“Okay,” she says. “The good news is that Mr. Durand is stable. He has several serious contusions, and a broken shoulder, but all of those will heal. Our main concern is his head injury. We’ve placed him in an induced coma so his brain can rest and heal.”
“How long will he need to be in a coma?” I ask.
“That’ll depend on how he does.”
“Will he be okay?” Giselle asks. “Once he wakes up, will he be okay?”
“We’ll need to monitor his brain activity and be patient. These things take time,” Shawna says. “I wish we knew more right now, but we don’t.”
“When can we see him?” I ask.
“We’ll allow two family members into the room right now.”
Giselle looks at me and says, “Me and Daphne.”
Even though I’m worried sick about Olivier, I’m pleased that Giselle is embracing me as someone special to Olivier. I nod, and the doctor tells us we can go back now.
“Before you go,” Hassan says. “I’m sorry I have to bring this up right now, but I know Olivier would want it. We’re going to need security for him, Giselle and Daphne, and we’re going to need a spokesman to work with the media. I think the Durand Enterprises and Chicago Blaze PR departments should handle that part. And I’m asking that no one repeat anything at all about the details of his condition. We need to let the spokesman handle that.”
“Of course,” I say, taking Giselle’s hand as we leave the room. “We’ll come check in with you guys when we can.”
“Tell him we love him,” Anton says, his eyes meeting mine.
Emotion wells in my throat as I say, “I will.”
“Same goes for you two,” he continues. “Giselle and Daphne, you’re not alone in this. We’re with you, no matter what happens, okay?”
I nod, grateful. “Thank you.”
The way his players feel about him says a lot about who Olivier is. It makes me love him just a little bit more. Of all the people in the world the universe could have chosen to have this happen to, why him? Why a man who brings so much good into the world?
“He has to be okay,” Giselle says softly as we follow the doctor through the hallways. “He’s the only one who has always been there for me, no matter what.”
I squeeze her hand. “He’s strong. And he loves you more than anything.”
“I love him, too.”
“Here it is,” the doctor says, stopping in front of a room with glass doors, our view obscured by some curtains.
Giselle and I follow him into the room, and she sobs when she sees him.
His head is bandaged, half of his face cut and bruised, and his left arm is in a sling. It’s hard to see him this way, but I’m relieved to finally see him in person.
I rush to him and gingerly kiss his uninjured cheek.
“Hi,” I say, a tear sliding down my cheek. “I’m here, and Giselle is here.”
Giselle approaches him from the other side and says, “Hey, Dad. I love you.”
“If you wanted to get our attention, there are much less dramatic ways to do it,” I say, smiling. “You’re okay, Olivier. You just need to rest and get better.”
“Please get better, Dad,” Giselle says. “I, I really need you.”
The room is small, with just one chair set next to Olivier’s bedside. I pick itup and move it to where Giselle stands.
“If you decide to sit,” I explain.
“Are there any questions I can answer?” the doctor asks.
“Can we stay with him?” I ask.
She hesitates, and my stomach drops. I can’t imagine having to go home and wait for a phone call telling me whether Olivier is going to be himself ever again.
“I want to stay with him,” Giselle says.
“In this unit—” the doctor starts, but I cut her off.
“We need to be with him,” I say. “Both of us. I’m not sure if you’re aware, but he has more than enough means to pay for a private intensive care room and staff, if that’s what it takes. We aren’t leaving him.”
She nods. “I understand. We’ll work it out.”
Now that we’re situated in Olivier’s room, reality hits and I have so many more questions. Who is Olivier’s medical power of attorney? Can that person authorize a transfer to a better facility? Or can we fly in the best doctors to evaluate him?
Olivier would get all these answers, and then he would act. He doesn’t wait for people to tell him things—he takes action and does things himself. I can’t wait, either.
But I also have to be by his side. I need someone savvy and stubborn enough to handle all the other things on Olivier’s behalf while I stay right here. A real bulldog that doesn’t take no for an answer.
