Chapter 27
GRANT
“ I can’t believe this,” Grant said as he ran a trembling hand through his hair. “She can’t do this.”
“I feel like I’m in a bad Western,” Kyle added as they wandered through the hospital toward Sierra’s room. “You can’t call the cops because she’s a cop. And they’ve got the entire town locked down with this anti-Harrington sentiment.”
“Right?” Grant said, sharing a look of disbelief with his son. Had they finally found something to bond over? “You got that vibe from the nurse, too?”
“Ah, yeah, the one who ‘couldn’t find’ Julia Harrington? Then ‘couldn’t tell you’ about Julia Stanton because she was ‘single’?” She knew exactly what was going on, and she just went along with it.”
Grant shook his head as his emotions roiled inside him. He desperately wanted information about his wife, but he wasn’t going to get any outside of the curt, “she’s going to be fine,” he’d received from Alicia when she’d dismissed him.
“What are we going to tell Sierra?” Grant asked, his voice hollow.
Kyle flicked his eyebrows up. “Definitely not the truth.”
“Why is your first instinct always to lie?”
“Like yours isn’t, Dad.”
“No, it’s not. I don’t, in general, lie first.”
“Oh, right. That’s right. You didn’t invite hundreds of people to your house sixteen months ago and declare your undying love to a woman you contracted to be your wife. That must have been a different Grant Harrington.”
“I am not amused. And I’m being serious. How am I going to tell her I didn’t even see Julia?”
“I wouldn’t recommend that unless you want Sierra to have an epic freak-out the likes of which this hospital has never seen before.”
Grant closed his eyes and shook his head.
The hospital corridor echoed with the sterile clinks and distant murmurs, a stark contrast to the turmoil raging with Grant.
The clinical white walls seemed to close in on him, each step toward Sierra’s room now felt heavier than the last. “You’re right.
If I tell her we haven’t seen her, she’s going to have a meltdown. ”
“And then some. Believe me, my urge to lie in this case is spot on.”
Grant blew out a long breath as he slowed to a stop. “I hope I can do this.”
“Says the man who has spent sixteen months–”
“Don’t,” Grant said with a wave of his finger.
“Just…tell her that Julia’s fine and now she’s resting. Oh, tell her she’s been sedated and that’s why you’re not there. Simple.”
Grant sucked in a deep breath as he planned his lie to his daughter about the wife he worried he’d never see again. “Fine. Let’s go.”
Grant led them back to Sierra’s room. His daughter drummed her fingers against the bed as she waited. “Oh, there you are. Do you know how boring life is without your phone? I have been sitting here for…I don’t know how long because I can’t see the time on my phone.”
“I’m sorry, honey, we came back as quickly as we could.”
“Why?”
Grant furrowed his brow. “Didn’t you just say you were bored and hoping we’d be back soon?”
“Yes, but you should be holding Julia’s hand, not mine.” She flicked her gaze to Kyle. “Well, not you. You should be…somewhere else. Anywhere else. Waiting room. House. The moon.”
Kyle heaved a sigh as he sank into a chair in the room.
“Although,” Sierra said as she stared at Kyle, “why are you here? Why are you not holding Julia’s hand and…ogling her?”
“Actually, she’s been sedated,” Grant said. “So, no one is…ogling her.”
“How do you know? You should be down there making sure! You never know when that…whatever his name is with the sexy scruff and the–”
“Please, Sierra,” Grant said, clenching his fists.
“Whoa,” Sierra said, arching an eyebrow. “What’s with you? Ohhhh, sexy scruff was already there.”
Grant clenched his jaw as the image of Luke kissing her before she went over the cliff danced in his brain. Alicia’s words about never seeing Julia again rang through his mind. How would he explain this to his daughter?
Kyle was right not to tell her now, but she’d have to know soon. They were slated to go home in two days. What would he say when they got on that plane without Julia?
“Why don’t you try to get some sleep, Sierra?”
“Is Luke with Julia? If he is, why aren’t you there? Or you?” He poked a finger at Kyle. “The one time we need you to do something crazy, you’re sitting here like the sanest person on the planet.”
Kyle shot her an unimpressed look. “She’s asleep. No one is doing anything to her.”
“Ohhh, don’t be so sure. That sister of hers is probably whispering in her ear about how terrible we are, and Luke is telling her about all the sails he wants to take her on, and how much he loves how she looks in that swimsuit on his wall, and–”
“Please stop, Sierra. She’s fine. She’s asleep. And Kyle is…fine.”
“Really? I’m really starting to worry about him. He looks so…normal. Why aren’t you dressing up in scrubs and a mask and sneaking into her room?”
His eyebrows shot up.
“Don’t do that,” Grant warned. “Just let Julia sleep. And I think you should, too.”
