Protect Her

Chapter Forty Three

***Trigger Warning: This chapter contains heavy themes of domestic violence and miscarriage. Please take care of yourself and skip if you feel this may be triggering for you. If you or someone you know is experiencing domestic violence of any kind, please reach out to someone in your community. In the US, that number is 1-800-799-7233**

Camryn

"Okay, here we are!" Derek grinned as he wheeled me into the apartment from the elevator. I was fine to walk, and had been cleared by everyone at the hospital, but Derek was being insistent.

Riley fanned her arm across the room. "Ta-da!" The entire living room was full of balloons and a great big sign that they had decorated.

"Wow! It's amazing!" I said, standing up. Derek took my hand to steady me. "You guys didn't need to do all of this!"

"We wanted to surprise you!" Riley jumped up and down. "Do you like it?"

"I love it!" I assured her.

"Good, because I nearly passed out ten times blowing air into these balloons." Derek smirked, kissing my cheek. "It's so good to have you home."

"It feels so good to be back here." I let out a sigh of relief. So much had happened in the days since I had last left this apartment. I had been to hell and back, we all had, but now I felt lighter than I had in years. We weren't looking over our shoulders anymore, and we would never have to again. We wouldn't be cooped up here, afraid to leave the house, but able to come and go as we pleased, like a real home.

"What sounds good for dinner?" Derek asked, setting the bags down by the door.

"NOT grilled cheese again." Riley eyed Derek carefully. "We had that for three days!"

Derek burst out laughing. "Okay, my cooking skills leave a little to be desired. How about takeout?"

"I can make something." I offered. I had gotten so much of my strength back the last few days and was really feeling like myself again. The last three days, I'd been working with the nurses to get stronger so I could come home, and it was so nice to finally feel good again.

"Absolutely not." Derek shook his head. "You need to go sit down."

"I've been sitting and laying down for three days." I rolled my eyes.

"Just humor me, okay? I want to take care of you." He gave me a goofy grin. I wanted to tell him I could take care of myself, but I bit my tongue. Derek liked taking care of other people, and it was cute how much he was trying to do to make me comfortable. "Why don't you and Riley put a movie on and I'll order some Chinese?"

"Chinese sounds great." I agreed.

"Don't forget the cookies!" Riley called over her shoulder, already in the living room searching through the menus for a movie.

I joined her and a few minutes later, Derek came in.

"Alright, dinner will be here soon. Do you need anything?" He asked.

I reached for his hand and pulled him down towards the couch. "The only thing I need is for you to sit down."

"Okay." He chuckled, settling in next to me and wrapping his arm around my shoulder.

Riley picked a Despicable Me movie, and we ate our dinner together in the living room. Nothing could have felt more perfect. It was everything I wanted, but I couldn't shake the sinking feeling inside of me. Even with Robby gone, I couldn't help but feel like it was all about to come crashing down.

When our movie was over, Derek started a bubble bath for me and then put Riley to bed. He really was incredible, slipping right in to a fatherly role. It warmed my heart and broke it all at the same time. I couldn't help but cry as I sat in the water, thinking about our future. I had felt so sure about everything just a few days ago, and now I felt like everything was on shaky ground.