Filed to story: Sedona Preston and Logan Hayes Book PDF Free
The moment she was gone, Cameron moved from the chair beside me, still holding my hand as he made himself comfortable on the edge of my bed as he spoke, his eyes filled with unshead tears.
“You’re doing the right thing.”
“Am I? What if this is just prolonging the inevitable? What if I’m just… delaying death instead of living?”
“Then you’re delaying it. And every day you delay it is another, day you get to spend with people who love you. Another day to watch the sunset or eat your favorite food or hear a song that makes you happy. Those days matter, Sedona. They all matter.”
Tears spilled down my cheeks. “I’m scared, Cam.”
“I know.” He pulled me carefully into his arms, mindful of the IV lines and monitors, so he wouldn’t disrupt any. I didn’t know how much I needed his hug until he was actually hugging me, as my tears soaked his chest.
“I’m scared too. But we’re going to do this together, okay? I am not going to let you face this alone. Every treatment, every appointment, every hard moment-I’ll be there. You won’t be alone.”
“You have a company to run, Cameron. You have a life in Seattle that you need to get back to. You can’t put everything on hold for me.”
“Watch me.” His voice was fierce, filled with determination. “You are my priority. My only priority. Everything else can wait.”
I cried against his shoulder, finally allowing myself to let loose of all the fear and exhaustion and pain that Thad hidden for years. I had held myself through the sheer force of will trying to be a perfect wife and mother, but I had nobody to share my burdens with.
But now I did. Now Thad Cameron, who was absolutely refusing to let me face this alone.
A nurse came in eventually, wheeling a cart with bags of clear liquid. “Alright, Ms. Preston. Let’s get you started.”
Sedona’s POV
The pre-medications that I was subjected to by my nurse made me drowsy and slightly nauseous, but it was bearable. I wasn’t going to puke my guts anytime soon.
Then came the chemotherapy itself, dripping slowly through my IV. I watched the poison entering my body -because that’s what it was, really, it was poison that was designed to kill the cancer cells but that would also kill healthy cells in the process.
“How long does this take?” I asked the nurse, who was adjusting the speed on the drip.
“This first session will be about four hours approximately. You might feel okay during the infusion, but the side effects usually hit later, which might either be tonight or tomorrow. Make sure you stay hydrated and don’t hesitate to use the anti-nausea medication we’re prescribing. It helps wonders, so you wont feel too horrible.”
Four hours. That was an awful lot of time, that I would do nothing but to wait. Making myself comfortable, I settled back against the pillows, suddenly exhausted despite having done nothing all day.
Cameron pulled his chair closer and opened his laptop, as he typed something on it before he spoke.
“I’m going to work while you rest. If you need anything, just say so.”
But I didn’t want to rest. I didn’t want to close my eyes and face the darkness, I didn’t even want to think about the cancel cells in my body or the dark thoughts about people unfortunate to die from it, it was only going to make me more depressed.
“Tell me about Seattle,” I said instead, desperately hoping that Cameron wont be able to see the real reason why I wanted to know. “Tell me what I’ve missed.”
Cameron looked up from his laptop, surprised at the question. He clearly wasn’t expecting it. Then his expression softened. “Where do I start?”
“Anywhere. Everything. I want to know everything.”
So he told me. About the company itself and what it had done and accomplished in my absence. Preston Enterprises had expanded into new markets, and had started seeling three new different materials that we weren’t selling before, expanding more. It had also acquired three smaller firms, and was now valued at over two billion dollars. About our parents-Mom had taken up painting and was actually good at it, although she preferred drawing figure stick when it came to her family, which was a source of amusement; Dad had finally agreed to reduce his hours at the office and was talking about retirement and going on a lot of trips around the world to see it.
“They talk about you all the time,” Cameron said quietly. “Mom converted your old room into a studio, but she couldn’t bring herself to change anything else. Your tennis trophies are still on the shelves. Your posters are still on the walls. It’s like a shrine to the daughter who disappeared.”
Guilt twisted in my stomach hearing this. “I’m sorry. I’m so sorry for putting them through that.”
“They never blamed you really. They just want you home.” He paused. “I called them, by the were in the endoscopy. Told them what happened.”
“Cam-“
“They deserved to know. And they’re worried sick, but they understand we need to get you stabilized before we can travel.” He reached over and took my hand as he squeezed it before continuing.
“Mom wanted me to tell you she loves you. That she’s always loved you, even when she was pushing too hard about the marriage. She knows she made mistakes, mistakes that made you feel she didn’t want the best for you and for that she’s sorry.”
The tears came again, and I didn’t try to stop them. “I want to go home, Cam. I want to see them.”
“Soon. I promise you that, you will be back with your family. As soon as Dr. Okafor clears you for travel. It will only be delayed by a few more days, maybe a week. Just focus on getting through this treatment, and then we’ll go home together.”
The hours passed slowly. The chemotherapy dripped steadily into my veins while Cameron worked on his laptop, occasionally looking up to check on me and once he saw that I was good, he went back to work.
Nurses came and went as time blurred by, checking vitals, adjusting machines, asking how I felt and if I was experiencing anything that I needed to let them know.
By the time the infusion finished, it was nearly eight o’clock at night. I felt strange and off. It wasn’t exactly sickness but my body knew that there was something foreign inside me, and was lagging behind, in what I wanted to do.
“We’re going to keep you overnight for observation,” Dr. Okafor said when she came to check on me.
“Sometimes patients have delayed reactions to their first chemo session. Their bodies have a delayed reaction to it, for us to make sure that you are in good hands, I would suggest you stay here tonight. Better to have you here where we can monitor you closely.”
Cameron immediately called the hotel to extend our stay, then called his assistant to reschedule the private jet, that was waiting for us. Cameron was always fixing things, always taking care of details! couldn’t handle myself.
“You should go back to the hotel,” I told him around nine o’clock. “Get some sleep. You/fook exhausted.”
“I’m staying.” His tone left no room for argument.
“Cam-“
“I’m. Staying.” He grabbed a pillow and blanket from the nurse’s station and settled into the uncomfortable-looking chair beside my bed. “Try to sleep, Sedona. You need rest.”
I wanted to argue, but I was so tired. The emotional exhaustion of the past few days combined with the physical trauma that I had gotten from almost choking on my blood to starting chemotherapy was starting to drain me, leaving me wrung out and unable to put up a fight.
I closed my eyes and drifted into an uneasy sleep, dimly aware of Cameron’s presence beside me, standing guard like he’d promised, refusing to let me face this darkness alone.
Logan’s POV
The house was dark when Nick and I arrived home from the airport, our return from Disneyland had been delayed by another day as the plane had some mechanical issues.
It was nearly 10 in the night when we drove into the driveway, Nick was passed out in the backseat worn out from 3 days on nonstop excitement.
