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Well, until the part where she passed out, Bryson piped up.
Yeah, that must have been hell on you, actually seeing it, Damien said, turning toward Bryson for
the first time. I m sorry. I ve been so focused on Misty that I ve been rude. It s been a long time, he
said, sticking out his hand.
Yes, it has. It s good to see you, Damien.
You, as well.
They all chatted for a while maybe an hour. Misty didn t know. Time had ceased having any
meaning, and she didn t want the night to end, even if she was stuck in a sterile room on a hard bed.
Despite everything, she d never had a more perfect night, not even when she met Brad Paisley; nor
had she ever laughed so much. Her stomach was actually developing a cramp.
Which room is it? Are you all incompetent? I have a relative to visit.
All heads turned as a loud voice echoed down the corridor and Damien jumped up. I d better save
the nursing staff, he said with a chuckle. Joseph, down here, he called out from the doorway.
Well, there you are, boy, Joseph called back, and then Joseph was standing before her again. Oh,
my. She d forgotten in just a few days how intimidating he was, standing well over six feet tall with
shoulders that seemed to stretch on forever. Luckily, the well-trimmed white beard and mustache
softened his appearance. I don t understand why it took so long for someone to call me. I was
waiting for little Misty to arrive, and then I get a phone call saying she had an incident on the plane. It
was like pulling teeth to get any information, he said, his voice lowering as he approached her bed.
Joseph, she s Magnolia for now, Damien said with a meaningful look.
Joseph s tone quieted. I m sorry, Magnolia. I won t make that mistake again, he said, and he
seemed honestly grieved over his mistake. Mistakes like that could cost everything they d done to
protect her.
I m fine, she said. All this fuss was beginning to make her uncomfortable.
I m sorry, darling. I didn t mean to scare you with all my bluster. I was just worried, that s all, he
said as he scooted Bryson out of his chair and took a seat. Bryson laughed at the old man s antics.
Everyone is fussing over nothing. I just& got dehydrated is all, Misty said, not wanting them to
know she d panicked at the thought of actually meeting her brother face-to-face. She was grateful
when they let her get away with her half-truth.
It s never nothing when you have to go to the hospital, Joseph told her, but they will take real good
care of you here. If not, they have to answer to me, and I m not pleasant to deal with when I m
unhappy. He issued that warning just as the doctor walked into the room.
I can vouch for that, Joseph, the man said.
Joseph chuckled and leaned back. How s our girl doing?
Her vitals have improved greatly. She ll be ready to go home in the morning.
Everyone breathed a lot easier.
It s good to see you still do a fine job here, Carson, Joseph said, and he stood up and patted the
doctor on the back.
Misty s eyes were growing heavy, but she was afraid that if she went to sleep, they d all disappear
and she d lose them forever. It would be so much more painful now that she d had a taste of what
having a family was all about.
My patient is exhausted and clearly having a difficult time keeping awake, Dr. Carson said, but I
can see she s far too polite to say anything, so I ll say it. You head out and let her get some rest, and
then you can pick her up first thing in the morning. The doctor s words earned him disappointed
looks from both Joseph and Damien. But as they turned to look back at Misty, it was more than clear
that the doctor was right.
It s okay, Misty said weakly.
We ll go and let her rest, Sierra interjected firmly. Then we ll see you bright and early
tomorrow. She leaned down and hugged her new sister-in-law.
Fine, Damien conceded. Then he surprised Misty by also leaning down and pulling her into his
arms for his own hug.
It took all she had not to cry again. She refused to, just refused to, until they left the room. After all,
they d seen enough of her crazy emotions for one day.
Fine, I suppose, Joseph grumbled, then embraced her briefly but with surprising gentleness. We ll
bring you to the place tomorrow and take good care of you while you recover.
Then, just as quickly as they d blown into the room, the three were gone, taking the doctor with them.
Bryson also leaned down as if to leave, but she clutched his hand in hers like a vise to prevent him
from going away, too.
He probably wanted to visit with the others, she thought, but she couldn t seem to command her hand
to let his go.
She held herself together for longer than she thought she could, but when Bryson looked into her face
and then rubbed his hand along her cheek, she began to unravel, her body shaking with the emotion
she d been trying to suppress.
It s all right, hon. This meeting has been a long time coming. No one will think you re weak if you
shed a few tears, he said, and that was all it took.
Her dry eyes prickled, and then she watched as Bryson s face blurred, and then the tears welled over
and rushed down her cheeks.
It s okay. Everything will be okay, he vowed. He slid into the bed next to her, careful of her I.V. as
he pulled her gently into his arms.
Bryson held her close as she sobbed out her relief, as she let go of all the anxiety she d been carrying.
And as she let go of the last walls around her heart and let him in.
When sleep finally took her into its sweet embrace, she had nothing left to give she d let it all go
and now the fate of her love was in Bryson s strong, capable hands. Meeting her family, knowing she
belonged had opened her emotions up in ways nothing else could have.
Now, she was willing to hope, to dream, to want! She loved Bryson; now she just needed to be brave
enough to tell him. She tried to without the words, by holding him tight.
It was up to him if he wanted her love for more than a night or a week. She wanted him forever.
Chapter Eighteen
You re not going to have another anxiety attack on me, are you? Bryson asked as they rode in the
back of the Jaguar that Joseph had sent to pick them up.
I can t promise anything. Look at what we re being driven in, she said with a nervous smile.
I just want to give some warnings before you see the& um& house. He was unsure whether the
Anderson mansion, with its high towers and stunning stone walls, could be called a house
I m fine. They re just people, right? It s not like they weren t born the same way I was. They are
people. Okay, really wealthy people, but people all the same. I can do this. Who was it she was
trying to convince herself or Bryson?
Yes, we are all born the same way, Bryson said with a chuckle.
It s ridiculous to be this nervous. I ve already met them, she said, frustrated with herself. [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ] - zanotowane.pl
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