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She sighed heavily. “Fine. But don’t tell her I told you.”
“Thank you. I owe you one.”
“More than one,” she grumbled.
With the hospital name in hand, I called a car and headed across town. I didn’t know how to fix what was broken with me and Whitley, but I knew where to start.
* * *
Walking through the ER as I headed to Whitley’s father’s room made me wish that I’d gone for a suit. Even though Locke and I couldn’t possibly share suit coats. I wanted the reassurance of a solid suit coat and tie. A button-up didn’t feel like enough as I went to my grave.
I stopped in front of the room Whitley’s dad was currently staying in. I took a deep breath and knocked softly. A minute later, Whitley’s mom answered the door with eyes widened in shock.
“Gavin?”
“Hi, Cynthia,” I said with my sharpest smile.
“What … what are you doing here? Whitley isn’t here. She went home.”
“That’s okay. I’m not here to see Whit. I’m here to talk to Walter … if he’s awake.”
She blinked at me in surprise. “He is, but …”
“Who is it, Cynthia?” Walter’s deep voice called from inside the room.
She closed her eyes once in panic. “Don’t say anything to upset him.”
“I don’t intend to, ma’am.”
A small smile came to her mouth. “Well, at least someone remembers manners. I’ll let you talk to him for a few minutes, but please be careful. He’s fragile right now.”
“I will, and … thank you.”
She touched my arm as she passed. “I’m going to go find us some breakfast and give you some privacy.”
“Cynthia?” Walter called again.
I took another fortifying breath and then walked inside. “Good morning, sir.”
Walter’s eyes bulged. He looked worse for wear. As if the last twenty-four hours had drained so much of the life out of him. He’d been fighting for this wedding, and now, without something to look forward to, combined with our argument, the fight had been taken out of him.
“Gavin, I didn’t expect to see you.”
“No, I suspect you didn’t.” I gestured to the chair that Cynthia had likely vacated. “Mind if I sit?”
“If you must. What are you doing here, son?”
I took my time settling into the chair before meeting his eyes. “Honestly, sir, I came because we have some things to work out.”
Walter’s eyes widened. “Is that so?”
“Yes. See, I’m sorry about what happened yesterday. I regret how you found out about my relationship with Whitley. It did start out fake. Actually, at first, it was because I’d toldmyfamily that I had a girlfriend, and I brought Whitley with me. We didn’t think anyone else would even know, and we planned to have a big breakup.”
“Why would you even do that?”
“To be honest, sir, I still have no idea why your daughter agreed. But I did it because I was already head over heels for her. But I also knew she was as stubborn as a horse.”
Walter laughed and then choked on his own laugh, which resulted in him coughing.
