by Tess Oliver
Andi jumped onto his back. “Don’t you dare hit him again. Twin or not, we will be through forever, Dawson. I swear it.”
He shrugged her off, and she fell back on her bottom. She hopped quickly to her feet and shoved him hard. It didn’t do much to budge him. Dawson turned around and walked back toward his car. He brought his fist down hard on the top of it, leaving a nice dent.
Andi ran to me and put her arms around me. Blood smeared on her cheek as she pressed her face to my chest. She tensed in my arms as Dawson marched back toward us. Again, he ignored his sister, and his focus fell directly on me.
“She was meant for a future away from that shit hole of a town. She was dating a damn doctor for fucksake.”
“Damnit, stop talking about me as if I’m not standing right here in front of you.” Andi raised her fists and pounded him good on the chest. “Could you be any bigger of a dick?”
Dawson took hold of Andi’s wrists to stop her from smacking him. “You wanted out of Bluefield. Your whole fucking life you’ve been saying it. You worked hard to become a nurse. Everything you wanted is right there for you to take and you come back for him? You come back for fucking Tommy?” He shook his head. “Let’s just get in the car.” He swept around and grabbed up Andi’s backpack.
She ran back to me. “Once we get home, I’ll talk to him when he’s not so charged up. And when I’ve calmed down too. Let’s go.”
I looked down at her. “You go with your brother, Andi. Go see to your mom. I’ll get home on my own.”
“But it’s ten miles to Bluefield.” Tears filled her eyes. She took hold of my hand. “He’s my brother, but I don’t care. If he makes me choose, Tommy, it will be you.”
When I made it clear that I wasn’t going with them, she hopped up and kissed me and ran to the car.
Chapter 37
Andi
I’d cut Dawson off from any conversation on the drive from the bus stop to the hospital. I needed to see my mom and make sure everything was all right before plowing into my twin brother. I was so angry at him that I was sure none of the words would come out correctly, and I would just fall apart in front of him.
Dawson sat silently in the chair in my mom’s hospital room, while Dad and I chatted with Mom until her lids grew heavy. Dawson hadn’t said a word to Dad about where I’d been these past few days, and for that, at least, I was grateful.
I patted my mom’s hand. “Mom, you need your sleep. And when you get home, I’m going to put you and Dad on a better diet plan. You two need to take better care of yourselves.”
Mom smiled weakly. She looked small and frail in the bed and as used to seeing monitors and tubes as I was, I still couldn’t get used to seeing them connected to my mom.
“Sounds boring already. But you’re right, Andi.” She looked over at Dawson, who was slumped in the chair. “Dawson, did you get a hold of your sisters?”
Dawson nodded. “Yeah, I told them not to come out. That everything was all right.”
Dad had noticed Dawson’s rigid tone. He looked back at him. “Dawson, what has you in such a bad mood?”
Dawson flicked his cool gaze my direction and shook his head. “I’m not in a bad mood. Just tired.”
“Then why don’t you and Andi head home. I’m going to stay with your mom a little longer.” This scary incident had shaken the man of steel. It might just have been what was needed to make him realize that life was too short and too fragile to worry about controlling every damn thing. No doubt, it was a shock to his system when it finally dawned on him that this was something he couldn’t control.
Dawson stood up and walked over to kiss Mom on the forehead. I did the same. We walked out into the corridor and out the exit door without a word between us. We crossed the parking lot and climbed into his car. He put the key in the ignition but didn’t turn it.
“Tommy?” He faced me. “Seriously? I mean I love the guy. He’s like that brother I never had, but . . .” He shook his head. “I always knew he was nuts about you, but I figured it was just a passing thing. I mean he’s had a lot of women. A lot of fucking women.”
“Yeah,” I snapped. “I got it. A lot of fucking women. Just like you. And just like Kellan. Don’t need to hear about it.”
He sat back against the seat and looked at his swollen knuckles. “He wouldn’t even hit me back.”
