Page 26 of Shimmering Emeralds
“Oh, I believe she said it,” Dani confirmed before adding, “I just can’t believe you fell for it.”
My eyebrows cinched together. “Why would she lie?”
“Because she loves you, and she thinks that is what you want, ya’ big dumb dope.”
My ears rang as the blood rushed into my head as I processed Dani’s marvelous words. I didn’t even care that she had called me a disparaging name. If there was any chance that she was right about Meg’s feelings, I had to find out.
Without even bothering to say goodbye to Dani, I jumped up from the bench and jogged back to the hospital.
My mind barely registered when Dani chuckled and yelled after me, “Go get her, Tiger!”
23
Meg
Even after I heard his voice, my mind struggled to believe that Levi had returned to me. I glanced around Harper’s hospital room, wondering if he had forgotten something, but didn’t see anything that might be the culprit.
My mother’s spine stiffened as she narrowed her gaze in Levi’s direction. I felt like smacking her when she said to him, “I think you’ve done quite enough damage to Meg’s fragile heart. It’s time for you to go back where you came from.”
Not only did I not appreciate her pointing out how hurt I was by his departure, it also wasn’t her place to send him away. That was my job, and I kept doing it over and over again, despite my heart’s desperate wishes to the contrary. It was tempting to point out to my busy-body mother that Levi technically came from here, so sending him back to where he came from didn’t accomplish what she seemed to want, but it clearly wasn’t the right time for a snarky response.
Levi looked back and forth between my mother and me as he processed her harsh words. Finally, his gaze landed on me. “Damage? The last thing I would ever want to do is hurt you, Meg.”
“I know,” I admitted quietly, doing my best to force my lips up into a smile. It was true, I did know that Levi didn’t intentionally hurt me. He merely went along with what I pretended to want, since I knew it was what he truly wanted deep down. It would be wonderful, though, if he would choose me over anything else, despite what my sassy mouth claimed to want.
I wondered if my thoughts were etched on my face when Levi said, “I’m not leaving, Meg. Not this time. I can’t be so far away from you. I’ll stay out in the hallway, if that’s what you want, but I need to be nearby.”
Nodding my understanding, I said, “You feel responsible for what happened to Harper.”
“As he should,” Mother chimed in, but she snapped her dusty-mauve lipstick-coated lips closed when I darted a glare in her direction.
“It was an accident, Mother,” I reminded her.
Looking properly chastised, the woman pursed her mouth into a decidedly annoyed expression, but she didn’t say anything further.
Getting back to my point, I turned to Levi and added, “You feel responsible, but you’re not, and you don’t need to stay here every moment. I’ll let you know of any updates with her condition, I promise.”
“Iamresponsible for all of this,” he splayed his hands to indicate our surroundings, “And I’m frightened half-to-death about Harper’s health, but she’s not the only reason I want to be here.”
My heart pounded like a bass drum in my chest as I lifted one brow and waited for him to elaborate. I couldn’t help but hope that I had something to do with his desire to stay, but I’d been hurt by this particular scenario before when he ultimately decided to leave, so I tried to quell my relentlessly hopeful side.
“I miss you so much and want to be with you. No amount of success means anything without you in my life, Meg.”
Some stubborn, bitter side took over my behavior and wouldn’t allow me to accept his marvelous words at face value. “I’m sure you have plenty of groupies in Nashville that will be happy to fill any void the absence of having me in your life creates.”
I crossed my arms over my chest, unsure why I was being so hateful when he was saying exactly what I wanted to hear.Why couldn’t I just let my sky-high walls crumble and accept his loving words? I wanted nothing more than to open my heart to the man I’d always loved and spent the last several years missing desperately.
Levi’s expression fell. “No one else can even come close to replacing you, Meg––especially not meaningless flings.”
I couldn’t keep from wincing at his admission that he’d had trysts with fans. Of course, I’d assumed that he was dating and enjoying his life in Nashville, but having his verbal confirmation of it stung worse than the time when I’d accidentally stepped on a wasp with my bare foot.
The fact that I hadn’t dated anyone seriously since Levi had left was a secret I would take to my grave. I glared at my mother, sending her a silent warning not to run her mouth and reveal more to him than I wanted him to know. I gritted my teeth together in concern that she might be preparing to do just that when she stood and moved in front of Levi.
Punching her pointer finger into his chest, she said, “I can’t believe you have the nerve to stand here and brag about all of your one-night stands, while my poor daughter has been all alone here for years, never dating, and––for some reason I can’t begin to imagine––missing you.”
“Mom!” I half-shouted, not quite able to believe how pathetic she made my life sound to Levi. I bugged my eyes out at her in a silent reprimand, hoping that she would take the heavy-handed hint and shut up. Normally, I was desperate for her to take a more active role in my life, but right now, I just wanted her to be quiet and go away.
Levi’s gaze darted to me, but then landed on Harper’s bed just behind me. He stared at the tiny child for a long moment before saying in a low tone, “I could swear her hand just twitched.”
