Page 76 of He Has Charm (Boston Brawlers Hockey)
Twenty-Four
Maddox
It shouldn’t surprise me how early the next morning after my pacemaker procedure my family shows up at my bedside. I’m up and feeling surprisingly energetic and alert and happy to see them all. Mom practically throws herself at me and hugs me like she’s worried I’m going somewhere. And maybe she is. Worried I’ll end up like dad, suddenly dropping dead.
Even with my family around, uneasiness fills me because there’s something—or rather someone missing.
“Give me my phone, Katy,” I say as mom holds my hand, worry in her eyes even as she sports a brave smile, the one I remember from the early days after dad passed. My sister flips me the phone.
“Who do you need to call now? You should rest. The doctors said you should rest.” Without answering my mom, I stab the icon for Harper’s number and listen to the ringing, two, three, four rings and my gut churns as I hope she’s not gone, not ghosting me, not—
“Maddox? How are you? Is everything alright?” Her voice is relieved and worried at the same time and I grin, my entire body feeling lighter, like a dark shadow has passed.
“Look at you, mad man,” Katy says, giving me a teasing smirk, but I don’t care. Mom gives me a quizzical look as I answer Harper, not caring who’s listening.
“I’m good, but I need one more thing to really feel better.” There’s a wary beat of silence.
“What would that be?”
“You. How fast can you get here? I want to see you.”
“I’m there. I’ll run the whole way. Ten, twelve minutes tops.” I laugh and then the line goes dead and I laugh harder, shaking my head.
“Who was that?” Mom arches a brow. “You have something going on we should know about?”
“Could be.” But I refuse to give mom the details since I’m so unsure about what they are, only that I need her here, that her presence settles me, calms me, feels like …
Katy helps by asking me about cooking and I tell her and everyone about our cooking lesson with Jay Santos. By the time I finish detailing the meal we made, there’s a tentative knock on the door to my private room. Katy jumps to answer it.
“Harper,” they exchange a hug and she introduces Harper around as she escorts her to my bedside.
“You’re my son’s agent?” Mom says, sounding confused. I take Harper’s hand, my eyes glued to hers.
“She’s more than my agent, Mom. She’s special.” It’s true and I can’t think of another way to describe her in this moment without getting into the convoluted details. Mom’s eyebrows shoot up and she smiles, giving Harper another closer look and nodding.
“Okay, I don’t know what you have going on at a time like this, honey. All I know is that I want whatever you want.”
Katy squeals with joy and Laurel gives me a sideways surprised smile. Katy must have filled her in on Harper’s status. My two brothers-in-law aren’t shy about their impressed grins because they’re seeing a gorgeous woman, but also sensing there’s a lot more because I don’t introduce girls to the family and call them special. Not. Ever.
“It’s a privilege to meet you all,” she says, sincere and gracious and a little quiet. I take her hand and squeeze it, pulling her down and wrapping a hand around the back of her neck to bring her in for a kiss. Her lips hit mine and I swear there’s a spark because something ignites my blood stream, firing me up when I should feel weak. There’s whistles, hoots and a squeal of surprise from the peanut gallery that is my family as they watch and I let Harper go. Her cheeks are pink and I imagine the warm blush covering the rest of her body. Damn.
We don’t have a chance to speak alone with my family hovering. But there’ll be time. Jett told me she’s in town for another two weeks working on a project. Coach, Finn and O’Rourke pop in to say hello and the room gets crowded. A nurse comes in to let me know that the doctors will be by in a few minutes. That changes the atmosphere because my mom’s face creases with concern and she stands sentinel on the opposite side of my bed from Harper.
The door opens and my cardiologist, Dr. Tuney squeezes into the room with Dr. Manning from Mass General and the team’s physician, Dr. Alvarez.
“Quite a crowd here, Knight. You throwing a party?” Dr. Tuney says. His easy demeanor relieves some of the tension in the room, but my gut wrenches tighter as I introduce my family. Dr. Alvarez introduces Coach, Finn and O’Rourke.
“It’s time we leave and let the docs do their thing,” Coach says, gesturing for Finn and O’Rourke to follow. On his way out, Finn bumps a fist on my bed.
“Take care of yourself and call me later with the low-down,” he says, “we may or may not have bets on your return.” My body tenses but I give him the grin he deserves. Harper squeezes my shoulder, recognizing a sensitive subject when she hears one. Coach and my teammates file out the door and I wonder if they’re about to disappear from my life.
“Maybe I should leave now, too.” Harper leans down, speaking quietly as the people in the room rearrange themselves. No way. Panic sets my nerves on edge.
“I want you to stay. Please.” I clutch her hand and my response may be too intense because her eyes flare. They search mine, full of hope and what I choose to believe is love mingling with that familiar lust. My heart speeds up and the beeping of the machine gets louder, but before panic rises from the surprised faces turning to the monitor, I settle down, the pacemaker doing its job. My cardiologist, Dr. Tuney remains calm and gives me a knowing look as he nods.
He takes point, moving bedside with the other two other doctors flanking him. He picks up the chart and then picks up my wrist to take my pulse then checks the bags of fluid. Dr. Manning checks the monitors close up. My family stands at a distance watching and I hang onto Harper as I feel like I’m getting close to the end of the plank before I take the plunge of a lifetime into the brink of reality. Because I’m about to find out about my fate, and more immediately, the fate of my career.
The team of three doctors dominates the room. They’re here to give me the prognosis and my nerves jump around under my skin making me shaky and my breathing shallow. But the heart monitor I’m still hooked up to blips steadily as if I’m going for a leisurely skate on the pond.
