Forever (Always & Forever 2)

“That was a different response than I expected.”

“Why’s that?” Landon tried for casual as he took his own sip of the strong brew.

“I’m not sure why except I’m new to the idea of believing in signs. It’s been hard because my personality needs to see the proof of things. Were you able to read anymore?” he asked, nodding to the book on the tray, changing the subject—a subject he clearly was uncomfortable with.

Movement at his door caught Landon’s attention as Dr. Adams pushed away from the chair to reach for the paperback on the tray. There were two female med techs—one being Holly—hovering in the hall, peering through the doorway. They were in stealth mode, peeking around the edge of the doorframe. They pointed at Dr. Adams as smiles broke out on their faces right before giving him an encouraging thumbs up.

Thank goodness for his olive complexion. Landon would have turned ten shades of red for how dumb they were being.

“I could read to you. I’ve wanted to read this.” Dr. Adams’s offer caught him off guard, making him forget all about Holly and her friend.

“I don’t wanna put you out,” Landon replied immediately only because his southern manners kicked in, but he instantly liked the idea.

The doctor looked over the book, both front and back, before he flipped through the pages. “You aren’t. Most of the time I don’t really feel needed around here. I just come in early because I’ve got nothing else to do.”

“I feel like I’m the only patient on this ward. It’s so quiet,” he said, watching as Dr. Adams ran a hand down the seam of the paperback on the first page of the prologue.

“Not the only one, but close.” Dr. Adams looked up at him with his gentle smile back in place. “Can I start from the beginning?”

“Yeah, I struggled with the pages so bad I got pissed off. Who knows what I read?”

The doctor nodded before looking down again. He cleared his voice and began to read. “Prologue, ‘We should start back,’ Gared urged…”

Oh yeah, the doc’s reading voice was the shit. Landon placed his half empty cup on the tray and settled back on the bed. For the next two hours, his room was filled with the deep cultured sound of Dr. Adams’s sexy voice enticing him with the intricately woven story. Landon couldn’t even be bothered by the fact Holly and her friend found a reason to walk past his room about every ten minutes, peering inside to watch what they were doing. By the end of chapter four Landon was completely relaxed. The usual chaos running through his head was gone. He lay there staring at Dr. Adams as the hypnotic cadence of his voice came to an end and didn’t continue.

“It’s excellent. Just like my dad said.”

“Yeah. So much better without the frustration on trying to turn the pages. Thank you,” Landon offered, truly grateful for the help and companionship.

“I bet. Do you have a bookmark or do you want me to dog-ear the page?” For the first time since Dr. Adams had looked down at the book, his bright blue eyes lifted to Landon. The sweaty guy who had entered the room was now dry and looked appealingly rumpled. His blond hair had a natural wave, and Landon’s fingers itched to run through the silky strands. Dr. Adams was handsome…and kind, and Landon couldn’t help his gentle smile of appreciation.

“It’s in the back of the book. My uncle sent it to me. Said he saw it sitting on the book and it caught his attention.”

Dr. Adams thumbed through the pages until he found the thin metal bookmark.

“He believes in signs and that’s why he sent me this particular book. The whole reacting to signs thing from earlier… I’ve watched my uncle do it for years. People think it’s weird, but he’s right more often than not.”

Dr. Adams lifted the bookmark from the book. Light reflected off the thin metal feather. The doctor’s eyes brightened as he studied the intricate design. “A feather, huh? I don’t think it’s weird at all. I’m trying hard to readjust my thought processes. I’m trying to go with it.”

Landon gave a humorless laugh at the silliness, not believing for a second there was truth in Dr. Adams’s words. The way he studied the feather, the look of doubt creasing his brow, the purse of his lips all stated the true direction of the doctor’s thoughts. One thing Landon knew for sure: Robert Adams was a gentleman, nice enough to sit with Landon for hours reading. Of course, he wouldn’t verbally disagree, but Landon didn’t have those same innate manners.

“My uncle believes they’re a spiritual guide. He’s a librarian in the town we live in. He lived with my parents when I was a child, so I grew up listening to him talk about all the mystical and spiritual signs we dismiss every day. When I was younger, I thought everybody believed the things he said. It wasn’t until I was in high school that I found out people thought he belonged in the looney bin. Got in plenty of fistfights over that one.” Landon remembered more than one fight he’d had defending his uncle’s honor. It wasn’t as gallant as it sounded. Back then, he’d have gone to blows with the devil himself for just giving him the side-eye, all in an effort to prove his manhood.