Page 146 of Ransom

"That's the part that kills me." I let out a shaky breath. "What if he does? What if there's some treatment out there we don't know about? Some clinical trial or new therapy?"

"And you're worried about pushing too hard versus not trying hard enough?"

"Exactly." I watch Max dump another bucket of water on their latest sand creation. "I want to respect her choices, but..."

"But you also want to grab her by the shoulders and shake some sense into her?"

"Something like that." I manage a weak smile. "I just don't know where the line is between supporting her and giving up on her."

"And now there's Ransom, with all his resources and his need to fix everything."

"Yeah." I close my eyes briefly. "I'm terrified he'll bulldoze in and make everything worse."

"Aunt Blair," Max shouts a second before he grabs my hand. "You gotta come help. They don't know what they're doing. It's a shit show!"

"Yeah, kid, I can see that. I'm coming." I let him tug me away, looking back once to meet Becca's knowing eyes.

It's going to come to a head. I know it.

How am I going to keep everything from imploding?

45

RANSOM

Ilean against the doorframe, watching Blair tuck Max into the guest bed. More sand trickles from my ear as I scratch it. The damn stuff got everywhere. There's still grit in my shorts too, but a shower can wait. I don't want to miss a moment with Blair.

"And then the dragon swooped down..." Max's voice carries through the quiet room as he tells some convoluted story to his stuffed dinosaur. This kid is growing on me. A lot. He's a weird mix of foul language and sweet little boy.

And he shouldn't have to lose his mom. It's so fucking wrong.

Blair smooths his hair back, a gesture so tender it makes my chest ache. "Time to sleep, buddy. We'll see Mom first thing tomorrow."

"Can Ransom come, too?" Max peers around Blair to look at me.

"If he wants to," Blair answers, her voice soft.

I nod. "I’ll be there buddy. Nothing’s more important to me that taking you to see your Mom.”

Max grins and burrows deeper under the covers. Blair kisses his forehead and rises, padding past me in bare feet. I followher downstairs to the kitchen, where she pours herself a glass of water.

The distance between us feels wider than the few feet of tile floor. Something changed between the hospital this morning and now. She's gotten introspective, and I hope like fuck it's not because of me.

But I’m afraid it is.

I step closer, feeling all kinds of needy. "Blair." .

She sets down her glass. "Don't."

"Don't what?"

"Don't look at me like that. Like you're afraid I'm going to disappear." Her fingers trace patterns in the condensation on the glass.

"Aren't you?" The words come out rougher than intended.

"I have responsibilities here. To Max. To Maggie. I can’t run from them."

She can’t run from them. What about me? "I know that. I want to help."

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