She walked over to me and reached for my hand as she said, “I came as soon as I heard about the shooting. I wanted…”
“Weren’t you told to stay at the clubhouse?” I snapped, hating to see the hurt that filled her eyes when she realized I wasn’t happy to see her.
“Yes, but…” she mumbled.
“You were told to stay put, Cass. If I wanted you here, you’d know it.” It killed me to say those words to her, but I knew it was the only way to protect her.
A dejected expression crossed her face as she whispered, “I’m sorry, Cotton. I just wanted to …”
“That’s just it. This isn’t about you, Cass. I’m the one who’s been shot, and the last fucking thing I need to worry about is whether or not you are doing what you’ve been told,” I roared.
With her voice strained as she was obviously trying to fight back her tears, she whispered, “I was worried about you and wanted to make sure you were okay.”
“It doesn’t matter. None of it matters. If you wanted to be an old lady… my old lady, then you should’ve done what you were told. Get back to the club, Cass,” I ordered.
My heart sank deep in my chest, breaking right along with hers, as I watched it happen. Tears began to stream down her beautiful face, and seconds later, her light… that light that made my day complete, vanished, leaving her broken and cold. The very thing I’d tried so hard to protect was gone.
Her eyes dropped to the floor as she wiped the tears from her face and said, “I know you… I know you don’t mean this, Cotton. I don’t know why you’re pushing me away, but I’ll go… I’ll do what you want.” She looked up at me, her eyes pleading with me to tell her not to go, but I stayed silent. I couldn’t take the chance. Tears filled her eyes once again as she said, “I gave you my heart, Cotton. I trusted you with it, and for some crazy reason I thought you would take care of it. But today, doing this… saying the things you said, you broke it. And I don’t know if I’ll ever be able to forgive you for that.”
The woman who turned to leave wasn’t the Cass I’d always known, and I wondered if she’d ever be the same again. As soon as she was gone, Sara stormed over to me and asked, “Why the hell did you just do that?”
“Had to,” I answered.
“I don’t understand you at all! That girl is obviously in love with you, Cotton, and there is no doubt in my mind you feel the same way about her, and you just broke her heart,” she scolded.
“And how’s she going to feel when I can’t walk again, Sara? I know her. She won’t walk away from me, even if it means I’ll ruin her life. I couldn’t live with myself, knowing I’d trapped her in that kind of life.”
“You have to stop thinking the worst, Cotton. You’re going to be fine,” she tried to assure me.
“You don’t know that. And until I know for sure, I’m not taking any chances. I won’t let her give up her life for me. She deserves more than that.”
“You don’t get to make that decision for her, Cotton.”
“I just did.”
One Week later
“It looks like you are about seven weeks pregnant,” Dr. Westin told Henley. “We’ll get a better idea of the actual date after your ultrasound.”
“Seven weeks?” Henley asked nervously. “There was a night… it was a few weeks ago. We were celebrating, and I drank. A lot.”
“It was early in the pregnancy, Henley. It’s fine. Just refrain from all drinking for the rest of the pregnancy.”
“Okay,” she answered, sounding relieved.
“How is your morning sickness?”
“It’s more like all day sickness,” Henley pouted. “But it’s manageable.”
“Let me know if it doesn’t get any better, and I will prescribe something to help. Be sure to take your prenatal vitamins every day, and I’ll schedule your ultrasound for two weeks from today.”
“Okay,” Henley smiled.