She’s radiant. Even after what happened today, she still seems to shine, and every time she looks my way, the smile that brightens her face blows me the fuck away. She’s the one. There’s no doubt about it, the BOOM really does exist, and she’ll be mine until our dying days.
As I come back into the living room and place dinner down on the coffee table, Autumn sinks deeper into the blanket that’s wrapped around her. It’s coming into winter, and despite it being a cold night, I think she’s using the blanket more for comfort than warmth. Either way, she looks fucking adorable all snuggled up. I don’t think I’ve ever wanted to just lie down and hold a woman so badly in my life.
She’s been putting on a brave face, but I know deep down that today freaked her out. She doesn’t want to admit it, but she doesn’t have to. I’m not here to force her to face reality; I’m here to help her forget. Today doesn’t define who she is, and it’s only going to affect her if she allows it to. What defines her is how she responds from here on out, how she fought for herself, how she was brave enough to speak out against a man who had the potential to destroy her, how she wasn’t afraid to ask for help. She’s so much stronger than she realizes, and while it was the most horrific thing that could ever happen to a woman, I’m proud of her.
She remains strong and shows that no matter what, he will never bring her down. She’s the winner here. He’ll never take claim over her, he’ll never be rewarded with her fear, and he sure as hell will never be a free man, not if I have anything to do with it.
The thought alone has my hand curling into a fist and pulling on my stitches as I cross the room and kneel down before the fireplace. I shake out my hand, not scared of the stitches breaking but scared of the ass-whooping Autumn would give me if I don’t look after myself.
I find myself grinning as I reach across and grab a few pieces of firewood before positioning them in my fireplace and finding my lighter. “Wait, that’s a real fireplace?” Autumn asks.
“It sure is,” I tell her.
“Nice,” she says, taking another sip of wine and getting up from the couch. She waddles across the living room, struggling with the blanket that she keeps wrapped around her while trying to hold onto her glass of wine. “I just assumed it was one of those fancy electric ones where you just press a button and it goes.” She drops down beside me, squishing in nice and close as she watches me start the fire. “That or a fake one that’s just for decoration.”
I stop what I’m doing and glance back at her. “Really?” I grumble. “Do you honestly think I did all of this,” I say, indicating around the massive living room that I had specifically designed and set out for my fireplace. “For a fake fireplace?”
Autumn glances around, really taking it all in. “Okay,” she says, bringing her wine glass to her lips to hide her grin. “When you put it like that, it makes sense, but then, you could just be one of those guys who likes to show off his money. After all, you’ve been driving your Ferrari around my shitholehood for the past month.”
“Hey, my Ferrari resents that. It’s good for her to get out and about every now and then. You know, experience new places to be reminded of just how good she has it.”
Autumn rolls her eyes and leans in close as I start the fire, gently blowing on the flames until the embers catch. The soft glow washes over her face as she stares into the fire, completely mesmerized by the whole process. “Your Ferrari can go and suck a dick. From now on, when you come and pick me up, you need to hire one of those shitty cars you get at airport rentals.”
“What do you mean? You get shitty cars? I pay the premium and get the good stuff.”
The softest scoff comes blowing between her lips. “Of course you get the premium. Why am I not surprised?”
I can’t help but laugh, and as the fire really starts to burn, I lean back against the coffee table and pull Autumn into my side. I grab our dinner and send a silent thanks to the guy who remembered to pack the shitty plastic cutlery so that I don’t have to get up again.
I pass Autumn her favorite dishes, and she instantly digs in, making me wonder if she gave herself a chance to eat today. She’s been so busy trying to get through all the paperwork that Patricia dumped on her, and now, Dr. Harding’s bullshit. After making time for an X-ray, she's been agonizing over writing her report, in fear that if she doesn’t write it properly, Dr. Harding will be let off. I think she wrote it at least four times before finally submitting it, but even still, she worries that it’s not enough.
I watch her eat as the flames from the fireplace dance upon her skin. She’s quiet. Too quiet. Autumn lives by the general rule of never being quiet, so watching her just staring into the flames and listening to it crackle as darkness falls around the rest of my house is odd, but I’m not going to lie, just sitting here in peace with her is one of my favorite moments yet.
“What’s on your mind?” I murmur, keeping my voice low as to not break our moment.
She shrugs her shoulders. “I don’t know. I guess I’m just thinking about what’s going to happen to you.”
My brows raise. “To me?” I ask. “You don’t need to worry about me. I’ll be fine.”
“You beat up a fellow doctor,” she reminds me as though I’ve forgotten all about it, but how could I? My hand stings every time I curl my fingers into a fist. Though maybe I should stop doing that and allow myself a chance to heal. After all, I won’t be cleared for surgery until it’s better.
“And?” I prompt. “Sure, the ethics board might have a few things to say about it, but once I have a chance to explain what happened, it’ll be fine.”
“Are you sure?” she questions, her fork pausing halfway to her mouth.
“Positive.”
She looks down at her dinner, nibbling on her lips. “So, what’s going to happen from here?”
“Well, I would guess that the board is spending the night going over everyone’s reports and looking over all the evidence. They’ll probably dig into Dr. Harding’s past employment and make a decision from there, but you don’t need to worry, it’s an open and closed case. You’ll be alright.”
Autumn nods and looks back up at me with those big, wide eyes that I’m falling madly in love with. “Have you ever been in this position before?” she asks, nerves and concern deep in her voice.
I shake my head. “Have I ever beat the living shit out of a man who tried to rape the woman I want to be with for the rest of my life? No, I can’t say that I have.”
Her eyes go round as her mouth drops, and I grin, watching her reaction as though it’s the most entertaining thing I’ve ever witnessed. She closes her mouth again before swallowing hard, never once taking her eyes off mine. “What did you just say?”
“You heard me, Autumn. I’m falling in love with you and I don’t ever want to let you go.”
Her lip wobbles, and I curl my hand around the back of her neck, right where the curve of her neck perfectly fits the palm of my hand. “Are you sure?” she whispers. “Because once I allow myself to really fall for you, there’s no exchanges or refunds. You’ll be stuck with me. I’m not going to let you change your mind.”