“Same. Nothing.” He lets out a frustrated breath.

“She’s showing activity, Brooks. I know it’s hard but keep talking to her. Some people say they can hear what’s going on around them in this state. Everything helps.” She places Kelly’s chart back into place then moves around the bed.

“I’ll be back in later.” She waves us off, leaving just as fast as she came. The room falls silent again, and I wonder if I should just head out too. Mackenzie is at the clubhouse and I’m bringing her up later, so I can always stay longer when we return.

“I think I should head out. Give you some quiet time before the next visitor,” I tell him, deciding to leave. Every day he gets more distant and every day, it gets harder to watch it.

“How’s Mia?” He looks up, stopping my retreat and I see a flash of pain in his eyes.

“She’s doing okay. We’re taking her tonight. We can bring her down before dinner if you like.” I sit back down, letting this one play out.

“I don’t like her seeing Kell like this. The tubes and the machines, it’s too much. She was in yesterday.”

“I don’t think she minds. She just wants to see you and Kelly,” I try to reason with him. This subject has been a huge issue within the club the last four weeks. While Mia is being looked after by all of us, there are concerns for Brooks’ reluctance to have her around.

“I just can’t deal with her questions right now, Beau. She doesn’t understand. How can she? She’s five.” His jaw ticks and his body tenses. Agitation seeps from him, so I don’t push it. I know it’s his way of dealing, who am I to tell him otherwise? I have no idea how I would react in this situation.

“I get it, bro. It’s all good.” The last thing he needs is to be getting worked up, not here in front of Kelly.

“I just need more time. I’m not trying to push her away.”

“No one thinks you are. We just want to make sure you’re both okay.” He doesn’t reply, so I don’t continue pressing it. It’s up to him now.

“Well, I need to head out. You want anything before I go?” I look up at the clock knowing Kadence will be in next. The girls have spaced out their visits throughout the day. Kadence, Holly, Bell, then Mackenzie, followed by the boys. I opt to come early in the morning, less chance of dealing with an agitated Brooks, plus fewer people.

“Nah, I’m good.”

“Okay, I’ll be back later with Kenz.” I stand and step up to Kelly.

“Come on, Kell, you need to knock this shit off and come back to him,” I whisper in her ear, and then gently kiss her cheek. I hold back, almost anticipating her reaction. Like every other day, it doesn’t come and I try not to let it pull me down.

She’ll come to when she’s ready.

“See you, bro.” I walk around the bed and plant my hand on his shoulder. He reaches up and squeezes it tightly for a few seconds, like he is taking in my strength before releasing.

“Look after my girl,” he whispers. I squeeze him back, a silent reply I have it sorted.

Without another word, I walk out and head straight for the bathroom.

I make it just before bringing up my breakfast.

It doesn’t happen every visit.

Only the tough ones.

The problem is the tough ones were becoming more frequent.

“I don’t want to make a big deal with the opening. Let’s keep it simple, quiet, and just have it over with,” I tell Mackenzie later that day while we’re at Missy’s Place getting shit sorted for opening next week.

“Not even a celebration at the clubhouse?” She looks up from her notebook. Kelly and I had planned a run to raise some funds, but we’ll put it off for a bit. Until she wakes.

“Nope, don’t need it. Not with everything going on. Besides we have the fundraiser.” Mackenzie nods, making another note.

“Okay, that’s fine. We also need to go through the list of volunteers. I know you and Kelly had chosen some, but with the postponing of the opening, we may have lost a few.” I stop reading over the list of jobs I have to do before Monday and watch her quietly. She’s sitting across the desk from me on the sofa against the wall, with bare feet, denim jeans, and a black Harley Davidson tee. Her hair is down today in a mass of curls and my hand itches to run my fingers through it. She looks fucking amazing.

Too fucking amazing.

“What’s wrong?” She catches me staring.

“Nothing.” I shake my head and continue to have my fill.

“Then why are you looking at me like that?”

I smile at her as she worries her bottom lip with her top teeth. It’s a quirk of hers I’ve come to love. “Just noticing how beautiful you look today.”

She releases her lip and lets her smile take over her face. “Thanks.” A small spark in her eyes brightens at my compliment.

“It’s good to have you back, darlin’. Here with me. Together.” Ever since the night I shared Missy’s story, I’ve had her back.

My woman came back to me.

“It’s good to be back.” She picks up her pen then drops her head back to her notebook. “We need to set up a meeting with Brie this week, so we know what her expectations are and ours with her.” Brie is our full-time social worker. Before Kelly had her accident, we hired her. When she found out about Kelly, she agreed to hold out until we were ready. Luckily, Brie had no problem waiting an extra six weeks to start.