You'll Never Be Lonely

by Madison Sevier

  “It’s just so beautiful! I can’t help it. I’m bawling like a baby over a sunset! I feel like I’ve been transformed and I can’t explain it. All I know is I never want to lose this sense of peace and completeness. I want to feel like this for the rest of my life.”

  “You want to cry for the rest of your life?” he teased.

  “No, silly.” She giggled and hiccupped. “I want to feel this connected. I want to feel like I belong. I never want to feel like I’m all alone in the world again. I love you, Hank. At first, I wasn’t sure whether getting married was the best idea. Now, I know it’s the most wonderful thing that’s ever happened to me. You sending me threats over that book review, water-logging my laptop, causing me to drop my phone and lying to me resulted in more than I could ever hope for. How crazy would that sound to everyone else?”

  “Um, I love you, too. But, I didn’t really…”

  “I know. You didn’t know the reviewer was me. And you didn’t intend to destroy my things, but you did and I’m glad you did.”

  Hank laughed and pulled her into his arms. “I truly do love you and I promise you’ll never, ever be lonely. Got it? Never.”

  Kallie had no idea why she was such an emotional mess but for now, she just didn’t care. As long as Hank didn’t run away screaming from the sight of her with mascara running down her tear-stained face, she’d be happy.

  They lingered on the overlook for a long time, kissing and holding each other. Even at five thousand feet above the rest of the world, Kallie had never felt safer than she did in that moment.

  As the sun fell further below the mountaintops, the temperature dropped with it and they turned back toward the cabin.

  “I’m starving, how about you?”

  “You have quite the appetite today. Are you sure you’re happy? I remember you saying you usually only eat a lot when you’re depressed. Should I be worried?”

  “I’m perfectly happy, Hank. It’s probably just because of the excess energy I’ve used today. Besides, I’m going to use a lot more of it once I get you inside, so I suggest you feed me, husband.” Wicked playfulness danced across her face as she took off in a sprint, racing Hank to their cabin.

  Once inside, Kallie made quick work of dicing some veggies while Hank fired up the grill. An easy meal of brats, peppers, onions and fried potatoes was just what they needed. After dinner, they sat on the deck talking and counting stars.

  “I’ll never stop being mesmerized by the beauty here.”

  “Neither will I.” Hank squeezed her hand and rubbed her wedding ring finger with the pad of his thumb as he undressed her with his eyes.

  Kallie knew he was complimenting her and as his wife, she should thank him. But old habits die hard and Kallie fought the urge to shrink back into herself. Instead of saying anything, she simply averted her gaze and changed the subject. She had no idea why she couldn’t control her moods. One moment hot, the next lukewarm.

  “So, let’s talk about where we’re going to spend the next fifty or so years together.”

  “I’ve got the perfect place in mind.” In one quick move, Hank stood, scooped her into his arms and carried her to the sofa inside. They made great use of the small living room, making love well into the early morning hours.

  * * * *

  Hank’s phone began ringing around eight in the morning. Groggy and naked, he stumbled around blindly looking for the noisy contraption that seemed to control most of his waking hours. He was on his honeymoon! Who the hell would be calling him? His agent knew where he was and if it was something about some damned edits, Hank would surely wring her neck!

  “Hello!”

  “Good morning, Hank. How are you?”

  “Jackie? You know I’m on my honeymoon, so I was just fine until you called. This had better be good.”

  “Well, it is. Your book has been picked up by a major production company and they want to start filming right away. But they’re requesting a sit-down meeting to go over the contracts with you. And it has to be today.”

  “What? Today? I’m busy today, obviously!”

  He knew he should be overjoyed at this incredible opportunity, not to mention the income it would bring him and Kallie. But, he didn’t want to leave. He belonged with Kallie.

  “Yes, today. If you can’t get there, the deal will be off the table. The man has money to burn and he isn’t shy about moving on to another project. I suggest you get your ass on a plane.”

  “Why can’t you go to the meeting for me? Isn’t that what I pay you for?”

