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When Skyla woke, the bed beside her was empty and cold. She sat up, rubbing her eyes. It was dark outside and she wondered how long she’d been asleep. She started to get off the bed when Blake appeared in the doorway. “Good, you’re awake. I made us some dinner.”
“Dinner?” Had she really slept the whole day?
“Yeah, it’s almost eight. I hope you like mac and cheese. If not, there's also salad and baked drumsticks to go with it.”
Skyla’s mouth watered at the thought of all that delicious food. “That sounds amazing. All of it.”
“How about dinner in bed?” Blake asked. Wearing only a clean pair of pajama pants, he looked so sexy with his chest exposed, his muscles rippling as he moved toward her
“I can’t think of anything better,” she teased. “Wait,” she suddenly froze and Blake was at her side.
“What’s wrong? Are you okay?”
“I’m fine. How’s Hallie?”
Blake handed her his cell phone. “Find out for yourself. Go ahead,” he smiled. “Give her a call.”
Skyla breathed a sigh of relief. “Okay, but I want to go see her after dinner.”
“Can’t. Visiting hours ended five minutes ago. But we can go see her in the morning.” He left the room and Skyla dialed one of her best friends in the world.
“Hello?” Hallie’s voice would’ve made Skyla go weak in the knees if she wasn’t already sitting down.
“It is so good to hear your voice,” Skyla said, her own voice cracking from the knot of tears in the back of her throat. “How are you feeling?”
“I’m okay. Kind of numb right now from all the pain meds they have me on, but it’s honestly a welcome reprieve. And Caden is here with me. He’s keeping everyone on their toes. I keep telling him to ease off, but he just wants the best for me.”
Skyla knew how intense Caden could be, but she was so glad he was there for Hallie. “Of course, he does. He was so worried about you. When he finally got to you, and I couldn’t heal you…” Skyla let her words fade. The moment she realized that she’d failed her friend would haunt her forever.
“Don’t,” Hallie said. “Don’t you dare blame yourself.”
Skyla nodded, but she knew it wouldn’t be that easy.
Blake came into the room carrying a tray with two plates of food. “Ready to eat?”
Skyla met his gaze and quickly looked away, not wanting him to see the turmoil talking to Hallie had brought up.
“Sounds like you have your own man taking care of you,” Hallie teased.
Skyla smiled. “Yeah, we have a lot to catch up on.” Her relationship with Blake wasn’t a secret, but she hadn’t exactly told anyone about it either. Hallie and Orly had been busy with their own lives, and she hadn’t had a chance to discuss it with Blake yet.
“I can’t wait,” Hallie said. “Talk tomorrow?”
Skyla nodded even though Hallie couldn’t see her. “Absolutely. Good night.”
“Night.”
Skyla ended the call just as Blake settled in next to her presenting her with a plate of cheesy pasta, two drumsticks, and a heaping serving of salad gleaming with dressing. “How was your talk with Hallie?”
Skyla wasn’t sure what to say. She’d needed to hear her friend’s voice, but hearing it also brought back all the memories of last night.
“Let’s pick something to watch and you can tell me about it later if you want to,” Blake suggested.
This man. How he always knew her so well. “Yeah,” she said softly, sitting back in the bed, her back resting against the headboard. “Something fun and not scary. I’ve had enough action, horror, and thriller to last me a lifetime.”
Blake chuckled, pressed a kiss to the side of her head, and opened Netflix on the flatscreen mounted on the wall.
“Did you talk to Brennan today?” Skyla asked between bites of food. It was so delicious, she had to remind herself to slow down and chew.
