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Charly smooths her hands through her hair that my fingers tangled, and gives me a sheepish smile. “Dinner’s ready.”
“I was thinking, since it’s raining and there’s nothing to do, maybe ... uh ... maybe you’d want to look at some old photos with me.” I glance at the television screen. “I could show you videos from when I played football.” I swallow. “If you want.”
Her face lights up, and she nods with fervor. “Yes. Absolutely.”
While she sets up our dinner on the coffee table in the living room, I rummage through my old boxes in the back of my closet. They’ve been hidden away, not because I want to forget about that part of my life, but because I haven’t wanted to share it with anyone.
Until now.
“Wow. Look at you with short hair. I almost don’t recognize you.” Charly points to a picture of me with the team before my accident. She smirks. “You look so hot in your uniform.”
I chuckle. “You think so?”
She lifts an eyebrow. “Do you still have it?”
“I might be able to arrange something like that, if that’s your brand of kink.”
She flips to the next page in the photo album, and the smile vanishes from her face. Her eyes well as she stares at a picture of me lying in the hospital bed, with Anthony, Bentley, and Watson holding hands as they prayed around me.
I snake my arm around her, and pull her closer to me on the couch. “It’s okay.”
“I wish I could’ve met you sooner.” She sniffles, and lifts her watery eyes to mine. “I could’ve been there for you.”
Emotion clogs my throat. “You had your mom to take care of. But you’re here now. You’re with me now. That’s what matters.”
We flip to pictures from rehab next, and she points to the one when I took my first steps after surgery. “Look at the determination on your face.”
“Doctors said it was a miracle.” I shake my head. “I’m not sure I believe in those. I fought like hell to get back on my feet. It felt like I needed to cling to something familiar from my life before I got injured. I had convinced myself that I’d get back to where I was, and I’d be able to play again. But ultimately, I was afraid of getting reinjured, and I knew couldn’t play if I wasn’t 100%. When you said you weren’t sure if you wanted to have children because of the possibility of getting cancer, I understood that.” I massage the back of my neck. “It pains me to think that I wouldn’t be able to run around with my son or daughter. That my children would have to do things differently than the other kids if I were in a wheelchair. My father played ball with me. He taught me how to ride my bike. He was there every step of the way for me. Would I be able to do the same for my children? What would that be like for them?”
Charly closes the album, and climbs onto my lap. She grips my face in both hands, and looks into my eyes as she speaks. “You’d love your child with all of your heart, and that’s the only thing that matters. You’d be there every step of the way, just like your father was. It might look different than other parents, but it doesn’t mean their lives would be lacking. You’d be there, Bryce. You’d be there for them.”
I know she must be thinking about her own father, and how he left her. I hate that she has to feel like he didn’t love her, or that she wasn’t worth it for him to stick around.
I tuck a golden strand of hair behind her ear. “Your father is missing out on having you in his life. I’m sure he’s kicking himself every day for it.”
She rests her forehead against mine, and her eyes flutter closed. “I know he had an addiction problem. I know it wasn’t his fault. I just wish I didn’t miss the person I thought he was.”
“He was the person you thought he was. He showed that side to you, and I’d bet my last dime that he loved you as much as he was capable of.”
She breathes in deep, and lets it go. “Part of me has always felt like I wasn’t good enough. Good enough for my dad to want to stay. Good enough to help my mom get better. Good enough for Greg to want to help me through the hard times. I know none of those things are my responsibility, yet there’s that little voice in my head that whispers maybe it’s me.”
I grip her jaw, and claim her mouth, kissing her with all the power I have inside me. When I pull away, I lock eyes with her. “You are more than enough, Charly. Your worth is not a reflection of the people who weren’t capable of loving you the way you deserve to be loved.”
Her eyes bounce between mine, wide with wonder as she stares into the depths of my soul with her gaze. “Where did you come from, Bryce Holden? I wasn’t prepared for you.”
“Neither was I.”
And now that I have her, I don’t want to let go.
Charly
It takes a few days for Bryce to get back on his feet.
I’d be lying if I said it wasn’t difficult to see him laid out in pain like that. But now that he’s walking around, I know he’s feeling better, and that’s what I try to focus on.
“Will you give me a hint where we’re going?”
Bryce shakes his head. “You’ll see when we get there.”
