Always Been You

Looking up at him, Katherine knew she loved him. Nothing else mattered now. Her instep stroked his hair flecked calf. “You will stay the night right?” she asked. “Tim is going to be at my mom’s till tomorrow”

“I will honey,” Jensen said.

“Good,” Katherine said, smiling. “Now, are you going to talk all night or get back to work”

Jensen chuckle was rich. “Oh I don’t plan to talk tonight” he said. “We have done a lot of talking. I’m tired of it. I wanna touch every part of you tonight”

“You already did,” Katherine said, smiling.

“Not enough,” he replied.

Katherine braced an elbow on the pillow next to his head. Her falling hair formed a canopy around them as her hips pressed against his rising hardness, accepting him into her.

“Oh, Kitty Kat” he whispered before he pinned her beneath him.

—————————

It was a good day.

Katherine thought as she drove away from her office. She was on her way to deliver a cake to a client for her baby shower. It was a big cake and Katherine wondered how big this baby shower was going to be.

Well, it wasn’t really her business. She thought. As long as got her money.

She smiled. Four weeks later and life was getting better, simpler. Her mom was much better now, getting over her dad’s death had been tough but Delia had somehow pulled through. Tim was doing well at school. He was growing really fast. Her business was booming and things were great with Jensen. He made her so happy, that the mere thought of him made her smile. Her life was falling back into place and she hoped nothing was going to ruin it.

Her phone rang. It was in her handbag and she kept one hand on the steering wheel while she fetched it. It was Tim.

“Hey sweetie” she said when she picked the call.

“Hi mom,” Tim’s voice said. “How are you?”

“I’m fine.” Katherine replied. “Are you back from school?”

“Yeah,” Tim replied.

“I’m so sorry I couldn’t come pick you up today, hun” Katherine said. “I was so busy at work. I’m still busy now actually” She tried to avoid a pothole but ended up driving right into it as she saw it really late.

“Oh damn it all to hell” she swore, forgetting that she was on the phone with Tim.

“Oh” Tim said, laughing. “Mom, you said a bad word… Bad words actually”

Katherine smiled. “Sorry hun. When I get home, I’ll put money in the swear jar. How is Mrs Bennet? Are you okay staying there till I get back?” she asked.

“Yeah I’m fine,” Tim replied. “You know I like it here”

Katherine knew. He liked it there because he was best friends with Claire’s son and he could play as much as he wanted.

“Good,” Katherine said. “I will come pick you up when I’m done and then we will go home together”

“Alright bye, mom,” Tim said.

“Bye sweetheart” Katherine replied. She hung up the phone and dropped it on the passenger seat then she turned around to check on the cake which was in the back seat. The stupid pothole had upset it and it was going to fall soon if she didn’t adjust it, which was exactly what she turned to do without thinking.

Bad mistake. Stupid mistake actually.

She adjusted the cake and turned her attention back to the road. Only it was too late. The approaching car came like a bat out of hell. It flashed into view. Katherine heard a high, squealing sound of tires biting into tarmac.

Katherine swerved her car to the right. She struggled with the wheel, trying to keep the car straight. Too late. There was a crunching, ripping noise. The car that had hit her slewed across the road and crashed into the thickets. Her windshield suddenly turned into a spider’s web of cracks and lines. There was a grinding noise and a scorching white light burst before her eyes.

A searing pain tore through her head. Her last clear thought was of her mother. “She is going to be so worried”.

Then the light snuffed out and darkness came down on her.

———————

Katherine floated on a sea of pain. The undertow sucked her body down unmercifully, then allowed her to surface briefly before sweeping over her once more. Pain shot through her skull as she turned on the pillow.

“Ah, she’s coming to” noted a cool female voice.

“Come on, Katherine. Open those big beautiful eyes ” said a baritone voice. Jensen. She thought as a wave of pain crashed over her. Jensen is here.

“I need Jensen” Katherine formed the words with effort. “Where is he?”

“Open your eyes, Miss Kavell. He is right here. Come on now, open your eyes. You have worried the poor man long enough” the cool voice said again.Nôvel(D)ra/ma.Org exclusive © material.

Katherine’s lashes seemed to lock together as she forced her lids open. Jensen’s worried face was near hers, his hand warmly heavy and secure on her shoulder.

“Good. That’s good, Mrs Kavell” the voice said.

Opposite Jensen, a bird-like woman in a starched white uniform leaned over to Katherine. “You have been hurt,” she said. “And you are in a hospital. You have bruises, a slight concussion and lacerations on your hands. None of the injuries are serious”

“Here now,” she continued. “I’m going to place a straw between your lips” Her hand slid beneath Katherine’s head and lifted it gently to sip through the crook necked straw. The nurse lowered the glass and placed two small pills on Katherine’s tongue.

“Swallow, please” she said.

Katherine closed her eyes against the woman’s cheerfulness and felt her head being gently lowered to the pillow. She did as she was told.

“She will sleep now. Mr Packard” the woman said.

Katherine sank into a pink cloud, her thoughts of her mother. Of Jensen. Why was he so worried? In the shadows of his face, his eyes were hollow and pain filled. His jaw was dark with blue black stubble. Then she was too tired to wonder.

When she woke again, early morning light outlined the clinical comfort of a hospital room. A large man was sprawled in a chair near her bed, his arms folded over a half bared chest.