Come with Me (Let It Be Me #2) (23 page)

The gravity of the situation suddenly started to sink in for Liz. 

“I hope the paramedics got the name of that man,” she said. 

Brian nodded. “I’ll ask the nurses later.”

“I’m sorry you have to go to the hospital again so soon for another scare,” Liz apologized.

“Don’t apologize! I’m just glad you’re okay,” Brian said, tearfully. 

Liz squeezed his hand.

“Do I look like shit?” she asked him. She wondered if she looked the way she felt.

“You look like beautiful shit,” Brian teased. “You look fine. Just pale. Good thing your beautiful face wasn’t hit.”

Liz’s parents arrived then, and Brian stepped out of the room to give them some privacy.

“Oh baby,” Liz’s mom said, worriedly.

“I’m okay, Mom,” Liz assured.

“Liz, I never stopped you from doing anything you wanted to do as an adult, but I’m not sure if you should still go to Stone Homes during weekends,” her dad said. He didn’t seem mad; he seemed more like he was thinking out loud.

“Dad! It was my fault, okay,” Liz said stubbornly. “I wasn’t paying attention. I’ve already gone there countless of times and nothing happened. It won’t happen again, I promise.”

Her dad looked at her for several seconds, his jaw twitching. “If you were a lawyer, I would lose every case against you,” her dad huffed, making Liz and her mom laugh. Her dad spoiled her.

“We’re glad you’re okay, hun,” her mom said. “We spoke to one of the doctors. Your x-rays and M.R.I. are clear. You just have a bump on the head and some scrapes and bruises, but thank God, no internal injuries.”

Liz smiled, thankful for the blessing.

“When can I go home?” Liz asked.

“They’ll discharge you tomorrow,” her mom said. “Even if you’re fine, they just want to make sure. And we agree.”

“So I can go back to work Tuesday?” Liz asked.

“Elizabeth…” her dad said in warning.

“Maybe you should take the week off,” her mom said.

“But I feel fine,” Liz reasoned, but she saw her parents’ hard looks.

“Alright, I’ll ask Henry if I can work from home for the first couple of days,” she conceded.

Her parents sighed with relief, okay with her compromise.

“I will go to your place tomorrow with Caroline,” her mom said.

“Oh mom, you don’t have to do that,” Liz argued. “You know I don’t like being fussed over.”

“Let’s see tomorrow, okay?” her mom said, knowing how stubborn Liz could be.

Liz nodded. She looked up at the clock above the door and saw it was seven in the evening.

“You mustn’t have had dinner yet,” Liz said. “You guys go, I’ll be fine. Brian’s here anyway.”

Her parents looked at each other.

“Okay, sweetheart,” her mom said. “I’ll be back tomorrow morning. Call me if you need anything.”

Liz nodded, smiling.

“I have a hearing tomorrow morning, but I will visit you at home tomorrow afternoon.”

“Thanks, Dad,” she told him.

They both kissed her on the forehead.

“We love you, honey,” her mom said.

“I love you both, too,” Liz said, grateful for such amazing parents. 

Shortly after her parents left the room, Brian popped his head in.

“Look who’s here with me,” he said grinning, entering the room, followed by Emily and Philip.

Liz grinned.

“Liz!” Emily cried out, rushing to her side and stretched her arms to try to give Liz a hug.

“Thanks for coming, you guys,” Liz said.

“Of course we will be here,” Emily said.

“Liz, I’m sorry this happened to you, but I’m glad you’re okay,” Philip said.

“It happens,” Liz said, shrugging. “My fault for not being alert.”

Philip nodded. “Unfortunately our area isn’t still crime free – still some of those delinquents.”

“How are you feeling?” Emily asked.

“Just tired, I guess,” Liz said. She felt some ache at one side of her hips and at her arm. She could also feel a bit of the sting on the bump on her head.

“But how are you feeling?” Emily repeated.

Liz looked at her friend.

“Just a bit shaken,” Liz admitted. “I just got so used to the area that I forgot for a second to be careful.”

Emily squeezed her hand. 

“Just let us know how we can help,” Emily said.

“Thank you,” Liz said. 

“The good news is the nurses told me you can trace who made the call to 911,” Brian said. 

“That’s great!” Liz exclaimed. “I want to thank the nice man.”

