Dixie
I was in the hospital for a little over a week. My shoulder and the damaged muscle and tendons underneath were in bad shape and needed surgery, but all the doctors and surgeons I saw were cautiously optimistic that I would regain full range of motion once it healed and I did some physical therapy to regain strength. Surprisingly it was my sprained ankle that proved to be the biggest hindrance. It was swollen and bruised a grotesque shade of blackish green. I couldn’t put any weight on it and there was no balancing myself with one of my arms out of commission and strapped across my chest in a sling. The stupid thing screamed at me whenever I tried to move it, so I spent a week immobile and antsy as Church barely left my side complete with a matching sling that he promptly discarded as soon as his own wound started to feel better. He acted like catching a bullet was no big deal, which I found totally aggravating. He kept saying that the gun was a small-caliber weapon, so the shot to his shoulder was far less involved compared with the way mine was mangled. Like that was supposed to make the situation better. Begrudgingly I told him I thought it was cute that we were going to have matching scars.
I wasn’t used to being the one that was fussed over, so it took some getting used to. I didn’t want to be a bother but eventually it was obvious I was limited in what I could do for myself, so I settled in and let everyone around me fret and fuss. Church and I didn’t talk about the future, the fact that he admitted that we were going to have one was enough for me. He wasn’t running away from me and the way I loved him anymore, in fact he was sprinting towards it and chasing me with his own chaotic, wild kind of affection. Frankly I thought our story was going to kick my parents’ story’s ass!
Currently his booted feet were propped up on the edge of the hospital bed and he was scrolling through something on my phone. He’s been tasked with explaining to my family why I was a leading story on the national news and with convincing half of Denver to stay put until I was up to seeing visitors, so he’d had my cell in hand pretty much twenty-four/seven since I got out of surgery. I was getting my walking papers in an hour and I couldn’t wait to get out of the hospital and back to some semblance of reality.
My parents had arrived the day after the crash and were currently staying with Elma Mae. They hovered but quickly realized Church wasn’t leaving my side and had spent most of their time in Mississippi falling in love with Lowry and Church’s family the same way I had. I was going back to Denver with them at the end of the week.
I still had an entire life in Colorado I needed to situate before Church and I could make some decisions about what was next for us. I missed my dog, and I didn’t want to push Church when I finally had him where I so desperately wanted him to be. He loved me. He wanted me. He needed me but I didn’t know if he was planning on doing all of that here or if he was going to come back to the Mile High. I couldn’t imagine him leaving his family when he’d spent so long hiding from them, but he hadn’t said anything one way or the other.
I nudged his boot with my good foot until he looked up at me. “What are you doing on my phone?” There was nothing incriminating on the thing unless he’d managed to get onto Pinterest and found my wedding boards, that might be embarrassing but he had to know that’s where all of this was heading for me regardless of what state we called home.
“I’m looking through that dating app.” He looked up from my phone and lifted his eyebrows at me. “I’m reading all the things you filled in to find your perfect guy.”
I groaned and held out my good hand. “Stop that. I still need to delete the dumb thing. Hand it over.” I wiggled my fingers and was promptly ignored.
A grin tugged at his mouth and his eyes danced with a million colors as humor lit them up from the inside out. “Over six feet.” He held up a finger. “Check.” I groaned and demanded the device again. “Though why that’s a must when you’re barely five-foot is beyond me.”
“I’m five-five, jackass. Can you stop?”
“Open to all ethnicities.” He wiggled his eyebrows up and down and I felt myself blush. “That’s good to know.” I slapped a hand over my eyes and sighed in defeat. He wasn’t going to stop until he got all the way through my list of must-haves.
“Fit, some formal education, gainfully employed, kids okay. Man, you weren’t being very picky here, Dixie.” He was laughing at me, so I closed my eyes and tried to block him out. “Where’s the box for no murdering psychopaths with mommy issues?”
I groaned again and turned to look at him through narrowed eyes. “I must have missed that one.”
He chuckled again but then his expression turned serious and his eyebrows dipped in a V over his colorful eyes as he dropped his feet off the edge of the bed and leaned over the phone, reading intently. “Prefers the strong, silent type because when he has something to say it’s always worth listening to. Looking for a man that is chivalrous, adventurous, and has a sense of pride and duty.” His eyes flicked up to mine and I would have shrugged if I was able. Instead I bit down on my lip as he continued to read. “Loyalty is a must. You can tell a lot about a man by the company he keeps. Searching for someone that knows the importance of family and home, that is willing to go above and beyond for the people he cares about. Looking for love and forever.”
I gulped a little as he tapped the screen, shutting the app down and turning the phone off before setting it on the bed next to me. He rose to his feet and made his way over to the side of the bed. The mattress sank under his weight as he propped his hip next to mine.
“You described me.”
I looked up at him from under my lashes. “Well yeah. You’re supposed to describe your perfect man, and even when you were driving me crazy and making me chase my heart around in circles you were still my perfect guy. You’re the only one.”
He reached out a hand and moved some of my hair away from my face so I couldn’t use it to hide behind. “How can you be so sure?”
I blew out a breath and reached up to catch his hand in mine. “I just knew. There was no explaining it. There was no denying it. My heart picked you.”
His lips twitched and it happened.
He smiled.
I knew it was going to be my undoing.
That mouth was made to be happy. That face was created to have joy and delight stamped across it. He was so much more than beautiful with that smile. He was stunning. He stole my breath and made it hard for me to think.
“You’re smiling.” I reached out and touched the indent in his cheek that wasn’t quite a dimple but was close.
“I guess I am.” He caught my hand in his and kissed the backs of my fingers. “I have a lot to be happy about lately.”
I smiled back at him. “I’m glad.”
“I’ve got an errand I need to run real quick and then I’ll come pick you up when it’s time to take you home. I’ve only got you for a little bit before your folks whisk you back home.” He hadn’t left my side in days, so I was surprised that he was doing so now when I was so close to freedom.
“Uh … okay.” I frowned at him but he bent over and placed a hard kiss on my lips.
“I’ll be back, pretty girl, and I know we need to talk about what’s next. I’m not running. I’m right here in front of you even when you can’t see me. Trust me.” It was hard not to give him everything he asked for when he was smiling at me.
“All right, soldier.” He nodded and slipped quietly out of the room.
I had no clue where he was going, but I knew with everything inside of me that he would be back.