For the Love of Gracie (The Southern Devotion Series)

by McClung, Amy

  I grabbed his hand leading him upstairs as I said, “Ashton’s in the hospital, he wrecked his bike.”

  Cameron tugged on my arm. “Slow down, Gracie. You’re shaking like a leaf.”

  I screamed at him, “He needs me. We have to get there.”

  Cameron grabbed my face. “Stop. You’ll do him no good like this. Calm down. I’m driving.” He pulled his phone out and began to text.

  “What are you doing?” I screamed.

  He sighed “Telling Gavin to meet us at the hospital. Ash is his family you know.”

  I hugged him. “I’m sorry, I’m just freaked.”

  He nodded. “I know, Gracie.”

  When we arrived at the hospital, Cameron went to the information desk. He came back angry. “What’s the matter?”

  He scoffed, “They won’t give us any information because we aren’t family.”

  I whimpered, “I’m his girlfriend.”

  He nodded. “I told them that. They said it would only count if you were married or listed in his chart as acceptable to give personal information to.”

  I pushed him aside and went to the desk. I remained as calm as I could. “Please help us, my boyfriend doesn’t have any…”

  Then it dawned on me, Derrick. “Oh my gosh.” I turned to Cameron. “We need to call Derrick.”

  Derrick answered, sounding confused, “Hello?”

  I replied, “Derrick, it’s Gracie.”

  His voice became panicked. “What happened to Ash?”

  My voice choked so Cameron took the phone. Derrick told Cameron he would call to get Ash's condition for us and that he would be up as soon as he found someone to watch Katelyn.

  Gavin walked through the lobby doors as Cameron hung up. He bypassed Cameron and wrapped his arms around me. I began to sob against his chest. Gavin pulled away and wiped my face with a tissue. “How is he?” he asked.

  I pointed at the desk. “They won’t tell me because I’m not family.”

  His jaw clenched. “The hell you aren’t. Come on.”

  He tugged me to the desk with him. “I have all Ashton Collins information to prove I am family. I’m his brother. You should find my name on his PHI release as well.”

  He proceeded to give her Ash's social security number and birth date, to which she was satisfied enough to tell us he was in surgery. She said she would alert the doctor about us being here, so when the surgery was over he could fill us in. Gavin wrapped his arm around me and led me to a chair. He pulled me close as he rocked me.

  "What's PHI?" He kissed my forehead, "Protected health information. You have to sign a release and name anyone allowed to know your medical information. Ashton, Derrick and I all have each other listed for emergencies, like this one."

  Cameron sat beside us, holding my hand. My phone rang; he answered and handed it to me. “Hey Derrick. Gavin's here and was able to get an update on Ash for us.”

  Derrick replied, “That's good. Gracie, will you keep me posted on how he's doing? I can’t find a babysitter. Dammit, I want to be there right now. I can’t bring Katelyn up there and scare her.”

  I had an idea. “Let me call my friend Mary Jane; she’s great with kids. As long as you’re okay with that.”

  Derrick responded, relieved, “Any friend of yours, Gracie.”

  When I explained everything to Mary Jane, she said she'd love to help. She agreed to meet Derrick at a park, near the hospital, so Katelyn wouldn’t know where he was going.

  Cameron told me he’d watch for Derrick. “Just describe him for me.”

  I sniffed. “Ash with shaggy hair, clean-shaven and a few inches shorter.”

  Cameron tsked. “What a gene pool.”

  About an hour later, Cameron walked in with Derrick. I went to greet him. He hugged me and it made me ache for Ashton. My arms tightened around him as I tried to hold back the tears. He patted my hair.

  “Bad time for me to resemble him I guess.”

  I smiled, sadly. He sat down with me after he hugged Gavin. The nurse called Gavin up and informed him that the surgery would be another two hours at least.

  Cameron and Gavin went to get coffee for all of us. I grasped Derrick's hand. “Talk about anything to get my mind off things, please," I begged. "Did Katelyn do well with MJ?"

  He replied, “I was pretty shocked when I saw Mary Jane. That friend of yours, she’s…”

  As he was speaking I thought he was going to make a comment about her weight and I was going to have to kick his ass.

