“You have a serious issue with blindfolding people,” I grumbled, crossing my arms over my chest.
He laughed and then tugged the blindfold tighter.
“Are you waving in front of me right now?” I asked.
“You tell me,” he whispered.
“Yes?”
“Lucky guess.” He laughed. “Now sit still while I grab our bags and attempt to walk you across the busy street without getting hit by a car.” The car door slammed and when mine opened seconds later, the smell of rain tickled my nose. “Pretty sure my six-year-old self would give me a high five if he could see me now,” Wes boasted.
“Because you were able to blindfold your wife and park within the lines?”
“Hilarious.” Wes pulled me to my feet. “And no, because I get to play real-life Frogger with my wife!”
I sighed, shoulders slumping. “Let me guess, I’m the damn frog.”
“High five.”
I lifted my hand and received a slap from Wes and more laughter. I tried to stay serious I mean he did just call me a frog on our wedding night, but his laugh was infectious.
“You love me.” Wes kissed the top of my head. “Admit it.”
“Only if you admit that you have a problem with blindfolds.”
“You really think you’re in a position to complain?” Wes’s hands moved from my face and landed on my shoulders, and then slowly, his fingertips grazed my br**sts as his hands moved down to my hips.
I shuddered.
“Thought so,” he whispered. “Now, hold my hand, while I romance you.”
“In a parking lot. Playing Frogger. Blindfolded.” I counted the three things off on my fingers. “Seems like you have a lot to make up for.”
“I brought Red Bull.” Wes wrapped his arm around me. “Believe me when I say, you’ll be my entire focus…not just for the next few hours, but the rest of our lives.”
We started walking. No idea what direction, but we went slowly. “Almost makes up for the Frogger comment.”
“Believe me, in about fifteen minutes, you won’t even remember your middle name let alone the fact that I compared you to a video game.”
The sound of traffic blared in my ears. We stopped, and then walked across the street. I only knew it was a street because I could look down and see the asphalt.
The road slowly turned into a sidewalk, and then, we were indoors. I just had no idea where.
“Wait here.”
Wes left me on a soft couch. The fabric felt like velvet beneath my fingertips. Were we in a hotel? Or a restaurant? It smelled good. Shrugging, I sat and waited. Waited while Wes Michels went about doing what he does best—shock and awe.
I was happy to wait—until I heard an ambulance in the distance, and then all of a sudden—I was back where I was last year. In the hospital. Waiting for Wes to either live—or die.
Chapter Ten
I started crying for no reason. It was lame really but suddenly my brain went to that possibility—what if. What if things had turned out differently. What if Wes hadn’t made it. And I wasn’t sitting in a lobby or restaurant waiting for his smiling face. I hated that I was torturing myself but there it was, the fear. Trying to seep into my very soul. Because a world without Wes was like a world without the sun. Pointless and dead. My world would be dead.—Kiersten
Wes
Checking in took a lot longer than I thought it would. I felt bad for leaving Kiersten sitting in the lobby, but I wanted it to be a surprise. I’d planned everything perfectly, not that it saved me from having to fill out so much damn paperwork that I seriously almost broke the pen in half.
“Enjoy,” the receptionist said with a smile.
“We will.” I offered a warm smile in return and walked back to where I’d left Kiersten.
Even wearing a blindfold she looked beautiful. But something was wrong, her shoulders were hunched, and she was holding herself like she needed comforting, like the world was crumbling around her and she was powerless to stop it.
“Sweetheart?” I knelt down in front of her and grabbed her hands. “Are you alright?”
“Y-yes,” she whispered. “I think so.” A solitary tear slid down her cheek.
Panicking, I rose to my feet and then sat next to her, pulling her in my arms. “Are you hurt? What happened? Did something happen? Talk to me.”
“My heart.” She let out a pathetic sigh. “Sometimes even though I know in my heart that you’re alive and you’re here, I just—I go back to that place. I go back to the nightmares, the moments when I realized I might lose you forever. It sucks, and it’s unfair and it’s totally ruining what I’m sure is going to be an amazing wedding night, but it’s just…Wes, it’s terrifying, crippling.” She shuddered and then reached for her blindfold with shaking hands. I stopped her before she could take it off.
“Kiersten, do you trust me?”
“Y-yes.”
“Then leave the blindfold on, sweetheart.” Her hands were like icicles. I brought them to my lips and kissed each fingertip. “I want you to be able to focus on my voice—nothing else. Not the fear, not the anticipation of where we are, but every word coming out of my mouth.” I released a heavy sigh and leaned in so that my lips were grazing her ear. “Kiersten, the worst has happened. I should have died. I didn’t. I’m right here. Next to you. Holding you. When your mind tries to take you to that place—you need to fight it. The battle is in your head. The minute you start giving power to those thoughts you’ve already lost. Fear wins. Don’t let fear win, Kiersten. Love—our love—it can’t flourish where fear is present. Do you get what I’m saying?” I pulled back a bit to watch the reaction on her face.