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  Grady waited for Cassidy to bring them inside and up the stairs. He reached his hands up and felt for her hair. “Turn around.”

  “Why?”

  “Please.”

  Cassidy turned around. “Ok.”

  Grady placed his hands over Cassidy’s eyes. “I’m just going to walk us to my bedroom.”

  “Grady, why do I have to have my eyes closed?”

  “I want you to see it all at once, not pieces of it as you near my room.”

  “This is weird.”

  “Not for me.”

  “I’m sorry. That was…”

  “The truth. It is weird maneuvering around in the darkness. It’s like you’re asleep but awake.”

  “Great way to kill the mood.”

  “I’m ok. I know that one day I will see again. Each day you give me more hope.”

  Cassidy smiled. “Never give up hope, Grady.”

  “We should be at my bedroom.” Grady leaned down and kissed the top of Cassidy’s head while inhaling her heavenly peach scent. “Ready.”

  “Yes.”

  Grady dropped his hands.

  Cassidy looked inside. Candles and flowers filled the room. There was champagne on ice and a roaring fire burning. “Oh, Grady, it’s perfect.”

  “Last chance to change your mind.”

  “I lost my mind tonight when you held me in your arms on the dance floor.”

  “I’m going to kiss you now.” Grady leaned forward.

  Cassidy lifted her head and met Grady’s sweet lips. There was no turning back now. She pulled him close.

  Grady stepped back. “Doc, are you sure you’re…”

  Cassidy kissed Grady. Grady reached around Cassidy and unzipped her dress. She shoved off his jacket, unbuttoned his shirt and pushed down his pants. Next, was her bra and then her panties. She was standing in the middle of his bedroom completely naked. It was only two months ago that she stood alone in her own bedroom and Grady O’Malley was just a name that went along with a beautiful face and a tall, hot body.

  Grady kissed Cassidy allover her body. “Mmm, you taste as good as you smell.”

  Cassidy felt as if she had died and gone to Heaven. How many times had she fantasized about Grady? She never imagined in her wildest dreams that she’d meet him, moreover… “Oh God…Grady…” Cassidy reached her hand down and grabbed Grady’s hair. She was wriggling about, arching her back and ready to explode. When Cassidy came, she let out a groan that sent Grady into a panic.

  Grady pulled away, he grabbed his ears and started to shake. “No…no…make it stop.”

  Cassidy leapt up to comfort him. She gently placed her hand onto his. “Grady, Honey, it’s ok. You’re here with me, Doc.”

  “Help me. I don’t want to feel this way.”

  Cassidy wrapped Grady in her arms and then she kissed his forehead. “I promise, you won’t always feel this way.”

  Grady exhaled a few times and the shaking stopped. “I’m so sorry. I seem to have a way of ruining everything.”

  “You didn’t ruin anything.”

  Grady lifted his hand and ran his fingers through Cassidy’s hair. “I wanted tonight to be perfect.”

  “Perfect is boring.” Cassidy let out a giggle.

  “Doc, I think I’m…”

  Cassidy couldn’t hear those words. She silenced Grady with a kiss. Once he relaxed in her arms, she started stroking him. When he was hard, she pulled her lips away, ran her tongue down his belly and greedily sucked all of him into her mouth.

  “Whoa, oh, Doc!”

  Cassidy smiled with every groan Grady ground out until Grady grabbed her by the shoulders and pulled her up into his arms. “I want to make love to you, Doc.” Grady rolled with Cassidy in his arms.

  Cassidy looked up at Grady. His eyes were closed. Her heart broke for him. She reached up her hand and placed it onto his cheek.

  Grady opened his eyes. “I wish I could see you.”

  Cassidy cringed. Thank goodness he couldn’t see her. “Your sight will come back soon.”

  “Then I can look into your eyes while I make love to you.” Grady kissed Cassidy as he worked his way inside her.

  “Oh…” Cassidy silenced herself so that she wouldn’t set Grady off.

  “Kiss me.”

  Cassidy wrapped her arms around Grady’s neck and kissed him.