“Thank goodness, otherwise we’d be peeling you up off the damn sidewalk. Dawson, you’re my brother, and I love you. It’s sweet how protective you are about me, but it’s also irritating as hell. I’m an adult now. I don’t tell you how to live your life, and believe me, buddy, there are a few good places I could start. Like with the whole manwhore lifestyle. But you’re going to have to let me make my own decisions.” I pressed my hand to my chest. “It’s my heart, and if I want to risk it breaking over someone like Tommy, then that’s my choice.” I grew quiet as I thought about the last few days. “I love him, Dawson.” I looked at my brother. He turned to face me. “I love Tommy. He’s always been right there in my heart. It just took me awhile to realize it.”
“But your dreams, Andi. How does Tommy fit into your plans? Everything is going to change now.”
“If this is all about you losing your best friend, then you’re being an even bigger ass than I thought.”
“Sometimes you can be such a bitch, Andi.” He turned the key and started the car.
“That’s it, isn’t it? I hit a big fucking nerve now. This is about you and your life more than it’s about mine.”
He put his hand on the stick shift but didn’t back off the clutch. “That’s only part of it, and you know it.” His face twisted more as he thought about it. “My best friend and my sister—you can’t see why that’s hard for me to accept? I’ve been hanging out with the guy for years, and trust me, Andi. He’s no boy next door.”
“I know that. You’re not exactly church choir material yourself. And for some stupid reason, I still love and admire you. It’s the same with Tommy. Just in a whole different way.”
He lifted his hand off the stick to stop me. “Don’t say more. I need a lot more time to absorb this all without wanting to throw my fist through something.”
Chapter 38
Tommy
I kicked off my shoes and leaned back against the wall behind my bed. The bag of ice was starting to melt. It dripped on my shirt next to the blood spots. None of it had surprised me. All along, I knew that Dawson would be against this. There was no way I could be pissed at him when I knew he was doing exactly what I would have done in his place. I only wished I knew how to throw a fist into my own face. I knew starting this was only going to lead to a lot of anger and heartbreak. But I couldn’t stop myself. Denying myself the one thing I’d always wanted had been wearing on me. For those few days when I’d had Andi to myself, everything that was shitty about my life disappeared. I was happy as hell. Even with the constant irritation of knowing that this wouldn’t go smoothly, I was more fucking content than I’d ever been in my life.
My phone rang. The only reason I glanced at it was to see if it was Andi. It was Kellan. It was lunch break at the mine. “Hey,” I muttered from beneath the bag of ice on my face.
“You’re back in town?”
“I’ve got float dust between my teeth, so I must be.”
“How did it go with Dawson?”
“Fucking awesome. I’m talking to you from under a bag of ice.”
It took him a second to process what I meant. “No fucking way. He hit you?”
“Yeah, it was quite the homecoming.”
“Shit, Huck, sorry about that. But you know how protective Dawz is about Andi. He just needs to blow off some steam. He’ll come around.” He paused, and the low rumbles of other voices came through the phone, along with din of machinery. “So it finally happened between you and Andi, huh? I’m kind of relieved to tell the truth. I wasn’t sure how much longer I could take you gritting your teeth and hiding behind your wall every time she walked into
the room.”
Dawson’s car pulled into the driveway.
“I’ve got to finish eating and get back to work,” Kellan said. “You start back Monday, right? I know Dawz said he’d be back tomorrow.”
“Yeah, my vacation got cut short. I think I’ll just sit here and drink enough beer to start a coma.” The front door opened and shut sharply. Something told me the confrontation phase of my homecoming wasn’t over yet. “See ya, Kellan.”
I closed my eyes and listened to Dawson stomp around the house for a few minutes before his boots clumped along the hallway. My door squeaked open, but I didn’t open my eyes.
