“Well, a downgrade in treatment would just be one more thing that man can add to the list of things he’s done to my son.”
A sob broke out of Ivy, and she started forward.
I caught her hand. “Don’t,” I said low. “You should stay out of it.”
“I will not!” she snapped, sounding mad as hell.
Braeden moved out of her way when she charged forward, obviously seeing fire in her eyes.
“I’ve tried to give you the benefit of the doubt. I always believed you would come around because underneath all your hate, you actually love Drew. But this…” Her voice shook. “What you’ve done today… I can’t be neutral anymore.”
“Ivy,” Braeden called.
“I’ve made up my mind,” she tossed over her shoulder. He relented. “You’re out,” Ivy announced. “Out of my life. Out of my children’s lives.”
Adrienne gasped and rushed forward to stand at her husband’s side. Burke’s eyes narrowed. “You would cut me out of my grandchildren’s lives?”
“I just did. You are no longer welcome at my house. You are no longer welcome in Nova’s and Jaxson’s life. I don’t want any part of your… disgusting behavior around my babies.”
Burke cut a glance at me. “You would really side with him?”
“Ivy,” I called, not wanting this.
“You’re damn right! He’s my family! He’s Drew’s family. Drew’s choice. I always thought maybe you and Drew would find a way to mend your relationship…” Her voice fell away, and she shook her head. Putting her hands on her hips as if she needed to fortify herself, she lifted her chin. “But nothing will ever repair this. Drew will never forgive you. And I won’t either.”
Ivy spun, tears glittering in her eyes but her head held high.
“Ivy,” Adrienne pleaded.
Her face crumpled, but then she rebuilt it and turned around with grace. “I’m sorry, Mom, but my decision includes you too. I know you haven’t exactly said the things Dad has, but you stand idly by and follow him with a closed mouth. For that… you are just as horrible as he is.”
“But Nova and Jax.” She begged.
“They’re no longer your concern.” Ivy’s voice rang with finality, and the silence that followed her exit was deafening.
“Braeden.” Adrienne tried after she was gone.
He made a motion with his hand. “Don’t even try. I’m with my wife one hundred percent. Don’t come around my kids… ‘cause it will only upset them when I toss you out.”
Braeden left the room. Then Romeo was at my side, motioning for me to go. We all went down the hall as a unit, and if I wasn’t still so unsettled, I’d say we probably looked like badasses.
“Ivy,” I said when we were all waiting for the elevator.
“This isn’t your fault, Trent. None of this. And what I just did back there… it was the right thing. I won’t have my kids around his toxic beliefs.”
Braeden put an arm around her shoulders. “You’re hot as hell when you put assholes in their place.”
“What if they try and keep you away from Drew too?” I worried.
“They wouldn’t dare.” Ivy seethed. “Besides, I’m a blood relative. Dad already told them to keep me updated.”
The sound of the elevator sliding into place behind the doors made me look up anxiously. Now more than ever, I had to see him. I had to assure myself he was okay.
A bell dinged, the doors slid open, and two orderlies pushed a bed out of the car. Lying in it was Drew.
16
Trent
* * *
My body swayed toward his. I wasn’t dizzy. I didn’t trip. I just knew exactly where I belonged.
The metal railing on the bed was cold against my palms when my hands wrapped around it to help the orderlies bring the bed the rest of the way out of the elevator.
The center of my chest ached when I stared down, taking in every little detail I could. He looked exactly the same as this morning, except the bandage around his head was gone. I reached out to touch him, wanting to check the stitches on his head.
“Who are you?” one of the orderlies asked, his voice brusque.
“Family,” I said.
Ivy rushed forward. “I’m Drew’s sister. These are his brothers,”
The orderly nodded. “We need to get the patient back to his room to hook up all his equipment properly.”
“Could we maybe have just one minute?” Ivy asked sweetly.
“That’s not—”
“I’ll take him from here,” Patrick said, appearing from around the corner. He was still wearing the same pink scrubs, and this time, I noticed he had a diamond stud in one ear.
“You sure?” one of the orderlies asked.
“Of course,” he replied, waving his hand at them.
“Look at these strapping football players. They can help push him back to the room.”
The orderlies seemed doubtful.
Romeo stepped forward and smiled. “Nice to meet you guys. I’m Romeo.”
They forgot about Drew and focused on the football stars before them. Part of me was pissed off they would forget Drew that fast, but the other part of me was grateful.
I wondered if Romeo ever got tired of being a charmer.
“I can give you like two minutes,” Patrick whispered, leaning in.
“I won’t forget this,” I told him sincerely.
Ivy stood close by but angled her body, trying to give me some privacy with my guy. I didn’t care. These past few days changed me. Being guarded didn’t seem so important anymore. Suddenly, all those times we were discreet when we wanted to touch or when I’d held back precious words until we were alone seemed like such a waste. I should have said everything I felt the second it bloomed in my heart. I should have touched him instead of denying us in case someone else might be uncomfortable.
I did a lot of shit for other people. People who didn’t know me. People who might judge. People that didn’t even matter.
All that mattered was Drew.
If he died, I would live with those regrets. Those lost moments. And they would haunt me like unsettled ghosts.
