Chapter 28 #2
Nora’s chest deflated. “Right.” Maybe this thing was never going to work in the real world. She pressed her lips together. “Tell him to call me, and…tell him I’m not running away, but duty calls.”
She headed into the bathroom and made Chance stay outside with Charlotte. Put on her uniform and tried to make herself look professional rather than conflicted and upset and beyond fucking tired.
Ryan held Summer’s hand as they transported her down from the helipad on the roof into a private room. He was desperate to go see Meghan and confirm with his own eyes that she was alright.
Hearing that blast, seeing that devastated snow field yesterday had sent an electric shock through his dead heart. Broken trees and giant boulders had been strewn around like kids’ toys, but there’d been no sign of his fellow operator.
He went to stand back to allow the medics to work, but Summer gripped his hand harder.
“Don’t leave me!”
Her pale, panicked face with its white blisters from a case of frostbite—thankfully, only superficial—beseeched him. She reminded him of Tabitha and his heart hurt at the thought of what her future might bring. What would happen to this child now?
He wished he knew.
He exchanged a glance with one of the doctors who shrugged. Ryan grabbed a stool and scooted up close. “You know a girl in your school called Tabitha Sullivan?”
Summer nodded, those eyes darting from him to the medics who were barking instructions at one another.
“She’s my daughter.”
Her eyes widened in surprise, then suspicion. “Why’ve I never seen you at school?”
The innocent words cut like knives. “I work in Virginia.”
“I remember now. She lives with her aunt and uncle.” Her brow crinkled. “What happened to her mommy?”
Ryan felt his throat grow tight, but he forced himself to swallow. “She died. Cancer.”
The girl’s eyes brimmed with tears. “My daddy died too. Where’s my mommy?”
Ryan’s heart snapped in two. He shot a look at the nurse who sent him a quick “no” with her eyes.
He understood. They wanted the kid to be stronger before they broke the news that both her parents were dead, and that her father had murdered her mother. As if waiting would make any difference to the pain she was going to experience.
But what the hell did he know?
“How’d you like to come out to the ranch where Tabitha lives and go horseback riding when you get better?”
Her eyes lit up. “As long as mommy says it’s okay.”
He looked at the floor and nodded. “Any time, sweetheart. Any time.”
A woman with iron-gray curls stepped inside the door and hesitated, her red-rimmed eyes skimming the doctors and then him, before finally settling on the child in the bed.
“Summer, baby. You’re okay. You’re really okay.” She came over to the bed sobbing. He eased away as Summer let him go.
“Granny!”
Ryan felt another sharp stab, but this one was relief. The grandmother would hopefully provide the support the child needed—assuming she could afford the medical bill sure to be attached.
Jesus, the US healthcare system was a shitshow.
He slipped out of the room and asked at the nurses’ station to direct him to where Meghan Donnelly’s room was.
He found her two floors down and in a private room. He heard laughter from inside and smiled. He put his hand on the doorknob then paused. There was a deep rumble of a man’s laugh.
“Well, when you told me you had to cancel the date because you were in the hospital I had to come. I mean, what’s a few thousand miles for the opportunity to spend some time with a pretty girl?”
Ryan expected Meghan to snarl at being called a pretty girl. She did not.
She laughed. “I can’t believe you did this, but it is very sweet, and all these flowers? Do you own a florist you failed to mention?”
Ryan looked up as Birdman walked toward him. “You going in?”
Ryan shook his head. “She’s got a visitor.”
Birdman pulled an unimpressed face. “I met him. Some guy.”
“Where’s Grady?” asked Ryan.
“Headed back to the ranch before we go wheels up—possible overseas mission according to Romano. Donnelly’s not allowed to fly for another twenty-four hours, so she’s going commercial tomorrow. Doctor’s orders.”
“But she’s okay?”
“Yeah, thanks to her thick skull.” Birdman grinned. “You should go in.” He nodded to the door.
Ryan pulled a face, shook his head. This whole thing had been a wakeup call as to how close he’d come to breaking his own rules.
And now he didn’t have to admit how yesterday had shaken him to his core or how he’d almost embarrassed himself.
She could find a proper boyfriend, someone who wasn’t fucked up, and move on—although what they had between them was hardly something to “move on” from.
It was flirting and mutual torment. He needed her to find someone else even if the thought killed him. No way could he be the sort of man she deserved.
“Nah, I’m gonna make the most of the time I have left and go hang out with my family for a few hours. Perhaps I can convince Novak to give me the rest of the weekend off…”
“Good luck with that.” Birdman checked his watch. “Let me text Grade, see if he’s still close. We can share a ride back.”
Ryan nodded, and they strode away.
As much as he hated it, it was better this way.
Yeah, so why did it feel like dying a slow, painful death?