“About your leg,” she added when I stayed silent.
“I told them that I had an infection but nothing else. Please, don’t say anything else to them, okay?”
She squeezed my hand again and nodded. “I wouldn’t do that. Besides, I don’t know much more than that, either.”
“The knee infection was septic arthritis, but the antibiotics will clear it. It feels much better today already, and my fever has been gone for almost a full day. The doctor did x-rays that revealed Rex did more damage than I knew. He fractured the femur, but since there’s already a rod in it, I didn’t realize that it was broken.”
“How did you walk on that?” she asked, her head tipped to the side. “God, you must have been in horrific pain.”
I held my hands out in a shrug. “It was sore, but nothing earth-shattering.”
“In comparison, I suppose,” she muttered.
“Exactly,” I agreed. “It healed just because the rod was already in there. The knee is a bigger problem.”
“How big?” she asked, grasping both my hands in hers.
“The x-rays showed damage to the joint, but that’s not surprising considering the amount of metal I have in that leg. Unfortunately, he thinks the nerves are damaged. Once the infection clears, he wants to do some nerve study tests. I assume after that, we’ll know more.”
“And you’ll do the tests?” she asked.
I crossed my heart and let my hand fall to the couch. I would do the tests because when this infection was healed, I’d have insurance that would pay for them. I didn’t like that I felt sketchy about how that insurance was going to be obtained every time I thought about it, but I also didn’t like the idea of never being able to walk again. When you’re stuck between a rock and a hard place, there is never a good answer.
I pointed at the kitchen. “Would you get me a drink?”
She jumped up and grabbed a couple of Cokes from the fridge. I nervously took a long gulp, working up the courage to tell her what was about to change in my life.
I set the can down on the table and folded my hands. “Um, I have some news of my own,” I said slowly. I was going to wait to tell Haylee until after we were married, but Bishop made a good point earlier when we were shopping for the bands. He pointed out if I didn’t tell her that I was getting married beforehand, she’d question why. She knows I’d never get married without telling her and inviting her to be my witness. I hated that he was right, but he was. The time had come, and I had to clear my throat again while I waited for her to speak.
“More news? I hope it’s better than the last news you had to share with me.”
“Much better,” I said excitedly, grabbing her hand and scooting to the edge of the couch. I was preparing myself for the performance of the century. If Haylee Davis didn’t buy that I was marrying Bishop for love, then no one would. “Bishop and I are getting married!” I squealed, stomped my foot on the floor, and shook her hands in mine. She just sat there in silence. Her mouth opened once and then closed while her eyes blinked. “Hay-Hay?”
She opened her mouth again, and this time words came out. “Did you say you’re marrying Bishop?”
I nodded quickly. “We want you and Brady to be our witnesses. Will you?”
“Let’s back up. When did you decide to marry him? You’ve only known him a few weeks.”
“I fell in love,” I said, trying not to laugh at myself in the process. Smooth, Amber.
She tossed up her arms. “What is going on right now? When did he propose, and why didn’t you call me?”
I hadn’t considered that question, and I had to come up with an answer quickly. “He proposed late last night by the fire. It was so romantic, Hay-Hay,” I said, my eyelashes batting. “You were already in bed, and I knew you had that big order to get out this morning, so I didn’t want to bother you. You had already texted that you were coming over after work, so I waited. It killed me, but I waited. In the meantime, Bishop has been moving my stuff to his house, we bought wedding bands, applied for our license, and we’re getting married tonight!”
“Tonight?”
I guess she was just going to repeat everything I said. “Yes, tonight. There’s no waiting period in Minnesota anymore.”
“Don’t you want a big wedding with your parents and sisters there? What about Bishop’s family?”
I swung my head back and forth. “No, we want to keep it small and easy. We just want to get married and be living together before he has to go back to school.”
She rubbed the back of her neck with confusion. “Amber, don’t you think this is a little sudden?” She leaned in close to me. “Have you slept with him yet?”
“No, we’re waiting for our wedding night,” I said, forcing myself not to smile.
She motioned around my face. “You know you can have sex before you get married, right? You can even have casual sex. You don’t have to get married, just do it.”
I gave her the har-har face this time. “I’m aware, smarty pants. I’m not marrying Bishop for the sex.” She snorted, and I held up my hand. “Okay, so the sex will be absolutely amazing, but that’s not why I’m marrying him. I love him the same way
