Chapter 21
CHAPTER 21
E lla
I was in the cafeteria, eating lunch, when Graham walked over with his tray.
“Hey, beautiful. Would you like some company?”
“I would.” I smiled.
“You’re not going to yell at me, are you?” A handsome smirk crossed his lips.
“So, the whole hospital does know.” I sighed.
“You’re like a celebrity around here.” He smiled. “Anyway, I probably would have yelled at my patient too if he or she would have been secretly eating right before a procedure.”
“Did you get my text last night when I got home?” I asked him.
“I was out like a light and didn’t see it until this morning. I’m sorry.”
“That’s okay. I meant to ask you. My cousin Riley’s wedding is in two weeks, and I was wondering if you’d like to be my plus one.”
“I’d like that, but I have to check my schedule.”
“I may have already checked and saw you’re off.” I bit my bottom lip.
He chuckled. “That’s great. I’d love to go. Do I have to wear a suit?”
“Yes.” I smiled. “Do you have one?”
“Yeah. I have one.” He winked. His pager went off. “I have to go. I’ll talk to you later.”
“See ya.” I smiled.
I watched as he grabbed his tray and walked away. My feelings for him gripped me in ways I’d never experienced before. I was falling in love with him. I knew it was too soon, but I couldn’t help it. After my shift, I stopped by my Grandma Barb’s house to check on her before I went home.
“Hi, Grandma.” I walked over to where she sat on the couch. “Where’s Grandpa?”
“Probably out with one of his whores,” she spewed.
Shit.
“He’s never home. I’m raising my four boys on my own while he’s out fucking anyone who looks his way. He doesn’t think I know, but I do.” She stared at me. “I know everything.” She stood up from the couch. “I need to call my lawyer and file for divorce.” She picked up her phone from the table.
“Grandma, stop.” I placed my hands around hers and took her phone. “Curtis is your husband, not Henry. He would never cheat on you.”
The door opened, and I saw my dad walk in.
“Hey, sweetheart. I saw your car in the driveway. Hi, Aunt Barb. Why don’t we all go to Four Kinds for dinner?”
“Who will watch the boys?” she asked him.
My father’s brows furrowed as he looked at me.
“I suppose I can call Trudy. Yes. Trudy will watch them.”
“Grandma.” I gripped her shoulders. “Your boys are grown men now.”
Curtis walked through the door with a handful of bags.
“Hey, you two.” He smiled.
“Curtis, darling. Did you get everything I asked for?” my grandmother asked as she snapped out of her state.
“I did, sweetheart.”
She walked over and helped him unpack the bags. “Ella, darling, it’s good to see you. Nathan, what are you doing here?”
“Uh, I just came to see how you were, Aunt Barb.” He looked at me.
“I’m fine, darling. You’re so sweet.”
“Come on, Dad. Grandma, we’re going to go.” I walked over and kissed her cheek. “I love you.”
“I love you too, darling.”
“Bye, Grandpa.” I kissed his cheek.
“Bye, sweetheart.”
My dad and I walked out of the house. “Shit.” He rubbed the back of his neck. “Forget Four Kinds. Come over, and I’ll throw some burgers on the grill. Unless you have plans.”
“I’d love one of your burgers.” I smiled.
I parked my car in the garage and walked to my dad’s house.
“Does she know?” he asked.
“Yeah.”
“The rest of the family needs to know,” he said.
“She’ll tell them when she’s ready.”
He put two burgers on a plate and took them to the grill while I poured a glass of wine. Stepping onto the patio, I stood next to him.
“Missing Mom?” I smiled.
“Yeah. I can’t wait until she and your sister come home.”
“Where’s Nicholas?”
“He texted me earlier and said he was hanging out with some friends. So, it’s just you and me, kiddo. What’s this I hear about you going off on one of your patients today?” A smirk crossed his lips.
“I apologized to him, Dad. His surgery is tomorrow.”
“Hot tamales, eh?”
“Yeah.” I laughed, shaking my head.
“How is Dr. Malone?”
“He’s good.”
I didn’t want to tell him about last night because I didn’t want him to worry. The less he knew right now, the better until I found out what was really going on with Graham.
“I asked him to be my plus one for Riley’s wedding.”
“Is he coming?” He flipped the burgers.
“Yeah. He is.” I smiled.
One Week Later
I barely saw Graham all week, only at work. His schedule was crazy, and he was putting in a lot of hours, which I understood because I’d been through the fellowship programs. Tonight was Lily’s gender reveal party, and I asked him to come, but he said he couldn’t.
Alex and I met at the Kind Brewhouse to decorate for the party. A large archway made of blue and pink balloons stood behind a long table with a large white box with the words: Boy or Girl all over it. I pre-filled the box with the gender's color before Alex arrived. I was so excited—we all were. Nobody knew the gender but Georgia and me.
“Can I peek in the box?” Alex smiled.