They all just chatted for the rest of the night like they weren’t in the hospital. Liz loved her friends and grateful for their support for the past days.

When Liz yawned, Emily quickly said, “We should let you sleep.”

“I’ll stay here with you,” Brian said. “The doctor said you’d have to be woken up every few hours to make sure you’re okay.”

“The nurses can do that. I’ll just be asleep with the medicine they’ve given me, you’ll be bored to tears,” Liz told him, shaking her head. “Don’t worry, I’ll be fine. Go home.”

They all looked at her, unsure. 

“I’ll be fine!” she insisted.

“Just call us if there’s anything you need,” Emily relented. “We’ll be here tomorrow morning.”

“Thank you,” Liz said again.

“Emily, Philip, you guys go ahead. I’ll wait here just till Liz is asleep,” Brian volunteered.

Liz said goodbye to Emily and Philip, as Brian stayed on the chair next to her bed. 

“Just sleep, dear,” Brian said, taking her hand.

“I love you, Bri,” she told him, her eyes getting heavy.

“I love you, too, Liz. Get your rest.” 

* * *

Liz was awake but hasn’t opened her eyes. She felt like her body’s been run over by a truck. She didn’t have a headache anymore though. 

She suddenly felt movement at the side of her bed, making her realize she wasn’t alone.

She pried her eyes open slowly, expecting Brian to be there after stubbornly not listening to her. But the sight before her was a shock. She thought she was hallucinating.

“Ben?” she croaked.

He was seated at an armchair next to her bed. He looked at her expectantly, but Liz could see he was tired. She started weeping, missing him so much.

“Liz, stop crying please,” he pleaded, standing up and leaning over, resting one of his hand over hers, and using the other to wipe away the tears on her cheeks.

“I thought you were in Michigan?” she mumbled.

“I was, but I flew back as soon as Brian called.”

The thought that he went through all those lengths gave Liz some hope. But she still couldn’t discount the things he did to her those days ago, and how she felt.

“Anything hurts?” he asked, stroking her hair.

Her heart, she thought.

“I’m fine,” she told him. “I don’t even know why they had me stay for the night.”

“Better to be sure,” he told her. 

He was still stroking her hair. Liz felt immobilized by his presence. She was telling herself not to hope, but she didn’t have the willpower to tell him off when he was right there in front of her.

“Liz, there’s a lot I need to tell you, but I don’t want to stress you too much right now while you’re still recovering,” Ben said, “but I just need you to know something first.”

Liz’s heart felt like it stopped beating. She was afraid to hear what he was going to say next. Her heart seemed tired from all the emotions for the past days.

Ben traced her face, and it took all of Liz’s willpower to watch his face. He looked as nervous and worried as she felt.

“I love you, Liz,” he declared, staring into her eyes. 

Ben’s declaration brought fresh tears to Liz’s eyes. She didn’t expect it – she didn’t dare to hope – but his words filled her heart.

Ben leaned down to kiss her cheek.

“I’m sorry if I wasn’t able to follow through with my promise to you,” he said contritely. “But I’m in if you’re in, Liz. I’ve already told Alex and Kayla. And you don’t have to worry about your work.”

Liz nodded, suddenly feeling silly for not trusting him for a bit. She cried – mostly out of joy – but also from relief.

“I love you, too,” she said. She gazed up at Ben and saw the relief that washed over him. “I’m sorry if I overreacted. I already knew I was in love with you, so I started hoping for something more. I was scared we weren’t on the same page. I should have just talked to you.”

Ben shook his head. “Don’t worry about it. I was a bit slow. I needed the push. I’m sorry if it reached that point.”

They were quiet for a while.

Liz tried to sit up, but felt some pain on her hip. 

“Hey, just lay back,” Ben said worriedly, guiding her to lie down gently. He brushed her hair away from her face, watching her.

“On my way here I was thinking if it was because of me that you didn’t notice the thief,” he said. 

“Hey,” Liz said, shaking her head. “There’s no use having those thoughts. I’m okay.”

“I’m very glad you are,” he said. “I couldn’t bear to lose you.”

Ben leaned down to brush her lips with his. When Ben leaned back, Liz looked up at him with undisguised love and happiness.

“I don’t know how I got so lucky to find you,” Ben said.

Liz was warmed by his words. “Maybe we both got lucky,” she said, smiling shyly. 

