Zeke, Elizabeth Lennox [readnow .txt] 📗

“Yes,” she whispered. “You’re the one for me.” But she pulled back, slipping out of his arms and Zeke knew a moment of panic. “I love you so damn much but…I can’t marry you!”

“You love me,” he repeated with vehemence.

“Yes. I do. And I don’t think I’ll ever not love you, Zeke.” She wiped at her cheeks with the back of her hand. “I love you so much, but my father…” she hiccupped as the memories came flooding back. “He was so big and strong and brave and he never hesitated to dive head first into dangerous situations.” She sobbed, curling her arms around her stomach as she sat down on the sofa. “He was my hero, Zeke. He was so wonderful. But he would disappear.” She looked up at him. “He’d just disappear and we wouldn’t know where he was or what he was doing. We’d never know when his team would be coming back, or even if they would come back.”

He bent down, looking into her eyes. “I’ll always come back to you, Abby.”

She smiled weakly through her tears, reaching out to cup his cheek. “You can’t promise me that, Zeke.”

He knew that was true, but he didn’t like that reality. “Abby, we’re good together. We love each other!”

“I do!” she gasped, nodding her head. The tears were coming so fast and furiously, they dripped onto her knees. “I love you so much!”

“Then don’t do this!”

“I have to! I can’t…be with you. When my father died, it nearly killed my mother. And I was devastated. I can’t go through that kind of pain again.”

Zeke stared at her, shaking his head as he stood up. “We’re not over. This isn’t over between us,” he told her, pointing his finger at the carpet between them. “I’m not giving up on you, Abby. But I’m going now. I’m going to give you a bit of space.” He stepped closer and she shrank back. Zeke ignored her body language and went with his gut now. “We’re not over!” and he kissed her. It was a hard, brief kiss, but he pulled back and walked out.

Chapter 9

Abby had no idea how she made it through the week. By Friday evening, she could barely drag herself into her apartment and close the door. But that was as far as she made it. Instead of sitting on the sofa, she slid down against the closed door of her apartment and…sobbed. She’d cried so much over the past few days that the skin around her eyes was raw. Cathy had asked about her red eyes that first day, but Abby had shaken her head and walked away. She knew that the other doctors and nurses were asking about her, but none of them were brave enough to ask her directly. Abby suspected that their deference was due to Cathy’s intervention and she was grateful, but Abby couldn’t form the words to thank her friend.

And at the moment, she didn’t have the strength to get herself up off of the floor.

She wanted Zeke! She wanted to feel his arms around her. She’d eaten all of the cookies and bread that were left over from his treats and now she was out of baked goods. The baked goods that he’d made specifically for her. Or that he’d made for himself, to relax after a stressful day – but she knew that he baked things that he suspected she would enjoy.

The man was…amazing! But he would die. It was inevitable! He literally dove into danger and the man might not acknowledge the reality, but he was only human. Yeah, he might be stronger and faster and smarter than the bad guys, but a bullet was faster still.

A knock on her door startled her and she jumped up. When she peered through the peek hole, Abby couldn’t stop a yelp of surprise. Pulling the door open, she stood there, staring at her mother.

“Oh, honey!” her mother said, stepping forward and wrapping her soft, comforting arms around Abby.

“Mom!” Abby sobbed, resting her head on her mother’s strong shoulder.

They stood like that for several minutes while Abby just cried her heart out.

“Come on, sweetie. Let’s go sit down and you can tell me what’s going on.”

Abby sniffed and grabbed another tissue. “Why are you here?”

Joanne smiled. “I received a call from a Lieutenant Colonel Zeke Jeffers. He said that you needed me and I booked the flight as soon as we hung up.”

Zeke’s kindness only made her cry harder. “Oh Mom!” she sobbed, deflating as she sobbed out her pain and heartache. Joanne made soothing sounds, and then she pulled her daughter back into her arms, soothing Abby in the ways that mothers have always done.

When the current round of sobbing ended, Joanne looked at her daughter. “You’re not eating, are you?”

“I eat,” Abby sniffed.

“Not enough. I’m making you dinner. Then you’re going to tell me what’s wrong and explain to me why a stranger called to tell me my daughter is in pain. After that, we’ll figure this mess out.”

Abby sniffed but obediently followed her mother into the kitchen, sitting down in one of the chairs while her mother put the fabric grocery bags on the counter and started pulling out ingredients.

“Macaroni and cheese?” Abby asked, the first hopeful thought she’d had in days.

“Of course,” Joanne laughed, looking over her shoulder at her daughter. “Is there any other comfort food for times like this?”

Abby laughed, and buried her face in her hands. A moment later, she stood up and came over to hug her mother. “I’m so glad to see you!” she