“You’re overwhelming her, Tate,” William snapped.

Audrey looked over at him, trying to shake her head as Tate said, “No, I’m calming her. She’s scared; I’m trying to treat her like there isn’t a f**king tube down her throat.” Looking back down at Audrey, his eyes softened as he said, “I’m so proud of you, love. You’ve been so strong and I love you so much.”

She nodded, squeezing his hand when really she wanted to scream how sorry she was. She should have never let Levi inside; she should have ignored him, and stayed away. She not only put herself in danger but their baby, and that wasn’t fair. Just then a doctor came in and with a booming voice, he said, “Welcome back, Ms. Parker, so nice to see those gorgeous eyes I’ve heard of.”

Audrey looked up to see the young doctor, looking at her file before sending her a bright grin. He was a nice looking man, and for some reason, he looked really familiar. She just couldn’t place who he was. Moving to the side Tate was on; he came over to her and started to check her vitals. He shined his little light in her eyes before taking her pulse. Once he was done with that, he looked down at her and smiled, “You ready for that tube to come out?”

She nodded eagerly as he chuckled, “I bet you are. I bet everyone is. You have one supportive family.” Audrey sent a loving look at her family before meeting eyes with Tate. He smiled, his hand on her foot as the nurse held a silver plate out for the doctor. “Alright, ready?” Audrey nodded again and he said, “Ok, this may cause you to gag a bit,” he informed her, taking a hold of the tube, “Here we go,” he said and the next thing Audrey knew she was gagging and gasping for air. “All done, good job,” he said giving her another grin, “I’m Dr. Rivera, by the way, Bryan told me to say, ‘Hi’.” When he gave her a quick wink, it all clicked into place as he moved away. He was Bryan Richards’ boyfriend; that was where Audrey knew him from. Audrey smiled brightly but stopped when the pain ripped through her lips. With disregard for her pain, she moved her fingers up to touch her lips and felt the thread that must have been holding her lips together as a nurse came over to put a pair of nose prongs in her nose.

“Things look great folks. One more night up here and if you do well, I’ll send you to the step down unit, and hopefully you’ll be home within the week.”

As everyone thanked him, Audrey moved her hand down to her throat as she cleared it. It was scratchy and uncomfortable, but it was way better than having that damn tube down it. Fallon wrapped her arms around Audrey’s neck hugging her tightly as her body shook with her sobs.

“I was so scared I thought I lost you, Audrey, oh my gosh, I’ve been a mess. I’ve missed you so much,” she cried. Before Audrey could say anything, her mother and father were on her too, kissing and loving on her. She kissed them back, telling them how much she loved them too as they all held each other. When she felt lips along her temple, she looked over to see Lucas grinning at her.

“You’ve given me the scare of my life, thanks.”

“Sorry,” she whispered.

But he shook his head, “You have nothing to be sorry about. I’m just glad I get to see your bright, beautiful face.”

Audrey shared a long look with him as if knowing she had scared him, and that he had been the rock that Fallon needed. They both knew her sister was a drama queen, add in the fact she is pregnant, God bless Lucas’ soul, because he was in for a ride. He gave her a wink, before wrapping his arms around Fallon and holding her tight. She watched them for a moment and was glad that she had made it through the worst moment of her life. When Levi had kneed her in the mouth she had given up. There was no way she could have won and she knew Tate wasn’t coming, but by the grace of God, she made it and she would never take life for granted again. How many times had Tate told her things could end in a matter of seconds? He was so right, and she was blessed she had another chance.

Tate appeared beside her, and leaned down, pressing his lips to hers softly. Her heart skipped a beat and she swore it was like she couldn’t breathe again. She had missed him so much and to feel his lips again was like winning the lottery, or hell, her life back. When they parted, he gave her a large loving smile, showing the gap she thought she’d never see again. “Hi.”

Audrey’s eyes watered as she gave him as much of a smile she could give him, “Hi”

“I have missed the feel of those lips on mine for twelve days now. “

“I was out for twelve days?” she asked hoarsely.

“No, four, but I was gone eight before that. So it’s been a long time.”

Audrey’s mouth quirked up on the side as she nodded, “Way too long. I love you, I’m so sorry.”

“No, don’t be. It’s not your fault,” he said shaking his head, “I love you, too,” he whispered before kissing her softly again.

“Ms. Parker, are you in any pain?” a nurse asked from beside her. Audrey looked up to see her messing with her IV.

“Yes ma’am, a lot.”

“Okay, this should help, but it will probably make you drowsy.”

“Thank you,” Audrey said quietly as the nurse smiled and moved away. Tate moved his chair to her side, sitting down and holding her hand as she looked around the room. Everyone was watching her like she was going to disappear at any second. “So, I guess I should have had a magic show planned for when I woke up, huh?”