Twice.
His beautiful, selfless, loving heart had stopped beating. Itstopped.That thought alone was enough to nearly break her.
But as Sophie brushed her thumb across the back of his hand, the machines tracking each of his precious heartbeats reminded her that he hadn’t given up.
He’d fought to come back. To her. To his friends.That’swhat she had to hold on to.
As the hours passed, she thought of their whirlwind romance, and all they’d shared and experienced in an insanely short amount of time.
Every so often, flashes of other memories—unpleasant memories—would force their way inside.
The gunshots. Seeing the blood on Jason’s white shirt. The horrifying realization that he’d been shot.
Emotions threatened to overpower her, but Sophie held back. She needed to stay strong and focus on the positive...
I didn’t lose him.
As she sat by his side, Sophie watched as Jason’s lungs did their job by pulling in precious oxygen. She relished in the fact that his strong heart was still giving him life by pumping blood through his arteries and veins.
Love...you.
The words he’d spoken to her right before losing consciousness were the most sacred words she’d ever heard.
He loved her, and she loved him. He’d fought to live, and right there in that quiet hospital room, Sophie vowed to give him the life he’d always wanted.
Leaning up over the railing, she pressed her lips to his forehead, letting them linger.
“Come back to me soon, honey,” she whispered. “I’ll be here, waiting. For as long as it takes.”
****
Jason woke to the soundof low murmurs. He was pretty sure Jake was there, along with his wife and daughter. But there was another voice reaching his ears. The only voice he truly longed to hear.
Sophie.
“I’m right here.”
She’d heard that? Jason was confused at first, but then realized he must’ve said her name out loud.
Peeling his eyes open, he blinked against the fog to find her. “Soph?”
Damn, his voice sounded rough, even to him.
“I’m right here,” she repeated.
And she was.
“Hey.” She gave him a wide, watery smile.
“Hi.”
Jason watched as a flood of tears fell from her eyes.
The last time he saw her cry was when she thought he was dying. For a moment there, he was sure he would.
It would’ve been so easy. To just give up and let himself slip away.
A year ago—hell amonthago—he probably would have given into the peaceful abyss that had been calling his name while the doctors worked to save him. But now...