AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Useless adrenaline shot through him. He throttled it back and faced Beau. “What happened?”
“Mama passed out at a drugstore. Richter attributes the episode to a combination of exhaustion, dehydration, and possibly anemia. The hospital planned to do blood work—hey, where are you going?”
He looked down at his partner’s restraining hand. An urge to shake it off and sprint to the parking lot gripped him. “I’m going over. I knew. When I walked out of the ER a month ago, I fucking knew they weren’t all right. She asked me to stay, and I walked anyway.”
“Hunt, they were both doing well. Our job was done. It was time for you to walk away. You couldn’t have seen this coming.”
“I did see this coming. Okay, not this, specifically,” he added when Beau would have interrupted, “but something. My instincts told me to go back to the hospital and check on her, but I ignored them until I was too late to help. Those same instincts tell me to get my sorry ass over there, and I’m not ignoring them this time.”
Beau didn’t let go. “Them landing back in the hospital is not the result we hoped for. I get it. But be sure of your motives, all right?”
“Motives like concern?” The question came out defensive, but he knew where Beau was headed with his motive-check. “Ashley’s full of shit, you know.”
“Look, I’m not saying she’s right about what kind of doctor you’ll make, because I know you’ll make a great one, but she’s not completely off the mark when she notes you sometimes take the assurances too far. You promised Madison they were going to be fine, and it turns out you were wrong. That doesn’t sit well with your conscience or your ego. Even so, she’s not your problem to solve.”
Guilt left a bitter taste in his mouth. He swallowed it down. “All I want to do is make sure they’re okay. Don’t you?”
Beau dropped his hand. “And then what?”
“Nothing. Or…I don’t know. My main priority is making sure they’re fine. I’ll take things from there.”
“Careful,” Beau cautioned. “You’ve got some major goals lined up, and they deserve your full focus. Don’t pile on complications.”
He stepped away and headed to the exit. “I’m not looking to complicate my life, and I’m not planning to do anything that endangers my goals.” His partner was preaching to the choir. Nobody knew better than Hunter what personal distractions could do to a med school career. He wasn’t going to make the same mistake twice. He just…needed to make sure she was okay. That’s all.
Someday fate’s going to turn you into a liar, and you won’t know how to cope.
“Fine,” Beau called after him, “but I’ll point out, ‘Take things from there,’ has no exit strategy.”
Maybe not, but the knowledge didn’t stop him from calling the hospital on his way over to wrangle a status. The operator confirmed they were still there and provided the room number.
Parking at the hospital proved time consuming—he momentarily wished for the ambulance—but finding the room posed no problem. As he approached he saw a familiar, ample figure wearing dark blue scrubs and a headful of long braids. Alyssa Washington, one of Mercy General’s most experienced nurses, stood at the door. She stopped short when she saw him.
“Boy are you lost, sugar.”
“Who says? Maybe I’m here to see your pretty face?”
That earned him a laugh and a slap on the arm. “Oh, now I know you want somethin.’ What can I do for you, player?”
“I’m actually here to see these troublemakers.” He leaned in the door and aimed a reinforced smile at Madison. She lay propped up in the hospital bed, holding Joy in mid-cuddle and staring at him as if she didn’t trust her vision. To his relief, they both looked great. Alert, healthy…he took in Madison’s long dark hair and blushing
pink cheeks…beautiful.
“They’re no trouble at all. You, on the other hand…don’t get me started. But in this case, you’re just in time, because I’m about to hand these lucky ladies their walking papers.”
“Early release for good behavior?” More relief. An isolated fainting spell in a low-risk individual rarely resulted in a long hospital stay. Discharging her after a single day meant they had ruled out serious causes, like heart problems or internal bleeding.
“They’re doing beautifully. Madison says she’s ready to go, and the doctor agrees, so we’re gonna get the process started.” She settled herself in the chair nearest the bed, crossed her legs, and placed the clipboard on her lap. Silence dominated the space while she filled in information on the top of her form.
Hunter looked around the room, finding the tidy surfaces oddly troublesome until the reason struck him. No notes. No flowers. None of the ‘get well’ tokens friends and family typically bestowed. He should have brought a card, or a bouquet. Something for the baby.
“There are just a few things I need to go over with you, if you’re ready?”
Hunter caught Madison’s eye. “You want me to come back in a few?”
“No, no. Please have a seat.” She gestured him to the other chair and glanced at the nurse. “This won’t take long, right?”
“Only a minute or two. Let’s start with the easy stuff. Is someone driving you home today, or are you driving yourself?”
