Divorce to Destiny: Reclaiming My CEO Husband novel Chapter 504

(Winona)

Dr. Harris’s words hang in the air long after she leaves. Recovery is a process… it’s okay to take things slow.

Slow.

It’s all anyone keeps saying. But slow isn’t in my nature. Slow doesn’t keep the thoughts at bay, the quiet moments where I can’t escape the emptiness.

I stare at the ceiling, my fingers making light circles on my abdomen again. I pull them back. It’s a cruel reflex—reaching for something that isn’t there anymore.

The door clicks open, and Lisa steps in, her expression softer than usual. “Hey, warrior queen. The nurse said you were ready for some company.”

“Hey,” I say, trying to summon a smile. “I sure am. I need some non-medical talk for a while.”

Lisa pulls up a chair beside my bed and crosses her legs.

She studies me for a moment before speaking. “You look like shit, but like… badass shit. Like you survived a car crash and are about to storm into a boardroom meeting.”

I huff out a small laugh. “Your bedside manner could use some work.”

“Honesty is my brand,” she says with a shrug. “I’m not paid to be nice to you.”

“I feel like shit, to be honest. Like I’ve been through the meat grinder.”

I shift slightly, wincing as the ache in my body and my injured head reminds me why I’m here. “How are the kids? Jayden said you and Cass were with them?”

“They are great. Anne’s got them eating like royalty. Bobby’s been doing this big brother protector thing, and Sarah is busy playing schoolteacher to Abby. Even Tornado Henry has been on his best behavior—well, for him anyway. Worried about you, of course.”

A pang of guilt hits me. “I should be with them.”

“You will be,” Lisa says firmly. “But not today. Today, you rest.”

“I don’t feel like resting. I feel like I need to be doing something, anything to… I don’t know, get past this.”

“You don’t have to get past it, Winona. You just have to get through it. That’s the only way out of pain—straight through the middle.”

I shake my head. “I don’t think I have it in me to sit in this pain. I need to keep moving forward, focus on something else.”

Lisa studies me for a long moment, then nods. “Fair enough. If that’s what you need, then do it. But promise me you won’t shut us out while you’re doing it.”

“I won’t,” I promise, though I'm not sure how true that is.

She leans back in her chair, her tone lightening. “Good. Because I’ve got a whole mess of chaos to dump on you as soon as you’re up for it. Starting with Lance’s charity stuff.”