Sadness overwhelmed me as I lay in the darkness, thinking about Charlie, my family, my friends, and my dogs. My poor little guys! I needed to wake up, but I just couldn’t. I expected bodily pain, but I wasn’t ready to face the heartache.
Eventually, the darkness faded, and a quiet beeping sound met my ears. I cringed at the agony in my sides and leg, gasping as the full force of it hit me. My eyes fluttered open, and I looked around at the dimly lit room. I still wasn’t sure why I was injured or why I was in the hospital.
I tried to push up in the bed, but something had hold of my hand, and I couldn’t move it. Wincing, I turned my head and stared in surprise at Charlie, passed out on the side of my bed, with his hand clenching mine. His hair was messy, and he had more of a five-o’clock forest than a shadow, wayward stubble spurting out all over his chin and jawline. He was wearing the same clothes he’d worn during our argument, the same rumpled garments.
“Charlie?” I asked, sounding as if I’d eaten sandpaper for breakfast.
He didn’t answer, didn’t even move.
I tugged my hand a little and tried again. “Charlie.”
His head popped up off the bed, and he looked around wildly, until his gaze landed on mine. “Jaime? You’re awake! Oh, Jaime! I was so scared!” He cradled my face gently in his hands and kissed my forehead. “Don’t ever do that to me again. Do you understand me? Not ever!”
“You’re here,” I whispered.
“Of course I’m here! I would never leave you!”
“Are my mom and dad here too?”
“They went to get something to eat, but they’ll be back soon. Tammy called and told me she was stopping by in a few minutes. You have no idea how happy everyone’s going to be that you finally woke up.” He kissed my cheek. “Let me go get the doctor, okay?”
I nodded.
He yelled for the nurses to come in who gave me a quick exam, followed by the doctor. The doctor told me I was going to be okay and excused himself to give us some alone time. He promised to be back in a few minutes.
“What happened?” I asked, melting at Charlie’s soft touch.
“You were in an accident after we, uh...after we fought,” he said quietly. “It’s all my fault.”
“No,” I said sternly and tried to move as he pushed me gently back down. “The blame belongs to that asshole who hit me.”
“No,” he insisted sadly. “If I would’ve told you the truth... I wouldn’t have been such a damn coward...”
I shook my head until it throbbed with pain. “What are you talking about? You didn’t do anything.”
“That’s exactly the problem. I should have...done something, said something.” He ran his fingers through my hair, and he could only muster a half-smile. “Jaime, I wanted to come back to Blue Ridge so many times. I wanted to call you, wanted to come get you and take you away from this small town, but I never found that dream job. I was going to look you up when I came back in town. I made it all the way to your door, but I got scared.”
“Scared about what?”
“About...what you’d think of me.”
“Why?” I asked, confused.
“Because I didn’t deserve you. I’ve always been crazy about you, but—”
“Then why did you leave in the first place?”
He chewed his lip for a minute, and an overwhelming amount of love seemed to flow right out of his eyes as he stared at me. “I felt like I was drowning in this small town. I wanted to see the world, to try to make something out of myself...for you. I even mentioned you to my dad. I think that’s why he made the Will. I think he wanted me to come back here and make a life with you.”
“What are you saying, Charlie?” I asked.
“It’s amazing what you can see when you finally open up your eyes.” I cocked a brow and he continued. “I’m saying I love you, damn it,” he said with a growl. “I love you, your dogs, your don’t-give-a-shit attitude. Hell, I even love this town, even if it never hit me till recently. When I finally realized it, it scared the shit outta me. You scare the shit out of me.”
I reached for his hand and held it as tightly as I could. “And why is that?”
“Because I was scared of commitment. And I never met a woman I wanted to settle down with before. Not ever...until you. You know everything about me. I’ve told you so much, things I could never even admit to myself, yet you just accept me exactly like I am. Then this accident happened, and I... Jaime, I thought I lost you,” he said as tears filled his eyes.
I reached up to cup his cheek in my hand.