Chapter 36
“Are we sure this is the best time?” I mutter to my sister. She merely rolls her eyes at me before knocking on the door and slipping inside the room.
I follow her with Carter at my back. I want to take his hand desperately, but I’m worried about what’s going to happen. All my hopes are pinned on this man I’ve never met.
A middle-aged woman in a doctor coat stands up, crossing over to us. She had been seated across from a man who looks like he’s aged about twenty years in one conversation, and my heart wants to wrap him up in a warm blanket. Fuck. Caretaking Dom needs are real.
“Patricia, thank you so much for flying out and doing this for us,” Sarah says warmly, and I eye the lanyard that announces her as Dr. Bahn.
“You’re welcome. I’m glad I was able to come out.” She gives Carter and I a warm handshake, albeit with a tired smile. “Thanks for making it possible. You know as well as I do this surgery is expensive, and even if I donated my time…”
“I know. We’re more than happy to cover it all. Please. Go get some rest. The staff here are excellent, and will keep a close eye on everything. You should be all set in the local hotel, but make sure to call me in the morning.”
“Of course.”
And with nothing more than a swish of fabric, and thankfully not the click of heels, it’s down to just us and the man in the room.
One Brannigan Fortin. His eyes are sharp, the sapphire-blue taking in every movement.
He seemingly pulls himself together, ignoring the tiredness that must be eating at him, and stands awkwardly.
I walk forward, refusing to second guess myself.
I hold out my hand, waiting for Brannigan to take it.
After only the briefest hesitation, he does, and while I’m expecting a perfunctory handshake, that’s not what I get.
He grabs hold of my hand, pulls me in, and then throws his arms around me.
I stagger under his weight, before letting the man cling to me, ridding himself of the emotions that have been choking him.
I hold him through the shudders and aborted sobs, rubbing his back despite the awkwardness.
Fuck, I can’t even imagine what he’s been through.
To lose his sister, only to gain a child, and then when everything seems to be settling in, to find out that child is incredibly ill, with no way to save him…
So I stand there, despite how odd it is, and give him whatever comfort I can.
Finally, when he’s under control, he straightens and stares at me with red-rimmed eyes.
I carefully guide him over to one of the couches, where he almost topples into sitting—as if he’s a puppet and all his strings have been cut.
My heart aches at the sight, the complete exhaustion.
Unfortunately, while most of me wants to bundle him into a safe place to get some sleep, he’s our only option.
“I…I can’t thank you enough for this. Granted, I have no idea who you are, but this…you gave me my son back.”
I smile thinly, cursing myself for what I’m about to do, but fuck if there’s another option. For Marcus, there’s nothing I wouldn’t do—or for the man by my side, who has willingly walked into this clusterfuck with me. Still, shame pricks at me.
When Carter speaks up, I take a moment to breathe, and just be thankful that he’s willing to take this on. To step in when he sees me struggling.
“We were happy to do so. We…we know how much a child means. I have two sons of my own. Neither are related to me biologically, but both are my children, no matter what biology says.” He waits for Brannigan to meet his eyes, and he shudders, nodding at the truth he sees reflected in my love.
With a sigh, I gather my courage and face the demons in my mind.
“Truthfully, we heard about your situation because we’re in desperate need of your help.
However, we didn’t do this to force you into helping.
Please know that our help comes without strings.
We’re only here talking to you because Sarah, my sister, is the one who knew the surgeon, and wanted to make sure everything went smoothly.
We thought we’d at least make our case to you, so you could think about it. We’re not asking for an answer now.”
What we're doing is a gamble. Hoping the man is the type who has such strong integrity that he’ll render us aid, even though it goes against everything he believes in, simply because we did something good—something right. And if he doesn’t…well, plan B.
Brannigan’s gaze sharpens as he takes us in, studying us carefully. “I won’t make any promises, but, tell me. If it’s something I can do, I will.”
I grab Carter’s hand, holding it tightly as we sit across from what hopefully will be one of our new therapists. I toss out the speech I carefully practiced, and speak from my heart.
“We are an unconventional family, as we’re polyamorous.
As you can see, our other love isn’t here, but not because he’s unwilling.
No, he had the courage to face down the severe mental anguish he’s going through and ask for help.
Unfortunately, we’re not in a situation where we can simply have him go into an inpatient facility.
We do have an excellent medical program that is currently monitoring him, but he needs therapy. And you have the best reputation.”
My breath hitches and I squeeze Carter’s hand tighter, painfully, I’m sure, but he doesn’t bat an eye as he picks up the threads of Marcus’s story.