As much as I hate to admit it, there’s only one person for the job—my Grandma Jo.
Chapter Twenty-One
Daphne
“Mrs. Barrington, we’re doing everything we can,” the doctor says, his tone weary. “That doctor doesn’t have privileges here, so we can’t allow him to examine Mr. Durand.”
My grandma’s tone only gets more demanding. “Do you need Bob Howard’s number? The chairman of your board of directors? He told me it was okay to bring this doctor here.”
“And it was okay, but—”
Grandma Jo’s cane thuds against the floor, silencing him. “This is an outrage. I want to speak to your supervisor immediately.”
“But—”
“Immediately!” The cane thuds several more times.
“Okay, fine.”
I hear the sound of the doctor retreating down the hallway to escape the wrath of the elderly woman who has quickly become his least favorite visitor.
Giselle meets my gaze from the other side of Olivier’s bed, the corners of her lips turning up in a smile.
“She’s something else,” I say softly.
Grandma Jo comes into the room from the hallway, shaking her head as she looks at me.
“Daphne, you can either take a shower or I’ll have someone carry you into the shower stall and wash you forcibly.”
“I’m fine, Grandma.”
“You smell like a filthy farm animal.”
Giselle tries to suppress a laugh, but a few notes escape.
“It’s not easy to sleep here,” I explain. “The cots are uncomfortable and there are nurses in and out of the room all night long.”
It’s been five days since Olivier’s accident. Giselle and I haven’t gotten a good night of sleep since. We lie on our cots every night and talk until she drifts off to sleep. I wouldn’t have wanted to do it this way, but I’ve gotten to know her quite well in only five days.
She’s a smart, shy girl who loves music and has a tender heart. She’s been through a lot with her mom, who apparently lives with another couple and is romantically involved with both of them. That’s enough to fuck with any kid’s head.
I’ve been able to convince her to take showers in the adjoining bathroom and walk down to the cafeteria a few times a day for a break. But mostly, she’s been here with me, talking to Olivier, playing cards and being entertained by Grandma Jo’s antics.
“I’m about five minutes away from calling someone at the Chicago Gazette,” Grandma Jo says. “These people may get their asses in gear if they get some bad press.”
“Well, rich people not getting special treatment at hospitals isn’t exactly a scandal,” I say wryly.
“I own a substantial share of that paper and if they don’t help me when I ask, they’ll wish they would have. If Dr. Patel isn’t allowed into this room within the next hour, I’ll be calling every donor to this hospital I know. I already have my contact list ready.”
Grandma Jo reaches into her black leather bag and pulls out a piece of paper to prove it to me. Her determined, take no shit expression makes my heart swell.
“Thank you, Grandma,” I say, smiling.
“I haven’t accomplished much yet,” she says, clearly aggravated.
“You have. You g
ot us into this bigger room and got them to send that specialist all of his records. And it’s just…nice, having you here.”
Her expression softens. “I like that Frenchman, Daphne. He’s a good man, and he’s good for you. I'm glad you’ve gotten past all that nonsense about him being too rich for you.”
I look at my phone screen, not wanting to continue this conversation in front of Giselle.
“Seventeen missed calls from my mom,” I murmur. “I wonder if everything’s okay.”
Grandma Jo scoffs. “She’s just sour about me being here and not her. She was going on and on last night about how hard she tried as a mother and why none of her girls asks for help when they need something.”
“I’ll text Jules to make sure everything’s okay,” I say, typing out a message.
“Do you want to play Go Fish, Mrs. Barrington?” Giselle asks.
“I would love to, and I told you, call me Grandma Jo.”
Giselle and Grandma Jo sit at the small table in our room, and I look over the hospital’s dinner menu, trying to decide what to have for dinner tonight. A shower would be nice, but I don’t want to leave Olivier for that long. It’s hard enough to let myself sleep when exhaustion takes over.
