Ryan’s story makes me smile for the first time in forever. “That’s the sexiest thing about him,” I whisper. “His compassion.”

He shrugs. “I don’t know…he’s got a great ass.”

I laugh. I wouldn’t really know-Luke was sitting down when I had my only chance to see it.

I put my coffee on the bedside table and then lean in and give Luke a peck on the mouth. I’ve made sure to kiss him every chance I get, just in case I don’t get many more chances.

When I pull my lips from his and start to rest my head on his pillow, I hear a quiet noise come from his throat. Ryan leaps out of his chair at the same moment I lift my head back up.

“Did he just make a noise?” Ryan asks, his voice full of disbelief.

“I think so,” I whisper.

Ryan waves his arm toward Luke. “Kiss him again! I think it woke him up!”

I do. I kiss him lightly on the lips again and there’s no mistaking the noise Luke makes this time. He’s definitely waking up.

We both stare at him for a moment while his eyelids flutter open and then shut, several times. “Luke? Can you hear me?” Ryan asks.

Luke finally forces his eyes open, but he doesn’t look directly at Ryan. Instead, his eyes move painfully around the room until he’s looking down at me, curled up at his side. He stares for a moment, and then with a weak voice he whispers, “Kaleidoscope belt buckles see leprechauns when the fog drops it like it’s hot.”

Tears immediately form in my eyes and I have to choke back my cry.

“Oh, God,” Ryan says. “He’s not making any sense. This isn’t good. I’ll go get the doctor.” He runs out of the room before I can tell him that Luke is perfectly fine.

I lift my hand to Luke’s face and touch his lips. I whisper, “Depressed baguettes linger on the playground eating bowls of cereal until the slugs wilt.” My voice cracks with my relief-with my happiness-with my gratefulness. My lips meet his, and even though I know this isn’t good for him and he’s probably in a lot of pain, I hug him wherever I can and kiss him in all the places I can reach on his face and neck. I wrap myself around him, careful to keep my arms and hands away from his injuries. I lay quietly with him while the tears roll down my cheeks.

“Sloan,” he says, his voice gravelly. “I can’t remember what happened after I fucked everything up. Did you end up saving me?”

I laugh and lift up on my elbow. “Not really,” I say quietly. “You shot Asa’s gun out of his hand and then I ran over to you and put pressure on your wound until the paramedics got there. I’d say it was a mutual save.”

He tries to force a smile. “I told you I wasn’t very good at my job,” he says.

I smile in whole-hearted agreement. “It’s not too late to quit, you know. You could go back to school and become a Spanish teacher.”

He winces with his laugh. “That’s not a bad idea, Sloan.”

He struggles to lean forward in order to kiss me, but it takes everything in him. He’s only six centimeters away.

A mere six centimeters between breath and life.

When I close that six-centimeter gap and kiss him, I know I’m closing a chapter. A really dark chapter that I’ve been waiting more than two years to end.

And this kiss is just the beginning of a whole new book. A book where maybe miracles aren’t that far-fetched.

Asa-45

I sit up straight and open my eyes.

Not that I was sleeping. No one could sleep in this goddamn place.

I breathe in through my nose and out my mouth, wondering why it’s just now hitting me.

She didn’t say harder.

She fucking said Carter!

“Fucking whore!”

BWB Editing

EPILOGUE

Sloan

I tap lightly on the door to his hospital room, but no one responds. When I push it open and peek inside, Luke is asleep. The volume to the TV is low, but audible. I glance over to the couch and Ryan is lying on his side, a ball cap covering his eyes. He’s asleep, too.

I hold the door while it closes, not wanting to wake either of them, but Ryan hears me and sits up on the couch. He stretches his arms over his head and yawns, then stands up.

“Hey,” he says “You gonna be here a while?”

I nod. “I’ll probably stay here tonight,” I whisper. “You go get some rest.”

He glances over at Luke again and says, “The doctor came by earlier. Says he’ll get to go home tomorrow, but he’ll need someone to stay with him for a while. He’s on strict bed rest. I would offer, but I’m sure he’d rather you do it.”