“Nope.”
“Why not?”
“Because your wife is in a hospital bed.”
It took a beat before he let out a short chuckle and nodded. “Point taken. Okay. Thanks, Nate.”
“Don’t thank me yet. I might run the company into the ground.”
“You won’t.”
“That’s a bold assumption.”
“I trust you.” He stood up and glanced at Jane’s room. “I should get back in there.”
“Yeah. She’s going to be okay,” I said.
He nodded, then strode across the hall and disappeared into the room, the door clicking softly shut behind him. I stayed in the hallway, drawing in a deep breath and trying to steady myself now that he was gone.
Seeing Alex like that had rattled something loose in my chest. I remembered the way it had hollowed him out when we’d lost Mom. The thought of him going through something like that again, even if this wasn’t nearly as serious?
I shoved the idea away before it could take root.Jane is fine. She’s going to be fine. This isn’t that. Not even close.
Still, sitting in this freezing waiting room, I realized that I couldn’t imagine loving someone the way Alex loved Jane andlosing her. Like our dad had lost our mom. I tried shaking the thought out of my head, but by the time I finally managed to get up and leave the hospital, it was already past one in the morning.
The city had that strange, late-night quiet to it, not silence exactly but definitely a softer version of chaos. Even Manhattan needed to breathe eventually, I supposed. The driver didn’t say much on the way back to the hotel, and I was grateful for it.
My head was too full already, between Alex, Jane, the acquisition, the party, and Kate, I wasn’t even sure where to start working through it all. Before I’d gone to the hospital, I’d made sure Kate got back safely, putting her in the car myself and making sure the driver had the right hotel. I’d even given him explicit instructions not to let her out alone.
It had felt excessive at the time, but now, it didn’t feel like I’d done enough. When I got back to the suite, the lights were low, just the warm glow of a lamp on in the sitting area. I moved quietly, walking down the short hallway and pausing outside Kate’s door before I even realized I was doing it.
My hand hovered near the handle for half a second before I told myself not to be ridiculous and turned it slowly. The room was dark except for the faint light spilling in from the hallway, but it was enough to see the shape of her under the blankets, curled slightly on her side with one arm tucked under the pillow.
She was fast asleep, completely unaware of the relief that sped through me when I saw her there. Safe.
I watched her for a moment longer than I should have. Then I pulled the door closed again as quietly as I could, going back to my own room before I crawled into bed with my fiancée instead. I dropped my jacket over the back of a chair and sat on the edge of the bed, pulling out my phone to make sure I set an alarm for the morning.
There was a message waiting for me from Emma, and immediately, my stomach dropped. Usually, seeing her name made me smile, but tonight, it just made me feel like shit.
Emma: Just confirming tomorrow. Noon in Central Park. At the fountain.I’ll be there.
Central Park made sense. It was neutral and public, a place where neither of us would feel cornered. A place where, if this went sideways, if it was some kind of setup or I’d been catfished, I could just walk away. It was also a place where love stories should begin and not end.
I loved Emma. I really, really did. When I talked to her, time just ceased to exist. She was the only person ever who’d made it easy for me to open up. She’d been patient when I’d needed more time before I spoke to her about something hard, like my mother’s death, but she’d also pushed me when I’d needed it.
Saying goodbye to her was going to be absolutely fucking terrible. I already knew it was going to hurt more than I could possibly imagine right now, but it wasn’t right to string her along while I would be marrying Kate. While I couldn’t seem to keep my hands off my future wife and she’d suggested we actually try to make it work.
All I had to do was look Emma in the eyes and tell her I was marrying someone else.How the fuck does something so complicated sound so simple?
I typed out a short reply confirming I would be there. Then I set the phone down on the nightstand and dropped onto my back on the bed. Sleep didn’t come easily, and even when it finally did, it didn’t last.
Every time I drifted off, something pulled me back up again, a sound in the hallway, a passing car, or my own thoughts refusing to shut up. By the time there was a knock at the door, morning light streaming in through the windows, it felt like I’d barely closed my eyes.
I dragged myself out of bed and opened them to find a room-service cart loaded with coffee and breakfast. I frowned. “I didn’t order this.”
“It was ordered for the suite, sir.”
Of course. Kate.
