Halian looked so small in that hospital bed. There were tubes and wires all over, similar to Kedron, but worse because it was a child. No one, but especially children, should have to suffer like this. Wam left to go enter orders and I found an age appropriate book on the shelf and began to read to Hal. The book was pretty cute, and before I knew it, Wam was standing in the door studying me and I had read two chapters already. I asked if he were ready and Wam replied, "I guess I'm ready if you are." I watched Wam walked over to Halian's bed and kiss his cheek before saying, "uncle loves you buddy. I'll see you in the morning before I head into surgery."
I placed the book back on the shelf and moved to the bedside next to Wam. I squeezed Hal's hand lightly and said, "it was a pleasure to meet you Hal. Your uncle has told me a lot about you. Hopefully I will see you again some day."
Hal placed his hand on my low back and took a step back to allow me to precede him through the doorway and down the hall. We walked quietly, side by side until we reached the SUV. "Thank you Lee," Wam said once we were seated and buckled.
When he didn't say anymore, I finally asked, "what are you thanking me for Wam?"
"I'm thanking you for accompanying me," he placed his hand over mine on the center console, "for supporting me as I struggle through this with my family, and thank you for reading to Hal. That was so sweet of you." Wam smiled at me and I smiled but shrugged. Releasing my hand, he then drove us back to his house for the night.
As we neared Wam's house, he pushed the button to open the garage door and drove inside. When we parked in the garage, he pushed the button on the remote again and the door closed. This time I grabbed his hand in mine, "are you okay Wam? You're awfully quiet."
He nodded but said, "let's go in and get ready for bed and we can talk." Looking at the dash, I saw the clock said 9:05pm. I was sure Wam was tired after his long day. I had unintentionally taken a nap, but I was tired too. It's interesting the affects stress has on the human body.
We entered the house through the adjoined garage door and into the kitchen. I stopped to fill a glass with water from the sink and began to drink it down when I felt Wam walk up behind me and slide his arms around my waist. I set the glass on the granite countertop and turned around in his arms to slide my hands behind his neck and return his embrace. "You give the best hugs Wam. I could stay just like this all night."
Wam pulled back slightly to meet my eyes and said, "Kynlee, will you sleep in my bed tonight? I just want to hold you while we sleep. Please?"
My eyes went wide, and my lips parted slightly as I nodded my response. In this moment when Wam seems so sad, I likely would have agreed to anything he would have requested of me. The question was, how was I going to cuddle with him, keep my hands to myself, and prevent things from getting more physical than we had agreed on.
"Did you bring pajamas with, or do you need something to sleep in," Wam inquired.
"I have some. Did you want to get dressed first or did you want me to?"
"If you're ready," he whispered, "I'll let the lady go first." He smiled at me and stroked my hair away from my face. "If you'd like a shower, everything is in my master bath. Help yourself to whatever."
I leaned up and grazed his lips with mine before I left the kitchen for his bedroom, grabbing my duffel bag along the way. I swear I could feel his eyes blazing holes in my backside as I walked, so I put a little extra sway in my hips to give him a show.
Once inside his bedroom, I closed the door and took a deep breath. I've never slept in the same bed with a male, other than my father and Kedron when I was younger. I'm not even sure I know how this is supposed to work. I agreed, but now that the reality is setting in, I'm so nervous. I will myself to enter the bathroom and strip out of my clothes for a quick shower. I had brought my own shower supplies, so didn't need to borrow his. Once rinsed I stepped out and grabbed a towel to dry off with. I was surprised by the fluffy, large towels Wam has in his bathroom. I used a smaller one for my hair and wrapped the large one around my body as I brushed my teeth. Once dressed, I hung the towels on the towel holders in the bathroom to allow them to dry and not mold in the bottom of his hamper. After all, I have no idea what days his housekeeper comes here in Red Wing. That reminds me I still needed to do something nice for Aggie for folding my clothes and putting super in the crock pot for me. She is such a thoughtful lady. I grabbed my duffel with everything shoved inside except my hairbrush, and made my way back out to the living room. "All yours Wam," I called out in the direction of the kitchen. I'm not sure where he went, but I vacated the bathroom to allow him to get in there.
I heard him talking quietly, maybe on the phone? I could just barely make out what he was saying, but did not want to eaves drop.
"Yes Wanda, he was stable when we left the hospital." There was silence and then Wam continued, "yes, Yank called me because the on-call was unable to come in tonight. Mmm hmmm...well if he does good the next two days, we should be able to remove the electrodes and close up the skull....I know it's scary....I'm sure not being able to come every time the hospital calls is really hard....Try to be thankful you have me, Mom, and Mona to help you....I love you too Wanda." It sounded like he was going to hang up, but then he said, "hey, want to hear something funny?" Wam laughed. "I brought up Mona to Dr. Yankton and gave him my blessing to call her and ask her out...yes, I really did. Haha....I'd guess he doesn't have much experience in the dating department because he turned bright red and asked me to change the subject....okay, I'll let you go. Just thought you could use a laugh....You're welcome. I love you too...Yep, goodnight."
As I was just finishing up brushing my hair, Wam entered the room already in pajama pants and a tee shirt. The tee shirt was tight enough it showcased his broad shoulders, muscular biceps, and narrow waist. As my eyes moved back up his body from checking him out, Wam was standing there smiling, obviously realizing I was ogling his body. I felt my face heat up and turned to put my brush in my duffel bag.
It dawned on me my hair was now wet, "I didn't bring a blow dryer, is my wet hair going to be an issue?"
"Not for me, it's not an issue. There is a dryer in the upstairs bathroom, if you want to blow dry it, but don't do it on my account," he continued to smile at me as he talked.
"Okay, I'll go partially dry it and meet you...in the bedroom? Or aren't you ready for bed yet?"
Wam looked at the clock on the wall that now read 10pm and looked back at me. "Yes, I'm ready for bed. Are you?"
I nodded and stood from the couch, "I'll try to hurry with my hair," I said and raced up the stairs to the bathroom. There was a blow dryer mounted on the wall, apparently for guests, because I doubted Wam used it. His hair likely dries quite quickly since it's much shorter than mine. I dried my hair until it was damp, running my fingers through it to prevent it from becoming a rat's nest. Once I shut off the dryer and placed it back in it's mount, the butterflies returned to my stomach. I was now going to sleep with Wam in his bed. Lord, please give me strength!