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“You are a lucky man. Good job your friend worked so fast. We’ll keep you here for a while and then send you to ICU. We will need to keep an eye on you after losing so much blood.”
I needed to know about Avery.
“I came in with someone. Her name is Avery Sparkman.”
“She is fine and on the ward.”
That was all I needed to know. Now I could relax as the painkillers kicked in and sleep came. At least until they took my observations again.
My sleep had been fitful overnight. The ICU was not a quiet place. I considered myself lucky when I saw some of my fellow patients across from me. They were really fighting for their lives. Mine had been saved. From what I could grasp, I had lost so much blood my organs had been at risk. When this was all over, I was going to make sure I thanked the paramedics and Drake.
My nurse said there was a visitor for me. As it was ICU, I was only allowed one at a time. I knew who I wanted it to be. Jack wheeled Avery in. She came over and took my hand on my good arm. Her face was swollen and bruised, but she was the most beautiful sight I had ever seen.
“It’s good to see you, mate,” Jack said. “I’ll leave you two for a bit. The nurse said one of us at a time.”
Avery was crying.
“Don’t cry. It’s going to be okay now. I’m sorry you got drawn into all this mess.”
“I don’t blame you. I’m crying because I’m happy. You are alive.”
“I am alive, and before they give me more drugs and I fall asleep again, I am going to tell you I love you, and if you will have me, I want to marry you and spend the rest of my life with you. I don’t know how it will work but I will make it happen for us.”
“Yes, a million times yes.” Avery stood and bent down and kissed me on the lips.
I was officially the happiest man in the world.
A week later, I was allowed out of hospital. I was sore and weak but getting stronger every day. I had a crazy scar on my upper arm and thought I would get a tattoo. Declan said he had a friend, Harper, in Pine Creek who did scar cover-ups. I liked the idea. I would have some Celtic design to show where I came from.
For now, I was staying with Declan so I had lots of people to fuss over me. I’d like to think I would have the energy to make love to Avery again soon, but for now, I would enjoy having her close. We walked out onto the patio and lay on the sun lounges. It was good to feel the warmth of the sun on me after the time in hospital especially in the ICU.
Callie came out with some lemon iced tea and winked at me. Declan must have told her what I was up to. I turned and sat so I faced Avery.
“I would get down on one knee, but I would need your help to get up again. I asked you in hospital but didn’t have the ring. Can I make it official?”
“I will put you out of your misery and let you know I am still happy to marry you.”
I opened the tiny box, took the ring, and popped it on her finger.
“It’s beautiful.”
I could see tears in her eyes. “It’s a family heirloom my mother gave me. She said not to let you slip away, and I don’t intend to.”
“While you were in hospital I was talking to Patrick. He’s happy to keep running the Australian side of the business with Fiona, our manager, and I will move here if I can get the visa and everything organized. I do have one request though.”
“What’s that?”
“I want our honeymoon to be in Port Douglas at our hotel. Only this time we will use our real names.”
“I think I could agree to that.”
THIRTY-TWO
AVERY
The wedding had been beautiful with all my friends from around the world. It was on the back lawn of Flynn’s family home in Ireland just as we said it would be. I even had Scarlet and Nate here and she was pregnant. Yippee. It was incredible to think we had both found love when a few years ago we had given up on ever meeting someone who could love us for who we were.
As expected, Flynn’s father was not invited, and his mother and neighbor Geoff planned on getting married, too, once her divorce came through. I was glad to see her happy. She had not pressed charges against Flynn’s dad but made sure he did not get any money. Now he didn’t have overseas villas and money to throw away on his friends and hangers-on, they were not around so much.