  He finished with, “...beautiful and so sweet. Katelyn took to her right away, which is unusual for her with strangers.” I smiled at the realization that he was just like his brother in personality, too.

  “Where’s Katelyn’s mom?” He shifted uncomfortably in his chair. “I’m sorry, that was rude to ask. This is the second time you've met me and I have no right to ask such a personal thing.”

  He waved it off. “No it wasn’t rude. We're practically family now; it was a logical question. We had Katie very young, she wasn’t ready. I wasn’t either, but she’s my kid, I couldn’t turn my back on her. Her mother didn’t feel that way, though. I had to beg her to have Katie and then pay her to let me have total custody. Since I was going through all the trouble, I had her sign away all rights. She’s never even seen her, didn’t even hold her at the hospital.”

  I sighed. “Good grief, is your family full of amazing guys like you and Ash? It has to be in the genes.”

  He chuckled softly. “Nothing spectacular about taking responsibility for your actions.”

  I patted his hand. “Yeah there is. Are you seeing anyone?”

  He shook his head. “Been on a few dates, nothing special, why?”

  I replied, “How about, when Ashton’s better, I set you and Mary Jane up?”

  He smiled. “She’s single? Awesome. Yeah, that’d be great.”

  A doctor came into the waiting room. He walked up to the desk and the receptionist pointed at us. I grabbed Derrick's hand tightly. He put his arm around my shoulder, as the doctor approached.

  "I'm Dr. Jordan, I operated on Mr. Collins. His injuries were pretty extensive to his arm, but could've been much worse. He has several fractures in his right arm from where the motorcycle landed on him."

  "He has several abrasions and contusions along the right side of his body, but those should heal up just fine. We performed surgery to repair his arm and he has sutures for cuts along his torso. He was wearing a helmet and protective gear, so he was quite lucky. He can have visitors, but only one at a time, to keep the noise level down and allow him rest. He will be unconscious for a few hours. We'll keep him here overnight for observation to make sure nothing else pops up."

  I sighed with relief. "Thank you so much."

  He nodded. "If you have any questions, make sure the nurse finds me and I'll be glad to speak with you."

  Gavin and Cameron walked in as the doctor was walking out. Derrick filled them in on what was said. "Derrick or Gavin, one of you can go first, you're family," I said. They both looked at me shaking their heads.

  Gavin spoke up, "No way, girlfriend. You go in there and tell that man you love him. It's your voice he needs to hear right now."

  I started to cry and Gavin wrapped his arms around me.

  "Sweets, none of that now. He's fine. He has a gorgeous woman to wake up to."

  Cameron chimed in, "You better go clean that face so it looks gorgeous again when he wakes up because, right now, you look a hot mess."

  I burst out laughing and moved to hug Cameron. "You're the best."

  He squeezed me tight. "I know girl. Now get."

  Chapter Twenty-Three

  As I walked the long hallway to Ashton's room, I wiped my face clean. I could hear the machines beeping from the door that was slightly ajar. I inhaled a deep breath of courage and walked inside.

  My hands went straight to my face, covering my mouth, as I gasped when I saw him. His arm was in a cast and his torso was wrapped in ga
uze. His muscular arms were both littered with scrapes and bruises. The handsome face that I couldn't get enough of, was covered in scrapes and his right cheek was swollen. I moved to stand beside him.

  Carefully, I palmed his face as I studied his injuries. I leaned in close and kissed his cheek cautiously. I reached for his hand, stroking it with my thumb.

  "Baby, it's me, Gracie-bug." I choked back tears. I moved the reclining chair closer to the bed. I took his hand in mine, kissing his knuckles. His chest rose and fell in a steady rhythm.

  Ashton had always been the strong one. He was always smiling and flirting with me; that's what I needed right now. I missed his voice, his smile, his touch. He looked so defeated in this hospital bed.

  I pressed his hand against my heart. "Feel that? My heart beating for you? Being in the same room with you always makes it race."

  I pressed his hand to my lips as I sat and watched him sleep. Running my fingers through his hair, I whispered, "I know you need to rest. I just want to see those blue eyes of yours." I rested my head against his chest, listening to his heartbeat.

