A Million Wishes (13 page)

“
For not running scared or giving me pity, for loving me anyways, despite my injury, and for not looking at me differently.”

“
I admire you, not pity you. You’re a fighter. I just want to help make it better if I can.”

He nodded. Not trusting his voice just yet. Grasping her hand he kissed it, then scooted to the edge of the bed, reaching for his crutches.

“
Where you going?”

“
I have to get clean bandages to rewrap this with from my room.”

She crawled out of bed and put her robe on. “I’ll go with you.”

They made their way to his room and after he sat on the edge of his bed she knelt down on the floor in front of him. With a firm but loving touch she began kneading his thigh muscle again. “Like this? I don’t want to hurt you.”

He pressed against her fingers, showing her the amount of pressure he needed “I’ll let you know if it’s too much babydoll, thank you baby.”

Tilting her head forward she kissed his tense thigh, resting her cheek there for a moment before pressing light little kisses across his scars. It was so sweet, so loving that he felt his throat clog up with emotion. Thick fingers threaded through her long red locks caressing her scalp adoringly.

“
You are precious to me Mikayla.”

She looked up at him and smiled, her eyes damp with emotion. Not trusting her voice not to crack, she just went back to massaging his thigh and knee, her touch turning tenderer when she stroked her hands over his stump. He relaxed and let her care for him. It was amazing how much this tiny little spitfire of a woman could sooth his body, heart and mind. With her around, the darkness wasn’t always in the forefront of his mind. Her light and sweetness overpowered the negativity he had been letting eat at him. Reaching for his ace bandages he showed her how he had to wrap it, crisscrossing it tight but not too tight, rounding it out and slipping the sock over it before putting on his temporary prosthetic and standing, pulling her up with him and wrapping his arms around her waist kissing her tenderly.

The scents of coffee and bacon frying surrounded them until he groaned, pulling his mouth off hers and grinning.

“
This is tough. Coffee and bacon or more Miki kisses…hmmm decisions decisions.”

She smacked his chest and took his hand laughing.

“
I vote for coffee.”

“
Ah, a woman after my own heart, how lucky can a guy get?”

He swatted her behind and followed her down the hall towards the kitchen, stopping and turning back.

“
I forgot something, be right there babydoll.”

She shrugged and went to the kitchen, hugging Vivi from behind as she flipped bacon and walking over to Matthias and giving him a hug as he read the morning paper.

“
Good morning Mikayla honey. Did you sleep good last night?”

“
I did Vivi. Slept like a baby. Coffee smells so good.”

Miki got down two mugs filling them to the brim and lacing them with sugar and fresh cream.

“
There’s my handsome boy, how are you feeling today Noah?”

Vivi hugged and kissed him, smiling and patting his cheek.

“
I slept good Mom. It must be the fresh country air and being surrounded by pretty ladies.”

They laughed and Miki handed him his coffee. He took a sip and groaned.

“
Elixir of the gods I tell ya. I’ll be outside for a minute babydoll.”

He kissed her cheek and headed outside.

“
What’s he going out in the cold for? Miki asked, going over to the window and looking out to see if she could spot him.

“
Vivi won’t let him smoke in the house so he’s probably sitting on the porch Mikayla.” Matthias said.

“
What? Smoking? When did he start smoking?” She responded, obviously surprised since Noah had always been a health nut, very conscious of what he put in his body and staying athletic.

“
I think it was after those men died on his watch. It’s not easy dealing with losing your brothers in war. Surviving isn’t easy Mikayla.” She knew that Matthias was speaking from experience. He himself had lost many brothers in war.

Still yet it irritated the hell out of her that he had picked up the habit. She had lost an aunt and an uncle to lung cancer so seeing anyone she cared for smoking…just set her off. As soon as he walked back inside and sat at the kitchen table and sat his pack of smokes down while she glared over at him. “Why didn’t you tell me you picked up such a disgusting habit?”

He rolled his eyes at her and shook his head. “Don’t even start with me about that Mikayla.”

She could tell she hit a nerve and walked over to him. “Don’t even get an attitude with me over it Noah.”

He crossed his arms over his chest, staring into her bright green eyes that showed her temper flaring up.

“
Pick your battles carefully little girl, this is not one of them.”

“
If you are trying to intimidate me it’s not working. Why are you smoking? Are you just trying to kill yourself now or what? I mean, you survived an IED just to pick up a habit that can give you emphysema or lung cancer so you die a slow death instead of a quick one? Really Noah?"

“
Miki, stop, we aren’t having a conversation about this. I’m a grown damn man and if I want to smoke a damn cigarette I will smoke a damn cigarette!” As he spoke his voice got louder and louder.

“
Oh really, is that so? We aren’t having a conversation about it huh? Well alrighty then. We just won’t talk about it.” She was grinning. He should have known she was up to something when she snatched up his pack of smokes and took off for the kitchen sink and turned the faucet on.

“
Mikayla Johnson don’t you dare!” His voice was gruff and he was quickly making his way too her.

“
Noah Cane you know damn good and well I don’t back down from a dare!” She proved it by sticking the pack under the faucet and smiling sweetly at him. When he grabbed her up and reached for the cigarettes that were now sopping wet, she didn’t relent, but arched her arm and chunked them right in the trash and laughed. “I win!”

