Page 16 of Hearts of Fairlake (Men of Fairlake #8)

"Ow! You know, that shit is sharp, you know that, right?" I heard Chase complain.

"Chase, I've had one hell of a day, and I am not ready to deal with you being a PITA. Do you understand me? I will drug you so fucking fast right now that will have to hand-feed you for three days," I heard a familiar, if particularly grouchy, voice say.

"You and Annie have the same bedside manner. I hope you know that," Chase said with a huff. "Hey, ow!"

"Ayla, don't touch things, you know better," Kyle said to his daughter as I got through the crowd. Ayla rolled her eyes as she backed up from Chase and sat in the grass. There was a bandage on her side, a bruise on her cheek, and a dark look in her eyes.

"Please tell me that was the sound of them getting her," Ayla said when she saw me.

"Umm, that was actually the sound of Annie going full MMA on her, then they got her in handcuffs," I said with a shake of my head.

Ayla's eyes went wide as she stared at me. “I'm sorry, did you just say that Annie...beat her?"

"Beat her is putting it kindly. I'm pretty sure it was felonious assault and arguably attempted murder," I said with a snort. "Never knew she had it in her."

"I did," Kyle, Chase, and Ayla all chimed at once, startling me with the eerie synchronicity.

"Look, I just went through a slasher film. I don't need this weird Children of the Corn thing. Alright?" I told them, resisting the urge to throw in the sign of the cross for added measure .

"Slasher film?" Chase asked, twisting his head around to glare up at me. "What the fuck is that about?"

"I'll tell you later," I told him, pointing when he made to move. "And don't you get up. I'm not hurt, Amber's not hurt, everyone who matters is fine...I think."

"I got knocked silly, and little Miss here is going with Chase to the hospital."

"Like hell, I want to see them dragging her off, maybe throw in a lougie or three."

Faster than I would have predicted, Kyle spun around and grabbed Ayla by her wrist before she could finish getting up. "No, you're going to sit right there and wait until an ambulance arrives to get you examined. You and your pigheaded father were close to that explosion, and you lost consciousness. I have already gone through a personal hell of almost being forced to watch you and your dad get blown up right in front of me, and you are not going to add any more to my stress. Do you understand? I need you where I know you're safe...and you're probably concussed, so sit ."

For a moment, I thought she was going to argue, but the angry expression faded as she sat back in the grass with a heavy sigh. I could also see the guilt stewing in her features, but I could only be glad she had chosen not to fight. It was obvious Kyle was using his job to cope with his thoughts, but that didn't mean he should be pushed any further.

"And how's your PITA?" I asked, kneeling on the grass beside Chase and taking his hand.

Kyle took a deep breath. “Well, from the looks of it, no major arteries were hit, but I can't speak for his organs. We need to get him in quickly, which is going to be fun, getting an ambulance in here with all of these people."

I sighed, squeezing Chase's hand. "I guess there goes our plans for the night. "

Chase snorted. “Yeah, well. I'm not surprised. Nothing ever goes according to plan for me."

"What plan?" Ayla asked, wrinkling her nose.

"After all this noise and all these people, a certain someone who certainly doesn't have a romantic bone in his body," I said, glancing toward Chase. "Suggested we have a very late-night picnic tonight. It was going to be the perfect night for it too."

"And then crazy rolled up," Ayla said with a sigh, and I watched as she reached up and fiddled with her ear, undoubtedly turning off her hearing aid to block out the world. Kyle saw it too, and flashed me a grim smile before patting Chase's thigh.

"Bad news about your picnic, but the good news is, you're probably going to be fine and shouldn't be stuck in a hospital bed for too long."

"Oh fuck, I didn't even think about having to stay," Chase groaned. "What about the shop?"

"I'm pretty sure the guys can manage," I said. "While you're recovering from getting speared by a random piece of metal."

Chase sighed heavily. “This night is gonna suck, isn't it?"

"At least we're alive," I said with a smile. "And still have each other."

