He fucking does owe me something. I know he had a hand in that.

“Yes?” he asks from his desk chair.

“Did you plan that? You never walk patients out,” I grind out. He knows something. Why else would he have done that?

“What’s so wrong with wanting to stretch my legs?” He stretches his legs out in front of him and groans. “I’m getting too old for this sitting around all day.”

His eyes catch mine, and I know he’s lying. I narrow my eyes at him and shake my head. Why would he have done that? He knows from my phone call the other day I’m having issues with this whole thing. I want her so fucking bad, and these last couple of days with her ignoring me has been hell, but I’ve been giving her the space she needs. Every morning that I’ve woken up with no response to my texts, and no missed calls, I lose a little bit of hope. I need her in my life, but, if she can’t open up to me, I’m not sure how to help her.

“Listen… you’re paying for this. Why don’t you sit and have a talk with me?” He motions towards the chair I always sit in, and I chuckle.

“You set that up back there, didn’t you?” I rub the back of my neck, astonished that the good old Dr. T is trying to play matchmaker.

“I’m unsure what you’re talking about, Benton.” His blank face is so damn hard to read, but he has to know. I’ve said her damn name too many times for him to not put two and two together.

“Gabby. You know about Gabby and me. That’s why you just did that, isn’t it? You never pick up patients on your own¸” I say, starting to pace.

Damnit, just seeing her back there made me want to wrap my arms around her and never let her go. Fuck. I miss her so bad, and it’s only been a few days. This shit’s insane. These feelings I have for her are stronger than I had with Carly, and I hate thinking that, but it’s true. Carly was a true love, no doubt, but Gabby…. I just feel like Gabby and I are meant for each other. Like we fit together perfectly… as long as we open up to each other.

“Ah, Gabby,” he says, shaking his head. “She’s a sweet girl.”

“Damn right she is,” I mumble.

“What was that?” he asks, eyes on mine.

“Nothing. Let’s get this over with,” I growl, sitting in the chair.

We spend the entire hour talking about my relationship with Gabby, the loss of my mother, how being a single parent is. He’s curious most about my feelings towards my relationship with Gabby, though. He doesn’t necessarily want to know why I love her, or what I’d do for her, but it’s as if he’s trying to get my true feelings of how things have worked out between us.

“Fuck, I don’t know. I hate that it all got so muddled. It’s like, the moment we decided to give being exclusive a go, my mom passed and shit just went to hell. I see something in Gabby that I want to help, but she’s not letting me in. I’ve tried letting her in to my story, but she shuts down. Having a kid… well, that shit doesn’t make it easy for adults to have heart to hearts.” I chuckle and Dr. Travers smiles and nods his head.

“True, but it’s needed. Those conversations, if never done properly, can break relationships.”

He’s right.

We need to talk. Really talk. We both need to lay our shit out there, and get over it together, because that’s what I need. I need her.

After the appointment, I head back to get Hannah from my dad. He’s been going fishing a lot more lately, not spending much time at the house. Every time I see him walk into the kitchen, he makes it a point not to walk next to where he found my mom. I still remember having to clean up her blood from the kitchen floor that my dad wasn’t able to get. I don’t walk in there at all. Not yet. Maybe one day.

“Hey, B,” he says from the living room. He’s holding Hannah, who’s fast asleep in his arms. It’s not her bedtime yet, but seeing how peaceful he is holding her, I don’t say anything about it. He needs her. He needs to feel needed. My mom relied on my dad for a lot, so I’m sure he’s feeling a little lost right now.

“Hey, Dad. How’d tonight go?” I ask, packing up the diaper bag.

“Good. She’s smart, son. Been learning a lot lately, I can tell.”

“Yeah, Gabby’s been working on walking a lot with her,” I say absentmindedly, not realizing what I said until I notice my dad smiling at me. “What?”

“Gabby? She spending a lot of time with you two?”

“Dad.”

“Oh come on, I know you’re a grown man. I’m just curious what people my granddaughter is hanging around, that’s all,” he says, grinning.

“Yes. We’ve been seeing each other for almost eight months now, Dad.” A small stretching of the truth to keep him happy.

“Well, I like her,” he says, turning back to the TV.

“Me too,” I whisper, grabbing Hannah out of his arms, and putting her in the baby carrier.

“Bring Gabby back over sometime, okay? You two don’t be strangers.”

“Will do, sir.” I salute him, then nod and head out to my car. The half hour drive home after the day I’ve had is much needed peace and quiet.

Getting Hannah into her crib without waking her up is a challenge I’ve had way too much practice at. By the time I click her door closed and turn on the baby monitor, I’m ready for a beer and some mind numbing TV.

All of that changes when there’s a knock on the door before I’m even able to sit. Opening it without checking, I see Gabby standing in front of me, tears streaming down her beautiful face.

“I’m sorry,” she says, sniffling. She’s so fragile looking right now that I just want to hold on to her, but I have so many other feelings swarming me so I just stand and stare at her. “Can I come in?”

“Oh yeah, of course,” I mumble, moving to the side so she can make her way inside. She looks drained, and I’m worried because, if she’s that drained and sad, why didn’t she come to me?

“So… what’s going on?” I walk towards her, following her into the kitchen, and wait for a response. It never comes though. Her small, curvy figure sits atop one of my barstools as she tucks her legs under her. Her eyes hit mine and I feel a pull to her. Magnetic. Like we’re meant to be together. I see her eyes start to dart around the room, her fingers start playing the band on her wrist. Something’s bothering her. I just wish I knew what the hell it is.

“I uh,” she starts, then stops. Taking a deep breath, she stands abruptly. “I need to use your bathroom.”

Taking off towards the bathroom, I’m left alone in the kitchen, staring in her direction as she makes her way down the hall. What the hell is going on here? Is she drunk? Her eyes aren’t bloodshot, and she isn’t wobbly when she walks. Something’s going on, and I plan on finding out tonight.

It’s all or nothing. If she can’t trust me with everything… with every piece of her… then I can’t keep this game up. Dr. T is right. I need to be able to have a stable and happy life for Hannah. This guessing game shit with Gabby needs to stop. I don’t want it to, but I can’t go on like this.

Before she makes it out of the bathroom, there’s another knock on my door. What the fuck?

It’s after 10PM on a work night, and I’m typically in bed by now. Who would be banging on my door right now? Growling at the strange way this evening is turning out to be, I peek through the peephole to see a very frantic Annaliese, and an incredibly disgruntled Adam.

What the fuck?

“Hey,” I say, letting them in. Adam has to nudge her in the front door just so he can get it closed behind them. What the hell is going on?

“She needs to tell you something,” he grunts, nodding at her.

“I… Gabby…” she whispers, her eyes finding mine finally. She looks scared, or sad… or something.

“What? What about Gabby?” I feel a bit frantic at this point because whatever she came here to tell me obviously isn’t something she’s comfortable talking about, and, if they knew Gabby was here right now, in my bathroom, Annaliese probably wouldn’t tell me why they came here. I have to get it out of her before Gabby comes back. “What is it, Annaliese?” The growl that comes out of me wasn’t meant to be menacing, but Adam sure took it that way.