Page 55 of Taking a King

When Ronan turns back toward the waiting room, I follow him. I’m acting on auto-pilot, I know. But I don’t know what else to do. I tell myself that she’s going to be okay. Hadn’t the doctor just said so? I repeat it over and over in my head as I walk, willing myself to believe it.

Chapter Thirty

Garrett

I pace the length of the waiting room again, skirting around the sick and injured people who are waiting to see a doctor. I have to keep moving. If I sit still, my mind will wander to worst case scenarios, and I can’t handle that. Not right now. Claire needs me to be strong. Each time I close my eyes, I see her as I’d found her. Bleeding, hurt, unconscious in the mangled wreck of her car.

Memories from nearly a decade before, from a different vehicle, different people. A bright, sunny day instead of a dark foggy evening. An explosion. It was so long ago, but right now it feels like it’s happening all over again. I see the faces of the friends I couldn’t save. The blood, the smoke, the fire licking at my legs as I fought to drag Ronan out of the vehicle. It all hovers at the edge of my thoughts and I struggle to push it away. I scrub a hand over my face as I reach the end of the waiting room and turn to walk back the other way.

Ronan stands there, blocking my path. I stop abruptly, pulling up short. For the first time since I got back, he’s not looking at me with anger. His expression is knowing and sympathetic. He puts a gentle hand on my shoulder and steers me over to a quiet corner.

“Sit down,” he says. He hands me a cool bottle of water. “Put that on the back of your neck and take slow, deep breaths. Do you need to go outside? Get some air?”

I shake my head and follow his instructions, forcing myself to breathe slowly and evenly. It takes several minutes, but eventually, I’m able to push away the panic and fear to a manageable place so it can’t take over. It’s been a long time since I’ve had one of those episodes. I’d foolishly thought they were gone for good, though I know better. They’ll probably never disappear forever. I sit up and twist the top off the water bottle and take a long swig. The cool liquid soothes my parched throat and I no longer taste the phantom smoke there.

“Thanks,” I manage.

Ronan just nods. “No problem. You good?”

I nod. “I will be. I know they said she’s going to be okay, but I need to see for myself.”

Ronan studies me for several seconds before he speaks again. When he does, his words take me by surprise.

"I can see how much my sister means to you. And what you mean to her. I don’t think I got it before. I thought it was just a fling, something fun for you while you were on leave.”

Hot anger flares through me and I open my mouth to argue, but he holds up a hand to stall me. “I know,” he says, quickly. “I know you’re not that kind of guy, but she’s my baby sister. I didn’t know what to think. I know better now. I was wrong to stand in your way before. I'm sorry. The truth is, I couldn’t have picked a better man for her. It’s obvious you make her happy. That’s all that matters to me.”

I stare at my best friend, the man who’s saved my life more than once. The man I lied to for months by sneaking around with his baby sister. I’m surprised he can forgive me. Even though we’ve hung out a few times and things between us have been cordial, our interactions have been missing the easy camaraderie we’d had before Claire and I dropped our bomb. I can only hope we’ll be able to get back there someday. Maybe this is Ronan’s way of telling me it’s possible.

"I'm sorry we hid it from you," I tell him. "Truly, I am. I never meant to lie to my best friend. But I'm not sorry for being with her. I won't apologize for that. I love her, man." I shrug. "I just do."

Ronan nods and I see a hint of a smile. "Any idiot can see that. Have you told her yet?"

I shake my head. "I was scared. Kept putting it off. Then I saw her in that mangled car." My voice cracks on the words and I feel my eyes burn. I scrub a hand over my face. "I thought I'd lost her."

I feel Ronan's hand clamp down on my shoulder. "You didn't," he says. "She's going to be okay."

I let out a breath and nod. "I know," I say. "Thanks, man."

I look over toward the rest of the King family gathered nearby, taking up a third of the waiting room. They all look tired and worried, but they’re all together. They’re such a tight family unit. They all have one another’s backs. Claire is lucky to have them.

“Come sit with the rest of us when you’re ready,” Ronan says. “You’re family too.”

I turn to look at him, surprise and gratitude in my expression. I open my mouth to say something, but just then a nurse in dark blue scrubs appears and calls out, "King Family?"

Eight people jump to their feet. "Right here!" The nurse gives us all a startled look.

"Only one visitor at a time," she says, glancing around at each of us. I open my mouth to speak, but no words come out. I'm not technically her family. After everything she said this afternoon, I’m not even sure she still wants to be with me. I don’t know if I deserve to be the first one back to see her. So, no matter how much it kills me, I look at Ronan and gesture toward the door.

"You go first," I say. He just shakes his head.

"No way," he says, flashing me a hint of a smile. "If you don't go tell my sister you love her and she finds out I knew and didn't tell her, there'll be hell to pay. Get your ass in there and make her happy."

I look at the others, but they're all just standing there, waiting for me to decide. It’s clear that what Ronan said is true. They’ve all accepted me into their family. It was me who couldn’t see it until now. I smile at them and dip my head.

“Thank you.”

Quinn steps forward. “I know it’s probably not my job to say it, but if you hurt her, I can have you fed to the gators.” Ronan only shrugs and puts his arm around her shoulders.

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