“You’ve only ever wanted to belong and be loved, but no one taught you what love was. You figured it out on your own. Love is to put someone else’s needs above your own. Love is humble and magnificent at the same time. To love someone is to give them your heart completely—devotion, hopes, dreams, fears. To love someone, you accept all of them. Love accepts the darkness that hides inside each of us and loves us anyway—or maybe loves us especially because of our struggles.
“I dream sometimes that I have wings, and at first, I thought it was my mind’s way of creating a metaphor for the enhanced gift—my empath wings. But now I realize it’s more than that. My love for you has given me wings.”
The dark blue of Creed’s eyes glistened with unshed emotion.
“You love me?” His voice cracked just above a whisper.
“I do,” Meg smiled widely and reached up to hold Creed’s face in both her hands. “I love you, Creed Young.”
Not knowing his heart could actually leap with joy, Creed gasped at the affect. He leaned down and swept Meg’s lips tenderly before diving deeply into the most beautifully life-defining kiss he’d ever known. He only came up for air to say one thing, “I love you, Meg Winter.” And with that, those unshed tears of joy slipped down his soldier’s masculine face wetting Meg’s cheeks and christening their devotion.
Chapter 33 A Morning to Remember
The aroma of coffee tickled Meg’s nose. Her hands were wrapped around the large Styrofoam cup of hospital coffee as she sat deep in thought. Creed had awakened before her and gone down the hallway to score two cups from the nurses’ station. The women had taken such a liking to the Winter family that they’d bent the rules a little allowing them access to their private stash. They knew the Winter children loved their mother very much, but it was a very rare thing to have young adult children formulate a schedule and rotate shifts, keeping vigil over her.
“Good morning, Meg and Creed. I would ask you how your night went, but I know you probably didn’t sleep one wink,” the pudgy nurse wearing light-blue scrubs offered a sympathetic smile to the two blurry-eyed people quietly sipping coffee.
“We’re fine, Barbara, thanks.” Meg stood stiffly and put her drink on the end table beside the sofa seat they’d occupied most of the night.
Creed stood beside Meg and offered the bright-eyed nurse a sleepy smile. His hair was sticking up adorably bed-head, not that he’d slept in a bed. He slept sitting up, one beautifully heavy arm wrapped around Meg, his head tipped back and resting against the hard peach wall behind him. His long legs sprawled in front of them, taking up half the alcove that acted as their waiting room. Meg had slept tucked in Creed’s strong arms, her legs curled up beside her. She looked like a little girl next to the young man’s hulking figure. As they stood side-by-side, the nurse couldn’t help but notice what a strikingly handsome couple they made.
Meg self-consciously tried to run her fingers through her thick, curly hair only to get her fingers caught halfway through. She gave up and grabbed the black pony holder that had been wrapped around her wrist. With practiced movements she gathered her long, unruly locks at the back of her head and wrapped the elastic band around twice. Her hair would slip out eventually, but it made her crazy to have her scalp tugged on too tightly.
“Well,” the nurse looked down at the clipboard in her hands, “I have to go take some vitals. Wanna come in and see if our patient will wake for us?”
Meg smiled at her but laughed inside. She knew her mother would be battle ready if possible…and probably would be demanding coffee.
“Sure,” Meg glanced at Creed and as he nodded his reassurance, his gravity-defying hair flopping adorably.
Barbara headed straight for Margo’s door, knocked three times, waited a moment then opened it wide.
Margo was awake and staring out her window.
“Morning, Mom,” Meg offered tentatively. She was trying to get an empath reading without wanting to be too intrusive.
Margo’s head turned to look at her daughter and a wide smile filled her face.
“Hi Meggie,” she offered in a groggy voice.
“How are you feeling, Dr. Winter?” Creed asked tentatively.
“Well, I could be better, but I could be worse.” She took a slow deep breath. “Is that coffee I smell?”
Meg giggled.
“Just let me finish taking your vitals, Dr. Winter, then you can have one cup of coffee,” Barbara said with practiced authority.
“I suppose that’s fair enough,” Margo shrugged, allowing Barbara to slip on a blood pressure cuff.
It hissed to life and started puffing around her pale arm. Meg was concentrating on sending her mother soothing waves.
“You don’t have to do that, sweet one,” Margo whispered with a knowing smile.
“I just want to help,” Meg sat in a chair on the other side of her mother’s cuffed arm.
“You help me just by being here,” her mother said softly.
“Dr. Gentry will be by for rounds in about half an hour. I’m sure he’ll want to perform a neurological exam.”
Having checked everything she could with guests in the room, Barbara turned to Meg and was about to ask them to step back out into the hall. She didn’t have to say a word.
“Why don’t we go prepare that cup of coffee for you, Mom?” Meg offered discreetly.