Page 70 of The Angel and the Agent

They thanked him and he left the room.

“So, I should get going,” Ethan said, his eyes on the blank television.

“Here’s Amelia’s key. Why don’t you swing by her place and pick up a few things before you come back tomorrow. You are coming back tomorrow, yes?”

“Yes,” Ethan said. He held out his hand and she dropped the key into his palm. He chanced a glance at her, but she looked away.

“No eye contact for six weeks. It’s the TMI rule,” she said.

“Right, good,” he agreed, standing.

“Ethan,” she said, and he paused. “You know this makes you my little brother now. You should be prepared because I’m going to bring the hammer, and you will feel the pain.”

“You’re only ten months older,” he noted.

“And I won’t let you forget it until I’m forty, and then we’ll never speak of age again,” she said.

“Good enough,” he agreed, mussing her hair while still carefully avoiding her eyes.

Chapter 25

It seemed Ethan had barely left the room when Piedmont entered, a large bouquet under one arm. Maggie had texted him before the bombshell marriage announcement, but he had been stuck in court and unable to get away. Now of course she regretted the contact, but she couldn’t leave him hanging when he had been so worried for so long.

“Hey, how is she?” he asked, his eyes and tone filled with worry.

“She’s fine. It was a cyst on her ovary that ruptured. It caused a lot of pain, but she’ll recover completely,” Maggie told him.

“A cyst ruptured? What causes that?” he asked, and Maggie choked, turning away to cough into her hand. The noise woke Amelia who stared up at Piedmont, blinking in confusion.

“Hey, bunny,” he said, moving closer to the bed to smooth the hair away from her face.

“Piedmont-t-t-t-t-t,” Amelia said, seeming to get stuck on the last syllable.

“How are you feeling?” he asked.

“T-t-t-t,” she continued to stutter.

“They gave her something for the pain, perhaps a bit too much,” Maggie said, squinting at the IV to try and read the label. Whatever it was, she planned to request it next time she had to be in the hospital. Perhaps even if she was just going as a visitor. Whatever it was, Amelia was flying high and feeling no pain.

“I’m going to stay here with her tonight, make sure she’s okay,” Maggie said.

“I think I should stay,” Piedmont said.

“Um, yeah, that’s really nice, but you’ve had court all day. I’m sure you’re exhausted,” Maggie said.

“I’ve been going out of my mind for days, and now that I have the chance to be with her again, I’m not going to waste it,” he said.

“I think she would feel more comfortable having me here, in case she gets sick or something. She hates throwing up in front of people,” Maggie told him.

“I’m not exactly people, and I’m going to see her throw up eventually.”

Maggie began to sweat. There was a good reason he was a topnotch litigator. But this was an argument she couldn’t lose. Her sister wasmarried. There was no way she could let her boyfriend stay the night while Amelia was unaware. Who knew what she might say or do? In her current state, she could marry Piedmont. Plus she knew Amelia wouldn’t want him there when she came back to her right mind.

“I’d feel more comfortable if I were the one here,” Maggie said.

“I don’t want to pull rank on you, but I’d rather be the one to stay,” Piedmont said.

“In the scheme of rank, I think sister is higher than boyfriend,” she said. In the past, she might have given in and backed down because she hated confrontation and disagreement. But Cam had taught her a thing or two aboutstanding strong and not backing down, and she wasn’t going to lose.

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