  After sitting there for a few minutes, I needed to let someone else have a turn. "I'm going to be back here in a few minutes. I don’t want to leave you. You can only have one visitor at a time, though. Derrick and Gavin both want a turn. I'll be back shortly. I love you, Ash." I kissed his forehead and walked out of the room.

  The guys all stood when I approached the waiting room. "One of you go in there and see him. He's sleeping peacefully."

  Derrick patted me on the back as Gavin sent him to go first. I sat with Gavin and Cameron.

  Cameron put his arm around me. "There's something you should know, babe."

  I faced him. "What?"

  Cameron grimaced. "This wasn’t an accident. Apparently, someone literally ran him off the road, on purpose."

  "How do you know that?"

  He jerked his head to the side to an older woman in the corner. "That woman was a witness. She's here because she ran off the road, too, and her husband is being checked out. She said there was a car behind Ash's bike that sped up and clipped his back tire to send him spinning off the road. She told the cops she thought it was a road rage incident. I think it was something else."

  I covered my mouth with my hands. "Who would do that?" I asked the question and realized the answer at the same time. "Hudson?"

  Cameron shrugged, "That'd be my guess."

  "Then that would mean he isn't in jail." I said, fear rising in my chest at the thought.

  Cameron's voice hardened, "It wouldn't be the first time he avoided jail time, we both know that too well."

  Gavin switched off with Derrick, a few minutes later. I was still reeling from what Cameron had told me. I couldn’t concentrate on anything else. Gavin came running back in to the room, pulling me from my stupor.

  "He's awake! The nurse is checking him over. Gracie you need to be the next face he sees. The minute he stirred, he was saying your name."

  "Really?" I asked, elated.

  He nodded his head excitedly. "Yep, he wouldn't stop asking for you."

  I sprinted to his room and made it as the nurse was leaving. She smiled at me. "I hope you're Gracie. If not, he's going to be disappointed."

  I grinned. "I'm Gracie." She held the door open for me. I peered around the corner and his face lit up as our eyes met.

  He held his hand out to me. I ran to his side, grabbing his outstretched palm. I leaned forward touching his lips with mine, very gently. He put his hand behind my neck and pulled me in for a deeper kiss.

  I chuckled, pulling back from him. "Easy there tiger."

  He grinned. "I missed you."

  I smiled, "You're on some good drugs aren’t you?" He smiled and nodded.

  "I wanted to see your beautiful face." His palm glided along my cheek over and over, as though he was petting me.

  I grinned at how cute he was all doped up. "Gavin said you asked for me."

  He nodded. "Yep. I mean, Gavin's cute and all, but he isn’t my type. No matter what you may think."

  He gave a manly sort of giggle and wiggled his finger at me. I'd never heard him giggle before. It was a husky, gruff, giggle but it was adorable, nonetheless.

  I laughed and said, "Derrick was in here before that. Cam's in the waiting room with both of them."

  "What happened?" he asked.

  "You don’t remember?"

  His eyes drifted upward as he thought about it. "I remember being on my bike, did I wreck it?"

  I nodded. "You ran off the road. You scared me to death, ya know."

  He took my hand. "I'm sorry, bug." There was a knock on the door.

  The doctor came in and said, "Gracie, I need to check him over. Mr. Collins, are you alright having your girlfriend in the room?"

  He grabbed my hand. "Of course. I share everything with her."

  I kissed his hand. "Actually, I'm going to go check on the guys. I'll come back in a bit."

  Derrick met me halfway down the hall, "Hey, I was coming to say goodbye to Ashton. I'm going to go meet Mary Jane to get Katelyn home. She's down the road about a mile. Would you want to take a break and go meet her?"

  I glanced back at the hospital room. "Since he's conscious, do you think we could bring her up to see him?"

  Derrick thought about it a moment. "I think it'd be alright, now that we know he's going to be fine."

  Derrick left to go pick them up while I waited for the doctor to finish his exam. When he came back with Katelyn, Mary Jane was with him. They were talking and seemed to be getting along great.

  Katelyn was a beautiful little girl with straight black hair and blue eyes. I walked over to meet her.

  Kneeling down to her level, I held my hand out and said, "Katelyn, I'm Gracie. I'm a friend of your Uncle Ash's."