The swelling in his brain has gone down, which is a good sign. This morning, the doctors brought him out of his medically induced coma. Now we just have to wait for him to wake up.
I’m not letting it show, because I don’t want Giselle to worry, but this part is the hardest. With the medically induced coma, it wasn’t possible for him to wake up. Giselle and I were just here to talk to him and make sure he knows he’s not alone, and to support each other.
But now, when he could wake up at anytime, but hasn’t…this is the part that scares me.
Julia texts me back, and I smile at the message.
Julia: Everything’s fine. Mom just can’t stand not being at the center of everything. How are you?
Me: Okay. Grandma Jo’s about to burn this place to the ground.
Julia: She’s the best at it.
The sound of someone walking into the room makes me look up, and I smile when I see that it’s Anton Petrov, Jonah West, and his wife Rey.
“How’s our favorite team owner doing today?” Jonah asks.
“The swelling is down, so that’s a good sign.”
“Good.”
Rey passes me a white box.
“Banana bread and chocolate chip cookies,” she says, smiling. “I can’t take credit for making them, though.”
“Thank you. We really appreciate it.”
Anton goes over to Olivier and says, “Hey, boss. We beat the shit out of Vegas last night. Thought you’d want to know. It was 4–0.”
Every day, Blaze players have come here to see Olivier. Anton hasn’t missed a day, and he always talks to Olivier as though they’re just having a regular conversation. I like that.
“Is Grandma Jo smoking you at Go Fish again, Giselle?” Anton asks.
“I’m going to win this one,” Giselle says confidently.
“You want to beat a frail, old woman?” Grandma Jo asks.
“Yep.”
Grandma Jo laughs heartily. “Atta girl.”
“I must have missed my invite to the party,” Dr. Gregory, Olivier’s main doctor, says as he walks into the room.
His sarcasm is either due to us subverting their rules about the number of visitors allowed at a time or him being tired of Grandma Jo’s unending bullshit. It doesn’t matter to me, though. We’re getting through this with the support of everyone who loves Olivier.
“We’d like to order some cocktails if you could send a waitress in,” Grandma Jo cracks.
“Mrs. Barrington, I’m pleased to tell you that Dr. Patel will be allowed to examine Mr. Durand.”
She stands up, nodding. “You made the right decision, Dr. Gregory. I’ll go get him.”
“Oh, it was way above me,” he says, putting his hands in the air. “And I can assure you, Dr. Patel is very unlikely to see anything new.”
“Your opinion is noted,” Grandma Jo says as she leaves the room.
Dr. Patel has been in a conference room for several hours, waiting for permission to examine Olivier. He’s a specialist that Grandma Jo paid a fortune to fly in from California for a consult. But if he can tell us anything we don’t already know, it’ll be worth it. Once Olivier is stable enough to move, I want to take him to the best facility in the country for his condition, whatever that may be. I’m hoping to find out from Dr. Patel.
“Want to play the rest of the game?” Giselle asks Anton.
“Yeah, I’ll play,” he says, sitting down on the other side of the table.
“Daphne?” a deep voice calls out in a strained tone.
My heart stops as I turn in my chair and look down at Olivier. His eyes are open, though he’s squinting from the bright light.
“You’re awake!” I cry. “Ohmygosh, you remember my name!”
“What’s going on?” he asks.
“Dad!” Giselle comes over to the bed and throws her arms around Olivier.
“You’re in the hospital,” I explain. “There was an accident. How are you feeling?”
“Like shit,” he croaks. “My head is throbbing.” His chapped lips try to smile. “But you look beautiful.”
Warm tears fall onto my cheeks as I say the words I wasn’t sure I’d ever get to say to him.
“I love you, Olivier. So much. I was stupid about not thinking I wanted a relationship with you. I love you. That’s what I wanted to talk to you about the day of the accident. I wanted to tell you I want us to be together, if you still want me.”
