Carson
Carson
I open my eyes and see Fred and Daphne standing next to my hospital bed. “Hey.”
She slips her cool fingers into my hand. “The doctor stopped by. He said that everything went well, and your leg should heal completely. It’ll just take some time.”
Fred crosses his arms. “I’ll help you, and I was also kind of thinking that maybe for the first few weeks while you need extra help, maybe Daphne could stay with us.”
Tears brim in her eyes. Nodding, she turns to face Fred. “I can absolutely do that. And I have some leave, so I can take off a few days when you leave the hospital.”
I squeeze her hand. “Daphne, you don’t have to take leave. Having you at the house would be a big help if you can swing it. I don’t want to interfere with your job though. And save your vacation days for fun stuff.”
“Okay. Fred has been great at helping me stay calm during the surgery. When we got here and found out it was happening, I was concerned.”
“She was freaking out a little bit,” Fred says with a subtle grin.
She bumps her shoulder against his. “Thanks for ratting me out.”
Fred is no longer distant when Daphne’s around. He’s not just being polite for my sake. He seems to genuinely enjoy having her around.
“I’m okay. Pain meds are working, so I feel great right now. But I don’t want to keep y’all out too late. Daphne, even though it’s a bit of a drive, do you mind taking Fred home tonight?”
“Dad, I want to stay with you.” Fred’s facade of calm is cracking.
I motion for him to come to the other side of the bed and hold out my hand.
He grips it. “I’ll be quiet and let you sleep. And if you need anything, I can get a nurse. I can help you, Dad.”
“Listen. It’s a school night. You don’t need to be missing school because of this. I’m okay. They’ll probably let me go home tomorrow. As soon as I find my phone, I’ll see who doesn’t have the tummy bug and see if you can stay with them.”
He nods. “Beau and Lilith texted me that they are coming to see you. I can go home with them. That way, Daphne can stay with you. I don’t want you to be alone, Dad.”
I squeeze his hand. “We’ll see if it works out for her to stay.”
“It totally works out.” Daphne raises her eyebrows. “I’ve already taken tomorrow off, and don’t tell me to save vacation days for something fun. Fred, if he doesn’t go home tomorrow, I’ll pick you up after school and bring you here, okay?”
Fred walks around the bed and wraps his arms around Daphne, burying his head in her shoulder.
She hugs him and rubs his back. “Thank you for helping me stay calm today. I was really worried about your dad.”
Fred nods into her shoulder. When he picks up his head, he wipes his eyes. “You’re welcome.”
He’s in the middle space where he’s growing up but there is still a little kid showing through from time to time. I’m trying to keep his life as normal as possible through this mess because the stability is good for him. And I’m extra thankful for Daphne right now. For both of them, honestly.
Beau and Lilith knock on the open hospital door before stepping inside. He is holding a massive basket that’s full of snacks. “Glad you’re okay. I’m going to have to put you on desk duty for a while.”
“What kind of desk duty does a cowboy do?”
Beau chuckles. “That sounds like the lead-in to a joke. But to answer your question, I’m not sure yet. We’ll figure it out as we go.” He hands the basket to Fred. “Lilith wanted to bring you flowers, but I’ve been in the hospital. You need food. Flowers aren’t good eating.”
Fred pokes through the basket. “Can I have something out of here?”
“Sure thing.”
Lilith rolls her eyes at Beau. “This man always has one thing on his mind.”
He steps behind her and slides an arm around her waist. “Not true. I also think about?—”
Her elbow to his ribs ends his sentence. But he’s grinning, so I’m pretty sure he isn’t hurt.
“I’m sorry about what happened,” Beau says. “It took me a bit to settle Ava. It helped that you weren’t on a ladder when it happened. Now she doesn’t want us on any roofs. But how are we supposed to fix them if we don’t go up there? She was on her porch, pacing. And I was keeping my distance.”
Lilith pats Beau’s arm. “Ava would be up here if she weren’t sick. And I feel horrible about what happened.”
“Not your fault I found the rotten spot in the wood.” I shift and wince. “I’m just thankful it was just my lower leg that broke through and not all of me.” I tighten my hold on Daphne’s hand. “I’ll heal.”
Fred tears open a bag of beef jerky. “Mind if I ride back with y’all?”
“That’s absolutely fine.” Lilith nods. “I’ll fix up the guest room for you, and we’ll get you to school in the morning.”
“Thanks so much.” I love that we have support on the ranch.
Lillith focuses on Daphne. “Are you staying up here tonight?”
“Yes.”
“Need us to get anything for you?” Beau’s gaze bounces between Daphne and me.
“I’m good.” I grin because that sounds ridiculous coming from someone in a hospital bed.
“I have an overnight bag in my car. I’ll run out and get it, and I’ll be fine. Thank you, though.”
