“Of course, I am,” I tell him, offering a watery smile. “No one could keep me away from you, Zane. Not now.”
“Good,” he notes and closes his eyes momentarily before opening them and truly fixing me with a heavy gaze. “You are absolute mess, Amelia.” He suddenly changes the subject. I guess it’s because his eyes have focused upon my wrecked complexion.
“Well, you said you had a gift for me, but this wasn’t what I wanted,” I tease him lightly, trying to smile through my tears.
“Don’t cry, Sweetheart,” he tells me, reaching up weakly to wipe my tears away from my face. When his knuckles come into the contact with my cheek, I close my eyes and lavish the feel of his skin on mine as my hand comes up to keep his knuckles pressed against my cheek. “E' tutto OK,” Zane whispers to me, his exhaustion claiming him, but his words force me to forget my impending misery and sit in shock. Everyone has told me it will all be okay, that he’ll be okay, but hearing Zane say it means a world of difference. He just smiles cheekily at me as he sees my shock.
“You’ve been holding out on me, Maverick,” I murmur at him playfully and he laughs delicately trying not to give the pain more chance to riddle him. “When did you start learning Italian?”
“Since I lost you,” he retorts and smiles sleepily. “But I mean it. It’s all okay.”
“E' tutto OK,” I repeat softly to him, only to let him know I understand. I give him back my photo and he accepts it with ease, clutching onto it fiercely against his chest. My heart thrusts up into my throat, my own heartbeat throbbing throughout my entire body. He says nothing else, just begins to drift off into whatever painless oblivion steals him away first. “Now sleep, please.”I lean in and kiss his cheek. By the time I sit back, his eyes are closed and his breathing is deepening. Satisfied, I just hover by his side, unable to let his hand go and allow him out of my sight.
“Amelia,” Enzo gently calls out to me. When I look up, he motions with his head for me to step outside of the room. “You need to get changed out of that dress and clean yourself up.” I hesitate enough to look at Zane. “I’ll watch him while you’re gone.”
I agree silently. Taking the bag of clothing, I head toward the nearest restroom. I lock the door and just stand in the solitude of the room. My head is whizzing a million miles a minute over what has happened in just a few short weeks. Since Zane was offered to me, my life has been one giant whirlwind. I shake my head, trying to clear the cloud of thoughts, and carry the bag over to the sink. I set it down, balancing it well, and when I open it, I immediately see makeup removal wipes. I smile at the fact that Enzo really thinks of everything. I search for clothes first, wanting to be out of this dress more than anything and then set to making myself look less like a mess.
As I come back dressed in skinny jeans, an oversized jumper, and Converse, I feel more comfortable. I had rid myself of any and all licks of makeup and dragged my hair up into a messy bun. I don’t care what I look like; I just need to be back by Zane’s bedside.
“Is he okay?” I ask Enzo as I come back.
“No change. A nurse has just been in, but he’s still asleep,” he remarks and turns away from the window. “I’m going to check on Billy.” His statement is just an observation that he’s not quite ready to leave the hospital. He takes the bag of clothing from me and gives me a gentle grin. “I’m going to guess you’re not leaving the hospital tonight?”
“No,” I whisper and appreciate how Enzo agrees. He merely places a loving kiss to my forehead and leaves me behind after vowing to be back.
***
I haven’t moved from the seat beside Zane’s bedside all night. He’s had no visitors, and I wonder if I should call his mother. I have no idea what she would think of me making such a phone call, but it’s been on my mind since sunrise. Even when the nurses tried to get me to leave, I just stuck in my chair, telling them there was no chance. They saw I was serious, and from the sympathetic look on their faces, I could only guess the nurse from earlier had told them who I was to the man in the bed in front of us.