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Flashing him a caustic smile, Seth veered onto the freeway and accelerated.
Beck settled Heavenly against him once more. He comforted her with a kiss on top of her head, at her temple, against her shoulder while he whispered soft assurances he didn’t feel. What would he find when he came face to face with her father?
Quick minutes later, Seth stepped on the brakes outside the emergency room. Beck would have grumbled at Seth’s not-so-gentle stop, but a glance out the window said the ambulance had already arrived. EMTs were wheeling out an older, frail-looking man on a stretcher.
Heavenly wrenched the handle as Seth unlocked the doors. An instant later, she lurched onto the pavement, her feet pounding as she ran after the prone figure. “Dad!”
A couple of hours later, ER doctors had managed to stabilize Heavenly’s father. His neurologist had never made an appearance, which pissed Beck off. At least the dipshit had sent instructions for a plasma exchange. With that underway and Heavenly’s panic dissipating, Seth had taken her to find some coffee. Beck stood across the room, tablet in hand, and stared at the frail man only ten years his senior. Dread thudded in the pit of his stomach.
“So, Mr. Young—”
“Call me Abel.”
“Right. Abel. Thank you for giving me permission to scan your chart. Like I said, I’m not a neurologist.” But since Heavenly had been obsessed with her “case study,” he’d researched the disease and talked to knowledgeable colleagues on her behalf. He knew more than he wished he did.
The dissecting stare Heavenly’s father sent him almost made Beck squirm. There was a lot wrong with Abel’s body…and nothing wrong with his mind. “You might not specialize in my condition, but if you were playing poker, I’d already know you had a lousy hand. My own doctor barely talks to me. Give it to me straight.”
God, he didn’t want to do this, and any decent lawyer would tell him this consultation had lawsuit written all over it. But he had to be honest with Abel. It was the humane thing to do. Besides, Heavenly would never forgive him if he wasn’t.
“First, it’s clear you need a better neurologist. I know some great ones, any of whom can tell you far more than I can about the optimal treatment and—”
“I’m dying, aren’t I?”
Beck hesitated, searching for the soft-shoe phrases he dished out to gravely ill patients and their families all the time. Nothing. He simply nodded.
Abel sighed. “I’ve suspected for a while. I’ve been trying to hold on as long as possible. Once I’m gone, Heavenly will be alone in the world.”
The man’s words knifed Beck in the fucking heart. Based on the mutual devotion he’d observed between Heavenly and her father tonight, Abel’s death would undo her.
“No, she won’t,” Beck vowed, no matter what she thought. “I promise you that.”
Abel scrutinized him with a glance. “I’m relieved, Dr. Beckman. You know, Heavenly talks about you all the time.”
That sent him reeling, especially since she’d never once mentioned her father to him.
“Oh?” Beck was dying to know what she’d said.
Despite all the IVs and tubes crisscrossing his body, the older man laughed. “She speaks very highly of you, and I can see why. Not many colleagues would follow a co-worker late at night to another hospital to help and offer support.”
The man was asking about his relationship with Heavenly without asking at all, and Beck tried not to look guilty. “She’s a very bright nursing student with a promising future.”
“Uh-huh. I saw the way you looked at her. Heavenly might be innocent, but I assure you I’m not.”
Shit. “Your daughter is a beautiful woman.”
There. That didn’t sound like he was desperate to strip her bare and fuck her breathless.
“I agree. But where do you fit into this picture? I know Mr. Cooper has taken her on a few dates, so I’m not surprised he looks at her like a tasty snack cake he wants to gobble up. But I assumed your time with Heavenly was strictly professional.”
Beck felt himself start to sweat. He’d never had to explain himself to a woman’s father. And Abel didn’t seem the type for candy-coated bullshit.
“I’ve been dating her, too.” He met Abel’s piercing blue gaze. “As for Seth… Well, I’m neither a quitter nor used to coming in second place.”
That made Abel laugh. “Gumption and balls. I like that.”
“The choice is Heavenly’s, of course.”
“But you’re going to make sure she picks you?”
Beck nodded, though he knew damn well it wasn’t that simple…
“You should know that she’s been my sole caretaker since she was fifteen, so she hasn’t seen much of the world. She needs to live, to enjoy herself. But she also needs protection, guidance…and a firm hand. She may seem sweet on that soft-spoken surface, but don’t be fooled. She’s got a spine of steel.”