Equipped with a steaming cup of questionable coffee, I returned to Chase's hospital room. He had gotten through his surgery with minimal issues...on the physical end, anyway. True to form, he’d bitched and complained when he'd been told he needed surgery. I had just rolled my eyes and told the doctor that wasn't Chase saying no to the surgery, he was just ornery by nature and would probably implode if he wasn't allowed to bitch. That earned me the filthiest look from Chase, so I patted him soothingly, which did nothing to ease his glare.

But sadly for him, no amount of bitching was going to spare him the reality of needing the surgery if he wanted to survive. A sliced kidney and punctured bowel were no joke, and he had only managed to survive as long as he had without serious issues because minimal damage had been done and the metal hadn't been removed. A nurse commented that he had to have been in a great deal of pain and shouldn't have been able to communicate. While I outwardly repeated that nothing was going to stop Chase from bitching, inwardly, I had to remind myself just how tough Chase could be, feeling both love and fear about that.

It had been late last night when he'd been wheeled into the ER, and the doctors had quickly determined he needed surgery. It had thankfully been successful without any complications, but the drugs they'd had him on made him groggy for several hours. We were nearing twenty-four hours since he'd been put under, and it was only in the past few hours he’d been staying awake with any real consistency, though he still sometimes dozed off for a few minutes.

Which was a relief, as I’d been worried about how the drugs might affect him. Amusingly, when he was groggy, he had been absurdly sweet and even a little needy. For his more sober self's sake, it was a good thing no one had been around to see him like that, especially because Bennett would have never let him live it down. Now the effects of the drugs were leaving his system, he’d become grumpy once more and was constantly wondering when he was going to be able to leave.

His last quick nap spurred me to get some caffeine. I had managed a few power naps, but a little help from the caffeine wouldn't go amiss. Now things had settled down, and Chase was safe, I didn't think the caffeine would make me too tense .

I stopped outside the room when I heard Chase talking to someone. Listening closely, I realized the second voice was Ayla.

"I'm surprised you were able to get away," Chase said with a snort. "Last I knew, Kyle wasn't letting you out of his sight."

"Eh, I let him have his way for a bit. If there's anything I learned watching Dad deal with him, it's that when Kyle is in his feelings, it's best just to let him run his course so he runs out of steam. He's dramatic like that."

"Yeah, well, from what I heard, you were this close to dying, right there with your dad. Maybe Kyle has a right to be a little dramatic."

There was a pause, and Ayla sighed. “Is this how you thank someone for doing you a favor?"

"Don't change the subject, kid. Just tell me you didn't take off on them and turn your phone off."

There was another pause, and she grunted a 'no' before grumbling something under her breath. Whatever it was, Chase heard because he laughed. "Yeah, I know. I get told that a lot. But I've told you before, you've got two parents who love the crap out of you and are always going to be there for you."

"I know, I know," Ayla groaned. "And not everyone is as lucky as me. I get it."

"Nah, you don't. You're still seventeen, and I know your mom fucked you up, but you've had a damn good life for a while. And it can be hard to see that even when you're an adult, let alone some kid who's going to be trying out their grown-up feet in a couple of months."

"Wow, thanks, Chase. You really know how to make someone feel better."

"You're talking to the wrong half of the relationship if you're wanting the one who makes you feel better. I'm just reminding you not to take them for granted because that shit can be easy to do when you've had it for so long."

"Well, maybe seeing her today was a good reminder."

"Good, always thought you might have some sense in that head of yours. Nice to see it's true."

"Fuck you too, Chase."

At that moment, I decided I should step into the room before they talked about something else I probably shouldn't have overheard. It was rare nowadays to get anything from Ayla that wasn't sarcastic or dismissive. I wasn't surprised, though. Chase had always had an effect on Ayla since she met him years ago. No one bothered to question it except Chase. For quite some time, he’d been perplexed as to why Ayla gravitated toward him, treating him somewhere between an older brother and a respected uncle.

