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“I’m okay, I…” There was no way to tell him, but he needed to know there were zero regrets. “I couldn’t catch my breath, just panicked a moment.”
“Did I do something wrong? Did I push you or anything?”
“No.” I sat on the sofa and gripped his hand. The magic was humming through my body, and what that meant was nothing good.
“I loved that, what we did, and would do it again and again.” I laughed, hoping to ease his mind. “You literally made me lightheaded.”
“I meant what I said, Finch. I really like you, and it’s crazy, I’m sure but…” He sat up and now both of my hands were in his. “I’d like to take you on a date.”
There wasn’t a doubt in my mind that this was the first time he’d asked anyone that question since his wife died. I wasn’t going to crush his dreams or kill the mood.
“I’d like that a lot. I can tell you the next time I have off and if that works for you, I say yes.”
He cupped my face in his large hands and kissed me breathless. Only this time I didn’t jump away. I leaned in.
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
Easton
The next morning I woke feeling lighter than I had in a very long time. I cooked a huge breakfast, earning some very confused expressions from my kids. It wasn’t like I didn’t cook breakfast for them, but never this much at one time.
Tru had school, and Milo was doing some virtual lessons on his computer the school had set up. He wasn’t due to return to the hospital until tomorrow, and if his counts got any lower they were going to give him another infusion, which would exhaust him and mean he’d be down for the count the rest of the day. So, he had to get everything done today.
I had some paperwork I still needed to do even though I was on furlough, but other than that I had nothing planned, so I decided to think about what my date with Finch would be.
I wondered, as I cleaned up the breakfast dishes, why I wasn’t freaking out over the fact that I’d made out with a man and not only did I have zero regrets, it felt completely right. Like this was who I was supposed to be with. The power of my need to be with Finch was the scariest part of all of this.
“I’m going upstairs to log in, Dad.” Milo was out of the kitchen before I could respond.
“Steph’s mom will be here in a few minutes, so I’m going to go wait for her outside.” Paula was happy to take Tru to school every morning and it was a huge help, seeing as Milo had to log in at a certain time and at ten there was no way I’d leave him alone.
“Okay, Tru-bug, have a good day.” I kissed the top of her head. “Love you.”
“Love you too.”
With Tru off to school and Milo online, I went to my home office and got my paperwork done.
After dinner, I checked my phone. I had texted Finch that morning, asking him if he’d looked over his schedule and never received a response.
I chuckled. I was acting like Tru when she’d text her friends and they didn’t respond right away. He very well might be busy since he was working. I knew how that went. I could be patient.
The following morning as Milo and I were on our way to the hospital, he still hadn’t responded and I wanted to be pissed, but I was focusing on today and what the outcome for Milo would be so, I pushed it all aside.
We got to the seventh floor and walked through the glass doors that read Pediatrics Hematology and Oncology, and no matter how many times I read those words, it punctured my heart each time.
“Good morning,” the woman, Rita, greeted from behind the desk. She was the same lady as last time.
“Morning,” I answered.
Once Milo was checked in, he was called in right away. They weighed him, took his height, and then he was brought to another room where they drew his blood. He still winced with the prick of the needle, but the fear he’d had that night in the emergency room seemed never to return.
“You can go to room one; the doctor will be with you shortly.”
Waiting was the worst, so Milo and I played I Spy until Dr. Bay, the hematologist, entered.
“Hey, guys, how are we doing?”
“Good,” Milo said. “No bleeding, fever, or any of the other seven hundred things you all ask me every time I come here.”