As Romeo, B, and those men chattered away about football, Patrick and Ivy basically stood guard.
I forgot about them all.
Leaning over the bed, over the body of the man I loved more than myself, gently, I brushed my fingers over the side of his head.
“You’re just using this as an excuse to not comb your hair,” I told him softly, trying to give him a smile.
He wouldn’t see it. But I was hoping maybe he would feel it.
I managed the smile, but it caused tears to well up in my eyes. God, I felt like a giant wuss. I wasn’t a crier. But since this happened, I’d never cried so much in my entire life.
That didn’t matter either.
Perhaps I’d been too guarded with my emotions in the past too.
The ventilator was still breathing for him, and I missed the view of his lips. Of his smile. Of his ocean-blue eyes.
Blinking back the tears, I caressed the side of his cheek.
“I brought you something,” I told him, glancing down at his casted leg. Reaching into the bag I was carrying, I pulled out my recent purchase.
“It was black or this,” I said, holding up the tie-dyed fabric. “You probably would have picked the black, but I wanted to give you a rainbow. Where’d your shirt go?” I asked, moving down the bed toward his foot. “Guess they thought it didn’t belong there.” I shrugged. “It was B’s shirt anyway. He can buy a new one.”
“I heard that.” B chimed in.
His toes were cold again. The ache in my chest intensified. If I had been with him, his toes wouldn’t be cold like this. They would have been covered and warm.
Taking the tag off the cast cover I purchased, I tossed the bag on the floor and slowly, cautiously worked it over his leg. A cast cover was basically a large sock made to go over a cast. I didn’t really know what people used th
em for. Hell, I hadn’t even known they made these things until today.
All I knew was that it would keep his toes warm.
When I was finished, I stared down at the bright multicolored fabric and smoothed my hand over it.
Patrick cleared his throat, and mine constricted. Holding up a finger, I went back up beside Drew, leaning over his body again.
“Keep fighting, Drew. I’m here. I’m not going anywhere.” I had no idea if he heard me.
He looked so still and quiet. Not at all the man I was used to seeing.
After pressing my lips against his forehead and then on the bridge of his nose, I pulled away just slightly. “Love you,” I whispered.
“Would you mind giving me a hand, boys?” Patrick asked my brothers.
“Wait.” I stopped them, pulling the blankets up around him and making sure his hands were covered. Then I walked alongside the bed until we reached the waiting room at the end of his hallway.
The rest of them kept going, and I stopped and watched until the bed disappeared into his room. Inside the waiting room, I dropped into a chair, staring off into space.
Someone cleared their throat. I looked up.
Four sets of eyes stared back at me.
“I didn’t know you guys were here,” I said, taking in Joey, Lorhaven, Hopper, and Arrow.
“Who’s the douchebag standing in Drew’s room like a Nazi?”
“Hitler’s descendent,” I muttered.
“You give him that busted nose?” Lorhaven asked.
“Yep.”
“It’s his father, isn’t it?” Arrow asked, a knowing tone darkening his voice. Everyone, including me, looked at him. His cheeks turned pink, and he squirmed in his chair uncomfortably.
Hopper rested his hand on the top of Arrow’s thigh, and almost instantly, he calmed.
The power of a touch. The right touch. My stomach twisted. Does Drew need my touch right now?
“Yeah,” I said. “It’s his parents.”
“He’s one of those dads.” Arrow went on, his voice haunted and perceptive.
“A—” Lorhaven began.
“It’s okay,” he replied to his brother. “We aren’t the only ones with a fucked-up father.”
“I thought Drew’s dad disowned him,” Joey practically whispered.
“He did. But he sees Drew’s weak state as the perfect opportunity to separate us and control Drew.”
“What do you mean?” Hopper asked.
“He has some old will. He’s next of kin. He’s forbidden me to see Drew.”
Lorhaven shot up out of the chair he was in so forcefully it banged into the wall. Everyone sitting alongside him barely reacted. They just looked up, mildly surprised.
That’s what happens when you’re a guy prone to attitude. No one is surprised when you get pissed off.
“Are you fucking serious?” He fumed.
“Do you think I’d be sitting all the way out here if I wasn’t?”
“I’ll break something else…” he muttered and charged forward.
Joey bolted up, but I was faster, sliding into the doorway and pushing him back.
“Stay away from him, Lorhaven.”
He turned, incredulous. “Guys like that—”
“He threatened to take Drew somewhere else and not tell us where.”
Lorhaven’s eyes rounded, and all the fight left him.
Joey pressed a hand to her mouth, muffling the sound she made.
“You can’t do anything that will piss him off any further. If he takes Drew…” My voice fell away.
A strong hand slapped onto my shoulder and squeezed. “That’s not going to happen.” Romeo vowed.
Glancing over my shoulder, I saw him, Braeden, and Ivy.
“How is he?” I asked, turning.
“He’s fine. The doctor will be up to tell us the test results soon.”
“No one stayed with him?” I worried.
“Two people in the room at a time.” Ivy reminded me. “My parents are both in there.”
“My father wanted to let you know that he will be here tonight. He had meetings today,” Joey told me.
