by L. P. Dover
He slammed one of the other players into the wall and shot the puck to Justin. Callie agreed with a nod. “Just a little. That’s why he’s so damn good.”
“And sweet,” Sophia added. “You should’ve heard him talking to Lacey on the phone yesterday.”
Callie snickered. “I know. I wish Dallas was like that.”
“That’s what surprised me about Maddox when I met him. He’s genuinely a thoughtful guy. Nobody ever sees it.”
“Maddox doesn’t let people see it,” Callie reiterated. “If you’re not in his inner circle, you get the douche bag side of him. He’s very particular about who he lets in.”
Sophia sighed. “The less people you allow to get close to you, the less chances of getting hurt.”
Callie nodded. “Exactly.”
My pager vibrated and my phone rang at the same time. Callie gasped and watched me pull the pager off my waistband. “Uh-oh, what’s wrong?” She grabbed my purse and fumbled around for my phone.
“It’s the hospital.” My heart sank. Usually, when I was paged in early, that meant something was seriously wrong. “Dr. Easton,” I answered.
“Lacey, it’s Hannah. We need you here ASAP. There was a massive pileup accident on I-85. Ambulances are on the scene getting ready to bring the patients here.” I hadn’t seen Hannah since Callie’s wedding. She’d been away on vacation with Corey, one of Callie’s older brothers.
“All right, I’m on my way.”
I jumped to my feet and Callie stood. “Is everything okay?”
Everyone behind us looked at me, their expressions concerned. I focused back on Callie and Sophia. “It was Hannah. Apparently, there was a bad accident on I-85 with several casualties. They need me at the hospital.”
Callie nodded toward the door. “Go. I’ll tell the guys after the game.”
“Okay. Tell Maddox I’ll see him in the morning.”
She nodded again. “I will.”
I bolted past everyone to the exit. Everyone looked at me like I was crazy. Not everyone knew what it was like to have someone’s life depending on you. That was what made my job special yet terrifying. I didn’t want to fail. I’d seen people die in front of me and it was one of the hardest things I ever had to deal with.
Knowing I-85 was probably stopped due to the accident, I took another way around. I parked in my spot and hurried into the hospital. There were nurses with supplies at the front, ready for the ambulances. Hannah ran up to me, out of breath. “They’re almost here. A tractor trailer had lost control and it caused several major collisions. Ten cars total. As of right now, two of the victims died on impact. Dr. Jordan and Dr. Macomber are here as well.”
My heart hurt just thinking about it all, but at least the other doctors were around, too. “I’m going to get prepared and meet you at the front.” Hannah nodded and rushed to join the others. When I was in New York, a family had gotten into a car accident and both the wife and two children had died. The husband was so overwrought with grief that he’d killed himself just two weeks after. The accident wasn’t even his fault. It was crazy what grief could make you do.
As quickly as I could, I dropped my bag and purse into the locker room. The buzzer blared overhead, signaling the arrival of the ambulances. I ran down to the front just as the victims were being brought in. It was chaos.
“Dr. Easton, over here!” Hannah shouted. “We have a head wound.” I found her in the crowd, waving me over. The other doctors raced toward other patients. A lady with midnight colored hair hiding her face was bent down over the man on the gurney. The left side of his face was covered in blood, but that wasn’t what shocked me. He looked up at me and my heart stopped. “Mr. Ledger,” I breathed.
Recognition flashed across his face. “Lacey Easton. I recognize you from the wedding.” The paramedics started to wheel him down the hall.
Hannah looked over at me, her eyes wide with surprise as we followed them. “Those are Maddox’s parents, aren’t they?”
I nodded. “Yes, they are.”
Chapter 34
Maddox
It felt good to play hard and hit every motherfucker who tried to pummel me. It was just what I needed. Our team won, that was all that mattered. “Party at my house!” Josh called out.
The guys shouted and hollered in triumph as we walked into the locker room. Justin glanced back at me. “You going to the party?”
I shook my head. “Nah, I have plans with Lacey.”
