Forever You're Mine (MINE #4)(60)

He’d barely had a pulse by the time the paramedics finally arrived that terrifying night. He’d gone into shock. Lucky had been a miracle. He’d traveled by ATV four miles in the snow to get to us, and had he not been there, Cannon would not have made it.

I was thankful to have him here, next to me, breathing and swiping licks of chocolate from my bowl. “Damn, that tastes good,” he grinned. His lips covered mine, stealing my thoughts and my breath in an instant. “Not as good as that though.”

“And I’m out,” Winston laughed, leaving the kitchen.

“Way to go, you ran him off,” I teased.

“He knows what’s up.”

“How are you feeling? You should be taking it easy,” I said, forgoing the mixing to place my hands on his strong chest.

It had been less than a month since he’d been shot. His parents arrived that very same night. We all sat in the waiting room, hoping and praying Cannon would survive.

And by the grace of God, he had.

It was touch and go for a while. Cannon had lost a lot of blood and he had to have emergency surgery to remove the bullet that had narrowly missed his heart. The doctors said he was lucky, had it been another eighth of an inch, he would not have made it.

My lungs still constricted when I thought about it. Ruby came to stay with him a week after he was released from the hospital, hovering over him like the caring mother she was, until he ordered her to go home. She would only comply if I agreed to stay with him, and give her regular updates.

As if she had to ask.

I hadn’t left his side much at all since that night, except to spend time with my brother. Ruby and I had grown closer over the last few weeks, her daily check-ins leading to conversations about how I was feeling, and dealing with the trauma we’d endured.

After an extensive investigation, the police discovered that Alexis Davis had never been sexually abused by her father. She suffered from severe bi-polar disorder, and according to her parents, had been admitted several times over the years because she refused to take her meds. Shortly after a failed suicide attempt, the third according to her parents, she escaped the treatment facility they’d admitted her to and that’s when she snapped.

Ruby had listened attentively and offered comfort when necessary, silence when required. Because sometimes, there are no words that can soothe the pain we feel. We just have to feel it, live it, and move on. I remember Ruby saying once, hold on pain ends. Those words have stuck with me throughout all of this. I repeat them to myself in the mirror every single day.

There’s a whole lotta hope in those four little words.

“I’m good, babe. Fuckin’ great actually. I’ve got my girl,” he said, his lips greeting my neck once more. They travelled from the base down to my collarbone, dropping small kisses and scrapes along the way. My skin heated, goosebumps dancing across my flesh. “I’ve got everything.”

“Cannon,” I whispered, my heart beating wildly in my chest.

“Dude, get off my girl,” Battle ordered, entering the kitchen.

“Fuck,” Cannon groaned, letting me go.

Battle shoved past his brother, pushing him out of the way. “Hey, what the hell do you think you’re doing?”

Battle wrapped me in one of his sweet, brotherly hugs. “Giving my girl some love. Oooh…chocolate,” he said, dipping his finger into the batter.

Cannon mumbled as he walked out of the kitchen. “How are you Battle?” I asked.

“Good, starvin’ like Marvin though. When do we eat?”

“Another hour or so,” I answered, following Cannon into the living room. “Stay out of my cake mix!”

Battle’s mischievous laugh carried into the living room, mixing with Ruby’s sweet voice. She had Winston wrapped in one of her mama bear hugs while Titus and Cannon situated the gifts under the tree.

“Hey you,” she said, releasing my brother to hug me next.

I loved her hugs. She never let go first. She always let me hug her as long as I wanted. Something I’d grown dependent on during Cannon’s time in the hospital. “How’s my girl?”

“Good, how was your drive?”

“Too long. Being stuck in the car with both of them,” Ruby said, lifting her chin to Battle standing in the doorway of the kitchen, eating batter from a wooden spoon.

“Seriously? You do know there are raw eggs in that right?” I asked, shaking my head. Thank goodness I bought extra cake mix. I’d burnt the last one I baked, so I wanted to make sure I was covered. At this rate…I was going to need it.

When I turned back around, I found Cannon standing in front of me with a weird look on his face. Nervously, I looked around the room, wondering what the hell was going on. Winston held a secret smile while Battle continued to devour cake batter. Ruby’s eyes shined with unshed tears and Titus stood proudly next to her, his arm wrapped around her shoulder.

I looked back at Cannon, where I found him down on one knee with a confident smile on his face. He wrapped his strong fingers around one hand, while my other hand flew to my mouth.

Oh my God.

“Cora, you’re the fire in my heart. The love of my life. I want to spend forever with you. Will you do me the honor of being my wife?”

“Hurry up and say yes so you can get to bakin’ this cake,” Battle said and I laughed through my tears, my heart full of love and happiness.