“No, you may not.”
Zoey walked in and set a large, beautifully decorated cake on the table while Sebastian and his staff prepared the food.
I walked over to the bar and poured a glass of wine. Tonight would be a great night, and I wished Graham could be here.
Everyone started pouring into the brewhouse. Lily and Adrien walked in with smiles when they saw the decorations. I walked over to my grandfather and hugged him.
“Hello, sweetheart.”
“Have you talked to Grandma about the medications yet? She needs to get on them.”
“I have, and she said she doesn’t want to talk about it. You know how stubborn she is.”
I glanced over at her, talking to the family.
“Has she had any episodes this week?” I asked him.
“She had one, but it was mild.”
Sebastian announced it was time to eat, so we all grabbed our plates and filled them with the delicious food spread out on the table.
“Where’s Nora?” I asked Simon.
“She’s on her way. She’s bringing that Jack guy.” He shook his head.
“He’s a nice guy, Simon. Stop being an overprotective brother.”
“Never.” He smiled.
I talked with my cousins while we ate. When it was time for the gender reveal, Alex called Lily and Adrien up to the table. The brewhouse door opened, and when I looked over, I saw Graham.
“Hey.” I smiled. “I thought you couldn’t make it?”
“Hi. Dr. Ashley let me off early.”
“You’re just in time for the gender reveal.” I grabbed his hand.
We all counted to three, and Lily and Adrien lifted the lid from the box. Several pink balloons flew out. Adrien grabbed Lily and hugged her tight as we all shouted and cheered.
“I’m having a granddaughter!” Stefan shouted.
The entire family congratulated them, and Adrien asked for everyone’s attention.
“I want to thank you for welcoming me into your warm and loving family.” He turned to Lily and took hold of her hand. “I’m so in love with you, Lily Kind. From the moment I saw you standing in the art gallery, I knew I had to meet you. You stole my heart with your smile. The more I got to know you, the harder I fell.” He got down on one knee and pulled a small box from his pocket. “Will you marry me, Lily?”
I placed my hand over my mouth in shock. I glanced at Alex and Stefan, who stood there with smiles on their faces.
“Oh, my God! Yes, Adrien. I’ll marry you!”
He slipped the beautiful diamond on her finger and hugged her tight. We all clapped and shouted with happiness as we congratulated them again.
“Did you eat? There’s plenty of food,” I asked Graham.
“I haven’t.”
“Come on. Let’s get you a plate.” I smiled.
I walked over to the bar and poured him a beer.
“Mom, what is wrong with you?” I heard Simon say.
Setting the beer down, I walked over to where my grandmother stood, talking to her sons.
“What’s going on?” I said, and the brewhouse went dead silent.
“She’s talking crazy,” Simon said.
“I’m not crazy. I told you to come home after school, but you didn’t listen. You’re just like your father. He’s poisoning you against me! He’s spreading lies when he’s the one who’s always lying.”
“Mom, enough,” Sam said.
“Grandma.” I hooked my arm around her and looked at my grandfather.
“My boys are all I have, and he’s corrupting their minds. He’s turning them against me.”
“What the fuck is going on?” Simon shouted.
“No, Grandma, he’s not. He’s long gone. Look. Your family is all here, and we love you very much.” My grip around her tightened.
“Your mother is a whore!” She looked at Shaun.
“Mom!” Stefan said.
“You better take her home, Grandpa. I’ll stop by after and check on her.”
“Come on, darling. I’m taking you home. The boys are just fine.”
“I want them home with me, not with him,” she said.
“They’ll be home soon. I promise.” He walked her out of the brewhouse.
“Does anyone want to explain what the fuck just happened?” Simon shouted.
I inhaled a deep breath.
“She has late-onset Alzheimer’s,” I said.
“What?” Sebastian’s brows furrowed.
“I made her come to the hospital last week for an MRI.”
“And why are we just hearing about this now?” Simon asked.
“Because she wasn’t ready to tell you yet. But now, I had no choice after what she just did.”
“Jesus Christ,” Sam said.
“Shaun, she didn’t mean what she said.” I looked at him.
“I know.”
“I need a fucking scotch.” Simon walked away and headed to the bar.
While the rest of the family processed what I told them, I sat beside Graham.
“I’m sorry.” He hooked his arm around me.
“I appreciate it.” I lay my head on his shoulder.
Riley ran over and sat across from us. “Ella, I’m worried about my wedding. What if she?—”
I reached over and gripped her hands. “She’ll be fine.”
I glanced at Sam, Stefan, Sebastian, Simon, and Shaun talking in the corner.
“Excuse me for a minute,” I said to Graham and Riley.
Walking over to the boys, I hooked my arm around Simon.
“Life is family, and family is life. The best thing we can do is be there for her, and when she has an episode, we need to help her get through it.”
“I couldn’t agree more.” Jackson walked over.