Her face was so joyous he couldn’t help the grin that spread over his face. “Damn it Miki that was my last pack too you brat!”

She nodded and grinned, kissing his chin as he put her down. “Damn right it’s your last pack. I’m happy to have you home safe from war I don’t want to have to watch you die of cancer you jerk.”

He growled at her and swatted her bottom, dropping her back to her feet.

Vivi and Matthias were laughing at the display, happy to see their son put in his place by a 5 foot nothing redheaded spitfire.

“
Son, I think you got your hands full right there.” His father chuckled.

“
It’s all good Dad, I can handle her.” His grin was wide and bright.

“
Now you kids stop playing around and come eat your breakfast before it gets cold.” Vivi was smiling and looked like she had teary eyes. When Noah walked by her he scooped her up and kissed her cheek. She giggled with delight and playfully swatted him with her potholder. “Sit down and eat you ornery kid.”

“
Yes ma’am.” He winked at Miki and they tucked into the stacks of pancakes, bacon and sausage, chatting about what their plans for the day were.

Mikayla told them she’d decided to go on to her Momma’s house and open it up and do some light cleaning since she’d be moving in the following weekend. She needed some study time too. Vivi assured her she was welcome to still come back there to stay and have dinner. Nodding she agreed she would at least come to dinner, that way she could spend some more time with Noah before she had to drive back to school Sunday morning.

After breakfast Miki got dressed, gathered her things and was heading to the front door when Noah came out with his bag slung over his shoulder.

“
What are you doing Noah?”

“
I’m going with you. Ready?”

“
You don’t need to go with me, I’m a big girl I can go in Momma’s house alone.”

“
I know you can. Just like I could have massaged and wrapped my leg alone earlier but I let you be there for me and help me. So now you get to let me be there for you and help you. Deal with it shorty.” With that, he walked out the front door and left her standing there with her mouth hanging open.

Vivi walked up beside her and put her arm around her smiling. “That boy of mine is over the moon for you Mikayla. I think you feel the same way about him. You two need each other. Life is too short to be afraid to take chances. Remember that ok honey?” Miki nodded and hugged her, kissing her cheek. Her horn honked several times and they both laughed. Noah was already seated in the passenger seat with a determined look on his face. Miki shook her head and walked out to the truck, starting it up without a word and heading home.

Chapter 11

They pulled into the driveway and got out grabbing their things. That’s about as far as she got. It was as if her feet were stuck in mud and she couldn’t budge. Noah didn’t notice at first, he was carrying his bag and his crutches limping to the porch stairs. When he didn’t hear her behind him he turned “You coming babydoll?”

She tore her eyes off the window to her old bedroom and looked at him with a faraway look in her eyes. “Uh yeah, sorry.” Shaking her head she walked up the stairs and unlocked the door, waving him in, still not quite ready to go inside but it was freezing cold out and tufts of snow were starting to cover the ground. A deep breath and she walked in, setting down her things on the couch and heading to the furnace and cranking it up.

“
God it’s freezing in here.”

“
I’ll bring in some wood babydoll and build a fire. Why don’t you see if there’s some coffee and put it on to brew?”

“
Good idea.”

Heading for the kitchen she wrinkled her nose. Between the trash still in the can and the stench of stale cigarettes, the house was smelling rank. Quickly she started coffee brewing then gathered the trash up taking it outside.

He amazed her. He limped hard, moving awkwardly but it didn’t stop him. He needed to help her. Provide for her. Care for her. His arms were full of wood, and he wore a determined look on his face as he headed back towards her from the woodpile.

“
Coffee’s perking. The trash was rancid so I’m gonna Lysol everything I think. Still smells like cigarettes so bad. I imagine I’ll have to paint and wash all the curtains and stuff to make it smell better. Need help?”

“
I got it.”

She opened the door for him and watched him head to the fireplace and stack the wood. While he did that she searched under the kitchen counter for Momma’s cleaning supplies, and sprayed disinfectant in the trashcan and wiped the counters and table clean of dust, heading to the living room to do the same. He went back out for a few more loads of wood, stacking them in the wood box inside the house, and the one on the patio. Once he was satisfied with the amount stocked up, he went and hung up his coat and washed his hands.

Miki was in a cleaning frenzy. He watched her scrubbing surfaces, her brow furrowed as she worked. He figured he might as well help her so he got out the vacuum and plugged it in, dusting the carpet with the deodorizer she had sitting on the counter. They went from room to room in relative silence. All that mattered to him was helping to sooth her and if this was what she needed, to clean the filth left behind, then he would be diligent to see it through with her.

Once the floors were vacuumed he got the mop out and went to work on the linoleum floors while Miki attacked the bathrooms armed with bleach and scrub brushes. The coffee had been done for a while but he sensed she needed to get this done for her own peace of mind. So they kept going until every floor and surface had been cleaned and all the curtains were down and in the washing machine. He poured them both a mug of coffee laced with cream and a packet of hot cocoa, carrying them to the table and sitting down. That was something Miki had shared with him years ago and it was a little piece of home to him. She walked in the kitchen and headed for the laundry room, tossing the curtains in the dryer and joining him at the table. He had just taken off his prosthetic and was massaging the stump, a little furrow between his brows as he did so.