Page 131 of With A Little Luck
I can’t even fathom it.
The gunshot was bad enough, but actually losing him? It would break me. Not to mention, our daughter would never get to know what an incredible man he is.
I cross my arms over my chest and rest them on my stomach. He and I are going to have a very serious conversation as soon as this meeting is over.
“Well, I feel better knowing that’s handled,” Ridge says, guiding me out of Calder’s office.
“Oh,do you?” I hiss, even though I gave myself a serious pep talk about not addressing this conversation until we were home. Or at the very least, no longer in Ridge’s place of employment.
I don’t even recognize myself anymore.
Before I got pregnant and Ridge got shot, I had a decent amount of decorum. All of that seems to have slithered away about the time I peed myself three feet from the bathroom door when Trigg demanded he check the space for intruders before letting me at the toilet.
I’m going to have a conversation with him about that too.
I stop dead in my tracks, spinning out of Ridge’s hold so I can face him for this conversation. “How about you just don’tdie! Is that a possibility? Because that’s the one I would like to go with.”
Oh, shit.
I’m losing it.
My eyes ache, and as soon as I blink, fat tears spill from my eyes.
“I’m sorry.” I shake my head, glancing away. “I just need you to not die, okay?”
“Sweetheart,” he murmurs, pulling me closer.
I still refuse to meet his gaze.
Yes, I am officially a crazy person, but I feel like that’s at least half his fault. He planted this tiny human in my uterus, and the hormone fluctuations are kicking my ass. Not to mention, I don’t know how to process these emotions. I’m terrified of losing him again when I just found him.
“Mama,” Ridge says, using his hand on his injured arm to tilt my face up as he keeps me in place with his other forearm across my lower back. “I’m not going anywhere. You hear me, Quincy? You’re going to be stuck with my ass for a long time.”
I nod, but the tears keep falling.
Who knew I was this well hydrated?
And here comes the snot…
I’m not sure why any of these guys even put up with me lately. I’m a hot mess, and we all know it.
“I know how much it hurts to move your shoulder,” I whisper. “Don’t injure yourself just to comfort me.” I gentlymove his hand from my chin and bury my face in his chest, sticking to the left side to stay away from his injury. “My system is all out of whack, but you should have warned me before bringing me here.”
“You’re right,” he concedes. “I thought if I did, you might try to back out. You’re really going to hate it when my lawyer comes over tomorrow with the paperwork to get you added to my accounts and the deed to the house, but once it’s done, we never have to talk about any of this again.”
“Ridge…” I don’t even know what to say.
His tobacco, bergamot, and leather scent is everywhere, making my head fuzzy. I need more of it, but I’m just coherent enough to understand he’s injured.
That means I can’t climb him or ask him to pick me up. My system aches to be confined by him. All I want is his strong arms wrapped around me, and my nose buried in his throat.
A whine leaves my lips, and I freeze.
I’m not sure what my system is asking for, but Ridge growls, like maybe he does.
“Come on. You need somewhere to decompress.” His calloused fingers wrap around mine, and he pulls me into the open area of the office. The hallway was smaller and enclosed, and I felt safer there than here.
The main office area is filled with a few small cubicles, a giant whiteboard in the middle of the room with chairs around it, and there are offices lining three walls.
