How Much I Care (Miami Nights Book 2)

by Marie Force

  “Believe it or not, she’s Everly’s bone marrow donor.”

  “Wow, that’s amazing.”

  “It’s been pretty great. She’s the sweetest person. Once we were allowed to finally talk freely, we haven’t really stopped since.”

  “Does she live near you?”

  “No, she’s in Miami, so Ev and I and my folks are going to spend the winter down there, but after today, I’m anxious about being so far from her doctor.”

  “They have doctors in Miami, Austin.”

  “That’s what Maria said, too. She’s a nurse. She said she’ll keep a close eye on Everly.”

  “Then it sounds like you have all your bases covered, no pun intended. Remember how we’ve talked about Everly and her illness and how her journey is going to play out regardless of what you do or don’t do?”

  “I remember.” Letting go of the notion that I could control any aspect of this situation has taken time and effort on my part.

  “We talked about the things you can do every day to keep her safe and healthy, and I’m sure you’re all over that.”

  “I am.”

  “The rest is simply out of your hands.”

  “Intellectually, I know that. Emotionally, however…”

  “She’s your little girl, and the thought of her being sick again is unbearable.”

  “Right.” I’m furious at the tears that fill my eyes, threatening to suck me back into the undertow of helplessness I lived with for months during the worst of Everly’s illness. There is, literally, nothing worse than watching your child suffer and being powerless to fix it for them.

  “She’s not sick again. She has an ear infection, and in a day or two, she’s going to be right back to herself.

  “Thanks for the reminder.”

  “I know it’s very difficult to pull yourself out of these spirals once they take hold, but keep thinking about all the positive things in your life. Everly is healthy. You’ve got this exciting new relationship that’s making you happy. Your career is thriving. Everything is good, Austin. It’s better than good. It’s wonderful. Keep your eye on the positive things even when the negative is calling to you.”

  “I’m trying.”

  “I feel for you. You’ve been through hell, and it’s going to take a while to get over waiting for the sky to fall on you. Be kind to yourself.”

  “Thanks for taking the time today. I appreciate it.”

  “I’m here any time you need me.”

  “I appreciate that, too.”

  “Keep me posted on how you and Everly are doing, and best of luck in the off-season. I’m hoping you get everything you deserve.”

  “Thanks.” Her comment reminds me of messages from Aaron that I need to deal with at some point.

  “Take care.”

  “You, too.” I end the call and take a few minutes to try to find my chill, which has been missing since I realized Everly was feverish earlier. Lois has been such a great source of help and sanity to me while Everly was sick and since she’s recovered. I can’t imagine where I’d be without her, my parents, my brothers, my friends and teammates who surrounded me and Ev with so much love and support during the best and worst of times.

  Lois is right. Things are going my way again. The months of hell are behind us, and only good things are ahead. Despite the fever and ear infection, Everly is healthy and thriving, and that’s all that matters. I can handle anything else as long as she’s okay.

  My mom texts that Dad is back with Everly’s prescription and dinner is ready.

  I go to the sofa to rouse Everly with kisses to her cheek, which feels cooler than it did an hour ago. When her eyes pop open, the first thing she says is, “Rie?”

  Smiling, I tell her, “Not yet, Pooh. But soon. Very, very soon.”

  Chapter 22

  MARIA

  I’m off my game at work after the call from Austin. I mess up two orders and spill a cosmopolitan down the front of me, leaving my white shirt stained. As soon as things die down a bit with the dinner rush, I take a break, go into the ladies’ room and wash my hands, which are sticky from the sugary drink.

  Carmen comes in after me.

  I’ve been so busy, I haven’t been able to talk to her or Jason while they eat dinner at the bar with my parents.

  “Dude, you’re a hot mess tonight. What’s going on?”

  “Everly spiked a fever on the flight to Baltimore, and Austin was losing it when I talked to him. She’s fine, but it’s left us both rattled.”

  “Understandably so. What can I do for you?”

