Stepping out of the truck, I took a deep breath to collect myself. A harsh gust of wind caused a shiver down my spine. Matty moved ahead, his strides confident yet measured as he walked to the entrance. I followed him silently, my heart pounding. A peculiar mix of anxiety and hope welled up within me as we stepped into the sterile hallway.
The nurse at the front desk glanced up from his computer. “Matty. You must be here for your father.”
“Hey, Evan. Yeah. This is Ozzie, a… family friend.”
A warm smile spread across Evan’s face. “Hello, Ozzie, it’s nice to meet you. You must be Gray’s new son-in-law. I hope you’re enjoying Bristlecone.”
I gave a weak smile. “I am.”
“Great. Dr. Knight should be with Gray now. You can see him in room four down the hall.”
“Thanks, Evan.”
Matty led the way down the dimly lit hallway, his boots echoing off the linoleum. Room four was on the right, and as we stood outside the closed door, a hand clutched my arm gently. Matty’s eyes bore into mine, but their hard veneer was softened with worry.
“Just remember what I said. Dad’s strong,” he said, but it sounded as if he was reassuring himself more than me. He pushed open the door.
Gray sat on a bed, his head bandaged and his face pale. A middle-aged doctor with fiery red hair streaked with gray and Emma were with him.
“Matty, thank god you’re here.” Emma rushed into her son’s embrace. My heart beat wildly as I tried with all my might not to make a fool of myself by crying or hugging Gray like I wanted to.It was bad enough to be here when I was technically not family yet.
“Whatever she’s saying, don’t listen to her,” Gray said. “I’m fine.”
“You have a concussion, Gray,” the doctor said. “You’re not fine.”
“He’s not?” The words burst from me.
“I’ve had concussions before,” Gray mumbled. “Come on, Cherilyn. Tell them I’m going to be fine so they don’t worry unnecessarily.”
“Actually, I’m worried you don’t seem to realize how serious a concussion can be,” Dr. Knight said. “You’ve had a severe blow to the head. Concussions aren’t something to be taken lightly. You need plenty of rest and time for recovery. For the next twenty-four hours at least, you’ll need constant supervision.”
“Don’t worry, Doc. I’ll take care of him.”
I squeezed my hands tightly and bit the insides of my cheek to prevent myself from contradicting Emma. Of course she would be the one to volunteer. They weren’t divorced yet. She was probably still his emergency contact.
But I should be the one to take care of him, dammit.
“Mom, you’re in bed by eight,” Matty said. “And you get cranky if you don’t get your beauty sleep. Ozzie’s room is close to Dad’s. I’m sure he wouldn’t mind keeping an eye on him. Do you, Ozzie?”
“I-I—” Matty’s turnaround stunned me into a stammering mess. Could I trust him? Did he really want to help, or was he setting me up?
“Honey, we can’t ask Ozzie to do that. He’s a guest.”
“I’ll do it.” Anything to keep her away from Gray. I didn’t like she was by Gray’s side, threading her fingers through his hair. “Gray’s been so n-n-nice since I’ve been here. It’s the least I can do.”
“All right, then. It seems you have more than enough people wanting to take care of you at home,” Dr. Knight said. “But first we need to do a CT scan before we release you. I’ll send someone for you in a few minutes, Gray.”
I repressed the sound of distress that wanted to escape. So the doctor wasn’t sure yet that Gray was a hundred percent all right. There was still a possibility that his injury was worse than we all thought.
“Mom, why don’t we call Carter?” Matty took his mother’s arm and guided her from the room. He glanced over his shoulder, his gaze moving between me and his father. Was he giving us time to be alone?
As soon as the door closed behind them, I was in front of Gray, carefully taking his face into my hands. “Does it hurt?”
He settled his hands on my hips. “A little, but I’m fine.”
“You don’t know that. What if the CT scan—”
“Ozzie.” He squeezed my hips. “Sweetheart, I’ll be fine. Things like this happen from time to time.”