I nodded and sank back into the seat.
Everyone sat down. No one talked, but the solidarity we all exuded spoke volumes. One person stepped in, glanced around, and backed out.
I don’t know how much time passed before a cup of coffee appeared under my nose. It smelled good, but my stomach revolted just looking at it. “No thanks,” I muttered, not even glancing up.
The cup followed me when I turned away from it.
“I said no—” I began, irritation clear in my voice, but then I saw who it was. “Rimmel.” I amended. “I didn’t know you were here.”
“I was at the hotel with the kids and B’s mom. But Romeo’s parents came back and London fell asleep, so here I am.”
“Kids okay?” I asked.
She nodded. “I brought you this.” She tried giving me the coffee again.
I made a face.
“Trent,” she scolded. “Take it.”
I did, and then she climbed in my lap. I blinked a few times, stunned, then gazed around for Romeo. He was sitting nearby, watching us. When he saw me looking, he smiled lightly.
Dude knew I was grumpier than an old man with a bad case of hemorrhoids and wanted to sit here alone and brood.
He also knew I wouldn’t rebuff his wife. Rimmel was pretty much the entire family’s soft spot. No one could deny her, and if we tried, Romeo would kick our ass.
I was pretty good at keeping people at arm’s length.
Except for Drew.
And then Rim snuck in, just a little bit closer than the rest of the fam.
She was so small. Even after having three kids, she fit in my lap with room to spare. Swinging up, her legs dangled slightly over the armrest, and she tucked her cheek against my shoulder.
I knew she meant well. Hell, I loved her for what she was trying to do.
But honestly?
Just between you and me…
This made me feel worse.
This reminded me that the only comfort I truly wanted was from Drew. The only person I wanted in my arms was him. My stomach flipped and dipped with emotion, and my throat struggled to swallow.
I put an arm around her and said nothing, because even if I didn’t feel any comfort, I hoped maybe she did. And if she did, then that was enough for me.
“Drink that,” she insisted, pushing the cup up toward my face.
Like the good brother I was, I drank some of it and then made a face as it went down. “How much sugar did you put in this, sis?”
“It’s caramel,” she replied. “You need the sugar.”
“Well, there’s enough sugar in this cup to give me diabetes.”
“It’s not that bad,” she said, slipping her arms around my waist and hugging me. “You gave all that blood yesterday, and I know you haven’t eaten since before the accident.”
“I’m not hungry.”
“I know.”
We fell into silence, and I drank more of my diabetes in a cup. The warmth of the liquid felt good against my throat, making me realize how raw it was.
“I heard what he did,” she said after a few minutes.
The arm I held around her stilled. I made a sound, acknowledging her words.
“He’s wrong,” she said plainly, lifting her chin a little so her head, still resting against my shoulder, was angled up toward mine. “I know it feels like all of us are sitting still, just allowing that man to do and say these awful things, and I honestly can’t imagine how hard it is for you to even sit here.”
“You’re on top of me. Makes it hard to get up,” I joked, trying to lighten things up. Trying to stop myself from shattering completely.
She poked me in the midsection, making a small sound. “None of us agree with him. None of us are actually sitting still.” Her small hand pressed against my chest.
When Drew put his hand over my heart,
his palm covered it. It felt like he was actually holding my heart.
“Not in here,” she whispered, drawing my gaze. “We’re all outraged. We’re all screaming inside. We all hate the unfairness of this situation. Just like you, we know it’s best for Drew if we just tow the line… try and keep the peace.”
I cupped the back of her head. “I don’t want anyone fighting this battle but me. It’s just me he hates… Drew needs the rest of you.”
She nodded. Behind the glasses, her wide brown eyes were empathetic. “We’re all here for him.”
“Thank you, Rim.”
She grabbed my hand, giving it a squeeze. “But we’re here for you too. Don’t forget that, okay? You’re our family too. Not just Drew.”
I nodded.
“Trent?”
“Hmm?”
“It isn’t you that man hates. Not really. He just hates seeing proof that everything he believes is a lie. Love doesn’t have limits, and if there has ever been proof of it, it’s you and Drew.”
Emotion clogged my throat. I lifted the coffee to my lips but then decided not to take a sip because I was afraid it wouldn’t go down.
“You know you’re my favorite, right?” I whispered, leaning in to kiss the side of her head.
She giggled. “Drink your coffee,” she instructed.
I made a face but obliged. “Do you think if I go into sugar shock, they’d let me share a room with Drew?” It was meant to be a joke, but the way I said it conveyed way too much longing.
“He’s going to wake up soon. And when he does, it’s you he’s going to ask for first.”
Hope and fear grabbed me, creating a violent game of tug-of-war inside me. Hope that, yes, Drew would soon open his eyes. And fear that when he did, he might not know me.
17
Trent
* * *
I spent the night in a waiting room chair, occasionally so restless I would wander down the hallway and steal glances through the window into Drew’s room.
The staff would cast glimpses and whisper every time they walked past. A couple times, they spied me creeping down the hallway, but they never said a word. Maybe they were scared of me. Maybe they thought I was pitiful.
#Fate Page 8