  “Nothing. She’s okay, so I’m okay. How are you? One week until the big day!”

  “I’m all good, just concerned about you.”

  “I love her so much,” I whisper. “So, so much.”

  Carmen hugs me. “She’s wonderful and sweet, and she loves her Rie, too.”

  “It’s all so big.” I pull back from her and place my hand on my heart, which feels too large for my chest lately. “With her and with him.”

  “I know that feeling. It’s kind of scary, right?”

  “Terrifying, but also the best thing ever.”

  “That sounds about right.”

  “How do people survive falling in love like this?”

  “I asked myself that question when I was first with Jason and beginning to realize what he was going to mean to me. It’s always such a big risk to open your heart to feelings as big as what you’re experiencing for Austin and Everly. But I’ve found the payoff to be worth the gamble, twice now.”

  The pager on my belt buzzes to let me know I have food up in the kitchen. “Duty calls. Thank you for checking on me.”

  “Let’s have a drink after your shift.”

  “Sounds good. And let me know what I can do for you this week.”

  “I will.”

  I finish my shift, cash out with nearly four hundred dollars in tips and join my family for a quick drink at the bar before I head home. I can’t wait to talk to Austin and check on Everly and just be with him, even if being with him isn’t the same when he’s not here. I wish they were still at the hotel and I could sleep with his arms around me.

  After a quick shower, I put on a robe and check my phone to find an email from him, sent an hour ago.

  Dear Maria,

  Today has been a really, really long day. I feel like it’s been a month since I left you this morning. I’m glad you enjoyed the breakfast, and thanks for letting me spoil you a little. You deserve it!

  Ev is doing much better. The fever is down to 99.9 from 102 earlier, and she’s much perkier than she was. Hopefully, the antibiotic will kick in overnight and fix her right up. I’ll admit that I’ve been hitting the whiskey tonight. Sometimes that’s the only thing that takes the edge off the anxiety. Hearing that she’s still in remission after fearing a relapse was such a relief, but the sick feeling of dread and fear is hard to shake. I’m working on it, though!

  I hope you had a good night at work. Hit me up on FaceTime when you get home.

  I miss you. I love you. I can’t wait to get back to you.

  Austin

  Moved to tears by his heartfelt words, I put through the FaceTime call.

  He comes on the screen, smiling and happy to see me, but he looks exhausted. “Hey.”

  “How’re you doing?” I take in the sight of his bare chest and the handsome face that just does it for me.

  “I’m okay, and Everly was much better by bedtime.”

  “I just read your email. I’m so glad the fever is down and she’s perked up. We need her full of beans.”

  “Right? I talked to Lois, the shrink, had dinner with my parents and Ev and talked to my brothers. I’m better than I was. But I still wish you were here.”

  “I do, too. I’m sorry you had such a rough day.”

  “I suppose it’s bound to happen. All that matters is that she’s still in remission.”

  “Right, but you matter, too, and I know this was awful for
you.”

  “I’m coping and staying focused on the positive, including getting back to you as soon as I possibly can. I packed all my stuff tonight, and if Ev is better tomorrow, we’ll head out Monday morning, first thing. I looked online. It’s sixteen hours.”

  “That’s a long time in the car with a three-year-old.”

  “We’ll be okay. I loaded a bunch of her favorite videos and shows on the iPad, and she’s got her books and music.” He takes a sip from a glass full of amber-colored liquor. “How was work?”

  I hold up my ruined uniform shirt. “This is how it was.”

  “Whoa! What happened?”

  “I was off my game tonight.” That’s putting it mildly.

  “How come?”

  “I was worried about Everly and you and just… everything.”

  “I’m sorry we messed with your game.”

  “I’m not sorry. I always want to know what’s going on with you guys.”

  “I hate being away from you, and it’s only been one very long day.”

  “Same.”

  “I pulled the trigger on the Gable Estates house. It’s all ours as of this coming Friday.”

