Me: Oh it’s like that, okay bet.
Marlee: I mean… you left me
Me: I mean… you basically forced me to, now you want to see me or not?
Marlee:
Me: Ryland has some stuff going on, so I’ll be home for a few days. I don’t have the details yet, but if you can get out of your feelings, maybe we can do lunch or something.
Marlee: *dramatic sigh* Let me see if I can move some stuff around since you’re begging for my time.
Me: Bitch, let me read these texts again because I don’t recall any begging but maybe I missed something.
Marlee: It’s basically what you said but I can’t wait. Let me know when you get here and I’m all yours
Me: I’ll text you. Love you, heaux
After I locked my phone, I tossed it on the bed and went to find Ryland who ended up being in his room. He had the blackout shades down, which darkened the entire space, but he also had the lights dimmed, on the green setting he told me was for his migraines.
When I reached the bed, Ryland’s legs hung over the side and he was on his back with his arms at his sides, fists clenched and his face tight. I stepped between his legs and touched his hand, which granted me access to his barely opened eyes and I saw the strain in his face from doing so.
“Migraine?”
“Yeah, I’m good though.”
“You’re good but your freak lights are on?”I arched a brow and motioned toward the green hued lights. He smirked, not acknowledging that his room was dark and those lights were on for a reason, and instead brushed it off, signing the same thing again.“I’m good.”
“You’re not. You’re angry and stressed. I’m sure that’s not making things any better for you right now. How can I help?”
“I took something. I just need to lay here for a minute.”
Each time his hands lifted, his jaw clenched more. The way simple movements were a struggle contradicted his “I’m good”stance.
“Stop signing. It hurts for you to move. Are you sensitive to touch?”
He shook his head.“It’s not that bad yet.”
Stubborn ass.Yet, which means you’re in pain.
I climbed on the bed, straddling his waist. “My mom gets migraines. Sometimes the pressure points help. Can I try?”
He frowned a little but nodded. I started with his hands. First the left, then the right, applying pressure between the thumband index fingers. One minute on each side. He watched me through hooded lids until I moved to the center of his forehead. He closed his eyes when I began applying pressure to the spot just between his eyebrows. I kept going when the tightness in his jaw relaxed some.
I had gotten pretty good at the process because I used to stimulate my mother’s pressure points to release tension when she was on the cusp of a migraine. After I perfected my rotation, she would immediately feel relief while waiting for the medicine to kick in. Sometimes, if we caught it early enough, she could bypass a migraine altogether.
I moved to the two small indentions at the bridge of his nose between his eyebrows and used firm movements upward, applying pressure for a few minutes, then shifted to the base of his neck where the muscles met his skull, digging my thumbs in, firmly moving them with upward motions at the same time to release the pain and tension in his neck.
Ryland’s shoulders relaxed and the tension in his face visibly eased while I moved through the same sequence back to back. He eventually drifted off to sleep and I grinned, leaning over him to press a kiss against his lips, climbing off the bed, and leaving to shower and dress so I could pick up Rylee. He currently had a lot on his plate and anything I could do to make his life less stressful was granted without hesitation.
Even if he refused to ask. Ryland had this determination to be Superman. His sole mission in life was to be the person who had all the answers and fixed the problems of the people he valued, but unfortunately carrying everyone else’s struggles meant there was no one to carry yours. I refused to let him break, because like it or not, this man already had my heart.
My life wasn’tin Chicago anymore.
I had no idea how a couple weeks could change everything about me but it happened. Being home only confirmed what I had been feeling since I left. Everything about my world changed and there was no way to go back to the woman I was before meeting Ryland.
My mother and Marlee were the two people I loved most in the world and not even the thought of leaving them was enough to make me feel bad about wanting to be in Crescent Falls with Rylee and her brother. The thought made me both sad and anxious at the same time because I would have to face the reality of what all this truly meant at some point.
At the moment my focus was on the broody and emotional man sitting next to me. We landed in Chicago less than two hours ago and were driven straight to Green and Family Funeral Home to finalize details for his mother.