I had kept my mouth shut, mostly because, in the beginning, I’d found out that she'd met him right around puberty, and I suspected there had been somewhat of a schoolgirl crush. It had grown from there, though, into a genuine love and respect for Chase. In truth, there were some strong similarities between them, hardheadedness, a snarky mouth, a somewhat dour attitude about life, and an intense dislike of showing their softer emotions to the world while simultaneously keeping a tight grip on their internal sense of compassion and fairness.

"I'm going to guess from the loving words I just heard that you two are getting along as usual," I said dryly as I entered. Ayla was sitting in the chair beside his bed but hopped up immediately, her eyes flashing to the storage closet before flashing a smile at me. "And...that's not suspicious at all."

"Just came up to make sure Chase wasn't going to make himself the only person who didn't survive," she said with a shrug. "I didn't want to have to go to his grave and mock him regularly."

"I'm sure," I said, knowing she’d be as devastated as Bennett and I if Chase died. "If I'd known you'd be stopping by, I would've grabbed two cups."

"No need. I only came to check up on him. If I have to sit around and listen to him whine and complain that they're keeping him another night, I might smother him in his sleep," she said, reaching down to grab her bag and hoist it onto her shoulder. "Honestly? I don't know how you've known him since you two were kids without wanting to strangle him."

"Who said I haven't?" I asked with a grin. "Just because I haven't done it doesn't mean the temptation hasn't been there...several times."

"I'll alert the Vatican so you can be canonized," she said as she walked out with one last glance over her shoulder toward Chase.

"If you ask me, Ian and Kyle deserve the canonization, not me," I said as I sat in the chair again. "Have a good heart-to-heart?"

He rolled his eyes. “I saw your shadow in the doorway. I knew you were there. Don't think she did, though. She normally?—"

"Clams up when she thinks anyone who gives a shit is around to hear her, sounds familiar," I said with a smirk.

He shook his head. “Well, I know she's extra fucked in the head right now after seeing her mom again. She says she doesn't care about the woman, which...that's fair but fuck, it has to be hard to see someone you once loved reduced to whatever the fuck happened to her."

"Jail and prison are two different, very hard worlds," I said knowingly. "You need to be tough, smart, and have a good run of luck as well. And from what we already knew, Isabelle was neither of those things...or stable. Her turning out this way is not surprising."

"I just...don't understand what she could have been thinking. How did she think that was going to end?"

"Who knows? Probably not her. Though if I were to guess, she wouldn't have expected to get taken down and beaten by Annie of all people."

"I'm still sad I didn't see it."

"It was...something. Not hard to imagine why, though. Last time Isabelle was in town, she and her buddy left Annie in a rough state. I bet Annie has been holding onto that anger for a long ass time. It probably felt great to get revenge."

"Probably," Chase said with a snort. "Ayla also came in here to tell me everyone we know made it out alright."

"I heard while you were in surgery," I reminded him.

"I know, but I got the follow-up because I knew once you heard everyone was alright, you weren't going to follow up with them because you were more worried about me," he said with a shrug. "I guess Ian isn't happy about his hair. He took the worst of the blast, but it's his hair he's mad about."

"Sounds about right," I said with a shake of my head. "Still amazed he was up and moving around with broken ribs, a broken arm, and a twisted ankle."

"That batshit lady held his daughter hostage, threatened to kill her, and then tried to blow pretty much everyone he knew up. Rage and adrenaline are going to take you far in a situation like that," Chase said with a shake of his head. "Didn't even hesitate, from what I heard. He threw himself right on top of Ayla despite barely knowing what was going on. That's love."

"I distinctly remember someone ready to throw themselves in the line of a bullet for me," I said with a soft smile, reaching over to take his hand and give it a soft squeeze. "So yeah, it is love. "

He snorted. “Yeah, well, I don't envy him. Mostly because it sounds like he refused to listen to Kyle after the blast and went after Isabelle, leaving Ayla with Kyle and with Kyle knowing Ian was hurt. I suspect a very uncomfortable doghouse is being made right now that Ian will be sleeping in for a while."

