Series: Fever Falls Series by Riley Hart
Total pages in book: 84
Estimated words: 81272 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 406(@200wpm)___ 325(@250wpm)___ 271(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 81272 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 406(@200wpm)___ 325(@250wpm)___ 271(@300wpm)
“Yep. Sounds fine to me,” Jude replied.
“Can you not? If you couldn’t tell, I’m not in the mood.”
Jude nodded, and for the first time, I noticed he had a cup of coffee in his hand, which he handed over. “Thank you.”
“I’m surprised Lincoln isn’t here,” Jude said after a few minutes.
“He wanted to be,” I snapped. “But I told him to stay home.” It was my reflex to want to defend Linc, to make sure Jude knew it was me. I was the reason Linc wasn’t there, but I knew he would be if I needed him.
“Relax, man. I’m not attacking your boy. Quite the opposite, actually. Why did you tell him to stay home, dumbass?”
“Huh?” I frowned. “Because I don’t know how long I’ll be here? Because I’m not leaving the hospital? Because he has a life and a job and responsibilities and—”
“And if you think he’d rather be doing any of those things over being here with you, where he belongs, then you don’t really see him. Not the way you should.”
“So before you didn’t think he was good enough for me and now I’m fucking up?”
Jude shrugged. “I used to think no one was good enough for you. Fucking weird and confusing, I know. But then I got to know him, and I saw how much he loves you, the way he looks at you. You’re lucky to have him, Rush, and I’m glad you do. You belong together.”
Yeah, yeah, we did. I’d always known that. I’d always wanted Linc.
Jude was quiet for a moment, then said, “I used to think there wasn’t anything you couldn’t do. You wanted supercross, and you got it. You never let anything stop you from following your dreams. You were the best son and the best friend. If I needed you, you were always there. You helped me through a lot growing up. But now…now I see there’s more than that.”
Because this was exactly what I needed right then. “Great. So I’m not a good son or friend. Thanks, Jude. I needed to hear that.”
“That’s not what I mean and you know it. I just think…you’re not invincible, Rush. You can’t spend your life being all things to all people but not letting them do the same for you. It’s okay that you haven’t talked to your dad in months. I know this situation isn’t what we wanted or expected, but you were hurt, and now things have gone badly, but it’s not your fault. You can’t feel guilty over your morals, but you also have to learn to bend some too. Your dad isn’t perfect. We can’t all be as good as you.”
I pushed up, out of the chair, anger and confusion brewing a wild storm inside me. “I don’t think I’m perfect.”
“No, but you want to be. You want to be the one to handle everything. You want to always do the right thing. You’re okay with people needing you, and you’re okay with wanting them to, but you have to let yourself lean on others as well.”
Pausing, I thought, trying to make sense of what he was saying, trying to believe he wasn’t right.
“Lean on Lincoln. You love him.”
I closed my eyes, took a few deep breaths. “I love him more than I’ve ever loved anyone or anything in my life.”
“I know,” Jude replied softly.
He turned and walked toward the door. He was about to walk out when I said, “I love you too.”
Jude looked over his shoulder, smiled, and replied, “I know that as well,” then walked out and was gone.
I pulled out my phone, fumbled it, held it close to my ear, and didn’t breathe until I heard Linc say, “Rush?”
“I need you,” I told him, squeezing my eyes shut. “I need you.”
“I know, baby. I’m already on my way.”
CHAPTER THIRTY-SEVEN
Lincoln
If there’s one thing Lincoln taught me, it’s that it’s okay to be myself, that anything is possible, and that I have my whole life ahead of me…and it’ll be fabulous. I guess that’s more than one thing, huh? ~ Trey
My leg bounced up and down as I sat in the ICU waiting room. Strange that we were there, when this whole thing started with a lie in the ER a few months before. Well, not me and Rush, I guess. We’d started a lot longer ago than that, but it was that little white lie in the emergency room that was the beginning of me pulling my head out of my ass and opening myself up to what could be.
The double doors to the intensive care unit slid open, and I shot to my feet, eyes darting there the moment Rush walked through. Mama K and Jude were with him, but he squeezed past them both and threw his arms around me, burying his face in my neck. “I feel better already,” he said against my skin. “How is it that I feel better just from having you here?”