Page 72 of Family Bonds- Garrett & Justine

“I’m on the island and was going to call you last night, but got to the house and started to eat and then got a call and next thing I know it’s eleven. I figured you were sleeping,”

“I was,” he said. “Everything okay? Does your bedroom color meet with your approval?”

His sister laughed. “Mom bagged me on that and used me as the excuse to find out what was going on with you. I know it.”

“She did,” he said. “And you didn’t say why you’re texting this early.”

“I’m up and have to go do rounds at the hospital. I needed to confess my sins before I left. Since you don’t know what I’m talking about, I guess I feel better about things.”

He paused for a minute. “What did you do?”

“I stopped to see Justine last night before I arrived home. It was impulsive. I didn’t even know if she was working.”

“She was,” he said. “And I’m going to assume you talked to her since you said you were going to confess. Did you upset her?”

He didn’t get mad at his sister often, but he was going to be pissed if Gabriela set him back when he felt as if he was making some damn progress.

Four months left before Justine returned to Boston, and to him that wasn’t enough time for them to get to where he wanted to be.

“I didn’t upset her. I guess I expected her to be meeker and she wasn’t. She was honest and upfront. I told her that I didn’t want to see you hurt. That you’d had a rough year.”

He groaned and went to the kitchen to make coffee. He was going to need it while he figured out how to do damage control with his girlfriend.

Not that he’d said the word girlfriend, but he was thinking it.

“She’s had a rough year too,” he said. “I told you that.”

“I know,” his sister said. “I acknowledged that too. You don’t have to know our entire conversation. Just know that we are fine. She said her sister would do the same thing to you that I did to her. I like her. I really do. She spoke her mind.”

“She’s good at speaking her mind,” he said.

Which contradicted the fact that she always said she ran or avoided conflict. It didn’t appear that way to him.

“I just don’t want you to get hurt, Garrett. Aside from the patients you lost, there was the whole shit with Taylor.”

“It’s over,” he said.

“She was a bitch and you know it. I’m not sure how you stayed with her as long as you had. She wasn’t there for you when Carol died and when you were dealing with Linda. We all know how much you got along with Linda.”

“That is my fault for getting attached to a patient,” he said. The one he’d lost that reminded him of his mother.

“You can’t help being who you are,” Gabriela said. “I do it with my patients too. It’s hard not to. I’m watching them grow. Some will be in my care for eighteen years.”

Much longer than what he dealt with on average with his patients.

But his sister wouldn’t see as much heartache as he would.

She’d get to see the good milestones. The happy ones.

At least more than the sad ones.

“I know,” he said.

“Taylor leaving when you were struggling with the loss of Linda was wrong. She should have been supportive and all she did was add grief to what was going on.”

“She never understood,” he said.

“She wanted your name more than she wanted you.”

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