Chapter 243

When I returned from the bathroom, Bernard was gone and Ran was holding BJ, who was sucking on her binky and clutching him. He was walking around the room talking to her quietly, trying to comfort her. He was her protector, her Rannie, the reason that he hadn't killed himself after he had lost his one true love. They shared a special relationship. Ran knew more than most the pain of a severed bond.

BJ's face was puffy from crying, but when she saw me, the binky fell from her mouth and she reached for me desperately. "Mommy!" She kicked and squirmed to get to me.

I picked her up and held her to me, and she wrapped her arms around my neck and clung to me. I should have never listened to anyone tell me that I was too beat up for her to see. There had been too many changes in my daughter's life for her to be without both her Dad and me.

"It's okay, baby girl," I crooned. Feeling her weight in my arms and the smell of her baby shampoo soothed the shredded bits of my soul. I walked her ar