Chapter 22
CHAPTER 22
G raham
After the party ended, I followed Ella home. She told me to make myself comfortable in her house while she went and checked on her grandmother. I opened the refrigerator and grabbed a beer. The sliding door opened, and Christian walked in.
“Hey, Graham. Where’s Ella?”
“She went to check on her grandmother. She’ll be back soon.”
“Okay. How’s everything going with Dr. Ashley?”
“Things are great.” I smiled.
“And you’re liking it here in Los Angeles?”
“Yeah. Of course.”
“No issues or anything?” he asked, which I thought was strange.
“Not at all. Everything is going good.”
“I’m happy to hear that.” He smiled.
The front door opened, and Ella walked in.
“How is Barb?” Christian asked.
“She’s fine. We talked, and I’m starting her on some immunotherapy. I’ll watch her closely and up the dosage if needed.”
“Okay. Good. I’ll leave you two alone.” He walked out the sliding door.
I walked over and wrapped my arms around her, pulling her into me and holding her tight.
“Stay the night,” she asked.
“If you insist.” I smiled, kissing her lips.
Swooping down, I picked her up and carried up the stairs and to her bedroom, where we made love. As she lay in my arms, I pressed my lips against the top of her head. I had no intentions of going to the brewhouse, but I’d barely seen her all week and missed her. As hard as I tried to stay away, I failed.
Another nightmare shook me to my core.
“Graham, wake up. Wake up.” I felt my body shaking.
Opening my eyes, Ella stared at me. It took a minute for my brain to register where I was. I quickly sat up and looked at her.
“You were having a nightmare,” she said.
“Damn.” I ran my hand through my hair as my heart raced. “I’m sorry. Go back to sleep.” I kissed her forehead.
When our alarms went off the following morning, we showered together and got ready for work. Walking down the stairs, Ella handed me a cup of coffee.
“Thanks.” I smiled, kissing her lips.
“You’re welcome. Can I come to your place tonight?”
“I’d like that,” I said. “You get off before I do.” I grabbed my keys and removed the one to my apartment. “Here’s the key to my place.” I handed it to her.
A bright smile graced her face. “Thanks. We better get going.”
We walked out the door, and I kissed her lips before she climbed into her car.
“I’ll see you later,” I said.
“You bet.” She grinned.
After a long day at the hospital, I headed home. When I walked into my apartment, I saw Ella sitting on the couch. Instantly, my night got better.
“Hi.” She smiled, walking over to me and kissing my lips.
“Hi.” I set my bag down, walked to the refrigerator, and grabbed a bottle of beer. “I went looking for you today, but you were in surgery.”
“Emergency surgery that took eight hours,” she said.
I hooked my arm around her, and we sat on the couch.
“Graham, what was your nightmare about last night?” she asked.
“I don’t remember.” I tipped the bottle to my lips.
“I think you do and don’t want to tell me.”
I furrowed my brows at her. “I would tell you if I remembered.”
“Why did you lie to me about never living here in California?”
Fuck.
“What are you talking about, Ella?”
“I know you lived in a house in the Hollywood Hills. I also know your father was a highly decorated surgical oncologist.”
“Are you digging into my past or something?” I spoke with irritation as I stood up from the couch.
“I saw an article about your father’s death. Why did you tell me that you never lived here?”
“Maybe because it’s hard being back here without my parents.”
“I get that, but I think there’s more to it. The pills you’re taking are to help at night for people with PTSD and nightmares.”
I inhaled a sharp breath.
“And that night, you freaked out about the fireworks. What happened to you, Graham?”
“Nothing happened to me, Ella,” I shouted. “Damn. Leave it alone! I can’t believe you dug into my past. You just don’t stumble upon an article unless you went looking for it. My mother died in a car accident here. My father died of a heart attack here. It’s hard because I haven’t been back here since I was thirteen. And the only reason I’m back is for the fellowship program,” I shouted.
“You don’t have to shout at me!”
“Yeah, I do. You went digging into my past. All you had to do was ask me.”
“I did ask you!” she yelled as she stood up from the couch. “And you lied to me!”
“Then I guess you can’t trust me. Maybe you should go.”
“Graham,” she softly spoke.
“Get out, Ella!” I shouted, pointing to the door.
She looked at me with tears in her eyes as she grabbed her purse.
“I can help you with whatever you’re going through,” she said.
“I don’t want or need your help!”
She shook her head and walked out the door. I threw my bottle at the wall, and it shattered.