  Grady started moving harder and faster until he finally came. Once he caught his breath he pulled out, dropped down next to Cassidy, and pulled her into his arms. After a few minutes Grady whispered. “I’m falling in love with you, Doc.”

  Cassidy wanted to say something but instead she pretended to be asleep.

  Cassidy woke up and snuck out of Grady’s bed. She wished she could stay in his arms forever, but she knew that her time was running out and it made her so sad.

  She picked up her phone to call Jess and she heard a crash come from Grady’s room. She entered his room, flipped on the light, and grabbed Grady by the shoulders. “Grady! Grady!”

  Grady was thrashing about in his bed mumbling. “Can’t breathe. Help me!”

  Cassidy shook Grady. “Grady, wake up! You’re safe! Breathe, Baby, breathe!”

  “Doc.”

  “It’s me. I’m here.”

  “It was so real.”

  “Grady, it was real. It’s not a dream.”

  “I know but this time I could hear everything. Doc, I could see colors and smell the saltwater.”

  “Do you want to tell me about it?”

  Grady looked away. “I don’t know if I can.”

  In the past Grady always said no so Cassidy was surprised that Grady gave her what she considered a maybe. “You can, Grady. I know you can.”

  Grady turned back toward Cassidy. He rubbed his hands over his face. “Is the light on?”

  “Yes, why?”

  “Turn it off.”

  “Why?”

  “Please.”

  Cassidy leaned over and shut off the light. “It’s off.”

  “Turn it back on.”

  Cassidy turned the light back on and Grady bolted up from the bed and reached for Cassidy. “I can see the light!”

  Panic coursed through Cassidy. “Just the light?”

  “I can tell light from dark. That means that I’m getting better, right?”

  “It could, yes.”

  Grady hugged Cassidy and then pulled away. “I have to call West and tell him.”

  Cassidy handed him his phone. “I’ll go make us some coffee and then we can talk about that nightmare.”

  “Ok.”

  Cassidy started the coffee and then sat down at the table to wait. She was excited for Grady but absolutely devastated at the thought of losing him. Cassidy wiped tears from her cheeks and then picked up her phone to call Jess.

  “So, I want all the details?”

  “Details?”

  “Am I mistaken or wasn’t that you last night who had a date with gorgeous Grady O’Malley!”

  “It was a perfect night.”

  “OH MY GOD! YOU HAD SEX WITH HIM?”

  “I crossed the line.”

  “Are you ok? You sound awful.”

  “No, Jess, I don’t know how I’m going to walk away.”

  “You don’t have to, Cass.”

  “He could never love someone like me.”

  “He already does.”

  “No.”

  “Cass…”

  “I have to go.” Cassidy hung up.

  “Grady, my man, what’s up?”

  “West, Doc thinks that I’m getting close. I can tell the difference between light and dark.”

  “Grady, that’s amazing.”

  “You know what else is amazing…Doc.”

  “Still got the hots for her, huh?”

  “I’ve never felt this way before.”

  “How does she feel?”

  “I know she cares about me.”

  “Do you think she’s attracted to you?”

&nb
sp; “I hope so because we spent the night together.”

  “You dog, you.”

  “It wasn’t like that. It was special.”

  “Damn, you really do have feelings for Doc Scott.”

  “I do.”

  “I’m happy for you, Grady.”

  “Thanks. So, how’s it going?”

  “I qualified for Big Nine.”

  “Maybe I’ll be back before Nationals.”

  “I hope so because I miss your greedy ass.”

  “I’ll give you a call tomorrow.”

  “Bye, Buddy.”

  Grady hung up and then headed to the kitchen.

  “I smell coffee.”

  Cassidy looked up and Grady was smiling at her. “Are you hungry?”

  “Not really.”

  Cassidy took Grady’s hand. “Are you ok?”

  “I’m ready to talk about it.”

  Cassidy’s eyes opened wide. “Oh!”

  Grady reached his hand up, placed it onto Cassidy’s cheek and then kissed her forehead. “You’re my anchor, Doc. When I’m with you I feel like I can do anything.” Grady kissed Cassidy.

