The Long Ride by Amy Love Read Free Book Online Page B

again, he bent to kiss her forehead as he did every morning and caught a fragrant scent from her hair.
     
    "Your hair smells good Chelsea," he told her. "I wonder what they are washing it with now. Smells like flowers."
     
    "Does it?" Chelsea asked, in a soft voice.
     
    "Yes," he answered. "Here, smell it." And he pulled a long lock under her nose.
     
    She took a sniff, and then another. "Flowers," she murmured, and then drifted off to sleep.
     
    Elias kissed her forehead again, combed her hair back into place with his fingers, and sat down beside her bed on the new chair and began his day of work.
     
    Doc came in around lunch, took her pulse, checked her charts and monitors, gave Elias a smile, and then left again. A few of the guys came in throughout the day, some with little presents or cards, or flowers to replace the ones that were beginning to wilt.
     
    Eric came in after three and said he was on his way back to Houston. Elias talked to John, and they agreed that Eric was the best candidate for acting Sergeant at Arms until Elias could bring Chelsea home again. The two men shook hands, and then clapped each other on the back. Eric gave Chelsea a small stuffed bunny and then walked out of the room.
     
    Close to five, Elias was getting ready to pack up when Chelsea asked him, "When can we go home?"
     
    Elias looked over at her and took her hand. "Whenever you want, baby. You just need to say the word, and Doc will start helping you get ready to go."
     
    Chelsea looked at him, and for the first time in over three weeks, her eyes were clear and focused. She was really seeing him.
     
    "I'm still a little tired, but I can sleep at home. Right?"
     
    "Yes, you can. Our bed is waiting for you," he agreed.
     
    "How far away are we?"
     
    He smiled. "Pretty far. You had a long ride. Do you remember that?"
     
    She nodded. "Across the mountains, and the desert, and through the night. It was a long ride."
     
    "We'll let you go home on a plane," he told her.
     
    "I like planes. Will you fly with me?"
     
    "I have to bring my bike home. I rode here. But I'll be there soon. Doc will take care of you until I arrive. It won't be long. In fact, if you take a nap when you get home, I'll probably be there by the time you wake up."
     
    "That would be nice. I missed you."
     
    "I missed you too."
     
    "I'm still a little scared."
     
    "Tomas isn't going to hurt you anymore. He's gone, baby. He died."
     
    She looked at him, confused for a moment, and then said, "Good." And that was the last time they would ever discuss Tomas again.
     
     
     
     
     
     
     

 
    CHAPTER TWELVE
     
    The pack arrived back in Houston after twenty hours of straight riding. As they came down the boulevard through Northside, riders peeled off and were sent off with choruses of horns and waves from the remaining group. Fifteen of them remained with Elias all the way to his drive, and then with woops and horns they pulled away, heading down toward the Log Cabin. Elias watched them go, grateful for every one of them and the brotherhood they shared.
     
    After parking the V-rod on the back porch, he came through the back door to find Chelsea in the kitchen making a sandwich.
     
    "Sit down, it's time for you to eat," she told him. Her voice was still the child-like voice he had heard from her in the hospital, and the same as she used after her first meltdown; innocent, shy, unsure, cautiously playful, and nervously commanding.
     
    "Alright," he agreed, keeping his own voice as nonthreatening as possible, and sat down at the table. "Where is Doc?"
     
    "I'm right here," Doc said, coming out of the guest room, seeming pleasantly happy and rather carefree compared to the last month in Arizona.
     
    "Any problems with your trip?" he asked Doc.
     
    "None at all. Chelsea likes to fly," she pointed out.
     
    "It's very clean above the clouds." Chelsea nodded, continuing to work on the ham sandwich. After it was put together, she added chips and a pickle,