Chapter 39: The Invitation
The fundraiser sat only a few days away now, and I'd finally accepted Gabriel's invitation to speak, the decision settling over me with a mix of excitement and nerves I hadn't felt in years. It meant stepping back into a world I'd once believed was closed to me forever.
"I'll attend," Adrian said, when I told him the date over breakfast.
"You don't have to," I said carefully. "I know it isn't your world."
"I want to be there," he said. "Not because of Gabriel. Because I want to support you."
I smiled, something warm settling in my chest at the simple sincerity in his voice.
Gabriel met me at the hospital two days before the event, walking me through the auditorium where the fundraiser would take place, introducing me to the doctors and nurses and board memb
