Chapter Twelve

“Okay, Mami. We’ll see you in another few weeks.”

Sawyer covered a grin as Carm hugged her mother goodbye on the sidewalk out front of the airport. She loved her mom to pieces, but after this latest extended visit due to Sawyer’s recovery, she was glad to put her mom on a plane.

And as much as Sawyer adored his future mother-in-law, he was looking forward to being alone with Carm again. Having Mama Cruz stay with them for so long had put a total damper on their sex life.

Ethan and Marisol took their turns saying goodbye next. Then Mama Cruz turned to Sawyer, a sad, loving smile on her face.

“Sawyer.” She held her plump arms out expectantly. He adjusted his Stetson so the brim wouldn’t hit her in the face as he leaned down and pulled her into a hug. His heart squeezed at the way she held onto him, the top of her head barely reaching the center of his chest. So tiny, but every molecule of her was made of love. “You keep getting better, you hear?”

“Yes, ma’am.”

One more squeeze, a pat on the back, and Mama Cruz let him go to peer up at him with eyes the exact same golden-brown shade as her children’s. “You won’t rush things. You’ll do as the doctors say?”

“No. And yes.”

She turned her attention to her daughter. “And you. You’ll make sure he eats properly, yes?”

To her, eating properly meant serving him at least three home cooked meals every day. She’d seen to it personally ever since he came home from the hospital. He’d put on seven pounds already, helped along by all the batches of homemade brownies and his favorite caramel flan she knew he couldn’t get enough of. And since he was still recovering, she’d made it plain she now expected Carm to take over on her behalf now that she was leaving.

Sawyer was the first to admit he loved the way Mama Cruz spoiled him, and he even found her bossiness endearing, because it meant she cared so much. Carm didn’t see it that way though.

His fiancée gave a dramatic sigh. “Mom, please. Give it a rest.”

Her mother raised both eyebrows at her. “He’s the one who needs a rest. You need to take care of him.”

Out of the corner of his eye, Sawyer noticed Ethan covering his mouth with a fist, trying to cover up a laugh with a cough. He failed spectacularly.

Carm aimed an exasperated look at their mother. “I will take care of him, but I don’t think making himself a sandwich now and again is going to set him back any. Or if he doesn’t get his daily helping of flan,” she added in a blasé tone.

“But do you really want to take that chance?” Sawyer asked her, only half-teasing. He loved that flan.

All the lacerations and bruises were healed up now, with the exception of a little bit in his brain. The strict concussion protocol the doctors had him on dictated that he had at least another month of recovery left before he could begin training and rejoin his team, and that might not even be until after the wedding and honeymoon, depending on how things went. Until then, two new guys were filling in for him and Schroder, who might not ever be able to return.

That was so damn horrifying, Sawyer tried not to think about it.

Carm elbowed him in the ribs. “Quiet.”

“And you’ll keep taking the pills I bought you?” Mama Cruz asked him.

He hid a grimace. They were some godawful concoction of ingredients she’d found in a Puerto Rican specialty store up here that were supposed to help him heal faster and get rid of the last of the bruising in his brain. Sawyer was convinced she’d bought them from a witch doctor. Probably consisted of ground up insects and animal dung or something. “Well I—”

She raised her eyebrows and pointed a finger at him. “Don’t say to me no. They’re good for you.”

He wouldn’t dream of it. “Okay,” he said with a grin. She was just so damn funny when she got all fierce. No wonder Carm had so much fire in her.

Mama Cruz narrowed her eyes at him. “You can’t throw them away, either, because you just gave me your word you’d take them.”

“Yes, ma’am.” It was one bottle. He wouldn’t die. Probably.

A happy smile curved her mouth and she patted his cheek. “Te amo, mi hijo.”

He still didn’t know much Spanish, but that he understood. “Love you too, Mama.”

As she walked away pulling her rolling suitcase behind her, he draped an arm around Carm’s shoulders. The four of them stood there waving when Mama Cruz looked back from inside the terminal doors.

She looked like she was about to cry, as though the thought of leaving her grown babies behind was just too hard to face. But she braved it out, waved one last time and walked toward the check-in desks.