  “You guys can stay with me if you get back before then.”

  “We’ll be back before then.”

  We chat for two hours, until we’re both yawning our heads off and have no choice but to say good night.

  I power through the next few days—brunch with the family on Sunday and work on Monday. Everly is still a bit droopy on Monday, so Austin decides to give her one more day before they hit the road. By Tuesday, she’s much better, and they leave Baltimore early that morning, making it to Georgia before stopping for the night. I’m giddy at work on Wednesday, knowing they’ll be here sometime today.

  After work, I hit the grocery store and go home to make dinner while I wait for them. The last time I talked to Austin, they were in traffic in West Palm Beach, and the GPS was showing ninety minutes to my house. That last hour and a half goes by so slowly, I’m about to crawl out of my skin.

  A light knock on my door has me flying across the room and letting out a happy scream when I see Everly there, holding a bunch of flowers in her pudgy little hands.

  “Rie! Flowers!”

  I’m so happy to see her, I weep. I pick her up and swing her around, nearly crushing the flowers that I manage to rescue at the last second. I put them on the counter and hug her as Austin comes in after her with two bags hooked over his shoulder and Everly’s backpack in hand.

  I’ve never in my life been so glad to see anyone. They were gone for five days, but it felt like a lifetime. In those five days, something became very clear to me: I’ll follow him—them—to the ends of the earth if it means I get to be with them every day. At some point, I probably ought to tell him that.

  I put Everly down and walk into Austin’s outstretched arms.

  “There you are,” he says, sounding as relieved as I am to be back together.

  I cling to him. “Was it really only five days?”

  “Felt like a hundred.” He pulls back to kiss me—a light caress of lips against lips in deference to our little audience, but it makes me shiver with pleasure. “To be continued later. Everly, quit running around.”

  “It’s fine. She’s probably thrilled to be out of the car.”

  “We both are. That was a long-ass drive.”

  “Rie! Ass!”

  I rock with silent laughter as Austin looks at me with horror.

  “Don’t say that, Pooh. Dada said a bad word.”

  “Rie?”

  “No, the other one.”

  “Ass, ass, ass!”

  I’m beside myself, trying to hold in the laughter, the joy, the love. They’re back, and everything in my world is right again.

  AUSTIN

  After dinner, we take Everly to a park to play and run off some of her pent-up energy from being in the car for two days. We bring her back to Maria’s around eight, give her a bath and read four stories to her before she finally falls asleep in Maria’s bed around nine. We’ll move her to the sofa when it’s time for us to go to bed.

  For now, we sneak out, leaving the door propped so we can hear her if she wakes up.

  “Phew,” I say when we’re in the living room. “I thought she’d be with us until midnight.”

  “She’s the cutest thing on the entire planet.”

  “I agree. Come to me, hug me, kiss me, put me out of my misery.”

  She walks into my arms, and we hold on to each other for the longest time. I have no idea how long because time ceases to exist when I’m with her. It’s just her and me and us and the perfection we’ve found with each other.

  “I couldn’t wait to get back to you. Every mile of that drive was torturous.”

  “I’ve been on pins and needles for days, waiting for you to get back.” She pulls back and looks up at me. “I realized something while you were gone.”

  “What’s that?”

  She draws me down so she can kiss the furrow between my brows. “Nothing bad. It’s actually something really good.”

  Taking her hand, I lead her to the sofa, and we sit together, arms and legs intertwined. “Tell me.”

  “I don’t care where you end up. I’m going with you.”

  This is the best news she could’ve given me. “Really?”

  She nods. “I can’t be away from you guys for months on end. I just can’t.”

  “That’s really great, because I can’t stand to be away from you, either, and neither can Ev. She drove me mad asking for Rie the whole time we were away from you, even though she talked to you on FaceTime every day.”

  “It wasn’t enough for me, either. I just love her so damned much.”

  “She loves you, too.”

  “When she started with the ‘ass’ business earlier… I’m going to be a terrible influence on her, because I can’t stop the laughter.”