  Cassidy pulled away. “Why don’t I bring our coffee into the game room and then we can talk.”

  Grady sat on the couch waiting for Cassidy to hang up the phone. He was beginning to stress himself out thinking about the accident.

  “Ok, sorry.”

  Grady had been so deep in thought that he never heard Cassidy come in and jumped when she spoke. “UHH!”

  Cassidy felt awful that she startled Grady. “Oh, Grady, I’m so sorry.”

  “It’s ok. I got myself pretty wound up waiting for you to come back.”

  “I wouldn’t have answered but unless it is an emergency Dr. Keene never calls.”

  “I understand.”

  Cassidy sat next to Grady. “Do you want to start at the beginning or where we left off last?”

  “Maybe from when I woke after the crash.”

  “Ok. Whatever you’re comfortable with.”

  Grady reached for Cassidy’s hand. Before last night he wouldn’t have, especially not during a session. Cassidy allowed him to take her hand even though it wasn’t professional. “I woke up to the smell of saltwater, fuel and smoke.”

  “Did you still have your vision at that point?”

  “Yes. I could see light and water coming through the side of the plane. There were bodies everywhere, one was split in two.”

  Cassidy could see how upset Grady was becoming. She squeezed his hand. “Breathe.”

  Grady exhaled. “One woman was crying out for help. She was trapped and the water was coming in…” Grady pulled his hand away from Cassidy. He dropped his face into his hands. “I watched her drown and there wasn’t anything I could do about it.” Grady burst into tears.

  Cassidy knelt up and wrapped her arms around Grady. “I’m so sorry, Grady.”

  Grady sat back, wiped his face and then he pulled Cassidy close. “I tried to tell her to breathe and…she was too scared. If I was a few feet closer maybe I could have held her head up out of the water or done something to at least comfort her.”

  “Grady, you can’t blame yourself. The crash wasn’t your fault.”

  “Why me? Why did I survive?”

  “I don’t know, I wish I could give you an answer, but I can’t. What I can tell you is that you should be grateful that you got a second chance.”

  “Can I have a minute?”

  “Sure, I’ll get us more coffee.”

  Grady sat in silence trying to calm himself enough to share the rest of his horrific story with Cassidy. As much as he wanted to bury every memory of the crash, he knew that if he wanted to see again, he had no choice but to relive it.

  “Hey!” Cassidy put down the coffee mugs.

  Grady reached his hand out for Cassidy. “I was hanging upside down. I could taste the blood from my split lip, and it hurt to breathe. I tried to unbuckle my seat belt, but it was jammed.” Grady’s hands started to shake.

  Cassidy rubbed Grady’s back. “Do you want to stop?”

  Grady shook his head. “No. When I saw light today, I promised myself that I wouldn’t give in to my fear. I want to fight; I want my sight back and if talking about it is what I have to do then I will talk until I can see your smile.” Grady placed his hand back onto Cassidy’s. “I feel safe with you by my side, Doc.”

  Cassidy’s heart broke a little more with each sweet thing Grady said to her. Finally, a man who was worth loving but she knew she couldn’t do that to him. “I’m happy that I can make you feel that way, Grady.”

  “The water started rising and before I knew it my hair was getting wet. I lifted my head and tried to float but the water kept rising. I reached up and held on to my pant legs. The pain was so bad I almost gave up. I don’t know how much time passed but suddenly the side of the plane burst open. Water was spraying from every direction. It was ice cold, but it helped to ease my pain a bit. The rushing water was tossing me about, I was drowning until my seat belt gave way and I dropped headfirst to the bottom of the plane. I hit my head and I was dizzy, but I knew I had to get out.” Grady moved around while he was reliving his fateful night and was now lying with his head on Cassidy’s lap.

  Cassidy rubbed Grady’s back. Tears rolled down her cheeks as she listened to him speak. Happy tears that he survived but also tears of sorrow knowing that he would have to live with these memories for the rest of his life. “Maybe we should take a break?”