“Please understand, we’re facing significant trauma.
The other man who makes us whole has lost a child—through no fault of his own.
And he’s never had the time or ability to process that grief.
Instead of losing himself at that time, he stepped up and took custody of another child shortly after.
Unfortunately, tragedy just hit our family again. ”
Clearing my throat, I manage to finish this part of our story.
“Our son was kidnapped by our nanny and given to a very evil man. He’s home now.
Safe. Although, he’s struggling, so we're bringing in a child psychologist to help. What we didn’t expect was part of our heart to crumble, to have to face demons and…
we can’t do anything about it. If I could take his pain onto me, I would.
But I can’t. So instead, we sit in front of you, and honestly, we’re begging. We need you. Our love needs you.”
My sister comes closer, unable to stop the draw, despite her discomfort with anything maternal.
“I was a hospital administrator here, and currently help out in their medical center. We are state-of-the-art, and we can offer you a thorough compensation package. Despite what happened to my nephew, we can promise you safety. You’d have a bodyguard, for you and your son.
We know you already utilize security, but we’re willing to take that on.
“It would give you a chance to rebuild your finances, and hell, you'd likely be able to retire earlier than expected. But this is a full-time position, and it’s in-house. For your current patients, if you’re unable to wind down, we can work with online options for continued care.
We don’t want anyone to be hurt, but we need you. Please.”
Brannigan scrubs his face with his hands, and I doubt we made a difference, but at least I’ll know we tried the nicer way. If laying on guilt this thickly can be considered nicer.
Take a bracing breath, he draws himself up until he's sitting straight, tossing out the exhaustion as he glares at us. “I’m sure I know the answer to this, but why can’t you utilize standard methods of help? What makes you so special?”
Fuck. This is what I didn’t want to admit. Thankfully, I have a little sister who is willing to do it for me.
“I will not pretend the Organization I work for are always the good guys in life. However, I have found, during my time there, that sometimes being in that gray zone is necessary. They give back what they can, and they do make a difference in the community, especially because if they weren’t there, someone else would be—and they'd likely be more chaotic, more ruthless, and it would lead to more death.
“One thing we know as medical professionals is that we don’t have a choice in who we treat. And we shouldn’t. Sinner or saint, it isn’t supposed to matter. We do what we can to help people to heal.
“In this case, I can tell you with absolute certainty that the man you’d be treating is someone who desperately needs help.
He loves his men, his children, and has honor.
That’s more than many can say. I can also promise you personally that your son will be taken care of, that you’ll no longer need to carry your worries alone, that his medical issues will be covered completely, and that you won’t go without. ”
Brannigan shudders, and the weight that’s been on him since we stepped in seems to dissipate. But is it enough? I’m not sure, and so I wait for his judgment call, unable to take a full breath, and fuck, I’m even praying for mercy.
After so long that I’m about ready to pass out, he finally nods.
“I…I don’t know how this will work. For my son, I understand being willing to do anything.
I can see that you’re passionate about this.
I’m willing to try, but make no mistake, I will not put myself or my child at risk. If you ask me to go against my ethics…”
He doesn’t finish the threat, but he doesn’t need to; I won’t force him to do anything he’ll be uncomfortable with.
I can’t shield him from learning about certain aspects of our life, but I’d never ask him to torture another person or pull a trigger.
Hell, I’m happy to give them whatever bodyguards I can to keep them safe.
Our security is being overhauled after we lost Cole, and fuck if I’ll let something else happen to an innocent.
“Thank you,” Carter and I whisper at the same time.
“I’m sure you’ll want to wait here and be with your son when he comes out.
I’ll arrange private transportation to the mansion when he’s stable enough to be moved, and if there’s anything you need packed in the meantime, you only need to let us know.
” Sarah gives him a business card before touching my shoulder, and I take it as the sign to leave.
With a quick exchange of handshakes, we slip out of the room, and for a moment, I collapse against the wall. Carter cups my cheek, brushing his lips against mine in a sweet kiss that fills me with hope, flooding me with a lightness that battles the darkness grabbing at my soul.
“Let’s go home,” he whispers, before taking my hand and leading me to the elevators, with Sarah trailing behind us.
Home. To Cole. To Roman. To Marcus. And to our Family, both new and old.
It’s time. From being a loner to now helping lead the revolution of a new Organization, I’m amazed by what my life has become, but I wouldn’t change it.
I wouldn’t walk away. Not when my heart and soul belong here, with them. Always.