“Let me take you home today.” He moved closer to her bed. “Let me take care of you, Liz. Give me a second chance. If you still feel the same by the time you’re back on your feet, I’ll step away or whatever it is you want from me.”
“Why are you doing this?”
“I told you,” he said solemnly. “Because I want you back.”
“Why? Because of my crash? Because of the baby? Why?”
“Because of you.”
“Me?”
“I love you, Liz.”
How dared he tell her that now? Like this? Especially as he didn’t mean it?
Since they were within reach, she picked up the bouquet and threw them at him as hard as she could. The plastic crinkled loudly as the bouquet smacked into him. “Get out,” she practically screamed. “Get out of here and don’t come back. I’d rather rot in this hospital than to go home with you.”
When the time came for Liz to be discharged, she couldn’t believe Kelly abandoned her to Adam. Her friend hadn’t even looked her in the eyes when she’d come into her room and said she wasn’t going to be able to drive Liz home after all.
There was a conspiracy going on and everyone seemed to be in on it.
Did no one care that she just wanted some peace? To go home and absorb everything that had happened and figure out what she wanted for her future?
Not Adam.
Not after everything that had happened. But, still, there were things she had to figure out. After all, he was the father of her baby.
She slid her hand over her belly. If only Gramps was still alive so she could tell him about the wonderful life growing inside her. Then again, perhaps Gramps would see her baby as a mistake. Just like she’d been her parents’ mistake.
No, Gramps had never seen her as a mistake.
He’d been the only one.
Once upon a time she’d believed Adam saw her as someone special, too, but he definitely saw her as a mistake these days, despite his declaration that morning.
He didn’t love her, was just confused over everything that had happened, including her pregnancy.
Between her car crash and pregnancy, Adam was trapped.
He felt responsible for her, and as she refused to have an abortion he felt responsible for their baby, too. Saying he loved her was Adam’s way of being responsible, trying to take charge of what he considered a bad situation.
She’d like nothing more than to avoid him. Since everyone she called seemed to suddenly be busy, she had no choice but to let Adam drive her if she wanted to go home. She wanted to go home. Desperately.
Kelly helped Liz into a wheelchair, helped position her leg on the leg rest, and gathered Liz’s accumulated belongings.
“You know this is wrong?” she asked Kelly, causing a blush to settle on her friend’s cheeks.
“What?”
Liz rolled her eyes.
Adam took the plastic hospital bag from Kelly, but she shook her head. “You push Liz, and I’ll push the cart with her things.”
Her things included the bouquet of flowers that Liz had wanted to throw away, but Kelly had found a vase for them and salvaged it. Some of the stems were a bit the worse for wear and there were a few missing petals, but overall the bouquet was still beautiful.
Liz averted her gaze. She didn’t want reminders of Adam’s pledge of love. She didn’t believe him. Didn’t even believe that he believed he loved her.
“Make him squirm, but keep an open mind,” Kelly whispered into her ear when they reached the SUV pulled up at the curb.