"I'm sorry," Allie apologized again, sniffing. Ranger handed her a tissue from the box near the bed where they were sitting.
"It's okay," Ranger repeated again. "Things wash."
She looked up at him and smiled gratefully. "Yeah, normally I don't quite break down like that, but…"
"But you're not used to dealing with assholes? Give me a break," Ranger teased, giving her a cocky grin, "In your line of work, I'm sure you deal with them all the time!"
"True," she admitted with another sniff, a small smile flitting across her face again. "Normally their words don't hit me like a ton of bricks." She sighed. "I guess I should have anticipated more his reaction, you know? I mean, I thought he could be experiencing a range of emotions – I just never thought he would hate me so much."
Ranger squeezed her hand. "Well, then he's a stupid SOB because he doesn't know or appreciate what you've done for him. I'd like to tell you to go ahead and forget about him, but know it isn't quite that easy. I can tell you, though, that it gets easier with time."
She looked at him curiously. "You sound like you speak from experience."
Ranger shrugged, looking uncomfortable. "Maybe," he answered cryptically.
He stood up and offered her his hand, his cocky smile back in place. "Let's get out of here. I know this great little bar down the street where we can get lost for awhile."
She placed her hand in his and nodded. "Sounds like what I might need for right now."
As they waited for the elevator, Dr. Smythe hurried up to her.
"Oh, Allie, just a minute, please. I need you to sign off on this form for the surgery scheduled for tomorrow."
She frowned.
"The skin graft, as well as the other reconstructive areas," he reminded her. "Since this is being billed to the Foundation…"
"Oh, yes," Allie replied, feeling stupid. He wasn't asking her as his next of kin, but as a representative from the Foundation. "Of course."
She scrawled her name at the bottom of the form and handed it back to the doctor. "Is that it?"
"Er, yes. How did you find your friend, by the way?"
Allie felt uncomfortable. "Fine," she lied. "Although you might want to make sure you've done a thorough psych evaluation on him. He's been through quite a lot."
"Of course," Dr. Smythe agreed. "We'll definitely see to it."
The elevator binged and Dr. Smythe bid her goodbye, his mind already on other things.
"A full psych evaluation?" questioned Ranger as the elevator doors closed.
She shrugged. "Can't hurt."
He grinned. "You're evil. I like that in a woman."
Rolling her eyes, she stepped out of the elevator on the main floor and just about bumped into her cousin.
"Eric!" she cried, his arms steadying her balance. "What are you doing here?"
"I could be asking the same thing, lass!" he answered angrily, glaring at Ranger. "I was waiting for you in the café until I heard you went off with Marc!"
Allie looked wide-eyed at Ranger. "You said…"
He shrugged. "Okay, I exaggerated a bit. But aren't you glad I was there?"
Eric took note of his cousin's red-rimmed eyes and snorted. "I'm not sure what happened, but you," he stated, pointing a finger at Ranger, "better have behaved yourself!" He turned his attention to Allie. "I had wanted to talk to you before we came, to tell you of a few things I had heard."
In what Allie thought was a very smooth move, he had her standing next to him, effectively blocking Ranger from coming near her. "We still need to talk, but I see the damage might have already been done."
"There's this place," Ranger began, but a look from Eric silenced him.
"We're not hitting some dive down the street. And you are not invited! I'll talk to you later," he said in an ominous tone.
Ranger took the hint and left the building, heading for the parking lot.
"Are you okay?" her cousin asked her, his voice softer. He studied her face. "No, I think not," he answered his own question. "Things did not go well."
She shook her head, knowing that if she spoke, the tears would start flowing again. Really, I need to get a grip on myself and get over it, she reprimanded herself. No use crying over spilt milk, right? You knew this was a possibility, especially after working with so many survivors over the years.
She sighed. "He doesn't want me around. Says Katie isn't his and that what we had is over." She bit her lip, willing herself to pull it together.
Eric's eyes flashed. "So after everything you've gone through…."
She held up a hand and he stopped. "No, I'm not holding that against him. Despite everything, he is Katie's father."
"And you still love him."
She shrugged. "Maybe he'll change his mind." She sighed again. "I don't know. I just want things to be back to normal, you know?"
"But your normal isn't his. Maybe he's scared of that and pushing you away." Eric stood up and offered her a hand. "Regardless, he still shouldn't have treated you that way. Maybe it's for the best that you and he aren't together. You have your own life now and he would just disrupt it."
Allie regarded her cousin and chose her words carefully, not wanting to offend him. "I built this life around him, around his family and his hometown. I did it for Katie. I did it for me," she admitted.
Eric shook his head. "You're not getting it, Al. Geography aside, you've established a life, a new career where you are. How do you think he'll fit in? My best advice, little cousin, would be for you to go back to your life. If he's meant to play a part, he'll come to you. I know it's not what you want to hear."
"But it's true," she admitted. She hugged her cousin. "Thanks for everything. I do mean that."
He smiled, ruffling her hair. "Do me a favor then, in return. Stay away from Marc. He's bad news."
"Sure," she answered, wondering what he was alluding to.
"So, when are you heading back?"
"Well, now that my plans have changed, I have to admit, I'm anxious to see Katie and get back to work. I have a few little things and some visits to do for the Foundation, then I'll probably be heading home tomorrow or the day after."
"His parents?"
She shrugged, trying to feel indifferent. "I'll let his mom know about the surgery he has scheduled this week. I'm sure she'd like to come and stay with him, if she can. He's already told me he's rejoining GI Joe, so I'm sure they'll handle his rehabilitation."
Eric nodded thoughtfully. "You see? He already had his plans in motion and they didn't include you nor his family." She winced at the harshness of his words, but he softened them with another smile. "Take care and keep in touch with the family. They've been talking of coming to invade if you two don't visit soon."
She chuckled. "Noted, thanks. I'm not sure if Kansas is ready for the McClellan clan."
He chucked her under the chin and smiled. "Oh, I'm sure it would be interesting. Get your work done here and go take care of your little one. She'll be missing you."