  “No. Mr. Abrams made it perfectly clear that you are to attend. Not me, not your dead brother’s ghost. Only you.”

  “Fine. I’ll get Kallie and myself packed and we’ll be on the next flight out.”

  “Kallie cannot come along. It’s business Hank, and I figured you’d know that. Your plane ticket is waiting for you and you’re scheduled to leave out of Knoxville in an hour. Get moving.”

  “Kallie’s going.”

  “No she isn’t, Hank. This man doesn’t have time for your honeymoon. Get there, have the meeting and you’ll be back before she can even miss you. Remember, this is for both of you. Your career is riding on this. So is mine. Get on that plane alone.”

  Jackie hung up and sent the itinerary to his cell phone. If everything went according to schedule, Hank figured he could be back on the red-eye flight that evening and Los Angeles would be a distant memory. He’d be back in his wife’s arms where he belonged in no time.

  “What do you mean you’re leaving? Hank, this is our honeymoon! Can’t it wait?”

  Hank knew Kallie would be upset and so was he. “Jackie says it can’t. If I don’t go, I could lose this contract. Making my brother’s story into a movie is an amazing opportunity. The profit will be insane. I’ll go to the meeting and hop on the late-night flight back here. You won’t even know I’m gone. I promise.”

  He kissed his wife and held her as long as he could before dashing out the door. On his way to the airport, he remembered he hadn’t told Kallie he loved her before he left.

  * * * *

  Within an hour’s time, Kallie was going stir-crazy. She showered and dressed in comfortable clothes, tied her running shoes and headed out for a walk. She found herself at the place where she and Hank had first made love a few short weeks ago. The beautiful waterfall seemed more public than she’d remembered. How they hadn’t been caught by hikers, she’d never know. From where Kallie now stood, she could see right into the cavern where Hank had pinned her to the wall as he spilled his seed into her.

  She felt heat creep across her face as a family of four cautiously navigated the rocky ridge. Kallie took her camera, a wedding present from Hank, out of its carrying case and captured a few shots of the water cascading over the edge and into the ravine below. Carefully, she inched closer and closer to the ledge, wondering if her old phone was still lying at the bottom of that rock wall.

  “Who would’ve thought a man like Hank would love a klutz like me?”

  Kallie shook her head as she remembered the look on Hank’s face when she’d berated him for his carelessness. Of course, she’d known at the time that it wasn’t his fault her phone had tumbled over the edge. It was hers. If she had been paying attention to more than the picturesque view, she’d have been prepared for his sudden arrival. Hank had taken her rude comments and still he’d smiled. Looking back, she realized he’d stood there grinning like a man truly smitten. At the time, she’d believed him to be a smartass, a prankster. Now, she knew different. Kallie could only imagine what the scene would’ve looked like to anyone passing by. Luckily, that day, they’d been alone on top of the ridge.

  The massive waterfall sent thousands of gallons of crisp, clear water cascading over several ledges before it pooled around Kallie’s feet and poured over one final plateau into the ravine below. Kallie watched as light danced across the many water droplets that bounced into the air creating a fine mist everywhere.

  “It’s
heavenly here. I’ve never smelled anything so pure.”

  Kallie felt the serene escape must be magical. Standing there, every trouble, every worry she felt just disappeared into the mist.

  “Like a baptism for the soul. No wonder so many people flock here.”

  She took a few more pictures and checked each one in the viewing window of the camera to be sure she’d captured the true essence of the falls. After grabbing a few shots of the skyline, she placed the camera back in its bag.

  “For safekeeping. Lesson learned.” She giggled.

  Kallie stood there on the precipice allowing the magic of The Smokies to fill her soul. So lost in the beauty that enveloped her, she tuned out everything except the sound of the waterfall. Forgotten was the pain she’d felt when Hank had stood her up and his failure to call her was forgiven. After he’d shown up at her office and explained what had happened, Kallie had felt like such a bitch for being so angry to begin with.

