed his hand.
“Thank you, Lee.”
At the look in her eyes, Lee’s lungs emptied. “No. Thank you,” he said, shaking his head. “That took a lot of courage. I’m so proud. Really.”
One side of her mouth curled. “I didn’t really have a choice.”
At her words, his stomach dropped to his knees. “Oh God… did I force you?”
Wren shook her head and brought her palm to his cheek. “That’s not what I mean.”
They stood in front of the lobby’s double doors, and, before she could explain, an older man entered and pressed the elevator button beside them. Wren’s eyes tracked to the man and then back to Lee.
“Can we go back to your house and talk?” she asked, her voice dropping. “I need a minute to figure out what I’m going to say.”
Lee only nodded. His tongue wouldn’t work. Was she going to leave him again? Tell him that she couldn’t focus on herself and a relationship at the same time? Lee wouldn’t blame her if she did. He could only honor her choice and hope she’d want him back in her life at some point.
The drive home stretched on, lengthened by silence and Lee’s own sense of doom. Every chance he got, he let his eyes drift to Wren’s profile, trying to burn the image of her into his mind, cataloguing the way her blue waves fell around her face, the glint of the sassy barbell in her brow, the pout of her lips. Would he ever get the chance to look at her like this again? To touch her?
At the house, Lee stalled. They brought Victor outside, and, as the puppy nosed around the monkey grass, Lee didn’t urge him to hurry as he usually would. Besides, Wren was smiling at the dog, and he wanted to savor the moment.
Walking back into his kitchen, Lee grasped for anything to hold her there. “Are you hungry?”
Wren shook her head. “Not really.”
“Would you like something to drink? Tea? Hot chocolate?”
“Hot chocolate?” she echoed, her brows lifting. “Like real hot chocolate or the little Swiss Miss packets?”