He took off his pads. “Gotcha.”
“Is Miranda hanging out with you tonight?”
He scoffed. “Nope. I told her I needed a break. Contract or not, I can’t stand being around her right now.”
I couldn’t blame him. For so long, I’d messed around with girls like that. That shit got old very quick. Knowing Lacey had to get to work, I took off my pads and hopped in the shower. Once I was dressed, I turned to head for the door, but Dallas stood in my way. He stared at me for the longest time and then held out his hand.
“What are you doing?”
Chuckling, he nodded down at his hand. “I’m trying to shake your hand.” Then he lowered his voice. “You are, after all, my brother-in-law.”
Eyes wide, I stood there in shock. “Is that good or bad news for you?”
Dallas chuckled. “Before, I would’ve said bad, but you’ve changed. I’m not angry.”
I shook his hand. “Lacey said she told you so, I wasn’t sure what to expect.”
“She and Braeden told me everything that’d happened. I figured something was wrong when I saw his new black eye.”
“Believe me, I wanted to do more,” I admitted honestly.
Braeden walked up behind Dallas. “And I’m sorry. I spoke the truth when I said I had nothing to do with Laura.” Dallas stepped out of the way and Braeden moved forward. He held out his hand. “Lacey’s my friend and I care about her more than anything. If I’m going to be a part of her life, I need to work things out with you. I know that if you asked her to stay away from me, she’d do it. I’m just hoping you’ll accept my apology and allow me to stay in her life.”
I shook his hand. “Just don’t do it again. I will never hurt her. If I did, I’d have you and Dallas up my ass. I’m not that stupid. And keeping you away from her will only make things worse.”
Breathing a sigh of relief, he let my hand go. “Thanks, Ledger. I truly am sorry. Besides, I have a date this weekend with Sophia.” Lacey’s plan worked.
“That’s good to hear, man. Sophia’s a beautiful woman.” I walked out of the locker room, thinking Lacey would be right by the door, but she wasn’t. Only Callie was, along with people waiting for some of my other teammates. “Where is she?” I asked her.
Her gaze saddened. “She got called in to the hospital at the beginning of the game. There was a huge accident on the interstate.” She hugged me. “She said she’ll be at your house first thing in the morning. You could always make her breakfast. Tonight’s going to be rough on her.”
I let her go. “I’ll do that.”
Dallas walked out and Callie jumped into his arms. They looked at me and he smiled. It was nice to feel like I was a part of the family. “Want to go out to eat with us?” he asked.
I shook my head. “I think I’m going to go home and take it easy. Thanks, though.”
Callie leaned up to his ear and whispered so I could hear. “That’s what married life does to you.”
Dallas pointed at me. “Don’t you forget it, either.”
“I won’t.”
* * *
—
I slept on the couch so when Lacey arrived I’d be right there by the door. The sun shone through the blinds in the living room, the brightness waking me up. I rubbed my eyes and ran a hand through my hair. Judging by the position of the sun, it was probably midmorning. Lacey should’ve been off work by now.
Searching for my phone, I found it dead on the kitchen table. I’d forgotten to charge it when I got home. I plugged it in to give
it a couple of minutes to charge while I took a quick shower. When I got out, the phone was charged enough for me to turn it on. As soon as I did, it beeped over and over with incoming messages. Both my mother, Lacey, and Callie had called, all leaving voicemails. They’d tried calling in the middle of the night when I was sleeping. I didn’t bother listening to the messages. The feeling of dread took over and I panicked. I called Lacey first and she didn’t pick up. Something was wrong, I could feel it. All of my calls to Lacey went straight to voicemail. The same went for Callie.
Next, I called my mother, and when she answered, I could hear the thickness in her voice. “Where have you been?” she asked.
“I was asleep. My phone was dead when I woke up this morning.”
“Probably from me calling so much.”
I sat down at the kitchen table. “No, it was pretty much dead when I got home last night. What’s wrong?”
