A Brand New Ending

Chapter 45

Braeden



I pull myself from the bed, silently cursing in my head. I want nothing more than to stay in this bed with her the rest of our lives. Just she and I, the rest of the world could stop spinning for all I cared. Fumbling around on the floor for my zip up, I slide it on, my t-shirt no longer wearable. Pulling open the bedroom door I can hear my father walking around downstairs, wondering if he was coming or going. When I reach the bottom of the stairs my father immediately notices me, my presence making him stop dead in his tracks.

"Braeden," he states, his face looking the most exhausted I have seen in a long time.

"Long night?" I ask, already knowing the answer.

"Like you couldn't believe," he says shaking his head.

"Do you wanna talk about it?" I ask, concerned that he is always taking on too much.

"You know I can't talk about patients," he says almost sternly. "But I do need to talk to you about something else."

My heart skips a beat, wondering what it could be. I now notice that he has a brown paper bag in his right hand. He closes his eyes and lets out a deep breath.

"I know that this situation is…different," he starts. "And I have prescribed this to a lot of women but I don't want her to feel uncomfortable having that talk with her."

I stare at him confused for a moment until my brain decides to play catch up.

"Oh," was all I blurt out.

He hands the bag out towards me and I take it from him.

"Uh…thanks," I say, suddenly feeling uncomfortable myself.

"I know that you two are serious, but I am way too young to be a grandfather." He laughs.

I crack a smile.

"You don't have to worry about that anytime soon," I respond.

We silently realize our conversation is done and both make our way towards the kitchen. "Hungry?" I ask.

"Famished," he calls out behind me.

Opening the fridge I am shocked about how much food is in here, a clear difference from just a few days ago. Pulling out some eggs and vegetables I quickly make a scramble for the three of us, portioning it out between the plates, setting one down in front of my father.

"Thanks, son," he says with a sigh while picking up his fork.

"Anytime," I say, my eyes catching a figure in the doorway.

"Good morning, Phoenix," my father says, a smile across his face.

She smiles back but I can tell she is nervous, or embarrassed. I leave the table side and wrap my hand around her lower back, placing a kiss on her forehead.

"Morning, Seraph," I call out.

A loud clanking sound fills the room and I turn around to see my father had dropped his fork, his eyes on us. It's only now that I realize what I had said out loud.

"Is everything OK?" Phoenix asks, clearly confused by the change of atmosphere.

I look over at my father, a tight smile coming across his face.

"Everything is fine," he assures. "Both of you eat before it gets cold."

My eyes find my father's and I apologize silently, his eyes telling me it's OK. We both grab our plates and sit down at the table, all three of us eating in silence. After a few minutes my father finishes up his plate, gets up from the table, placing his dirty dishes in the sink. He then walks back over to the table, both of our eyes looking back at him.

"I'm heading into my office to do some paperwork," he starts. "Phoenix, when you are finished there is something I need to give to you."

"OK," she says softly, her face looking instantly nervous. He then steps out of the room and I instantly wrap my hand around hers.

"Don't be nervous, I'm sure it's just nothing," I assure her.

"I know," she admits. "Still, gotta get used to being able to trust people," she shrugs, putting another forkful in her mouth.

Leaning over I place my lips on hers, the fire running through my body, still amazed at how the simplest of touches sends my body into a frenzy. When I pull back I spot the brown paper bag on the counter. Releasing my hand from hers I get, grabbing it I suddenly feel embarrassed.

"My father, uh," I start, realizing how uncomfortable my father would feel talking about this with her. "He thought this would be a good thing."

I hold the bag out to her and she reaches up, taking it from me. She slowly unrolls the bag, her eyes sort of widening as she goes over the contents.

"You just have to take it once around the same time every day, its low hormone so you shouldn't have many side effects," I explain, the medical side of me kicking in.

She laughs lightly.

"I know what birth control is, Braeden." She smiles.

I let out a breath.

"Do you think he knows?" she asks suddenly, a blush creeping across her face.

"I think so," I admit. "My father is incredibly good at reading people. Guess being a doctor for twenty years probably helps."

She looks down at her plate.

"Don't be embarrassed," I whisper in her ear. "Was it what you expected?"

I instantly become nervous.

"It was better," she says while now looking back up.

She starts to stand up from the table but instead of walking past me, she wraps her arms around my torso tight, the side of her face plastered against my chest. I instinctively wrap my arm around her back, my other hand brushing her hair.

"Thank you, Braeden," she says. "For everything."

"You don't have to thank me," I whisper.

"I would be dead if it wasn't for you," she says softly into my chest.

I don't know how to respond to that, instead letting my body answer, my grip around her tightening. The thought of her dead makes me instantly nauseous. We remain in the silent kitchen, nothing but the tick of the clock reaching our ears. After a few minutes she pulls back and looks up at me.

"Well, I guess I better go see what your dad wants," she says as her arms fall from my waist. I inwardly protest at the loss of her touch, always wishing for the ability to stop whenever she is in my arms.

"I'm sure it's nothing," I assure her again.

She stands up on her tippy toes, placing a kiss on my lips before leaving the room.