Chapter 43 - Mara
I wake up to the sound of heated voices.
“She’s my fiancée! Get this man out of here!”
“Sir, please calm down.”
“He has no right to be here!”
I frown as I try to understand why that voice is bothering me. I try to remember who it belongs to, and why I don’t want to hear it. I try to open my eyes, but I can’t get them to open. It’s like my body doesn’t belong to me anymore. I hear that voice again and it sends fear radiating through my chest.
“Get him out of here!”
“Sir, please calm down, or we’ll have to remove both of you.”
“She never wanted to be with you, you bastard,” another voice says. My heart starts beating faster and I pray that he’ll say something else. I want to hear that voice again. That’s the voice I want to listen to.
“You used her. You have no right to be here.”
“I have every right to be here! You should be holed up in the mountains, back where you belong.”
“Fuck you,” the voice says again. “I love her more than you could love anyone… or anything.”
My eyes fly open and I take a deep breath in. “Dominic!” I call out. I struggle to focus my eyes and the voices stop. Someone takes my hand and the voice is next to me now.
“I’m here, baby, I’m here. I’m right here.”
I look at the shape beside me and blink a few times until my vision clears.
It’s him!
“Dominic,” I breathe. He’s staring at me with his eyebrows drawn together, stroking my arm and holding my hand as he crouches next to me.
“I’m here.” He kisses my hand and then brings his lips to my forehead. “I’m here.”
I breathe in that familiar smell and close my eyes again. “Dominic,” I breathe.
“You were in an accident,” he says softly. “You’re in the hospital. You’re safe now.”
I don’t understand what he means, and I don’t understand what’s going on. All I know is he’s here, he’s holding my hand and kissing my forehead. He’s brushing the hair off my face and whispering to me. I can feel him and smell him and see him.
He’s here.
I take deep breaths as I try to make sense of what’s going on.
“Mara, darling,” the other man says. I frown, turning towards him. It’s Vincent. He’s wearing a three-piece suit, and he looks stiff and uncomfortable. I shake my head and look back and Dominic, trying to keep my breath steady and my eyes on him.
“Mara, look at me,” Vincent says.
“Go away,” I croak. My throat hurts and it’s hard to speak. It barely comes out above a hoarse whisper. “Get out.”
A nurse appears and puts her hand on Vincent’s shoulder. He brushes her off and stares at me with fire in his eyes.
“I’m your fiancé!” He says. “Don’t tell me to leave!”
“It’s over,” I croak. His face contorts into a snarl and he spins around, brushing the nurse’s arm away. He stomps out of the room and I let out a deep breath. I close my eyes and squeeze Dominic’s hand. I focus on the soft stroking of his hand over mine, and the gentle sound of his voice until I drift off to sleep again.
When I wake up again, Dominic is curled up into a chair that’s much too small for him, snoring lightly as he sleeps. I watch him for a few moments and a smile drifts over my face. As if he can sense my stare, he wakes up and immediately leans forward.
“Mara! You’re awake!”
“Yeah,” I croak. My voice still sounds like a toad.
Dominic smiles and tears start to fill his eyes. “I’ve been so worried about you,” he whispers, leaning down to kiss my hand. He strokes my cheek and shakes his head. “So worried.”
“What are you doing here?”
“I came to tell you that you didn’t have to do this. I found out about the deal you made with your mother and Vincent. Mara, you don’t need to protect me. I’ll be fine. Don’t ruin your life for me.”
I try to smile and it feels like my lips are cracking. Dominic puts his forehead against mine and kisses me.
“I love you, Mara.”
Even though my whole body is aching, and I can’t move or speak or breathe without something hurting, his words make me feel like I’m floating. I smile, ignoring my cracked lips and let the tears flow from my eyes.
“I love you too, Dominic.”
“Come back with me,” he whispers. “Be with me.”
“I will,” I answer. My heart beats a little bit faster, and the machines around me beep along with it. Dominic squeezes my hand and kisses my lips. For the first time since I left Lang Creek, I feel at peace.
A knock on the door interrupts us, and my father pokes his head through. Concern is lining his face and he rushes to my side.
“Mara,” he breathes. “My God. I came as soon as I could.”
“I’m fine, Dad.” I lie. “Thank you for coming.”
He holds my other hand and I close my eyes, feeling the love of my father and Dominic radiate through me. I open my eyes again and turn to my father.
“Where’s Mom?”
My dad looks away from me and glances at Dominic. He shakes his head.
“Don’t worry about that,” he says. “Just focus on getting better.”
I frown, trying to understand him. “What do you mean? Where is she?”
“We can talk about this later, Mara. You need to heal.”
“Dad,” I say a little bit louder. “Tell me what’s going on. I’ve been kept in the dark my whole life.”
My dad looks at Dominic and takes a deep breath. “I confronted your mother after Dominic spoke to me,” he says slowly. “She admitted what she was doing with you and Vincent. I told her I’d never pass the business on to you if you married Vincent. I told her I’d give it to Dominic, instead.”
“What?” Dominic interrupts. My dad shakes his head.
“It’s true. I’d rather you have it.” He pauses. “She left, Mara. I don’t know where she is. She drained our accounts and took the insurance payout, and she left in the middle of the night. I found out about your accident a few hours later, and I came as soon as I could.”
I stare at my father for a few moments and then close my eyes. My heart is breaking, and a tear rolls down my cheek.
She left?
Do we mean nothing to her? She just took our money and ran?
As if he can sense my pain, Dominic squeezes my hand.
“Mara, we’ll figure it out,” he says in a low voice. I open my eyes to look at the love of my life and nod my chin down. “You hear me?” he continues. “We’ll figure it out. Just get yourself better and come home with us.”
“Home,” I croak as I try to smile. “That sounds nice.”
Dominic leans over and places a soft kiss on my lips. “I love you, Mara McCoy.”
“And I love you, Dominic Clarke.”