“Pres,” I look up, worried, “Lily can’t know. No one can know.” I hook my fingers under the hem of his T-shirt and lift. He takes over, dragging it up and over his head.
His eyes soften in a way that looks suspiciously like gratitude. “Thank you for saying that. I know. I agree.” He tips his forehead to mine. “It doesn’t make you any less mine, though.”
I smile at the sound of that. He kisses me goodnight and strips till he’s down to his boxers. I bat my eyelashes once and fall asleep. To call this day intense would be the understatement of the year. I feel a hundred years older and a million pounds lighter.
I feel better than ever.
CHAPTER FORTY-NINE
preston
The buzzfrom my watch and a soft melody wake me up. I kill the alarm before it disturbs Mia and slip into my daughter’s room without a sound. She babbles nonsense in her sleep, and I try to decode it, chasing fragments of her dream.
I let myself dream wide awake—of a future I’ve got no right to imagine. Too soon. Too sudden. Yet, it warms my chest anyway, a future I’m not meant to hold, not meant to hope for.
Sleep drags me under again, and another alarm wakes me a second time. I climb into Lily’s bed for a cuddle and a tickle while we spin a quick story together. It’s one of our favorite pastimes. When we get up, she changes into her uniform, but her hair is a glorious mess, so I head to the bathroom for a brush.
Mia opens the door of her room, and I change course, striding toward her to steal a kiss and her breath. She’s still catching it, eyes closed, when I turn back and call, loud enough for both to hear, “Look who I found in the hallway.”
She follows me, footsteps uneven. Her smile is bright when she faces me, but it blazes when she turns to Lily. My chest swells, the air getting trapped in my throat.This could work.This could actually work. I let myself daydream a little more.
“Morning, Mia. Come, jump with me.” My little monkey bounces on her bed, one arm stretched in invitation.
“Oh, Lils, I don’t think your bed can handle both of us, love,” Mia says, reluctant but smiling, as she steps onto the air mattress to grab Lily’s hand and boost her higher.
God knows what’s gotten into me this morning, but I add, just before throwing myself onto the other end, “I wouldn’t trust that laminated frame either, but this one’s safe enough. Jump, Lily!”
I land on it with all my weight, and Mia’s feet fly skyward. She crashes onto the double airbed—thankfully ass first—with Lily toppling over her. The mattress blows with a sharp pop, and the three of us go down in a heap of laughter and squeals and laughter until we’re sprawled flat on the floor.
“Dad, where are you going to sleep tonight?” my sensible daughter asks, a worry I do not share.
Mia eases her concern. “I’ll get him a new mattress today, Lils. A sturdier one.”
I get up first and help the girls to their feet. “Do you mind getting Lily ready while I make us breakfast?”
“Thatismy job, Doctor,” she whispers for my ears only.
“Right.” I laugh it off.
Downstairs, I line up protein smoothies for Mia and me and move on to the healthy weekday pancakes. I’m feeling blueberries today.
My phone vibrates on the kitchen island, and I instinctively ignore it. No phones during mealtime. House rules. But it keeps at it. After the third time, I check who’s calling and pick it up when I see it’s April.
“What’s wrong?” No hello. Just concern weighing heavy on my shoulders.
“Pres, Dr. Katherine Holloway’s been in a car accident. She asked to be taken here instead of St. Matthews and won’t let anyone touch her but you.”
“Wait. Kate? Head of Ortho at St. Matthews? My old boss?”
“The one and only. Listen—it’s bad. She’s got a burst fracture at L1, fragments pushing into the spinal canal. No motor function below the waist. If we don’t decompress and stabilize soon, the paralysis could be permanent. She knows it—she’s seen the scans herself, and still, she signed off on the risks and is asking for you.”
“This makes no sense. Why didn’t she go to her hospital, call someone fromherteam?”
“Don’t play deaf. We don’t have time for it. She wantsyou. I’ve cleared it with the board. If you’re up for it, come. Now.”
“Of course I’m coming. It’s Kate. I’ll be right there. Let me talk to Lily and Mia first.”
“Yeah, yeah. But hurry. She can’t afford to wait.”
