“You’re the family member?”
“Yes, can you tell me what’s going on with Maddy Winslow? She’s in surgery?”
The nurse glanced at Avery and back to Owen before lowering his voice. “They are performing a craniotomy now to relieve pressure on her brain. She has a severe head injury that caused brain swelling. The surgery can last two to four hours, depending on the complexity.”
Owen’s mind spun out of control with the information. His singular focus was on Avery. “And how long has she been in surgery?”
The nurse checked his watch.
“Transport came thirty minutes ago, so they should start the procedure any time now. It’s going to be a few hours.”
Owen loosened the tie around his neck, suddenly unable to breathe. He had a long list of concerns, and his anxiety grew with each new one.
Summer placed a hand on his arm and took over with the questions, now that the nurse was sharing information with Owen present.
“What’s the outcome of the surgery? Will this fix her problem or will she require additional treatment? What’s the recovery time for a head injury like this?”
The nurse glanced between the two of them, his tone calm despite Summer’s rapid-fire questions.
“During the surgery, they’ll drill into her skull, and the doctor will drain the blood clot causing the swelling. Afterward, they’ll monitor her to make sure she’s stable and eventually take her for a CT scan tocheck for additional clotting or swelling. If all goes well with the scan, she’ll be released from here, but her recovery could take several weeks to a few months. The doctor will give you more information once she’s out of surgery.”
Owen nodded absently, already thinking about next steps and what he’d need to make Maddy comfortable for her recovery. He might have to push back the soft launch of the bed-and-breakfast. “Thank you,” he said to the nurse.
He gave them a comforting smile. “Hang tight. Someone will let you know when she’s out of surgery. In the meantime, grab some food or coffee. Do whatever you need. It’s going to be a bit.”
“Thanks,” Summer said.
The nurse left them and continued down the hallway toward the nurse’s station.
“Come on.” Summer tugged on his arm, pulling him with her to the chairs where Matt, Avery, and Ava sat together.
Ava’s red dress rippled from her bouncing knee. She gently stroked Avery’s hair as he leaned against her. His heart seized at the image, hope and fear warring for control. Ava fit so seamlessly with their little family, so naturally, like she’d always been there. What would happen if she left?
Matt stood from his chair. “What’s the word?”
Owen rubbed at the back of his neck, his hands restless and his chest burning with anxiety. “She’ll be in surgery for a few hours. Someone will let us know when she’s out. Sounds like she’ll be fine, but the hospital will keep her for monitoring and a CT scan before she can go home,” Owen relayed to them all.
He kept the details of brain swelling and drilling into her skull to himself. Avery didn’t need to know those things.
Matt checked his phone. “I’ll grab us some coffee and food. Sounds like we have a long night ahead of us,” Matt offered. “Want to come with, Owen? Walk off some of that anxious energy?
Owen glanced at Avery and Ava. “Want to come, bud?”
Avery shook his head, not removing it from Ava’s chest, where he leaned against her. “Don’t want to leave Mom. I want to be here when she comes back,” he said.
Owen ached to hold both of them in his arms.
“Alright. We’ll be back,” Owen said. Matt clapped him on the shoulder and the two of them took off.
They walked in silence down the hallway, and Owen let Matt lead the way, too lost in thought to pay attention to where they were going.
Maddy would be fine. Shehadto be fine. He’d make sure of it for Avery’s sake. But she was looking at weeks if not months of recovery from her head injury, and he wouldn’t leave her on her own. She’d need help, and Avery needed to be with his mom after such a scary ordeal.
So where did that leave him and Ava? It wasn’t her responsibility to care for Maddy, or even himself or Avery. They had an agreement to see where things went until she returned to New York for her interview. But that was a week away, and they were no closer to a decision about their future, both of them dancing around the talk that needed to be had. And he no longer had the luxury of time, not with Avery and Maddy depending on him.
Avery was relaxed and comforted by Ava’s presence. Comforted enough to lean on her while awaiting news of his mom’s condition. The realization struck him like a lightning bolt. If Avery felt this close to Ava now, what would happen if she left them? He could’ve lost his mom tonight. He couldn’t put Avery through losing a parent-like figure in his life, not when he already struggled to accept the way Maddy came in and out of his life.
The further he took things with Ava, the worse the fallout would be.
