He wasn’t alone in his cot and she could feel it, even as she squared her shoulders and marched down the narrow hall toward his door. Jacqueline took a slow, deep breath and closed her eyes for a moment.
Lord, give me the strength I’m going to need to deal with this raging idiot of a man right about now.
His words still stung, made her heart hurt. How dare he think about leaving. That just wasn’t an option. He couldn’t just abandon them out here to their own devices.
“No,” she murmured to herself. “No, he absolutely can’t.”
She pushed open the door.
Phelan was half propped up on an elbow and his head jerked up when the door came open. “Jac,” he said, his voice hoarse. “What are you doing here? J.T. was—”
“I know. I told him that he has to deal with you until you stop thinking about this stupid leaving thing. I won’t be a captive audience and I’m sure not going to help patch you so you can just bolt at the earliest opportunity.”
“I—”
“Unless you’re about to tell me that you’re not going to leave, Phelan, I don’t want to hear it.” She finally closed the door behind her and strode toward him. She could have sworn that she heard the faint sound of female laughter coming from somewhere to the left of Phelan’s bed. She tried to ignore it. There was something else in here with him, but she wasn’t quite sure she wanted to know what it was.
It was the same presence she’d felt vaguely the last few times she’d looked in on him when he was sleeping—something she was fairly confident that he didn’t know she’d done.
“I can’t stay, Jac,” he whispered. “Please, try to understand that.”
“No,” she said firmly. “You need to understand. You have to stay. We need you here.”
I think I need you here, and God knows that should somehow be enough, right?
Right.
He better stay. It’s one mess after another for the community.
Thanks for the post. Good story.