"At least he knew he was okay," I said with a shake of my head. "Adam didn't know where Bri and the kids were for a bit and only knew Bennett was alive because he heard it over another deputy's radio. That's not even counting Bri, who didn't know for a while if anyone was alive."

The others had more or less fared like Ian and Kyle, having been together when the explosion happened. There were those like Sylas and Grant who’d been away from the blast zone, as had Felix and Luke. Others, like Trevor and Ethan, had been close to the blast but were able to confirm the other was safe before trying to help the wounded. Ethan had earned himself a few cracked ribs from a stall hitting him in the chest. His reaction had been to say if he lost any more ribs, he’d be even more flexible in bed, which had understandably earned him a smack upside the head from Trevor.

The worst had been Chase, who ironically had been a safe distance away from the blast compared to the others. Ian had been beaten up pretty good, but after a couple of months in a cast, he’d be alright. Chase, however, was looking at repeated doctor visits, medications, and probably quite a bit of pain while he recovered from the surgery. He had already been told he wasn't allowed to do any heavy lifting for a few weeks, and it was going to be up to me and the guys at the shop to prevent him from breaking that rule and ending up with sepsis.

Good thing I was just as stubborn as him.

"You're not staying here again tonight, are you?" he asked, raising a brow which told me he knew the answer and was resigned to losing any subsequent argument.

"We both know I'm not going anywhere," I said, nodding at the chair in the corner. "That thing has a footrest, so I have no intention of going anywhere without you. I already asked, and Bennett's parents will take care of Cole and Leo for us."

"Assholes could learn to feed themselves for once, do something productive around the house."

"Uh-huh, and I suppose you don't care that I asked them to do it after you went into surgery because I knew there was a good chance you and I would be staying here for a while."

"Nope."

"Sure."

"Don't give me that. I'm not in the mood."

"You're never in the mood, and that's never stopped me before, so it won't stop me now."

Chase gave a weary sigh. “Throughout all this, I never asked how you're doing."

"Me? Chase, I'm not the one who took shrapnel to the back and had a couple of organs pierced in the process. I think overall, I'm doing just fine."

"Sure."

"Do you think my own tactics being used against me will somehow work? C'mon Chase, you have to try harder than that to get results."

Which, of course, prompted him to turn and look me over with obvious concern. “I'm serious about my question, though. I might have been the one who got hurt, but you were dealing with that, trying to get me out of there, worrying about me, and then everything with Amber and Isabelle. I seriously want to know how you're doing mentally."

It wasn't like Chase didn't know how to be sweet or show his concern. It was just that, usually, it came in the form of bitching, growling, snapping, and the occasional threat. When he showed it openly, you knew he was genuinely concerned. It was also the fastest way to make me relent to anything he wanted out of me. He knew that but only used the tactic when he was truly worried.

"Bastard," I said with a fond smile. "I'm...better now. Knowing everyone is relatively okay and that you're out of the worst of it is enough for me to take a step back and a deep breath. Once we get you home, I'll really be okay."

He searched my face for a long minute and was apparently content with whatever he found there before giving a nod. “Well, if you're going to be here for the night, then you'll need more than coffee."

On cue, my stomach protested, and I snorted. “I'll grab something from the cafeteria. But don't think I didn't notice that you haven't eaten yet."

"Now the pain meds aren't flooding my brain along with everything else, I'm feeling a little hungry," he admitted but then frowned. "But then there's the diet they have me on."

I snorted. “One of your kidneys and your bowels were injured. Did you think you were going to get to eat whatever you wanted?"

"A guy can dream," he said, pointing toward the closet Ayla had glanced at nervously earlier. "Go ahead and grab what's in there."

Raising a brow, I let go of his hand and walked to the closet. For a moment, I couldn't understand what I was looking at until it clicked, and I laughed. “A picnic basket?"

"Eh, I had it ready to go, save for the cold stuff, and stowed away with Ayla because I knew you’d find it, and Bennett would have given me too much shit if I asked him to hide it. Plus, he's shit at hiding things, and the kids would have gotten into it," he said in annoyance. "Might as well bring it over here. "

I took it by the handle, leaving it closed because, despite my burning curiosity, this was his gesture, and I was going to let him have the pleasure of the grand reveal. I set it on the bed on the other side of where he sat. "What? Decided if we couldn't have the picnic the way you wanted to, you were going to do it anyway?"

