“See you tomorrow,” I reply.“And Sawyer?”He glances over his shoulder.“Give yourself more credit.You know what you feel.Don’t convince yourself it’s something else unless you’re absolutely sure.Otherwise, you’re missing out on a whole lot of life.”
He offers me a half-smile, then leaves the room, Rose right behind him.
As I settle back against the pillows and close my eyes, I think back to all that I’ve been through in the past two months.
Being stabbed and almost dying.
Getting pepper sprayed.
Falling in love.
Falling—literally—out of a helicopter.
The list is a lot longer than it should be, and yet I’m still here.All because God has a plan for me.
I just seriously hope that plan includes Katelyn and Thomas, too.
“You sit,” Katelyn orders as she locks the apartment door behind us.Since Kyle and I managed to get most of her furniture moved in before she went missing, it’s her stuff in the two-bedroom apartment while mine is next door, ready to be arranged and unpacked.
“Yes, ma’am,” I reply with a grin that only Thomas can see.His own smile widens as he takes a seat on the chair across from me.
After yet another night in the hospital, I am more than ready for an actual shower and some real sleep.So long as that sleep is here on the couch, because I have no intention of leaving Katelyn and Thomas just yet.
“How you feeling, Mr.Holt?”Thomas asks.
“Kind of like I fell out of a helicopter without a parachute.”
He snorts, his joy returning now that his mom is safe.The kid has been glued to her side ever since last night, and I absolutely love seeing it.With the two of them together, order is restored in my world.
“But I’ve had worse,” I add.
“You know, Sawyer said that same thing after he was shot.Just because you’ve had worse doesn’t negate what you’re going through now.”She hands me a cup of water.“You almost died.”
Her face is bruised, her right eye bloodshot, but she’s alive.My beautiful Katelyn.I’d happily take that fall over and over again if it meant she walked away.There’s not a hit I won’t take for her.
“Worth it.”
She shakes her head and takes a seat on the couch beside me.
“I think I’m going to go call Kyle, see if he wants to play some video games.”Thomas jumps up and rushes off to his room, leaving Katelyn and me on the couch alone.
I set the water down and turn toward her.“Hey.Did I tell you I bought you a present?”
“You did?”
I point toward the bookcase, at the brown bag sitting on the bottom shelf.“I set it there after Kyle and I finished moving everything in.”
Her brow furrows, and she gets up to cross the living room.“I didn’t even notice this.I’m sorry.”
“Don’t be.I wanted you to open it with me, anyway.”
Katelyn carries the bag over and takes a seat on the couch beside me once more.“Can I?”
“Please.”
With a wide grin on her face, she carefully opens the brown bag and withdraws the Bible.“Oh, Garrison,” she says softly, running her fingertips over the HOLY BIBLE printed in gold on the front of the floral cover.“You bought me a Bible.”
“You said you didn’t have one anymore.I wanted to make sure you did.”