as the smoke billows lightly through the air, and I know I need to stop. After seeing what the disease has done to Olivia's mother, it would be dismissive and thoughtless of me to continue smoking. I really need to work on my nasty little way of dealing with stress.
I wash up and go about putting together what has become our new go-to dinner. A simple platter of aged cheese, apples, salami, crackers, and some sweet fig spread to go with it. We usually include wine with our meal, but I'm not sure what she'll want tonight. I'll let her decide. I find a serving tray in the pantry and load it up and take the stairs to my sleeping beauty.
When I get there she's awake. She's sitting up in bed and staring into space, looking lost. When she sees me, she smiles. "Hey, whatcha got there?"
"Well, since you haven't eaten in over twenty-four hours, I thought a snack might be in order."
Setting the tray next to her on the bed, I sit down by her feet. She pulls her legs in and crosses them in front of her and slides the tray between us. I follow her lead and sit cross-legged too.
"Ronan, thank you. For everything."
"Of course, baby. I'd do anything for you."
She looks at me with eyes full of tears that have yet to fall, and my heart hurts for her.
"You will never know what it means to me to have gotten a chance to see her again. To know she didn't abandon me. She saved me. She still loves me. You have given me such a gift, my mom as well. She got to see that I'm doing well and that I made it." She wipes away the tears that she couldn't hold back any longer. "Thank you for giving us both so much today. I can never thank you enough, and I will never be able to repay your kindness."
"I'm just glad we were able to find her." Then it hits me. "I know how you can repay me."
"Really, right now? Let me get some food in my stomach and build up some strength first." She throws me a wink.
"Stop with the sass, for just a second." I'm so glad she seems to be coming back to life, and my Olivia is finding her way back to me.
"Yes, sir." She smiles widely.
There she is.
"Move in with me."
"What?" She chokes on her apple.
"Shit, drinks. I forgot drinks. Let me go get you something. Wine, water...what can I get you."
"Uh...I think wine is in order."
I've surprised her. Hell, I've surprised myself, but I know it's right. I know I want to fall asleep with her in my arms every night and the thought of her living alone with a madman after her is unbearable.
"Okay, wine it is. I'll go get it, and while I'm gone you think about it. Well, there's no real thinking about it. You're going to move out of your apartment and you're moving in with me. This is your home, Olivia. Where you belong. MTB, baby." I hurry out of the room before she starts to argue with me.
She laughs at my reference to us being meant to be and yells, "Very cute, now get me my wine and let me think about your very gracious offer."
All I can think, as I practically skip down the stairs, is that she didn't say no! She's thinking about it, and that is more than I expected. I find myself rushing to get back to her and to hear her answer. I grab her favorite white out of the fridge, two wine glasses, and a corkscrew. I've just got it all balanced in my hands when my phone rings in my pocket. I place the wine on the counter and see it's a number I don't recognize.
"Hello."
"Mr. McKinley?" asks the woman on the other line.
"This is he."
"This is Cassandra at Wildwoods Hospice, and I'm calling to inform you that Susan McCarthy has passed. We know you were just here this morning and had asked to be kept updated, so I thought I would call."
"Yes, thank you very much for calling. What happened?"
"Sir, it was simply her time. She'd been sick for quite some time, and it was a miracle she was able to visit with you today. I think your visit was a blessing to her, sir. It was what she needed before she could go."
"Thank you, Cassandra. I appreciate the call."
I hang up and text Baxter