She sniffled. “Your father and I were in a car accident last night. Do you think you can come to the hospital?”
Jumping out of the chair, I grabbed my keys and headed out the door. “Are you okay? Where’s Dad?”
“We’re fine, honey. He really wants to see you.”
I was already in my car. “On my way.” She told me the room they were in and I hung up.
The time it took to get to the hospital passed by in a blur. So many emotions warred inside me, but the main one that surfaced was regret. I’d avoided my father for months. If something bad happened to him and I didn’t get to fix things, I’d never be able to live it down.
I pulled into the parking garage and found Lacey’s car. I parked beside her and ran into the hospital. My pulse pounded in my ears the whole way up to my father’s room. I wasted no time going inside. My mother stood by the window and jerked her attention to me when I burst through the door. Breathing a sigh of relief, she held out her arms and rushed toward me. Her right wrist was wrapped up.
“Thank God you’re here.”
Holding her tight, I glanced over at my dad and he was asleep, his head bandaged with white gauze. “What happened?”
She sniffled and let me go. I moved her over to the couch and she sat down. “A tractor trailer tipped over and the car in front of us slammed on their brakes. When we hit them, our car swerved and the person behind us hit your father’s side.” She held up her hand. “I sprained my wrist when I held out my hands as we hit. We’re okay, though.”
“And Dad?” I asked, glancing over at him.
Sighing with relief, she ran a hand through her dark hair. “He took a nasty hit to the head, but the tests came back normal. All he had to have were some stitches to close up the gash.”
I walked over to my dad and sat down on the chair beside his bed. My mother stood over me and set a hand on my shoulder. “We were on our way to watch your game. Your father wanted to see you.”
“Why? So he could tell me how much of a disappointment I am?” I whispered.
“Maddox, no.” She bent down and took my hand. “He was going to apologize for everything he’d done. Not being able to talk to you has eaten at him for the past few months. He knew it was up to him to make amends, and that’s what he was going to do.” She cupped my cheek and my eyes burned like fire. “He’s missed you so much.”
If only I could hear him say it. A knock sounded on the door and my mother turned. “Dr. Easton.”
I shot up out of the chair. Lacey held a hand over her chest, her stern gaze on mine. “There you are. You had me worried.”
“My phone was dead. Apparently I missed everyone’s calls.”
Lacey turned her attention to my mother. “How are you doing this morning?”
My mother nodded. “Better. We’re just waiting for Royce to wake up.” She pointed over at me. “Thank you for trying to call him last night.”
Lacey smiled, but I could tell she was exhausted. “You’re welcome. Maddox and I know each other very well.” She walked over to my father and checked his bandages. “He should be good to go home today. He’ll need to leave the bandages on for a few days. I don’t want the stitches getting wet.”
My mother nodded. “Will do.”
Another knock sounded on the door and Hannah stuck her head in. She gave me a little wave before focusing back on Lacey. “I need you for a sec.”
Lacey rubbed a hand over her face and sighed. “Okay, I’ll be right there.”
She turned back to my mother and smiled. “I’m heading out of here pretty soon, but I wanted to check on you before I left. Dr. Andrews will be in here in a couple of hours to give you the discharge papers.”
My mother placed a hand on her arm. “We owe you everything, Dr. Easton. Thank you.”
Lacey turned to me. “I have a few more things to do and then I’m heading home.”
“You don’t need to be driving,” I blurted. I didn’t want her driving home and falling asleep at the wheel.
She glanced at my mother and then back to me. “I’ll be fine. Your priorities are in this room.”
She turned and walked out the door. All I wanted was to run after her. My mother stared at me with wide eyes. “Is there something going on between you two?”
The truth was about to come out anyway. “She’s my wife.”
“Oh my God,” she gasped, slapping a hand over her mouth. “How? When?”
“It’s a long story.”
“Which I’m sure you’ll tell me all about. How could you not inform me that I had a daughter-in-law?” She smacked me on the arm.
“No one knew until recently. We kept it quiet. But that’s not all.”
