Page 30 of Attached At Heart
“Not yet,” Grayson replied with an easy smile. “I’ve got a few weeks still. Get to spend more time with the kids and be Nessa’s number one fanboy at her upcoming shows.”
He glanced at his wife, his expression so full of adoration that the moment suddenly felt intimate.
Noah had told me that it was always like that with them, and since he’d said that pre-Gemma, when he’d been a cocky playboy, he’d mocked their obsession with each other a little bit. But all I felt when I looked at these two and their daughter bouncing on Nessa’s knee was envy.
But I swallowed that envy and smiled. “Where’s your other little one today?”
“Gabe’s back home with his Uncle Beau and Aunt Collins, getting undoubtedly spoiled,” Grayson replied.
I chuckled, recognizing the names as more of Noah’s college friends. Then I turned to Nessa, also known as the indie pop sensation Wednesday Elevett. Delaney listened to her music sometimes, but I’d never told her I’d met Nessa years before she grew into fame.
“Any of those shows around here?” I asked.
“Sadly, no,” Nessa said. She had a twinkle in her eye like she knew that was probably for the best. Like I wasn’tactuallyinterested in going to one of her performances.
But it would have been fun. I could have brought Delaney. Surprised her.
“Just a few in New York,” Nessa added, which piqued my interest.
That wasn’tthatfar away.
I nodded before turning my attention to the real reason we were here: their daughter.
I’d been prepped on their history before their appointment today, so I knew that Grayson was born with a congenital heart defect, coarctation of the aorta, which had been passed on to their older son, Gabriel. Only the defect hadn’t been detected at birth, despite Grayson’s perseverance in having him scanned for it. His aortic coarctation wasn’t discovered until Gabriel was four or five when Grayson took his son back to his own childhood physician for a second opinion.
Gracie’s early scans didnotshow evidence of a heart defect. This was what her doctor back in California had told Grayson and Nessa after her birth, but they were skeptical, understandably. And they wanted a second opinion.
Coarctation of the aorta was manageable and treatable, as evidenced by the existence of Grayson, a star athlete in the NFL. I had my own slight concerns about that, especially as Grayson pushed toward thirty, but that was beside the point of why we were here today.
If aortic coarctation was left undetected, there was a high level of risk, which was also evidenced by Grayson, who suffered a stroke and fell into a coma when he’d been in college with Noah. Such as in Grayson’s case, it was possible that even after corrective surgery, re-coarctation could occur, resulting in constricted blood flow and forcing the heart into overdrive. Butin most circumstances, correcting the defect when patients were young provided good outcomes for a healthy childhood and adulthood.
“So I took a look at Gracie’s scans,” I said, settling into the desk space in the exam room and swiping my badge on the computer to pull up her file. “And I have good news.”
I could practically hear how both Nessa and Grayson held their breath at my words, and I looked over at them with a reassuring smile before Gracie drew my attention with a gurgling giggle. She was an adorable mix of her parents. Her dark brown hair, matching Nessa’s, sprouted from her head in ringlets, reminding me of a hobbit child. And her piercing grayish-blue eyes were the same ones boring into the side of my head, coming from the chair where Grayson sat.
I looked over at him, meeting his concerned gaze.
“I didn’t see anything that’s a cause for worry,” I said before pulling up the scan to show them myself. I wasn’t sure if their previous doctor had done this, but I liked my patients to know my reasoning and feel confident in what I shared with them. When Grayson and Nessa seemed convinced with that, I added, “But we can absolutely run another set of tests for me to take a closer look. I could also, with your permission, pull in my wife to review the results of the new scans. She’s a cardiologist at SCMC who I know has had experience with cases such as yours, and I’m sure she’d be happy to consult with me on it.”
I’d expected it to be hard to remember to refer to Delaney as someone more than a friend or a colleague, but the words came out with so much ease.
My wife.
She was my wife.
Even if it was just a legality, I didn’t fucking care.
Grayson’s expression shifted at the mention of Delaney, like he couldn’t decide if he should have known that I had a wife. Icould tell he was wondering if it was something Noah had told him, and he’d forgotten, or if congratulations were in order. Ultimately, he decided not to say anything, staying focused on Gracie.
I was fine with that—less faking for today.
“I would like that,” Grayson said, and why wouldn’t he? Money wasn’t an object for them, and he came with baggage that I could tell weighed on him. There was guilt in his eyes, guilt that he could pass on something that could possibly harm his children. “Anything we can do to make sure nothing is missed.”
“Sure,” I said with a nod, “let’s see what we can get scheduled for today. And then after I consult with Dr. Delacroix on the results, I’ll reach out to you to discuss.”
Grayson gave me a grateful look before I turned back to the computer to get everything set up so I could put his mind at ease.
Delaney didn’t hear me walk into the apartment when I got home from work, even though she was sitting on the couch, well within earshot. Her attention stayed trained on the puzzle spread across the coffee table, a wineglass dangling between her fingers. She stared without touching it or moving the pieces.