"Yeah, well, if the universe didn't want me to have a halfway decent picnic with you, it should have killed me instead of just pain and a restricted diet," he grumbled. "And yes, I already talked to a nurse to see what I could have. You'll have to enjoy what I can't in my place."

"I'll do my best," I said with a laugh. "Is that why Ayla was really here? I mean, outside of being genuinely concerned for your well-being, that is."

"She needed an excuse to get away from Kyle for a bit," Chase said, opening the basket and glancing at me, but I was content to wait to see what he brought out. "He's still freaked out and all but I also know she needs some space to breathe. Isabelle is back in jail and going to prison, but Ayla still needed to clear her head. Having an excuse to get away and do something normal was something she jumped at."

"I bet," I said, grinning when he brought out a tray with cheeses, a few fruits, and some meats. "A charcuterie board?"

"Yeah, well, it seemed like good picnic food. Believe it or not, I spent ages trying to decide what to throw in there," he said, bringing out a bottle of wine and setting it down on the bedside table. "You'll have to drink that, though. I'm not allowed."

"Rest in peace your evening beers after a rough night at work," I said with a chuckle, letting him pour me a glass of wine while trying a few cheeses. He surprised me by immediately suggesting a combination of items to try with a sip of the wine. I did as he asked, pleased to find the cheese and the fruit paired nicely despite their strong tastes. Then, the wine worked wonders at mellowing everything and washing it away so there was only the taste of the wine.

That continued as he showed me a few more combinations and then a couple of his own. Obviously, the picnic idea hadn't been a whim or with only a few things in mind. He’d clearly been doing his homework. I could hear the clink of a couple more bottles and wondered what else he had in mind.

"I'll be honest, I had to pick these up from a store down in Denver," he said sheepishly. "They were going to be as fresh as possible since I had to get them early and keep them out of sight...but they're going to be even less fresh now."

"Stop," I told him with a chuckle and examined the sandwiches, delighted when I saw what they were. "Bahn Mi? Nice. Wait?—"

"They're from that little place you always went to, the one that translates to 'Hole in the Wall' if I remember right."

"You do."

"They were nice enough to send it all over in different containers, so the bread won't be soggy or anything like that, but nothing's going to be?—"

"As fresh," I finished for him, taking a bite, and my eyelids fluttered at the familiar taste. "God, this is exactly the way I remember it. And no, before you say anything, it's not because it's not fresh. It's because I'm stone-cold sober and not coming down from something while eating one of these. God, this is good."

He drew out another bottle and poured something, handing it over. "I'm not sure how to pronounce it. But the woman at the store said this rice wine is supposed to go really well with these."

I did my due diligence and took a sip, surprised by the sudden crispness that managed to tone down the strong flavors of the sandwich while adding something new that changed the entire thing. Needless to say, it didn't take me long to work my way through my half of the sandwich and drink the glass of wine. I also got my hands on the bottle to look it over, knowing I was going to save it for future reference.

Next came a container that made my eyes widen. “Is this some cake from...Crumble?"

"You talked about that bakery almost as much as you talked about the sandwich place," he said with a chuckle, pulling out a dark wine and opening it. "I promise I won't tell Grant you were a big fan of another bakery."

I snorted, opening the container to find the darkest piece of chocolate cake I'd ever seen and a container of half-liquefied raspberries I immediately poured over the top. "He already knows. I told him ages ago. He complimented me on my choice of establishment. Said that Crumble was why he’d been cautious about opening up a branch of his bakery down in Denver. I can't say I blame him."

Once again, Chase had knocked the combination out of the park. The rich cake and fruit combination was beautiful with the wine, which had its own fruity taste, probably enhanced by the raspberry concoction. It also added something spicy and exotic. While he had only been able to peck at a few things on the tray and had decided not to touch the sandwiches, his cake went down just as quickly as mine but without the wine.

