Page 62 of Married to Murder
“Exactly. But my dad was no saint. Not by a long shot. And tonight, Gordon was willing to die for me. That’s not something most people are willing to do for someone they barely know.” I sighed. “I have to ask myself, is the world better off with a man like Gordon in it? Or worse off? The answer seems obvious, in which case putting a man like Gordon behind bars suddenly feels so wrong.”
He dropped his chin to his chest. “I’ll support you, no matter what you decide.”
I squeezed his fingers. “That means everything to me.”
The surgeon came down the hallway toward us, and we stood as he neared. He looked tired as he stopped in front of us. “Gordon is out of surgery.” He bit his lip. “He lost a lot of blood, but we got the bullet and stabilized his shoulder. Things look pretty good at the moment.”
“So he’ll be okay?” Seth asked hopefully.
“I believe so. I don’t like to give guarantees since things like age and general health can come into play. But as things stand, he’s doing very well.” He pulled his cap off, leaving his thinning hair standing up in all directions. “He’s in recovery right now. It’s going to be a few hours before you can see him. You look pretty exhausted. You should go home and get some rest. By the time you get back, you might be able to talk to him.”
“I don’t want to leave him.” Seth lifted his chin stubbornly.
The doctor’s gaze softened. “I know. But honestly, he’s sound asleep. There’s nothing you can do for at least a few hours.”
I put my hand on the small of Seth’s back. “Let’s go get some sleep, and then we’ll come right back.”
Seth glanced at me, and maybe I looked so exhausted he took pity on me. “Okay.”
“Thanks for telling us how he’s doing,” I said to the surgeon.
“No problem.” He smiled and walked back the way he’d come.
Seth rubbed his face roughly. “I wish this was all just a bad dream.”
“Me too.” I put my arm around his shoulders, and we made our way to the elevators that would take us to the parking structure.
We decided to go to the beach house we’d rented since neither of us wanted to stay at the shop where all the drama had just taken place. When we entered the quiet little rental, we made our way upstairs to the master bedroom. Off in the distance there was the crash of the waves hitting the beach. I still remembered how happy we’d been when we’d found this little gem to rent. But we’d yet to spend the night here because of my dad’s murder. Sometimes the day of our wedding seemed like a million years ago so much had happened since.
Seth sat on the edge of the mattress. “I’m beat.”
“Me too.” I pulled off my shirt and tossed it onto the floor in the corner of the room because I hadn’t thought to buy a laundry basket yet. I toed off my shoes and dropped my jeans. Stepping out of them, I kicked them away tiredly. Wearing just my underwear, I crawled under the blankets.
He stood and stripped down to his briefs too, then pulled back the covers and joined me in the bed. He immediately moved up to me, tangling his legs with mine. The intimate gesture made me happy. I was so afraid he’d hate me forever if I decided to ask Gordon to come clean about what had happened with my dad. But right now, with his muscled body folded into mine, everything felt perfect. Nothing else seemed to matter so long as Seth was here, in my arms where he belonged.
Chapter Twenty-One
Seth
When Tanner and I walked into the hospital room, my heart ached at the sight of Gordon looking frail and small in the bed. He’d always been such a big, gregarious presence, seeing him weak and vulnerable was painful. There were IVs coming from his arms, and a machine beeped softly off to the side.
As I stood beside the bed, his eyes fluttered open. When he recognized me, he gave a weak smile, and his fingers twitched.
I covered his hand with mine. “How are you feeling?”
He cleared his throat. “Like… like a bull kicked me.” His voice was raspy, and he gestured to the water pitcher on the side table.
Tanner poured him a glass of water, and when he handed it to him, Gordon’s mouth drooped. “Hey, Tanner. How are you?”
Tanner gave a gruff laugh. “How am I? You’re the one we’re worried about.”
Grimacing, Gordon sipped from the little paper cup with shaking hands. He wiped at his chin where some water had dribbled, and I took the cup from him before he spilled it all over himself. He was definitely still a little out of it.
“They got the guy, right?” Gordon frowned. “I don’t remember much after the gun went off.”
“Yeah, they got him.” I nodded.
Gordon sighed, resting his head against the pillow. “I don’t even know what to say.” He slid his wary gaze to Tanner. “I don’t suppose you’ve made a decision about what you’d like me to do?”
