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Dodge escorted Scott home, then stayed at the house as an added precaution. God only knows what Scott had told his parents was going on. If it was anything resembling the truth, Abby imagined there would be two more people to add to the growing list of those who were angry with her.
After an uneventful night, Rachel was allowed to receive a handful of visitors. Under protest, Rachel finally convinced Abby to go home and freshen up. After losing that argument, she didn’t have the energy to object to Zep driving her home.
At the house, Scott’s mum, Trish and his dad, Henry greeted Abby with hugs and fresh coffee. Bruce paced beside her, insisting on sitting on her lap as she drank her coffee. Scott had made up a room each for Zep and Dodge, and showed Zep to his while Abby almost swallowed her tongue in her efforts not to shout if anyone cared what she thought about them staying in her house.
She felt like a guest in her own home, with Trish fussing in the kitchen and outlaw bikers sleeping on her good linen. With all four bedrooms allocated, at least she and Scott were still sharing a room.
After a strong cup of coffee and a long, hot shower, the dark clouds that had threatened to erupt dissipated a little. Knowing her mother wanted to spend some time with her friends, and with the limited space in her hospital room, Abby gratefully stretched out on her bed. She moaned with pure relief as her body relaxed into the mattress, and let every thought fall out of her head. For a few precious seconds, Abby felt nothing. No pain, no anger, no fear.
A light tap on the door broke the spell.
“Hey.” Scott poked his head inside.
Her stomach tightened. Since when did Scott knock on their bedroom door? “Hey.”
“Mum wanted to know if you'd like anything to eat?”
Abby sat up, crossing her legs beneath and leaning back against the bedhead. “Can we talk for a minute?”
She saw the hesitation in Scott’s eyes before he nodded, and closed the door behind him. He came and sat on the bed, leaving a good metre between them. She pushed down the sting it caused.
“How are you, after yesterday?”When you almost died.
He shrugged. “Okay, I guess.” He avoided looking at her.
“I am sorry, Scott.” She leaned forward. “I never wanted any of this to happen.”
His chest rose and fell as he inhaled a bigger breath. “I know this isn’t your fault, Abby.”
“But?”
His brow furrowed. “But what?”
“I feel like there’s a but after that sentence. And I don’t want there to be a but.” Her heart clattered against her chest.
Scott leaned over until their foreheads touched. “There’s so much we need to talk about.”
“I know, and I want to talk. I want to listen.”
He reached up and smoothed his hand over her hair, his touch almost breaking her.
“I need some time, Abby.”
She wanted to scream and plead and beg. Instead, she whispered, “Okay.”
He pressed his lips to her forehead, then sat back, just out of reach again.
“Can I ask, what did you say to your parents about… everything?”
“The truth. I wanted them to make their own decision about whether they stayed or went home.”
His words smarted. It was a choice she hadn’t given him.
“They know about Zep and–”
“Everything.”
She took a deep breath. She didn’t know what she was feeling. Shame, embarrassment?