“Maybe you can make this easier by just putting a fucking pillow over my face.” Icy water dripped on my shirt. “This fucking thing is leaking.” I threw the bag of melted ice across the room. It hit the wall and left a wet streak as it slid down the yellowed plaster.
“You all right?” he asked.
“Face hurts. Lucky for me, the guy who belted me has a wimpy right hook.”
“Yep, I deserved that.” He walked into the room. “I just wanted her to have more, Tommy. It’s Andi, you know?”
“I know.” I looked up at him. “I can’t promise her a lush lifestyle, but I can tell you this—I will love her until I die, and I will protect her with my life. That’s it. That’s all I’ve got.”
He sat on the edge of the bed and stared out the bedroom window. “I can’t stay here. I can’t have you two—” He stopped.
“I know.”
“Fuck. Who am I going to go partying and gambling and brawling with? First Kellan and now you. I’m going to be the Lone fucking Ranger.”
“Maybe you’ll have more luck with the girls now that I’m off the market.” I smiled. “Shit that hurts. Asshole.”
“Sorry about that.” He lifted his hand and looked at the swollen knuckles. “Felt pretty good from this side though. Just glad you didn’t punch back.”
“Remember that, bro. Next time I might not be so nice about it.”
He shook his head. “There won’t be a next time. I got the feeling from Andi that if she was going to have to choose, I was going to be on the losing end. It’s going to take some time to get used to. Then there’s the whole breaking the news to my dad thing.” He glanced back at me. “Think I’ll let you have that honor. I’ll just make sure his shotgun isn’t loaded when you tell him.”
“Thanks. Appreciate it.”
We looked at each other. The bond was still there. It would always be there, no matter what. Just like our connection to Kellan. There was just too damn much between us to change that.
Dawson nodded as if he’d read my thoughts and got up from the bed. “Guess she could have done worse.”
“Thanks, buddy. That really warms my heart.” I heaved a pillow at the back of his head as he left the room.
Chapter 39
Andi
“Nurse Sullivan, they need you in treatment room three. A scared little girl with a broken arm. You always seem to know how to calm them down.”
“I’ll be right there, Nurse Rathford.” I finished filing the last of the folders. It seemed a lot of things got overlooked while I was out on leave. But it felt good to be back, even with the backload of work waiting for me and the usual drama and chaos on the emergency room floor. In my short absence, Dr. Hughes had been transferred to New York. It had been something he’d wanted and it had happened so quickly, he’d only had time to text me good bye. I was a little sad but mostly relieved. Between getting my mom back home to convalesce and talking an extremely hard headed dad into getting a physical and then setting them both up with a much more heart healthy pantry and walk schedule, I’d hardly had time to think about anything but them. Dawson had come around to let me know that he’d worked things out with Tommy. He hadn’t exactly given us his blessings yet, but he was working toward acceptance. Right or wrong, I’d used my mom’s health scare and my dad’s new found respect for how short life really is, to spring the news on them. Mom’s eyes had glossed up and she eeked out the question I’d expected—‘but what about the doctor?’ My dad had sat in stone silence as I explained to my mom how that relationship never really had a chance. Then I worked up the nerve to look to him for some kind of a response. I’d nearly fallen off the chair with the one I got. “Andi,” he said with that firm tone he’d perfected over the years, “I was wondering when that kid would finally make his move. Tommy’s had it rough, but he’s turned out just fine in spite of it all.” I’d hugged my dad that day for the first time in many years, and all I could think of was Dr. Seuss’s Grinch character. I could almost see my dad’s heart growing out of the metal mold that had kept it so small all these years.
With family issues and work needing me back pronto, the one person who I had not had time to see or talk to was Tommy. The time apart had given me a lot to think about.
I grabbed the hospital mascot, a teddy bear dressed in a top hat and coat, on my way to the treatment room. I could hear the little girl’s hysterical cries long before I reached the room. I stepped behind the curtain. An extremely worried looking mom and a tiny twisted arm greeted me. The little girl, around six, was still wearing her school uniform. From the scrapes on her knees, it seemed she’d just had a recess she would never forget.
