Page 92 of An Unexpected Turn
“The doctor. He used to come to Keith’s house for weekly poker games.”
“Uncle Keith had poker games?” I squinted at Jake, my head already too heavy to lift off the pillow.
“Before the twins. Maya didn’t want cigars in the house after that.”
“Wow, is there anyone in this town the two of you don’t know?” I had to laugh. “It feels good that it’s out, though. Mostly.” I shrugged. I wished my head felt clearer, but maybe the distraction was a good thing.
“We have to call Uncle Keith,” I said, pushing into the mattress to sit up.
“I already left him a message.” He climbed in next to me and drew me into his chest. “Let me take care of this, okay?”
My head hurt too much to fight him. My eyelids grew heavy as the all-day rush of adrenaline dissipated.
“I wish I could sleep with you every night. I miss you all the time.” I yawned into the crook of his shoulder.
“I miss you too, sweetheart. I hate when I have to leave you. I should have kept you in my basement like I wanted to.”
“Safer there anyway. Maybe one day, neither of us will have to go home. We can sleep inourbed, not mine or yours.” My eyes bugged out at what I’d let slip. “And if that just freaked you out, I hit my head and probably can’t think or speak clearly.” I peered up at his crooked smile.
“I wish for all of that too. Maybe it hasn’t been long for us, but I can’t remember a time without us. We fit. My house feels empty without you, and that’s with a teenager leaving his shit all over the place. I’d love it if you never left.”
My smile grew wide despite the ache in my cheekbones.
“But if that scares you, you have a head injury and probably didn’t hear me right.” I laughed at his raised brow.
“God, I love you. So much.” I pressed a kiss to his chest.
“You can’t begin to know how much I love you.” He kissed the top of my head. “That’s why I want you to stay with us until you feel better and are cleared to drive. We’ll do whatever you need for a few days.”
“I’ll never want to leave.”
“That may or may not be my secret plan,” he whispered into my hair.
Jake and Ididfit. My unexpected turn had led me straight to him—where I was supposed to be.
THIRTY-SEVEN
JAKE
Despite a shitty night of sleep, I was up even earlier than usual. Every time I’d woken up, I’d nudged Peyton to make sure she was okay. The doctors said it wasn’t completely necessary since they weren’t certain it was a concussion. Considering how light-headed she said she was when they first brought her in, my anxiety had me up and checking her anyway. She’d look at me and whimper into my chest until she drifted back to sleep.
I kept one arm around her waist as I reached for my phone. Still no text from Keith, which was unlike him. My message had been simple but cryptic, and I was shocked he didn’t call me back the second he’d seen it. The minute he got back into town someone would tip him off. Hell, all he’d have to do was call into the station, and Ron would be all too happy to fill him in.
Looking back at these past few months from where we were now, the secrecy seemed even more pointless. Instead of searching for the right time to tell Keith together, we should have just told him a long time ago. We still would have had to keep sort of quiet while Mike was her student, but there were ways around that. Keith was the biggest obstacle, and our blatant lies of omission would upset him more than anything else.
I was almost relieved our hands were forced, but we needed to get to him first. As the minutes ticked by, the more I feared we’d probably lost our chance.
I rolled out of bed at eight, making sure I was gentle enough not to jostle her too much. Even with the bandage across her forehead and bruises already fading to purple on her face, Peyton was the most beautiful woman I’d ever seen. I’d meant it when I told her I never wanted her to leave. Time was bullshit when you met the one, and I had zero doubt in my mind that was exactly who she was.
While the phone was still in my hand, I texted my son to let him know I wasn’t coming home alone.
Me:I hope you didn’t stay up all night playing video games with Chloe. I wanted to let you know that I’m bringing Ms. Miller home with me and she’s staying with us for a few days until she feels better.
I was surprised to see the three dots pop up, as I was sure he’d still be asleep on a Saturday morning.
Mike:Is she okay? Aunt Kris is taking us for donuts. Does she want any, or can she not eat?
I smiled as pride swelled in my chest. Despite all we’d put him through, I had a damn good kid.