  “I need to finish. I don’t know if I can go through this again.”

  “It’s ok, Honey, I’m listening when you’re ready.”

  Grady reached his hand up and touched Cassidy’s face. “Thank you for being you.”

  Cassidy blinked and an unshed tear rolled down her cheek. “Grady…”

  “You’re crying?”

  “No, my eyes have a leak.” Cassidy giggled.

  Grady let out a laugh. “Seriously, please don’t cry for me. I survived.”

  “I know but hearing what you had to endure to survive…”

  “Doc, wasn’t it you who told me that I had to be strong?”

  “I did and you do.”

  “I’m not sure where my strength came from that night. I grabbed onto the first thing I could find…it was one of the men who was sitting across from me. His eyes were still open. I wanted to close them for him so that he could be at peace, but another surge of water pushed me. I could barely breath by the time I got my head out of the water. It felt like the longest swim of my life. I could see lights and as I reached the surface there was debris everywhere. I don’t know what, but I managed to hold onto something. I could hear choppers and sirens in the distance. I tried to call for help but my lungs had no breath left in them and then everything went black. When I woke up, I was in the hospital.”

  Grady nuzzled his face against Cassidy’s belly, and she held him tight. Neither of them uttered a sound.

  Grady opened his eyes to darkness. “DOC! DOC, ARE YOU HERE?”

  Cassidy yelled back. “I’M IN THE KITCHEN.”

  Grady got up and headed to the kitchen. “Doc!”

  Cassidy walked over to Grady. “I’m right here.”

  “I guess I passed out.”

  “You had a rough day.”

  “Now that you mention it, I could use a hug.” Grady smiled.

  Cassidy hugged Grady. His arms were so big and strong. She wished she could stay in his arms forever, but she couldn’t, and it was time to start distancing herself from Grady. Cassidy pulled away and crossed the room. “Your sister, Margot, called while you were asleep and said that they docked and will be flying home the day after tomorrow.”

  “I guess that means that you’ll be leaving me?”

  “That was the agreement when I moved in.”

  “Yeah.”

  “Dinner should be ready in about twenty minutes.”

  “I’m not hungry. I think I’m going to shower and get to be
d.” Grady turned and left.

  Cassidy could see the hurt look on his face. Her first instinct was to run after him and comfort him but that would only make it worse for them both.

  Grady couldn’t sleep all he could think about was Cassidy. Finally, he gave up and decided to go for a swim. He climbed into the pool and started swimming laps. The cool water felt invigorating and his stress started to melt away. He had been swimming so often that he knew exactly when the wall was coming up and even calculated his turns without assistance.

  Cassidy was tossing and turning in her bed when she heard footsteps followed by a door closing. She got up and poked her head into Grady’s room to check on him, but he wasn’t there. She searched almost every room before she decided to check the pool. She walked out onto the pool deck, turned on the lights and there he was swimming laps.

  His beautiful, strong body traveling in and out of the water displaying his signature American flag swimsuit across his delicious ass.

  Grady popped his head up at the shallow end to take a breath and noticed the lights were on. “Doc?”

  “Yes, it’s me.”

  “I can sense the light.”

  “I heard the door and…”

  “I’m sorry if I woke you.”

  “I wasn’t asleep.”

  “So, you thought that you’d come watch me swim?”

  “I wanted to make sure that you were alright.”

  “Do I look alright?”

  Cassidy stared at Grady for a moment. “You look gorgeous.”

  Grady smiled. “Thank you, but I meant it figuratively.”

  “Oh.” Cassidy looked down at the ground.

  “Why don’t you come for a swim.”

  “I’m not wearing a swimsuit.”

  “What are you wearing?” Grady smiled.

  Cassidy could feel her cheeks heat up. “Sleep clothes.”

  Grady walked toward Cassidy’s voice and then leaned against the wall of the pool. “Why don’t you take them off and come in.”

  “What if someone sees me?”

  Grady laughed. “It’s the middle of the night, nobody else lives here and in case you’ve forgotten, I’m blind.”