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Gabriel sat on the bedside chair and carefully took her hand Her fingers were light and loose, as if he were holding a little bundle of wood spills

"I’ll leave you to spend a few minutes alone with her," Dr Gibson said from the doorway "Then, if you wouldn’t mind, I’ll let the family members see her briefly, so we can send theht in a spare bedroom at the Winterbornes’ residence--"

"No, I’ll stay here"

"We’ll bring in a ers around his, Gabriel pressed the backs of them to his cheek and held them there Her familiar scent had been obliterated by a blank, sterile too-clean sh and chapped But her skin had lost the frightening chill, and her breathing was steady, and he was steeped in the relief of being able to sit there and touch her He settled his free hand lightly on her head, his thue of her hairline

The crescents of her lashes fluttered, and she stirred Slowly her face turned toward hiht blue of her eyes, and was pierced with a tenderness so acute that it irl," he whispered He reached for a chip of ice from the bowl and fed it to her Pandora held it in herthe liquid absorb into the dry inner tissues of her cheeks "You’ll be all better soon," he said "Are you in pain, love?"

Pandora shook her head slightly, her gaze locking on his A furrow of puzzled concern gathered on her forehead "Mrs Black" she croaked

His heart twisted in his chest like a scullery rag being wrung out "Whatever she told you, Pandora, it wasn’t true"

"I know" She parted her lips, and he fished in the bowl for another ice chip Sucking on the bit of ice, she waited until it had dissolved "She said I bore you"

Gabriel looked at her blankly Of all the lunatic notions Nola could have coasped with a "I have not been bored," he eventuallyat her "Not for one second since I first met you In truth, love, after this I wouldn’t htly

Unable to resist the te, dry kiss against her lanced at the e that if Dr Gibson had seen him, she would have had his lips sterilized

For the next two days, Pandora slept heavily, waking only for brief intervals and exhibiting little interest in her surroundings Even though Dr Gibson assured Gabriel the sy anesthesia, it was unnerving to see his energetic young wife reduced to this condition

Pandora showed glimmers of her usual liveliness only twice The first ti traveled by train frohted to see hi to convince hi "Ro Your Boat" included the phrases "gently down the string" and "life’s a butter dreaon had come to the doorway to look in on her, his usually stoic face draith concern, while Gabriel had fed her spoonfuls of fruit ice Noticing the towering figure at the threshold, Pandora had exclaion," and had deed arm Before he had even reached the bed, however, she had fallen back to sleep

Gabriel stayed at her bedside every possibleto the moveable cot near thefor brief periods of sluer to sit with her, and they probably found it annoying that he was so reluctant to leave the room and entrust her to anyone else However, he stayed as much for his own sake as for hers When he spent even a fewand redoubling until he expected to find her in the e by the time he returned

He was perfectly aware that souilt he was currently floundering in It didn’t matter if someone pointed out the ways in which it was not his fault--he could easily come up with just as many reasons to the contrary Pandora had needed protection, and he hadn’t provided it Had he made different choices, she wouldn’t be in a hospital bed with a surgically divided artery and a three-inch hole in her shoulder

Dr Gibson cans of suppuration, looking for any swelling of the ar for cos She said Pandora appeared to be healing well Barring any problems, she would be able to resume her usual activities in teeks However, she would still need to be careful for a few months A hard jolt, such as the impact froe

Months of worry Months of trying to keep Pandora still and quiet and safe

The prospect of all that lay ahead of thehtmares that tormented him every time he tried to sleep, and y, rim Perversely, the kindness of friends and relations ements were a special irritant: they were delivered almost hourly at the clinic, where Dr Gibson refused to allow them past the entrance lobby They piled up in funereal abundance, ly thick and sweet