Wallflower Ink

Chapter 13

I eye her warily now, searching for a clue. But aside from the flush that burns her face, she is the picture of innocence.

"I need to go," I finally say, backing away.

"But your breakfast--"

"I'll pick something up in town," I cut her off then turn away from the hurt I glimpse in her eyes.

She can feel offended all she wants, but that doesn't make up for the secrets she's still keeping, secrets that obviously involve me. If she doesn't want to tell me everything about herself --what she'd told me last night was more than I ever could have imagined she'd share--that's fine, but I won't sit here and pretend it's okay to be lied to. She has problems, but so do I. And last night ...

Last night was a fluke, I tell myself. She's no closer to being open with me than she had been in the beginning. It was her own misplaced guilt that had prompted what had happened last night, nothing more.

"I'll see you later," I say softly with a shake of my head before I leave the room without saying another word.

***

The drive across town is quiet and uneventful, but for the thoughts banging around in my head like a drunk locked in small holding cell. They've swayed this way and that, from one extreme to the other, until I am now even more confused by what had been said--and how I feel about it--than I'd been at Merri's house.

Could I be wrong? I've never been the type of person who won't admit it when I am. The hell of it is, this time I just can't be positive.

As I pull into the hospital parking lot then shut off my engine, I let out a long breath and shake my head. Even if I didn't tell her and she's found out from someone else, does that mean anything other than she wants to know more about the stranger she's invited into her home?

I swear under my breath as I open my door and step out. I'll think on it some more later, but for now there are more important things for me to worry about.

I pass through the waiting room and use the same stairs I'd used the night before, coming to Katie's room without speaking to anyone else. When I peek inside, my heart does a quick flip and a grin explodes across my face.

Katie is sitting up, cross-legged at the foot of the bed with her hands folded in her lap. The IV is gone, the heart monitor has been muted, and the only sound in the room is her voice as she whispers quiet assurances to Kyle.

Kyle sits in the chair across from her, looking up at her like some remote tribesman who's just witnessed the coming of a god. All thoughts of the oddity that is Merri Lonán disappear from my mind at the sight.

I cross the room in a few long strides, stopping by her bedside and offering her the grin I can't seem to reign in. She's okay. By the looks of it, whatever new concoction they've given her has worked in record time.

I had been prepared to see her, but I hadn't been prepared to see her quite like this. The weight I've been carrying rolls from my shoulders as she turns and offers me her mirror smile.

"You look a lot better."

"Was wondering when you'd get here, Captain Obvious."