Sierra pouted. “Is there any way we could get Julia moved here with us?”
“No, honey, she’s…in another room already and…”
“And what? And Grant Harrington can’t pull a few strings to get her moved here with us? It’s not like it’s going to hurt her. Maybe it’ll help her to know her family is all here with her. I just…I want to see for myself that she’s okay.”
“She’s fine, honey,” Grant said, grabbing her hand and squeezing it. “And she knows we’re thinking of her.”
“But nothing says I’m thinking of you like dragging her in here and making her sit with us.” Sierra sighed and yanked her hand free. “Fine, if you two won’t do anything, I’ll do it myself.”
“Sierra, get back in that bed,” Grant said.
“No. I’ll just drag my IV with me down the hall and make sure Julia gets moved here with us. I have incredible powers of persuasion, Daddy. You know this.”
“I know, honey, I know, but…I think right now…we should let Julia’s family have some time with her. We’ll have lots of time with her when we get home.” The words nearly stuck in his throat as he said them.
Sierra stared up at him, her legs still swinging over her bed. “Something’s wrong, isn’t it? Is Julia still mad at you?”
He shot a glance at Kyle, who closed his eyes and shook his head. “There is nothing to worry about, Sierra. I just don’t want to disturb Julia’s rest. I think she needs it.”
Sierra narrowed her eyes at them. “Why are you two acting so strange?”
“Strange?” Grant asked. “What do you mean?”
“The secret glances between the two of you. The weird thing about Julia being fine but no details. The whole bit about letting her sleep. What happened?”
“Nothing, honey. Nothing happened. We just…went to see Julia, and she was already asleep. That’s all. I haven’t talked to her. And I don’t want to disturb her. As soon as we get you home and settled tomorrow, I’ll come see her, okay?”
“I’m not going to leave this hospital until we’ve all seen Julia.”
“Fine,” Grant said. “That’s perfectly fine. We will worry about that tomorrow morning once Julia is awake, and after you get some sleep.”
Sierra narrowed her eyes at him before she nodded and slid her feet back under the covers. “Fine. I’ll go to sleep.”
Sierra adjusted her covers as Grant settled into the chair next to her bed. Within a few minutes, she had fallen asleep. He let his head fall back between his shoulder blades as he blew out a sigh of relief.
“That was close. She was almost on to us,” he whispered.
“No wonder. You nearly screwed it up with your inability to say Luke was nowhere to be found. You should have just said he wasn’t here!”
“I’m sorry. I did the best I could. I don’t want to get her hopes up.”
“Hopes up? What are you saying? You’re just going to roll over and die because some town cop says you can’t see Julia anymore?”
“What do you want me to do? End up in handcuffs again?”
Kyle lifted his shoulders as he crossed his arms. “Something. You know, the scrubs idea Sierra had isn’t bad. I could–”
“Don’t. Do not do it. If you get arrested, I am not bailing you out, Kyle.”
“Julia would,” he said with a wiggle of his eyebrows.
“Don’t count on it. Her sister will probably put her on a boat with Captain Luke so she can’t.”
Kyle winced. “Oh, good point. But still…we have to do something.”
“And we will. Let her sister cool off a little. She can’t keep us from Julia forever.”
Grant slouched further down in his seat as their conversation ended. Silence stretched between them long enough for them both to nod off. When he opened his eyes again, sunshine streamed through the window.
Sierra pushed food around on a plate, her nose wrinkled. “Hi, Daddy. I’m glad you’re awake. I need to get out of here.”
Grant rubbed his face before he stretched. “Good. I will be happy to have you home.”
“But not before I see Julia,” she said.
He swallowed hard, shooting a glance at the chair where Kyle had sat last night. He found it empty. Had he gone to try to see Julia?
The man strode back in with two coffees in his hand. He handed one off to Grant with a shake of his head. Grant took it to mean he’d not seen her.
“The thing is, honey,” Grant said after a sip of the coffee, “I think Julia is still asleep. And I’d really like to get you home.”
“I don’t want to go home until I’ve seen Julia.”
“But…once you’re home…I can come back and spend time with Julia. And make sure Luke is not ogling her.”
“Why don’t we all just do that?” Sierra asked.
“Because you’re too weak,” Kyle said.
“I’m not weak, you clown. Why are you still here?”
“Really?” Kyle asked. “I still can’t figure out why you asked me to come here with you.”
“Because you’re family. You are not only crazy, but I’m starting to wonder how good the school was that gave you a medical degree because you’re also not that smart.”
Grant waved a hand in the air. “Stop, stop, stop. This is exactly why you are going home. Because Julia does not need you two arguing back and forth with each other while she’s trying to recover.”