Once she was out of sight they all piled back into Ethan’s truck. Sawyer slid into the back beside Carm and reached for her hand. She twined her fingers through his and laid her head back against the headrest, closing her eyes with a sigh. “Oh, God, I thought she’d never leave,” she moaned.

Ethan chuckled from up front. “What, you didn’t love living with her for the past two-and-a-half months?”

Carm opened her eyes to glare at her brother. “No. And thanks a lot for offering to have her for a few weeks to give us a break.”

Marisol turned to face her from the shotgun seat. “I wanted to have her, to give you guys a break, but she wasn’t having any of it.”

“Don’t worry about it,” Carm said with a wave. “I’m just glad to have our space back.” She closed her eyes again. “I’m so having a nap when we get home.”

Sawyer perked up at that. Naps were awesome. Because when done together, they often led to even more pleasurable things. “I could totally go for a nap.” And bonus, he and Carm could be as loud as they wanted in the bedroom now, because there was no one else at home to hear them. He loved it when Carm lost control, her moans and cries filling the room.

“Only a couple more months until she comes back for the wedding,” Carm murmured, almost to herself. “You guys can split the hosting duties with us,” she added to Ethan and Marisol.

“Hey, you could always elope and avoid all the hassle,” Ethan said as he merged onto the highway and headed back into town.

“Not gonna happen,” she said. “But at least now it won’t be nearly as big a production.”

He wasn’t sad about that.

Over the past several weeks Carm and her mom had scaled the wedding plans back drastically. Now it was going to be a small, intimate wedding with the ceremony taking place in the parish church Carm and her family had attended while growing up back in Miami. Also, instead of a lavish reception at some hotel with two hundred people to feed, it would be a catered dinner in Mama Cruz’s backyard with just close family from her side, and Sawyer’s teammates if they could make it.

Although he doubted Schroder would come. Doc had pulled away from everyone big time.

“It’s a big relief, actually,” Carm continued, breaking him out of his thoughts. “I was getting way too carried away before with everything. This will be so much better.”

Sawyer had already told her he was fine with the original plan, but Carm had been adamant that this new arrangement was what she wanted. She’d told him the scare of nearly losing him had put everything into perspective, and she didn’t want him to be uncomfortable on their wedding day. Seizing on his good luck, he’d just said thank you and kept his mouth shut after.

Carm covered a yawn with her hand. “When are we supposed to be at Tuck and Celida’s again?”

The whole team had the week off and were going there for a cookout tonight. They needed to hang out and unwind together with everything that had happened. A few members of Gold Team might show up too. They’d stormed the cabin in Georgia the day after the crash, taking the male suspect into custody and safely getting the rest of the family out, including the dead teenage daughter. “Six, right?” he said to Ethan.

“Yeah. I’m bringing the beer. You guys are supposed to bring a dessert.”

“Right.” He shot Carm a wicked smile. “But it’s okay if we’re a little late.”

She snorted a laugh. “I said nap. As in sleep.”

He had total faith in his ability to change her mind, and planned to do just that.

“Is Schroder coming?”

At her question Sawyer glanced at Ethan. “You talked to him about it?”

At first when Doc had been sent home from the hospital, the entire team had taken turns going over to visit him. Bit by bit he’d withdrawn from them all, even DeLuca, until he’d finally flat out asked them not to come. Sawyer and the other guys still called him, but nothing they said lifted his spirits any. Tuck and Cruzie were the only two who kept going to see him, though Schroder made it plain he just wanted to be left alone.

“Talked to Taya this morning. She tried to convince him to come by even for fifteen minutes. No go.” Ethan shook his head. “He’s in a real bad spot right now. Taya’s a bit better. It’s helped a lot that all the women have been reaching out to her.”

“Yeah.” Sawyer couldn’t imagine what his friend was going through. Losing your sight was a catastrophic blow that changed life completely. And Schroder and Taya had a baby on the way, too. “I wish I knew how the hell to help him.”

“Yeah, I know,” Ethan said in a voice heavy with regret. “We all do.”