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Both Heath and Leah smiled. “Agreed,” they both said to Dan.
“All right, anyone else have something they need to come clean about?” Jake asked everyone standing around each other.
Luke looked to his uncle, hoping he would speak up. He saw the hesitation in his eyes. Come on, Dad. Obviously, he wasn’t ready. Luke assumed there would be an aggressive treatment regime that would begin next week. Darren needed to say something now. Luke would have to ease his father into sharing his devastating news.
“Abbey and I have been having unprotected sex all weekend, trying to get pregnant,” Luke blurted out.
“Luke!” Abbey’s face bloomed with the prettiest blush.
“Can’t you wait? You just got engaged,” Phil asked.
“First, Cassie got pregnant before she got married. Second, I’m planning on marrying your little girl as soon as possible, so you won’t be walking her down the aisle with a visible baby bump. Third, I want Abbey pregnant with our first little Viking as soon as possible, giving Darren as much time as he can to be a grandpa.” Luke didn’t want to force the issue, but Darren couldn’t sit on the information any longer.
Darren’s eyes went wide and Maureen began to cry. “I’ll be an amazing grandpa,” he whispered.
Abbey started crying and Luke’s eyes stung. “I know you will, Dad. I know you will.”
Jake’s brows furrowed and he shook his head. “Why the fuck are Maureen and Abbey crying? And what the hell did you mean about Darren being a grandpa as long as he can?”
Come on, Dad. Now’s the time to speak up.
Jake looked between Darren and Luke, his eyes narrowed. The attorney was not missing a thing. “With all due respect, seeing that you’re my boss. But we’re on family time now, so Darren, what the hell is going on? Does this have something to do with the press conference tomorrow? And I don’t mean the crap about Brenna.”
Maureen wiped her eyes with her hands and put an arm around Darren’s waist. “Go on, Darren. They should be told before tomorrow’s press conference. They’re family.”
When Darren looked at him, Luke nodded his head. “Go on, Dad. It’ll be all right.”
Darren nodded in agreement. “Yes, you’re right, Jake. Why don’t we all pull our chairs closer together and we’ll talk about what’s going on?”
When everyone were seated closer together, Luke’s heart raced. In a few minutes, everything would be out in the open to the people who mattered the most. Everything would be real. Abbey’s tight grip of his hand gave Luke the strength he needed. She’d always been his strength, his love, his everything.
Darren took a deep breath and exhaled slowly. “Tomorrow after Brenna speaks, I’ll be announcing that effective immediately, ownership of the Chicago Cobras, the Windy City Rattlers, the children’s foundation, and Stryker Real Estate Holdings will be transferred to Luke and I’ll be stepping down.”
Jake raised a skeptical brow. “Because Luke hurt his shoulder? Bullshit. I don’t buy it. It isn’t even anything serious. He’ll be back on the field in no time.”
Darren shook his head sadly. “It was always the plan for Luke to take over, you all know that. We’re transitioning now because I’ve been diagnosed with stage 1B exocrine pancreatic cancer.”
The room was stunned silent. Aside from the sound of some women in the room crying, no one said a word. Luke didn’t hold back his own tears. Not this time. Now that the news was out, Luke felt like a burden had been lifted off his shoulders. It was bad news. Really bad. But they’d deal with it together, as a family.
Jake collected himself and wiped a few of his own tears away. Everyone in the room waited for Jake to ask the next few inevitable questions. He blew out a breath. “Well, fuck me. What exactly does that mean? What are the treatment options and typical survival rates?”
Everyone in the room sat quietly as Darren Stryker calmly explained the shit hand his life had dealt him. He had developed a cancerous tumor nearly three centimeters large in his pancreas. The tumor was located at the head of his pancreas. Surgery to remove the tumor or as much of it that could be removed, was scheduled for Tuesday morning. Depending on the outcome from surgery, chemotherapy or a combination of chemotherapy and radiation treatments would follow. Unfortunately, the five-year survival rate for Darren’s cancer was about twelve percent. And that sucked.
Grandma Ruth blew hernose and cleared her throat. “Well, if anyone can beat this bitch, it’s Darren Stryker. Whatever I can do to help you through this, you can count on me.”
Grandma Beverly nodded in agreement. “Me too. Whatever you need, I’m there.”
Jake put a hand up before anyone else could offer their assistance. “Look Darren, before you tell all of us not to worry, and that you don’t need our help—let me stop you. You’re going to let us help you through this because that’s what this family does. I know you and Luke are used to taking care of everything and everyone, but this time, you’re going to let us do the helping. Understood?”
Luke was thankful as hell for his family and for Jake’s support and levelheadedness at such an emotional moment. He was the luckiest man in the world.
Darren choked up, shed a few tears, and nodded.
Jake nodded back in affirmation. “I almost hate to ask, but is anyone else keeping any secrets? Now is the time to lay it all out there.”
Both grandmothers looked at each other, silently communicating. If one or both of them was sick too, Luke would lose it.
****
