Page 70 of Promise Me Forever

So many emotions wrestle for dominance that I have no idea which to focus on. There’s worry about Mom, guilt for not being there for her, fear that if I pull Drake into this part of my life, he’ll see how dull my world actually is. And as I turn that one over and examine it, I realize it’s the one that I’m least sure what to do with.

This thing between us is so new, so fragile. There are so many reasons for it not to work. Will it survive something like this? Can it survive it, given his own experiences? It’s clear that he still struggles with his own demons when it comes to his mother’s passing, although he hasn’t shared them with me.

And what the hell is wrong with me? I’m sitting here, worrying about my not-quite boyfriend when my mom is upstairs in a hospital bed.

I head straight back up to her room, determined to push all thoughts of Drake from my mind. Whatever will be, will be.

I reach the doorway to her room and stop dead in my tracks. She’s not alone, and the man holding her hand isn’t a doctor or a nurse. He’s someone I know much better than that. Someone who really shouldn’t be anywhere near us.

“Chad? What are you doing here?”

Chapter

Thirty-Three

DRAKE

The guy standing in front of my girl smiles, flashing a row of perfectly straight, dazzling white teeth that I’d quite happily punch down his throat. Then he holds out his hand. “Chad Poindexter.”

I glance down at his hand but don’t reciprocate. “Yeah, I know who you are.”

Unbothered by my refusal to shake his hand, he smiles wider. “You do, huh? I’m honored to know you’ve heard of me.”

Yeah, don’t be, dickface. I only know who you are because I googled you when I started obsessively cyberstalking your ex-wife because I’m so into her that I had to see for myself what kind of prize jerkwad would let her slip away.

I’d like to say all of that out loud, but Amelia is hovering behind him, her brow lined with worry. She’s all that matters right now, and getting into a pissing match with her ex wouldn’t make things any better for her. She looks so forlorn and troubled, and it breaks my heart. All I want to do is get her away from here so I can wrap her in my arms.

On the journey over, I was pissed at her for not calling me straight away and for behaving like she thought she was bothering me. For even toying with the idea that I was the kindof man who would sit through business meetings while knowing the woman he loves is with her sick mom at the hospital.

Except, yeah, well …

I haven’t told her that I love her yet, have I? It scares me to even admit it to myself, never mind say it aloud to her. So maybe she has every right to doubt me. I managed to calm myself down before I got here, reminding myself that this was all about her, not my injured pride.

Arriving here and being greeted by this douchebag, though, has brought all that anger back up to the surface. What the fuck is Chad up to? She didn’t mention him on the phone, so I have to assume she didn’t know he’d be here.

I ignore him and turn my undivided attention to Amelia. Under normal circumstances, that cute little sundress would be enough to drive me wild, but the tears in her eyes keep my libido in check. “Amelia. How is your mom?”

We’re in the corridor outside her room, and my own stress levels are through the roof. I still bear the scars of spending too much time in places like this during my mother’s treatment. She died at home, but hallways like this one were a big part of our lives for way too long. Everything about hospitals—the smells, the sounds, the pervasive sense of desperation that bleeds from the walls—reminds of the most painful time of my life. I know exactly what Amelia is feeling right now.

She swats a tear from her cheek. “She’s stable. Her oxygen levels are slowly rising, but she’ll need to stay in the hospital overnight. Probably for a few days.”

“I’m so glad I was here for you today, angel face,” Chad says in a saccharine tone. Angel face? Who the fuck gave him permission to speak? Who the fuck gave him permission tolive?

She offers him a halfhearted smile, and I once again resist the urge to punch him in his smug face. “What exactly were you doing here, Chad?” I ask instead.

“I had a meeting in town with some really important investors,” he says, announcing it like he was having coffee and bagels with Jesus fucking Christ. “I’m still on the emergency contact list for Edith, and when they couldn’t initially get hold of Mimi, they tried me.”

Mimi? I didn’t think the prick could be any more annoying, but it looks like I was wrong. He looks at her with a fake-sad expression and pats her on the shoulder like the condescending fuckwit he is. “Good thing I was here, huh?”

I watch her every move. I’m so attuned to her now that I see it all. The slight drop of her shoulder as she subtly moves away from his touch, the nervous way she swallows.

“I think she still got here before you did, Chad, so let’s not plan the medal ceremony just yet, pal.”

She shoots me a quick look that feels like a warning, and I bite my tongue. She doesn’t need any extra crap from me.

“I’m sorry, Chad,” she says, her voice quiet. “I forgot to have you taken off the list. I’ll make sure to get that taken care of.”

“Shh, now. It’s okay.” He tries to pull her into a hug.

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