I stuck the bear right next to the little girl. She stared down at it with curiosity, and her cries melted to shoulder wracking whimpers. “I hope you don’t mind if Egbert shares a bed with you. He’s not feeling too well, and there were no more open beds.” I leaned closer. “He had way too many chocolate cupcakes at his party.” I dropped my tone to a whisper. “Oh, and don’t call him Egbert. He hates that name. Can’t really blame him. It’s a stinker.”
A laugh erupted beneath her tiny red nose.
“I’m Nurse Sullivan. What’s your name?”
“Rebecca.”
I sat on the edge of the bed and looked at her arm. “Guess they’re waiting for the bone doctor to come and wrap this up. Let me see, you look like a jungle gym pro. Or were you jumping off the swing when the yard duty teacher looked away?”
“Peter pushed me off the slide.”
I sighed. “Boys. They just never know how to behave, do they?”
“Nope. They are stinkers.” She laughed heartily at her joke.
I looked up at the mom. She mouthed the words ‘thank you’.
“Well, Rebecca, I’m leaving Egbert in your care for now. I’ll be back to check on you later.”
She wrapped her good arm around the bear, and a smile that was short two front teeth followed.
Nurse Rathford came around the corner. She lifted her hand to her ear. “I see you did your magic.”
“With a little help from Egbert.” I moved to walk past her, but she stopped me.
“Were you expecting a visitor?” she asked.
“No, why?”
“It’s just that I was heading past admitting, and I could swear I saw that hunky guy with the tattoos walk in through the doors. You know, the one who saved you from the crazy man with a gun.”
I was heading toward admitting before she’d even finished her sentence. My heart raced as I considered the possibility that he was hurt or sick or even that he’d come to tell me to forget the whole thing.
He’d pulled on a tight black t-shirt over his massive arms. As a result, he had the attention of every female in the vicinity.
“Sulli.”
“Tommy, what’s wrong?”
“Nothing. I just needed to talk to you, and you’ve been so busy.” His throat moved with a hard swallow as he gazed at me. “I just needed to talk.”
My chest felt heavy. Was this it? Had he decided this wasn’t such a great idea after all? Or maybe, he’d finally come to his senses and discovered I wasn’t really worth it.
“I can step outside for a few minutes.” I followed him through the automatic doors. My throat felt tight, and my knees were a little weak. I could handle this. I was tough, I tried hard to remi
nd myself.
We got to the end of the sidewalk. Tommy took hold of my hand and led me around the corner.
“First of all—” He grabbed me to him and kissed me long and thoroughly. The earlier shake in my knees intensified but for a whole different reason.
He lifted his mouth from mine and took hold of my face. His eyes were a cool hazel green as he stared down at me. “I’ve been beating myself up about this, wondering if I moved too fast and worried I didn’t give you enough time to decide.” He took a deep breath.
“Decide what?”
“Decide if you want this? If you want me? I know this wasn’t part of your dreams.”
“Uh, I’d like to let you in on a little secret, Mr. Sawyer. All of my dreams always included me being ridiculously and deliriously happy. Oh, and a really fun, raunchy sex life was all part of that too.”
He looked expectantly at me.
“So, you’re asking me if I want this?” I waved my hand around next to him. “This glorious looking man who knows what I’m thinking before I even say it. A guy who hops out of a hospital bed and puts himself in danger to save my life. A guy who knows how to make me laugh, and—I might add—knows a thing or two about multiple orgasms.” I wrapped my arms around his waist and pulled myself closer. “A guy who has been an important part of my life forever. I think I can check off all those dream boxes and then some because, Tommy, I love you.”
He tightened his arms around me. “So this is what a happy ending feels like.”
I hopped up on my toes and kissed him. “Nope. This is what a happy beginning feels like.”
Dawson’s story is next!
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