Lilith pats Beau again. “Well, we don’t want to keep you. We just wanted to make sure you were okay. Kent felt bad that he couldn’t meet you over here, but with both his kids sick, he needed to get back to Poppy. That stomach bug has lots of people sick on the ranch.”
“I don’t want to catch it.” Fred sets the basket on a side table.
“Me neither.” Beau points at Fred. “But if we keep our distance from the infected, we should be okay.”
Lilith shakes her head. “The infected. You make them sound like zombies.”
“I’ll feel like a zombie if I catch it.” He feigns a shiver, acting like the thought scares him.
“We should go. Beau is getting loopy.” Lilith hugs me. “Please let us know if there is anything we can do.”
Beau shakes my hand. “Heal up. And what she said. Anything at all, okay?”
“Will do.” I hold out my hand to Fred. “I’ll see you tomorrow.”
He hugs me. “Love you, Dad.”
“I love you too.”
When the three of them walk out of the room, Daphne lets go of my hand long enough to pull a chair close to the bed. “You fell through a roof?”
“No. My leg went through a roof. The rest of me stayed on top of it.”
She kisses my hand. “I was so worried. And poor Fred was working so hard to keep it together. He did because he was trying to be strong for me.”
“I tried my best to let y’all know I was okay.”
“We could hear the pain in your voice.” She has my hand sandwiched between hers. “You aren’t great at hiding stuff or lying.”
“Two qualities every woman wants in her man.”
She laughs. “True.”
“I love you. Thank you for dropping everything and rushing to help.” I motion for her to get closer.
She leans in for a kiss. “When you or Fred need me, I’ll come running.”
“Driving is faster. You should keep that in mind.”
Shaking her head at my dumb joke, she laughs, then kisses me again.
I knew a year ago that I wanted to marry her, but I was waiting to see if Fred was comfortable around her. If this mishap has taught me anything, it’s that she’s the real deal and Fred likes having her around.
Now I just have to wait on this stupid leg to heal.
Hobbling around without crutches feels like an achievement unlocked. It’s been four weeks since my injury, and healing feels really slow.
Daphne hands me a cup of coffee when I reach the end of the hall. “Please be careful.” She gives me a quick peck. “I have to run. I’m already late.”
She’s been living in the guest room since my accident. In the mornings, she helps me by laying out my clothes and making sure my crutches are beside the bed. But I’m now at a point that I can do most things on my own.
Even though I like having her here, I feel bad that it adds to her commute. “I’m getting around pretty good. You don’t have to stay on my account. I know the drive is longer.”
She rolls her eyes. “The drive isn’t bad if I leave on time.”
I tug her close and kiss her properly. “Have a great day.”
“Thanks.” She hurries toward the door. “Bye, Fred. See you tonight.”
Fred hollers from down the hall. “Bye.”
I’ve just taken a sip of coffee when he walks into the kitchen a few minutes later, his hair dripping wet.
“Are you waiting until you can get down on one knee?”
I choke, desperately trying not to suck coffee down my windpipe. “What?”
He raises his eyebrows, giving me a look only teenagers can perfect. But he doesn’t actually utter the word Duh . “It’s pretty obvious that you want to marry Daphne. And I was guessing about why you’ve waited. If it’s because of me, I like her.”
“I would like to be able to get down on one knee. But it’s reassuring to know you are on board with that idea.”
Fred drops into a chair. “Also, I was talking to Mason. When I found out you were in the hospital, I was really worried. About you and worried about what would happen to me if I couldn’t live with you anymore.”
I drop into the chair beside him. “While I don’t intend to let anything happen to me, we should probably have a plan for that.”
“Mason said that if something ever happened to his dad that he’d live with Poppy. Do you think Daphne would let me stay with her?”
“I do.” I pat his shoulder. “Part of what I love about Daphne is that she cares about you as much as I do.”
“It’s been nice having her here all the time.
I know she has to go back to her place, but I was thinking about that.
” He slides his phone across the table with a picture of a tiny kitten on the screen.
“Can I get her a cat for Christmas? It would have to live with us, which would give Daphne a reason to come over a lot. You’d like that, right? ”
“That’s a cute kitten. Are you willing to help take care of it?”
“Totally. I’ll fill the food and water bowls. And I’ll scoop the litter box.”
“Then I think it’s a great gift idea.” I’m prepared to keep the kitten if for some reason Daphne doesn’t want it. And it’s clear that Fred really wants it.
“Awesome.” He jumps up and runs down the hall. “I’ll be ready to leave in five minutes.”
If my desire to propose is obvious to Fred, I’m guessing the entire world knows how I feel. I’ll ask her on Christmas. Even if this darn leg won’t allow me to get on one knee.
I’ve waited long enough. We both have. I want her here all the time.