  She’d never been so emotionally attached to anyone so quickly before and those feelings scared her. From the moment she’d set eyes on Hank at the resort swimming pool, Hank had gotten under Kallie’s skin. After he’d soaked her laptop with his childish antics, albeit accidentally, Kallie couldn’t resist the man. Sure she’d put on a brave show, summoning the defensive, bitchy side within her, but only because until then, no man as handsome as Hank would’ve given her the time of day. Kallie had been used to being on her own. Her career became her life and for years she’d told herself she was happy, content. But deep down, Kallie knew better. She’d been a miserable woman on her way to Spinstertown. Luckily, Hank had seen through her façade and saved her from ever boarding that train.

  Now that they were married, she still couldn’t believe it. Regardless of Hank’s brave showing earlier that morning, she knew he was worried about what his agent would say. Kallie had met Jackie Jameson at another author’s book signing a few years ago before she’d ever even heard of Stanton Foley or Hank Fogle. What should’ve been a pleasant meeting between two women who loved the written word, resulted in Kallie accidentally spilling her cup of coffee all over Jackie’s stack of papers. Of course the papers were contracts for another author and though Kallie had apologized and even sopped up the liquid as best as she could, Jackie had screamed at her in front of everyone in attendance. Since that meeting, every time they ran into each other, Jackie gave her evil glares and ignored her. She imagined Jackie rolling her eyes on the other side of the phone when Hank had insisted Kallie come along. It filled her with pride to see a man, her man, standing up for her. Other than her boss, J.B., no man had ever defended Kallie.

  “Thank goodness neither of us have family to explain all of this to.”

  Again, Kallie’s heart sped up when she thought about how her boss had set this entire thing in motion. If he hadn’t sent Kallie to The Smokies to take time off, she never would’ve met Hank.

  “I still can’t believe Hank was the crazed author I needed a break from.”

  It still amused her to think J.B., known to others as Joseph Blake, could’ve orchestrated the entire thing. Over the years, J.B. had become the closest thing to family Kallie had.

  “He’ll be so thrilled at this. I’m surprised he wasn’t waiting for us at the little chapel.”

  Kallie pictured her boss in a tux, beaming with pride, knowing full-well that he’d brought the two lovebirds together. Frankly, he deserved all of the credit.

  “I wish I knew what made him believe Hank and I would be perfect for each other. We’re polar opposites.” She shrugged and beamed with happiness at the thought of being a married woman, no longer alone and sad.

  “Bear! Run! There’s a bear!”

  A man came running past her with his arms flailing. Kallie stepped back so he could have room. Distracted by the man’s antics, she realized a moment too late that she had stepped the wrong way. Her foot slid on the slippery rock and her legs came out from under her. Kallie grabbed at empty air before she disappeared over the edge of the precipice and landed with a gut-wrenching Thud! in the shallow creek below.

  “Fuck! My camera!” was the last thing she said before complete darkness came over her.

  Chapter Four

  When Hank received the call from a hospital emergency room nurse, he’d caught the first flight back to The Smokies. Arriving at the hospital, he’d had to prove beyond a doubt to hospital staff that he was indeed Kallie’s husband. By the time he reached his wife’s bedside, Kallie had been in the hospital for seven hours.

  “Sweetheart? Kallie?”

  “She can’t hear you, Mr. Fogle. She’s been unconscious since her fall.”

  “God, she looks so broken!”

  “She’ll recover.” The doctor spoke in soft, soothing tones and it drove Hank insane.

  “Recover? Would you recover after a fall like that?”

  “I would if I had me as my doctor.” Great, the guy was a comedian, too.

  “How long will she be like this?”

  “There’s no telling. Maybe hours, days, a month. Maybe longer. Her body needs to heal. She took one of the nastiest falls I’ve seen in my time here. Mr. Fogle, she’s lucky. For her and the baby to have survived is a flat-out miracle.”

  “Baby?”

  “You didn’t know? Well, yes, Mr. Fogle, you’re going to be a father in a little more than eight months as long as Kallie recovers as well as we expect her to. Congratulations.”

  And just like that, the doctor left the room. Hank was completely speechless as silent tears rolled down his face. Careful to avoid his wife’s injuries, he sat on the edge of her bed and held her left hand in both of his as he wept a mixture of happy and angry tears.