He lowers his brows in confusion. “Of course I do, Daph.”
Happiness blooms inside me as I bend down and kiss him.
“I love you, too,” he whispers against my lips.
“I guess we should get the doctors,” I say.
“I’ll do it,” Jonah offers.
“Is that…Jonah?” Olivier asks, puzzled.
“It is, and Anton’s here, too.”
“How bad are things?” he asks me. “Are all my body parts still attached?”
“They had to amputate your penis, but everything else is fine,” Anton says, keeping a straight face for a couple seconds before grinning and saying, “Nah, I’m just fucking with you, Durand. You’re shoulder’s broken, but you’re gonna be okay.”
“What happened?” Olivier asks. “I remember my meeting at the bank, but that’s it.”
“A piece of stone fell from the top of a building you were about to walk into and hit you,” I say.
“No shit?”
“No shit.”
“Spare no expense,” Grandma Jo says as she walks into the room. “If there’s anything that can help, I’ll pay for it, doc.”
“He’s awake!” I tell her, smiling.
“Awake?” Her face lights up. “And he’s okay?”
“He seems to be.”
“Oh, thank God.” She embraces me and I feel her entire body relaxing with relief.
“Grandma Jo?” Olivier asks.
“Good to see you, Frenchman. You gave us all quite a scare.”
“I’d still like to examine him, if you don’t mind,” a man, who I’m assuming is Dr. Patel, says. “Would that be okay?”
“Of course,” I say.
“I’m Dr. Patel,” he says, extending his hand for a shake. “May I be alone with him for the examination?”
“I guess…that’s okay,” I say, looking at Olivier. “Is it okay with you?”
“Yeah, as long as you guys come back after.”
“We will.”
I bend down and kiss him again, overjoyed that he’s awake. He’ll still have a long recovery ahead of him, but we can handle that. I wasn’t sure I’d get a chance to love him the way he deserves, and now that I can, I plan to love him with everything I’ve got.
Chapter Twenty-Two
Olivier
“The d
octor said sex will help me heal faster,” I say as Daphne sets a glass of water on my bedside table.
“Did he now?” She gives me an amused smile. “Is that some new kind of therapy?”
“Yeah, it’s pretty cutting-edge stuff.”
She sits down on the bed and leans in to kiss my cheek. “Well, anything I can do to speed up your recovery process. But we only have about fifteen minutes until Giselle gets home, so it’s either a quickie or a rain check.”
I groan. “Okay. I guess I can wait until tonight. It takes fifteen minutes just to get me undressed with this goddamn sling.”
I’ve been out of the hospital for two weeks, and while the soreness and bruising are gone, I still have to wear a sling until my shoulder heals. The doctors told me I was lucky that piece of stone hit me where it did—a few inches closer to my head and I would have died. I told them lucky people don’t actually have chunks of buildings randomly falling on them at all, and they couldn’t argue with that.
Even though my left shoulder is useless and I’ll be rehabbing for the foreseeable future, I’ve never been happier. Daphne took a leave of absence from Safe Harbor to care for me, which means a lot. There’s no one I’d rather spend this much time with.
She doesn’t officially live with me and Giselle, but unofficially, she hasn’t left my side except to shower or pick up dinner. She was there the entire time I was in the hospital, and when the doctors suggested a home health nurse for a short period of time, Daphne stepped up and offered.
We didn’t bother to pretend she’s sleeping in a guest room. Giselle knows we’re together, and she loves Daphne. It’s funny how life can change so quickly.
“So you know how we talked about inviting Grandma Jo over for dinner tonight?” Daphne says, giving me a sheepish look.
“Yeah?”
“Well, my parents invited themselves, too.”
“That’s fine.”
She cringes. “I guess I can’t avoid them forever. But it pisses me off that my parents are already trying to capitalize on our relationship.”
I reach my good arm out to embrace her, and she snuggles into my side.
Olivier: A Chicago Blaze Hockey Romance Page 13