“What time did you get here?” she asked him, checking the clock to see it was six in the morning.

“A little after midnight,” he said.

Liz’s eyes widened. “Were you able to sleep?”

“Some,” he said.

“You should get some rest,” she told him.

“Maybe the nurses will allow me to lie next to you,” Ben said in a teasing voice.

“Who said we need to ask permission?” Liz playfully said.

Ben raised his eyebrows, heat evident in his eyes.

“Ben!” Liz exclaimed, laughing. “I was just kidding! We’ll make up for the lost time, okay?”

Ben grinned, nodding. He held on to Liz’s hand.

Liz suddenly remembered.

“How will it be in RHS?” she asked as an afterthought.

“I’m going to step back and become a consultant like Alex and give you and Henry more sovereignty in the operations.”

Liz frowned. “I don’t want to take it away from you.” Even if RHS was named after Alex’s parents, she knew that Alex and Ben had equal emotional stakes in the foundation. She knew he was already sad being not as hands-on with the foundation. She didn’t want to make it any worse for him.

“You’re not,” Ben assured, taking her hand. “I actually feel better that I’m sharing the dream with someone I love.”

“Thank you,” she said, tearing up again. She knew that could be one of the most generous gifts he can give her. 

“Hey, don’t cry anymore,” he said, leaning down to kiss her cheek. He sat back down on the armchair, holding on to her hand.

“Just a lot of emotions from the past couple of days,” she said, calming down.

“I'm sorry,” Ben said.

"No. I was sad but my love outweighs everything else, and I'm so happy that you love me back,” Liz said, grinning.

“Never doubt it anymore.”

“So how did Alex react when you told him?” Liz asked curiously.

Ben grinned. “He took it really well. It turns out Kayla sensed it for a while now and told him about it. Guess we weren’t really fooling everyone.”

“Really?” Liz said, shocked. They thought they’ve been really careful.

“Don’t worry about it,” Ben said. “We’d have to tell everyone in the office though. Are you okay with that?”

Liz nodded slowly. She didn’t want any attention on her, but she loved Ben and it was the right thing to do so they can continue with their relationship.

As he stood up, he added, “I actually have a condition for you and it’s non-negotiable.”

Liz raised her eyebrow. “What is it?”

He smiled. “Since I don’t think I can stop you from volunteering your time for the library, and the pepper spray didn’t do the trick –“

Liz grinned. 

“I’m hiring a driver,” he continued, “and I will have him drive you every time you go there.”

Liz narrowed her eyes, ready to debate with him, but she knew it was going to be one of the things he would stand firm on, just like his old-fashioned ways.

“Fine,” she said, relenting. “But since I have less travel time, I will extend my volunteer hours by an hour.”

She watched as Ben’s lips were set on a straight line, and she knew he was also ready to debate with her. His lips started trembling until he burst out laughing.

“Oh, Liz, I love you,” he exclaimed, grinning.

“I love you,” she echoed.

Epilogue

Liz

 The string quartet started playing Pachelbel’s Canon in D and everyone stood up and turned to look at the ballroom entrance as the doors opened.

There was a collective gasp as everyone caught sight of Kayla looking stunning in an elegant lace white dress. The gown had a mermaid silhouette with a strapless neckline and a long train. A thin veil cloaked her head, pinned down by a jeweled band. Her whole look appeared very romantic.

Kayla absolutely looked radiant.

All eyes followed Kayla as she slowly made her way to the front where Alex was waiting for her. Liz noticed Alex’s glassy eyes, and Liz felt teary herself with the love felt around the room.

Turning to look at the front, everyone’s gaze was affixed at the couple. Liz couldn’t help but look at Ben standing next to Alex, and she found him looking back at her. 

Liz sighed and offered him a smile.

Ben winked at her.

Liz felt her face flush, wondering if anyone saw him wink at her. She turned to her left where Diane and Henry were standing -- they were both looking at Alex and Kayla. 

The ceremony was beautiful. Alex and Kayla wrote their own vows and everyone laughed and cried with them.

The guest list was limited – they only invited less than a hundred people. It also looked like they managed to keep the paparazzi oblivious to the wedding that was going on. She hoped that was the case, because she wished Alex and Kayla the privacy they deserved on their wedding day.

And as the priest announced the husband and wife, everyone stood up and cheered as the couple kissed.