  She smiled and held her arms out for a hug. I wrapped my arms around her.

  Katelyn grinned. "You're Ash's girlfriend."

  I smiled. "Yes I am. And you're beautiful."

  She grinned. "Thank you."

  I glanced up at Derrick. "Would it be alright if I take her in there? I asked the doctor and he said it'd be fine."

  Derrick seemed fine with the idea of taking Katelyn in myself. He seemed content to want to talk to Mary Jane more. I lifted Katelyn on my hip and carried her to see Ash. We slowly pushed the door open and peered inside.

  He looked up and grinned widely. "My two favorite girls."

  Katelyn's face dropped, she turned her head, laying it on my shoulder. "What's the matter, sweetie?"

  Her arms held my neck tightly as she whispered, "Is he ok?"

  I patted her hair. "He's fine. He's a bit sore, but he's just fine."

  I carried her over to him and sat her on the edge of the bed.

  "Hey boo, it's going to take more than a motorcycle to take down your Uncle Ash, ya know."

  He tickled her and she giggled. She leaned down and kissed his cheek.

  He whispered, "Be easy on the love, Gracie gets jealous." She giggled again.

  She threw her arms around his neck and he cringed in pain. I reached to pull her off of him, he waved his hand to tell me it was fine.

  He rubbed Katelyn's back with his good arm as he smiled at whatever she was telling him. He was great with her, I could tell she meant the world to him. Every now and then, Ashton cringed when Katelyn hit a sore spot. He refused to let her see it though, or complain out loud.

  Derrick came in a few minutes later. Concerned, he said, "Katie, you need to be careful…"

  Ashton held his hand up to stop him, Derrick quieted the same as I had.

  Katelyn sat up and looked at Ashton. "Did I hurt you?" She sounded so worried at the thought.

  Ashton smiled. "No way, Boo. You always make me feel better." She giggled and kissed his cheek.

  Derrick picked her up, off the bed. "We need to get home and grab some dinner." Ashton glanced at Mary Jane who was in the doorway; she had walked in with Derrick.

&
nbsp; "Hi, MJ. Come on in, sweetheart," Ashton said.

  She smiled timidly and walked over. "I'm glad you're okay."

  He smiled. "Thanks, sweets."

  Katelyn beamed up at Mary Jane. "She played at the park with me today. Mary Jane's my friend."

  Ashton smiled. "Wow, you don't usually make friends so quick, Boo. Mary Jane is pretty special, though. She's my friend too." Katelyn laughed. "I like her."

  Derrick was staring at Mary Jane admiringly.

  Ashton noticed and said, "You're not the only one it seems."

  Derrick subtly reached back and flicked Ashton's arm. Ash chuckled at Derrick's blushing cheeks.

  "I want Mary Jane to come to my birthday party."

  Derrick's eyes met with Mary Jane's, she blushed and said, "I'd love to, if your dad doesn’t mind."

  Derrick spoke up before she finished her sentence, "Yes. Of course."

  He turned back to Ashton. "I need to get Katelyn something to eat so we're going to head out."

  When he turned back he looked at MJ and said, "I'd love to treat you to a bite to eat, as a thank you for earlier. If you're not busy?"

  Mary Jane grinned. "That'd be great, I'm free."

  She gave me a hug before leaving, I whispered, "He told me he thinks you're beautiful and sweet. Go get him girl."

  Mary Jane gasped and whispered, "Really?" I pulled away and nodded. She mouthed, "Do I look alright?"

  I laughed. "Gorgeous. Go, have fun." Once they left, I went to Ash's side again.

  As I started to move the chair over, Ash said, "Don't bother with that, curl up next to me in this bed." He moved over a bit.

  I hesitated. "Are you sure?"

  With a firm voice he said, "Get over here now."

  I grinned and climbed onto the bed beside him. His hand pressed against my back, pulling me forward for a kiss. Ashton smiled at me. "You're the best medicine, you know?"

  "I think Katelyn was your cure. She adores you," I said.

  He smiled lovingly. "She's an angel. I love that kid. I thought my brother was crazy when he decided to take on that responsibility at age sixteen. One look at that sweet face though and I couldn’t blame him."