As I finished the cake, I let out a contented sigh. "I have to say, you hit this right out of the park."

"The park that needs thousands of dollars worth of repairs?"

"Don't be so gloomy."

He smirked at that. “Well, it does."

"Chase."

He chuckled, looking toward the window, which we could see out of now the lights in the room had gone out while we were eating, leaving us with only the dim lights near the floor. "I wanted to do this outside, where we could look up at the stars like we used to as kids, dreaming of where we’d end up and hoping it would be a good place."

"I don't need to see the stars to remember those nights," I said, taking his hand in mine and squeezing it. "And I didn't need all this to know that although it took us a long ass time, we finally got to where we wanted to be...more or less. We didn't get exactly what we wanted, but even back then, we knew life wasn't going to hand us everything. I couldn't be happier, and don't get me wrong, this was unbelievably sweet and ridiculously thoughtful of you. I can definitely understand why you didn't want Bennett to know because, yeah, he would have teased you."

"He would have," Chase said with a roll of his eyes. "And I know you...wanted more out of the past few years than we got, but?—"

I sighed loudly. “Chase, really?"

"Hey, let me finish," he said, surprising me a little. Normally, he’d get pissy with me, and we'd have to sort out if we were going to have an argument or find our way to peace. It wasn't often he stopped me in my tracks so easily and without a struggle. "I know you're happy you're sober, not in a dead-end job, and the two of us are finally together. We've got the house, we've got the idiot cats, we've got so much more than we ever dreamed. But I've also seen how you sometimes look at Adam and Bennett, how you cried at every one of the weddings because you've always been the romantic, sappy sort who would do that while I'm waiting to see what kind of food they have. And I know you've always said you don't want kids and are not worried about getting married?—"

"I don't want kids," I said with a laugh. "I don't...no. We both agreed on that. "

"We did," he said with a curl of his lips. "Though it looks like there's much more to Uncle duty than I originally thought."

I smirked. “And you love it."

"I do."

"And I told you, marriage isn't a requirement. If you don't want to, then I'm not going to stomp my feet and demand you marry me right now, or I'm leaving."

"I know, you're not that person," he said with a sigh. "And I can't explain why I kept putting it off, time and time again. All I know is that I have, and you've kept it to yourself, but it's bothered you...a lot. And everyone's been giving me shit for it, and I've been avoiding it like a coward."

"You are many things, but you're not a coward," I told him with a frown. "And quit worrying about marriage, alright? I don't even think about it anymore."

He smirked, and I knew what was going to come out of his mouth was calling me a dirty liar. If anyone knew I was lying, it was him. Because, of course, I wanted to get married. That was the penultimate dream I’d had when we were younger, not just to find someone I could spend the rest of my life with, but someone I could walk down an aisle to meet and make the final symbolic gesture of our love and shared intent to be together for the rest of our lives in front of our loved ones. But that didn't mean it was a requirement.

"So," he said, reaching into the basket. "I guess you don't care about this then?"

I stared at the small box in his hand, my heart giving a heavy thump as I realized what it was. Continuing to look pleased with himself, he opened it with the other hand, and I stared at the band. In the center was a latticework of intertwining gold and platinum bands that surrounded an astoundingly bright, half-purple, half-blue heart that showed its colors vibrantly even in the low light .

"I..." Holy shit, this picnic had been his way of working up to proposing to me?

Damn, I guess even after knowing each other for so long, you really could still surprise your partner at times.

"," he said, holding the ring out. "It would make me the happiest moron on the planet if you married me...so, will you?"

I said the only thing I could at that moment, although my younger self never imagined I would say yes in quite that fashion. Then again, younger me never imagined I’d be a drugged-up washout for years, either. Or that it would be Chase who would finally be my rescuer, and it would be him I’d want to spend the rest of my life with. Or that I would end up back in Fairlake and actually be happy about that and with the town and its people. It was home, and he was the foundation that made it what it was.

"Fuck, yes."