  “That was funny. And horrifying.”

  “Your face was so priceless.”

  “My little girl was swearing like a sailor!”

  “We have to watch everything we say around her going forward.”

  “I know.” I curl a strand of her long hair around my finger, fascinated by her curls and the silky texture. Hell, I’m fascinated by every single thing about this amazing woman. “What’ve you got going the rest of the week?”

  “My sister gets here tomorrow, and the bachelorette party is tomorrow night. Rehearsal and rehearsal dinner on Friday night and then the wedding on Saturday. It’s going to be a crazy few days.”

  “It’ll be fun, though, right?”

  “Oh yeah. I’m super excited to celebrate with Carmen and Jason.”

  “My parents will be here by Friday, so we’re set with babysitters for the weekend.”

  “This is very good news. I’m looking forward to having you all to myself.”

  “Don’t make any plans for after the wedding,” I tell her.

  “What’re you up to?”

  “You’ll find out.” I kiss her because I can’t wait another second.

  She responds with equal ardor, and we end up stretched out on her sofa, arms around each other, trying to get closer the way we always do. I can never get close enough to her. “I think it might be time to move Everly and go to bed. I’m wiped out after that long drive.”

  Smiling, Maria presses against my hard cock, making me whimper. “I can tell how worn out you are.”

  “Flat-out exhausted.” I flash a dirty grin as I pull myself up and off her to relocate Everly to the sofa.

  Maria covers her with Everly’s favorite blanket and tucks her in with tender care before kissing her.

  We go into her room, pulling off clothes as we go, and come together on her bed with an urgency I’ve never felt so strongly, even with her. I need this woman the way I need air and food. I need her so badly, we skip all the preliminaries and go right to the main event.

  “Yes, Austin… Yes.”

/>   Being inside her feels like coming home to the safest, happiest, most secure place I’ve ever been. I wrap my arms around her and hold on tight to the best thing to ever happen to me. She’s right up there with Everly, and I can’t wait to see what’s ahead for us as we go forward together.

  “I love you,” I whisper in her ear. “I love you so much. Being away from you was hell.”

  “Same, same. I love you, too.”

  “Marry me, Maria.” The words are out before I take even a second to consider what I’m saying, but I don’t regret it. That’s what I want. She’s what I want. I’ve known that since the first time I ever talked to her, before I knew her name or had seen her face or experienced her love firsthand. I want us to be a family.

  She gasps, her eyes fly open, and she goes still under me. “What?”

  I press deep inside her and gaze down at her, so lovely and sweet and sexy and perfect. “I love you. Everly loves you. Marry us. Be our family. Be our everything.”

  Blinking rapidly, she tries to contain tears that spill down her cheeks. “I, ah… Are you really asking me that?”

  I push even deeper into her, making us both gasp from the intensity of what we feel when we’re together this way. “I’m really asking.” Bending my head, I draw her nipple into my mouth, giving a gentle tug that has her internal muscles clamping down on my cock. It’s all I can do to hang on when that happens. “Marry me, sweet Maria. I’ll give you the world.”

  “I only want you and Ev.”

  “Is that a yes?” I can barely breathe as I wait for her to say the only word I want to hear.

  “Yes.”

  I squeeze her so tightly. “Best word ever.”

  “We can’t tell anyone until after Carmen’s wedding. This is her big week.”

  “I can live with that. Are you really going to marry me?”

  “Yes, Austin, I’m really going to marry you.”

  “Can I come see your clinic tomorrow?”

  “Sure.”

  “Good, now what do you say we finish what we started here?”

  “Mmm, I say yes to that, too.”

  “Yes is my new favorite word.” There’s nothing quite like finding that one person who completes you, who loves your child as much as you do, who makes you feel like you’re the king of the world when you’re with her, as if anything is possible. I know without any doubt that I’ll be safe with this woman, that my child will be safe with her. At the end of the day, what else matters?