“There’s more?” she asked, laughing.
I nodded. “She’s pregnant. You’re going to be a grandmother.”
“Whoa.” She swayed on her feet and grabbed her chest. “I don’t know what to say. This is a lot. I think I’m in shock.”
“I know, but I’m happy, Mom.”
With tears in her eyes, she kissed my cheek. “Then I’m ecstatic for you. I want to hear everything.”
I glanced at my father and then back at her. “I need to go after her, Mom. Are you okay by yourself for a few?”
She rolled her eyes. “Go. She’s your wife. In my book, that takes priority. And you’re right, she doesn’t need to drive home. Anyone can see that she’s worn out.”
Not wasting any more time, I bolted out of the room and ran right into Callie. “Where the hell have you been?” she snapped.
“No time to explain. Have you seen Lacey?”
She pointed toward the elevator. “Yeah, she went down to our floor. I think she’s about to leave.”
“Take me to her. I have to stop her before she goes.”
I followed her to the elevators and we rode it down to their floor. Callie looked in the locker room, but she wasn’t there. “She might’ve already left.” Hannah was at the desk so I hurried straight over. She looked just as exhausted as Lacey.
“Hannah, have you seen Lacey?” I asked.
She nodded toward the hallway. “She just went into the break room.”
Callie hugged her. “Thank you for everything you did for my uncle.”
Hannah snorted. “There wasn’t much to do. I’m just glad he didn’t have a head trauma.”
“Me, too. Hopefully it knocked some sense into him.”
Callie and I rushed down the hall and stopped at a door labeled STAFF ONLY. “If I get in trouble for this, I’m blaming you. Go in there and get her.”
“Thanks, Cal.” I opened the door and looked around. Lacey was at the table, bent over and resting her head on her arms. No one else was in there. Judging by her slow breathing, she was asleep. I sat down at the table and watched her. Just as I did, my phone fell out of my pocket and the noise made her jerk awake.
Eyes wide, she sucked in a breath and grabbed her chest. “Oh my God. Did I fall asleep?” Her face was pale and her hair was a mess, but I thought she was still the sexiest and most beautiful woman I’d ever seen. She slowly sat u
p and looked at her watch. “I only wanted to sit down for a second. I can’t believe I passed out.”
I reached over for her hands. “Come on. I’ll tuck you in when we get home.”
She squeezed my hands. “Sounds good. I probably shouldn’t be driving right now.”
“My mom said they were on the way to the game and that my dad was going to apologize to me. A part of me doesn’t know if I should believe it. What if my mother just said it to make me come back? What’s worse is that they wouldn’t have gotten in the accident if they weren’t trying to get to my game.”
The burn behind my eyes came again. I looked away and closed my eyes. Even though the accident wasn’t serious, I hated seeing my parents in pain. As much as I hated my father, I didn’t know what I’d do without him. He was hard on me all my life, but we also had some good times. I wouldn’t be the hockey player I was without him.
“Maddox, look at me,” Lacey murmured. I opened my eyes and met her gaze. “If your father doesn’t realize how he’s been in the wrong, I’ll help you show him. I don’t like you being at odds with your family.”
A strand of her golden hair fell down and I tucked it behind her ear. “I’m sure he’ll fall completely under your spell like I did.”
That earned me a smile and a wink. “He needs to be afraid of me.”
“Oh, he will be. I’m so sorry I didn’t answer the phone. I wanted to kick myself in the ass this morning when I realized I’d missed them.”
“You’re here now. That’s all that matters.” She yawned and I grabbed her arm.
“Come on, I’m taking you home. As soon as you’re up to it, we’re moving your things out of the pool house into mine. We’re done living apart.”
Her eyes twinkled. “I can handle that.”
Chapter 35
Maddox
Lacey fell asleep as soon as her head hit the pillow. While she slept, I drove back to the hospital. My mother sat in one of the chairs beside my father’s bed when I walked in. Her eyes lit up and she waved me over, patting the seat next to her.