Sophie Oak - Chasing Bliss

He held Annie’s hand. Just for a moment because other hands reached for him, pulling him up, to the surface.

Where he belonged.

“Holy shit balls, Nate. Think about it. Atlanto-occipital dislocation. Do you have any idea how few physicians see that in a lifetime? It’s insanely rare. And who sees it? This guy. Right here in Bliss, Colorado. I know I complain about the autopsies but this makes them all worthwhile.”

Caleb’s voice roused Gemma from her dreams. Her dreams where Jesse was alive and Cade didn’t run. She kept her eyes shut, hoping to go back there.

“Caleb, I don’t even know what that Atlanto thing is. Henry said the guy fell.”

Caleb huffed. “You think the dude fell and internally decapitated himself? Seriously? Henry is lying. This is the kind of thing that happens when man meets bus or man meets ridiculously well-trained killer. I don’t think Henry qualifies as mass transit.”

Patrick was dead. Thank god.

“Leave him be, man.”

Caleb kept at it. “Don’t you want to know? I could call my brother. He’s got serious connections. Henry isn’t some pacifist. He’s trained. He’s either mafia or more likely CIA. Henry fucking Flanders is ex-CIA. Come on, don’t you want to know?”

Gemma forced her eyes open. Henry had helped her, risking his relationship with his wife. She seriously doubted Nell knew a thing about Henry’s past. And it should stay that way. Bliss was a place for second chances. She should know. “Let him be. Henry has his secrets. Let him keep them.”

Caleb frowned, striding to her, checking all the monitors hooked up to her body. “Gemma, you’re in the hospital.”

Yeah, the stark white all around her and the fact that it was twenty degrees below comfortable told her that. She groaned. “I can’t afford the hospital.”

Caleb smiled, a rarity. “Oh, this particular stay is all paid up, Gemma. Look around.”

Her head throbbed, but she forced herself to sit up. Her room was filled with flowers. Lilies and roses and gardenias and pansies and daisies. It was like someone had bought out a florist. “What the hell?”

Caleb busied himself doing all the doctor stuff he seemed to deeply enjoy. He took her blood pressure.

Nate passed her several cards. “Nell figured it all out. She’s been on the news networks telling everyone that Senator Allen Cameron bribed an EPA official and then paid to have you killed. It’s all over the news. Cameron’s had to pull out of the race. There’s going to be an inquest and everyone is talking about jail time for the senator and several members of his team.”

Gemma shook her head. “And all this is from the networks?”

“No,” Nate said. “This is all courtesy of two men from Texas. Apparently Senator Cameron has a couple of estranged children. They don’t exactly love the guy. These are from a man named Jack Barnes and his half brother, Lucas Cameron, who changed his name to O’Malley when he got married.”

She looked at one of the notes. It was written in a blunt, masculine hand and thanked her for doing the one thing he hadn’t been able to do—“take the old goat down.” He invited her to his ranch in someplace called Willow Fork. The note from Lucas O’Malley included a job offer from a firm in Dallas.

“They’re really grateful,” Nate said. “And, Gemma, Barnes paid your hospital bills, all of them. And Jesse’s.”

Jesse was alive? Tears pricked her eyes. “Jesse?”

Caleb gave her hand a reassuring squeeze. Apparently getting to view and catalog an internal decapitation helped with his bedside manner. “It looked worse than it was, Gemma. He was lucky. No serious damage. I’m keeping the both of you here just for observation. And because Barnes has a really big wallet.”

He was okay. She took a deep breath, tears threatening to overtake her. Jesse was alive.

Nate pointed to the bed next to hers. “He’s been here the whole time. Your mom and Naomi just took him out for some fresh air. He wouldn’t leave until Caleb promised him you would be alive when he came back. He’s a little paranoid.”

The door opened and Jesse’s smiling face came into view. He was in a wheelchair being pushed by her mom.

“You’re awake. Baby, you have no idea how happy I am to see you.” He motioned for her mom to stop and got to his feet.

Her heart soared. “Should you be walking?”

Caleb gave her a smile. “He’s good, Gemma. After a week or so he won’t even notice he was injured. He lost some blood and a tiny section of his liver. But don’t worry. That grows back. Seriously, as bullets go, he took a good one. He won’t even have a big scar. I was able to use the robot.”

Jesse shuffled her way, his eyes gleaming. “I wouldn’t miss my wedding day, baby.”

Her mom and Jesse and Naomi surrounded her with love. She accepted it all. But something was missing. She looked up at Jesse. “Is Cade gone?”

He sighed and sat down on the bed beside her. “Baby, he saved you. I’ll tell you the whole story, but as to whether or not he’s staying, I don’t know.”

Her mom smoothed back her hair. “He came in with you. He stayed here all night long, sitting right there and holding your hand.”

Naomi frowned. “But this morning after Caleb assured him you were both okay, he had me take him to that bar. He said he had something to do. I haven’t seen him since.”

Jesse put an arm around her. “Baby, it’s going to be okay. If he leaves, that’s on him. We’ll be just fine. So this Lucas guy offered you a job. Does that mean we’re moving to Dallas?”

She couldn’t even conceive of moving. This was her home. Patrick was wrong. She did belong here. “Nope. I don’t want to move. And I heard a rumor that in a month or so, my health benefits should kick in and I won’t need rich guys to rush in and save me.”

Nate smiled. “Uhm, I wouldn’t say that. They’re really not that great. But I’m happy to hear I don’t need another office manager. You don’t have any other crazy stalker person in your past, do you?”

She couldn’t say that with any real promise. “Hopefully not. And I might have to go part time because I’m getting my license to practice in Colorado and then I’m going to challenge the county ordinance.”

“Thereby giving the mayor a heart attack. Nice, Gemma,” Caleb said.

One by one they all left and others took their places. The whole town came out to say hello.

She was surrounded by friends and loved ones. But the one she needed to see didn’t walk through her door.

Late that night, she carefully cuddled against Jesse and slept and dreamed of a world where Cade didn’t leave.

Cade stood outside the door and wondered why he was so damn nervous. They were just beyond the door. He’d spent two days getting everything ready and now the fact that he’d only talked to Gemma on the phone really hit him.

He’d known she was okay. He’d even talked to the doc to make sure everything would be fine.

He’d wanted everything to be perfect when he saw Gemma again. But now he wondered if he hadn’t screwed up. What if she didn’t like what he’d done? What if she was pissed that he hadn’t stayed here with her?

Just for a second he hesitated, falling back into old habits. But he was done with that. If she was pissed, she could yell at him and he would take it. The one thing he wouldn’t do was let her go.

He pushed through the door, and his heart swelled as he saw Gemma buttoning up Jesse’s shirt. He was grumbling something about being able to do it himself, but Cade noticed he wasn’t trying too hard.

Gemma’s eyes came up. “Cade.”