  How could she go out alone like that? Why would she be so irresponsible? Because of him. Because he left her alone. He’d sworn he wouldn’t and he’d hopped on that plane for money. He hadn’t even told her loved her. What if she didn’t make it? What if both his wife and their baby died from some unforeseen complication? He would never forgive himself!

  No, his wife and unborn child would survive. He’d make damn sure of it. Hank walked outside and called his agent.

  “Get me the name and number of the top neurospecialist in the country. Now.”

  “Hank, what’s wrong?”

  “What’s wrong? What’s wrong is, because of my greed, my wife may die and our baby may die with her. All because you had to push for that damn movie deal! Get me that fucking phone number and a name right now.

  “By the way, you’re fired. Your severance pay will be wired to you as soon as I can get it done. Goodbye, Jackie.” He hung up and paced the floor as fear for his wife and unborn child coursed through him, threatening to rip him apart.

  After Jackie finally sent him a name and number via text, he spent the next half an hour on the phone with a doctor who knew another doctor purported to be the best neurospecialist in the world. He was the guy to contact if a patient had sustained a serious head injury.

  “Hank, someone would like to speak with you.”

  Dr. Radcliffe was suddenly on the phone. He explained that he happened to be in town for a medical seminar and had overheard a colleague speaking to Hank on the phone.

  “I’d like to offer you and your wife my services. You could say, heads are my thing. When dealing with a head injury, especially one of this magnitude, it shouldn’t be taken lightly.”

  Dr. Radcliffe went on to explain the different scenarios and possible outcomes to Hank.

  “Of course, all of this is from a sight-unseen point of view and I’m not trying to overwhelm you, I just need you to understand how delicate the situation is.”

  Hank couldn’t refuse the doctor’s offer to take care of Kallie. He’d do anything to save his wife and baby.

  “Mr. Fogle, I know you’re upset. We’ll talk more about this as soon as I get there. Try to stay calm. I’m about ten minutes away.”

  Hank hung up and rushed back to his wife’s side, where he waited for wh
at he hoped was another miracle.

  When Dr. Radcliffe arrived, Hank shook his hand and thanked him for coming. Out in the hallway, they spoke in hushed tones as Dr. Radcliffe went over the hospital’s report and what kind of outcome they could expect for Kallie and the baby.

  “I understand your pain, Hank. Just think positive thoughts. Why don’t you go down and grab some coffee while I go over these charts with the attending physician and we’ll talk again in a little while.”

  Hank walked back into his wife’s room and kissed her on the lips. Her face was virtually unharmed aside from the black eyes caused by the massive blow to her head. Those would heal quickly. However, she had multiple fractured ribs and the doctor said her body was bruised from neck to ankles. It was killing him to see his wife lie there unconscious and broken!

  “I’ll be right downstairs, Kal. I love you. Please wake up,” He whispered as he touched his lips to her forehead which was covered in a massive pile of bandages

  He left the room with his head bowed, not wanting to see the looks of pity from the hospital’s staff. Hank ventured down to the cafeteria and stared into a cup of coffee. He couldn’t drink it. Not while his wife lay motionless upstairs in a cold and sterile hospital bed. Visions of Kallie’s beautiful face when she’d spoken her vows, how she’d cried when he’d spoken his filled his thoughts. He’d sworn to protect and love her. He’d already failed miserably.

  After he’d sat there for what felt like hours, Dr. Radcliffe slid into a chair across from him.

  “Hank? Are you going to be okay? You’re looking a bit peaked.”

  “No, Doctor, I don’t think I am. Not until I know my wife and child will pull through this.”

  “Well, I have some good news for you. It isn’t the best, but it’s positive.”

  “I’ll take any good news you can give me, Sir.”

  Dr. Radcliffe went on to explain the extent of Kallie’s injuries. Yes, the attending physician had been right. It would take time for Kallie to heal, but her prognosis was very good. Being young and healthy was hugely in her favor and the baby’s.